A Promise in a Thought 35

Chapter 35

In late October, the temperature in Qinzhou was cool and dry. People had to wear at least a moderately thick coat to go out.

Because winter was approaching, Bo Muyu packed some winter clothes in advance. On Sunday afternoon, she went to the old Jiang residence with Jiang Chenyin.

It happened to be the time when Old Master Jiang practiced his calligraphy. Since Bo Muyu was there, he sent Jiang Chenyin away and kept Bo Muyu in the study.

Old Master Jiang stood behind the desk, focused and calm. A few new sheets of Xuan paper were laid out in front of him.

Bo Muyu leaned over to the side of the desk, where a few already-written sheets were drying. She looked down and recited in a low voice, “Thinking of the fair one, after parting, this should ease the longing.”

Old Master Jiang’s eyebrow twitched, and he glanced at her.

He saw the girl, with her black hair falling to one side of her cheek, still murmuring softly, “Sound and dust… Auntie Yin’s name.”

Old Master Jiang laughed. “Xiaoyu, did Liu’er tell you how her name came to be?”

Bo Muyu looked up, pressed her lips together, and nodded. “Mmm, Auntie Yin told me when I was little.”

“Oh?” Old Master Jiang’s interest was piqued. He pointed to the chair in front of the desk. “Come and sit. Tell your grandpa how Liu’er told you.”

Bo Muyu went over and sat down. After a moment of recollection, she said, “Auntie Yin said that it was when Grandpa Jiang and Grandma Jiang had just gotten married. Grandpa Jiang was away and missed Grandma Jiang, and he happened to think of this poem.”

Old Master Jiang laughed heartily and sat down. “Don’t you think this old man is old-fashioned? You young people don’t use this kind of method to express your feelings anymore.”

Bo Muyu said seriously, “Of course not. I think this method is more simple and also more genuine. All the thoughts are expressed between the lines, with both emotion and scenery. It’s something that the current ways of expression can’t achieve.”

Old Master Jiang’s face was full of relief, his smile never fading.

After a pause, Bo Muyu asked, “But did Grandpa Jiang and Grandma Jiang not like boys before?”

“Not really,” Old Master Jiang sighed with a laugh. “In that era, I was still a young lad. When I was dating your Grandma Jiang, I was so afraid of wronging her. After we got married and we talked about having children, I only wanted a girl, because girls are well-behaved. When I wasn’t at home, she could keep her company for me.”

Bo Muyu nodded in understanding. So that was why the two elders had been so fond of girls when they were young. Even when considering having children, Grandpa Jiang was still thinking of Grandma Jiang. It sounded very heartwarming.

Thinking of this, she asked again, “Then was Auntie Yin very well-behaved when she was a child?”

Hearing this, a look of joy appeared on Old Master Jiang’s face. “Her? I was actually hoping she would be a little more mischievous, like her two older brothers. She fulfilled all of mine and your Grandma Jiang’s hopes. Sensible and obedient, she lacked nothing. And my worries back then were unnecessary. Although my two sons were mischievous, they were also disciplined.”

Old Master Jiang was reminiscing about the past, but Bo Muyu’s focus was on his praise for Jiang Chenyin.

Sensible and obedient, she lacked nothing.

Bo Muyu had once thought that Jiang Chenyin must have been very mischievous as a child, like the kind of girls she had seen in school who were full of enthusiasm. But she hadn’t expected Jiang Chenyin to be so gentle since she was young. Her current gentleness and intellect were a result of her innate nature.

“Then many people must have liked Auntie Yin when she was very young, right?” For some reason, Bo Muyu asked a question to which she already had a definite answer in her heart.

“Yes, she was very likable when she was a child. First, the elders liked her, and then her classmates liked her after she started school…”

As Old Master Jiang spoke, his expression suddenly changed. His eyes dimmed, and he let out a heavy sigh.

Bo Muyu felt as if she had been jolted awake. A train of thought in her mind was instantly cleared. Jiang Chenyin was popular. Something had happened around the age of twenty that had changed her way of thinking. And that nightmare, related to the unspeakable past, and what Grandpa Jiang had said before…

She leaned forward, her hands gripping the edge of the desk. “Grandpa Jiang, Auntie Yin in the past…”

Old Master Jiang’s tone was placid but did not allow for refusal. “Alright, let’s not talk about the past anymore.”

Bo Muyu’s words were stuck in her throat. She had been stopped before she could even ask, so her guess should be correct.

When he mentioned that Jiang Chenyin was popular in school, Old Master Jiang had sighed. Then that incident must have happened in school, between Jiang Chenyin and her classmates!

Bo Muyu stared at Old Master Jiang with a grave expression. She was so close, just a little bit away from understanding what had happened back then.

What was it that Jiang Chenyin still couldn’t forget, that the entire Jiang family was so secretive about, and that all those who knew had chosen the same attitude? No one had ever mentioned it, not even once, gritting their teeth and not saying a single word related to the past.

And also, what had made Jiang Chenyin leave four years ago? Bo Muyu remembered that after Jiang Chenyin had woken up from a nightmare some time ago, she had said that the reason for her departure was related to that nightmare, and that nightmare was something she had experienced.

Bo Muyu’s heart pounded. She felt as if she were standing outside the door of that past event, but she just couldn’t find the key to get in and see what had happened.

Just at this moment, Old Master Jiang stood up with a leisurely tone. “Ah, Xiaoyu, come, help your grandpa grind the ink.”

Bo Muyu bit her lower lip, her hands, hidden by the desk, clenched into fists.

After a moment, she powerlessly unclenched her hands and obediently ground the ink for Old Master Jiang. The marks from her clenched fists were still on her palms.

After dinner, Xu Zijun and Sun Ruowei kept Jiang Chenyin and Bo Muyu to chat. Not long after, Jiang Chenyin went to work out, leaving the three of them to chat in the dining room.

“Hey, Eldest Sister-in-law,” Sun Ruowei said, cracking melon seeds. “I found a love letter in my son’s schoolbag. The girls these days are really something. The sentences were so explicit… tsk, tsk, tsk…”

Xu Zijun quickly put down her water glass, both surprised and worried. “Then you have to have a good talk with Yisheng. It’s not the time for him to be in a relationship.”

Sun Ruowei spat out the melon seed shell and sighed. “That’s right. If Yisheng’s grades were as good as your Yixuan’s, I wouldn’t care about this. But his grades are already not good, so he can’t be having these thoughts.”

Xu Zijun nodded gently in agreement. “Getting good grades is the priority.”

Speaking of Jiang Yixuan, Sun Ruowei couldn’t help but ask curiously, “Eldest Sister-in-law, has Yixuan received any love letters? This child’s grades are good. He’s much more popular than Yisheng.”

Xu Zijun said, “I’m not sure about that. I’ve talked to him about these things at home before. He just told me that he would handle it well and that I don’t need to worry.”

“Yixuan is still the one who makes people worry less.”

Bo Muyu was bored listening on the side, and there was no place for her to interject. After some consideration, she cleared her throat lightly.

The two women, deep in conversation, looked at her. Xu Zijun asked with a smile, “Xiaoyu, are you thinking of going back to your room?”

Sun Ruowei also laughed. “I guess so. She can’t join in on what we’re talking about, and Liu’er isn’t here either.”

Bo Muyu had no choice but to nod honestly. “Mmm, Eldest Auntie, Little Auntie, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Xu Zijun said with a pleasant expression. After speaking, she suddenly remembered something, stood up from the table, and said, “Oh, right, wait a moment. I’ll get you something to eat. Your Uncle Zong had some errands to run this afternoon, and there happened to be a dessert shop nearby. He brought you a strawberry mousse.”

At the mention of dessert, Bo Muyu’s gaze followed her directly, a small smile appearing on her lips. “Thank you, Eldest Auntie. Please thank Uncle Zong for me when I get back to my room.”

Sun Ruowei, cracking melon seeds, said in a tone that was both a sigh and a tease, “Ah, young people, still eating dessert so late at night. People like us wouldn’t dare to be so bold… don’t you think, Eldest Sister-in-law?”

Xu Zijun let out a laugh from by the refrigerator but didn’t answer.

“Actually, I don’t eat sweets that often…” Bo Muyu lowered her head slightly and licked her lips. She really didn’t eat them often. Now, it was always her parents or Auntie Yin who bought them.

Just then, Sun Ruowei’s phone, which was on the table, buzzed. She glanced at it and then excitedly waved at Xu Zijun. “Eldest Sister-in-law! It’s been updated!”

Bo Muyu was completely confused and asked, “What’s been updated?”

“A novel!” Sun Ruowei said. Seeing her confusion, she turned her phone towards her and explained with a smile, “Your eldest auntie and I have been following a novel recently. We’re getting old, so we’re reading some romance novels to add a little color to our boring lives, hahaha. Here, this blogger. We’ve been following her for a while. She specializes in writing yuri fan fiction about your Auntie Yin, and also with people your age…”

“Ruowei!” Xu Zijun suddenly shouted, cutting her off, and quickly walked over.

Both Sun Ruowei and Bo Muyu were startled. Bo Muyu looked up, her eyes full of confusion, while Sun Ruowei shuddered.

Jiang Chenyin had said not to make such jokes with Bo Muyu, and not to talk about these things.

“Uh…” Sun Ruowei’s expression was strange. Under Xu Zijun’s pointed gaze, she quickly changed the subject and said to Bo Muyu, “And there are also young people your age who write for fun, hehe…”

Xu Zijun breathed a sigh of relief and handed the strawberry mousse to Bo Muyu. “Alright, you should go back to your room now. By the time you finish eating, Liu’er should be done with her workout.”

“Okay. Then, Eldest Auntie, Little Auntie, I’m going back to my room. Goodnight.”

Bo Muyu didn’t ask any more questions and obediently took the strawberry mousse before leaving the dining room. However, she deliberately lingered at the entrance of the dining room, and sure enough, she immediately heard faint voices, and they were centered around the topic from just now.

Sun Ruowei explained to Xu Zijun with remorse, “Sigh, I completely forgot that we’re not supposed to talk about those novels…”

Xu Zijun was silent in thought for a moment before comforting her, “Forget it. What you said just now wasn’t very detailed. Xiaoyu wouldn’t have understood.”

Bo Muyu’s eyes narrowed, and she tiptoed away.

There had been too much information today, and the thoughts in Bo Muyu’s mind were all jumbled together. But the most important thing right now was still Jiang Chenyin’s matter.

She had been deep in thought during dinner tonight. Combining what Ye Xialan and Old Master Jiang had said, as well as what Jiang Chenyin had told her in Lingzhou, she was basically certain.

Around the age of twenty, Jiang Chenyin had experienced something that had deeply shaken her. This incident had occurred between Jiang Chenyin and her classmates at the time. Because of this, Jiang Chenyin’s longing for a family had gradually diminished, and eventually disappeared completely. And for over a decade, it had been difficult for Jiang Chenyin to escape the impact of this incident, leading to recurring nightmares.

According to what she herself had said, her departure four years ago was related to this incident. Then there was only one reason for her departure: something had happened four years ago that was connected to the old events of over a decade ago.

From this, it seemed that the nature of that incident over a decade ago must have been extremely vile.

Bo Muyu sat at the table, eating the strawberry mousse one bite at a time, only coming back to her senses when her fork missed.

What on earth had happened, that when it was brought up again four years ago, it had scared Jiang Chenyin to the point of going abroad, as if the further she went, the safer she would be?

When Jiang Chenyin returned from her workout, she was greeted by the sight of a deeply engrossed Bo Muyu. The girl, with her delicate brows slightly furrowed, sat with her back straight, her lips pressed into a thin line, indicating a state of deep thought. Her clear eyes were fixed on the wall, as if something fascinating there had captured her attention.

Jiang Chenyin tugged at the jacket draped over her shoulders, walked over, and gently covered Bo Muyu’s eyes with her hand. She bent down and said with a smile, “Big screenwriter, you’re even spacing out while eating. What are you thinking about?”

Bo Muyu snapped back to reality, pulled Jiang Chenyin’s hand down, and turned around. “Auntie Yin, are you done with your workout?”

Jiang Chenyin took off the jacket and placed it aside. “Mmm, I saw you spacing out as soon as I came in.”

She always worked out in a sports bra and hot pants. Now that she had taken off the jacket, the lines on her waist and abdomen, representing strength and health, made it impossible for Bo Muyu to look away for a moment.

When Jiang Chenyin was fully dressed, she appeared very slim. Her entire being was so gentle and beautiful, her fingers slender, fair, and long. One would never imagine that beneath her clothes lay alluring muscles she had never revealed to outsiders.

So beautiful.

Bo Muyu held her hand, her eyes fixed on her abdomen.

“Spacing out again…” Jiang Chen-yin said, exasperated, as she turned her body back around. “Just eat your cake. I’m going to take a shower first. I feel sticky and uncomfortable.”

Bo Muyu grabbed her arm and asked, “Do you want a bite? You can shower after you eat.”

“No, I’m old. I can’t eat so many sweets,” Jiang Chen-yin said and was about to stand up straight.

But Bo Muyu held onto her tightly. She obediently tilted her head slightly, thinking that this child probably had something to tell her.

Bo Muyu was silent for a long time, and Jiang Chen-yin waited indulgently. After a good while, Bo Muyu finally moved a little closer.

“Auntie Yin,” her voice was a little lower, but it still sounded clear and pure.

“Hmm? I’m listening.”

She paused, then said as if making a promise, “I will protect you. No matter what happens in the future, big or small, I will.”

Jiang Chen-yin was taken aback for a moment, then turned her face to look at her and replied in a warm voice, “I believe you.”