Old Age Like Frost and Snow

Liu Chang'an brought over a fruit and vegetable platter, with any variety to choose from, until the plate was full, priced at twenty yuan per platter.

An Nuan took a carrot about the thickness of a finger and gently bit into it.

"Have you practiced the Zhenwei Technique I gave you?" Liu Chang'an handed a slice of papaya to An Nuan on the plate in front of her; the fruit was suggestive.

"No!" An Nuan denied loudly, and to show her girlish modesty and shame, her cheeks turned pink, and she drew a lot of anger in her eyes as she glared at Liu Chang'an.

"Take advantage of the early start," Liu Chang'an reminded her. "Actually, I should have given it to you sooner. Do you know why authors who write urban romance novels all like to start writing in the spring?"

"What does it have to do with anything?" Liu Chang'an's topic jumped around too quickly, An Nuan couldn't keep up.

"If you've ever been a librarian, you'll know that the number of romance novels borrowed in spring is much higher than in summer. In other words, the desire for romance is seasonal. Readers are more interested in romance novels in spring, and if someone starts writing in summer, their sales often decline to some extent."

"What does this have to do with me!" An Nuan suddenly remembered that she had bought two romance novels after the Spring Festival. She had enjoyed reading them at the time, but now she really didn't have that much interest in reading them.

But that's because studying has become more stressful, and besides... who says An Nuan doesn't have the desire to be in a relationship now? What an idiot.

"Because psychological needs are influenced by physiology, blood and energy are more vigorous in spring, and the human body is more suitable for nourishment and development. If you had started practicing the Zhenwei Technique in spring, I think you definitely wouldn't care so much about Bai Hui now," Liu Chang'an said regretfully.

"Who cares about Bai Hui!" An Nuan firmly denied, but... how about trying next spring?

"Have a meal."

"I'll have some fruit first... Oh, right, Bai Hui got a bonus too? I think she'll definitely buy some cosmetics; she likes to dress up."

"I saw that her plan was to get a new phone."

Why are you looking at her plans?!

"I'll see what girls like, then I'll know what gifts to give them in the future."

An Nuan coughed softly, tilting her head to look out the window, her nonchalant expression revealing that she was wondering if he would give her a gift.

"Oh, by the way, I heard from Professor Ling across the street that a professor at Xiangtan University had an affair with a student, and it's all over. The school and my family know about it." An Nuan said in a low voice, trying to change the subject. If she continued the original topic, it might remind Liu Chang'an that An Nuan would be happy if he gave An Nuan a gift. An Nuan hoped that he would have that thought himself rather than being reminded.

"This kind of thing is quite common. Generally, a girl's life or social environment is relatively simple, especially when there is a strong man in her relatively narrow social sphere who easily dominates her life, work, and studies. She is easily possessed by this man," Liu Chang'an said. "This is a social emotional activity, not a physiologically driven one... Of course, most of the time, social and physiological aspects are mixed together, thus facilitating the relationship between men and women. After all, whether it is social or physiological, the relationship between men and women has dual characteristics. In many cases, it is a physiological social activity, not fundamentally different from enjoying team sports."

"Liu Chang'an, if there were a major called 'Bullshit,' you would definitely be a senior professor of bullshit." An Nuan said with great admiration. When she was with Liu Chang'an, she never had to worry about running out of topics. You could point to a foxtail grass and he could talk to you about the origin of life and the characteristics of plants in various historical periods of the earth.

"From now on, you can call me Professor Liu."

"Professor Liu, I'm An Nuan, a freshman from the class of 2017. Please let me learn to talk nonsense from you from now on."

Professors generally don't mentor new students unless they have a specific training assignment.

"If you don't take me with you, I'm going to bully you."

"All right."

An Nuan, as if she had won a major victory, tilted her head and smiled, picking up a piece of vegetable leaf from Liu Chang'an's bowl and putting it into her mouth as if she had won a prize.

"This girl is at a disadvantage; that professor definitely won't marry her," An Nuan said sympathetically.

"Yes, according to the old saying, a woman between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five replenishes her yang and blood, beautifies her complexion and invigorates her spirit; if practiced in moderation, she can become an immortal. Between twenty-five and thirty-five, I give and she receives, though there is no benefit, there is also no great harm. After forty, it can cause illness. If her menstrual blood has ceased, it is like a withered branch absorbing water, no different from ghostly intercourse, only leading to death. A man's essence and blood are like precious rain when scarce, like dew when strong; when tender, they are like spring buds sprouting moisture, but when old, they are like frost and snow, causing his rosy complexion to wither and fade... In short, it means this man is replenishing his yang by absorbing yin..."

"The 'loss' you're talking about isn't the same thing!" An Nuan said, glancing around to make sure no one was paying attention to Liu Chang'an, her face flushed with anger. "You don't believe in this stuff, do you?"

"It's a limitation of the times. You can't expect someone's knowledge in any area to transcend the limitations of their era. It's all about historical development and the progress of civilization."

"You actually believe in this stuff... I'm going to punish you by making you drink my soup!"

"I can drink three bowls."

Liu Chang'an had believed it before; who hasn't been foolish at some point in their life?

After lunch and a short rest, the two rode their bicycles back to school. Once inside the classroom, Liu Chang'an received a transfer notification that his bonus had arrived. He thanked the school, Zhao Wuqiang, and especially Ma Xingguo and his cousin Qin Yanan for their visit, promising to treat them to a meal sometime.

"Has your bonus arrived?" Bai Hui asked Liu Chang'an in a low voice, as if making a secret rendezvous.

She leaned in quite close, and Liu Chang'an could smell the faint fragrance emanating from her lips and teeth.

"Arrive."

"I've already spent all my money... I emptied my shopping cart because I had already planned it out."

What did you buy?

"A cell phone, and a cute little dress."

Cell phone? Little skirt? Liu Chang'an turned around and glanced at An Nuan.

An Nuan was staring at Bai Hui, that shameless, big-breasted woman, what was she doing getting so close to Liu Chang'an?

An Nuan held up the book, covering her face, and slowly raised it, peeking out to observe through the gap between the bottom of the book and the top of the stack of books on the desk.

"Let me see the dress you bought?" Liu Chang'an said to Bai Hui.

Bai Hui opened the webpage and showed it to Liu Chang'an. It was an RB brand called Angelicpretty, with a pink and tender color.

"Do girls like this kind of thing?"

"Of course! Any girl would love it. Look at the pattern on it, doesn't it look like a fairy's dress?"

"Little fairy?"

"Yes, little fairy, all girls are little fairies."

Liu Chang'an turned his head back to read his book.

After school today, An Nuan didn't practice volleyball. She changed the number on the blackboard that read "Six days until the college entrance exam" and left school with Liu Chang'an.

They parted ways at the bridge. Before heading home, Liu Chang'an went to the market and bought a Baymax, which he put in the car. Since even the sycamore tree was affected by the coffin, it must have a good appetite. He'd been fed hens every day, so he figured he needed a balanced diet. How about trying Baymax?

As soon as Liu Chang'an closed the train door, he received a call from Qin Yanan, who said that her great-grandfather had sent a message, but she didn't mention on the phone that she was coming to see Liu Chang'an.

Liu Chang'an had no objection and told her to come to the mahjong parlor to find him.

As the sun sets and we've had a good meal, what else is there besides playing mahjong?