Adding him on WeChat is out of the question.

Whenever Shang Wanjun so much as blinks, there's a swarm of men in the school falling over themselves for her.

This is the power of beauty.

But Shang Wanjun is someone who enjoys her own company, indifferent to others. In her eyes, all those men are ordinary folks, not worth her attention.

"Oh."

"Xu Lin, are you here to return a book?"

"Yes."

"Come up to my dormitory."

"Okay."

Without any hesitation, Xu Lin set off for Shang Wanjun's dormitory after the class meeting ended.

Knock, knock.

As soon as he knocked, Shang Wanjun opened the door.

Xu Lin glanced at Shang Wanjun. She didn't seem to have sprained her ankle; her walk was perfectly normal. She was wearing slippers now, and her pajamas, which looked pretty standard for being in the dorm—it was nothing special.

In his memory, Shang Wanjun was always in long skirts and high heels, very elegant. This was the first time seeing her like this.

"Xu Lin, have a seat!"

"Thank you, teacher."

Xu Lin sat down on the sofa and handed the book to Shang Wanjun.

Shang Wanjun took the "Zhuangzi's Discourse."

"Xu Lin, what do you think of this book?"

Shang Wanjun flipped through the book. Actually, she had finished it long ago and had just bought it for collection now.

Xu Lin thought for a moment, "The master's writings are hard to judge, but I particularly like the 'Carefree Travel' chapter..."

Since Xu Lin had already gone through this book in the afternoon, missing only the punctuation, his mind had practically absorbed it completely. He then started to eloquently discuss it.

Shang Wanjun smiled lightly, "I also quite like the 'Carefree Travel' chapter..."

Then Shang Wanjun started discussing the ideas in "Carefree Travel." In fact, the original text was learned in high school, and many people knew it by heart. The content itself wasn't much, but the ideas were grand. The ancients valued simplicity, often expressing profound insights in a few sentences that, upon careful deliberation, offered great depth.

As they chatted, Shang Wanjun took "Speculations on Lie" from the bookshelf, three books split into upper and lower volumes.

"Xu Lin, have you heard of Liezi?"

"No."

Xu Lin answered honestly; he only knew three philosophers: Laozi, Confucius, and Zhuangzi.

Shang Wanjun chuckled, "When Laozi was leaving through Hangu Pass, a man named Yin Zi stopped him and asked him to leave the original version of the 'Tao Te Ching.' This so-called Taoist philosophy was then passed to Yin Zi, who passed it to Liezi, and then to Zhuangzi. Most people only know Laozi and Zhuangzi because their thoughts are more accessible, but Liezi's thoughts are relatively more... well, let's say unconventional!"

"How so?"

Xu Lin asked casually.

"You've heard of Liu Xiahui's composure, haven't you?"

"That I have."

Liu Xiahui's composure is famous, often used to describe a moral, non-lustful man.

Shang Wanjun said, "In Confucianism, Liu Xiahui is extolled as a Harmony Saint. What is a Saint? In traditional values, a Saint is a perfect person without personal desires. But in 'Speculations on Lie,' a man named Yang Zhu criticizes Liu Xiahui for not being a true Saint. He is merely obsessed with the desire of self-restraint, still having desires like ordinary people, hence cannot be considered a Saint."

"Isn't Yang Zhu setting the bar too high?"

Xu Lin responded.

"In the Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period, a time when the Hundred Schools of Thought thrived, different philosophies erupted and collided, with Yang Zhu's School being one of them."

Shang Wanjun continued, "The key is not the height of Yang Zhu's bar but the critical thinking in philosophy. For instance, Xu Lin, when we analyze a question, do you think Liu Xiahui's composure is real?"

Xu Lin thought about it, "For a regular person, it's certainly not real. If it's a beautiful woman, a regular person can't resist her charm, and if she's unattractive, a regular person wouldn't let her sit on his lap."

Actually, the story of Liu Xiahui's composure has three versions: seeking shelter from rain in an old temple, holding a girl in his arms to keep warm, and the king's beauty trick. The common theme is Liu Xiahui's high moral character. The most popular version is about a cold beauty sitting on his lap to keep warm, though it's the hardest for regular people to understand.

"What else?" Shang Wanjun pursued.

"But if someone truly possesses such high moral integrity, I can't comprehend it myself. Maybe such a person can actually achieve it."

Xu Lin suddenly thought of Song Yu, and said, "In 'Dengtu's Love of Beauty,' Song Yu was spied on and tempted by the Daughter of the Eastern Neighbor for three years without overstepping, wasn't he?"

In the original text, the Daughter of the Eastern Neighbor is an exceptionally beautiful woman. Comparing transcendence, Song Yu's probably surpasses Liu Xiahui's.

Being tempted by a beautiful woman for a few hours, if you resist, you're a gentleman. But with a neighboring beauty seducing you every day—yoga pants today, black stockings tomorrow, and a sheer nightgown the day after—who could withstand that?

The former is Liu Xiahui, the latter is Song Yu.

Shang Wanjun said calmly, "Many things about the ancients are exaggerated or embellished. Liu Xiahui was extolled as a Saint, Song Yu boasted himself a gentleman, and the Twenty-four Filial Exemplars were excessively praised, beyond common understanding. There are so many such examples in ancient times. These ideas were uniformly delivered to the public by the ruling class to stabilize society and reinforce governance, hence one must view world issues dialectically with enough critical thinking."

"Teacher, you're right."

Xu Lin thought he couldn't out-talk the other.

"Xu Lin, do you agree with me?"

"I do."

Shang Wanjun smiled, with a faint sense of satisfaction.

Then Shang Wanjun handed the three books of "Speculations on Lie" to Xu Lin, "This set starts from the eighth chapter of Liezi's original text, narrating backwards. The ideas inside are intriguing. Take it back and have a look!"

Ultimately, Shang Wanjun said, "The Spring and Autumn and Warring States Period was a brilliant era where various thoughts collided and erupted. Many great thinkers shone like stars. While many know Taoism as just Lao Zhuang, they might not know about people like Yang Zhu, whose thoughts vastly differ from Lao Zhuang's. This is a reflection of intellectual diversity, but as history progresses, thoughts become more singular, and Confucianism gradually deviated over thousands of years."

Xu Lin accepted the book, flipping through the upper volume.

Actually, Xu Lin didn't particularly enjoy reading such books, or any books for that matter, finding them dull.

Luckily, his memory is now extraordinary, so flipping through them takes little time.

"Teacher, may I use the restroom?"

"The restroom is inside."

Xu Lin urgently needed to pee, so he went to the restroom.

Returning from the restroom to the living room, Xu Lin inadvertently noticed a light purple and white Hanfu hanging on the nearby coat rack.

Shang Wanjun wears Hanfu?

Xu Lin was a bit surprised.

Normally, Shang Wanjun wore long skirts and high heels, exuding elegance and an academic vibe, not someone Xu Lin imagined wearing Hanfu.

Who wears Hanfu?

Among girls, it's mostly little girls who wear Hanfu, akin to girls doing cosplay—predominantly little girls.

Xu Lin hadn't thought someone like Shang Wanjun would wear Hanfu.

But Xu Lin reconsidered, and it seemed reasonable. Shang Wanjun was a sinology enthusiast and liked traditional culture, so liking Hanfu seemed natural!

Shang Wanjun noticed Xu Lin looking at her Hanfu but said nothing.

But when Xu Lin looked at Shang Wanjun, he saw a line on her head.

[A lit-nerd who wants to visit the traditional culture corner.]

What is the traditional culture corner?

Xu Lin knew about traditional culture, but the "corner" confused him.

[Traditional Culture Corner+.]

Xu Lin saw a new prompt appear and silently opened it.

[Note: Traditional Culture Corner is an event that gathers various traditional cultural contents. Shang Wanjun wants to attend this event, so she prepared Hanfu, but she's hesitant to go.]

[Participate in the event with Shang Wanjun next Sunday to complete the mission. Completing the mission will earn you a permanent skill reward.]

After some exploration, Xu Lin realized he couldn't really know unless he tried it himself.

So Xu Lin boldly asked, "Do you also wear Hanfu?"

"Hmm, a bit curious..."

Shang Wanjun responded with poise while sitting there.

"Oh."

Xu Lin just nodded, saying no more. Next Sunday was ten days away. Xu Lin thought he'd consider this over the next few days, then accompany Shang Wanjun to the event.

"Xu Lin, do you agree with my view?"

"Yes, I do."

Shang Wanjun smiled slightly, with a sense of subtle satisfaction.

Then she handed the three books of 'Speculations on Lie' to Xu Lin. "This series starts from the eighth chapter of Liezi's original text, narrating backwards. The ideas inside are interesting. Take them home and have a look!"

Finally, Shang Wanjun said, "The Spring and Autumn and Warring States were truly magnificent times, with different ideas clashing and bursting forth, and many great thinkers shining like stars. While many may only know Taoism as Lao Zhuang, they might not be aware of figures like Yang Zhu, whose thoughts differ significantly from Lao Zhuang. This is a testament to the diversity of ideas, but as history progressed, thoughts became dominated by a single school, and Confucianism deviated over the centuries."

Xu Lin took the books, opened the upper volume, and leafed through it.

In fact, Xu Lin wasn't fond of reading these kinds of books. He didn't even like reading books, feeling that it was all rather bland.

Fortunately, his memory was now extraordinary, so flipping through them didn't take too long.

He suddenly had to pee and went to use the restroom.

When he returned from the restroom and entered the living room, he saw a light purple and white hanfu hanging on the nearby coat rack.

Shang Wanjun wears Hanfu?

Xu Lin was a bit surprised.

Shang Wanjun wears Hanfu?

Xu Lin found it a little unreasonable.

But then Xu Lin thought for a moment, and it seemed reasonable. Shang Wanjun was the literary type who liked traditional culture, so she might want to wear Hanfu.

Shang Wanjun, who was seated gracefully, listened as Xu Lin nodded and said, "Oh."

Without a word, Xu Lin just nodded back. Next Sunday was still ten days away, so Xu Lin thought he'd think about it during this time, and then accompany Shang Wanjun to the event.

He took the three books and left.

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