"Look, there's another one who seems to have a death wish," a boy who looked like a student said to his companion. "It's been a long time since anyone dared to sit with the most famously aloof and beautiful dean of the entire school. That guy's really bold, not afraid to get frozen into a popsicle!"
"Absolutely, the nickname Iceberg Leng isn't for nothing, ah. What happened to all those brave souls who tried in the past?!!" another student whispered in addition!
"Hey, just one look and you can tell this guy's new here, not knowing the situation. Is Iceberg Leng someone you can just approach?! Seriously clueless about life and death!" Yet another voice whispered a continuation!
All these comments, unsurprisingly, reached Lin Feng's ears. Who was Iceberg Leng? What did she have to do with him? It wasn't until these people mentioned her that he raised his head to notice. Turns out, there was indeed a beauty with fair skin and an icy demeanor, dressed in professional attire, eating across from him. Could she be the Iceberg Leng they were referring to?
Lin Feng only glanced over, and if it wasn't for their comments, he wouldn't have paid special attention. Bowing his head again, he continued with his meal.
Leng Mei was the dean of the School of Languages at Yingbo University in Tianhai City, only 28 years old, yet already proficient in five foreign languages and with an ambassadorial level certification. Now, she was striving to conquer her sixth language: French!
She possessed an amazing talent for language learning! Also, due to her natural beauty and cool, detached temperament from an early age, she was not very fond of speaking to strangers. Hence, she always gave off an iceberg beauty vibe, earning her the nickname Iceberg Leng. Over the years, countless admirers of this icy queen at Yingbo University had been left exhausted in both spirit and body!
Because Iceberg Leng not only excelled in foreign languages and had strong managerial abilities, but was also a 7th dan black belt in Taekwondo! Who wouldn't cherish their life? However, there were still a few who, facing death, wouldn't give up the thought of thawing her icy heart, even going to the extent of taking drastic actions. Inevitably, they ended up with broken bones courtesy of Leng Mei and then completely disappeared.
Over time, a saying circulated within the school, "Cherish life, stay away from Leng Mei…"
Leng Mei looked up at Lin Feng who had taken a seat, wondering if the past experiences and warnings had been forgotten. She coldly stared at Lin Feng. After a while, she realized that Lin Feng seemed to not even acknowledge her existence, just focusing on his own meal.
Seeing Lin Feng like this, Leng Mei felt relieved. Thankfully, he wasn't like those previous 'flies'. She decided not to bother with Lin Feng and began to eat her meal, lowering her head. Lately, she'd been stuck on a few tricky areas in her French studies, immersed in trying to figure them out, not even letting go of her tablet which lay there as she ate, glancing at it now and then.
A French translation that had been troubling her for days lingered in Leng Mei's mind, uncertain of how to translate it accurately. When deeply focused, she would forget everything around her, sometimes unable to resist reading it aloud. However, no matter how she read it, it just didn't seem right.
"This phrase should be said like this........." Lin Feng suddenly spoke out in very elegant French, completing the passage that had been troubling Leng Mei.
"Translated, it means 'Forty years ago, when Martin Luther King fell, his phrase 'I have a dream' spread across the world. However, it's important to know that there isn't just an English version of 'I have a dream'. Far in the East, in China, which has continued for thousands of years, there is also a dream. It isn't a grand slogan, nor does it exist within the government. It belongs to every ordinary Chinese person. And it is written in Chinese as 'I have a dream', from Bai Songyan's speech at Yale University 'My Story and the Chinese Dream Behind It'." Lin Feng casually added the full translation and the source of the article!
Upon hearing Lin Feng's words, Leng Mei was momentarily stunned.
To be precise, she was astonished! Who could've imagined that just over a meal, she would encounter someone speaking French so well that he resolved her days-long issue with just a few words? This is what a real expert was! His pronunciation was unmistakably the exemplary Parisian accent, the translation spot on. If one were to only hear his voice, they might be misled into acknowledging him as a genuine Paris native! My god, how did he learn French like this!
What's more important is that he even knew the reference, which was incredibly unbelievable! The article was quite obscure; how could he know? A rapid succession of shocked exclamations virtually short-circuited Leng Mei's brain... After steadying her emotions, she couldn't help but ask in French, "This content is very obscure, how do you know about it?"
"Oh? Nothing much, I saw it before and memorized it," Lin Feng replied casually in French while eating!
"Really? You must have a great memory then. Can you tell me how you learned foreign languages before, and how come your French is so good?" Leng Mei continued to ask in French, pondering if this was a new tactic from someone who sought to pursue her, having done their homework well. But this wasn't something one could just cram, and looking at him… he seemed like just a student, yet his demeanor suggested otherwise.
"Nothing really, just learned it with the computer!" Lin Feng replied in French. Indeed, he spent most of his time in front of a computer, but that was only possible under the special training of the old man, where his memory and comprehension were exceptionally strong, far surpassing that of normal individuals. Of course, without the old man, reaching such proficiency would have been impossible. Even just conversing with the old man required this level of skill, as the old man would say, this was just the basics of speaking.
What??? Is this some kind of mistake? French is one of the most difficult languages to learn, yet he claims to have learned it to this level just by using a computer? Could he be a language-learning prodigy too? Leng Mei was immensely surprised, thinking to herself that there was nobody like that in her language institute. Where did he spring up from?
Leng Mei continued chatting with Lin Feng in French, discussing language learning-related topics. Through his words, Leng Mei felt that his knowledge was wide-ranging and he provided her with many new insights.
As Lin Feng and Leng Mei chatted, the other diners quieted down, each contemplating one question. According to tradition, anyone who sat across from Iceberg Leng never had a good outcome, so how did it suddenly change today? An unprecedentedly safe interaction, and they seemed to be having a pleasant conversation? Is this still the Iceberg Leng we know?
They actually talked for so long, it's unbelievable.
Everyone passing by cast their eyes on Leng Mei and Lin Feng, still chatting, with disbelief in their eyes as they saw Lin Feng still in one piece. They looked as surprised as if they had discovered a new continent because no man had ever gotten within a meter of Iceberg Leng without something happening. No one had ever heard of Iceberg Leng spending time with a man, but today everyone saw this scene and were stunned, still wondering in their hearts, what on earth happened to Iceberg Leng today?
They enjoyed the chat very much because people who could converse in French were quite rare, especially those who spoke it as flawlessly as could be. Leng Mei really enjoyed the feeling of having someone to share a bit of her own experience; it was such a wonderful feeling!
Suddenly, for some reason, Leng Mei had an idea and wondered if Lin Feng could only speak French; before she knew it, she switched to English, "I wonder how your English is?
"It should be so-so, conversational at least!" Lin Feng simply replied in English.
Leng Mei really hadn't expected the young man opposite her to also speak English, and it was bona fide London English at that, without any hint of hesitation. It all sounded so natural, as if he were speaking his mother tongue. A true expert is revealed as soon as they open their mouth. Is this what he meant by "so-so?"
At that moment, even Leng Mei's icy face showed a hint of surprise because, from her experience, mastering a foreign language usually requires living in the respective country for a while. But looking at the young man before her, who seemed to be only in his early twenties, the level of his foreign language skills was shockingly high, nearly catching up to her own younger self!
No way, Leng Mei couldn't stand someone being better than her in languages, as language was her beloved career. She had to be better than everyone; this was her pride!
Therefore, with a bit of a tactic in mind, Leng Mei wanted to bring the game back home. She unknowingly switched to Russian, "I wonder if you can converse in Russian?"
"I can speak a bit of Russian!" Lin Feng switched languages once again, this time responding in Russian!
God, he speaks Russian too, how is that possible? Mastering three languages, how did he learn them at such a young age? Leng Mei's mind was now stormy. When she was his age, she hadn't mastered three languages. What kind of monster had appeared? Thinking about it, Leng Mei felt she couldn't bear Lin Feng's impressive language proficiency; it was a bit of a blow to her self-esteem!
Three languages, huh? I can speak six! Leng Mei was now fired up, determined to outdo Lin Feng!
Leng Mei changed the language to German, "Let's see if you can keep up this time?"
"How can I keep up if you don't tell me what I'm keeping up with?" Lin Feng answered in German, looking at Leng Mei. He thought to himself, what is the deal with this Iceberg beauty today!
Getting competitive with him, changing the language four times.
What???
Where did this young man come from, fluent in four languages?
At such a young age, even our genius and beautiful Dean Ding Wan'er wasn't at this level; but, after all, Ding Wan'er is Stanford University's "Chinese legend"!
Leng Mei found it hard to accept the fact that the young man opposite her was proficient in four languages. How could others live with this reality?!?! Leng Mei felt extremely dismayed and frustrated in her heart...
Suddenly, the language of the conversation was changed by Leng Mei to Korean, "I hope you don't understand what I'm saying!"
"Sorry, I understand..." Lin Feng responded in Korean.
Now, Leng Mei felt like she was facing a prehistoric monster, about to gobble her up. She was 28 and had only mastered five languages, with French about to be completed soon! This young man, she couldn't find the words to describe him...
There was only hope in Japanese left, Leng Mei decided it was now or never; the language of the chat changed to Japanese, "I don't believe you know Japanese!"
"I'm really sorry, Japanese is the language I'm best at because I need it to watch movies..." Lin Feng answered in the most standard Japanese accent.