Chen Bugu looked down and saw that what Liu Shifu had taken out was the Lian Xin Nu.
"Liu Shifu, I told you, this weapon is perfect for you."
It wasn't the first time Liu Shifu had suggested returning the Lian Xin Nu to Chen Bugu; he had been very happy when he first received the weapon.
"Chen Bugu, you don't need to say such things anymore. Sometimes I'm a bit slow to react, but that doesn't mean I'm truly confused."
"The Lianxin skill is very powerful, and the stronger the power, the more it can unleash its might. Whether it's strength or technique, I'm not as good as you, and I'm even far from Bai Ting. It's better for you two to have this weapon than me."
"I don't know if it's my illusion, but you seem to still feel apologetic towards me, probably about that incident in the Yu Tan Tunnel."
"When we exited the Yu Tan Tunnel, I told you we were even, not to mention you later helped me get my whistle back."
Liu Shifu's whistle was still hanging around his neck, the red whistle appearing even brighter under the firelight.
After the ape cat snatched his whistle, his shoulder bone was shattered. When he fell from the tree, he had already given up hope for that whistle.
But just before he lost consciousness, he heard Chen Bugu say something to him.
"Give me the whistle."
Later, when he woke up, he found that everyone except Chen Bugu was guarding him.
He asked Yan Kuan, "Where is Chen Bugu?"
Yan Kuan said that Chen Bugu had gone after his whistle alone.
He knew Chen Bugu was strong, but he asked himself, if it were him, would he put himself in danger for someone else's item?
He wouldn't.
That day, when Chen Bugu returned with his whistle, Liu Shifu even felt a subtle sense of guilt, guilty about his own act of fleeing alone in the tunnel, so he just quietly said, "Thank you."
After that, he also understood that Chen Bugu didn't owe him anything.
"If it weren't for you, we would have all died in that tunnel, so you don't need to take care of me. Take the Lianxin Crossbow back."
Liu Shifu still insisted on handing the Lian Xin Nu to Chen Bugu.
But Chen Bugu remained silent; he neither reached out to take it nor followed Liu Shifu's words.
"Liu Shifu, do you know? I consider myself a selfish and indifferent person. Many times, if I don't go against my conscience, I can't survive..."
"You don't owe me, and I don't owe you. I'm just trying my best to keep us all alive, that's all."
"I don't really care whether what I do is right or wrong in others' eyes. I'm just a small person, unable to consider the common people. My principle for doing things is only for myself, as long as I can face myself."
"Liu Shifu, have you ever done something you regret?"
Chen Bugu's inexplicable words suddenly made Liu Shifu freeze.
The forest in the dark night was as lonely as the night itself. Liu Shifu was silent for a long time, then suddenly smiled. He looked at Chen Bugu's face and felt as if he suddenly understood this young man.
"Chen Bugu, do you often take the 64 Road Bus?" Liu Shifu asked.
"I used to take it quite frequently during college, but then I haven't taken it for a long time."
Chen Bugu thought for a moment; the last time he took the 64 Road Bus was a few days ago, and before that, it was three years ago.
"Do you know? I've been a 64 Road Bus driver for over 10 years. In the beginning, I was chosen as the model bus driver in Yu Tan City every year, but later, I never got selected again..."
"Five years ago, I was driving the 64 Road Bus and passed an intersection. An old man seemed to have a heart attack and collapsed while crossing the pedestrian lane."
"That day, the road was full of people coming and going, but everyone turned a blind eye. I asked the passengers on the bus to help, to make an emergency call, after all, the old man was right in front of our bus."
"But not a single passenger paid attention to me. They buried themselves in their small phone screens, heads down."
"In desperation, I got off the bus, helped the old man to the side of the road, and called an ambulance for him. To avoid delaying the passengers' time, I asked a colleague who was resting nearby to temporarily take over for me."
"I sent that old man to the hospital, and after he woke up, he insisted that I had hit him. You cannot imagine how complicated my feelings were at that time; it was a mix of amusement, anger, panic, and helplessness."
"The traffic police took me to the roadside to check surveillance, but it turned out that the spot where the old man fell was a blind spot for the camera. I tried to find the passengers of the 64 Road Bus from that day to prove my innocence, but they not only said they had no recollection of the day's events but also complained that I had neglected my duty and delayed their time."
"At that time, many people on the internet spoke up for me, but more people criticized and cursed me. They made fun of me, saying that Yu Tan City's bus drivers always drove recklessly, and now something had finally happened."
"Later, someone released my information online. I don't know how they found it, but my home address, contact information, and even my wife's workplace were all exposed."
"They sent messages insulting my family, and caused trouble at my wife's workplace entrance. They said justice would not be late and demanded an explanation for that old man. Isn't it laughable? When that old man collapsed on the road, no one ever demanded an explanation for him."
"This matter later went to court. During the first trial, the judge asked me one question: He said, 'If you didn't hit him, why did you help him?'"
"Hahahaha, Chen Bugu, do you know how I reacted then? You don't know, do you? I don't know either. I just remember that I lost, I had to pay money, and I had to bear the infamy."
"My wife was pregnant with our second child at the time, on maternity leave at home. Due to long-term cyberbullying and the result of the first trial, her mood was constantly poor. One day, while walking on the road, she was distracted and hit by an electric scooter."
"The hit-and-run driver fled. My wife lay on the roadside, bleeding heavily from her lower body. She lay there calling for help, but no one took her to the hospital."
"By the time I arrived, it was too late. My wife was seriously injured, and our second child was also gone."
"Moreover, because my incident caused such a stir in Yu Tan City, her workplace didn't want to get involved and found an excuse to fire her."
"I refused to accept it and continued to seek a higher court. The matter dragged on for another half a year until finally, an older brother provided dashcam footage. My innocence was restored. But it was too late..."
"No one on the internet paid attention to this matter anymore. My innocence was a bare skeleton, worthless in the eyes of those 'sharks' who came sniffing for blood... The truth was never important."
"I was cleared, but I was no longer the model bus driver in Yu Tan City... I was cleared, but my wife lost her job... I was cleared, but my second child was gone..."
"Chen Bugu, is conscience important?"
"You asked me if I've ever done something I regret?"
"I've seen a drowning child sink to the bottom of a lake before my eyes. I can swim, but I didn't go to save him."
"I've also seen another old man collapse from a heart attack in front of me, but this time I understood what it means to protect oneself."
"When we were in the Yu Tan Tunnel and discovered that dog could breathe fire, my first reaction was that you intentionally harmed me. I thought you were using my life as bait to escape, so I also ran. I wanted you and Lin Ye to die so I could have a chance to live."
"Chen Bugu, you say you are a cold and selfish person, but I know you are different from those people. You can live by going against your conscience, but you will only live in nightmares."
"You don't need to comfort me, because we are the same kind of people."
"I always see that drowned child, soaking wet, appearing in my dreams. He reaches out to me, and I try to grab him, but he drifts further and further away."
"I also always see that old man who died in front of me, trembling as he reaches into his coat pocket. I see a bottle of heart medicine there, and I want to help him get it, but my feet feel as heavy as lead."
"I've had such nightmares for many years."
"Is conscience important? I don't know either."
Chen Bugu listened quietly to Liu Shifu recounting his past, without saying a word.
He looked at Liu Shifu's bitter smile, that weather-beaten face already furrowed by time and past events, and then a hot tear just rolled down his parched face.