Good heavens, Lucy has mastered magic? Slacking off is a skill, learn it, young people!

Lu Ze glanced at Lucy. "What are you asking about? Are you going to Great Xia?"

He reluctantly put down his coffee, unable to stand the bitterness anymore. It felt like the bitterness was filling his entire head.

"Yes, I plan to go to Great Xia during the summer break," Lucy said, her pretty face lifting slightly, her eyes filled with anticipation.

She had always been intensely curious about Great Xia.

After all, she was often told she looked like someone from Great Xia, but she had never been there in her life. It didn't make sense, did it?

"Great Xia has countless attractions. Our summer break is only two or three weeks long."

Lu Ze continued, "You'll need to plan ahead and choose important destinations. Otherwise, you might not even finish exploring one province..."

"I will."

"Oh, right," Lucy said with a faint smile. "I even learned a little Chinese before. See if my pronunciation is standard."

"You know Chinese?" Her words surprised Lu Ze.

He had never heard her speak a word of Chinese before, and a strong interest surged within him.

"Go ahead and say something. I want to hear your pronunciation."

Just as Lu Ze expected Lucy to speak Chinese with the awkward, stiff accent most foreigners had, only able to pronounce the fourth tone.

However.

"Lao zi Shu Dao Shan, Chan li yi er si, gen lao zi Gui Dao!"

Lucy suddenly spoke a sentence with a strong accent. It wasn't just standard, but her tone even carried a hint of authority.

After speaking, she looked up at him. "Lu Ze, is my Chinese pronunciation standard?"

Standard? How dare you ask that? This has nothing to do with standard.

"Who taught you this?? This is the Chinese accent from the Sichuan region where I'm from. How did you learn it?" Lu Ze frowned.

How did Lucy learn this?

This was clearly the nightmare of every man from Sichuan. Even Lu Ze felt a chill down his spine hearing it.

"A female tourist from Great Xia I met before taught me. Every time that wife said 'Lao zi Shu Dao Shan,' her husband would stand there as if he was under a spell!" Lucy recited a few sentences.

"I think it must be some kind of magic. Lu Ze, do you know any magic spells to summon pandas? I want to learn!"

It was said that the couple was from Sichuan, the hometown of pandas, which was why Lucy had diligently learned these phrases.

For example, saying "Panda, lao zi Shu Dao Shan" could immediately make a panda freeze in place.

'Good heavens, the reputation of Sichuan men has spread overseas now?' Lu Ze thought to himself.

"I'm not from the Sichuan region," Lu Ze shook his head. "I'll ask for you next time and see if there are any more amazing spells."

"Okay!"

Lucy's eyes sparkled with excitement.

Who wouldn't want to learn a magic spell to summon pandas?

Who could resist a panda? It was white and black, Asian and an animal, a vegetarian, yet possessed great power. And as a national treasure, it perfectly fit the characteristic of being a 'minority group.'

With this combination, who abroad would dare to say they didn't like it? They might even be de-humanized!

After chatting for a while and eating a few snacks.

Lucy glanced at her watch. It was already past eleven in the morning. "Let's go, Lu Ze. Let's get something to eat."

"Is that... is that okay?"

Lu Ze hesitated, wanting to say more.

It wasn't that he was unwilling, but he truly couldn't afford Lucy's appetite. She could eat up all his return ticket money for the summer break.

"Don't worry, it's my treat this time," Lucy chuckled.

A moment later.

They were at the same Italian restaurant where they had eaten the previous night. Of course, it was mainly because there were only a few restaurants in this small town.

"Two portions of spaghetti, two portions of wet-aged beef, and one Margherita pizza. That's all for now."

Lucy skillfully ordered some dishes. "Lu Ze, I've ordered. What do you want to eat?"

The dishes she had just ordered were barely enough for herself.

"One portion of aged beef is enough. And a glass of ice water," Lu Ze said, long past being surprised. This portion size was only half-full for Lucy.

Suddenly.

He spotted a man with a conspicuously shiny bald head in the restaurant, illuminating the surroundings like a lightbulb.

"Professor Hasen, are you dining here too?" Lu Ze walked over and asked.

This person was their advisor, Michael Hasen, who always clocked in and out precisely at nine in the morning.

Lu Ze had a good impression of Professor Hasen.

Although he was mediocre in the lab and held no real status, he was good to his two students.

"Lucy, Lu, it's you two?" Professor Hasen pointed to the chairs beside them. "Then sit down and eat with us."

He wasn't too surprised. The town only had a few dozen restaurants in total, so running into them was perfectly normal.

This Italian restaurant wasn't exactly high-end, so they didn't stand on ceremony when eating together.

After all, it was just a normal place to eat; where would all those rules come from?

The food was served quickly.

The three of them began eating simultaneously, though Lucy's plate emptied several times faster than Lu Ze's.

Just then.

Michael Hasen took a sip of ice water and looked up at Lu Ze. "Lu, I heard you've been slacking off at the LLNL Laboratory recently?"

"Professor Hasen, I..." Lu Ze started to defend himself.

"I don't think slacking off is a bad thing, but your method is wrong."

Hasen chewed his pasta and continued indistinctly, "Do you know why people from India are more welcomed in Eagle Country?"

"Because I'm from Great Xia?"

"That's only one reason. The more fundamental reason is that you are all too pragmatic and capable!" Hasen swallowed, a helpless smile on his lips. "But people from India never do that."

It was less about fearing pragmatism and more about fearing Great Xia's unwillingness to fall behind.

They always believed their day of ultimate rise would come, something Eagle Country and others were unwilling to accept.

Conversely, people like those from India, who only bragged and were half-baked in their work, could easily be entrusted with important tasks because everyone knew it was impossible.

"In this place, your perceived identity is far more important than your actual ability," Professor Hasen said, ignoring whether Lu Ze understood.

"If you want to slack off, clocking in and goofing off isn't a big deal."

Michael Hasen stood up, turned, and left, saying faintly, "You need to make them clearly understand that your abilities are insufficient. Only then can you truly earn trust."

"And then you can openly slack off without anyone finding it unusual."

In his opinion, Lu Ze was using the wrong method entirely.

This was the art of slacking off; learn from it, young man.