As far as Chu Wan could remember, her great-grandfather passed away in the autumn of 1984 at the age of 98. At that age, it was considered a happy death.

It seemed that her great-grandfather did not have too many worries before he died. He had raised his skinny hand, touched Chu Wan’s hair, said that she was married now, and asked her to live a good life in the future. He could leave now with peace of mind.

After that he seemed confused and said sorry to her.

Finally, the look in her great-grandfather’s eyes became distant, like he was in a trance, and his dry lips moved as if he was calling a name.

Chu Wan had put her ear close to her great-grandfather lips, but she could only hear a vague syllable. She wanted to ask him what he meant, but her great-grandfather passed away at that moment.

Chu Wan looked at the mountains in the distance; they were desolate and lonely.

The clouds in the sky were like white clothes, changing into dark clouds in a moment. Only the mountains, tombs, and villages still vaguely look the same as before.

But she didn’t know whether the small, fenced courtyard at the western end of Yongling Village was still there; whether the decades-old stone house has not collapsed; and whether her great-grandfather who had passed away in front of her could still struggle to utter vague words to her.

With a long and solemn ‘whoa’, the ox cart stopped beside Yongling Village, and Chu Wan’s thoughts were interrupted.

She thanked Grandpa Hu, picked up her basket, and went home in a hurry.

Her family’s yard was at the westernmost end of the village. When she saw the moss-covered, almost black stone wall, her heart began to beat faster.

But she slowed down her pace, held the basket tightly, and walked to the door step by careful step. Then she took a deep breath and pushed open the shaky door.

The door opened, and she saw her great-grandfather sitting on a stone in front of the house with his eyes squinting, holding his old cane.

He was very old, so old that his thin body was as curved as a shrimp, and there were only a few white hairs on his head floating in the cold wind.

He didn’t like wearing a hat, saying that it covered up his energy and spirit. He preferred to go bare-headed, and he didn’t mind the cold.

Chu Wan stood there silently, staring blankly for a long time.

After an unknown amount of time, her great-grandfather finally raised his head, looked at her, and said with a smile, “Wanwan is back.”

Her eyes become moist instantly.

But she tried to suppress it, walked forward, and tentatively took her great-grandfather’s dry hand. She said, “Yes, Great-grandpa, I’m back.”

Great-grandfather laughed and said, “What’s wrong? Your eyes are red. Who bullied our Wanwan?”

Chu Wan didn’t think much of it at first. Her life had been smooth, and she never suffered any great injustice. But now, after hearing what her great-grandfather said, she actually felt aggrieved.

It was like a child who had been wandering outside for a long time—when they come home, they hear something an adult say casually and suddenly feel extremely wronged. She felt so wronged that she wanted to cry her heart out.

Her eyes were moist, but she pursed her lips and said nothing.

Great-grandfather stroked her hair comfortingly and asked, “What’s wrong? Are you angry with Yanjing, or are you having a quarrel with Chen Lei?”

Chu Wan pursed her lips and suppressed her emotions.

She actually had a lot of things she wanted to talk to Great-grandfather about, but at this moment, she also knew that there was no need to rush.

If Great-grandfather wanted to say it, he would not have kept silent all these years and only murmured the name at the last moment before his death.

It was only in the following ten years that Chu Wan finally understood that what Great-grandfather had called out before he died was her grand-aunt’s nickname, Huihui.

That was Great-grandfather’s most beloved, youngest child and only daughter.

So Chu Wan said with a smile, “Great-grandpa, I want to tell you something important, you must listen to me.”

“What’s the important matter?”

“Su Yanjing treats me badly, I don’t want to be with him anymore.”

Great-grandfather suddenly laughed, shook his head and sighed, “You’re are already so old, but you still have a childish temper. You’re nice to someone today, but not nice to them tomorrow. So, will you be nice to them again the day after tomorrow?”

Chu Wan said seriously, “Great-grandpa, I’m serious.”

Great-grandfather said, “Then you have to explain it clearly, otherwise what are you doing? Are you just playing house?”

Chu Wan thought about it and it seemed to be true. If she broke up with Su Yanjing so suddenly, he would probably be confused and maybe even not believe she really wanted to break-up.

So she said, “Okay, then I’ll take a look first.”

Since she already had the intention of breaking up with him, she would definitely not let him live a happy life.

After chatting with Chu Wan for a while, Great-grandfather went into the house to rest. Chu Wan stood in her own room and looked around. The furniture inside was quite old. The small table beside the kang bed was shiny, having been soaked with grease and tea stains over the years. The handles of the old armchair placed by the window were polished to a bright and smooth wooden color.

After Great-grandfather passed away, all these household items were snatched away by her uncles from her mother’s family.

At that time, they took away the fields and divided up the house, and finally rushed in and divided up all the old belongings.

They thought these old things must be valuable, so they fought over it and people even got beaten to a pulp.

Then they secretly went to ask knowledgeable people and finally found out that it was all made during the Republic of China (1912-1949) and was worthless.

They still didn’t give up. At that time, they already knew that Great-grandfather had been a big antique dealer in Liulichang. They always felt that Great-grandfather had left some valuable stuff.

They wanted to cause trouble for Chu Wan, but since Chu Wan had married into the Lu family, they didn’t dare to disturb her. So they returned to the old house, knocked down several stone walls, and dug almost three feet into the ground, thinking they might find something.

However, the fact was that her great-grandfather really did not leave anything behind. He had lost almost all the family wealth before Liberation. After Liberation, the family went through many twists and turns, with thieves everywhere. Then there were those ten years. He really did not leave anything for himself.

Even Chu Wan didn’t get anything from her great-grandfather.

If she had to say what she inherited, it was only the skills passed down from her great-grandfather, which was already a treasure beyond price.

… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

At this time, Chu Wan was standing in the house that had not yet been dug three feet deep. She took a bucket, filled it with water, and took a basin and a rag, intending to clean the house thoroughly.

Great-grandfather didn’t have much time left to live, and she wanted to make his life as comfortable as possible.

While she was working, she heard footsteps outside. She stood up and saw that it was her cousin, Chen Lei.

After losing all his children, her great-grandfather spent all his family wealth and took his then seven-year-old grandson—Chu Wan’s father—to Yongling Village, where they settled down.

Great-grandfather lived a poor life in Yongling, relying on odd jobs to support his young grandson. No one in the village knew that this poor old man who was struggling to make ends meet had once been a big shot in Liulichang, a major antique market in Beijing.

Fortunately, Liberation came two years later. After liberation, Great-grandfather was allocated land and life became better. With his hard work, he raised Chu Wan’s father. Later, Chu Wan’s father married a girl from the Chen family in the village—Chu Wan’s mother.

Chu Wan’s mother’s family was considered a wealthy family in Yongling Village. She had many brothers, but the family only had her as daughter.

Chen Lei was about the same age as Chu Wan, only a few months older than Chu Wan. She was the daughter of Chu Wan’s Third Uncle. After graduating from high school, she has been farming at home and has not yet found a husband. However, she has great ambitions and wanted to take the college entrance examination.

Chen Lei was indeed a good student. She even did better than Chu Wan back then. However, she was unlucky. She missed the college entrance examination last year due to a cold and fever. She performed poorly and did not pass the exam. She had to review again this year.

According to her previous life, she would finally get admitted to the Department of Archaeology at Beijing University.

Pearls and Jade Beside Me in the 80s translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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T/N: A quick timelime of China’s history that’s important to Chu Wan’s family. This is not a history class so you don’t need to remember the dates, just have an idea of what came first, what came next.

— Qing dynasty falls (1911)
— Republic of China (1912-1949)
— Second Sino-Japanese War that extended into WWII (1937-1945)
— Liberation. Koumintang government flees to Taiwan, and People’s Republic of China is established (1949)
— Ten years, a euphemism for the Cultural Revolution (1966-1976)

Chu Wan’s grandfather dies fighting the Japanese, and her grand-aunt disappears, fate unknown, towards the end of the Republic of China. Heartbroken, her great-grandfather brings Chu Wan’s father to Yongling Village two years before Liberation. 

Chu Wan grew up during the Cultural Revolution. When she was 15 (1980), she followed her great-grandfather’s wishes and roamed the country on her own, honing her skills. 

If you’re enjoying my translations, do consider buying me ko-fi and get access to advance chapters as reward. Thank you for your support! ☺️
Chapter 3.2 — An Eye for Choosing a Man
Chapter 4 — The Origin of the Marriage Agreement
Chapter 5.1 — Thick Skin is a Must
Chapter 5.2 — Thick Skin is a Must
Chapter 6.1 — He Gave Her Pocket Money
Chapter 6.2 — He Gave Her Pocket Money
Chapter 6.3 — He Gave Her Pocket Money
Chapter 7.1 — There Must be Compatibility Between Husband and Wife
Chapter 7.2 — There Must be Compatibility Between Husband and Wife
Chapter 8 — The Beauty of Line Carving
Chapter 9 — In My Eyes, This Is 200 Yuan