Chapter 383

Chen Guanlou secretly rolled his eyes.

It had been several years, and there were still people who wouldn't give up on urging him to be ambitious.

What ambition!

In his past life, he was ambitious until the day he died, exhausted to the point of being worse than a beast of burden. In this life, no matter what, he had to change his way of living.

He was very satisfied with his current life. If he really had to find a flaw, it was that the working environment was slightly harsh, with no internet and no happy fat-house water.

Seeing his impervious attitude, the Head Steward was furious.

"As a member of the Chen family, you should build merit and establish a career for the Chen family."

"The Chen family doesn't lack people to build merit and establish careers; I am redundant. Head Steward, please stop thinking about me. If you truly want to reward me, just give me a sum of money and send me away. I have no other pursuits; I just love money."

"The Master will not give up on any talent."

Chen Guanlou curled his lips, noncommittal.

The Head Steward snorted coldly, "Whatever I say, you won't listen. Fine, fine, we'll talk after the Master returns."

Although he said that, the Head Steward still satisfied his request and gave him a sum of money, a reward that could be called generous. Chen Guanlou was satisfied. This work wasn't tiring, and the income was high; if the Hou Fu had errands in the future, he would be willing to accept them.

After taking the money, he incidentally swiped half a jin of good tea leaves and brought a basket of snacks, running to Master Du's house to share a meal.

Master Du loved to eat.

When he was younger, he was particular about dignity, and he was also particular about eating; even when encountering his favorite snacks, he would only eat a bite or two to be polite. Now that he was older, he began to learn to indulge; when he encountered something he liked to eat, his mouth couldn't stop.

Chen Guanlou advised him to eat less, "Eating too much is bad for your health, especially sweets; eating too much easily leads to diabetes."

Master Du, however, didn't care at all.

"I have wasted half my life, and half a foot has already stepped into the coffin. If I can't eat this or that, and I'm always being particular, then living this life is truly meaningless. I have figured it out now; while my body is still good, I will eat what I want to eat, without any scruples. A person lives once; having too many scruples and caring too much is mentally exhausting and meaningless."

Chen Guanlou was very surprised and asked curiously: "Master, did you have an epiphany after reading some book?"

"Not at all! Books cannot bring epiphanies, but the lives of others can. Recently, I received news that one of my childhood friends died, and several classmates from my school days have already died. All of them wasted half their lives, were always busy, and never stopped. Before they died, they didn't even get to eat a single good meal. I pondered: what is the meaning of a person being alive? Then I thought of you."

"Thought of me? How could you think of me?" Chen Guanlou was very surprised; what was there about him worth thinking about? He was just an ordinary person doing an ordinary job, except for being more handsome than Pan An and often encountering young ladies who wanted to throw themselves at him; his whole life was lackluster. He couldn't compare to officials in the court, such as Yu Zhaoan, who wasn't very old but had a legendary life experience and could already write an autobiography—and could write several volumes at that.

"In everyone's eyes, you are rebellious; you are barely a scholar, yet you insist on being a prison guard. Not only is it shameful, but your status is also lowly. When you reached the age, you didn't marry or have children; all the money you earned was thrown into the lap of luxury, becoming the highest-quality customer of the brothels. Every step you take does not conform to secular requirements. Your concepts and your thoughts, to put it bluntly, are a bit treasonous.

But I have seen with my own eyes that you live very happily, happier than everyone else, and happier and more at ease than your clan brothers and cousins. They are rushing about for a living, while you are enjoying life. I have seen the meaning of life in you."

Ah?

Chen Guanlou was shocked.

He himself hadn't even grasped the meaning of life, and Master Du had actually seen the meaning of life in him. It was too unexpected.

"Master, did you see wrong? You can even see meaning in me and write an article to analyze it? Have you read yourself into stupidity?"

Master Du was so angry his chest hurt, then he laughed and scolded, "You, you, you are always this cynical. It feels like there is no one in this world you truly care about."

"I care quite a bit about you, Master. If one day you are bullied by someone, I will definitely take revenge for you."

Master Du did not doubt the truth of these words; this was something Chen Guanlou would do. Liu Guanshi only had a drop of kindness toward him, but after Liu Guanshi passed away, he still did his best to help handle the funeral arrangements, ran errands for Liu Wan Shi, and even helped Liu Xiao Chuan find a proper job in the Hou Fu.

Others discussed privately, saying that Chen Guanlou had taken a fancy to Liu Wan Shi and had ill intentions. But Master Du didn't see it that way; Chen Guanlou wasn't that sordid.

Liu Wan Shi was indeed very alluring; sometimes he himself wanted to be an old lecher for once, and he didn't deny that he had ugly desires. Chen Guanlou must have had them too; perhaps in the middle of the night, he had also fantasized about Liu Wan Shi and had unspeakable dreams. But he knew how to restrain himself.

Having normal desires but knowing how to restrain them, and being polite in his conduct, was not sordid. It could only be said that this was the behavior a normal person should have.

"I am just an ordinary master; who would be so irrational as to bully me? Stop talking nonsense. And don't be humble; I know your thoughts. In short, don't try to persuade me; I will eat what I want to eat and drink what I want to drink. If one day I really get diabetes, that is fate."

Master Du was very open-minded.

Chen Guanlou stopped persuading him.

Given the average life expectancy in this era, Master Du would probably be gone before he had time to taste the various complications brought about by diabetes.

That was quite good!

Sometimes, a short life is not necessarily a kind of happiness. Anyone who has seen the various pains brought about by the late-stage complications of diabetes would think so. It can be described as worse than death!

The old and the young ate and drank, accompanied by the crescent moon and sparse stars.

As the wine went to his head, Chen Guanlou couldn't control his mouth and suddenly asked, "Do you think the world will fall into chaos? After the world falls into chaos, will the Master be a loyal official, or will he choose to rebel?"

"You are confused! How can such words be spoken casually? The world cannot be in chaos."

Chen Guanlou chuckled, "But many people are hoping for the world to be in chaos. There are people rebelling in both the north and the south, the Ministry of Revenue has no money, the old Emperor continues to be obsessed with cultivation and cannot extricate himself, and the evil consequences brought about by the affair of the deposed Crown Prince are having a profound impact on the world's landscape. If this world doesn't fall into chaos, certain people won't agree; they are using all kinds of methods in private, saying that no matter what, the world must fall into chaos. You tell me, how will the Hou Fu choose then?"

"No matter how the Hou Fu chooses, your surname is Chen, and you are a member of the Chen family; this cannot be changed. Unless you change your skin and bones. How do you hope the Hou Fu chooses?"

Master Du was truly cunning, kicking the question back again.

Chen Guanlou looked at the moon; he couldn't change the fact that he was a member of the Chen family because he wouldn't change his skin and didn't know how to change his bones. The rise and fall of the Hou Fu directly affected his situation.

He could ignore it.

It was just that having grown accustomed to a lazy and comfortable life, he was unwilling to live a life of sleeping in the open, rushing about, and hiding his name.

He could only take it one step at a time and adapt to circumstances!