David Harris said quietly, “So being a top student makes you so great?”

James Carter concluded at last, “I really want to beat him up.”

Class was about to start, so James Carter and his group quickly finished their ice cream cones and headed toward the classroom. The spacious tiered lecture hall was packed with over two hundred people. The room could hold five hundred, so it didn’t feel crowded. James Carter and his friends picked a spot where there weren’t many people and sat down. Emily Bolton sat to their left near the aisle, speaking softly with his companions. All the seats around Emily Bolton were occupied by female students drawn to his looks and wealth.

People like that are always the center of attention wherever they go.

There were also a few girls sitting next to James Carter, chatting excitedly: “It’s Emily Bolton, Emily Bolton is here too.”

“So handsome. If only I could be his girlfriend.”

“Yeah, right. I’m his true destined girl, he just hasn’t noticed me yet.”

“Young, rich, and such good grades—he’s basically the nation’s male idol. If I could date him even once, my four years at college wouldn’t be wasted.”

“Keep dreaming. His girlfriend is the department beauty, okay?”

“Hmph, we have to believe that department beauties and such are just scenery in Mingyu oppa’s life. We’re his real destination.”

James Carter thought to himself: What a bunch of idiots.

At that moment, a girl poked James Carter’s arm with her pen and said impatiently, “Hey, you’re blocking my shot.”

James Carter turned his head and saw those girls holding up their phones to take pictures. No need to guess—they were definitely going to post them on the campus forum to show off, with a title like “Spotted: Campus Heartthrob Emily Bolton” or something. There were so many posts like that; he’d seen plenty.

John Thompson said with a dark face, “If you want to take pictures, do it outside. It’s class time now.”

The girl sneered, “Who are you to tell me what to do? I’m not even taking pictures of you. Who do you think you are?”

“Jealous of the campus hunk, obviously. Just look at his face—full of envy and resentment, with that ugly mug.”

“If you took pictures of us, we wouldn’t even want them.”

“Ugly in the frame, ugly in the frame.”

“Hahaha!”

John Thompson was furious.

James Carter tugged on his sleeve and shook his head. No need to argue with women—if you lose, it’s embarrassing; if you win, it’s nothing to brag about.

When the class bell rang, a middle-aged man walked in at the door, wearing a casual suit, his slicked-back hair perfectly in place, with a square face and a serious expression. He was middle-aged, exuding a reserved aura. This was what people called “a man in his forties or fifties, still in his prime.” As soon as he appeared, the classroom immediately quieted down.

Professor Carter had arrived!

Professor Carter glanced around the large classroom, nodding here and there. He turned on the projector, took the textbook out of his briefcase, and said in a loud voice, “We won’t be taking attendance today, so you don’t have to call out ‘here’ for your classmates two or three times. Every time I notice, I feel awkward pointing it out.”

The classroom erupted in laughter.

“Today, I’ll talk to you about two key topics in international finance: foreign exchange theory and practice, and financial engineering. Open your books…”

James Carter hunched down, trying not to attract the old man’s attention, aimlessly browsing the points mall, feeling quite enthusiastic. This class wasn’t a core subject, and the final exam was open-book, so he wasn’t worried. Anyway, at the end of the semester, the old man would always put a stack of textbooks in front of him and mark the key points. He just had to follow the old man’s lead to review. Maybe not straight A’s, but definitely no failing grades.

The class gradually drew to a close.

“Before we finish, I have an assignment for you.” Professor Carter opened a slide on the computer and projected it onto the big screen—it was densely packed with Russian.

What the heck?

The students were baffled.

“This passage is excerpted from ‘A Century of Currency’ by Russian economist Andrei Petrov. Andrei has always been a controversial economist in Russia, hasn’t written many books, and isn’t well-known, but there are a lot of interesting things in his works, very thought-provoking. I picked out a particularly interesting passage. There’s currently no Chinese translation. Later, you can download it from my cloud drive, translate it, and write a reflection of no less than a thousand words. Just email me your assignment.”

Professor Carter was showing off his Russian again.

All the students thought the same thing.

James Carter covered his face in silence. His dad was fluent in Russian, English, and Japanese, and would show off in class from time to time.

“Professor Carter, that’s not necessary.” Suddenly, Emily Bolton stood up, his face calm with a kind of “main character” composure: “Правыониилинет，ноязнаютолько，чтоянепомнюниодногоднявмоейжизни，когдабыянепринадлежалейинечувствовалнадсобойеёвласти.Онанепокидаетменяденьиночь;ятоженевыказываюпоползновенияудратьотнеё，—связь，сталобыть，крепкая，прочная……”

He actually recited the passage in fairly fluent Russian. There were a few awkward pronunciations, but aside from Professor Carter, no one could tell. The whole room of girls was amazed, and screams erupted.