27: Chapter 29: Having an Elder in the Family is like having a Treasure!

27: Chapter 29: Having an Elder in the Family is like having a Treasure!

Li Xiaoqiang saw the simple and honest smile of the spore-bearing man, and a huge stone that had been suspended in his heart finally fell.

Instantly, a refreshing feeling spread throughout his body, as if every single cell was opening its mouth wide, breathing in the rural breath of the mountain forests.

After a night of overexertion, both physically and mentally drained, his heavy eyelids finally closed, and he fell into a deep, soundless sleep.

Seeing this, the burly man gave a silly smile as saliva once again flowed from the corner of his mouth.

Carefully, he hoisted Li Xiaoqiang onto his shoulder and stepped toward the valley that emitted a faint light.

When Li Xiaoqiang opened his eyes again, he saw the familiar scenery and breathed in the familiar air; it was a room built of stones with yellow mud packed into the crevices.

A few rickety wooden tables and chairs stood around, and on the wall opposite him hung a giant bow, a bow reminiscent of ancient war crossbows, with a robust handle that accentuated its unparalleled lethality.

Li Xiaoqiang flipped over like a carping fish and sprang to his feet.

As he stepped out of the room, he saw an elderly man with white hair lying in a rattan chair in the courtyard, squinting and basking in the warm morning sun.

The old man was smoking a large pipe, seemingly immersed in memories, when suddenly his aged voice rang out, “Awake?”

Without a word, Li Xiaoqiang approached the elder, took the large pipe offered to him, and took two heavy puffs.

Instantly, the spicy flavor of the smoke invaded every one of his nerves.

Having drawn too vigorously, Xiaoqiang coughed twice and then sat down in front of the old man to massage his knees, asking, “Grandpa, how long was I out?”

The elder chuckled, “You headstrong boy, you were out for three days.

How on earth did you manage to provoke that kind of person?”

Li Xiaoqiang shrugged his shoulders, saying, “They came for me, Grandpa, I have something to tell you…”

The elder eyed Li Xiaoqiang’s restless expression, his wrinkled face deepening with concern, “Based on that look, could this have something to do with that Liu girl?”

Hearing this, Li Xiaoqiang nodded slightly.

The elder attempted to stand, but his old body was not strong enough to support him.

Li Xiaoqiang stepped forward to assist, and the elder leaned on his cane, his bent back seemingly bearing the weight of a thousand catties.

“Actually, I’ve never been fond of your involvement with that Liu girl.

Do you know why?

Heh, in my lifetime, I’ve seen countless people.

That girl is fine in many ways, except she has too strong a desire to compete.

I remember when you were a child, I caught you a little mountain rabbit, and she insisted her father catch one for her too.

Our ancestors often said that the nature of a child can be seen when they are three, and their future can be predicted by the time they are nine.”

“In this flashy world, there are too many temptations.

With a girl like her who lacks determination and harbors a certain vanity, how could she stay with you until the end?

Grandpa has seen many devoted couples and vows as strong as mountains and seas, but in the end, don’t they all turn into nothing more than money and carnal pleasures?”

“Xiaoqiang, I’m telling you this not to trivialize love, but to let you know that to keep what you care about, you must have the ability and possess wealth and power beyond common reach.”

“I believe in this world, as long as you strive, there is nothing that cannot be done well.

From ancient times to the present, it has always been that diligence is rewarded by the Heavenly Dao.

How many emperors have been made by the word ‘diligence’?

How many talented heroes have been obliterated?”

Li Xiaoqiang’s grandfather, Li Guo’an, was known in Gancha Town as the old Immortal, not only for treating the illnesses of the villagers but also for solving many of their difficulties.

For example, when Li Xiaoqiang was nine years old, all the livestock in the town contracted a disease, and it was Li Guo’an who, despite his advanced years, went into the mountains to collect Chinese yam, thus saving the villagers from significant loss.

Furthermore, it was Li Guo’an who first proposed the idea of scaling up the tea production in Gancha Town, bringing substantial income to the villagers.

Therefore, Li Xiaoqiang had faith in his grandfather’s words; after all, his grandfather had consumed more salt than he had eaten rice.

In Gancha Town, everyone bore the surname Liu, except for Li Xiaoqiang’s family who were Lis, but the Li family did not face exclusion.

On the contrary, they were revered as if they were a temple!

After chatting with his grandfather for a while, Li Guo’an decided to practice his calligraphy.

Li Xiaoqiang supported his grandfather, who was becoming more unsteady on his feet, into the room, the room of Li Guo’an, adorned with various ancient paintings and calligraphic works.

On the old bookshelf, there were stacks of thread-bound books wrapped in cowhide, and the rich scent of paper filled the room.

Li Xiaoqiang ground the ink for his grandfather, and Li Guo’an, holding a brush, wrote down on the fire paper the verse, “To live as a hero, or die as a ghostly hero; thinking of Xiang Yu, unwilling to cross to Jiangdong.”

The brushwork of Li Guo’an, as though sketching a landscape painting of mountains and rivers, was powerful, age-old, and yet vast and boundless.

Li Guo’an looked at Li Xiaoqiang and said kindly, “One either leads an ordinary life for a lifetime or lives strikingly.

There are only a few decades in a human life, one should do a few grand things, whether for oneself or for the country.

That is where value lies.”

After speaking, Li Guo’an sat on the bamboo chair, opened the drawer, and took out a pair of cloth shoes.

With somewhat trembling hands, he handed them to Li Xiaoqiang and said, “My grandson, winter is coming.

Grandpa has sewn a pair of cloth shoes for you, I’ve added cotton inside, surely warmer than those before.

Wear them thickly; your body is your own.”

Li Xiaoqiang, holding the shoes, said softly, “Grandpa, after I graduate, I will definitely work hard to earn money, to give you a good life.

Every year, you sew shoes for me and the kids.

You need the children to help thread the needle and always end up pricking your fingers till they bleed.

Grandpa, you won’t have to anymore; I will sew the shoes for you.”

Li Guo’an, upon hearing this, watched Li Xiaoqiang as the wrinkles on his face deepened and his eyes began to blur, “With these words, Grandpa will have a smile on his face even when I lie down in the coffin.”

Li Guo’an took a deep breath and said, “Come on, let’s sing the duet ‘Man Jiang Hong’.”

Yang Pojun nodded happily and said, “Alright, Grandpa.”

Sun Zuomo, I have never spoken yet my heart surges like the waves, with great respect dear fathers and fellow villagers listen to my sincere words;

Do not regard me as that inconspicuous little shop owner;

I am originally an artist from Jiangdong, my name is Man Jiang Hong;

Thinking back to the past;

Thousands of households have heard my singing;

The white mountains and black waters know my name;

They say when I open my mouth to sing, flowers and stones fall;

They say when I open my mouth to sing, birds fall silent;

I have sung until the stars in the sky left a million people’s homes deserted;

I have sung until a river of spring water coursed a thousand miles like a flood dragon;

…

The two of them took turns, their voices high and strong, singing passionately.

(Note: Those who haven’t seen “Man Jiang Hong’s Sensational Debut” can go see it; it’s very touching!)

After chatting with his grandfather for a while, Li Xiaoqiang walked out of the courtyard.

He had not gone far when a woman’s voice called out, “Oh, Xiaoqiang, when did you come back?”

Li Xiaoqiang looked up and saw under the mulberry tree, a woman in a flowered cotton shirt with strands of hair soaked with sweat sticking to her forehead.

Her eyes were particularly large and bright.

This woman, with a hoe in hand, was working the soil, and next to her lay two bamboo baskets filled with white radishes.

She was a widow from Maoshan Town, named Liu Taohong.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep