Chapter 114: Visitors (I)

At home, life was warm and comfortable. One day I casually stepped on the scale and discovered I had actually gained 2.5 kg (~5.5 lb). When I stepped down, my mother was overjoyed, her face practically blooming with smiles: “My silly son finally got fat.”

Am I really that thin? I am not fat, but I cannot really be called weak either. I said to my mom with some amusement, “Mom, are you raising a fat pig here? As soon as I gain a little weight, you get happy.”

“What nonsense are you talking about! Boys need to be sturdy to be strong,” she said with a smile, “and then girls will like them.”

I broke out in a cold sweat. I am still so young, and my mom is already talking about girls liking me.

My eldest sister laughed loudly from the side and said, “Mom, are you already worrying about San Wa Er’s marriage? It is not ancient times anymore.”

My second sister said gently from the side, “You cannot blame Mom. Look at San Wa Er staying up in the mountains all day. He is almost turning into a primitive man. He does not even know Shaolin Temple.”

I felt a bit embarrassed, because I had told my family about the songs I heard on the road, mainly because they were so nice. In the end, I got laughed at.

And my family was quite indignant about it. My mom immediately pulled me along and said, “Come on, San Wa Er, Mom will take you downtown to buy a pair of jeans. Our family is doing better than before and not worse than others! What is a pair of jeans worth?”

Then my mom really did buy me a pair of jeans, and my eldest sister and second sister took me to watch Shaolin Temple.

Actually, I really wanted to argue. I had seen movies before. Very occasionally, when I went to the town with my master, I would also go watch films. It was just that the town was so far from the county seat by car, which shows how remote it was. In fact, Shaolin Temple had not even been screened there yet.

The sunlight on the street was dazzling. I did not bother arguing with the three women in my family who were teasing me. I just looked up, squinting at the light, and felt a faint happiness rising in my heart. Life at home was really good.

I did not need to cook. My mom would have gladly brought food to my bed.

I did not need to wash my own clothes. My eldest and second sisters competed to wash them for me, thinking my life up in the mountains was hard and incomparable to theirs.

Even when going out for a walk on the street, my dad insisted on taking me on his bicycle.

2.5 kg (~5.5 lb). That bit of weight should be happiness made flesh.

If... if only my master were here too.

What was my master doing right now? Had the preparations for the Hungry Ghost Tomb been completed? Had the person he was waiting for arrived? Whenever I thought about all this, I could not help but worry.

“San Wa Er, what are you thinking about? Let’s go.” My eldest sister hooked my arm and pulled me along affectionately. Only then did I realize I had been spacing out, and my mom and second sister had already walked ahead.

Today we were out to buy more New Year supplies. In another two or three days, it would already be New Year’s Eve.

My dad had regretted not being able to come. The family had already planned to open a new shop. Recently they finally found a suitable storefront. After renting it, my dad was busy painting and renovating it himself, unwilling to hire workers.

I smiled and let my eldest sister hold my arm like that. We walked happily down the street. My eldest sister wore a red scarf and a purple padded space-style jacket. My second sister wore a red padded space-style jacket and a pink scarf. Both of them were beautiful and attracted a lot of attention on the street.

Looking at my mom, she seemed a few years younger too and had even started permed her hair. Then I looked at my dad, happily busying himself with the new shop. I realized our family really was getting better and better.

All of this was thanks to my master. That year, how could I ever forget going with him to the provincial city to sell jade?

“San Wa Er, slow down, ah ah, San Wa Er, wait for me to run back inside!”

My eldest sister’s scream mixed with the crackling sound of firecrackers filled the air, while I stood in the alley holding a lit cigarette used to ignite the firecrackers, laughing loudly.

It was New Year’s Eve. Before the reunion dinner, we were supposed to set off firecrackers. My eldest sister was someone who feared nothing in heaven or earth except firecrackers.

Seeing her like that was rare, so I was naturally very happy.

After the firecrackers finished, my eldest sister suddenly jumped out and grabbed my ear, shouting, “You little brat, I will deal with you properly now.”

“Big sister, big sister, I was wrong, I was wrong!” I quickly begged for mercy.

Our teasing and fighting made my parents and second sister laugh nonstop. At that moment, a lazy voice drifted into our ears: “Mind treating this old man to a reunion dinner? It is freezing out here.”

I froze and turned around. An old man in a tattered padded coat, full of a sleazy, roguish air, was walking toward our house. Who else could it be but my master?

I jumped up three feet high and immediately ran toward my master, leaping onto him: “Master!”

“Get off, get off. I am not a young girl. Do not get so close. Do you think you are still a child?” Old Man Jiang kicked me off without any mercy. My parents only laughed.

They truly liked my master. They were genuinely happy that he came on New Year’s Eve. Over so many years, they had never forgotten his kindness, and they were people who valued gratitude deeply.

“Grandpa Jiang.” My eldest and second sisters greeted him warmly. He had saved my second sister’s life and helped solve my eldest sister’s schooling issues, so both of them liked him very much.

As soon as Old Man Jiang saw my two sisters, he grinned mischievously. “That is right, girls are better. That brat, get lost, get lost. Tsk tsk, what lively and pretty girls.”

I let out a helpless sigh. This really was my master’s true nature.

“Master Jiang, come in quickly, come in quickly,” my parents greeted him warmly.

“Wait, I have to say something important.” Old Man Jiang became serious.

My parents were most afraid of him getting serious, because whenever he did, it usually involved supernatural matters.

“Originally I planned to let San Wa Er stay for the whole winter break, but things have changed. On the second day of the New Year, I have to bring San Wa Er back up the mountain. That is all.”

My parents both breathed a sigh of relief. Although they were reluctant to part with me, over the years they had already grown used to me learning from Old Man Jiang. Compared to when I was a child, I was much more sensible now and doing well in school, so they had nothing to worry about.

“That is all? Take him then, take him. This kid is not exactly worry-free at home,” my dad said generously.

“It is fine, he has stayed quite a while this time. Take him back. We will go up the mountain to see him in a few days,” my mom added generously.

In front of Old Man Jiang, they “sold me out” without hesitation.

Only my two sisters were reluctant. Old Man Jiang chuckled and said, “Girls, do not be reluctant. Like your mom said, you can come up the mountain to play. It has probably been half a year since you last came.”

My parents echoed him, and my sisters immediately brightened up. They had long wanted to go up the mountain, but the family had been busy with things like the new shop and managing the small store, so they had been holding back to help.

Hearing this, they became happy again.

We had a joyful New Year’s Eve reunion dinner. Although it was not a feast of delicacies, I was extremely satisfied. This was my ideal reunion dinner: family present, master present, and I felt I had nothing else to ask for.

Old Man Jiang ate like a whirlwind. I really did not even want to comment. He ate the most and drank until his face turned red. After finishing, he even set off firecrackers to scare my sisters.

Luckily, my family was used to him, otherwise they might have thought he was some kind of crazy old man.

After midnight passed, my sisters went to sleep, and my parents also rested. I could not sleep, so I went to find my master in the other room. I found him sitting there with a strange expression, drinking alone, with two side dishes my mom had prepared in front of him.

This old man could really eat. Was he not full from the reunion dinner?

“Master, what are you thinking about?” I called out. Old Man Jiang jumped in surprise and immediately smacked my head.

“Nothing. Can I not drink a little?” he replied grumpily after the slap, as if my presence had irritated him.

“Nothing? Master... why do I feel like... your expression is so strange? It is like, like a weasel thinking about a hen!”

Yes, I felt my description was extremely accurate. His strange expression was clearly full of desire for something, yet not entirely that.

“Go screw your mo...” Old Man Jiang shot up immediately, a curse bursting out of him, but he probably realized he almost insulted my mother and forcibly held it back.

But I was unlucky. He grabbed me and threw me onto the bed, then slapped me more than a dozen times.

“Say it! Who is the weasel? And who is the old hen? I will beat you to death, you unfilial disciple!”

I was dazed from the beating, unable to understand why a joke had provoked such a huge reaction.

After he finished venting, Old Man Jiang straightened his clothes and said, “On the morning of the second day of the New Year, come with me to pick someone up. After that, we will return to the mountain.”

My head was still spinning. I weakly asked, “Master, pick up who?”

“You will know when the time comes,” Old Man Jiang said, taking a long sip of wine with a lazy expression.

I sat up with messy hair and said, “Master, I will not ask about that. I will find out sooner or later anyway. But you said things have changed. What exactly changed? You should at least tell me.”

My master glanced at me, stuffed another bite of food into his mouth, and finally said something that almost choked me to death.

“Guess.”