Chapter 436: Song Ci’s Burial Ground (1/2)

When I walked into the store, there sat Song Xingchen. Upon noticing me, he stood up and said, ”The Song family has responded!”

”What did they say?” I asked.

Song Xingchen pulled out two train tickets and placed them in front of me, ”The elders want us there in person!”

The train tickets were for Jianyang, Fujian, which was a long way from here. ”Why didn't they buy plane tickets?” I wondered out loud.

”Because airplanes aren’t safe!” cried Song Xingchen.

I smiled at his conservative thoughts. ”I’ll get ready then,” I nodded.

I informed Xiaotao that I was going away to deal with some family affairs. ”What family matters do you have to deal with?” she asked in amazement. “Do you have to go back and inherit the mantle?”

”What the hell are you talking about?” I clicked my tongue. “Don't worry, it's no big deal. I’ll be back soon!”

At the time, I never imagined this might have been my last time seeing Xiaotao.

On the day of our departure, Song Xingchen hired a cab to pick me up early in the morning before the store opened. Xiaotao couldn't come to see me off because she was too busy with work so Bingxin dropped by with a big bag of food and drinks. Aside from the snacks I usually liked to eat, there were more than a dozen cups of instant bubble tea for Song Xingchen. When I thanked her, Bingxin smiled, ”There’s no need to thank me. I prepared this with Xiaotao-jiejie. Be safe!”

After I got into the cab, I sent a text to thank Xiaotao. Surprised by my message, she wrote: “I didn't help prepare anything. It was all Bingxin.”

The little white lie Bingxin made up really touched me.

The next day, we arrived in Jianyang and took a bus to the town known as Huifu. ”This is where our ancestor, Song Ci, is buried,” explained Song Xingchen.

”So the Song family has people here!” I exclaimed. “Did you grow up here?”

Song Xingchen nodded.

Past the mountains and rivers, we finally made it to Huifu Town in the deep mountains. From a distance, we could see ancient mansions from the Ming and Qing Dynasties with the white bricks and black tiles against the misty backdrop. On the terraced fields in the mountains, there were farmers driving big cattle to plow the fields. It was as if we had traveled across time and space.

When we alighted from the bus and entered the village entrance, I felt a sense of déjà vu! The Song family's old manor that stood in front of us had the exact same feng shui pattern and architectural style as the family home in my hometown. Despite being thousands of miles apart, the two Song family's old manors seemed evident of the shared blood relationship.

The woman smiled, ”Xiao Song Yang, it’s been a long time since I last saw you!”

I asked in amazement, ”Have we met before?”

”When you were born, I carried you in my arms. My name is Song Heting and this is my husband Di Yi'an. In terms of seniority, I’m your aunt.”

”My aunt is also named Heting!” I stared in wide-eyed surprise.

Song Heting smiled, ”What a coincidence! Perhaps my parents’ generation liked the word ‘he’.”

Right then, a girl of about seventeen or eighteen suddenly jumped out and called, ”Mom, do we have guests?”

Song Heting introduced, ”This is the little girl, Song Jie.” She turned to her daughter, “And this is your cousin Song Yang!”

Her daughter’s surname was also Song which meant that Di Yi'an had married into the family. Song Jie bit her finger and whispered, ”Hmm, why are two of my cousins named Song Yang?”

I was rather surprised to learn of this, but Song Heting quickly changed the subject. ”You’ve been on a long journey. Come in and rest for a bit!”

Song Xingchen and I walked into the manor which had the exact same layout as my old home. It was already noon and several cold dishes were placed on the dinner table. Song Heting invited us to take a seat and asked if we wanted anything to drink but I shook my head.