"Haha, exactly. Law is the final line of defense upholding fairness—well said! You and I were born in this magnificent era, and we simply must accomplish something."
"Wealth and power are not what I seek. To cultivate more talents in politics and law and make a modest contribution to safeguarding national stability—that is satisfaction enough for your teacher."
Gao Yuliang held the senior academic rank of professor and had his own private office.
Originally, the two men had been conversing face-to-face across the desk, but as their discussion deepened, they moved over to the tea table to sip tea and expound on their philosophies.
The more they talked, the more astonished Gao Yuliang became. It wasn't just that Qi Tongwei was remarkably well-read; rather, there was an indescribable resonance in their thinking.
Every time Gao Yuliang raised a question, Qi Tongwei's response might not have been the absolute most perfect or standard answer, but it was invariably the one that best suited his wishes.
This made Gao Yuliang's enthusiasm for the conversation grow increasingly intense. Even though he had a mountain of matters waiting to be handled, he simply didn't want this exchange to end.
He couldn't bear to stop!
The two began their conversation at nine o'clock and kept going until eleven-thirty, when Wu Huifen finished her class and came to bring Gao Yuliang his lunch, finally bringing the talk to a close.
Gao Yuliang took his wife's hand and solemnly introduced them to each other: "Tongwei, Teacher Wu is my beloved wife."
"Hello, Teacher Wu." Qi Tongwei stood straight as a ramrod, extended his hand, and wore a look of utmost respect.
They shook hands, their fingers touching briefly before parting.
"Teacher Wu, his name is Qi Tongwei. He is an exceptionally outstanding young man, and also my student."
Exceptionally?
Wu Huifen was utterly surprised. To put it nicely, her husband's temperament was serene and detached; to put it bluntly, he was somewhat cold and indifferent.
Qi Tongwei felt the protective warmth and care from Gao Yuliang, and Gao Xiaofeng had reaped care and blazing passion from Gao Yuliang, but as for Wu Huifen, his legal wife, it was a complicated story.
When Gao Yuliang was still a lecturer, Wu Huifen had been his student, and it was back then that she had been captivated by his erudition and scholarly grace, falling hopelessly in love with him.
Wu Huifen had sacrificed a great deal for this love. First of all, she had originally been a graduate student in the Department of Politics and Law, but because Gao Yuliang liked Ming dynasty history, she switched to become a history teacher.
Moved by Wu Huifen's persistence, the two successfully came together, but because of the housing allocation issue, everything changed.
Seeing the deep sorrow etched between her brows, Qi Tongwei's heart skipped a beat.
In their previous lives, the final divorce between the two had started with the housing allocation—an exhausted Wu Huifen running around all day on the verge of breakdown, paired with a completely apathetic Gao Yuliang. It would have been a miracle if a rift hadn't formed.
Without any private space, they couldn't share intimacy at night; when it became unbearable, they had to resort to cheap motels outside. Yet she was his legitimate, lawful wife, sneaking around like this—how could anyone endure it?
"Teacher Wu is about to turn into a bitter, resentful woman. No, I must quickly help them sort out this housing issue. What a wonderful woman Teacher Wu is! You light the fire, and I'll add firewood; you kill someone, and I'll hand you the knife. I absolutely cannot let her go find Xiao Lin again and make a mistake."
"That's right, Teacher Wu shouldn't go looking for Xiao Lin either."
With his mind occupied by these thoughts, Qi Tongwei stayed for only a few more words before taking his leave.
After he left, only the two of them remained in the office, and Gao Yuliang was still savoring their recent animated discussion.
Wu Huifen opened the lunchbox and placed it before Gao Yuliang, then walked over to the windowsill to retrieve a thermos and refill his teacup. Having finished all this, she picked up a dustcloth and began wiping the dust from the office.
"Huifen, stop bustling about. Sit down and eat with me."
"No, I still have some data to organize this afternoon. When you finish eating, if you have time, change your clothes so I can take them back to wash."
"There's no need to wash them yet, I've only worn them for two days."
"Hah, I know how particular you are about cleanliness, plus I don't have anything special to do back there anyway."
"Well, alright then..."
It was a good thing Qi Tongwei had left early; otherwise, he would have understood why Gao Yuliang was never in any hurry.
He had his three meals delivered by someone, his personal hygiene looked after by someone, and whenever he had needs, he could summon someone on a moment's notice to a small motel. When he had no such needs, he could return to the dormitory to sleep alone in peace, entirely undisturbed.
Gao Yuliang had truly mastered the art of post-marital life.
***
Leaving the teaching building, Qi Tongwei waited for Wu Huifen at the entrance. Doing a good deed without leaving one's name was simply not Director Qi's style. When it came to earning favor, how could you leave it to the parties involved to guess?
How impolite would that be?
Qi Tongwei remembered that at the end of 1985, the head of housing allocation, Song Hongzhuo, treated the two of them like the proverbial stones in a latrine—stinking and hard, refusing to grant favors and simply stalling them out.
Though the two higher intellectuals had been united for three years and still hadn't been allocated housing, Song Hongzhuo finally caved under pressure and got the matter handled.
After waiting for about an hour, Wu Huifen appeared at the entrance carrying an empty lunchbox and a bundle of dirty laundry.
Qi Tongwei hurried forward. "What a coincidence, Teacher Wu! Are you headed home?"
"Oh, Student Qi? What brings you here?"
"Ah, I just finished eating and was taking a stroll. Let me walk you home, and I can learn where you live along the way."
As he spoke, ignoring her awkwardness, he snatched the lunchbox and laundry right out of her hands and flashed a sincere, earnest smile.
"..."
Wu Huifen was a bit bewildered, thinking to herself that this young man was far too enthusiastic. But as for learning where she lived... she and her husband didn't even live together.
She stood frozen in place, wanting to speak her mind but hesitating.
Not living with her husband was bad enough; dragging that wretched mess out into the open for every passerby to hear would only make things worse.
Yet she couldn't very well say nothing—she certainly couldn't lead Qi Tongwei toward the female teachers' dormitory.
"Um, Tongwei, may Teacher Wu call you that?"
"Of course! You are my teacher's wife; you can call me whatever you like."
A wave of warmth washed over Wu Huifen, easing her guard just a fraction. She briefly explained the situation, her main point being that her relationship with her husband was very good, and they didn't live together not because of any emotional rift.
Look, she had the lunchbox and dirty laundry as proof!
"Say no more, Teacher Wu. Student will handle this matter for you. I guarantee you'll be moving into a new home within these next few days."
Wearing a look of righteous indignation, Qi Tongwei shoved the lunchbox and dirty laundry back into her hands and turned on his heel, striding away.
Oh no.
He's gone and worked himself up.
Wu Huifen's heart skipped a beat. This wasn't going to get things sorted; this was going to stir up trouble!
"Look at this big mouth of mine, now I've ruined it."
Wu Huifen gave herself a light slap on the cheek—not hard at all—and hurried after him.
"Hey, Tongwei! Tongwei, wait up! You mustn't do anything foolish."
Qi Tongwei wasn't walking particularly fast; to be precise, he was waiting for Wu Huifen to chase after him. After all, what was about to happen required an audience.
He intended to use Wu Huifen as his mouthpiece, to broadcast the outcome to Gao Yuliang afterward.
"In my previous life, the moment I heard Teacher Gao mention the name Song Hongzhuo, I took it upon myself to deal with him. Even though Teacher Gao warned me afterward not to pull such stunts again, I could clearly see the satisfaction hidden deep in Teacher Gao's eyes."
"See? I knew it. If you didn't want trouble stirred up, why would you even bring him up to me?"
Whenever it concerned Gao Yuliang, Qi Tongwei invested his utmost attention, overseeing everything personally from start to finish and never delegating to others. Take this Song Hongzhuo, for instance—
Qi Tongwei figured he probably understood Song Hongzhuo even better than Song Hongzhuo understood himself.