Jiapingguan Chronicle

"Evolution? How could it be evolution?" Song Yaojia looked at Shen Cha, then at Shen Haolin, and said, "This is clearly regression, isn't it?" He looked at Jin Miaomiao, "Can you tell me what you think?"

“Your Highness, as I just said, these are all my guesses. Actually, there are two possibilities.” Jin Miaomiao held up two fingers. “Evolution or degeneration, but I tend to think it’s evolution.”

“My feeling is the opposite of yours, and I think I have a bit more to say,” Song Yaojia said, taking a sip of soup. “The situations of my uncle, Little Uncle Wang, and Elder Tantai are more like evolution, more in line with common people’s understanding of immortality. But…” He paused, then continued, “the situation of the Thousand-Handed Scholar, although he aged much more slowly than ordinary people, usually imperceptibly, he still aged at this slow pace and eventually died. This situation doesn’t seem like immortality, but rather…”

"longevity."

“Yes!” Hearing Shen Cha’s words, Song Yaojia nodded. “The former seems to live longer and be further away from death, while the latter, although we don’t know when we will leave this world, is inevitable.”

“Your Highness, no one can truly escape death; everyone must face it. Even His Highness the Eagle King, His Highness the Prince of Ning, or the oldest living elder, Elder Tantai, all meet the same fate.” Jin Miaomiao sighed. “Oh, and even our former prince will face death. This is the normal law of the world; no one can truly live forever. If such a person existed, he wouldn’t be a real person in the strictest sense; he would have become an old monster.”

"This," Song Yaojia touched his nose, "is logical and well-founded, and cannot be refuted. Is our former dynasty's little prince just an old monster?"

"Not exactly. He won't die from illness, but external factors can cause his death. For example," Jin Miaomiao wiped her neck, "right? This pill only ensures he's healthier than average and less prone to illness, but it doesn't guarantee he'll be completely safe from external shocks. For instance, if something falls from the sky and hits him on the head while he's walking down the street, he'll die instantly, right?"

"That's true."

“Actually, we discussed this issue with Senior Tantai when we returned to Beijing last time,” Jin Miaomiao raised an eyebrow at Shen Chayi.

"What the senior means is..."

“He was not afraid of death, and even felt somewhat comforted if that day came.”

"Is that what the senior thinks?"

“Yes!” Shen Cha nodded. “Both of them have lived long enough. They’ve experienced all the changes and ups and downs of this world. Their only regret has been made up, and all their wishes have been fulfilled.”

“Speaking of which, I think the same thing as my uncle.” Song Yaojia looked at Shen Haolin. “He told you the same thing, didn’t he?”

“Yes!” Shen Haolin sighed. “When I was little, I didn’t really understand and thought that Master’s thinking was wrong. But after experiencing a lot, I think that death is a rest for them.”

“That’s true.” Song Yaojia smiled bitterly. “My uncle also talked to my father about these things. He said that after my father passes away, he will stay by my father’s side and see when heaven will take pity on him and allow him to reunite with my father. Every time this is mentioned, my father gets very angry and ignores my uncle for several days. My uncle has to coax him for a while before he will calm down.”

“Uncle Wang hopes Master will live a good life, but…” Shen Haolin sighed, “He is Master’s only concern. Once that concern is gone, Master will…” He sighed again and said, “Uncle Wang understands this very well. He knows he can’t force it, but he just can’t accept it yet.” He waved his hand at Song Yaojia, “Forget it, let’s not talk about it anymore. Let nature take its course!” “Yes, let nature take its course. We won’t force it. Doing what they want is true filial piety.” Seeing that everyone agreed with her, Song Yaojia smiled and said, “But the Thousand-Handed Scholar doesn’t seem to have this problem, right?”

“Yes, because he knows very well that he won’t live that long.” Jin Miaomiao stroked her chin. “Actually, we don’t know why this kind of drug exists or what its original purpose was. Based on what we know so far, immortality or longevity seems to be a side effect of this drug, not its main one. Its main function should be to eliminate or delay the development of a certain disease.”

"If you put it that way, it does make some sense."

“Of course, we can’t rule out the possibility that some people want to live forever. Either way, this medicine has achieved that, right?” Jin Miaomiao looked at Song Yaojia, raised an eyebrow at him, and said, “I’ve always had this idea.”

"what?"

“The person who developed this drug isn’t necessarily a bad person. Look at the people he chose; they were all born with congenital deficiencies or whose mothers had problems during pregnancy, right?” Jin Miaomiao looked at Song Yaojia. “The Thousand-Handed Scholar should be one of them too?”

“Yes!” Song Yaojia nodded. “It’s really just average.”

"But those who took this medicine, except for those who were already weak or in poor health before taking it, almost didn't develop any new ailments. And their original old ailments were also effectively controlled to a certain extent, right? Especially His Highness Prince Ning, although his body is still very weak, his old illnesses rarely relapse, right?"

“That’s true.” Song Yaojia rolled up her noodles, took another bite, thought for a moment, and said, “But you still haven’t explained why you think it’s evolution.”

“If the original purpose of this medicine was to eliminate or slow the progression of a certain disease, then the Thousand-Handed Scholar is more like an evolved version. After taking the medicine, his body became lighter and his lightness skill was even better than before, because a lot of impurities in his body were cleared away.” Jin Miaomiao spread her hands helplessly, “He’s more like the legendary marrow cleansing, isn’t he?”

“Yes, he said so himself, and he said that he has hardly been sick since that illness. Also,” Song Yaojia thought for a moment, “Master Huilan saw him and said that although there are signs of aging, but,” he sighed softly and said, “everything is very good, and he is in excellent health.”

"In our view, this is a kind of evolution, something that has never happened to anyone else, right?"

"Hmm!" Song Yaojia thought for a moment, "Indeed, no." He looked at Shen Cha, "Even the senior didn't, right?"

“No.” Shen Cha shook her head. “If we’re talking about that, I agree with Miao Miao’s statement; it’s a kind of evolution.”

"Of course, as I said before, these are all just my guesses. Whether it's the truth or not, I'll have to get my hands on the drug and study it before I can make a decision." Jin Miaomiao stretched lazily. "It would be great if I could meet the person who made this drug; there's still room for improvement." (End of Chapter)