CDJMM – Volume 2 – Chapter 20 The State Slaps and Teaches the Scum a Lesson (20)

Le Jing stood by the hospital bed. Lying on it was his little sister. He had already closed the livestream; now it was just the two of them alone.

The system screamed frantically in his mind, an ear-piercing, nonstop barrage of tedious and annoying questions. Le Jing’s head ached from the noise.

“Shut up. If you utter one more word, I’ll never open a livestream again in my life. You know I mean what I say.”

Instantly, the system’s shrieking stopped, and Le Jing’s mind finally returned to peace, just as he wished.

Only then did he have the leisure to lower his head and carefully observe Li Shuran’s expression.

How to describe her expression now?

It was like a meteor streaking across a silent, long night—at that moment, her eyes shone brightly, like midsummer fireworks.

Two clear tears slid down her thin, withered cheeks, yet her mouth curled into a sweet, satisfied smile, blooming like a flower.

She said, “Welcome home, brother.”

Le Jing paused for a moment, then smiled.

In that instant, the two of them gently shook off the dust of half a lifetime, returning to the appearance of their youthful selves.

It was as if time hadn’t really gone so far, and the boy hadn’t truly left; he had merely gone out to visit a friend. The heartbreaking separation of life and death between them had never occurred.

So the young boy smiled, giving the young girl a soft embrace, and whispered, “Mm, I’m back.”

There was no melodramatic crying or confessions of deep emotions—time had passed too long for that.

Long enough that Li Shuran had weathered storms, remained unshaken by favor or disgrace, and handled things with calm composure.

She held her brother’s hand like a little girl, yet spoke like an old lady, chattering about her experiences and feelings over the years. Le Jing occasionally smiled and answered a few questions. After decades of ups and downs, his little girl had many things she wanted to share with him.

…

Le Jing’s feelings for Li Shuran were complicated. Sure, he didn’t dislike her, but it couldn’t be said that he had deep affection for her. Though the original owner was trash, Li Shuran was a good girl. A good girl deserved to live a life full of brilliance.

In truth, Le Jing hadn’t really done much for Li Shuran. He brought her out of the Li family only because he despised the feudal custom of arranged marriage, and Li Shuran happened to have the will to escape. Supporting her with food, clothing, and schooling was simply his duty as her “brother.”

Le Jing was naturally emotionally detached. On top of that, he and Li Shuran had only spent a little over a year together, so it was impossible for him to have deep feelings for her. Therefore, any honor or status Li Shuran achieved in the future would be the result of her own efforts, not his.

But…

Le Jing hadn’t expected Li Shuran’s feelings for him to run so deep.

Thanks to the livestream audience’s bullet comments, Le Jing learned of the declaration Li Shuran made at the National Highest Science and Technology Award ceremony when she was 94:

“My brother is called Li Jingran. He is a truly great and brave man. He is the beacon of my life, my guide. All the achievements of my life are merely the continuation of my brother’s legacy… If there really is a world after death, I can calmly tell my brother: I have not wasted my life. I have lived well, because I have devoted my entire life to the most magnificent cause in this world—to strive for the liberation of humanity.”

He hadn’t realized that his unintentional actions would truly influence and change Li Shuran’s life, leaving her life forever touched by his shadow. She became another version of him.

What surprised him even more was that Li Shuran held him in such high esteem—he was, in her mind, such a wonderful person.

So when he saw Li Shuran, pale and fragile, lying in the hospital bed yet still concerned about manned spaceflight, he was genuinely moved. The Li Shuran of this world, and the Li Shuran he had known—what difference was there?

It was as if time hadn’t really passed; lying on the bed was still that somewhat naive, stubborn little girl. His little girl had bravely and tirelessly lived through a long life—she deserved recognition.

Did Le Jing know that his words would set the livestream on fire? He did. But he didn’t care.

The only surprise was that his words acted like a shot of adrenaline, successfully awakening Li Shuran’s will to survive.

Originally, Li Shuran had been given a critical condition notice by the hospital, but now she was completely out of danger. According to the hospital’s examination, Li Shuran was only somewhat physically weak and would be able to leave after a few more days of rest. The doctors repeatedly exclaimed that this was a miracle.

Le Jing was somewhat surprised. He hadn’t expected that Li Shuran’s feelings for him could transcend the boundary between life and death, creating a miracle. He couldn’t help but sigh inwardly: His… little girl…

It made it difficult for him to maintain his previous indifferent attitude toward Li Shuran. Although he didn’t want to admit it, Le Jing was really beginning to like Li Shuran a little.

Being an only child, he didn’t understand what the bond between siblings was like. But having a younger sister like Li Shuran, who admired and loved him so deeply, didn’t feel bad at all.

…

Le Jing didn’t linger long at the hospital. After all, Li Shuran was still weak and needed plenty of rest. After promising her that he would visit often, he left the hospital and returned to his current residence.

He then plunged straight into the laboratory to continue the unfinished experiments. If the system hadn’t courageously reminded him in a soft voice, he might have completely forgotten about the livestream.

He glanced at the clock and saw it was already past ten; it was completely dark outside. So late already…

He entered his bedroom, took off his lab coat, changed into loose, comfortable dark gray cotton pajamas, and sank into the soft high-backed chair.

After a few seconds of quiet thought, he calmly opened the livestream. Almost immediately, countless people flooded in, and the colorful, dense barrage of comments overlapped so heavily that it was impossible to see what anyone was saying.

Le Jing smiled and greeted the audience: “Good evening.”

The barrage intensified, forming a nauseating, chaotic mass of colors where the original text was barely recognizable.

“Ah, it seems like you all have a lot of questions for me. Answering them one by one would be too troublesome…” Le Jing rested his chin on one hand, thinking. “Let’s do this instead: No. 77, randomly pick five questions from these, and I’ll answer them depending on the situation.”

Since Le Jing had threatened never to open the livestream in his life, No. 77 had become unusually cautious. His once boisterous voice had grown more mature and steady. Hearing Le Jing’s command, he immediately started selecting audience questions without a word.

“Hmm, the first question is from an audience member with the ID Yu: ‘Is the streamer the reincarnation of Mr. Li Jingran?’”

Le Jing paused for a few seconds, building anticipation, then asked with a half-smile: “What do you think?”

System: …

Livestream audience: …

Yu: ????? Streamer, please answer my question directly!

Luobo Luobo: !!! Streamer, how can you act like this! That’s cheating!

Li Jingran’s Woman: Please answer, I beg you, ancestor! I’ll kneel to you, okay (:з”∠)

Le Jing adjusted his posture, answering calmly: “I never said I would answer your questions. I only said I would answer depending on the situation.”

“System, continue selecting other questions. Oh, don’t pick duplicate questions.”

The system hesitated, reluctantly skipping a similar question, and chose a new one: “The second question is from an audience member with the ID My Goddess Pipi Tian: ‘Why did the streamer say those things to Ms. Li Shuran in the hospital room?’”

This question revealed the subtle strategy of the system and the audience. Since Le Jing refused to answer directly, they tried to approach it indirectly. If he answered this question, it would inevitably address the previous one.

Le Jing understood this little tactic, but this time he would answer sincerely.

He replied honestly: “Because I thought she was about to die. I didn’t want her to have regrets.”

The system immediately asked excitedly: “So the things you said in the livestream were just white lies intended to stimulate Ms. Li Shuran’s will to live. You weren’t actually the reincarnation of Mr. Li Jingran, right?”

Le Jing raised an eyebrow: “So this is the third question?”

The system hesitated, then shamelessly answered: “Yes.”

“Well, my answer is…” Le Jing drew out his words with mischievous pleasure. In front of tens of millions of livestream viewers, he slowly answered: “No.”

System: …WTF!

Black-hearted Wen a Online: That stupid system, what a moron, damn AI, how can its questions be so lame!

The Rest of Life is Too Long: So which question did the streamer answer? Does he mean it wasn’t a white lie, or that he is Li Jingran’s reincarnation?

Spring River Flower Moon Night: Is the poster here? Quickly get a psychology expert to analyze the streamer’s micro-expressions!!

Le Jing yawned, and lazily asked: “No more questions for me?”

System: “Yes, yes, yes!”

“The question from the audience ID Apricot Flower Forest: ‘Will the streamer ever finish his works that he abandoned for over six hundred years, like Rise of Dynasties and Wandering Adventures?’”

This question assumed Le Jing was Li Jingran.

Le Jing wouldn’t fall for this little trick, but he didn’t plan to lie either. He gave a deliberately ambiguous answer: “I am a scientist now.”

How others interpreted his words wasn’t his concern.

After nearly ten seconds of silence, the system finally asked the last question: “Can you swear that all your previous answers were completely truthful?”

“Of course,” Le Jing stood, straightened his collar, crossed his arms, and answered calmly: “Everything I said just now is true. Not a single lie.”

“As for whether you’re satisfied with my answers, and how you interpret them…” The young man lightly curled his lips, and for the first time, the corners of his eyes revealed genuine smile lines.

He shrugged and smiled: “What does that have to do with me?”