Since the first day Mu Hongli entered Shanghai International Studies University, she has been sitting right in the middle of the first row for all her courses. There is a rule in universities that the seat you choose determines your academic performance in college. This rule may not apply to everyone, but generally speaking, it's more or less accurate. Today is an oral training class on famous Russian literary works. The lecturer, a young teacher with a sharp edge, is very controversial in the university.
Mu Hongli was still sitting in the middle of the first row today. With five or six minutes to go before class, she opened a small collection of works by Simeon of Polotsk, a court poet in the 17th century, and read it with great interest. If you want to learn a foreign language well, without putting in passion, it will be an agonizing and arduous task.
The Russian Department has always been a department with a special status in Shanghai International Studies University. Because the predecessor of SISU was the Shanghai Russian - language Specialized School, the Russian language and literature discipline is usually regarded as the cornerstone of SISU. Since Mu Hongli was admitted to the Russian Department of SISU, she has always been very popular. As a Russian - major student, she can also speak fluent English, French and German, almost all reaching the level of professional translation. In addition, she is of the self - respecting type with strict family education. She has all the qualities that a lady should have. During the three years in college, she has been alone all the time, and no lucky guy has become her official escort.
In fact, there is no universally - recognized campus belle in universities. Not to mention prestigious institutions like Peking University and Tsinghua University, even schools like Shanghai Theatre Academy, Central Academy of Drama, and Beijing Film Academy rarely have beauties who can win the top honor and be widely accepted. In an era of information explosion where almost any livestock can desecrate the face of a female star, everyone is visually fatigued and has much more demanding tastes. However, although Mu Hongli may not be called the campus belle of SISU, within the Russian Department, no one can shake her position as the top beauty. During the three years in college, among the three previous senior classes and the two subsequent junior classes, she is like an unshakable champion on the stage. No "female warrior" has been able to defeat her. Mu Hongli is highly popular throughout SISU.
Luo He, the lecturer with a baby face, looks very young. He has been in Shanghai International Studies University for less than two years. He is so young that when walking on the campus of SISU, he looks no different from ordinary college students. However, he is a genuine doctor of Beijing Foreign Studies University. He teaches with great passion and makes extensive references. He speaks fluent Russian. When he first stepped onto the podium, he recited Pushkin's "If Life Deceives You". With his cadence, a large number of girls in the audience were amazed and screamed continuously. At that time, Mu Hongli was sitting in the first row. It also happened to be her first class with Luo He. She had no feelings for this male teacher with constant scandals and clearly drew a boundary.
Luo He could always burst out with extraordinary enthusiasm in the classes where Mu Hongli was present. The look in his eyes when he gazed at Mu Hongli was also filled with a well - hidden and subtly crafted fervor within its implicitness. He had indirectly inquired about Mu Hongli, the popular figure in the Russian Department, in the college office. She was from Beijing, and both of her parents were officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Most of the family members were also dedicated to the diplomatic cause. Although not particularly prominent, it was undoubtedly a traditional intellectual family. Luo He regarded Mu Hongli as the right woman for him in his life. But he was not a rash young man and knew to proceed step by step. After confirming that there were no competitors around Mu Hongli worthy of attention, he became more composed. Today, he was in a good mood. Basically, on the days when he could display his profound Russian skills in front of Mu Hongli, Luo He had a sense of satisfaction. The only flaw was perhaps that he saw a strange face in the back row of the classroom. Luo He keenly noticed that the male student's eyes would glance in Mu Hongli's direction from time to time. Luo He immediately determined that this was yet another overconfident suitor. For this kind of "flies", he had a graceful way to make them back off when faced with difficulties.
Luo He was going to focus on Tolstoy today and mainly talk about two of that writer's works. He first created a bit of suspense and said in fluent Russian, "A Russian critic once said that in the whole 19th century, there had never been such a work. It is superior to 'Les Misérables' because there is nothing fantastic, fictional, or fabricated in it. It's all about life itself. Class, those who know this work, please tell me."
The strange student sitting at the back wrote "Resurrection" on a piece of white paper. Almost at the same time, Mu Hongli said confidently, "It's Tolstoy's 'Resurrection'."
Luo He said with satisfaction, "Yes, it's 'Resurrection'. This work is the 'highest peak' among Tolstoy's three masterpieces. It is different from the unrest beneath the waves. It is a kind of compassion in old age yet not decayed. I read 'Resurrection' a long time ago and felt that Tolstoy is truly remarkable. For the simplest example, there is a female character in his writing, Maslova, a prostitute, but she gives people a sense of holiness. However, the carefully crafted images of holy women in too many novels can only give people a sense of meanness. From this, we can see the gap in the realm between a master and ordinary writers."
"When reading 'Resurrection', one must be prepared to shed a tear for the unfortunate."
"As for 'War and Peace', with more than a thousand vivid characters, it is an encyclopedia. Understanding it is equivalent to understanding Russia during that era."
Luo He began to talk in a leisurely and engaging manner, constantly disassembling and recombining, and elaborating on Tolstoy's writing techniques and literary artistic conception through some comparisons. Before they knew it, the class quickly passed by during Luo He's highly expressive lecture. Only a few scattered key words were written on the blackboard.
During the break, Luo He walked around the classroom a little, chatting with the students who adored him about the most popular topics of the moment, showing that he was not pedantic or rigid. Some girls also got close to him very affectionately. Only the main character Mu Hongli was a bit indifferent and continued to enjoy the rare collection of the court poet. When the bell rang for class, Luo He glanced at the strange student who was still holding his ground and smiled. It was good to have perseverance, but the harder one worked on the wrong path, the further one deviated from the goal. He would teach the "rival in love", who was not in the same league, this profound truth next.
Luo He smoothly wrote a long string of Russian on the blackboard. Then he put down the chalk, clapped his hands, looked around, and said with a smile, "I'll ask a student to read this and then translate it. It's not difficult, right?"
Finally, as expected yet somewhat surprisingly, Luo He "discovered" the boy in the back corner. He pointed at him with an inscrutable smile and said, "This classmate, please read it aloud."
Mu Hongli keenly sensed a whiff of conspiracy and suddenly turned her head. As a result, she saw an absolutely unexpected face. The guy stood up, looking honest and simple, scratched his head, and hesitated to speak.
Luo He smiled "friendly" in Russian and said, "Is there a word you're not familiar with? Or is there a problem with the grammar?"
The boy, whose appearance was not particularly distinctive, said in a voice that was neither timid nor self - righteous, "I'm not good at speaking."
Of course, he explained his predicament in Chinese.
Luo He wasn't angry at all. He continued to say calmly in beautiful Russian, "Then just say one word. It shouldn't be too difficult a request. I've never objected to students from other classes who love Russian coming to audit. In fact, I'm very welcoming. But if you're just trying to find a place to doze off, I really can't think of any reason to convince myself to let you stay."
Mu Hongli looked astonished because the guy standing there was the "blind" suitor from her younger brother's school, a boy who called himself Zhao Jiadi.
She had no idea how he had found the Russian class at SISU. It made her feel that it was very dramatic and like a fantasy.