In the afternoon, Grandpa Xiao came over and was now playing chess with Grandpa Qin in the courtyard.
After finishing packing, driven by a girl’s curiosity, Qin Nanfeng took her around the house.
There wasn’t much to see on the second and third floors—just rooms. And for now, no one else was living there besides them.
Before they knew it, they had come down to the first floor. Lin Xinyuan quickly noticed the photos placed on the wooden table in the living room and walked over curiously.
“What’s this…”
The first one she picked up was a slightly larger photo. She realized it was a family portrait.
At a glance, she spotted Grandpa Qin. He looked much younger than now, with only a bit of gray in his hair.
Overall, he looked like a capable and energetic handsome middle-aged man, smiling as he gave a thumbs-up to the camera.
As for the good-looking young couple, there was no need to think—they had to be Qin Nanfeng’s parents.
Beside them stood a pretty young girl, holding the hand of a delicate little child.
Lin Xinyuan guessed the former was Qin Nanfeng’s aunt, but the latter… why did she feel a bit familiar? Maybe it was just her imagination…
Perhaps she was that yellow-haired brat’s sister, or a younger aunt…
Thinking this, Lin Xinyuan couldn’t help but feel puzzled.
So… where was that guy?
She glanced at the young man beside her. “Feng Ge… you…”
Qin Nanfeng pressed his lips together and pointed to one side of the photo. “Here.”
Hearing that, Lin Xinyuan lowered her head again to look. Only then did she notice a gentle-looking woman standing beside Grandpa Qin. She immediately guessed it was Grandma Qin.
Even though her hair, tied up neatly, had also turned silver like Grandpa Qin’s, her face was still beautiful and didn’t look aged.
And in Grandma Qin’s arms was clearly a baby… sucking on its thumb.
Lin Xinyuan simply couldn’t imagine that the yellow-haired brat had once looked like this. She had thought that guy had been flirting with girls since birth.
But… it was kind of cute.
She almost laughed, but then she realized she had never seen Grandma Qin, and Qin Nanfeng had never mentioned her… Combined with his slightly silent demeanor now, she already had her answer.
The faint smile that had just appeared on her lips vanished instantly.
The girl was affected by the scene. Qin Nanfeng hadn’t even said anything yet, but she already felt upset.
Unconsciously, she thought of her own grandmother… and the grandfather she had never met, who, she had heard, passed away when that person was still very young.
Even if her grandmother might have truly been a bad person to her mother, she herself couldn’t bring herself to hate her… nor did she have the right to.
Even if her grandmother were still alive now and ended up disliking her the same way that person did, it would still be the same.
After all, it had never happened, so she didn’t want to think about that possibility.
‘Little A Yuan, do you want some candy? Grandma bought some for you…’
‘Haha, Little A Yuan is so good~’
‘Little A Yuan, you mustn’t always be too honest. You have to learn to protect yourself. Your grandfather… never mind…’
‘Oh dear, Little A Yuan, slow down! What if you fall!’
‘Cough… cough… Grandma is fine. Just an old problem. I’ll be okay after taking some medicine…’
‘Grandma doesn’t want to leave A Yuan…’
‘…’
At that moment, memories of that elderly woman gradually surfaced in Lin Xinyuan’s mind. Her hair had gone from black to white.
Others older than her still had dark hair, yet her grandmother’s hair had turned white so quickly…
And her gentleness, every smile and frown—everything flashed through her mind like a reel of film.
And only at this moment did she finally remember the last words her grandmother said before passing.
‘Little… A Yuan… I’m sorry… Grandma… I’m… sorry… to her…’
‘…’
Yes…
Her grandmother was that kind of person. She had always known.
A bad person… yet she taught her morals every day…
She told her to treat others kindly! But why… were you like that…
Could you tell me…
There’s no chance anymore, right…
I don’t understand…
In an instant, the girl’s expression darkened.
Gradually, her once bright almond-shaped eyes lost focus, and clear tears slid down from the corners of her eyes.
Seeing the tears about to fall onto the photo frame, Lin Xinyuan quickly came back to her senses.
She hurriedly put the photo back, then turned her head away, wiping her tears with her back to Qin Nanfeng, not wanting him to see her in such a miserable state.
Lin Xinyuan… you’re really useless… so inexplicable…
Who cries… who cries over someone else’s family photo…
How ridiculous…
But at that moment, her arm was suddenly held by a warm, large hand. Before she could react, she was pulled into someone’s embrace and tightly hugged.
Watching the girl’s sudden emotional breakdown just now, Qin Nanfeng might not have understood before gaining that man’s memories. But now, he understood everything clearly.
The root cause of her terrible family situation growing up—and the personality she developed because of it—happened to be connected to that dead fat boy who used to bully Lin Xinyuan in junior high.
Thinking of this, the coldness in the young man’s eyes deepened.
“Mm… let go of me…”
The person in his arms had come back to her senses. Even though she tried to suppress it, the sobbing in her voice still slipped through, soft and heartbreaking.
When he looked down again, the gloom in Qin Nanfeng’s eyes had faded, leaving only gentleness.
“You cried.” His voice was calm, as if stating a fact.
“I didn’t… I… I…”
Lin Xinyuan wanted to deny it, not wanting to appear so pathetic in front of him.
She had been a boy for so long before—why was she crying like this now…
But… for some reason… she felt so terrible. She couldn’t control her emotions at all…
Tears kept falling as she stammered for a long time. In the end, she stopped resisting and simply buried her face tightly in Qin Nanfeng’s chest.
His embrace was too warm. Even though the weather was hot, even in the heat of the afternoon, she felt no irritation or discomfort. Instead, a sense of security slowly rose from deep within her heart.
They stopped speaking and simply held each other like that.
Until the silence was finally broken—
Grandpa Qin had forgotten to take the tea leaves and came back inside to get them. The moment he stepped in, he saw the boy and girl embracing in the living room.
Especially noticing the girl in Qin Nanfeng’s arms, who was sobbing uncontrollably.
“Xiao Feng, did you bully Xiao Yuan?”
Qin Nanfeng’s senses were sharp. He noticed Grandpa Qin’s arrival immediately. But he remained calm and simply turned his head, gently shaking it.
Before he could explain, the girl in his arms, startled, realized what Grandpa Qin had said. She quickly stopped crying and became anxious instead.
“No, Grandpa! Feng Ge… hic… didn’t bully me…” Lin Xinyuan hurriedly raised her head, shaking it from side to side.
As she spoke, she couldn’t help but hiccup, her face still covered in tears. “It’s… it’s my own reason… it has nothing to do with Feng Ge…”
Grandpa Qin could tell she wasn’t lying and felt slightly relieved.
He hesitated, wanting to ask more, but seeing Qin Nanfeng gently shake his head again, he held back.
“Sigh, do as you like…”
With that, the old man took a tin of tea leaves from the drawer of the low cabinet, turned around, and left, giving them their space.