Chapter 379 - I Know What Youre Worried About (1/2)

Most people in this world were born to be common, but they were also born to be different. Even a common person’s life was unique in its ups and downs.

To other people, Lao Guo was nobody, like a grain of sand in the desert. Lao Guo never expected to be cared for by others, even his sons and daughter who had neglected their filial duties. But Qin Sheng, a young man who he just knew for a month, gave him the warmth of love and care that he had been lacking.

That was the reason why Lao Guo felt moved and sad about Qin Sheng’s departure. He knew that he could meet with Qin Sheng later on, but there would never be a chance for them to live together.

On his way back, Qin Sheng was also depressed about Lao Guo’s sadness. Lao Guo was not a big shot. He was no more than a common person, but he always kept it real. Qin Sheng never looked down upon Lao Guo for being normal and treated him as a real friend. Besides, he was grateful to Lao Guo for his efforts as his mother’s grave watcher.

“The Chinese New Year is coming. Stop thinking about that and be happy,” Qin Ran, who was driving, touched Qin Sheng’s head and said. She never expected that her younger brother would build such a deep friendship with Lao Guo that they were so sad about their separation.

Qin Sheng took a deep breath and forced a smile. He asked, “Sis, when will we go to Xi’an tomorrow?”

This journey was important. Qin Ran said seriously, “We’ll leave at 8 o’clock in the morning and arrive in Xi’an at 11 o’clock. Father will go with us. After we arrive, we’ll first go to visit Grandfather’s tomb. After that, Father will go back to Beijing. He has some business in the afternoon and in the evening. I’ll stay with you in Xi’an for one day. I know you must have a lot to do. By the way, I also want to express my gratitude to the Lin Family for their efforts in taking care of you.”

Qin Sheng felt moved by his sister’s love and care and began to anticipate their future life. He said, “Sis, that’s very nice of you. If I’d been living with you over the past 20 years, I may have become a child that never grew up.”

“What do you mean?” Qin Ran said, teasing him.

Qin Sheng laughed and said, “Of course I’m expressing my gratitude. If you marry someone one day, I’ll surely feel jealous.”

“You’ve just come back. How can I leave now? Believe me, I’ll never marry until you do,” Qin Ran said honestly. It was true that she had to guarantee that Qin Sheng was on the right track in all aspects, then she could leave the Qin Family without worry. She would never allow others to bully Qin Sheng.

When they entered downtown, Qin Sheng immediately felt the atmosphere of the Spring Festival. The streets were all decorated with colorful lights, big red lanterns, and Chinese knots. Compared with normal, there were fewer cars on the road and the traffic jam had lessened. Most people working here left to go to their hometown for the Spring Festival. For most of them, this was the only chance for them to go home and get together with their family.

Quite a lot of people led such a life of working in distant big cities, away from their hometown, and suffered from loneliness. From generation to generation, young people flocked to Beijing and spared no efforts in their work, hoping that they might be lucky to become a somebody.

People went to and from this city. Some couldn’t bear the tough life here and left, while some were eager to arrive with hope. Though they would live a simple and comfortable life in their hometown, some people were firm in their struggle and strove forward for their dreams with enthusiasm.

Since they left their hometown, there were only two choices ahead—die in the big city or go back home after a successful career.

Qin Sheng never made any comments on other people’s life choices. People should take responsibility for their own choices. But nobody knew whether the choice was right or wrong. Maybe there would be a day when one got old. He would hold his little grandson and look at the old photos, recalling the past and drawing a conclusion about what he had done when he was young.

Qin Sheng and Qin Ran went back to the siheyuan, which had been cleaned and decorated. Gongsun bought a lot of decorations and food for the Spring Festival. All the decorations were finished except for the Spring Festival couplets and the character “福” (happy), which would be decorated on Chinese New Year’s Eve.

Qin Sheng went back to his room, taking a shower and changing his clothes. He had never taken a comfortable shower for a whole month due to the primitive household facilities in Lao Guo’s home.

After he finished the shower, Qin Sheng hadn’t decided what to do in the afternoon, but Qin Ran had waited for him in the sitting room, ready to go out. She was going to take Qin Sheng to get a haircut and buy new clothes and other things for the New Year. Qin Sheng said only kids needed new clothes for the New Year, and he had many new clothes that he hadn’t worn yet. Qin Ran said that since Qin Sheng was always a kid to her, along with the fact that it was the first time that they had celebrated the Spring Festival together after being separated for 20 years, she was eager to do something for her younger brother.

Qin Sheng found no words to argue. He didn’t like window shopping, but he didn’t want to upset his sister. Though unwilling to do so, Qin Sheng still went out with his sister. Gongsun laughed at them over their childish argument, thinking that it would be a particularly lively Spring Festival.

Qin Ran made these preparations not only for this reason. What was more important was that this year’s Spring Festival was of great significance to Qin Sheng. At that time, a lot of guests would come and their father would formally introduce Qin Sheng to everybody, declaring that his son had returned. And their father would take Qin Sheng to visit all their kin, which meant Qin Sheng would inherit all of the Qin Family.

Qin Ran was supposed to focus on this preparation.

Qin Ran took Qin Sheng to go shopping for half a day. When they arrived at the siheyuan, it was 7 o’clock in the evening. They had bought so many things that the back seat and trunk were filled with big and small bags. Gongsun asked many servants to carry the bags, and they went to and fro twice.

In the sitting room, Qin Changan was waiting for Qin Sheng and Qin Ran to have dinner together. He had an invitation to a party tonight. It was held to gather a circle of people at the end of the year. Qin Changan thought that he had to have dinner with his two children since Qin Sheng had stayed at his mother’s tomb for a whole month and just came back to the siheyuan. Nothing was more important than his family. He would go to the party after this family dinner.