Vampire (L)

The Dongfeng at night releases a thousand trees of flowers, and blows down stars like rain. The road is filled with the fragrance of precious carriages and carved horses. The sound of phoenix flutes moves, the jade pot shines, and fish and dragons dance all night. Moths, willows, and golden threads adorn the scene, laughter and fragrance linger. I searched for him a thousand times in the crowd, and suddenly, turning around, I found him where the lights were dim.

Rather than interpreting it as a reading comprehension exercise, An Nuan has always believed that Xin Qiji's poem "Qing Yu An: Yuan Xi" embodies all the beautiful imaginations that modern people have about ancient times. If someone fantasizes about traveling back to a romantic and beautiful ancient era, this poem is the one that can best satisfy their desire.

Liu Chang'an's story, however, evoked a completely different feeling. In his eyes, whoever became emperor did so based on their own abilities. But in the profession of emperor, the emperors of the weak Song Dynasty were generally despised by their peers, probably because of the saying, "Their rule was illegitimate."

Other emperors, however, felt that their rule was illegitimate, and the entire weak Song Dynasty was like a castrated product, lacking vitality and spirit. They also wanted to castrate the entire nation. From then on, the so-called Neo-Confucianism flourished, constantly trying to bind the nation's hands and feet with the foot-binding cloth of a woman with bound feet, which was foul and caused endless harm.

When An Nuan woke up in the morning, she was still somewhat dazed, remembering the story Liu Chang'an had told her last night that took place in the Song Dynasty.

Liu Chang'an is indeed a very good storyteller. His eloquent and meticulous descriptions are like a vivid painting of "Along the River During the Along the River During the Qingming Festival" woven with language, but with many indescribable flavors. It is as if he is really a Longevity being who wavers between worldly life and detachment, and he continues to tell the story until the protagonist goes to sea and bids farewell to his friends.

The protagonist's story overseas is also highly anticipated. I wonder what kind of scene will unfold when things collide there, as Liu Chang'an weaves his tale?

Liu Chang'an was already up.

He got up very early; there were still seven or eight stars in the sky, and just as a light rain began to fall in front of the mountain, the croaking of frogs from the previous night had stopped, and there was no more noisy croaking. Naturally, Liu Chang'an had no reason to catch any beneficial insects.

The air in the farmhouse after the rain is filled with the fragrance of rice paddies. Green mountains surround the water, and mist hangs in the distance. The plum rain season is not over yet, and the air is not only fresh but also moist, making one feel as if their nasal cavity and lungs have been cleansed.

In South Hunan, rice can be planted for three seasons, but many, like Gao Yuanshan, only plant two. Liu Chang'an, barefoot and carrying a bucket, arrived at the edge of the field before dawn. The feeling of the mud and weeds tickling the soles of his feet was very comfortable. Occasionally, a protruding stone would irritate his feet. He stepped into the field, where the slightly cool water submerged his insteps. His feet sank into the soft, wet mud, enveloped by the mud surging in from all directions. It was comfortable but difficult to pull them out. The slightly itchy sensation made him involuntarily lift his leg, and water would rush into the gap, making a "gurgling" sound.

Listening to the sound of the water, Liu Chang'an distinguished the sound of the fish's tail slapping, and with lightning speed, caught a crucian carp.

In a short while, Liu Chang'an caught half a bucket of crucian carp, went ashore and returned to the small courtyard. He poured all the crucian carp into the large water vat and added a bag of salt to remove the muddy taste.

Then I cut some willow branches from the willow trees by the river and peeled off the bark.

When Liu Chang'an finished doing all this, he saw Bai Hui come out of the room and greeted her. Bai Hui had bags under her eyes and looked like she hadn't slept well.

"You guys haven't been sleeping, have you? Trying to hear something?" Liu Chang'an said with regret for Bai Hui.

"No!" Bai Hui's cheeks flushed slightly. She hadn't slept well, and that was part of the reason. "I had two nightmares last night, and I just couldn't fall back asleep. I heard you bustling around in the yard, so I got up."

"I told An Nuan a story; she should be sleeping very well."

"Telling stories?" Bai Hui wanted to sneer. A man and a woman living together in one room, and they were telling stories? Were they trying to coax children? But then she thought about how this person was Liu Chang'an, and the possibility actually existed.

It tells the story of a person who Longevity.

"Heh, Longevity, he must have a lot of women."

"..."

Liu Chang'an said it casually, and of course had no interest in telling Bai Hui a story. He continued to peel and sharpen the willow branches. Besides being used for grilling meat skewers, willow branches are also great for grilling fish.

"I dreamt of so many bats last night, they were everywhere, covering the entire sky. It was terrifying, like the end of the world," Bai Hui said, still shaken.

"Bats vary by species. Most bats aren't tasty, containing various viruses and parasites, including SARS and Ebola. Some bats are alright when grilled, but there's not much meat, and the bones are quite brittle. Some species of bats can be used to make soup. Usually, the bat is removed from the soup after it's cooked, and then the bat is served again. At this point, the bat looks like a wet, toothy bear, which is rather comical..."

Bai Hui didn't find it funny at all and quickly stopped Liu Chang'an from continuing. She almost threw up. She suspected that as long as she talked about any animal, Liu Chang'an could tell her whether it was delicious or not and how to eat it.

"Yingying and I saw a strange bat last night. I hit it and stomped on it, but it didn't die and flew away. Do you know what kind of bat it is?" Bai Hui's mood had calmed down a bit today, so she naturally wanted to ask Liu Chang'an about this.

"Besides Batman, where else can you find a bat this resilient?" Liu Chang'an said after a moment's thought.

I'm serious!

"That's a vampire. In ancient warfare, vampires would transform into bats to act as scouts. Your dream about bats is probably a warning; you never know when a vampire might come and bite your neck."

Bai Hui couldn't help but touch her neck, then glared at Liu Chang'an with annoyance, "I'm going back to catch up on my sleep, don't wake me up for breakfast."

"I wasn't going to wake you anyway," Liu Chang'an said, puzzled. It's not good to disturb someone's sleep.

Bai Hui stomped her feet and went back to her room heavily. She had talked with Miao Yingying last night, but Bai Hui ultimately did not admit that she had some feelings for Liu Chang'an. Sure enough, she was very honest and not pretentious at all.

Liu Chang'an raised his hand and waved towards the window next door, which was slightly ajar.

An Nuan opened the window a little wider, her long hair cascading down, revealing a charmingly naive and languid smile. "So early in the morning, you're already flirting with girls."

"If I were flirting with a girl, you'd be gritting your teeth and digging your fingers deep into the wall," Liu Chang'an laughed.

"No way, I'll turn into a vampire and bite you!" An Nuan had overheard Liu Chang'an and Bai Hui's conversation about bats, so naturally she wasn't angry. What pleased An Nuan the most was Liu Chang'an's statement, "I wasn't going to call you in the first place."

Seriously, only girlfriends are associated with phrases like "wake me up," Bai Hui is such a closet pervert!

An Nuan was different; she was a truly pure and innocent young woman, always with a slightly shy smile.