Zhong Ani’s house was not far from the main gate, a two-story red brick building with walls covered in lush ivy.
Shangguan Qing was not at ho, Zhong Ani said there would be a military exercise in the second half of the year, and Shangguan Qing was very busy with training soldiers every day, not returning ho until after dark.
Shangguan had a slice of waterlon and then took Huahua to her grandparents’ house. After pondering for a while, Sisi also followed them, bringing two jars of Qiong Wine as gifts for the eting.
Yang Wenlong was also not ho; Mrs. Yang Shu was alone at ho watching TV. Mrs. Yang was overjoyed to see her granddaughter, cheerfully picking up Huahua who was still gnawing on the waterlon, and without any disdain for the waterlon juice on the little one’s face, affectionately kissed her several tis, calling her ’sweetheart’ non-stop.
"Grandma, eat the waterlon." Huahua said with a smile, passing the ssily chewed waterlon to Mrs. Yang, who was so moved she kept kissing her non-stop, thinking how considerate her own granddaughter was!
The kids couldn’t sit still at ho and went out to play with Tie Dan after a while. Everyone else followed them too; the military region compound was the safest place in the city, after all.
When Mrs. Yang saw the Qiong Wine in Sisi’s hands, she happily said: "Your dad also brought over a few jars a few days ago."
"Then Aunt Mo, you keep it and drink it slowly. After all, this wine doesn’t go bad," said Sisi with a cheerful laugh.
Mrs. Yang laughed as well; Ah Nan knew just what to say to please people, like her dad, both were smart.
The few of them started chatting just like that. Although Mrs. Yang was a generation apart from them, she was also a very open and fashionable person. Chatting with Sisi, they didn’t feel any gap between generations and got along quite well. anwhile, Shangguan was quietly eating waterlon, just like Huahua, getting juice all over her face and hands. Mrs. Yang and Sisi shared a silent laugh and shook their heads.
"Aunt Mo, I had no idea you were a photographer! I’m truly ’unfamiliar with Mount Tai’. Could I be honored to see your masterpieces?"
While talking, they got on the topic of photography, and that’s when Sisi learned that Mrs. Yang was also a photography enthusiast. Her works had been selected for publication in magazines several tis and had a bit of fa in G city; she was also a mber of the G city Photography Association.
Mrs. Yang smiled modestly, "This is just everyone’s way of lifting up; it’s not that impressive, but if Ah Nan you would like to see them, please do, and also give so feedback."
After saying this, she took Sisi to a room of about twenty square ters with walls hung with enlarged photographs, presumably Mrs. Yang’s prized works, and in the corner stood four bookshelves filled with albums, the sheer number of which was astounding.
Sisi had thought her own photography works were nurous, but compared to Mrs. Yang’s, hers were nothing, just a trifle!
"Aunt Mo, you are really amazing to have taken so many photos!" Sisi exclaid in admiration and gave Mrs. Yang a thumbs up.
Mrs. Yang was also very happy; she didn’t have many other hobbies, her only love was photography, but nobody at ho shared her interest. She couldn’t even find soone to talk to about it at ho. Today she found she and Sisi shared this hobby and that it was a pity they hadn’t t sooner!
The room was full of photographs: landscapes, rivers, seas, flowers, people, streets, and alleys; Sisi was dazzled by the sheer variety.
"These are the ones I took recently; let’s take them to the living room to look at." Mrs. Yang picked a few photo albums from the bookcase near the doorway and led Sisi out.
Shangguan finished eating the waterlon, washed her hands, and each took an album with Sisi to enjoy. The one in Sisi’s hands was taken by Mrs. Yang in recent tis. The tistamp on the photos showed July 25, 1989, at 3:15 PM, which was ten days ago.
The scenery in this album is all mountainous, the mountains covered with lush trees and there are also streams in the valleys. Moreover, the trees in the photos are especially green, and the leaves are dotted with water droplets, suggesting that it must have been raining at that ti.
"Aunt Mo, the scenery here is really nice. Where is this?" Sisi asked.
"This is Yuncui Mountain near G city. The place has quite remarkable scenery. However, the mountains are a bit steep there, not many people go. Ten days ago, I went with Uncle Yang, and it started raining halfway up the mountain. I thought it was a rare opportunity, so I took a lot of photos. Unexpectedly, the effects turned out astonishingly well; it was worth getting soaked with Uncle Yang," Mrs. Yang said with a smile.
"The scenery of Yuncui Mountain is so beautiful. Feifei, we should also go there for fun, take the kids with us, and invite An i as well. How does that sound?" Sisi got excited.
Hearing about hiking, Shangguan’s eyes lit up imdiately and suggested, "And bring so at to barbecue, plenty of it."
Both Sisi and Mrs. Yang laughed, Shangguan still loves at so much, it’s a wonder he never gets tired of it.
"Okay, let’s go barbecue. Aunt Mo, do you want to climb it again?" Sisi turned her head and asked Mrs. Yang.
"No need, I climb very slowly, you’ll have to look after at that ti."
Mrs. Yang refused with a smile. Seeing Sisi flip to that photo page, she pointed to one of them and said, "This is the last one I took because it was the last film in the roll, so I just took it casually, but the result turned out better than all the previous ones. It was like an accidental success."
The photo Mrs. Yang pointed to was of a canyon, a small one, with steep cliffs on both sides covered in various trees, climbing vines, and wildflowers like roses, in red, pink, white, blue, purple, yellow—a riot of colors vying for attention.
At the very bottom of the canyon flowed a andering stream, cheerfully moving along, occasionally spraying droplets of water. The stream was crystal clear to the bottom, resembling a jade belt under the afternoon sun, sparkling and beautiful.
The reason why Mrs. Yang was most satisfied with this unintentional shot was that there was a man in the photo—kneeling by the stream washing his hands, adding life to the still scene and a touch of charm.
The other photos, although well-angled and composed, while beautiful, lacked the presence of a person, and that made all the difference.
"Aunt Mo, you’re right, it really is different with a person in it!" Sisi laughed.
Mrs. Yang also nodded with a smile, and Shangguan leaned in for a look. After a while, she said, "This man must have fallen down."
Both Sisi and Mrs. Yang looked at her in surprise. Shangguan continued, "This man must have taken a tumble. He got mud on his hands and went to find water to wash. Look at where he’s squatting; the water has changed color."
Shangguan pointed at the spot where the man was washing his hands. Indeed, the water was a bit murky there, seemingly red yet also yellow. And the soil in G city was acidic and red. It seed Shangguan’s analysis was quite sensible.
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