Chapter 336: Connections and Academics

Su Yuqing, Zhao Ya, and Shen Xinghe were all rather intrigued by the National Style Club.

However, the more vivacious Lin Xiaoxiao and Zhou Yue weren’t as fond of that kind of environment.

Chen Mo was neutral about it, but he was currently leaning toward more energetic activities. After all, the past ten years of his life had been far too dull.

The National Style Club, as it stood, was a bit too quiet for him.

Since there were plenty of other clubs nearby, the group didn’t rush into a decision. After lingering at the National Style Club for a while, they moved on to the next one.

Next to the National Style Club was an unusual one, which had also attracted a crowd of onlookers.

Chen Mo’s group glanced at the banner, which read, "Debaters’ Society."

"A Debaters’ Society? You can make a club out of that?" Lin Xiaoxiao was a little surprised.

"Don’t underestimate debating skills. It involves a lot of factors—cognitive ability, eloquence, logical organization, and so on. If you improve those, you’ll definitely be able to use them anywhere once you graduate," Zhou Yue, ever the worldly young woman, seemed to appreciate it.

The six of them walked up to the Debaters’ Society’s booth. There were no flashy decorations, just a few simple tables and chairs and a whiteboard covered in writing.

The whiteboard was filled with arguments and evidence. In the center was the topic for their recruitment exhibition match: "During university, is building a network more important than focusing on academics?"

At that moment, four or five club members were holding a mock debate. Although they weren’t in formal attire, the atmosphere was already tense.

The first speaker for the affirmative side spoke at a rapid-fire pace, citing the success story of some business tycoon to emphasize the importance of networking.

The second speaker for the negative side was calm and composed, using data and psychological theories to rebut, pointing out that core competitiveness is rooted in one’s own academic depth.

Their words were sharp and their chains of logic tight as they constantly seized upon the flaws in each other’s reasoning to attack and defend.

"Has my opponent confused the concepts of ’necessary condition’ and ’sufficient condition’?"

"Please answer directly: without a solid academic foundation, isn’t this so-called network just a house built on sand?"

Intellectual sparks flew through the air. Most of the students passing by were drawn in by this high-intensity clash of wits, stopping to listen with thoughtful expressions.

Anyone who got into this university had to have top-tier test scores, so naturally, none of them were poor students. By the same token, they were all pretty sharp.

This made them all the more capable of appreciating the charisma exuded by the members participating in the debate.

There wasn’t a single clamorous sound. Everyone listened in silence, their minds racing to keep up as they processed both sides’ arguments.

Chen Mo listened for a while with his arms crossed, quite interested in this game of logic and facts.

Zhou Yue whispered to Lin Xiaoxiao, "The level of this Debaters’ Society is pretty high. The average person really couldn’t handle this."

Lin Xiaoxiao nodded vigorously and grinned. "Now I get what you meant earlier. This club is actually pretty cool. It’s like they all have built-in search engines and logic trees in their heads!"

As for the content of their debate, it was a topic most people had pondered before. In fact, many students had received specific instructions from their families before coming to university.

After their children got into a good university, many parents told them that even if they didn’t excel academically, they had to at least build good relationships with their classmates. This, they said, would be their most important network of contacts after graduation.

From this, it was clear the debate topic was genuinely worth discussing.

After all, a significant portion of the general public also believed that building a network was more important than focusing on academics.

Chen Mo’s group of six had only intended to take a quick look as they passed by, but they were immediately captivated by the intense debate and ended up listening to the entire match.

And it wasn’t just them; many of the onlookers were so engrossed that they forgot to move on.

Only when the debate on this topic concluded did the crowd begin to disperse, still wishing it hadn’t ended.

Although the debate was charismatic and appealing, not many people actually wanted to join.

Most felt they simply didn’t have the talent for it.

Even though none of them were lacking in intelligence, debating tested not only one’s mind but also one’s public speaking ability.

Many people might have everything thought out perfectly clearly in their heads, but the moment they had to articulate those thoughts, their words would come out as a jumbled, chaotic mess.

Therefore, not just anyone was cut out for the battlefield of a debate competition.

Having listened to a full, high-quality mock debate, the six of them felt as if their minds had been through a baptism. They reluctantly moved away from the Debaters’ Society booth with the flow of the crowd.

"Whoa..." Lin Xiaoxiao let out a long breath, the first to break the silence. She dramatically rubbed her temples. "My brain was spinning so fast trying to keep up with them, I thought it was going to overheat and crash! That was so intense! How do they listen for their opponent’s flaws, organize their own thoughts, and counter with sources all at the same time? Just listening made me feel like my CPU was about to fry!"

Zhou Yue was clearly a fan of such high-intellect games. Her eyes sparkled with excitement. "That’s the appeal of debate! It’s not just about eloquence; it’s the ultimate test of logic, knowledge, and quick-thinking. That second speaker for the negative side was incredible. Every point she made was sharp and precise, and she even used their own arguments against them. It was brilliant!"

She even began analyzing their tactics. "But the affirmative side could have dug deeper into that business case. They kind of let the negative side dictate the pace."

"Their level is indeed very high," Chen Mo agreed, nodding. He lowered his crossed arms, his gaze filled with analytical approval. "Their chains of logic are tight, and the transitions between offense and defense are fast. This kind of contest, based on facts and rules, is very interesting."

He saw in it a pleasure similar to analyzing cases and finding logical loopholes in his past work, just in a more public and refined form.

Su Yuqing nodded lightly, her tone gentle. "Listening to them debate made me think a lot, too."

"You could give this club a try, then. It would be good practice for your critical thinking skills," Chen Mo said with a smile.

Hearing this, Su Yuqing paused for a moment. She looked at Chen Mo with a hint of regret in her smile. "It’s interesting to watch, but if you asked me to go up there, I definitely couldn’t do it. I’d probably be too nervous to say anything at all."

She had a realistic understanding of her own public speaking abilities.

Zhao Ya heard this and softly agreed with Su Yuqing. "Yeah, it’s really brilliant and interesting from a spectator’s point of view, and you learn a lot just by listening. But... it would take a lot of courage for me to go up there myself. Look at how they were completely unaffected by that big crowd. If I were being stared at by that many people, I’m afraid I wouldn’t be able to get a single word out."