Chapter 32: Alcohol

Lantern Festival night.

The ancient city’s lantern festival stretched out in glowing waves.

Countless sky lanterns carried the wishes of families into the heavens, their tiny flames lighting up the dark sky.

Hui Feng had already finished cooking the tangyuan for the evening.

He now sat with his daughter, waiting for his wife to come home so they could eat dinner together.

Bored, Hui Feng scrolled aimlessly through his phone.

In a lull between swipes, he glanced at his daughter.

That’s when he noticed—Huimengyi’s expression looked deathly grim.

“Mengyi… is something bothering you lately?”

Hui Feng felt a twinge of unease. This wasn’t normal.

If it was just a small worry, it’d be fine.

But if it had already become something deeper, something like a mental burden—that could be dangerous.

He knew her age. Right now, she was at a critical stage, where her values and worldview were still forming.

If she suffered some emotional trauma now, the consequences could be disastrous.

Hearing her father’s question, Huimengyi slowly lifted her head from where she’d been blankly staring at the table.

“Dad…”

Her voice was soft, almost timid.

“I saw this question in my winter homework book. It said: ‘A high-speed train is moving forward, and due to its speed, it needs 200 meters to come to a full stop.’”

“‘Fifty meters ahead, the driver suddenly sees two possible tracks. One has a person tied to it. The other has barrels of explosives.’”

“‘If the driver chooses the track with the person, at least the passengers will survive. But if they try to save that one person by going toward the explosives, everyone on board will die. In that case, what should the driver do?’”

Hearing this, Hui Feng immediately went speechless.

What kind of trash question was that?

Who the hell wrote this?

He instantly recognized the type. It was one of those so-called “logic problems.”

Don’t ask him how he knew—he had done similar ones when he was younger.

The kind that smug people came up with to look clever, but offered no real answer.

And once you picked one, they’d just tell you, “Wrong. That’s not it. Think again.”

Back then, Hui Feng had straight-up said: “Think my ass. This question has no answer, okay?”

“Sigh…”

He let out a long sigh.

Now he understood why his daughter looked so torn up.

She was probably spiraling over this dumb question.

Hui Feng opened a beer bottle, took a couple of gulps, and once the buzz hit, he pounded his chest and declared, “Don’t even bother with that crap! If your teacher asks why you didn’t do it, just call me! Mengyi, remember this—whoever wrote that question is just trying to mess with people. You stay far away from that kind of person!”

“Dad…”

Huimengyi looked at her tipsy father with something close to envy.

“What would you do… if this kind of thing really happened in real life?”

Since she hadn’t gotten the answer she wanted, she had no choice but to ask again.

Without any hesitation, Hui Feng gave his answer.

“If it were me, I’d yank the brake as hard as I could… then close my eyes and leave it to fate. Let the train decide what happens.”

“I just need to do what I can do,” Hui Feng said, slightly buzzed now.

“There’s no point forcing myself to do things I was never capable of. I’m just a person, not a god—we weren’t meant to be all-powerful.”

His eyes locked on his daughter, as if trying to make sure she really heard him.

“Mengyi, I want you to remember this: admitting your own weakness… that’s not something shameful. In fact, it can be something incredibly brave.”

“You know what kind of people live the longest in this world?”

“What kind, Dad?”

Huimengyi was curious.

It wasn’t something she’d ever thought about before—but somehow, she felt like this question held the key to her inner struggle.

“It’s not the ones who are unbelievably smart. Not the ones with great power. It’s the average people—the ones who can laugh no matter what.”

“The smarter someone is, the more easily they worry. The more power they have, the more they get lost. That’s why it’s the fools who live the longest.”

Hui Feng said that, then took another sip of beer and kept going.

“When I was little, I never understood why your grandpa drank so much. I couldn’t figure it out—why did he love something so bitter? The government always said alcohol was bad for your health!”

“But now I get it. If your grandpa hadn’t had those two drinks each night, he probably would’ve died even earlier. Alcohol’s true purpose is to help people forget their worries. No poison in this world is deadlier than a heavy heart.”

Hearing that, Huimengyi only felt more confused.

So… is the only answer to stop thinking about outcomes that are already doomed?

“So, Dad… how many things are there in this world that we just can’t do?”

“Oh wow, now that’s a heavy one.”

Hui Feng slumped into his chair.

That was a bit much—even for him.

As a science-and-engineering guy, he wasn’t exactly built for philosophical questions.

Whoever wrote that damn homework question, he swore to the stars—if he ever found out your name, he’d see you in court.

“Let me think…”

He rubbed his temples, trying to shake off the buzz and pull together a coherent answer.

“Well… let’s put it this way. If I were 15 again, I probably would’ve said something dumb like ‘There’s nothing I can’t do!’ But I’m older now. I don’t have that kind of fire anymore.”

He sat back up and reached out his left hand to pat Huimengyi’s head.

“That’s why the future belongs to you kids. Only children who still dare to dream can carry the future of this nation—and of humanity.”

“As for us? Half our lives are already behind us. We just go with the flow.”

“My proudest moment isn’t anything I’ve done. It’s seeing you grow into an amazing adult. And when the world needs you—if you can protect even just a few people—then that’s already enough.”

Hui Feng withdrew his hand from her head.

Huimengyi looked up at him—this man who always seemed silent, who just scrolled on his phone and kept out of everything.

And yet… so much had been hidden in his heart all along.

“Dad… have you really never wished for me to save everyone?”

“Isn’t that what magical girls are supposed to do?”

Hearing that, Hui Feng nearly broke into a cold sweat.

Thankfully, he held it in—just enough that his trembling didn’t give him away.

He shook the half-empty bottle in his hand and chuckled.

“Who can really do that much? Just protecting yourself is already a person’s limit. If you can save even one life, that makes you a great person already. Saving the whole world? That’ll kill you.”

Click.

“Honey? Mengyi? I’m home!”

At that moment, Xiang Yujie returned.