Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 1157 I'll Pay for Grandpa and Grandma's Tombstone

"I'm the one who brings you the most honor, becoming an official. Although it's not a high position now, just around the level of town mayor, I'm sure I'll be promoted in the future. You have to bless me. You also have to bless my sister, so that she's happy, has a smooth life, marries a successful man, and gives you great-grandchildren so she can come and kowtow to you."

"We've moved! We've moved to Fengtian. My dad's an official now, as powerful as the mayor! Aren't you happy? He's busy now, but we'll erect a monument for you next year, so don't scare him. Our whole family will come back to see you next summer."

After she finished chanting, the paper money hadn't finished burning yet. Xiao Hong knelt there, looked at the flames, then glanced back at Xiao Wei, seemingly at a loss for what to do.

Qin Xuemei knelt up straight and kowtowed nine times respectfully, saying, "Grandpa and Grandma, your granddaughter is unfilial. This is only the first time I've come to see you. I won't do it again. I will come back every year from now on."

"Please bless my parents with good health and happiness, bless our family with harmony and smooth sailing, bless Xiaohong with a healthy baby boy, and bless us with eternal happiness."

Xiao Hong said, "Yes, yes, yes, may everyone be happy, smooth, and joyful, and may the whole family be well." She kowtowed three times.

Xiao Wei knelt down and kowtowed three times.

Suddenly a gust of wind swept by, and the fire of paper money and ingots flared up, with flames leaping up to two feet high. The ashes of the paper money flew up with the fire, swaying but not running wildly, drifting almost vertically into the air, flying up to about seven or eight meters high, spinning a few times, and then scattering towards the direction of the grave mound and the woods.

In folklore, this is considered a sign of divine intervention; the old man, having heard his descendants' words, came to collect the money. It signifies his recognition of his descendants.

Xiao Hong looked up at the ashes, then turned to look at Qin Xuemei's grave, and said to the grave, "This is so unfair! I've never done this before when I burned paper offerings. Why? Just because she's prettier than me? Grandpa and Grandma, you can't just treat everyone based on looks! They're all your granddaughters, you have to treat them all equally, right?"

Wang Jiwei stood to the side, smiling as he turned to look into the distance. Xiao Wei glanced at Qin Xuemei and said, "Alright, that's enough. Get up. Your pants will get wet. We'll come back every year from now on."

Xiao Hong got up, helped Qin Xuemei up, and gave her a tissue.

The two men brushed the snow off their knees, while Xiao Wei used a stick to stir the fire, spreading it out. Once they were sure there were no more embers, the group followed the same path back to the car.

When they got to the car, Wang Jiwei and Xiaowei took off their shoes, knocked the snow out of their shoes and trouser legs, grabbed a towel from the car to wipe themselves clean, put their shoes back on, and the four of them got in the car and headed back.

Xiao Hong asked, "Are we going back to the village?"

Xiaowei said, "We're not going back. We're going straight back to the county town. Jiwei and I need to change our clothes; our long johns and shoes are all soaked. There's nothing else going on here."

The car took the main road and went straight back to the county town.

Back at the guesthouse, Xiaowei and Wang Jiwei changed into their thermal underwear and socks, and dried their shoes on the radiator before they felt comfortable. Women's high-top boots really do work; they keep snow out!

After returning from the village, Qin Xuemei seemed to have changed, a change that was hard to describe.

Xiaowei and Xiaohong couldn't possibly understand that this was a release of the soul.

An orphan without parents, having endured such torment, Qin Xuemei deeply doubted her life and her destiny. Since her release from prison, she had lived without knowing why. Everything in this world seemed disconnected from her; she was utterly alone.

Today, kneeling before the graves and calling out "Grandpa" and "Grandma," she felt as if she were her own flesh and blood, as if she had found a support, and as if she had a sacred sense of returning to her roots. From that moment on, she was no longer alone in the world; she had a home, ancestors, and relatives.

Xiao Wei's unintentional action undoubtedly gave Qin Xuemei a new lease on life.

If Uncle Wang and the others were back, they probably wouldn't have asked Qin Xuemei to kneel and burn paper money. They would have overthought it, worried that Qin Xuemei might not be willing. Burning paper money at graves is just a normal thing, but no one would willingly do it for someone else's ancestors.

Everyone cared about Qin Xuemei and genuinely wanted the best for her, but no one would have imagined that Qin Xuemei didn't even know her biological parents. She had no ancestors.

She is a life adrift in this world, without roots.

But from the moment she knelt down, Qin Xuemei found her roots. This psychological shift might not even have been noticed by her. But she felt alive again, more real, and had found something to rely on.

After everyone had finished tidying up, they went to Xiaowei's room. Qin Xuemei took out three hundred yuan and handed it to Xiaowei: "I'll pay for the tombstone for Grandpa and Grandma."

Xiao Wei took it and put it in his pocket, asking, "What are we having for dinner tonight?"

Xiao Hong frowned and thought for a moment, while Qin Xuemei blushed and said, "How about we try that dog meat hot pot? I've never had it before."

Xiao Wei laughed and said, "I really didn't expect this. Are you sure? We won't regret it."

Xiao Hong said, "Agreed, agreed, I'll call Sister Gui Fang." She crawled over, took out Xiao Wei's phone, and made the call.

"Sister Guifang, we're back. Yeah, we didn't even have lunch. Second Sister said we're having dog hot pot tonight, why don't you pick up Auntie and we'll go together?"

Xiao Wei said to Wang Jiwei, "Go downstairs and see what you can buy to tide you over. If you eat a proper meal now, you won't be able to eat anything tonight."

Xiao Hong turned her head and said, "Cakes, bread, anything is fine. Buy a bag of fruit juice powder, or milk too."

Qin Xuemei said, "Why don't we go out and take a look? I'm thinking of those old red sausages from the side dishes section; I wonder if they still have them."

Xiao Hong shouted into the phone, "It's settled then. You and Auntie go over tonight. Bye." She hung up and asked, "Where are we going?"

Qin Xuemei said, "Let's go out for a walk. I've never been here before, and it's not cold now. I've never strolled in the snow before."

It's snowing outside, the kind of large, whole snowflakes that are usually called goose feather snow. The light snowflakes fall slowly and silently. This is the warmest time of winter; there's no wind, and the temperature is rising.

It's not cold when it snows, it's cold when the snow melts.

Xiao Wei looked out the window and said, "This snow is quite heavy. Luckily we got back in time. Visibility is a problem when driving in this snow."

Xiaohong put on her shoes and said, "Let's go downstairs and have a snowball fight! It's been so many years since we've done it. What's wrong with your eyes? What's wrong with having a snowball fight?"

Xiao Wei asked, "Should we look for Xia Qiu?"

Xiao Hong said, "Why would I call her now? Let's call her for dinner tonight. Ugh, just thinking about food makes me hungry and I'm losing my energy."

Xiao Wei went over and helped her put on her shoes, then slapped her on the head.

(End of this chapter)