That’s because “conservative” isn’t an ideology, and it never has been. Conservativism has two core beliefs: “conservatives” refers to a specific group of people defined by common traits, and those are the good people. Each tranche of conservatives defines their own identity, and then they define whatever they want as “conservative values.”

This German guy on the train probably is very conservative. He is not more progressive than an American conservative. He has simply defined his group of conservatives to include the people who benefit from universal healthcare. He sees the value to his own group, and so he supports it.

Conservatism is an ideology, and has been one since the time of the French Revolution.
Edmund Burke, the father of conservativism, was a narcissist who opposed the French Revolution, and Louis XVIII was a narcissist who crowned himself king and called the government he liked “conservative.” They did not share an ideology. There was no consistency in either of their positions. They both simply declared the things they like to be conservative values.