Pang Ying:Hello, I’m Pang Ying. Welcome to the closing conversation of Think Like a Debater.

I had not decided whether to record an epilogue, but Ms. Zhan said she had a lot to say, so we gave her the opportunity.

As everyone knows, Ms. Zhan can turn a conclusion into Episodes One, Two, Three, and beyond. I’ll hand her the microphone and let her shine.

Zhan Qingyun:Isn’t this supposed to be a conversation? How did it become my speech?

Pang Ying:The affirmative—no, I mean I’ll let the affirmative speak first. Habit took over. All right, a conversation. Go ahead, Ms. Zhan.

Zhan Qingyun:I have a few reflections. You always control the microphone, so I never get a post-match remarks segment.

Pang Ying:You were invited and chose not to join. It wasn’t that I excluded you.

Zhan Qingyun:Isn’t this your show? I didn’t want to steal the spotlight.

Pang Ying:Why didn’t that occur to you when you debated me?

Zhan Qingyun:I was already very restrained.

Pang Ying:Saying that now lets you have it both ways.

Zhan Qingyun:Anyway, recording the series left me with several impressions. First, debating is still great fun.

Pang Ying:Absolutely. After the final episode she asked whether we could keep debating in the future.

Zhan Qingyun:We had been away from debate for a long time and would not have had this chance unless we organized it ourselves. At first I only joined to help Ms. Pang fulfill the promise she had boldly made—and somehow made on my behalf too. But I came to enjoy the process. Being shut indoors every weekend was painful, yet debating itself remained fascinating.

Pang Ying:I’m glad to hear you weren’t merely helping me finish an assignment, but genuinely enjoyed it.

Zhan Qingyun:Especially because our format had virtually no format. Each person could press the argument as hard as possible—and Ms. Pang routinely spoke for more than twenty minutes at a time.

Pang Ying:What are these post-match remarks supposed to be, a public denunciation?