Chapter 287 - 262: Gift
Chapter 287: Chapter 262: Gift
Xiao Man struggled a little in Gu Shaojun’s grasp and said, "I have to go make New Year’s visits with Little Ji and the others!"
Pang Xiaoji chimed in, moving closer to Xiao Man and nodding. "That’s right, that’s right! We were just about to visit other families for the New Year!"
Gu Shaojun’s gaze swept over Pang Xiaoji and the other girls who were gathering around. He said amiably, "Then all of you get in the car. We’ll go to my family’s house first. If you want to go anywhere else later and it’s too far, I’ll have Shaozheng and Shaojin drive you."
"Okay, okay! We’ll have to trouble Brother Shaozheng and Brother Shaojin then!"
The girls were overjoyed. Getting red envelopes for New Year’s visits and having a personal chauffeur—it was just too perfect!
But Shaozheng and Shaojin frowned. ’What the hell? We got stuck with a job for no reason. We were just supposed to make a few symbolic New Year’s visits on our elders’ orders. We have no desire to hang around a bunch of little kids!’
Having said his piece, Gu Shaojun paid them no more mind. With Gu Shaoling hanging off his left arm and Xiao Man’s hand in his right, he walked down the steps. Pang Xiaoji and the other girls were sharp enough to follow close behind. Jun Ran, however, was pushed aside by the girls and fell to the back. The jeep could only fit four people besides the driver. Gu Shaoling wanted the front passenger seat, so Gu Shaojun stuffed her into Shaozheng’s car instead. He then got into his own car with Xiao Man and Pang Xiaoji’s group and quickly drove off. Jun Ran couldn’t bring herself to fight with the younger girls for a seat, so she could only watch helplessly as Gu Shaojun’s car departed, a sour feeling welling up in her heart. ’There’s no way he didn’t see me. I’m a grown woman who came all this way with Shaoling just to wait for him, yet he didn’t even arrange a seat for me when he left. He could have at least said something!’
Two other sedans were still parked in the courtyard. Gu Shaozhen was busy placating Gu Shaoling, while Zheng Shaojin went to greet Gu Shaoqin and Tang Haohao. Zheng Shaolian sat in the driver’s seat of the other car. He glanced through the window at the tall, slender figure standing by the flowerbeds. A complex emotion flickered in his eyes, and the corner of his mouth suddenly curled into a mocking smile. He pushed the door open and walked toward the elegant lady.
Jun Ran got into the passenger seat of Zheng Shaolian’s car and breathed a silent sigh of relief, feeling somewhat calmer.
The ground in front of the Gu family’s home was carpeted in red paper scraps, evidence of the many firecrackers that had been set off. The courtyard was even more lively, filled with the sounds of laughter and cheerful chatter. A considerable number of adults and children had come to offer New Year’s greetings. Old Mrs. Gu was entertaining guests with her daughters-in-law, handing out red envelopes and candy to the children. It seemed Xiao Man, Pang Xiaoji, and the others had arrived at the perfect time.
Gu Shaojun, however, didn’t let Xiao Man get out of the car right away. Fortunately, Xiao Man wasn’t the type to actually enjoy bustling crowds or fight for red envelopes. After watching Pang Xiaoji and the other girls run off happily, Gu Shaojun took Xiao Man’s hand, skirted around the crowd, and walked along the covered corridor into the inner courtyard.
"Where are we going? I haven’t even wished Grandpa Gu and Granny Gu a Happy New Year yet!" Xiao Man asked.
Gu Shaojun lifted the small suitcase in his other hand. "Let’s put the luggage in the room first, then we’ll come back out."
Xiao Man was speechless. ’He’s dragging me along just to drop off some luggage!’
Gu Shaojun looked at Xiao Man dotingly, a brilliant smile on his handsome face. "I have five days. For these five days, we won’t be apart. Wherever you are, I’ll be there!"
Xiao Man looked skeptical. "How is that possible? Don’t we have to go back to our own homes at night?"
"I can stay at the Tang Mansion, or you can stay here. If you’re not used to the guest room, you can stay in my room. I’ll sleep in the study next door."
The thought of the little slip of a girl sleeping in his bed made Gu Shaojun’s heart race. For some reason, he recalled that narrow path in Gongdao Village, when she had taken the initiative to hug his arm, her little "paws" scratching lightly at his palm... His heart had pounded like a drum at that moment. If that little brat hadn’t jumped out from behind them, he might have lost control and done something reckless.
Gently squeezing the small, soft-as-boneless hand in his, Gu Shaojun said softly, "After the New Year, I have to leave for advanced training. I might not be back for two or three years. Xiao Man, you have to study hard and think of me, understand?"
Xiao Man had heard something about this from Grandpa Gu, but hearing it directly from Gu Shaojun now, she couldn’t help but feel reluctant to see him go. Still, she nodded obediently. "Can we write letters?"
"In principle, no. But I’ll find a way. If conditions permit, I’ll call you!"
"Okay. If it’s too much trouble, then don’t... I’ll probably be busy once I get into university, too. It’s only three years. It’ll pass quickly."
The light in Gu Shaojun’s obsidian eyes dimmed, revealing a hint of an unreadable emotion. "Three years is a long time for me. Because, for these three years, I won’t be able to see Xiao Man."
Xiao Man lowered her head. "I’ll be here. You’ll see me when you get back."
Gu Shaojun chuckled, his eyes once again as bright as stars. He tugged Xiao Man along, quickening his pace. "Come on, I brought you a New Year’s gift. See if you like it!"
Gu Shaojun’s living quarters were spacious, with a separate living room, bedroom, and study. Even though he was barely home a few times a year, the place was kept neat and spotless. It was obvious that Zhou Hui Lan took great care of her son’s rooms.
After seating Xiao Man in a mahogany chair, Gu Shaojun opened his suitcase. He took out a white wooden box with a beautiful grain and handed it to her. The box was about six inches high and over a foot long, covering her lap, but it wasn’t very heavy. Xiao Man gently opened the box and saw twelve exquisitely carved, charmingly naive little wooden animals inside. Her mouth fell open. "They’re beautiful! Are they for me?"
Gu Shaojun watched her with a smile, his eyes full of adoration. "Of course! I raced against time to make them. This is the one and only set, just for you. Do you like it?"
"I love them!" Xiao Man smiled sweetly. She instinctively took off her shoes and sat cross-legged on the chair, picking up the small carvings one by one to admire them, rubbing them gently. Scenes from her past life surfaced one after another. Her heart felt like a cheerful stream was flowing through it, warm and full of blooming flowers. A source of heat moved closer, a feeling so familiar that she leaned against it without a second thought... Gu Shaojun’s heart filled with an indescribable joy. After a long internal struggle, he managed to suppress the urge to pull her completely into his arms. Instead, he carefully wrapped his arms around her, admiring the twelve zodiac animals in the box with her.
He thought she loved the set of animal carvings so much simply because she was young. He had no idea that in Xiao Man’s past life, he had also given her two or three such animal-shaped carvings. Their craftsmanship had been even more exquisite and beautiful than the pieces in this box.
He was incredibly thankful now that he’d learned to carve for a while as a hobby when he was twelve. He’d stopped after joining the army, but this time, he had used almost all of his free time to carve the twelve zodiac animals. It had finally paid off. As long as Xiao Man liked them, he was happier than anything.
It wasn’t that the Gu family lacked other things—jadeite, jewels, precious jade. But his little girl could produce a mutated form of jadeite at a moment’s notice, and the medicines she gave to Grandpa Gu and Gu Shaoqin were priceless. She naturally wouldn’t care for some generic old item he just copied, and he disdained the thought of it. If he was going to give her a gift, it had to be something she genuinely liked!
Outside the window, Zhou Hui Lan was holding a tray, peeking into the room through a small crack in the door, a dazed expression on her face.
On the tray were two bowls of steaming hot *tangyuan*. She had seen her son come back with her own eyes, leading Xiao Man into the inner courtyard, so she had rushed to the kitchen to cook them. They were from the North and didn’t typically eat *tangyuan* for the New Year, but they had an honored guest from the South this year, hadn’t they? So she had prepared the *tangyuan* ahead of time and kept them in the freezer. With Xiao Man here on the first day of the New Year, she wanted to cook a bowl for her first. But who knew this would be the scene inside? She couldn’t decide whether to go in or not.
Just as she was hesitating, someone quietly came up behind her, peered into the room for a moment, and then firmly took hold of Zhou Hui Lan with both hands and dragged her away.
Once they were a safe distance away, Zhou Hui Lan broke free from Gu Qiming and shot him a sidelong glance. "What are you doing? Can’t I bring them something to eat?"
Gu Qiming took the tray from her hands, walked into the living room, placed it on a table, and sat down to eat them himself. "Our son is at a critical moment. You’ll just ruin things if you go in. Save yourself the trouble."
Zhou Hui Lan sighed. "Our Shaojun is so pitiful. He’s in his mid-to-late twenties, yet he has to play house with a little girl using toys! He should be in a proper relationship, getting married to a considerate wife who can take care of him. If things went smoothly, he could have been a father in a year or two... When we found out the original Tang Yaxuan was the wrong one, I was secretly relieved. But now that we have Manman back, it’s the same situation! No matter what, our son will have to wait until he’s thirty to get married and start a family. My heart just aches thinking about it!"
"What’s there to be upset about? Don’t you know your son is practically obsessed with Manman? Because of the whole switched-at-birth incident, the Tang family is reluctant to let Manman get engaged too early. Tang Qingshan even wants to back out of the marriage agreement! Besides, that girl Manman is a rare find. Just wait a few more years patiently. All the boys in the family have grown up, and I’ve been keeping an eye out. There are plenty of good girls out there, but none I’ve taken a real liking to at first sight. Manman, setting the engagement aside, I really think she and Shaojun are a perfect match. Don’t you like her a lot too?"
"Of course I like her. She’s well-behaved and sensible, much better than the previous one... sigh, much better than our Shaoling! I’m just not happy about her age. She’s too young. Shaojun has to wait so long and still has to coddle a child. It’s pitiful!"
"Pitiful? Who doesn’t coddle their kids? When he was little, didn’t I carve him wooden swords and guns, play with him, and go wild with him?"
Zhou Hui Lan: "..."
’How is that the same thing?’
After a while, Shaozheng, Shaojin, Shaoling, Shaoqin, and Hao Hao also came over. Zhou Hui Lan cooked a new batch of *tangyuan* and then went to call Gu Shaojun and Xiao Man out to eat something hot and warm up. She also took the opportunity to tell Xiao Man that everyone from the Tang Mansion would be coming over today. They would be gathering at the Gu family’s house for the entire day and would only go back after dinner.
After eating the *tangyuan* and dumplings, the younger generation gathered in the heated parlor to have fun. In this era, there were no computers, mobile phones, or game consoles. All they could do was watch TV, listen to a tape recorder, play cards in groups of four or two, or play chess. Zheng Shaolian and the others wanted to get Xiao Man to play bridge, but Xiao Man refused; she didn’t like it and didn’t know how to play. This was exactly what Gu Shaojun wanted. He led Xiao Man to a table in the corner to play a quiet game of Chinese chess.
They had just set up the chessboard when Gu Shaoling came in with Jun Ran. The two of them smiled and scanned the room before finally sitting down at Gu Shaojun and Xiao Man’s table. Gu Shaoling sat next to Gu Shaojun, pouting and playfully complaining that he hadn’t brought her home with him earlier. Jun Ran, on the other hand, enthusiastically started acting as Xiao Man’s "strategist." They say a true gentleman watches a game in silence, but one couldn’t expect these two young women to be gentlemen. Still, it was quite a headache.