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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 131: Earthquake Debate (Part 2)
At this moment, while the homeroom teacher Wu Yongsheng was still on the podium discussing her personal views, Wei Yuan had lost interest in listening to such content.
He did not feel any sympathy for the natural disaster in Sun Country, nor would he stand up to applaud or cheer. He had no interest in engaging with their humanistic concerns; he simply chose to ignore it.
If a large number of your enemies suddenly seemed to have died, you might applaud and even cheer loudly for months on end.
However, if the unfortunate ones were merely those who had harmed your compatriots decades ago, and you couldn't even identify who was responsible, then it was better to just ignore it. You live your life, and they die theirs.
Wei Yuan's mindset was somewhat like this. However, not everyone shared his perspective. Wei Yuan had been missing from class for a month before returning, and now that he had been absent for another week and walked back into the classroom, his classmates had already gotten used to it.
They naturally wouldn't pay much attention to this anymore. But their Vice Class Leader, Chang Wei, looked at Wei Yuan with a venomous glare, as if his eyes were conveying a message: "You might as well disappear forever; why are you even back?"
Of course, Wei Yuan's presence was bound to disappoint him. Seeing Wei Yuan sitting next to Lan Xue, who seemed incredibly close to him, made Chang Wei feel even worse. If there were no teachers around, Chang Wei probably would have reached out with his hand in jealousy.
At least that's how he saw it. A pure, lovely girl like Lan Xue should be with someone like him; how could she possibly like someone like Wei Yuan? Chang Wei was perplexed because, in his mind, nothing about Wei Yuan compared to himself.
"Sorry to disappoint you."
Wei Yuan seemed to see through Chang Wei's thoughts. Noticing the way Chang Wei stared at him like a venomous snake, Wei Yuan no longer acted impulsively as he once did. With a smile on his face, he turned around and greeted Chang Wei. However, this remark only served to provoke Chang Wei further.
Bastard, how could he be so smug?
Chang Wei was extremely displeased, but they were in the teacher's office at that moment. Even if he wanted to do something about it, he felt powerless and could only watch as Wei Yuan flaunted his self-satisfied demeanor.
"The earthquake in Sun Country is currently attracting global attention. How will this economic powerhouse respond after such a major natural disaster? And what mindset should the Huaxia Ethnicity adopt when viewing this event from such an awkward position?"
The homeroom teacher, Wu Yongsheng, was still chattering away at the podium, as if she had a grasp on the direction of the college entrance examination questions, insisting that all subjects could potentially be related to the "Sun Country" earthquake.
As students, especially during this sensitive period just over a month before the exam, every word from the teachers could be crucial regarding the exam questions and their own significant interests. Therefore, everyone listened attentively, with some even taking notes.
Even Lan Xue was jotting down Wu Yongsheng's remarks in a notebook, and she kindly reminded Wei Yuan, "Hurry up and write it down; it might just be an exam question."
Wei Yuan smiled at her and did not stop her. In this regard, Lan Xue was one of those students who excelled at learning and was particularly good at exams. She knew how to capture every moment and seize all possible opportunities to earn points.
However, Wei Yuan did not want to see himself as merely an exam machine. He understood that analyzing the likelihood of question topics rationally meant that even if it were indeed this direction, it could not possibly be such a question.
The answer was clear: the Huaxia Nation harbored deep-seated animosity towards Sun Country for decades. This was an unresolved ethnic hatred and a serious political issue.
The Huaxia Government's stance had always been one of friendly relations between the two countries to promote good economic development. This idea was contrary to many young people's sentiments, especially those of Wei Yuan's age. If questions were truly framed in this direction,
then there would only be two types of responses on each exam paper: one would reflect false humanitarian concern, using flowery language to pile on their compassion with the aim of scoring more points; the other would be from angry youths who would fill their papers with curses and gloating.
Of course, there were also people like Wei Yuan who completely ignored the plight of Sun Country's people. Such individuals would face a dilemma:
they simply wouldn't know how to begin writing.
Considering all these factors, Wei Yuan could basically conclude that the Examination Authority wouldn't be so foolish as to create such questions since they could easily provoke unusual emotions among the populace.
"In light of this major disaster, we do not rule out the possibility of it becoming an exam question. Therefore, I encourage everyone to share their insights on this issue. Any student with valuable opinions can raise their hand."
This was one aspect of Wu Yongsheng that Wei Yuan appreciated; her classes were not merely about monotonously lecturing from a textbook until everyone felt drowsy.
Instead, she often liked to pose a question and let students express their views. In such an atmosphere, interaction among students flourished, and what they heard was no longer formulaic language but rather an opportunity for everyone to showcase their eloquence.
This is the content that Liu Haisheng often discusses with Wei Yuan, hoping to find opportunities to improve the way students attend classes, increasing interaction so that everyone learns to think. This is a very important matter.
Everyone should be a unique individual, rather than something produced on an assembly line in a factory, all carved with the same pattern. That would be a truly sad thing.
Suddenly, the homeroom teacher Wu Yongsheng shouted loudly, "Great! We see Chang Wei eagerly raising his hand to express his opinion. Let's give him a round of applause!"
Her expression was very excited, and her startled demeanor frightened everyone. However, it was this kind of enthusiastic attitude that inspired Chang Wei. He stood up, filled with emotion, and said, "Regarding the major earthquake disaster of magnitude nine that occurred in Sun Country, I believe that as a neighboring country, we have already provided sufficient humanitarian care and assistance."
Wu Yongsheng did not stop him; she only encouraged him, saying, "Everyone can have different opinions. Please continue."
Chang Wei felt encouraged and continued his speech passionately: "I think at this time, many compatriots who are gloating over the disaster are being somewhat unkind. This only shows that our quality is still lacking. I believe we should abandon some extreme views."
Chang Wei seemed quite emotional, but no one present was moved by him; even the girls in the class looked disdainful and instead showed contempt for him.
Wei Yuan quietly laughed and scolded, "This big fool, what is he pretending to be so compassionate for? Ugh!"
To be fair, Wei Yuan felt that this guy just wanted to take the opportunity to speak up and show off in front of others, especially in front of some girls to display his kindness.
However, he miscalculated; the relationship between Huaxia Ethnicity and Sun Country is too sensitive. The invasion from decades ago and the three hundred thousand unclaimed souls undoubtedly negate such views.
And this time, in the face of the magnitude nine earthquake disaster, while some may gloat over it, there will indeed be soft-hearted people who express sympathy. However, at this moment, any extreme viewpoint could spark controversy and even be drowned out by criticism.
That is why Wei Yuan chose the most rational approach: to simply ignore it.
Are you dead? Or not dead? I am just here, indifferent.
Of course, one person did not allow Wei Yuan to remain silent; Chang Wei clearly heard Wei Yuan's words. He suppressed his anger and wanted to embarrass Wei Yuan.
Chang Wei had always thought that Wei Yuan was not particularly eloquent, so he seized this weakness and said, "Teacher Wu, it seems that Wei Yuan has a different opinion; why don't we let him express it?"
As their homeroom teacher, Wu Yongsheng advocated for this kind of interactive teaching method. Upon hearing Chang Wei's words, which pointed directly at Wei Yuan, who usually preferred to stay out of the spotlight, Wu Yongsheng was also curious to hear what Wei Yuan would say.
So she smiled and said, "Wei Yuan, why don't you stand up and share your thoughts?"
"Me?"
Wei Yuan appeared uncertain. He ignored the matter or simply did not want to discuss the topic, feeling that in the face of ethnic conflicts and natural disasters, no matter what stance one took, there would always be someone to refute it. In extreme cases, one could even end up being harshly criticized.
Thus, he remained silent. However, deep down, he leaned towards a somewhat gloating perspective because he had seen many films and read numerous books of this type before and held no good feelings towards Sun Country.
If it weren't for their adult films and comics still having some redeeming qualities, then to him, Sun Country was merely a technologically advanced nation.
Chang Wei said, "Everyone here is a classmate. If you have any opinions, just speak up. Being so shy doesn't seem very manly at all."
Taking advantage of Wei Yuan being called out, Chang Wei began to apply pressure from the crowd, wanting to see if Wei Yuan would speak up and hoping to witness him make a fool of himself.
Wei Yuan had no choice but to muster his courage and stand up shyly, saying, "Personally, I support Teacher Wu's viewpoint."
As soon as these words left his mouth, everyone looked as confused as a monk who couldn't understand anything. Previously, Wu Yongsheng hadn't expressed any opinion on this issue at all; did Wei Yuan's statement imply that he didn't know what to say and just blurted something out in nervousness?
At least that's how it seemed to Chang Wei. Hearing Wei Yuan's words only made Chang Wei more eager to see if he would make an even more foolish statement next.
Unfortunately for Chang Wei, Wei Yuan did not play along. He continued explaining, "What I mean is that I support Teacher Wu's idea that everyone should have the opportunity to express their opinions."
Once Wei Yuan said this, everyone suddenly understood. He then added, "Regarding this incident, my personal view is that I feel nothing—neither particularly thrilled nor sad."
"Cold-blooded animal."
Chang Wei loudly commented on him, but the voices supporting him were few and far between. It was clear that Wei Yuan's statements resonated more with the crowd; isn't being represented a common occurrence these days?
However, Wei Yuan's words sounded much more agreeable. At least his feelings were his own, unlike Chang Wei, who spoke of nations and ethnicities as if he could represent everyone's views, which only made him unpopular.
Hearing this reaction, Chang Wei said again, "I know you are still tangled in history, but every nation's expansion is a bloody history; it is an inevitability of history. Just like General Bai Qi of Qin, who slaughtered four hundred thousand people from Zhao. To the people of Zhao, he is a butcher, but to the Qin state, he is a hero."
Chang Wei passionately continued, "Can you criticize the wolf for its cruel methods of preying on sheep? To the women and children in the wolf pack, it brings food, so it is a respected hero. Can you criticize the wolf for its cruel methods of preying on sheep? To the women and children in the wolf pack, it brings food, so it is a respected hero."
Although he kept stirring emotions, there was little response from the audience; instead, some began to discuss among themselves, clearly perplexed by his words, as if they were watching a fool.
Wei Yuan coughed and said, "To us, are they butchers? So is it wrong for us to hate them? Can a Magnitude Nine Earthquake offset three hundred thousand unclaimed souls? The reparations from those defeated nations could be considered donations, right? Do we need to pray? They have their shrines to protect them."
Wei Yuan's words stirred excitement among everyone; soon people began to debate loudly, especially as some started pointing at Chang Wei and mocking him.
"To forget the past is to betray."
"This guy must be a dog raised by someone; he has the image of a lackey."
Hearing such discussions and mockery only made Chang Wei more displeased. "Yue Fei can be seen as a sinner hindering national integration. To this day you still question whether Yuan Chonghuan is a hero? Ridiculous! What qualifications do you have to stop Island Nation from visiting shrines? Those are heroes who expanded their territories; whose empire wasn't built on piles of corpses?"
"And most of those invaders from that era have already passed away; hatred should fade with time rather than persist indefinitely."
Chang Wei continued with his foolish theories. Wei Yuan simply rebutted again: "We Jinghai people have a saying: 'Cattle plow the fields, horses eat grain, while old beans earn money for their descendants to enjoy—since it is natural for descendants to continue their ancestors' achievements, then repaying ancestral debts is even more justified.'"
What started as merely expressing opinions on one issue seemed to have turned into a debate about earthquakes now?
"Even if we succeed in taking revenge, what does it matter? Strengthening the country is the best way," Chang Wei said rationally.
Wei Yuan did not deny that he was right, but often when you dislike someone, everything they say is still very annoying.
For example, the vast majority of people in the class had this attitude towards Chang Wei. Wei Yuan finally retorted, "Even if we successfully take revenge, will we be happy? Ridiculous. Letting my enemies live freely while we watch makes us happy? All hatred can only be washed away with blood. If I can't have a good time, why should I let you?"
"Wei Yuan is doing great."
"Awesome, brother, we support you."
At this moment, everything became clear. Although this topic never reached a conclusion, Wei Yuan's remarks were clearly more favored by everyone. They felt it was something a true man should say.
Moreover, among those supporting him were several female classmates. Wei Yuan enjoyed speaking from a position of justice and patriotism, relishing the feeling of being admired.
However, Chang Wei was out of luck. Despite racking his brain to express his thoughts through seemingly profound statements, the reality was that he was completely ignored and even looked down upon by everyone.
Seeing the situation turn so one-sided, some classmates were already stirred up by Wei Yuan's words. If Chang Wei continued with more provocative remarks, he really couldn't imagine whether a fight would break out in the class at any moment.
As high school seniors facing college entrance exams, if such an incident occurred during this sensitive period, it could attract widespread attention and the consequences would be dire.
After all, these students were young and impulsive; hearing Chang Wei's words clearly made them very unhappy. If he continued to provoke them without realizing the danger, it would ignite the fire within everyone.
Wu Yongsheng believed that regardless of what kind of farmer entrepreneur Chang Wei's father was or how deep his background was, those students would likely not hold back their tempers.
"Alright, everyone's contributions have been very active. I believe if questions about this topic arise in the exam, everyone will handle them well. Now there's a little time left for you to review on your own."
The homeroom teacher Wu Yongsheng was suddenly frightened by all the students' emotions and decisively stopped this topic. At this moment, Wei Yuan sat in his seat, clearly wanting to laugh out loud but felt it was inappropriate for the environment.
He had long considered that such a situation might occur. In fact, discussing this topic publicly would inevitably spark a heated debate, as people's emotions are easily influenced by their surroundings.
It was just like how everyone in the class viewed Wei Yuan as the righteous one. On the contrary, no matter how well Chang Wei performed, he was already perceived with immense dislike. The two were quickly labeled as good and bad by those classmates who still had relatively simple thinking.
"Do you really enjoy being the center of attention?" Suddenly, Lan Xue asked beside him.
Wei Yuan knew she was warning him to focus on preparing for the college entrance exam and not to provoke Chang Wei at this time. On this point, Wei Yuan could only verbally agree with her for now, pretending to be confused. He said, "Let's just focus on reviewing; we need to prepare for the exam."
He was not someone who shied away from trouble; he simply didn't want Lan Xue to worry too much. After all, even if he didn't think of himself, he didn't want any distractions that might affect Lan Xue's study mood, especially since her grades were quite good.
"If there's anything you don't understand, just let me know," Lan Xue said.
Wei Yuan opened his specialized review materials for ancient poetry and then asked Lan Xue, "What does this poem mean?"
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