The Gold of the Marquis of Haihun (Revised)

An Nuan didn't sleep all the way to the final stop. She woke up at Nanchang West Railway Station, kicked her legs, stretched, turned her head to look at Liu Chang'an, took his hand, bit it on the back of his hand, and seeing that there wasn't even a tooth mark, she was a little unconvinced and insisted on biting it twice more... then gave up.

An Nuan took a sip of water, then took out the mints she had taken in the waiting room from his pocket, and popped one into her mouth.

"What was your first impression of Nanchang?" Liu Chang'an asked, looking out the window at the platform.

"City of Heroes."

"Anything else?"

"The place where the military flag was raised... Poyang Lake, Tengwang Pavilion, Haihunhou, China's first airplane, motorcycle, tractor..." Although it's not a city with a strong presence or dazzling data in national city rankings, it has its own unique features. An Nuan racked her brains for knowledge points and then added, "My mother and I have been here for tourism. I remember we took a boat trip on the river, and the light show on both banks was themed around red historical stories. It felt like the whole city was commemorating and educating people. Nanchang does this very well."

"Have you ever been to the provincial museum?" Liu Chang'an asked with some anticipation. Living a long life brings these peculiar experiences.

"We went... but compared to our Xiangnan Province Museum, this museum is quite ordinary, with few treasures, and those world-renowned national treasures... I don't remember them." An Nuan thought for a moment. Perhaps it had been too long, or perhaps she genuinely didn't remember. But what did that sparkling look in her boyfriend's eyes, that expectant and praising expression, mean?

"No... you're going a bit too far. The Marquis of Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun is on display at the Jiangxi Museum. In terms of the number of artifacts unearthed, the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun far surpasses the Mawangdui Han Tomb." Liu Chang'an reminded An Nuan. An Nuan couldn't possibly be unaware of the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun; she wasn't the type like Zhu Juntang.

Thinking of the tomb and Zhu Juntang, Liu Chang'an recalled the incident where Zhu Juntang spat in Mrs. Karnstein's face.

If An Nuan were to spit in the face of Lady Xin Zhui in the Mawangdui Han Tomb while visiting cultural relics and museums, Liu Chang'an would absolutely find it unacceptable.

But An Nuan actually doesn't even care about the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun, that's going too far.

"Oh... the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun, of course I know about it, but when I visited it, I was just a child. The tomb hadn't been excavated yet, let alone been displayed in the Jiangxi Museum," An Nuan explained.

"I'll go check it out when I have time." "Oh, I see," Liu Chang'an said with a hint of regret. Unfortunately, he hadn't originally planned to stay here for an overnight trip. After all, he had skipped class, and it wouldn't be appropriate to be too leisurely.

"Actually, compared to other tombs, although the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun are numerous, I don't think their status and value surpass those of the Mawangdui Han Tomb." Although An Nuan hadn't visited them, she knew about the excavation of the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun and had paid attention to related information.

"Why?" Liu Chang'an didn't think that the archaeological status and cultural value of the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun surpassed that of the Mawangdui Han Tomb, but hearing his girlfriend say that made him feel differently.

"First, the remains of Grandma Xin Zhui, a wet corpse preserved for over 2000 years, unmatched anywhere in the world. Second, the two plain silk robes, which you've seen before. Third, the T-shaped silk painting. Fourth, a vast collection of lost pre-Qin classics." An Nuan recalled her numerous visits to the Xiangnan Province Museum. "What could Marquis Haihun have to compare with Grandma Xin Zhui? His head?"

"You... wait... let me think..."

"The first three items I mentioned, the priceless treasures—I won't use them to bully the Marquis of Haihun—are those pre-Qin classics... You're probably thinking of Confucius's works in the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun, but Grandma Xin Zhui also has source texts for the * Laozi Te Ching*, The Five Planets Divination, The Astronomical and Meteorological Divination, tons of medical books, maps. Professor Liu often goes to look at the bamboo slips and illustrations on display in the museum, and she says that while the Marquis of Haihun's things are indeed quite good, they can't compare to Grandma Xin Zhui's."

After An Nuan finished speaking, she summarized the main point, "These are all treasures left by our ancestors, so there's really no need to rank them. It's just that the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun was excavated at a particularly good time, right when everyone was starting to pay special attention to archaeology and museums. Those marketing accounts and self-media like to use extremely exaggerated words like 'shocking,' 'world-shaking,' etc., making it seem as if the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun is some kind of unparalleled masterpiece."

After An Nuan finished speaking, she turned her head and glanced at her boyfriend, who was looking at her calmly.

Encouraged, An Nuan continued, "The Mawangdui Han Tomb, Xin Zhui is buried, is ranked alongside the Qin Emperor's Mausoleum as one of the world's ten most precious ancient tombs. And what about that Haihunhou guy? His Liu He, right? He was originally an emperor! His mother, Empress Dowager Shangguan, even after he was demoted to the south, still took good care of him, sending him many gifts. And what happened...? All this guy knows is gold, gold! He buried so much gold, it feels like he's going to live off that gold for the next life, and the life after that."

"Are you finished?" Liu Chang'an continued to look at An Nuan calmly.

"I'm done talking." Sensing her boyfriend's inexplicably unfriendly expression, An Nuan quickly put her hands between her legs, rolled her eyes around, and pursed her lips to appear obedient.

Liu Chang'an is a reasonable person.

Generally speaking, no one can out-reason with him.

When he doesn't want to reason, he talks about physics.

An Nuan is his girlfriend.

In general, An Nuan doesn't try to reason with him.

But when An Nuan reasoned with him, and she was right, Liu Chang'an couldn't bring himself to beat her up!

She had said everything, so Liu Chang'an had nothing more to say.

"You can go back to sleep." Liu Chang'an picked up his book again.

"I can't sleep, I want to talk to you," An Nuan said, snuggling closer to him.

Liu Chang'an patted her head and said with a smile, "Actually, what you said earlier wasn't wrong... There's so much gold in the Tomb of the Marquis of Haihun; it's really enough for his next life, and the life after that."

"Live in the present, why think about the next life, or the life after that... If there really is a next life, you can always earn money if you're short on cash," An Nuan said dismissively. "But... you still have to be my boyfriend in the next life, no question about it, no discussion."

"I've never actually dated someone for this long before..." Liu Chang'an sighed. "Having lived this long... there are still so many things I haven't experienced. I guess I have to keep living."

"Of course you should keep living. It's not like you've had enough." An Nuan looked down at herself. "Being with a super beautiful girl like me, you should feel like you're living in paradise every day, and you'll never get enough of life."