Qian Wenhuan laughed out loud, and a group of foreigners and several flight attendants all turned to look at him.
He quickly covered his mouth, an apologetic expression on his face.
No, he had to maintain his composure...
After silently reminding himself, Qian Wenhuan cleared his throat and looked at the young man beside him again.
But to his surprise, despite all the noise he'd made, the other man hadn't reacted at all. He was still quietly flipping through his book.
Keep pretending, then...
Qian Wenhuan couldn't believe that everyone nearby had heard him, but the man sitting closest to him hadn't.
What he found so funny was that the young man before him had a calm, steady air, like someone from the Central Continent who'd lived in Switzerland for years. Qian Wenhuan had thought he was a diamond, only to discover he was just bronze.
It was true that 65 percent of Switzerland's population spoke German. If you were going to Switzerland, learning German first was certainly a safe bet. But there was no need to start studying on the plane, was there?
Shaking his head, Qian Wenhuan suddenly regretted not bringing his European-standard C1 German certificate with him.
Otherwise, he could have struck up a conversation with the other man, then casually let the certificate fall to the floor before picking it up nonchalantly.
Surely, when the young man saw his C1 certificate, his expression would go from bewilderment, to suspicion, to shock, and finally to hysteria.
It would be so much fun.
Ah, what a shame...
With a regretful smile, Qian Wenhuan turned his gaze away and lounged back in his seat.
How was he supposed to kill these sixteen hours?
He casually pulled out his phone, ready to text his wife, but just then, his ears twitched.
Flip...
Flip...
Beside him, pages were turning in a steady rhythm. If his hearing hadn't been so good, he would almost have missed it.
Qian Wenhuan frowned and turned his head again. Sure enough, it was the young man flipping through his book.
But that rate of page-turning...
Qian Wenhuan was at a loss for words.
Kid, do you think your eyes are a camera or a scanner? One glance and you've learned it all?
When they'd boarded the plane, he'd seen the other man on the preface. The plane hadn't even taken off yet, and he'd already flipped through nearly half the book.
Judging by how new the book looked, he'd only just bought it. There was no way he was reviewing it at that speed, was there?
So he was still putting on an act?
Muttering to himself, Qian Wenhuan looked away again.
"Ladies and gentlemen:"
"Welcome aboard Central Continent International Airlines flight K420, from Chuanpu Airport in Shangdu to Zurich. The flight distance is 8,200 kilometers, and the estimated time in the air is 15 hours and 20 minutes."
"The plane will be taking off shortly. The cabin crew will now conduct a safety check. Please take your seats and fasten your seat belts. For your safety during the journey, please turn off your mobile phones..."
As the announcement came over the speakers, several flight attendants began checking seat belts and handing out arrival and departure cards.
After a bout of turbulence, the plane soared into the sky like a great bird.
Once the plane had leveled out, Qian Wenhuan unfastened his seat belt before the flight attendants could even remind him. Humming a tune and crossing his legs, he expertly switched on the little screen and picked a variety show to watch.
Who knew how much time had passed? Just as Qian Wenhuan was starting to get drowsy, another commotion suddenly came from beside him.
He instinctively looked up and saw the young man set down his book, then stand and take a backpack from the overhead compartment.
Don't tell me he's already finished it?
Qian Wenhuan was a little surprised, but then something even more astonishing happened.
The young man pulled a whole stack of books out of his backpack.
Who brought that many books on a plane? Weren't they heavy?
Qian Wenhuan stared, dumbfounded, as the young man emptied the backpack and stacked the books one by one on the table in front of him, building up a thick pile.
Contemporary University German, New Refinement German Intensive Course, New Standard German Intensive Tutorial, Touring Germany...
Qian Wenhuan had read all of these books. There were plenty of German-learning textbooks, but only a handful had stood the test of time, and almost all of them were now on the table.
Looking at the familiar titles, Qian Wenhuan suddenly realized that the books grew progressively more advanced!
From the most elementary Zero-Based Happy German Learning to the in-depth New Standard German Intensive Tutorial, was the young man planning to finish them all?
Seeing the man beside him start on his second book, Qian Wenhuan finally couldn't hold back. "Hey, kid, what are you doing? Are you studying German?"
"Yes. I have some business in Switzerland. Since there's time on the plane, I thought I might as well put it to use."
The young man beside him turned around and replied politely.
Damn it, of course I know you're going to Switzerland! I meant, what have you been doing all this time? Don't tell me you're studying German!
Though he was cursing inwardly, Qian Wenhuan still wore a genial smile. "You're certainly eager to learn, kid. But as someone who's been through it, I have to give you a word of advice: German isn't learned this way."
Before the young man could respond, Qian Wenhuan quickly explained, "I wouldn't recommend self-study for a beginner. First, it's too slow. Second, a lot of people finish learning the pronunciation and realize they still can't manage. Then they have to sign up for classes anyway, and the teacher has to spend even longer correcting the mistakes they've already made. That's taking the long way around."
"I see. Then I really should thank you for the warning, sir." The young man smiled gratefully.
Qian Wenhuan perked up, feeling his ego get a boost, and asked again, "So, kid, how far have you gotten with your self-study?"
"I've just finished this book. I've learned the phonetic symbols, noun genders, verb conjugations, and sentence structure." The young man picked up the book he'd been reading, Zero-Based Happy German Learning.
Huh? Learned all that so quickly? Who did he think he was fooling?
Qian Wenhuan gave him a skeptical look. "Would you mind if I tested you?"
"Be my guest!"
The young man nodded, looking eager to learn.
That expression pleased Qian Wenhuan. He nodded approvingly, then asked him a very basic question in German.
The young man hesitated briefly, then gave an uncertain answer.
"See? I told you German wasn't that simple. You got the very first question wrong."
Qian Wenhuan sighed helplessly. "The genders of inanimate nouns are complicated. Take the three kitchen utensils: Löffel, spoon; Messer, knife; and Gabel, fork. There's basically no logic to them. You can't apply the rules for people's genders to them—that's wrong. Swiss people won't understand you at all."
"Besides that, you need to pay close attention to long and short vowels. For example, Stadt and Staat. Get the pronunciation slightly wrong, and you've got a completely different meaning..."
And so they settled into a routine: Qian Wenhuan asked questions, the young man answered, and Qian Wenhuan pointed out his mistakes and explained the correct answers.
At first, Qian Wenhuan was quite enthusiastic. But as time passed, he suddenly sensed that something was off.
He noticed that the young man seemed to be making fewer and fewer mistakes...
At the beginning, his grammar and sentence structure had been full of errors. But just now, he'd started chatting with Qian Wenhuan in complete, fluent sentences?
What the heck!
Qian Wenhuan looked down and saw that the books on the young man's table were nearly finished, too.
Only then did he realize that while he'd been explaining, the other man had never stopped turning pages. Qian Wenhuan had been so absorbed in his explanations—and the young man had always chimed in at just the right moment, even praising him—that he'd unconsciously stopped noticing...
What the hell have I been doing?
Qian Wenhuan came fully to his senses. He'd spent three whole hours talking about German with a young man he'd just met???
Thanks to [Together Until Our Hair Turns White], [HK Slaughter], [lhbboy22], and [Wu Di Wan Wan Nian] for your generous tips again. You're all so, so, so, so generous!
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