With Elegance, With Grace, Without Presumption

Liu Chang'an and An Nuan went to eat bitter melon stewed fish, a rare specialty dish that few restaurants serve, even in its place of origin, Junsha.

The fish was sturgeon, simmered into a soup that was tender, smooth, and refreshing. The pot sat on a stove, and fresh slices of bitter melon were added to the broth. One would eat the fish first and then drink the soup; the flavor was exceptionally crisp and savory, leaving a lingering, endless aftertaste.

An Nuan made an excuse about asking for the Wi-Fi password to go and settle the bill first.

"I won a free meal on the app, so it's on the house," An Nuan said upon returning to her seat, a triumphant and joyful smile on her face. "You really can't beat this kind of luck."

"I believe whatever you say," Liu Chang'an said with a smile.

An Nuan's cheeks flushed. She knew Liu Chang'an's living conditions were very modest and naturally felt a sense of pity for him. She wasn't the type of girl who liked to take advantage of others; a meal of bitter melon stewed fish cost nearly two hundred yuan. While it was nothing to her, it could represent a day of missed classes and hard labor for Liu Chang'an.

An Nuan didn't want Liu Chang'an to know her thoughts. After all, she was a girl with her own sense of reserve, and she didn't want him to feel any blow to his self-esteem. Even though he usually appeared carefree and indifferent to everything, what boy at this age didn't have a bit of vanity and pride?

"I had no idea you were so good at basketball," An Nuan said, trying to change the subject as she picked up a piece of fish and blew on it between her lips.

The fish was delicate, and An Nuan's lips were rosy and soft. Even with the faint friction marks on her nose, she remained a sight to behold.

Liu Chang'an withdrew his gaze from her lips and shook his head. "I just happened to make a shot. How did you conclude that I'm good at basketball?"

"That's still impressive," An Nuan said, her eyes calm. Thinking about it carefully, it was still somewhat incredible. He could serve a volleyball like that and shoot a basketball like that, yet if Liu Chang'an claimed he couldn't play, she would believe him too. Having known him for three years, she had never seen him step onto the court; at most, his basic scores in volleyball and basketball during physical education exams were decent.

"After the college entrance exam... I'll practice volleyball with you. I'm confident in that," Liu Chang'an said after a moment of hesitation. He knew An Nuan's wish: to win the volleyball league championship for the Affiliated High School. In Liu Chang'an's eyes, the school team was naturally nothing to write home about, but among the current league participants, they were considered top-tier. If An Nuan, as a key player, could perform well, she might just get what she wanted.

"Okay."

An Nuan's lips curled slightly, revealing porcelain-white teeth. The smile rippled across her mouth, her eyes soft, sweet, and filled with a mix of anticipation and pleasant surprise.

In the three years they had known each other, Liu Chang'an had rarely taken the initiative to do something for someone else.

"I'm a sparring partner worth a meal of bitter melon stewed fish," Liu Chang'an said.

So that was it... just a return gesture. An Nuan continued to smile and nodded gently. That was just Liu Chang'an's nature; she had probably overthought it earlier.

After finishing the meal, they went their separate ways. An Nuan's home was in the Xiangnan University faculty residential area, while Liu Chang'an had to walk a distance to the Junjiang Bridge, followed by another fifteen minutes after crossing... with Liu Chang'an's leisurely, stop-and-go pace, half an hour was normal.

The streets were bustling, filled with many unfamiliar faces that made up the hustle and bustle of the city center. Various faces—indifferent, strained, or smiling—brushed past him. Liu Chang'an stopped and looked up at the television program playing on the outdoor big screen.

Song in the Clouds.

Angelababy played the fictional character Yun Ge, while Mao Xiaotong played the youngest Empress Xiaozhao in history—Empress Dowager Xiaozhao, Grand Empress Dowager Xiaozhao... This legendary woman became the Empress of Emperor Zhao of Han at six, and by the time she became Empress Dowager, she was only fifteen, yet she was able to depose Liu He, who had just become Emperor.

According to unofficial history, this Grand Empress Dowager Xiaozhao remained a virgin her entire life.

The character portrayed in the TV series ultimately lacked the aura of someone who ruled the world. Even at her most powerful, the person who could control the deposition of emperors was her maternal grandfather, Grand Marshal Huo Guang. Xiaozhao's authority could not be compared to that of Empress Lü.

However, the Empress Dowagers of the Han Dynasty were entitled to refer to themselves as "Zhen." They could depose emperors, and the edict to remove Liu He had to come from her hand.

At fifteen, the temperament of Empress Xiaozhao was something the shallow female celebrities of today could never master.

This was likely the trace left by Xiaozhao in the history books.

Liu Chang'an smiled again; that was something from 2,100 years ago.

He recalled a poem from that time:

Heaven above! I wish to be with you, to love you without end or decay.

This was ultimately a difficult thing to achieve. In a short life, it is hard to speak of forever. Even Liu Chang'an could not guarantee forever. Two thousand years had passed since this poem was born, and even the girl who felt this way in the poem could not truly wait for the mountains to flatten, the rivers to dry, winter thunder to roll, summer snow to fall, and heaven and earth to merge before she dared to part from her lover.

Liu Chang'an walked home, passing by the wet market. Although a dazzling array of ingredients was on display, there wasn't much fresh produce left at this hour. Vegetables, in particular, were much cheaper than in the morning; large bundles of cabbage, green onions, and chili peppers were sold in packages for a yuan or two. Liu Chang'an stepped on the discolored floor, picked out some green onions, bought a piece of pork belly, and added a small bag of peppercorns, all for just six yuan.

In the evening, he ate the meat pancakes he had pan-fried himself, along with a bowl of lamb offal soup sprinkled with peppercorns. Liu Chang'an still went to the mahjong parlor to play for the night, winning twelve yuan. Old Man Ma said that with Liu Chang'an's skill, he could definitely enter the community mahjong tournament and win the championship.

Immediately, some agreed, some were skeptical, and others thought the odds were fifty-fifty. It was only after a long discussion that they remembered the community mahjong tournament was for the elderly, restricted to those fifty-five and older. Always playing mahjong at a slow, leisurely pace with Liu Chang'an, people often forgot he wasn't part of the elderly demographic.

Liu Chang'an expressed his deep regret.

The next morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, Liu Chang'an woke up to the sound of the Huangmei opera The Heavenly Match playing on a radio outside, the music drifting away and returning in waves. After his usual morning routine, he prepared to go for a run.

Today's route could head toward the train station, circle back after reaching the station square, and avoid the Baolong Center route so he wouldn't run into the idle Zhu Juntang.

The city was vast, and there were many people. With a population of nearly eight million in Junsha, even just within the city center, it was difficult to run into someone again. Liu Chang'an didn't care if Zhu Juntang discovered anything, but he felt that one less thing was better than one more. He had no enthusiasm or interest in satisfying a young girl's curiosity.

Just as he opened the door, Liu Chang'an saw a box truck parked under the large parasol tree. Its bulletproof tires, pitch-black exterior, heavy doors, and firing ports were enough to prove it was definitely not a civilian vehicle.

Several old men and women were pointing at it with great interest; the elderly rose early, and a single novelty could keep them talking for days.

Hearing an old man who had retired decades ago say he had seen such vehicles in Vietnam, Liu Chang'an smiled. Then, he saw a side door on the truck's cargo hold open, a ladder folded down in sections, and a woman in a black petite suit and trousers stepped out.

The woman was tall, her long legs wrapped in black trousers that outlined straight, well-proportioned curves. The buttons of her petite suit were undone, and her ruffled-collar shirt felt somewhat tight, as if expressing the helplessness brought about by her full, lush bosom. Two simple diamond earrings hung from her soft earlobes, and her long hair was loosely tied back, yet she still exuded a capable and elegant temperament.

Liu Chang'an could see shadows inside the cargo hold, and the sound of footsteps was steady and powerful, radiating a certain hidden, hot-blooded aura.

"Mr. Liu Chang'an, hello. It's a pleasure to meet you. I am Qin Peng's great-granddaughter, Qin Yanan." The woman walked down the stairs, looking at Liu Chang'an with reserve and a hint of scrutiny, though her words remained polite.

"To be elegant, to be southern, to be a flute that does not err," Liu Chang'an nodded, coming back to his senses. He looked Qin Yanan over, remembering a woman who had once held a baby with a gentle smile, and recalled the lines from the Classic of Poetry, Lesser Odes of the Kingdom, Drum Bells.

"You are well-read, sir." Qin Yanan's lips curled slightly. There were very few young people in this era who still read the Classic of Poetry, let alone someone who wasn't from a scholarly family. Encountering a poor, down-and-out young man who could immediately recite the origin of her name, Qin Yanan didn't think she had just happened to meet a talented scholar; it was more likely he knew she was coming and had done his homework.

"I just happened to know the person who named you and know the origin of your name," Liu Chang'an said with a faint smile. Qin Peng's great-granddaughter—the look in her eyes was remarkably similar to Qin Peng's late wife, Ye Sijin.

It was just that Ye Sijin hadn't been as tall or had such a figure, and she possessed more of a pitiful, delicate temperament, unlike the cold and prickly Qin Yanan... Aside from that, they looked like twin sisters.

Even though Qin Yanan was careful with her words, Liu Chang'an could still feel the faint coldness from her, but that didn't matter.

"My name was chosen by a friend of my great-grandfather. Do you know my great-grandfather?" The smile on Qin Yanan's lips deepened, though her slightly narrowed eyes suppressed a hint of impatience. She hadn't wanted to come and put on an act with a young man who had a bit of hidden agenda.

But this was her great-grandfather's instruction, and Qin Yanan had no choice. She truly couldn't understand why her great-grandfather would make such an arrangement.

How could this young man, who referred to himself as "Sir," possibly know her great-grandfather? Aside from returning to his hometown for this birthday celebration, Qin Peng had not left the Capital for many years. Ordinary people had no chance to meet him, let alone hear him recount the origin of Qin Yanan's name.

"We have been old friends for many years." Liu Chang'an spoke to himself, his tone tinged with a faint sense of nostalgia; the youth who had once been in the prime of his life, bold and unrestrained, had already grown old and frail.

The Xiang River flows north, past the tip of Orange Isle.

I once traveled here with a hundred companions, recalling the turbulent years of the past.

In those days, we were young, in the prime of our lives, full of scholarly spirit, bold and unrestrained.

That was a tragic era, yet also a great age of historical reincarnation, filled with heroic aspirations and forged in blood.