mesbooks Chapter 181 Playful Questions and Answers
Chapter 181 Playful Questions and Answers
Chapter 181 Playful Questions and Answers
Li Jiuhe suddenly realized that the question-and-answer mechanism seemed different this time.
The answers to these questions cannot be obtained by repeatedly resetting the task, because even if you are completely clueless, you will eventually guess the answer to a simple question.
But the question posed by Chang Qinghuan was clearly not something that could be answered by guessing, since the person had asked for the reason behind the answer.
Is it folly or delusion?
If you were to answer "foolish," you would have to provide an explanation for that answer; it's not an answer you can come up with by simply making things up.
"No, we need to think of another way." Li Jiuhe pondered for a moment, then asked, "Could you please repeat the question? I didn't hear you clearly."
He actually wanted to memorize this question again.
"Listen carefully, Du Liniang's dream in the garden, her death for love, and her resurrection for love. When her soul returned, she sang of 'Flowers and grasses are loved by men,'" is this infatuation or delusion? What is the reason?
Li Jiuhe quickly repeated his words and asked, "Did I say something wrong?"
Chang Qinghuan looked at him as if he were an idiot, then shook her head: "No mistake."
The task resets the next second.
Li Jiuhe knew very well that the best way to deal with this kind of dramatic person who was prone to mood swings, had a bad mental state, and was always ready to self-destruct was to go along with it and there was no need to force him.
Besides, force simply won't work; Mu Nian has already tried it.
So we need to know the answer from before.
But Li Jiuhe had never been exposed to traditional opera, and he was afraid that he might have misremembered, so he tried his best to write down the question.
The task was successfully reset. When he and Luo Shuo returned to the entrance of the screening room, he immediately took a step back, took out his phone, and quickly recorded the question he had just asked.
I listened to it once and confirmed that it was correct.
Luo Shuo stood to the side, looking at him in surprise: "Brother Li, what are you doing?"
Li Jiuhe said, "My precognitive abilities tell me that the guy inside, being a theatrical fanatic, will only grant our requests if we answer his questions correctly; otherwise, he'd rather self-destruct immediately. That way, we'll get nothing!"
Luo Shuo nodded, thinking to himself that it seemed Brother Li's strength had improved again, and his ability to foresee things was now terrifying!
Li Jiuhe quickly took out his phone to search for the answer, but found that he couldn't even find the question online.
In other words, this question is based on Chang Qinghuan's own experience after watching opera for so long, and no one has ever raised a similar question online before.
This is truly unique in the world.
Without further delay, Li Jiuhe and Luo Shuo did not enter the screening room for the time being. Instead, they left Mu Nian to guard the door and took the elevator back to the first floor, where they found the chubby theater manager from before.
"Manager, do you have anyone here who understands traditional opera?" Li Jiuhe asked directly.
The chubby manager paused for a moment, then shook his head.
But he quickly remembered something: "That's right, Mr. Lan Xi's eldest disciple, Sun Haizhou, is a guest at the theater. I'm afraid no one in the entire Northwest Cinema, or even Yuanmeng City, knows more about opera than him. But unfortunately, he's currently having a meeting with our chairman and several city leaders."
Li Jiuhe asked, "Where is the conference room?"
"No," the portly manager hurriedly explained, "The meeting is attended by city leaders, including the vice mayor. It might be inappropriate to abruptly invite Mr. Sun out—"
"It's alright," Li Jiuhe interrupted him. "He'll come out when we get to the conference room."
The portly manager hesitated and said, "Then—then—please follow me."
Li Jiuhe took out his phone and quickly dialed the number of Song Zhixing, the director of the Municipal Investigation Bureau. Just as he finished explaining the situation to Song Zhixing, they arrived at the door of a conference room.
The portly manager told them to wait outside, then knocked on the door and went into the conference room.
A short while later, a middle-aged man with gray hair followed the fat manager out of the conference room. After being introduced by the fat manager, this man was none other than Sun Haizhou, Lan Xi's eldest apprentice.
Sun Haizhou didn't know Li Jiuhe and his group before, and after hearing what the fat manager said, he didn't want to deal with them either.
But at the same time, the vice mayor who was presiding over the meeting received a phone call. After hanging up, he was immediately told to come out and cooperate with the outsiders.
Sun Haizhou adjusted his glasses and looked at Li Jiuhe with surprise.
Li Jiuhe said, "We are investigators from the Special Events Investigation Bureau of the capital. My surname is Li, and his surname is Luo. We are in charge of handling a special case here. Mr. Sun, please cooperate with us. You only need to answer some questions about opera."
Sun Haizhou nodded with a puzzled look: "No problem, I can tell you anything I know. What is the problem? Please tell me."
"In 'The Peony Pavilion,' Du Liniang experiences a dream in the garden, dies for love, and is resurrected because of love. When her soul returns, she sings, 'These flowers and grasses are loved by people.' Is it infatuation or delusion? What is the reason?" Li Jiuhe asked.
Upon hearing his question, Sun Haizhou was momentarily stunned, then looked surprised: "I didn't expect Investigator Li to have such extensive knowledge of Kunqu Opera! My apologies!"
"My ass! I know nothing!" Li Jiuhe thought to himself.
He just learned through his phone that "The Peony Pavilion" tells the story of a love that transcends life and death between Du Liniang and the scholar Liu Mengmei.
Du Liniang fell in love with Liu Mengmei in a dream while strolling in the garden. Upon waking, she died of lovesickness. Three years later, Liu Mengmei accidentally found Du Liniang's self-portrait and reunited with her spirit. Ultimately, through Liu Mengmei's persistent efforts to bring her back to life and the emperor's mediation of worldly affairs, Du Liniang was resurrected, and the two finally became a couple.
If Li Jiuhe hadn't encountered this problem, he might never have known this story in his entire life.
Although he thought that way, he said aloud, "Mr. Sun, what is your answer? It would be best if you used the same tone and wording when you answered."
Sun Haizhou cupped his hands in greeting: "Investigator Li is indeed meticulous. No problem, let me think about it—"
After a moment's thought, he spoke again: "My answer is—neither foolish nor delusional! The reason is that this is Du Liniang's resistance to reason with emotion." The playwright Tang Xianzu, when creating *The Peony Pavilion*, wrote, "Love arises without knowing its origin, and deepens with each passing moment." This can actually be viewed from another perspective, indicating that Liniang's soul is an unextinguished fire in the mortal world, a fire powerful enough to burn down the entire Book of Yin and Yang!
"So that's the reason?" Li Jiuhe asked.
Sun Haizhou did not answer immediately, but thought about it carefully for a moment before nodding emphatically: "Yes, that's the reason."
Li Jiuhe had already recorded the answer on his phone. He nodded, thinking to himself that he could go back and try it out.
He then thanked Sun Haizhou and returned to the opera screening room on the fifth floor with Luo Shuo.
Just like last time, Chang Qinghuan's bloated figure was still sitting in the middle of the last row, her eyes fixed on the big screen, with an expression of rapture on her face.
The opening remarks between the two sides were similar to the last time. This time, Luo Shuo knew that Li Jiuhe was in control and had already foreseen this scene, so he stood aside and could not get a word in edgewise, but just listened silently.
When Chang Qinghuan asked the question that Li Jiuhe had just asked, Luo Shuo's eyes widened like copper bells as he stared at the scene in astonishment.
He didn't expect that even the tone and manner in which Chang Qinghuan asked the question were exactly the same as the one Li Jiuhe had just imitated.
As soon as Chang Qinghuan asked the question, Li Jiuhe pretended to think for a moment before answering.
"Neither foolish nor delusional! This is love defying reason," Tang Xianzu said, "love arises without knowing its origin, and deepens with each passing moment." He likened Liniang's soul to an unextinguished flame in the mortal world, enough to burn away the binding force of life and death on her in the Book of Yin and Yang!
Chang Qinghuan was slightly taken aback, not expecting Li Jiuhe to answer so quickly, and the answer was also very much to his liking.
He immediately perked up, gently patted the armrest of the seat, and exclaimed happily, "Great!"
He then looked at the red curtain in Luo Shuo's hand, "Come on, inhale! I, Chang Qinghuan, keep my word and do what I say."
With a smile on his face, Luo Shuo immediately stepped forward and draped the red curtain over the other person's shoulder.
This time, the red curtain's absorption power was indeed very strong, but looking at Chang Qinghuan, he remained calm and showed no signs of pain.
A minute later, Luo Shuo removed the red curtain and nodded, saying, "Thank you!"
"Only one minute to absorb?" Chang Qinghuan smacked her lips, saying casually, "How about this, one minute for each question. My knowledge of opera is vast; would you like to absorb another minute?"
"Will it work?" Li Jiuhe wasn't quite sure.
"Of course." Chang Qinghuan waved her hand. "My passion for acting is as vast and profound as the sea, like a surging river that never ends, or like the Yellow River overflowing its banks, unstoppable, unless you don't want it—"
"Of course I want it! How could I not want it?" Luo Shuo hurriedly replied.
"Alright, listen to my second question."
Chang Qinghuan stood up again, and a beam of light shone down from above her head, plunging everything else into darkness, except for her strange and deformed body, which shone exceptionally brightly.
It's clear that this guy, as a high-level sequencer on the ordinary sequence line, has already begun to grasp the existence of that faint, almost imperceptible, power of the stage.
However, his mastery of the power of the stage is still far inferior to that of Tong Cheng.
He sang loudly: "Dou E made three vows before her execution: her blood would stain the white silk, snow would fall in June, and a three-year drought would ensue. If Heaven has eyes, why did it allow her to die unjustly? If Heaven has no eyes, how can her vows come true?"
"Damn it, how would I know? It's the mission reset technique!"
Li Jiuhe had heard of the play "The Tragedy of Dou E" before, but he had never studied it in depth, and he knew that he could never answer this question.
He left Mu Nian to guard the screening room on the fifth floor, while he and Luo Shuo went back to find Sun Haizhou once again.
The rest of the process was the same as before, but this time Li Jiuhe skipped the first question, which he already knew the answer to, and asked the second question instead.
Sun Haizhou was taken aback, and after a long pause, he replied, "This is a philosophical question, encompassing the contradiction between fate and justice. Let me think about it, please wait a moment."
After saying that, he walked to the side, turned his gaze to the window, and began to think quickly.
After a short while, he seemed to have found an answer. He turned to Li Jiuhe and said, "This answer can be interpreted as follows: Heaven has no eyes, but people's hearts have a scale! Guan Hanqing used Dou E's words to scold officials for their lack of conscience in upholding justice. Snow is not from heaven, but the tears of the people frozen into ice; drought is not divine punishment, but the bones of officials turned to ashes."
After giving his answer, he seemed a little uneasy and immediately asked, "I wonder if Investigator Li is satisfied with my answer?"
Li Jiuhe had no idea whether Chang Qinghuan was satisfied, but he himself was quite satisfied. After all, he was completely confused by this stuff, and it just sounded "high-end" to him.
Upon seeing that the recording was already on his phone, he immediately thanked her and turned to leave.
Back in the fifth-floor screening room, I met with Chang Qinghuan and quickly answered the first question. Then the second question came.
Li Jiuhe blurted out the answers he had memorized, leaving Luo Shuo speechless with astonishment.
Luo Shuo was mainly surprised that he could foresee things in such detail, and that he could give the answer without even asking the first question. He never expected that his expertise in opera was so high!
Chang Qinghuan lowered his head in deep thought, then looked up after a moment: "Good! Good indeed, Heaven is blind, but the human heart has a scale! Good indeed, officials have no heart for upholding justice! Come on!"
He then turned to look at Luo Shuo.
Luo Shuo then realized what was happening, grabbed the red curtain, and quickly stepped forward to perform a second absorption.
A minute later, Chang Qinghuan was still in good condition. There wasn't a single bead of sweat on his forehead, and he didn't look weak at all. It seemed that he still had energy left.
"Listen up, the third question!" Chang Qinghuan let out a clear shout, his interest soaring.
"Oh, there's more?" Li Jiuhe blurted out.
"Isn't it good that you can keep smoking?"
Chang Qinghuan and Luo Shuo both looked at him in surprise.
Li Jiuhe quickly changed his tune: "I meant, is your acting passion strong enough?"
"Rest assured, it is as vast as the sea, as profound and boundless as a mighty river flowing endlessly—"
"Alright, alright, you can continue!"
"Cao Cao, with his white face, is called a treacherous hero; Bao Zheng, with his black face, judges the mortal realm. I ask you, when Guan Yu, with his red face, beheaded Yan Liang, was he loyal or treacherous? Yan Liang was a loyal subject of Yuan Shao!"
"I'm fucking resetting again!"
Sun Haizhou frowned deeply, and a bead of sweat visibly gathered on his nose.
"Investigator Li, your question seems ordinary, but it actually has a deeper meaning. It requires not only a deep understanding of opera but also the ability to see through the surface of everyday phenomena to grasp the essence. Otherwise, you can't see things so clearly or ask such profound questions. Let me give you a satisfactory answer—"
Not long after, in the opera screening room on the fifth floor.
Li Jiuhe said, "A mask is not a person, and a person is not a mask! Guan Yu's red face represents righteousness," and his slaying of Yan Liang was to repay Liu Bei's kindness. Loyalty and treachery are not in appearance, but in the direction the blade points. To wield the blade for gratitude and righteousness is to have a loyal heart!"
"Awesome! So awesome!"
Without waiting for his reminder, Luo Shuo immediately picked up the red curtain and strode forward, draping it over Chang Qinghuan.
Another minute later.
Chang Qinghuan laughed heartily, pointed to the sky, and said with boundless pride, "Again! If you answer correctly again, I'll let you absorb for another two minutes! But this time, I need more than just an answer; I need—"
As soon as he finished speaking, a flowing water sleeve suddenly appeared from his left arm. With a flick of his wrist, it transformed into a white silk ribbon, while his right sleeve hung to the ground, revealing a large number of fleshy growths on his arm, from which flowed a bloody red viscous fluid. The fluid contained the power of his theatrical passion, almost bursting the water sleeve.
"Before Jinshan Temple, Bai Suzhen flips her sleeve" and knocks on the Heavenly Gate—do you think this flipping is a manifestation of karmic entanglement, or the demonic form revealed by Fahai's golden alms bowl? I need your analysis!
Li Jiuhe was somewhat bewildered by what he saw.
It was only then that he suddenly realized that Tong Cheng's dedication to opera was worlds apart from Chang Qinghuan's.
If it weren't for Tong Cheng's inherently high rank after awakening, if it were just a matter of how obsessed they were with each other, ten Tong Chengs might not be able to match one Chang Qinghuan.
If Chang Qinghuan had been lucky enough to be a gold-thread sequence user like Tong Cheng when she awakened, her achievements would probably be far greater than his.
After all, this guy was just an ordinary Sequencer, yet he managed to evolve to a higher level on his own despite the increased difficulty at the start.
This is a high-level sequencer at the very end of a sequence line, the lowest level of existence, so the effort and hardship that Chang Qinghuan has put in are probably unimaginable to others!
In front of the conference room.
Sun Haizhou stared at Li Jiuhe with some difficulty and asked, "You mean, I not only have to answer this question, but also perform corresponding actions to match the 'Legend of the White Snake' song, echoing this answer?"
"Yes." Li Jiuhe nodded.
Sun Haizhou kept his head down, thinking as he unconsciously waved his hands, clearly trying to match the answer with the actions.
After a moment, he said, "I can give you the answer, but I might not be able to do it correctly. I need to ask my teacher right away."
After saying that, he took out his phone and quickly made a video call to Mr. Lan Xi, a renowned opera master.
About ten seconds later, the video call connected, and a sprightly old man in a loose long gown stood in a courtyard with a kind face.
After quickly explaining the situation, Sun Haizhou immediately asked, "Teacher, when Bai Suzhen 'flipped her sleeves' and knocked on the Heavenly Gate in front of Jinshan Temple, was she flipping over her karmic entanglements, or the demonic form revealed by Fahai's golden alms bowl? I need to provide an answer to this investigator, and I also need to accompany it with the corresponding actions. Do you think this is correct?"
He then asked the portly manager to hold his phone, took two steps back, and approached the phone camera with measured steps, then virtually rolled up his sleeves with both hands—
Just then, Mr. Lanxi on the other end of the video interrupted him: "Wait, how did Bai Suzhen flip her sleeve to knock on the Heavenly Gate?"
Sun Haizhou turned to look at Li Jiuhe.
Having no other choice, Li Jiuhe stepped forward and appeared in the camera's view, then followed Chang Qinghuan's actions.
Although his movements were extremely unorthodox, his slow speed allowed Mr. Lanxi on the other side to see them clearly.
Mr. Lan Xi frowned slightly, then shook his head and said, "Hai Zhou, you're still not careful enough. The actions that Investigator Li made are not from 'The Legend of the White Snake,' but from the original text of 'The Legend of the White Snake,' 'The Tale of the Righteous Demon.'"
After saying that, he took two steps back on the other end of the video, revealing his full body. Instead of taking a square step, he circled around the camera, made a "pagoda-holding" gesture with his hands, pretended to press down on non-existent water sleeves, and began to sing.
"Suzhen's sleeves flutter, neither demon nor Buddha, but a sentient being undergoing tribulation," "Now we see true nature in the world," "Hidden within those sleeves is the human heart—a heart that even the Leifeng Pagoda could not suppress!"
Inside the screening room.
Chang Qinghuan stared intently at Li Jiuhe's actions and the answer he sang in sync with them.
After a moment, he grinned and said, "The answer is good, and the movements are correct, but your movements are not smooth at all. It's like a child who has just learned to walk, and it feels like you might trip over yourself at any moment."
Li Jiuhe: "————"
"Are you satisfied with this answer?" Luo Shuo asked hurriedly.
Chang Qinghuan smacked her lips: "The answer is satisfactory, but the actions—well, they're barely passable."
"Come!"
Luo Shuo quickly draped the red curtain over Chang Qinghuan's back.
After this absorption, it was clear that Chang Qinghuan finally showed signs of fatigue.
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