An Moxue, Old Ma, and Aunt Ma were having dinner at the restaurant when Old Ma looked at something and asked curiously, "Moxue, is Ai Guo going to change careers and become a photography instructor?"

Aunt Ma and An Moxue both looked in the direction he was looking. An Moxue smiled and said, "He wanted to earn some pocket money with his camera and was thinking about how to take good photos. That's when a foreign photographer came. Apparently, his photos are often published in some famous magazines, so Ai Guo has his eye on him."

Aunt Ma exclaimed, "How much money do we need to earn for pocket money? This camera alone costs over seven hundred yuan, and with a few rolls of film, it'll be almost eight hundred yuan. How long will it take to earn enough for the camera?"

Old Ma disagreed, saying, "That's easy. When school starts again, he can use his free time to take photos of his classmates. How many people will want to take photos? Just one school a day, and you can count how many schools there are in Kyoto. Wouldn't the cost be recouped quickly? Take one at the start of the new semester, another when he starts dating, and more in different places if he wants to preserve the good times at school. How many people will want to take photos?"

Aunt Ma suddenly realized, "That's right, now that you mention it, there are quite a few people taking photos. They don't even need to go to a photo studio, which is not only convenient, but they can also capture different scenery."

Old Ma picked up a piece of fish for her and said, "Exactly! Do you still think seven or eight hundred is too expensive for a camera?"

Aunt Ma smiled and said, "If you calculate it this way, I should be able to break even quickly. It's not too expensive, and I'll also learn a skill."

"Uncle Ma, Auntie, where do you want to go tomorrow? I'll go with you. Or we can make a plan and go out for fun in a planned way." An Moxue glanced at Ai Guo's side out of the corner of her eye, but quickly looked away.

Aunt Ma said, "Let's go see the famous alleyways here, and see what the legendary Shikumen (stone gate houses) look like. Also, I heard there's a street full of former residences of famous people, and I'd like to go see that too."

An Moxue asked, "Uncle Ma, what about you?"

“I…” Old Ma thought for a moment and said, “I want to go to the concession to see the site of the March 27th Incident, where the entire army was wiped out in the bloody battle against the invaders.”

At this point, the three men fell silent and lost their appetite.

Seeing that the two people, who had been full of enthusiasm, had become depressed because of her question, An Moxue thought for a moment and then comforted them, "Uncle Ma, look, although none of our people survived the March 27th Incident, it was because of the millions of Chinese people like them who risked their lives that we now have the opportunity to be masters of our own destiny. You should be happy. Tomorrow we'll go to the March 27th Incident site, and you can tell them about our happy life now."

Old Ma said, "I'm so old, what could I possibly be upset about? Don't worry, it's just a temporary sadness."

Aunt Ma also said, "In those years, so many people around me left. In the blink of an eye, someone would fall down and never get up again. I can't think about it, it feels so unreal. I dare not forget it, for fear of letting down the spirits of the fallen heroes."

Old Ma took a sip of his liquor and said, "This liquor is famous, but it's not as strong as the pure grain liquor from our northern region. When you're out having fun, let's talk about happy things, not these sad ones. Speaking of which, I didn't realize that Ai Guo's foreign language skills are so good! It's quite surprising. Look, he's all arm in arm with that foreigner; if you didn't know better, you'd think they were very familiar!"

When An Moxue heard Old Ma mention this, she said with a touch of pride, "This is all thanks to me!"

Aunt Ma asked curiously, "What happened? Tell me." Old Ma also looked like he was looking on with a gossipy expression.

"Well, this all started with the knowledge my parents taught me. They set a strict study plan for me, one part of which included foreign languages. That's when I realized why my dad always got assigned such high-level missions—it was because he knew many foreign languages. My mom did too; she knew all the foreign languages ​​he knew. The only difference was that my dad didn't know medicine, but my mom was a top-notch doctor, especially in surgery. She was most skilled in battlefield emergency surgery, which was about saving lives on the brink of death, racing against time. They learned a wide variety of subjects. It's probably related to our ancestors."

"Later, I got bored with learning things, so I asked my parents for their opinion and handed over the foreign language course to my friends. But it was only two foreign languages, so my friends and I had more secrets in common. Then we studied for many years until my parents died in a mission. Later, I went to the countryside, but they never told our family about it."

At the time, we felt that having our own little secrets was a very private and proud thing.

Old Ma glanced in Ai Guo's direction and said in a voice only the three of them could hear, "The two of them finished eating and left."

Aunt Ma asked worriedly, "Aiguo seems a bit dim-witted, not very bright. Won't he suffer for it? Aren't foreigners supposed to be very pragmatic? If there's no benefit to it, would he properly teach Aiguo photography? That's his livelihood!"

Old Ma said, "Why are you worried about that? Mo Xue said there's no problem, so it won't be a big deal. Besides, what can a grown man like you lose? Alright, we've eaten enough, shall we go back?"

An Moxue stopped Old Ma from getting up and said, "Uncle Ma, wait a minute, let me order you some ice cream you've never had before, as a dessert. See if you like it, or if you don't, it's okay, just try something new." As she spoke, An Moxue snapped her fingers in a cool manner.

A waiter wearing a white shirt and a bow tie approached and respectfully asked, "How may I help you, sir?"

An Moxue said to him, "Three ice creams, one cream, one vanilla, and one strawberry. Thank you."

"Okay, please wait a moment, it will be here shortly."

After the waiter left, Aunt Ma asked, "Mo Xue, what is ice cream? Is it similar to popsicle? It should be frozen, right?"

An Moxue said, "You could say it's a type of ice cream. I ordered three flavors, and we'll see which one you like later."

Old Ma said, "I know. Back when the border town was liberated, I saw rich young masters and ladies eating it. It must have been very delicious, and it looks very expensive. Mo Xue, is this very expensive?"

An Moxue winked playfully and said, "It's not expensive, Uncle Ma. You forgot, I have money."

Old Ma and Aunt Ma had smiles on their faces. Aunt Ma said, "Knowing is one thing, but spending money is another. We've been thrifty for most of our lives, and it's hard to change!"

"No need to change it. Keep the money I give you carefully, and spend mine generously. As long as you remember that it's not your own money when you spend it, you won't feel so bad. How about it, is this idea okay?"