A slight morning breeze blew in the winter chill from the open door; the stern-looking Principal Chen glanced at the wide-open door, and turned towards Director Chai: “If you don’t mind, why don’t we go have a chat in the kitchen, and have a chat while we warm up by the fire, what say you?”
He wondered whether this Mister Chai had been seen by the villagers when he entered the village; there are a few infamous gossipers in the village; if they’ve seen him, then they would’ve gossiped about it.
The village is so small, if there are any strangers in the village, it’s quite normal for everyone to ask some questions, that’s the typical village life for you, they don’t have any malice, and after gathering to talk about everything, they basically have no secrets to hide.
“I don’t mind; please lead the way.” Director Chai smiled as he stood up, he had a great impression of Principal Chen, and he noticed a very familiar temperament from him, the mighty temperament of a soldier.
As a fellow retired veteran, it suddenly feels like the distance between them had shrunk plenty.
Ye Jian’s home was an old house from the ’80s, unlike the red-bricked houses that were being built in the village now, it was built solely by mudbricks, and a layer of white lime powder was applied outside, although it was an old house, it was extremely clean, warm in the winter and cool in the summer.
The kitchen was used to boil water. Usually, Principal Chen also has his meals here, putting the split firewood into the fire, he set up a bent-mouth vintage firewood kettle on top; Director Chai chuckled when he saw that: “It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this type of kettle, and I’ve only seen them in the army in the past.”
While talking about the army, the similarly retired Principal Chen also chuckled, “Our village here is still that kind of place, it’s convenient, durable, and the boiled water is also great for drinking.”
Their topic of discussion was more relaxed; gone was the coldness of guarding against each other from before; before they knew it, the water was boiling, ‘puff puff puff’ and out came steam.
Principal Chen put on a glove and grabbed on the handle blackened by smoke, and made a new cup of tea; when he passed it to Director Chai, he sighed: “Old Chai, about what happened with Ye Jian’s mother, you should tell it.”
After half an hour, one called another Old Chai, the other called him Older Brother.
“Ye Jian, that kid takes after her mother, but she’s much calmer than her mother, the temperament around her seems more like a soldier.” Director Chai sipped on the newly-made hot tea, even the tea leaf was made by himself, and the fragrance of tea permeated his mouth.
The burning firewood made crackling sounds, and the hot glow illuminated Director Chai’s face, also illuminating the sliver of melancholy on his face, “Although I have only encountered Ye Jian once, I can tell that child is very assertive, she’s also extremely calm when situations arise, she has the spirit of making prompt decisions.”
“That’s right, that child is much more assertive than her mother, also much more staunch.” Principal Chen nodded; after conversing for half an hour, he could see that this man used to have a good relationship with Ye Jian’s mother, and they had solid camaraderie.
That’s why, when he talks about Ye Jian, it was as if he was talking about his own child, with an elderly tolerance and affection.
Director Chai reminisced about the events with his comrades in the past; laughter and sorrow filled his eyes, “With such an excellent child, Red Plum can also relax under the Nine Springs. When she died, I think Ye Jian was only three; she’s orphaned at such a young age, it’s all thanks to you, Sir, and the passed away old Elder for supporting her, taking care of her. Otherwise, the lass would’ve been turned useless by her Uncle.
When she mentioned that last sentence, a very obvious killing intent flashed past Director Chai’s eyes.
“Little lass Ye is a smart one, who treats her well, and who treats her badly, she remembers everything in her heart. Her Uncle did things with impure intentions, but Ye Jian that child does things with domineering, and she knows her priorities.
