One obvious fact was that when you discussed topics you liked with others, time always flew by; but when you talked about less pleasant subjects, time became torturous.
As Einstein once said, "Let a man sit opposite a beautiful woman for an hour, and he'll feel as though only a minute has passed; but make him sit on a hot stove for a minute, and he'll feel as though more than an hour has gone by."
Whether Ms. Pulitzer counted as a beauty was debatable in Zheng Qing's opinion, but he was certain that he currently felt as if he were sitting on a stove.
He took out his Pocket Watch and checked the time. Only half an hour had passed since he entered the Coffee Shop.
He had not even finished a single cup of coffee.
Yet he felt as though he had been talking with the female reporter from the Beta Town Post all day—cold sweat on his back had dried, then soaked through again, leaving him with an unpleasantly sticky feeling.
He desperately needed a sturdy rope to drag him out of this slippery mire.
Just then, two figures who delighted him beyond measure rushed into the Coffee Shop. His wish had come so swiftly that he almost suspected the thing he had been holding was not a coffee cup, but Aladdin's magic lamp.
"Finally found you!" Xiao Xiao rushed into the Coffee Shop and, as if completely unaware, barged straight through the Silence Barrier Ms. Pulitzer had set up, interrupting the interview at the table. He shouted anxiously at Zheng Qing, "Did you forget our mission? We're going to be late! Hurry up!"
Ms. Pulitzer looked at the abruptly intruding young wizard in surprise but said nothing.
Zheng Qing secretly glanced at her. He was quite