The Sage is Unfeeling

Official records state: Before the total victory of the War of Resistance Against Japan in 1945, Ye Sijin led a team on a mission to rescue comrades imprisoned by the Japanese.

During the mission, they encountered an unexpectedly ferocious counterattack from the Japanese side; Ye Sijin was killed, the mission failed, and the imprisoned comrades went missing.

Liu Chang'an remembers that Ye Sijin's favorite food was the scallion oil noodles he made, and the place she wanted to go most was Jiangzhou in Junsha. She had told him that after the total victory, she would recite a poem, "Qinyuanchun," there together with the comrades who were still alive.

Their impassioned chanting was, of course, different from any performance by later generations—it was a different kind of heroic spirit, a heart surging with boundless blood and fervor.

Ye Sijin had been waiting for that day.

Countless legendary figures would eventually pass away, leaving only Liu Chang'an to witness it all. He gazed out from the same angle as the statue, as if watching over the new world forged by the heroic souls he had once fought alongside—those intimate friends, those strangers, those nameless heroes.

"In the future, every household's jar will be filled with rice and white flour!"

"There will definitely be meat to eat during the holidays!"

"The common people will never be bullied again!"

"When that time comes, everyone will be able to live a good life!"

Liu Chang'an had been to the Capital and seen that towering, majestic monument.

"Eternal glory to the people's heroes who sacrificed their lives in the people's war of liberation and the people's revolution over the past three years."

"Eternal glory to the people's heroes who sacrificed their lives in the people's war of liberation and the people's revolution over the past thirty years."

"From 1840, from that time on, eternal glory to the people's heroes who sacrificed their lives in all previous struggles to oppose internal and external enemies and fight for national independence and the freedom and happiness of the people."

Even Liu Chang'an preferred living in an era of peace; these gentle, quiet days were lively and joyful, much like a young girl.

He was neither immortal nor a saint, and he could not view the common people as mere straw dogs. Liu Chang'an always lived in the present world, always willing to do something for this nation and this country in times of crisis. He believed that, in the end, he was just a person who had lived a little longer, and he never thought of viewing everything from a detached perspective.

It seemed that ever since Liu Chang'an first went to war over two thousand years ago, the countless struggles forged by the blood spilled during foreign invasions had all declared one thing: If the enemy can go, so can I!

One simply cannot yield!

Whether Liu Che actually said those words, he couldn't recall, but he had done it, and he had succeeded.

No matter how long he lived, he ultimately felt that the history since the birth of human civilization gave his own life the warmth of blood.

So many years had passed in a flash. Liu Chang'an's memories today felt somewhat distant. He looked up at the sky, always feeling that something ancient and mystical hung over the city, which was not entirely transparent, awakening his dormant memories.

And so, Liu Chang'an bought another small hen at the wet market.

The small hen's feathers were stark white, and it had a shallow, pale pink comb like a young girl's lips. Its feathers felt warm and plump to the touch, and the down under its wings was as fine as velvet. Liu Chang'an recalled that besides ducks, scholars in ancient times also loved keeping hens.

There were many forms of entertainment now; the ancients were ultimately more bored, so it was no surprise that some had eccentric hobbies.

The small hen from the market was cheaper, so he didn't feel as bad about tossing it into the trunk. However, he still stopped Zhou Dongdong, who wanted to use a rope to lead the small hen around to play. The small hen was going to die anyway; let it rest well before it passed.

He took the bottle out of the trunk. The centipede was already lifeless. He squeezed it gently and could feel the viscera and muscles under the shell had already hardened, so Liu Chang'an tossed the small hen inside.

One small hen every day was a significant number.

How poor he was... Liu Chang'an didn't sigh; he simply observed the fact. Not to mention the distant past, even a hundred years ago, he had once had some savings.

Everything was merely an external possession. The books, paintings, and items he kept were gifts from close friends over the millennia, each holding a special commemorative meaning.

In the years when the flames of war spread, considering his own plans, it hadn't been easy to keep them, so he had donated them all... To him, it was more important that these friends' legacies remained in the world; whether they belonged to him was unimportant.

Not everyone viewed everything as future dust like he did. Those brilliant, peerless people likely always had a desire to leave behind a spirit that would amaze future generations. Liu Chang'an would take care of their wishes when convenient, letting them leave more moving ripples in the long river of time.

As for wealth and assets that were easy to circulate, it was only natural to donate them to support the resistance when the country was broken and the mountains and rivers were shattered. Old friends who founded industries had taken quite a few silver dollars and banknotes from Liu Chang'an, and a considerable portion had been taken to Taiwan.

A few years ago, a tomb where he had hidden during the Han Dynasty was excavated, filled with brilliant gold. Liu Chang'an couldn't exactly run over to claim ownership... even though he did want the seal with his name on it that was unearthed along with it.

"Little Liu, you buy chicken to eat every day. You need to nourish your body for the college entrance exam," Old Lady Liu said as she walked over.

"The qipao you're wearing today is truly lovely," Liu Chang'an complimented, casually picking up the red rope used to tie the small hen and tying it into a flower on Old Lady Liu's hairpin. "Black paired with red—elegant and grand."

"You're so mischievous, giving me a red flower at my age." Old Lady Liu pulled the red rope off, tossed it to him, and patted Liu Chang'an on the shoulder. "Do well on your exam, get into a good school, and I'll give you a basket of eggs."

Liu Chang'an promised eagerly, looking forward to it.

Tomorrow was a holiday again. Liu Chang'an was just thinking about whether to go to the second-hand bookstore to look for books when he received a call from An Nuan.

After school that afternoon, An Nuan had stayed behind to practice volleyball. Ma Benwei had snuck into the school to livestream the daily training of the Affiliated High School women's volleyball team. No one paid him any mind at first, but later, the school's PE teacher discovered him and kicked him out.

Ma Benwei's Bentley was parked outside the school, and he waited for An Nuan while livestreaming. The theme of his stream was how to pick up the internet-famous volleyball beauty from the Affiliated High School. For a time, his stream was incredibly popular. Compared to the random women he usually "encountered" using ride-hailing apps, An Nuan's figure, appearance, and fame made her much more challenging and anticipated, and some students from the Affiliated High School even fueled the fire in the chat.

After An Nuan left school, she ignored Ma Benwei's attempts to strike up a conversation and took a taxi straight home. Little did she know that Ma Benwei had actually followed her to the entrance of her residential complex and continued to send her messages inviting her to meet... An Nuan hadn't chosen to hide her phone number when she booked the taxi, and she hadn't thought much of it; after all, she rarely used ride-hailing apps, and the probability of encountering such a thing was low.

"I'll come over," Liu Chang'an said.

"No need... I just feel annoyed and wanted to tell you. You absolutely must not come; you'll just end up fighting someone! I won't allow you to fight."

Ma Benwei was different from Chen Changxiu. Chen Changxiu was a student, and fights within the Affiliated High School were always managed by the school, so it wouldn't affect the upcoming college entrance exam. But social figures like Ma Benwei were harder to control. An Nuan understood this logic, but when encountering such things, she still liked to tell him, wanting to know his reaction.

"It's all my fault for not walking you home."

"Hmph, you know it. Anyway, I won't allow you to come. I'll forgive you this time, but if you come, I'll keep being angry—the kind of angry that's worth 150 points!"

"Understood."

"Don't just brush me off! I've already blocked his phone number. He can't keep guarding the place forever. The college entrance exam is only a few days after the Dragon Boat Festival; there aren't many days left to go to school anyway."

"Alright then, I'll walk you home after school from now on."

"Hehe, that's more like it. Have you eaten yet?"

"Not yet."

"Then go get some food, I'm going to take a shower."

Liu Chang'an finished cooking the rice. He hadn't bought any new rice today, so he had added potatoes and sweet potatoes to the pot, filling the air with a fragrant aroma. He ate a bowl with some dried cilantro he had prepared days ago. After washing the dishes and tidying up, Liu Chang'an took out his phone, searched for a few streaming platform apps, and found Ma Benwei's channel.

Ma Benwei was very popular, and his stream had a massive audience, making him easy to find. Liu Chang'an didn't usually have a hobby of watching livestreams, nor did he pay any attention to streamers.

Loneliness is a natural state of life for everyone, and it was the same for Liu Chang'an. It was just that for the vast majority of people, they could alleviate their loneliness by participating in noisy activities; that was likely how most people dealt with emptiness and solitude, or perhaps they found watching livestreams to be an interesting pastime. However, for Liu Chang'an, the lonely moments in his life were simply a quiet state of mind, not an unbearable negative emotion.

He watched Ma Benwei's stream in silence as he walked toward Juyuan at Xiangnan University.

His pace was faster today than usual.