"Hey, you two have been chatting here for ages, are you going to return the books or not?"
Ultimately, it was the library administrator who was in charge of maintaining the books that couldn't stand it any longer, she didn't care about star students or international exchange students. No matter how prestigious the students were, they had nothing to do with her, but chatting nonstop at the very center of the book return area was not acceptable.
The main issue was the scent coming off the Westerner, it was quite overpowering before one got accustomed to it, truly unbearable.
"Right, right, returning books, returning books, haha, bro, let's chat another time, I'm actually quite interested in existentialist thought," Chen Yiwen said with a beaming smile.
Although he wasn't like Qiao Ze, who could figure out if someone was a spy by asking just one question.
But at the very least he had learned from Qiao Ze to think about the details.
His girlfriend had obviously shown displeasure at his scent, and this guy just happened to mention the book he had recently borrowed; it was clear he had done his research on him, and hastily so.
If he had spent a little more time, he would have known that when it came to philosophy, he was still an outsider.
He read these things simply so he wouldn't be at a loss for words when speaking eloquently.
After all, philosophy might seem useless, but some of the phrases in it are indeed quite impressive.
For example, "What you fear controls you," "Smart people are full of doubts, while fools are steadfast," "Wealth is like seawater, the more you drink, the thirstier you become."
Regardless of whether these phrases are useful or not, just casually dropping one in conversation is pretty badass, right?
Especially when tricking fools, who have never heard these sayings before and might just think these are his personal insights, making him appear to have depth of thought. "I give two million to those who betray me, so those who remain loyal to me could earn hundreds of millions in the future! Applause if you understand!" Even fools would believe such nonsense, so Chen Yiwen really believed that if he occasionally spat out an impressive line, people would treat him like a life mentor.
So Chen Yiwen never really cared about the authors when he read such books, since whatever he said, it was as if he himself had said it.
If someone doubted, he would respond, "Oh? Someone else has thought the same thing?"
That was enough to show a sense of higher wisdom.
Yes, Qiao Ze was like a catalyst, every person who contacted him could undergo a series of indescribable changes. Take Chen Yiwen for example, his original ambition was to become a mathematician, but now it was clear he had changed tracks and had gone too far down the road of pretentiousness to turn back.
So saying this phrase now was really just a final test.
Saying goodbye without leaving any contact information was a way to see the other person's reaction.
If he was eager to get his contact information or wanted to have a deeper conversation, it would mean this guy was a spy who was supremely stupid.
If this guy could also laugh it off and say goodbye, then it meant this time his opponent was a bit clever and worth expending a bit more effort to deal with.
The outcome was somewhat disappointing; from the other party's reaction, this guy really was a fool.
How little did they think of him?
The person they sent to corrupt him was not a beauty, to begin with, and on top of that, they smelled and didn't seem very smart.
Could it be that they took him for a fool?
Indeed, Chen Yiwen never realized that he had received hints early on and was only doing this with a fishing mentality, which made him appear detached. Of course, making a self-satisfied person realize his own shortcomings was truly difficult.
"Right, return the books first. Uh, Chen Yiwen, could we add each other on WeChat first? You know, I want to brag to my classmates that I've met a big celebrity from our school."
"Haha, sure thing. But I'm no big celebrity, just basking in the glory of my great brother, God Qiao, the one you all love, the developer of Dou Dou. Adding on WeChat is no problem; we'll keep in touch later."
"Yeah, definitely keep in touch," Ben Ronny replied with a sunny smile.
He originally planned to invite Chen Yiwen to have lunch together, but now he had changed his mind and decided to go back to the dormitory for a shower first.
That woman was horrible!
"Chen Yiwen, I didn't realize you had the potential to fawn over foreigners. I haven't seen you so enthusiastic with other unfamiliar classmates," Deng Tingting criticized after he finished returning the books.
Once Ben Ronny left, turning around with a smile and nodding to Deng Tingting, he nearly made the young girl vomit.
Xilin often saw foreigners, but Deng Tingting had never communicated closely with them.
Although Deng Tingting had signed up as a volunteer when Qiao Ze held a lecture at Xilin, those big shots didn't spray a lot of cologne on themselves, and even if they occasionally smelled a bit, it was still tolerable.
This guy was different; his scent was really too strong, and she had wanted to pull Chen Yiwen away for a while.
"Look at you, talking nonsense. Am I fawning over foreigners? I'm just trying to display the broad-minded international image of us Huaxia people," Chen Yiwen retorted.
"Pfft! I think you're just fawning over foreigners. His scent was so unpleasant, yet you could still chat with him for so long," Deng Tingting said with disdain.
"You just don't understand, do you? God Qiao once said, we shouldn't discriminate against fools because they have lower intelligence, because in terms of personality, everyone is equal. Likewise, we shouldn't discriminate against others just because they smell a bit strong, right?"