Farewell Diary

January 29th.

I had a very happy New Year.

Whether it was a scene I had only ever fantasized about, or something I never even dared to imagine, it all happened this New Year. A warm family is a scene I could never have imagined before.

If she weren't alone at home, but instead had other family members happily celebrating the New Year together, making New Year's wishes, and sitting around the table sharing stories of the past year, achievements, and both sad and happy moments...

This is almost impossible.

That's what I thought when I was alone in the Little Black before. And that's what I thought when I met Hua Shanming and realized that she couldn't even remember my real gender when I was a child, and I was surprised that she was a girl.

Happiness, like the way her biological parents looked at her with disdain and avoided her during her school days, seemed like a word that would never come near her.

While in the car, I wondered what kind of person Xia Yan's grandfather was. But from Xia Yan's description of him, it was easy to tell that he was a kind and humorous old man, whose personality was not at all rigid, old-fashioned, or feudal.

That's exactly what happened after we met.

Xia Yan's grandfather was very kind and treated her very well, as if he had really become her grandfather, even though they had never met or spoken a word to each other before, and they didn't know each other at all.

Today, Xia Yan was cooking when her grandfather went out to visit some old friends, saying he wanted to pay his respects and meet them for the New Year. As an excellent, hardworking, and capable person, she absolutely couldn't just idly play on her phone.

I might as well tidy up the house properly.

When Grandpa came back, he seemed very happy and told her with great concern that she didn't need to clean like that, since he was the only one living with these Hua Hua anyway.

I'm so glad I could tell that Grandpa genuinely cared about her, and wasn't just being polite and insincere.

At the New Year's Eve dinner, Xia Yan cooked incredibly delicious food. The thought, "Since I'm with Xia Yan, I'll never have to worry about not being able to eat good food again," echoed with every bite of the meal.

When I think about dishes, these images always come to mind.

The dumplings the three of them made together were also delicious; they had a three-ingredient filling.

Um...

I wanted to eat a few more.

But a single sentence from her grandfather surprised both Xia Yan and her.

"Got engaged?"

The words "milk powder" immediately popped into my mind, but I couldn't quite grasp their meaning. It wasn't that it was too early; they hadn't finished elementary school, hadn't found jobs, and might not even be able to afford milk powder...

Okay, I accidentally thought about a lot of things, but when I came to my senses, I realized it wasn't such a big deal.

Let alone getting engaged, there's really nothing wrong with getting married right now.

But I think Xia Yan probably isn't ready yet. With his stubbornness and tendency to show off, he'll definitely wait until he's settled down and has a stable life before proposing, right?

After all, he has always been this calm and mature.

But if you like someone, just be together. What's the point of thinking so much?

But the engagement was an explanation for me and Xia Yan, and also an explanation for my grandfather.

From this moment on, we are family, not just boyfriend and girlfriend.

That's what I think, and Xia Yan must think the same way.

You could tell from the way he held her hand. Heh heh, although he appeared calm and collected on the surface, the shyness and anticipation of a young boy in his heart were obvious to her without her even having to look.

Then Grandpa drank the remaining liquor in the small cup in one gulp, and happily took out a small box as if he had completed some mission. Inside was a very beautiful jade bracelet with a delicate texture.

Having only ever seen Pinduoduo and street vendor goods before, I could clearly tell the quality and value of this bracelet at a glance, right?

"I absolutely cannot accept such an expensive gift."

After realizing the value of the jade bracelet, I immediately panicked and wanted to refuse, since she seemed unworthy of such an expensive item.

Grandpa said that the bracelet was left by Xia Yan's grandmother when she was still alive. After seeing her son grow up, the old lady's only wish was to see her grandson and granddaughter-in-law.

As people get older, they seem to want to see their descendants happy.

At Xia Yan and Grandpa's insistence, I accepted it anyway.

If I didn't accept such sincerity, wouldn't I be incredibly inconsiderate? (It's not because the bracelet is particularly beautiful or the perfect size for my wrist.)

That night, I wore our couple bracelet and showed it off to Xia Yan for a long time.

He said very seriously that he would buy me a very beautiful ring in the future.

But I don't care about rings or anything like that. All I want is for you to always be safe and sound by my side.

January 31st.

Today is the third day of the Lunar New Year. Xia Fen was brought over by Xia Yan's father around noon. It was the first time I saw this man Xia Zhongshan. He looks very much like Xia Yan, but he has a kind of temperament that Xia Yan doesn't have.

Could this be the mark of time?

In comparison, I still prefer Xia Yan. There's really nothing to say about a man who cheats and abandons his wife and children. I didn't speak to him, nor did I have the chance to.

Xia Yan was the same.

Xia Fen's mother, on the other hand, was very beautiful and had the air of a noblewoman, making her seem like someone from a different social class.

Xia Yan and I greeted her.

Grandpa did say a few words to them at the door, seemingly about Xia Yan and Xia Fen. I didn't want to be an eavesdropper, so I didn't. Then Xia Zhongshan left.

The first time I appeared in front of Xia Fen as her "sister-in-law" seemed very different from when we were colleagues at the cat cafe.

I was so embarrassed I was about to explode! Xia Fen was still calling me "pretty sister-in-law- in-law" and "beautiful sister-in-law" over and over! Grandpa and Xia Yan were both home, and those mischievous glints in their eyes were definitely on purpose! Absolutely!!!

Xia Fen brought me a lot of delicious snacks. Sure enough, this younger sister, who is only a year younger than us and was my colleague for a while, knows me well enough.

Rather than wearing those useless pieces of jewelry, I prefer these snacks I've never tried before.

Grandpa seemed especially happy tonight. His grandson, granddaughter-in-law, and granddaughter were all there. He had also met his son and second daughter-in-law during the day. He told us for a long time about his and Grandma's past stories and funny anecdotes from his time in the army.

Xia Fen seemed to have heard her grandfather tell stories about his time in the army many times. At first, she wasn't very interested, but then she got excited when she heard about her grandparents' love story. Well, that's understandable, after all, a young girl of this age should also have fantasies about love.

Wow... Grandma was a performing arts soldier in a cultural troupe. She was incredibly good at dancing and singing. Even after she was discharged from the military, she was still invited to perform. What an amazing person she was!

But to everyone's surprise, Grandpa fell in love at first sight and pursued her for more than half a year before she was finally moved by his sincerity and they got together.

Xia Fen said that her grandmother only agreed because her grandfather kept bothering her.

Grandpa, his beard bristling and eyes wide, said that he was excellent enough.

Xia Yan and I laughed happily.

February 1st is the beginning of spring.

Xia Yan cried very sadly when her grandfather passed away.

This was the first time I had ever seen him cry so bitterly.

I feel sorry for him.