"At that time, my grandmother died..." Zhuang Yan gave a bitter smile. He thought that in this new life, he would be able to laugh it off when he talked about the past and wouldn't feel sad.

But when he thought of his grandmother, who walked with a limp and a hunched back, carrying him back step by step with great difficulty, he couldn't help but lose his voice.

He would have died long ago if it weren't for his grandmother; she gave him a second life.

I remember when I was a child, my grandma would fan me with a palm leaf fan during my afternoon nap. She would feed me with a bite of rice and a bite of meat. Knowing that I liked chicken legs, she would put both chicken legs into my bowl when she made chicken soup at home.

His grandmother would hold his hand as he went to school. On rainy days, she would always tilt her umbrella towards him. As he grew taller, his grandmother's face became more and more wrinkled.

When he writes essays about his family, he always writes about his grandmother. He writes that he wants to earn more money so he can take care of his grandmother in the future.

Every year on his birthday, his grandmother would buy him a big cake. He would light the candles and make a sincere wish, hoping that his grandmother's hair would be blacker, her wrinkles would be fewer, and that she would stay young forever and watch him get married.

His wish on the cake didn't come true. He had just started college and hadn't even had a chance to earn money to support his grandmother before she passed away.

From then on, he could no longer find the garlic flavor in the watermelons he ate.

I haven't had a coin in my dumplings since.

No one would share two chicken legs with him, and no one would be waiting at their doorstep for him to return home safely.

The debt of gratitude I can never repay is my grandmother's debt of gratitude; the debt of kindness I can never repay is my grandmother's debt of kindness.

Grandma said that after people die, they become stars in the sky, and no matter how lonely a person is, someone will be there to keep them company.

One night, he missed his grandma so much that he stood on the hospital rooftop and reached out to try to reach the star. There were so many stars in the sky, but which one was his grandma?

The reason Zhuang Yan returned to the Zhuang family was largely because of his grandmother. When she was alive, she often told him her love story with his grandfather.

The couple started their business together. The Zhuang Group was built single-handedly by Mr. Zhuang. They made money, but his health deteriorated.

Therefore, she often taught Zhuang Yan that health is the most important thing.

But after returning to the Zhuang family, he forgot this instruction. He kept thinking that the Zhuang family business was built by his grandparents, and he didn't want the company to be destroyed in front of him.

So he followed in his grandfather's footsteps and died of stomach cancer.

When Grandma finds out, I wonder how worried she will be. She worked so hard to raise her grandson to be healthy, and now that she's gone, he's back to being that wretched six-year-old.

"I... Xiaoyan, I didn't know so many things had happened back then. Breaking up with you wasn't my intention. I wanted to explain to you, but you had already blocked and deleted me. When I returned to the town, you had already moved, and I couldn't find you..." She tried her best to explain, like a death row inmate grasping at the last chance to survive.

Perhaps remembering that the kind old lady would always stuff all sorts of food into her pockets whenever she saw her, Jiang Ning's eyes reddened, brimming with tears.

Of course she couldn't find him, because he had already returned to the Zhuang family. After staring at Jiang Ning's eyes for a long time, Zhuang Yan said, "I don't know what happened to you, and you don't know what I went through, so let's call it even."

The tea in the cup was finished, so Zhuang Yan poured two cups of water, filling them to about eight-tenths full, and then pushed the empty cup toward Jiang Ning.

"Drinking too much cold water is bad, drink some hot water instead."

Jiang Ning has had bad teeth since childhood. She only drinks water at room temperature, as adding ice will cause her teeth to hurt. Honey grapefruit with less sugar and ice is not her favorite drink, but rather his.

"Only you know the truth of your feelings, Jiang Ning, you should let it go." Zhuang Yan stood up. "I'm going out for some fresh air, you can eat slowly."

As soon as Zhuang Yan left, Jiang Ning could no longer hold back her tears. To hide it, she picked up her chopsticks and ate large mouthfuls of chili peppers from the plate. The small chilies stung her entire mouth, and her throat burned. She coughed and swallowed, large tears streaming down her face. Mixed with the chili peppers, the taste was salty, spicy, and astringent. She clutched a tissue to wipe her tears and snot, her face turning red from wiping.

The milk tea shop next door was playing music, and the music drifted over.

In those fleeting years, how many times did we say goodbye before delaying it?

Unfortunately, who hasn't experienced love? It's not a matter of eloquent rhetoric about the seven emotions.

In those fleeting years, we hastily made promises that were too heavy to keep, and now we can only wait for others to fulfill them.

...

If the past is still worth cherishing, don't be too quick to forgive and forget.

Who would willingly accept being without any connection or ties between us? We must owe each other something, otherwise, what is there to reminisce about?

...

If we can't meet again with tears in our eyes, can we at least blush?

Just like that beautiful lie that was hastily carved out that year, promising to be together forever.

...

Jiang Ning listened and cried at the same time. She mechanically stuffed chili peppers into her mouth, not stopping even when her stomach hurt. She ate more than half of a large plate of chili peppers in an instant, tears streaming down her face from the spiciness.

As a public figure, every move she makes is magnified and commented on. She has to wear a mask at all times to maintain her image and not reveal too much emotion. Therefore, even things like crying in pain have to be covered up with chili peppers.

Hearing the sobbing, people around looked over, and the staff quickly stepped forward to ask Jiang Ning, "Teacher Jiang, what's wrong?"

“It’s okay…” Jiang Ning choked up, “The chili was too spicy, it brought tears to my eyes, I’ll be fine after a while.”

Her lips were red and swollen from the spiciness. She propped her head up and said in a hoarse voice, "I'm really fine, you don't need to worry about me."

The staff were relieved after she repeatedly explained that she was alright.

"Teacher Jiang, if you can't handle spicy food, then don't eat it. Your health is your own responsibility, so don't ruin it."

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!