In the kitchen, there was the faint sound of conversation and the ‘sizzling’ of cold food hitting hot oil.
Sitting in the bright living room, Chi Qiu couldn’t help feeling a little nervous. He picked up the cup on the tea table and took a sip before he choked. He covered his mouth and coughed, his face was so red that even the roots of his ears were hot.
Gao Yun, who came out of the kitchen with fruit, saw him and quickly took out two tissues and handed them over.
Chi Qiu thanked her shyly: “Thank you, Grandma.”
Gao Yun moved the fruit plate closer. The plain dress made her look extremely young. If Chi Qiu didn’t know her age and saw her white hair, he might have thought she was only fifty years old.
Chi Qiu was hesitant about what to say to ease the atmosphere, but Lu Fengshen, the chef, walked over quickly and interrupted them: “Has Lu Ming returned yet?”
Gao Yun just sat down but she got up again. She politely said to Chi Qiu, “Eat some fruit.”
After all, Gao Yun, like an ordinary old woman, changed her unfamiliarity with Chi Qiu to walking towards Lu Fengshen in a babbling manner: “The supermarket is a long way from here. He only went out for a few minutes but you are already rushing. I told you not to forget to buy beef yesterday, but you forgot about it. ”
Lu Fengshen was not annoyed. Instead, he said with a smile: “I was delayed by some things this morning.”
Gao Yun didn’t listen to what he said, and went into the kitchen with him: “Hurry up and get the other dishes first, I think they are hungry. They flew over early in the morning, and yet you still asked Xiao Ming to run errands.”
The two entered the kitchen again without saying a word.
Chi Qiu got up and felt that it was not good for him to sit still, so he wanted to go over to help, but was pushed back into the living room by Gao Yun.
There was no reason to let guests cook.
Besides, Chi Qiu couldn’t cook; Gao Yun was aware of this. She knew a lot about Chi Qiu and she knew that Chi Qiu was helpless when it came to the kitchen.
But Chi Qiu didn’t want to be a guest. It was true that he wanted to have a good relationship with Gao Yun.
Only to hear Gao Yun say: “You just sit and rest, do not come to help.”
“Grandma, I…”
“You’re not familiar with the kitchen either, so sit down.”
Chi Qiu moved his lips, and finally answered in a small voice.
It was the first time Gao Yun and Chi Qiu met and they were not familiar with each other, so they only talked a few words. After finishing speaking, Gao Yun turned and went back into the kitchen.
Chi Qiu sat on the sofa uncomfortably, counting the minutes and waiting for Lu Ming to return.
In the kitchen.
Lu Fengshen shook the spoon, his professionalism was comparable to that of a cook. He hummed and laughed at Gao Yun: “Even you old lady is nervous at times, huh?”
Gao Yun washed the dishes in her hands and glared at him: “Talking too much.”
“If you don’t talk too much today, Chi Qiu will be feeling awkward.” Lu Fengshen stir-fried a pot of vegetables thoroughly and put it on a few plates. “Originally, Lu Ming wanted to wait for the New Year and bring him along to greet you, but Chi Qiu insisted on coming to see you earlier.”
“…”
“Actually. It is still weighing on his mind that you didn’t go to their wedding in the first place. He probably still misunderstood it and is afraid you didn’t like him, so he is worried.”
“That was for a reason.” Gao Yun understood what Lu Fengshen was trying to say. She muttered, “This child looks well-behaved and sensible, it’s no wonder he was tricked by Xiao Ming and tossed around by our family’s bad things like this. I… I feel guilty when I see him, what a good child…”
Her next sentence was almost an exaggeration: It’s a pity to be with Lu Ming.
But looking back, apart from Lu Ming’s illness and ‘facial paralysis’ for the past few years, he could be regarded as excellent in everything. Anyway, she was Lu Ming’s grandmother after all, her heart still thought that her grandson was not bad.
She said: “I know it in my heart, I won’t embarrass him.”
In the courtyard outside the house, a car pulled up.
Lu Ming got out of the car, carrying a big bag of things. In addition to beef, he also bought some other things, filling Gao Yun’s oversized shopping tote bag.
Hearing the sound, Chi Qiu hurriedly went to open the door and went forward to help Lu Ming carry things.
Lu Ming held his hand and squeezed it: “It’s not heavy.”
“I want to take it.” Chi Qiu insisted on helping. He hurriedly took the beef out of the shopping bag and sent it to the kitchen.
Within a minute, he was pushed out of the kitchen again.
Chi Qiu lowered his eyes as he walked towards Lu Ming with grievances: “Grandma said she didn’t need my help.”
“Then listen to Grandma.” Lu Ming also asked him to rest for a while, while he himself rolled up his sleeves and went in to help. In the end, within a few seconds, Lu Ming was also invited out of the kitchen by Gao Yun.
The two of them had to sit on the sofa and watch TV to kill time.
Lu Ming sat next to Chi Qiu. He peeled an orange in his hand and put half of it in Chi Qiu’s palm.
Chi Qiu had no appetite. He looked in the direction of the kitchen, and after a few hesitations, he leaned into Lu Ming’s ear and asked softly: “Is Grandma not,” he paused, “not very fond of me?”
The orange in Lu Ming’s mouth was very sour. He was afraid that it would be sour to Chi Qiu too so he took half of the orange in the other’s hand and threw it on the coffee table: “Why?”
Chi Qiu sighed, “Are we disturbing her by coming over?”
He had heard that Gao Yun liked to go out and travel. Now the weather was fine, if it was not for their arrival, Gao Yun might be out for a walk.
Chi Qiu regretted not listening to Lu Ming, they should come back during the Chinese New Year.
He grabbed the corner of Lu Ming’s coat and was so worried: “Can you ask her later? If she really finds it troublesome, I’ll book a flight for tomorrow morning.”
“Did she say anything to you?” Lu Ming asked.
Chi Qiu shook his head: “It would be nice if she could say something.”
Lu Ming understood it as soon as he heard it. He peeled another orange and tasted it. After confirming it was indeed sweet, he broke off a carpel and brought it to Chi Qiu’s mouth: “Maybe she is just as nervous as you.”
“How come…”
“Why not?” Lu Ming lifted his chin, signaling Chi Qiu to eat oranges, “Open your mouth, my hands are sore.”
Chi Qiu took a deep breath. Looking at Lu Ming, who was wearing casual clothes today and was extraordinarily handsome, he felt less uneasy: “I’m not eating.”
“I’ve already peeled it off.” Lu Ming raised the corners of his lips, fond of looking at Chi Qiu.
Chi Qiu had no choice but to open his mouth. When he bit the orange petal, it lightly touched Lu Ming’s finger. He didn’t mean to, but Lu Ming was a man who easily changed his personality. He thought that Chi Qiu was teasing him deliberately, so he leaned over and kissed the corner of Chi Qiu’s mouth.
A scent of oranges.
This scene was caught by Gao Yun who came out with the dishes.
In an instant, embarrassment filled the air.
Chi Qiu was so shocked that he swallowed the orange carpel in his mouth without even chewing. He stood up in a hurry with the whole face flushed. He ran forward vigorously and took the dish from Gao Yun’s hand as he stammered: “Grandma, I, I will serve the dishes.”
Gao Yun was already old, but she was not surprised by the love between young people. However, it was the first time for her to see her grandson so lively, as if the Lu Ming of a few years ago was a fake.
In this love scene, could she be the sage of love?
Gao Yun looked at Lu Ming, who coughed lightly twice. Gao Yun collected her expression and said in a serious manner: “I’m old, my eyesight is not good.”
The implication was that you were free to do as you pleased.
With that said, Chi Qiu almost found a hole in the ground. He turned around and glared at Lu Ming with complaint, but Lu Ming ignored it.
Afterwards, Lu Ming came forward to relieve the situation: “Grandma, the dishes are almost ready, right? Chi Qiu and I will set the table first. We didn’t have breakfast so we’re a little hungry.”
Gao Yun didn’t pay any attention to him.
Seeing Chi Qiu’s blushing face, she settled her pace, and then took the initiative to take Chi Qiu’s hand: “I’m not very good at talking, so don’t mind. This is the first time we’ve met, I can’t be warm with my personality, but I definitely don’t hate you.”
Chi Qiu thought that the whisper between himself and Lu Ming had been overheard, his expression changed, and he faltered trying to speak well.
Gao Yun was frank: “On the contrary, I like you very much.”
Once these words came out, not only Chi Qiu, even Lu Ming was stunned.
When had the old lady ever been so straightforward?
Chi Qiu was confused for a while.
Gao Yun was also a little embarrassed, she was a hard-spoken old lady with a soft heart: “I won’t say much, that’s all. By the way, I heard from Fengshen that you guys want to stay here for a few days?”
“We…”
“Since this is the case, don’t be cautious. This is also your home, so be casual. There are your uncle and I in the kitchen, so don’t worry about it.” A few days ago, Gao Yun had the maid clean up the room where Lu Ming used to live in, and when she learned that Chi Qiu wanted to come visit, she was happy in her heart.
These words seemed to give Chi Qiu reassurance.
Looking at Gao Yun’s eyes that gradually softened, Chi Qiu finally pursed his lips: “Okay.”
The meal was very harmonious.
Although Gao Yun didn’t talk much, she used the serving chopsticks to pick up vegetables for Chi Qiu from time to time.
Seeing Gao Yun changing the chopsticks back and forth, Chi Qiu hurriedly said: “Grandma, I don’t mind. Just pick it up using your chopstick, I will eat it.”
“I’m old, so it’s better to pay more attention as you young people do.” She said, bringing up disposable gloves to peel shrimp for them.
The seemingly aloof old lady was actually very concerned about the younger generation.
Lu Ming said to Chi Qiu: “Grandma has been like this since before, you try get used to it.”
Gao Yun answered abruptly: “Later when you come here often, won’t you get used to it?”
There was a second of silence at the dinner table.
Chi Qiu immediately responded: “Well, we’ll come often!” He couldn’t help but smile and stuffed a bite of Gao Yun’s peeled shrimp into his mouth. The more he chewed, the sweeter it became.
Chi Qiu’s smile was so pretty that it always reminded people of the warm sun.
Gao Yun’s expression relaxed a lot as she took a few glances at him: “The weather is fine today, let’s go to the yard to drink tea in the afternoon.”
Taking advantage of this afternoon tea, Gao Yun first distracted Lu Ming and Lu Fengshen and asked them to buy some desserts. Then, she silently went to the room to bring a box and handed it to Chi Qiu.
She said: “When you come back, I have nothing to give you and you and Lu Ming also don’t lack anything. If you like this thing, take it and treat it as a meeting gift.”
Chi Qiu held the old small box and touched it in confusion.
Gao Yun said: “Aren’t you going to open it and have a look?”
Chi Qiu hurriedly opened it. Inside was a photo album, which recorded photos of Lu Ming from birth to when he was sixteen years old.
Chi Qiu was like seeing a treasure: “It’s Lu Ming!” He could not wait to turn the first page, and even saw the little Lu Ming holding a feeding bottle. Like many children back then, Lu Ming took his first birthday photo with a red dot between his eyebrows.1I’m confused why they have red dot painted on their forehead so I searched about it. I actually found various answers for this, some say it’s because the teachers in the kindergarten do this to differentiate children with those who have taken photos and haven’t, but the most probable answer would be this: t may mean “free from foolishness and open your mind”. In ancient times, the first day that children entered the private school in the village was called ‘Pomeng’. According to the custom at that time, it was necessary to dip an elm branch in cinnabar, and point a red mole on the child’s forehead to indicate ‘breaking the elm and opening the mole’ (‘elm’ is synonymous with ‘stupid’, and ‘mole’ is synonymous with ‘intelligent’).
Chi Qiu flipped through it with joy, seeing Lu Ming’s photos from baby to high school, every one of which Chi Qiu had never seen before. However, it was obvious that the older Lu Ming was, the less he smiled.
So Chi Qiu understood how precious Lu Ming’s smile was when he was in the psychological clinic.
He pursed his lips, feeling distressed and happy at the same time.
Gao Yun breathed a sigh of relief.
“Although my daughter was not mentally well, but when she was well, she could also be regarded as a mother. She would record the growth of Xiao Ming.” When it came to the word ‘mother’, Gao Yun’s eyes were somewhat evasive. “There are usually two copies of the photos. We couldn’t go see Xiao Ming abroad all year round, she would send us one on time.”
In the era of advanced communication, Lu You used the oldest way, stubbornly expressing her intermittent motherly love in a strange behavior.
Or perhaps, she was using this method to balance the moment when she was harsh on Lu Ming.
No one could forgive her on Lu Ming’s behalf for the mistakes she made, but Gao Yun, as Lu You’s mother, treasured her daughter’s only love when she was sober.
“I can’t ask Ming to forgive her harshly, but these photos are of Xiao Ming’s past and they deserve to exist. I think that you should want it. The Lu family over there probably doesn’t have these photos anymore.”
Those photos were burned and cut when Lu You went crazy, just like her broken spirit.
Chi Qiu put the photo album back in the box and closed it carefully: “I like this gift very much, thank you.”
Gao Yun hooked up the corners of her mouth, lowering her voice: “I’m the one who should thank you.”
Chi Qiu shook his head.
Gao Yun held Chi Qiu’s hand: “Xiao Qiu, thank you for accepting Lu Ming unconditionally, loving him and pulling him out of the quagmire.”
On the other hand, Lu Ming, who was struggling with which desserts to buy, was approached by someone.
Lu Ming instantly raised his hand and the wedding ring on his ring finger flashed his eyes, he very decisively rejected the other party.
Seeing Lu Ming in casual clothes, Lu Fengshen couldn’t help teasing him: “I thought you would come here in a suit.” After all, over the years, it seemed as if Lu Ming rarely had anything else to wear besides a suit.
“Chi Qiu won’t let me, he said it’s too rigid to always wear a suit.” Lu Ming could not say whether he was pleased or satisfied, but he would always look at the wedding ring on his hand, “When you live, you should have the appearance of life.”
Suits were only worn at work, and with family, he did not have to be too formal.
Lu Ming also said, “He helped me pick a lot of casual clothes, he has good taste.”
Lu Fengshen clicked his tongue, and he patted Lu Ming on the shoulder: “Life after marriage seems good, ah.”
Lu Ming was in a happy mood and raised his eyebrows with an expression of ‘it goes without saying’, which made Lu Fengshen feel envious.
“Very happy, like a dream.”
After so many years, he finally got what he wished for.
The two brought home the carefully selected desserts and as soon as they stepped into the courtyard, they heard Chi Qiu and Gao Yun talking to each other from a distance.
Gao Yun saw them coming and got up to make new hot tea.
In the courtyard, a few dead leaves drifted down, but it did not affect their mood in the slightest. Chi Qiu went to unpack the desserts Lu Ming bought back and put them on the table one by one.
Lu Ming saw the box on the chair and asked, “What is this?”
“A gift from my grandma.” Chi Qiu showed off, “I won’t show you.”
Occasionally, he was this naughty.
Lu Ming came closer and deliberately took advantage of the gap when Lu Fengshen went to the house to get the cutlery and said: “I’ll take a look at it at night.”
Chi Qiu blushed and ignored him.
As soon as Lu Fengshen returned and saw Chi Qiu’s red face, he took the opportunity to complain: “Chi Qiu, someone just hit on him, you should take care of him.”
Lu Ming hurriedly said: “I refused.”
Chi Qiu said with a smile: “Lu Ming is handsome and he is not so stern now. When we go out on a date, he is often approached by people.”
“You don’t?” From Lu Fengshen’s point of view, Chi Qiu looked very good. If the two of them went out together, the possibility of Chi Qiu being approached must be greater than that of Lu Ming.
After hearing this, Chi Qiu pursed his lips helplessly, and raised his hand: “His newly bought wedding ring is too conspicuous.”
The married status couldn’t be hidden at all.
Lu Fengshen couldn’t help but let out a ‘tsk’: “This purchase is also too deliberate, right?”
As soon as the words fell, Gao Yun, who came over with tea, said, “What’s the intention?” She laughed, “It’s because of good feelings.”
T/N: So it’s the end of this story! Not sure if there’d be another extra after this, as this one also was posted a few months after chapter 114 was posted (Anyway, a lot of comments are asking for extra with Ji Yanchen and Lu Fengshen (for some reasons, I also ship these two hahaha) so let’s see if there’s any extra later). Nevertheless, I hope you all enjoy reading this as much as I am!
Also, can’t believe I finish translating this, this is the longest novel I’ve translated actually.
Last but not least, please support the author on Gongzicp. If you have no way to buy the novel, you can support the author for free by gifting starfish. See the guide here
