This presents a contradiction.
The visitor doesn't want to have a conflict with their former deskmate, but they will take the initiative against a classmate with whom they had a verbal dispute.
This contradiction itself carries information.
Nan Zhubin decisively pointed it out.
"You just said, 'If they don't help me solve it, I'll solve it myself,'" Nan Zhubin said, "But when your former deskmate took your comic book, you didn't solve it yourself, right."
Pei Yuning raised his head and looked at Nan Zhubin.
"...Yes."
"Do these two situations differ for you in any way?" Nan Zhubin asked.
Pei Yuning's lips moved. He lowered his head, looking at his hands. He lifted his hands from his knees, rested them in front of his chest, interlaced his fingers, then unclasped them, and clasped them together again.
"Yes." Pei Yuning finally said, "The latter person was my deskmate, after all."
"We used to be good friends."
