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墨書 Inktalez
Su Jin'er found it amusing to see Chu Feifan looking so clumsy. Perhaps it was because he was afraid she might fall, so he deliberately walked ahead of her, ensuring she wouldn't roll down the slope.
"Do you always take this path to your grandmother's house?" Chu Feifan asked from the front.
"Yes! It's this path that makes it more interesting!" Su Jin'er casually picked a blade of grass from the side and put it in her mouth. The air here was unpolluted, so everything was lush and green, and even the sky was a deep blue, unlike the pale, lifeless color of the city that made one feel uncomfortable.
"People living here must live a long time, right?"
"Exactly! My grandmother is over seventy and still very healthy. In my memory, I can't recall her ever being sick, not even a cold," Su Jin'er said proudly.
"Then can we live here in the future?"
After saying this, Chu Feifan regretted it. He hadn't heard Su Jin'er respond for a while and turned back anxiously to find her face flushed like a ripe tomato.
"I'm sorry!" Chu Feifan said softly.
Although it was no longer a feudal society and notions like men and women not being able to touch each other had long been forgotten, in the old society, even accidentally brushing against each other's fingers would be considered rude. In today's society, hugging or holding hands was seen as normal. However, for Su Jin'er, who had never thought about marriage, it still felt embarrassing.
"It's fine! Let's hurry up! Otherwise, it will be dark by the time we reach my grandmother's."
The two of them fell silent for the rest of the way.
After descending the hillside, they encountered a clear little river where small fish swam freely, looking quite adorable.
"Wow! What a clear river; those fish are beautiful."
"Yes! Most of the fish in our city are fed with pellets, while these fish are wild and have much higher nutritional value than those in the city!"
"So, did you catch fish in this river when you were little?"
Su Jin'er paused for a moment; she probably thought of Qiangzi again. Nevertheless, she nodded and said, "Yes! But this river flows all the way to the village, so we never came here; we played near the village instead."
Chu Feifan nodded as they continued walking. Since this place was far from the city center, villagers grew their own crops and vegetables. Although they didn't stop along the way, it was still dark by the time they reached her grandmother's house.
"Grandma, Grandma, Yaner is back."
When Su Jin'er arrived at her grandmother's door and found it unlocked, she pushed the door open and shouted.
"Yaner?" Chu Feifan murmured softly.
Su Jin'er looked around inside and outside but did not see her grandmother, so she said, "Grandma might be out. Let's wait a bit!"
Chu Feifan nodded, then thought for a moment and asked, "I just heard you say 'Yaner.' Who is that?"
Su Jin'er was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "Yaner is me! It's the nickname Grandma gave me. Although my full name sounds similar to my nickname, Grandma still prefers to call me Yaner."
Chu Feifan nodded and said, "Actually, Yaner sounds nice. Why not use that as your full name?"
Su Jin'er shrugged and replied, "I don't know!"
The two chatted back and forth for over an hour, but Grandma still hadn't returned. Chu Feifan's stomach growled.
He awkwardly rubbed his belly and said, "I'm a bit hungry."
Su Jin'er glanced at her backpack and said, "I completely forgot! Wait a moment; I'll go cook."
Chu Feifan looked at her in surprise. He had always thought she couldn't cook. However, he quickly confirmed his assumption when she brought out instant noodles.
Seeing Chu Feifan's puzzled expression, Su Jin'er apologized, "I'm sorry; I've never cooked before. I was afraid it wouldn't taste good, so I made this instead."
"It's fine; I expected this," Chu Feifan's words made Su Jin'er glare at him in annoyance.
"Haha, alright, I'm just joking. Come on, sit down and eat!"
Chu Feifan didn't hold back at all; he picked up the bowl and started eating ravenously. Seeing him enjoy the food so much made Su Jin'er smile as she sat down too.
By the time they finished dinner, it was already nine o'clock, but Grandma still hadn't come back. Jin'er felt a bit worried; Grandma never returned this late. Moreover, the door was unlocked—she must be nearby—but since she hadn't returned yet, could something have happened?
Thinking of this, she couldn't help but feel worried, occasionally standing up to look outside the door.
After all, this was not the city; at night, everything was pitch black, and nothing could be seen. Moreover, the moonlight tonight was not very bright. Standing in the yard, Su Jin'er suddenly recalled a saying: "You can't see your hand in front of your face." Thinking of this, she actually stretched out her hand to check and found that it was indeed true!
The night air was quite cool, and after standing for a while, Su Jin'er began to shiver and couldn't help but rub her cold arms.
Chu Feifan came out of the house, took off his jacket, and draped it over her shoulders, saying, "Grandma must be busy outside. You should go back inside and sit down! Otherwise, you'll catch a cold."
"But I'm really worried about Grandma."
Just then, a flashlight beam suddenly appeared outside and was coming toward them.
"It must be Grandma coming back," she said as she ran outside.
"Grandma!" she called out excitedly.
The person outside heard her voice; the light paused for a moment before seemingly quickening its pace.
"Grandma, where have you been?"
"Yaner, is that really you? I just heard someone in the village say they saw a beautiful girl and a boy enter my house. I was wondering who it could be! So it really is you, Yaner!"
"Yes, Grandma. Yaner came back to see you."
"Alright, let's go home. Grandma will cook for you."
"No need, Grandma. We've already eaten. But where have you been? Why did you come back so late?"
Grandma sighed but did not answer. Instead, she looked at Chu Feifan standing nearby.
"Hello, Grandma!" Chu Feifan said with a smile.
"Mm-hmm, good! This young man is really handsome! Are you Yaner's classmate?"
"Yes, Grandma!"
"Alright!" She said, casting a meaningful glance at Su Jin'er.
"Grandma, you still haven't told me where you went just now?"
"The daughter-in-law of Niu Er is about to give birth. It should be a good thing, but, sigh..." Grandma sighed deeply.
"What happened?"
"Such misfortune!" Grandma did not answer directly but frowned, looking anxious.
Su Jin'er knew that something bad must have happened to make Grandma so worried. Although Grandma was getting old, her eyesight was still sharp and her mind clear. She had always been a believer in the divine, maintaining a calm demeanor and never holding grudges against others. This earned her the respect of the villagers, who often sought her help. Therefore, whatever was troubling Grandma must be quite serious.
Su Jin'er decided not to press further. She knew that if Grandma wanted to share something, she would do so in her own time. Instead, she moved a small stool over and lay on Grandma's lap like she used to when she was little.
After a long while, Grandma suddenly said, "Yaner, you didn't come back just to see me, did you?"
Su Jin'er hesitated for a moment but replied, "I also wanted to see Qiangzi."
Upon hearing her beloved granddaughter mention Qiangzi, Grandma's body stiffened slightly. She was unaware that Su Jin'er already knew about Qiangzi's passing!
"Grandma, I know Qiangzi is no longer with us."
Grandma looked at her in shock and then asked urgently, "Who told you?"
"It was Xiao Chengzi."
Grandma gasped: "You ran into Xiao Chengzi? Did he hurt you?"
Her urgency seemed to confirm that they already knew Cheng He was the one who had killed Qiangzi. Still, she curiously asked, "How did you know he would harm me?"
Grandma sighed and said, "Actually, when you were little, Xiao Chengzi always followed behind you. Everyone knew he was introverted and didn't like to play with others. He quietly trailed after you all to avoid being noticed. I calculated that he might cause you harm in the future and always wanted to warn you, but you never came back."
Su Jin'er sensed her grandmother's worry in her words. She gently held her grandmother's hand and said, "It's okay, it's all in the past. Xiao Chengzi has received the punishment he deserves."
"Ah! Poor Qiangzi, he always silently protected you, but ended up with such a fate."
"How did Qiangzi die?"
Her grandmother looked up, gathering her thoughts before speaking. "It was probably when you were in high school. Qiangzi could have gone to high school too, but his father suddenly fell ill, so he had to give up his studies. He waited every day for you to come back, while the grown-up Xiao Chengzi changed. He was no longer as timid as before, and he became quite handsome. We all thought he would become brave, but perhaps his childhood personality influenced him; although he was no longer timid, he became very gloomy and often caused trouble for Qiangzi. Later on, Qiangzi died mysteriously, and we all suspected that Xiao Chengzi was responsible for it, but there was no evidence."
It turned out that her grandmother still didn't know that Xiao Chengzi had killed Qiangzi; she only suspected it. However, she thought that since Xiao Chengzi had already received his due punishment, there was no need to discuss it further.
But his family probably still didn't know!
"Grandma, I want to visit Qiangzi tomorrow. After all, I bear some responsibility for his death."
"Alright, it's good to visit him. It won't be in vain for the feelings he had for you."
Her grandmother patted Su Jin'er's hand, but her brow remained furrowed. What could be troubling her so much?
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