When Zhuang Rui just graduated from university, Liu Chuan had urged him to go into business together. But on one hand, Zhuang Rui felt he shouldn't have wasted four years of college, and on the other hand, Liu Chuan's business was already on track, so coming in now would just be reaping the rewards without effort, which didn't appeal to him. He had never agreed. Now that he was about to get promoted at the pawnshop, that idea had completely died out, so he didn't pick up on Liu Chuan's hint.
"Rascal, you're all warm and cozy in here, but there's an old lady outside taking shelter from the snow. Why don't you invite her in to warm up? You grew up learning from Lei Feng too, how did you turn out like a heartless landlord? I'll tell my mom about this when I get back, and I guarantee your New Year won't be pleasant."
Through the glass door, Zhuang Rui saw the old woman shivering in the cold wind, and felt a pang of sympathy, so he spoke up.
"Huh? No one was at the door just now, I didn't know! Don't tell Mom, okay? Or she'll give me another lecture. I'll invite her in right now." Although Liu Chuan had a rough-looking face, he was cold on the outside but warm on the inside. When he saw the old woman outside, he quickly pushed open the glass door.
"Auntie, come inside and warm up. Wait till the snow lets up a bit before you go. It's too cold out there." Liu Chuan's voice rang out. But maybe because his face was quite... distinctive, the old woman stared at him for a moment and shook her head firmly.
Seeing this, Zhuang Rui also walked out and said, "Auntie, come inside to warm up. This snow is going to keep falling. We're not bad people."
"Well... thank you then."
After seeing Zhuang Rui, the old woman visibly relaxed her wary expression. She hesitated for a moment, then agreed. This made Liu Chuan feel quite frustrated — this was his shop after all, yet Zhuang Rui was the one getting the thanks. It had been like this since they were kids, him always playing the good guy. There was just no justice.
With an outsider in the store, Zhuang Rui and the other couldn't talk as blatantly as before. After guiding the old lady to warm herself by the stove, Liu Chuan went back to playing his Super Mario. The way he gnashed his teeth, he really didn't look like a good person. The old lady clutched the bundle in her hands tightly and cautiously scooted her stool further away, as if keeping more distance from Liu Chuan would give her a sense of safety.
“Ma’am, in this freezing weather, what brings you here？ Buying a pet for the kids at home？” Seeing the old lady seemed a bit nervous, Zhuang Rui started the conversation.
“Young man, don’t joke around. In our village, we can barely raise enough chickens and ducks. Who’s got time for these pets? That’s just wasting money.” Seeing the pet pictures plastered on the walls, the old lady knew what kind of shop this was.
Hearing what the old lady said, Liu Chuan twisted his mouth as if wanting to say something but held back. Still, he was definitely annoyed inside—if everyone shared the old lady’s thinking, he might as well pack up his business.
“So then, what’s the matter?” Zhuang Rui poured a cup of hot tea and brought it over to the old lady.
The old lady had already been mulling things over, and now that she met Zhuang Rui, she poured it all out like beans from a bamboo tube, telling him about her situation.
This old lady was originally from Jiaxiang, Shandong. Her maiden name was Wang, and she claimed her family used to be wealthy, with ancestors who were high-ranking officials, though the family had fallen on hard times later. In the 1970s, she got married and moved to Tongshan County, Pengcheng. Her husband worked as a carpenter; the family wasn’t well-off but at least had enough to eat.
The two sons in the family were also ambitious. The elder son was a senior in college in Nanjing, about to graduate in a few months after the New Year. The younger son had just gotten into college this year too, but supporting two college students put a financial strain on the family. They owed debts to relatives and friends, scraping together money from here and there to barely cover both sons' tuition. Her husband, hoping to earn more, went up the mountain to illegally cut timber. Caught by the forest rangers, he fled in panic and rolled down the mountain, breaking his leg. Not only was he injured, but they also faced a 5,000 yuan fine, plunging the family into misery.
When the old lady got married, her family didn't give her much of a dowry, just a few ancient books, saying that in prosperous times these books would be very valuable. She kept them like treasures. Even when her sons were in school, she couldn't bear to sell them. Now her husband was lying in the hospital, and without money for treatment, he might lose his leg. So, hiding it from her two sons, she dug out the books from the bottom of the trunk and came to Pengcheng, hoping to sell them.
After arriving in Pengcheng, she asked a few people and learned that these books should be sold at the antique market. The old lady hurried over in the heavy snow, but found the market deserted. She went into a few shops to ask, and after they looked at the books, they all said they were worthless, five yuan apiece, take it or leave it.
The ground at the antique market was covered in snow, and there was no way to set up a stall. The old lady was at a loss. Seeing that it was already afternoon, she was thinking of catching a bus back to Tongshan County later. Just now, standing at Liu Chuan's shop entrance, she was blaming herself for failing to get things done and wasting over ten yuan on bus fare.
Hearing that they were family heirloom ancient books, Zhuang Rui's heart stirred. His own couplet was a family heirloom too. So he spoke up, 'Auntie, can I take a look at those books?'
The old lady had originally come to sell the books. Hearing Zhuang Rui's words, she opened her bundle and took out two books with yellowed pages and somewhat worn edges, handing them to Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui carefully took them. To keep the old lady from seeing the extraordinary vision in his eyes, he raised the books to eye level, blocking her line of sight. He then focused his gaze on them. To his disappointment, the spiritual energy showed no unusual movement. He withdrew the spiritual energy from his eyes and only then began to examine the book's contents.
These two books were volumes one and two, titled： 《Thoughts on Wei and Jin Philosophy》, authored by a man named Liu Dajie. Zhuang Rui checked the publication date—it was published by Zhonghua Book Company in December 1939. They weren't rare ancient editions; at best, they could be considered early printed materials, preserved in some larger libraries. Zhuang Rui had no interest in such things. Since they couldn't increase the spiritual energy in his eyes, they were naturally useless. Shaking his head, Zhuang Rui prepared to hand the two books back.
“Young man, I have another book here. Those people earlier were unreasonable, so I didn't show it to them. Take a look and see if this one is worth anything...” Seeing Zhuang Rui carefully examining the books in his hands, a flicker of hope lit up in the old lady's eyes. She carefully took another book out of her bundle and handed it to Zhuang Rui.
Zhuang Rui first placed the two books on the table, then took the book the old lady handed him. Before even looking at it, he frowned—the book was far too worn. The words on the cover were almost illegible; Zhuang Rui could barely make out four characters: “Xiang Zu Bi Yan.” They appeared to be handwritten with a brush, and there was no signature. It very much gave off the vibe of that line from TV shows: “a book eaten by bugs and gnawed by rats, nothing but a tattered copy.”
Since taking a look wouldn't consume the spiritual energy in his eyes anyway, Zhuang Rui didn't open the book. He simply focused his gaze on it directly, though he didn't hold out much hope.