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      I love Lu You's poem "Ode to the Plum Blossom": "Beside the broken bridge outside the post station, it blooms lonely and ownerless. Already dusk, it is saddened alone, further burdened by wind and rain. Unwilling to contend for spring's favor, it lets all the flowers be jealous. Falling to the ground, crushed into dust, only its fragrance remains." Especially the lines, "Unwilling to contend for spring's favor, it lets all the flowers be jealous. Falling to the ground, crushed into dust, only its fragrance remains." If we were to elaborate further, it would be this line, "Unwilling to contend for spring's favor, it lets all the flowers be jealous."     If we were to personify it, it would resemble Sima Qian or Su Shi. Recently, I read the martial arts novel "Little Li Flying Dagger" by Gu Long, and I found endless charm in the line "Unwilling to contend for spring's favor, it lets all the flowers be jealou...

      When there are no points of reference in this world, we don't know our own size or length. Only when I wandered through the era of the sages through words did I realize my own ignorance, my lack of knowledge, and how erudition and talent are refined. Facing those awe-inspiring mountains, I didn't know from what angle, or with what mindset, to recount that past and the respectable person within it.     "The supreme masterpiece of historians, a 'Li Sao' without rhyme." This is Lu Xun's evaluation of the *Records of the Grand Historian*. I know that, as someone of limited knowledge, I am not qualified to comment on Sima Qian or his *Records of the Grand Historian*, which he spent fourteen years writing. Yet, presumptuously, I neither explored the original *Records of the Grand Historian* nor searched through the vast historical materials for the life of the Grand Historian; I only encountered his life in the biographical text of *The Grand...

     In the eyes of the general public, the "jianghu" (江湖, a term referring to the martial arts world or the world of chivalry and adventure) is the swordplay and intrigue depicted in the works of Liang Yusheng, Jin Yong, and Gu Long (perhaps my understanding is somewhat narrow), not the jianghu of Fan Zhongyan's "Yueyang Tower Inscription" (岳阳楼记), where the line "When far from the court, one worries about one's ruler; when in high office, one worries about the people..." is more relevant. However, I lean more towards Fan's jianghu, because for the living, everyone is a wanderer in this jianghu. Whether we are renowned heroes or unknown, ordinary guards, I don't think that matters. What matters is that we are enacting our own stories in our own jianghu, whether they end in comedy or tragedy. The jianghu is like water; it carries everything from the present to the future, and pushes the future towards the present. Perhaps it is more like tim...

     Don't wait until you look back, for youth is gone     —Reflections on "Kids Fall in Love" A decadent     youth is unconventional, and the decadence of youth is indeed fleeting. —Epigraph     Trains churn along the tracks of time, clocks swing forward in circles. In the long journey of life, will we, like trains, forever run on our own tracks, like clocks, turning forward without complaint? Undoubtedly, this is impossible. In those days associated with youth, how much rebellion, how many fantasies, filled our minds, taking us to a different world. However, is the world we fly to heaven or hell? That depends on whether our souls are positive or negative. Therefore, learning to choose is an essential part of youth.     The earth keeps turning, signifying our continuation. From infancy to adolescence, we are constantly making choices. In childhood, our choices are determined by our parents, who painstakingly pave a smooth path for ...

     The idea that "excellence in learning leads to officialdom" is a thing of the past, a product of an era that prioritized agriculture over commerce. It held a dominant position in China's historical values ​​for thousands of years. "Excellence in learning leads to officialdom" was the standard by which those in power selected talent, and also the main path for talented individuals to achieve fame and fortune.     With the continuous development of society, the elements that construct social wealth and values ​​have become more diversified. Consequently, people's ideologies for realizing their self-worth have changed, and the channels for achieving self-worth are no longer singular.     Although values ​​originating from the spiritual and those originating from the material have coexisted throughout history, their level of detail is incomparable. The number of participants differs, the time frame for completion differs, the foreseeable benefits diff...

     Happiness is actually very simple!     The first autumn wind had just blown, the weather was still chilly but warm, and it happened to be Sunday. As usual, I went to my father's house to keep him company.     My father sat alone in the yard, tending to a pile of sorghum ears, skillfully cleaning the empty husks to make brooms. More than an hour passed, and a small mountain of sorghum ears had been piled up in front of him. I said, "Dad, that's enough, why make so many?" My father didn't look up, still carefully cleaning, and said softly, "Make a few more, so you can use them slowly after I'm gone. I'm over eighty, how many more years can I make brooms?" Yes, my father is already eighty years old, and perhaps his days are numbered, especially in the last two years, his health has clearly declined, and several surgeries have aged him considerably. Now, in his twilight years, my father is still thinking about doing more for his children! My hea...

     There are countless poems about the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl throughout history, but I particularly love Qin Guan's "The Magpie Bridge Fairy": "The clouds weave patterns, the stars convey sorrow, the Milky Way stretches vast and silent. A single meeting in the golden autumn breeze and jade dew surpasses countless encounters in the mortal world. Tender feelings flow like water, the auspicious day is like a dream, how can one bear to look back on the magpie bridge's return path? If two hearts are truly bound for eternity, why should they be together every morning and evening?" It is this poem that narrates the story of the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl's reunion, giving them a veneer of destiny. I don't know if immortals still exist in this world. I don't know how to understand the word "immortal." In my mind, whether it's the story of Chen Xiang rescuing his mother on Mount Hua or the legend of the White Snake at the Broken Bri...

      Life is but a fleeting few decades. What kind of life we ​​will lead, what kind of scenery we will see—we have no idea. We only know to move forward step by step, regardless of whether it's what we imagined, we will walk on without hesitation. Perhaps there will be regrets, but this is the path we chose. I always thought I would walk the path I imagined, no one forced me, and I would only choose to do what I liked. But as time passed, I became less stubborn and less persistent. What is it that I really want? Perhaps even I am now confused and lost.     As I grew older, I slowly changed, becoming more worldly and sophisticated, becoming someone I no longer liked. A friend once teased me during a conversation: "So, you weren't like this before. You were sharp as a cat's claws, and no one dared to mess with you." Hearing this, I laughed. Yes, for so many years, I lived carefree and unrestrained, as if many things were readily available, wi...

      The beauty has departed, and Chen Xiaoxu's passing has cemented her place in the classic world of *Dream of the Red Chamber*.     One was a celestial flower from a fairy garden, the other a flawless jade; in the poignant lyrics, Chen Xiaoxu's image always lingers. She is my eternal Lin Daiyu.     *Dream of the Red Chamber* is a tragedy, an elegy for a large family, and also a tragedy of the love between Lin Daiyu and Jia Baoyu. What is tragedy? Lu Xun said, tragedy is the destruction of something beautiful. Comedies make you laugh and then you remember nothing. Tragedies, however, leave a deep impression.     The first eighty chapters of *Dream of the Red Chamber* depict a scene of bustling prosperity, which makes the later sorrow all the more poignant. Who could have known that the Grand View Garden would later become overgrown with weeds? Who could have imagined that such a beautiful love story ...

      I often find myself alone on a warm, sun-drenched afternoon, enjoying tranquil moments by myself. Such opportunities are incredibly precious to city dwellers, but for an ordinary person like me, they're as common as can be. I don't know if it's a form of self-consolation, or if I simply cherish this time that belongs only to myself.     I've even imagined myself on a vast grassland, quietly gazing up at the wonders of nature. I've also imagined running and dancing in a world of dandelions, letting the countless seeds drift in the air, finding peace deep within my soul in this enchanting world.     To others, such thoughts might seem like a fairytale—not impossible, but too idealistic, too romanticized. I've never considered or explored the feasibility of such ideas; I only know that I'm willing to pursue this kind of life, to truly experience inner peace and tranquility.     People often ask me th...

      Never forget your original aspiration, and you will achieve your goal.     A hundred pieces of gold can buy a fine horse, a thousand pieces can buy a beautiful woman, ten thousand pieces can buy a high rank, but where can you buy youth? Youth is fleeting, like a clump of straw, relentlessly harvested by the scythe of time. The symphony of youth is filled with joy and sorrow; the bittersweet experiences intertwined within become our most precious treasure, memories we will never forget.     Brief, yet brilliant. The nature of youth compels us to maintain a steadfast original aspiration.     Some people, for my younger self, may only remain in my hazy memories, only to be encountered through recollections. Whenever I feel melancholic, I record my feelings in writing, and then my heart naturally returns to tranquility. Because I know it is merely present loneliness, and solitude will not last. As Dai...

      Movies allow us to temporarily escape the dust of the world and fully enjoy the light and shadow poured onto the screen. Light and shadow intertwine, each frame freezing time and space, making history stand still, and countless reveries welling up from within. The world of light and shadow ripples gently in an era of spiritual poverty. A good movie is like a cup of strong tea, rich and mellow, lingering on the taste buds of memory.     The world of light and shadow is vibrant with color; the hues of a film are like a piece of velvet, soft and elastic. In *Legends of the Fall*, the majestic Rocky Mountains stretch for miles, and horses gallop across the verdant grasslands—vast, free, and unrestrained. The vast American West is a gift from God, a darling of light and shadow. While the emotional memories of the film are hazy, I remember only that vast expanse of green that purified my heart. *Amélie* is filled with orange hues, its warm to...