Shao Xue was deeply grateful to Zhang Qi for bringing his girlfriend home to meet his parents. It finally allowed her a brief escape from the relentless questioning of Shao Hua and Yu Dong Ge: “When did the two of you get together?” and “You haven’t come home in years—do you even have a conscience?”
But what puzzled her was how highly Zheng Su Nian spoke of Zhang Qi’s girlfriend, despite never having met her.
After meeting their parents, it was only natural to catch up with their two childhood friends. Zhang Qi’s girlfriend, Wei Mingxin, was a PhD in psychology from Columbia University. Her eyes weren’t big, but they sparkled with the wisdom of someone who could see through people.
It was the marriage of intellectual elites, ensuring the continuation of exceptional genes in the next generation.
Shao Xue, being a language major with exceptional memory and associative skills, immediately perked up when Zhang Qi casually mentioned, “She used to be my senior at Peking University.” Shao Xue instinctively asked, “The one who insisted on a formal goodbye?”
Wei Mingxin looked puzzled.
Zhang Qi, realizing what was coming, ran off in a panic, chased by both Shao Xue and Zheng Su Nian, who shouted while hitting him, “You hooked up so early and never told us! You even pretended to be noble, saying ‘goodbyes should be formal!’ Where’s your loyalty…”
Zhang Qi suddenly stopped and shouted, “When did the two of you get together without telling me?”
Wei Mingxin, now enlightened, softly said, “Oh, so you’re the childhood friend who kept multiplying two to the power of six and scored thirty-two on your math exam?”
Zhang Qi’s face flushed red, then white. Whatever slight advantage he had gained quickly crumbled as Shao Xue clutched her chest in mock outrage: “Zhang Qi, you value love over friendship! How could you spill all our secrets!”
Zhang Qi was still a PhD student, earning far less than his girlfriend, who already held a psychologist’s license. He shamelessly accepted his fate as an intellectual “kept” by his higher-earning partner. When he occasionally splurged on a designer bag for Wei Mingxin using his scholarship money, he nearly felt like dying. The rest of the meal was spent with him and Zheng Su Nian lamenting what it’s like to have a girlfriend who earns more.
After the meal, the conversation between the two men quickly shifted from romantic experiences to matters of state and nation. Bored, Shao Xue dragged Wei Mingxin to buy makeup. Wei wandered through the eye makeup section for a while before purchasing an entire eyebrow kit.
She explained, “Because I don’t have eyebrows.”
Her candid admission of her flaw made Shao Xue feel that this brilliant scholar was much more relatable.
On the way back, Shao Xue couldn’t resist her curiosity. “So, how did you and Zhang Qi end up together?”
Wei Mingxin thought for a moment. “He had a crush on me in college.”
“You’re that sure?”
“I study psychology, after all.”
“Later, he was about to go abroad, and he didn’t confess. We both thought it was a lost cause, so we didn’t bother saying anything. But when I got an offer from Columbia for my master’s, he was the one who picked me up at the airport.”
“After that, it just naturally happened. He shamelessly drove to my school every week to see me. When I graduated and found a job near him, we officially got together.”
As Shao Xue listened, she couldn’t help but admire how simply and efficiently these intellectuals handled their love lives. If everyone made such straightforward decisions, the world would probably have far fewer heartbroken lovers.
When they returned to the restaurant, Zhang Qi finally noticed that the two women had disappeared and reappeared.
“What did you two get up to?”
“Just shared some gossip about you.”
“What?” Zhang Qi looked alarmed.
Wei Mingxin leaned forward, amused, and said, “Something about how even the second Hua Luogeng has to eat chicken wings, and being the ‘Light of Peking University.’”
Zhang Qi exclaimed, “Shao Xue, I’ll get you for this!”
){kind=link}
0 Comments