Chapter Twenty-Four: The Gift from My Maternal Grandfather

  At six o'clock in the morning, the biological clock rang on time, and I woke up habitually.

  It's only six o'clock, and others definitely won't get up so early. Lying in bed for another half an hour, I really couldn't sleep. The sky outside was already bright, so I decided to get up and go out for a walk anyway.

  Grandfather, grandmother and Aunt Mei all live on the first floor. Only I and my two brothers, Jia Kai and Jia Luo, live on the second floor. At night, I see that their doors are all tightly closed, probably they haven't gotten up yet. After all, it's still winter break, a time for sleeping in.

  Just as Xing Ye was about to go downstairs, Jia Kai's door opened and he, dressed in sportswear, also seemed to be heading out.

  Obviously he didn't expect Xing Ye to get up so early either. He was stunned for a moment before softly greeting him, "So early, why not sleep in a bit more?"

  "Can't sleep, thinking of going out for a walk, how about you? Looks like you're preparing to go jogging." Xing Ye said as he walked downstairs, with Jia Kai following behind him.

  "Can't sleep after changing places?"

  "No, I'm not an early riser, I just got used to waking up early."

  "It doesn't seem like you have a habit of morning exercise" Jia Kai thought he had found someone with similar interests.

  "Morning exercise? I don't have such a good habit, getting up early to start the stove, cook, and sweep, there are so many things to do in the morning." Xing Ye said naturally.

  Yu Jia Kai fell silent, still understanding too little about her life.

  The first floor was empty, and the two of them went out directly by opening the door.

  "You just go back as you normally would, I'll take a walk around here and head back myself." Xing Ye didn't want his presence to cause trouble for him.

  "It's foggy today and not suitable for intense exercise, let's take a walk together."

  There is indeed a thin layer of fog that has not yet dispersed, but isn't it normal for winter mornings to have some fog? It usually disperses as the sun rises.

  Since he said so, Xing Ye didn't decline and the two of them walked along the small path by the lake. Occasionally, there were people who got up early to exercise or take their pets for a walk.

  "This community is especially beautiful in the spring, especially with this small lake. The other end of the lake connects to a large lake in the park, and it's living water so there are schools of fish. People say that this place is an earthly paradise within the city." Jia Kai introduced the scenery of the community.

  "The houses here must be sky-high priced too, right? I'm afraid ordinary people can't afford to buy one of these houses even if they work their whole lives. Do you believe that those pampered dogs in their owners' arms are fed better than many children in the mountains?" Xīng Yè said with a hint of sarcasm.

  Jia Kai fell silent again, unable to explain why he felt so heartbroken for the carefree flower-like girl who was shouldering too much pressure.

  "I was just kidding, don't take it to heart. Hey, where are we going?" Xing Ye also felt that he had misspoken and quickly changed the subject.

  "In front of us is the East Gate, which is the park. Grandpa and grandma often go there for morning exercises. Let's take a look." suggested Jia Kai.

  To say that Jia Yuan Garden is truly located in a golden location, going out of the north gate and west gate are all bustling commercial streets, and going out of the east gate is a beautiful park, otherwise how would it be worth its weight in gold.

  The two did not meet their grandparents in the park under the starry night sky, as the sun gradually rose and the thin fog dispersed, they returned to Jiayuan Garden again.

  Mei Yi had already prepared breakfast and was staring in surprise at Xing Ye and Jia Kai returning together from outside.

  "You got up so early tonight? I thought you weren't up yet, just now I wanted to go call you, your grandma said you slept late yesterday and didn't let me go call you."

  Xing Ye washed his hands in the kitchen and helped Mei Ayi cook porridge. "I'm used to getting up early, sleeping late, I wake up at 6 o'clock every morning."

  "Aunt Mei, what porridge is this? It smells fragrant just by smelling it." Xing Ye looked at the porridge in her hand, and the fragrance hit her nose.

  "This is Wu Ren Zhou, made with sesame seeds, walnut kernels, almond, pine nut and peach kernel, which can nourish Qi and blood, tonify liver and kidney, and also moisten the intestines and promote bowel movements. Eating it regularly can help maintain good health." Mei Yi introduced to her.

  One night I found out that my grandfather's family attaches great importance to health preservation, whether it is living habits or eating habits are very healthy.

  "Mei Yi, you're so skilled! Next time I have some free time, you must teach me." Xing Ye was still very interested in cooking.

  "I learned these culinary skills from my husband, his family has been in the cooking business for generations and they're especially good at making nourishing dishes." Mei's aunt mentioned her husband with a few hints of pride.

  Everyone has arrived for breakfast, Xing Ye thought Jia Luo would sleep in late, but unexpectedly he also came dressed neatly to eat breakfast.

  The five-grain porridge was indeed delicious, and under the cover of night, she couldn't help but add another bowl. Her grandmother saw how much she enjoyed eating it and happily drank an extra half bowl of porridge as well.

  Although Grandfather didn't say anything, Xing Ye noticed that when he looked at him, his eyes were very gentle and even had a hint of approval, it seemed that his impression of himself was also quite good.

  Holding a pot of flower tea newly learned from Aunt Mei and Pu'er tea for Grandpa, I gently knocked on the door of Grandpa's study.

  "Come in," was Grandfather's low voice.

  "Grandfather is having a cup of tea." Xing Ye entered the study for the first time and curiously looked around.

  The room is very large, probably the largest except for the living room. The bookshelves on two walls are filled with an astonishing number of books, leaving Xing Ye speechless. A few paintings hang on one wall, and although Xing Ye can't tell if they're good or bad, someone who understands art would know that each piece is a treasure. Inside the room, two old-fashioned long desks face each other, complete with the four treasures of the study. If it weren't for the electric lights and air conditioner on the wall, Xing Ye would think he had traveled through time and space to several hundred years ago.

  It wasn't until she approached under the starry night that she discovered her grandfather was engraving a seal. She didn't expect her grandfather to be skilled in seal carving. Her grandfather merely looked up at her, said "put it on the table", and then continued to carve with his head down.

  "Leave him be," Grandma called out from behind another bookcase to Xing Ye, "he's like that, once he gets going, he can't stop."

  Xing Ye placed the flower tea on the desk, and saw that her grandmother was painting. On the desk was an unfinished picture of flowers and birds, although it wasn't complete, Xing Ye could tell at a glance that this was the complete version of the pattern on the pair of jewelry boxes.

  "Grandma, your painting is really beautiful, it's just like a masterpiece, I admire you even more now."

  "You're good at talking," Grandma said with a smile, "This is a meticulous painting, I only learned it after retirement, and it's been just a few years, but it's not bad, it's just something to pass the time."

  "It's even more amazing if you can draw like this in just a few years." Xīng Yè said with great enthusiasm.

  "What about Jia Kai and them? Let them take you out for a spin, tomorrow is the 15th of the first month, it's been lively these past few days."

  "Jia Kai has gone out on some business, and Jia Luo... he's studying, so let's not disturb him."

  "Reading books? When did Jia Luo become so fond of studying?" The old lady was a bit skeptical, "Ah, I understand now. He's been playing during the holidays and seeing that school is about to start soon, he's anxious to do his homework, right? You don't have to cover up for him anymore."

  Xing Ye smiled awkwardly, knowing that Jia Luo was rushing to finish his homework in a hurry, but she didn't dare tell her grandmother, so she helped him say something nice.

  "If you feel bored, you can take some books from here." Grandpa said without lifting his head.

  "Can I really? These books?" Xīng Yè gazed at the wall filled with ancient and modern books.

  "Still" did not lift his head.

  The starry night was a bit excited, not because she loved reading books so much, but because in her heart, being able to read the books here was a kind of recognition from her grandfather.

  Grandma saw through the starry night's emotional excitement and whispered: "Have you seen your grandfather's engraved seal? It's for you."

  "Give me" made her eyes widen in surprise under the starry night sky.

  "Yes, your grandfather was carving until very late yesterday and continued again after breakfast today." The grandmother pulled Xing Ye to her grandfather's desk and pointed it out to her, "This piece of Qingtian stone is a top-quality Fengmenqing, the best among all the stones collected by your grandfather. His teacher, who was also an old friend of many years, wanted this stone from him but he refused to give it away even after being asked for half a year."

  The "troublesome" old man blurted out two words without even lifting his head, apparently annoyed that his partner had spoken up.

  Grandma smiled at Xing Ye and said, "It's nothing, he's just embarrassed. What's there to be embarrassed about when it comes to a grandfather giving gifts to his own granddaughter?"

  Staring at the yellow-green stone in her grandfather's hand on a starry night, she couldn't understand its quality, but she thoroughly understood his fondness for it. The old man expressed his inner feelings in his own way.

  "Grandpa, thank you! I love you so much!" Xing Ye said loudly with a bit of mischief.

  Then I saw Grandpa's body clearly leaning to one side, apparently scared.

  The starry night and grandma's hearty laughter.

  Grandfather also smiled with his head lowered.