Countless past events

The children were about to leave after singing when Wu Qi called them back.

“If you gain money and survival through what you have done today, then it is understandable. However, you have no regard for the law. If you dare to do this again, I will definitely send you to the Dali Temple.”

"Also, go back and tell the person who sent you—those who do many evil deeds will surely perish."

"I'm not afraid, I'm happy to oblige."

The children eventually left, leaving only Master Sun at the doorway. He stood alone, carrying two large baskets of vegetables. The setting sun cast his shadow on the ground.

That scene already tells countless stories of the past.

Tuoziyuan was newly established at that time, and many of the students in the school were not even born yet. Master Sun poured all his passion into Tuoziyuan. He was full of vigor at that time, and was young and untouched by the world. He believed that there was a clear boundary between good and evil in the world. Little did he know that when something happens, it can be both a good thing and a bad thing.

For example, Tuoziyuan.

Master Sun invested all his money in Tuoziyuan, hoping to provide the children with better housing and food, and that they would become knowledgeable and pillars of the nation. However, more and more children came to Tuoziyuan, and some parents, even those who could support their children, cruelly abandoned them, telling them, "Come home when you grow up, and come back to visit your parents if you miss them."

At that time, he began to doubt what the true original intention of Tuoziyuan was. After thinking it over and over, he realized that it was nothing more than preventing one less child from freezing or starving to death.

He refused the children's offer to join him, and was scorned by the parents as a hypocrite. He had a clear conscience and diligently taught the children at Tuoziyuan. Those parents could only provide their children with enough to eat, yet they hoped their sons would become successful, fantasizing that one day they would enter the imperial court. But how could this be possible without the guidance of a father and son?

Helpless, the group returned to the gate of Tuoziyuan, weeping and begging Master Sun to take in the children, even if it meant paying some money. Master Sun initially refused, but the government levied taxes on Tuoziyuan, and he had no money, so he had no choice but to take in the students and collect a small amount to tide him over.

However, this good fortune did not last long.

One of the children sent to study in Tuoziyuan was so playful that he sneaked out of the city and brought the plague with him. By the time Master Sun discovered this, more than a dozen children in Tuoziyuan had already contracted the plague. He prided himself on putting the greater good first, so he sealed all the children in Tuoziyuan within the city walls to prevent the plague from spreading to the capital, and immediately reported the situation to the authorities, requesting their assistance.

The government did nothing, and the doctor who came to help sighed and shook his head, saying, "There is no cure." Master Sun panicked and knelt in front of the Imperial Hospital for two or three days, but no imperial physician came to his aid. Only a female imperial physician held an umbrella for him in the rain and followed him back to Tuoziyuan after listening to his story.

The parents, believing their child was surely dead, cried out for one last look at him, despite Master Sun's kind words of persuasion. A group of parents crowded in front of the gate of Tuoziyuan, while behind it lay their children, weeping and wailing, saying they wanted to leave.

The moment the gates were smashed by those people was also the moment the plague slipped into the capital.

As more and more people died, the imperial court finally took the matter seriously and sent the Imperial Medical Academy to help. It was then that Master Sun learned that the female physician was just an apprentice, and that this apprentice had saved five children from the city.

That winter, many people died in the capital. The children who cried and begged to go out brought the plague to their parents. These were already poor families, and the imperial physicians were busy treating the powerful and wealthy. They had no money for treatment and could only wait to die.

Of the fifty-eight children who entered the orphanage without parents, only twelve survived.

The female apprentice also contracted the plague and died.

“When a loved one dies, people always want to vent their anger on someone.” Master Sun sat on the steps, two vegetable baskets beside his legs, showing no trace of his former pride. “They said they sent their children to study here, and I took the money but didn’t even watch over them properly. If the children hadn’t sneaked out, how could they have contracted the plague, and how could so many people have died from it?”

"Actually, I think so too."

“I should take good care of every child. Or perhaps I shouldn’t have let children with parents come to study for that little money, when I originally only wanted to take in children without parents.”

But without that money, Tuoziyuan would be seized by the government.

Master Sun said, “I know they resent me. The song they just sang was the ‘Song of the Lonely Elder’ that they composed for me.”

Master Sun seemed to have become a different person. He was no longer the ill-tempered Master Sun from Cizi Pavilion, nor the Master Sun who had insisted on handing over the pardon to Wu Qi. Now, he was a Master Sun whom no one had ever seen before, a Master Sun living in self-blame and pain.

“I’m not afraid of getting old, I’m not afraid of dying. It’s just that every time I hear this song, I think of the children who died in that plague. I couldn’t even raise them to adulthood.”

Fengyu said, "But Grandpa, isn't it a good thing that you took us in? Why do we have to pay money to the government? Does that mean the government is bad?"

The children in the village were completely confused. They didn't understand why the government was charging Tuo Ziyuan money, nor did they understand why, even though the doctor was there to treat and save lives, no one paid any attention to Grandpa Sun, who was kneeling down.

Master Sun replied, "The government should be good."

The students at the pavilion were older, and they understood the intricacies of the situation immediately. Even if a powerless person knelt down, some people would only think that he was blocking their way; as for dignity, no one cared.

As for whose fault it was in the matter that Master Sun mentioned, no one could answer.

Most mistakes are not caused by one person alone, but by your negligence, my oversight, and the emotions of others, which ultimately lead to an irreparable disaster.

The celebration had been ruined, which naturally upset everyone. The news of the plague only added to their frustration. Wu Yin remained silent until dinner, when she finally apologized to Master Sun.

“I’m sorry, Master. My father was the one who contracted the plague back then, pounding on the door of Tuoziyuan, crying out that he wanted to go home to find his parents.”

Her father, Wu Donggui, was a student of Master Sun, and now she was also a student of Master Sun. She couldn't deny that—back then, her father had also put some pressure on Master Sun.

Master Sun said, “It is fortunate that you survived, there is no need to apologize. Yingchang, you don’t need to hold a grudge either, your father is now a good official who serves the people.”

Moreover, Wu Donggui was so young at the time, and having contracted the plague, he had no one to rely on. It was understandable that he wanted to find his parents. After all, it would be cruel and unreasonable to talk about risks and the big picture to a child whose life was hanging in the balance.

Wu Yin said again, "I'm sorry."

Master Sun shook his head and said, "It's all in the past."

But can it really be over? If it really is over, then why did Master Sun choke up and shed tears several times when he talked about this?

Memories are like a continuous drizzle seeping into your skin; from then on, every time it rains, you will remember that a drop of cool rain once entered your body.

“I don’t know why those children sang that song today, but, Xiao Qi, I have no right to interfere in the affairs of the Moonfall Camp. You still need to be careful.” Master Sun looked at Wu Qi with concern. “Remember to come to me if anything happens.”

“Alright, Master,” Wu Qi said.

Perhaps sensing the awkward atmosphere, Master Sun said, "Don't you all know my name?"

Upon reflection, everyone realized it was true; they always called him "Master Sun," but they didn't actually know his real name.

Master Sun said, "My name is Master Sun."

Everyone was surprised, but then they thought about it again and felt that there was no one more fitting for the name "Master Sun" than "Master Sun".

After dinner, as everyone left, Feng Yu followed behind Wu Qi. Wu Qi turned around, patted his head, and took out a small cannon-shaped model that he had prepared.

The model is about the size of two fists and is exactly the same as the last version of the Cannon Scale. Both the steel and the crystal wall used are strictly scaled down. The only difference is that this Cannon Scale model does not have the halberd or cannon.

Wu Qi said to Feng Yu, "This is the cannon blade I'm currently developing. I'm giving it to you."

Feng Yu was unsure whether he could accept the gift and was somewhat at a loss.

Wu Qi bent down and whispered to Feng Yu, "It will be a few more days before others can truly see the real cannon scale. Take a look first and see if you can figure out how it was developed, okay?"

“Okay! Sister.” Fengyu happily accepted the model.

Seeing that Fengyu was happy, Wu Qi whispered to Yi Shen, "Yi Shen, Qi Qing likes you very much."

Yi Shen replied, "I know."

The admiration in a child's eyes contains no deception. Yi Shen gave the jade pendant he always carried with him to Qi Qing. The jade pendant he was wearing today did not symbolize his status; it was merely a pendant to match his clothes. Qi Qing stepped back repeatedly, waving his hand and saying, "Brother Weichong, this is too precious; I cannot accept it."

"If you have time, you can take the jade pendant to the Yi residence to find me. At that time, I can teach you to play the zither."

"Okay...okay!" Qi Qing said.

Master Sun instructed, "Don't go looking for your brother Weichong these days, he's very busy. And you, Fengyu, don't bother your sister Yaoling these days either."

Fengyu and Qiqing both said in unison, "Yes! Grandpa!"

Feng Yu and Qi Qing felt they were the luckiest two people of the day. Each carrying their own things, they followed behind Wu Qi and Yi Shen, seeing them off at the door.

"Brother and sister, will you come again?" Qi Qing asked.

One of the students in the pavilion laughed and said, "Yes, I will. I'll come whenever I have time. We can even play drinking games then."

"Okay! We'll wait for you."

The group chatted and laughed, unwilling to leave. Master Sun stood with them at the door, not urging them on. A carriage slowly approaching in the distance went unnoticed by most, except for Lin Kuo, who glanced at it while teasing Song Yinxing.

"Hmm? This person doesn't seem to have good intentions," he said.

Li Jian asked, "What do you mean by 'the visitor is ill-intentioned'?"

Lin Kuo nodded his chin at the approaching carriage.

Everyone looked over and, realizing who was sitting in the carriage, their expressions turned serious. That person wasn't Master Sun's student, nor did he have any connection to Tuo Ziyuan. What business did he have here today?

Even Master Sun's expression was off.

The carriage stopped in front of the gate. Wei Si lifted the curtain, nodded to the crowd, and then searched for the person he was looking for in the crowd. Suddenly, his gaze stopped on a certain person, and he smiled brightly.

"Yingchang, I've come to take you back to your residence."