Chapter 142 Spring in the Garden
Gu Qiuyue carefully put the letter back into the "Embroidery Pattern Collection". Her fingertips lingered on the yellowed letter paper for a moment. Her heart was still pounding with this unexpected discovery, but she finally closed the book gently.
It is not the right time yet. Grandma Li has just recovered from her illness, and mentioning the past rashly might make her emotional. Gu Qiuyue put the book back in the drawer and decided to wait for the right time.
In the next few days, she went to take care of Grandma Li as usual, but she was always thinking about the letter. Fortunately, Grandma Li's health improved day by day, and she was able to bask in the sun in the yard.
Gu Qiuyue had no classes that afternoon, so she asked the principal for leave to accompany Grandma Li.
In the afternoon, the sun was shining brightly. Granny Li was sitting on a rattan chair when she suddenly said, "Qiuyue, how's the embroidery chapter you mentioned coming along?"
Gu Qiuyue was hanging out freshly washed sheets to dry. Upon hearing this, she turned around and said, "I was just about to ask you something. There are some techniques I can never describe well, like the variations in the needlework for 'Panjin Embroidery'..."
She took the opportunity to move a small stool and sit next to the old man. She took out her notebook, and the sunlight shone on the pages. Granny Li squinted her eyes and looked carefully for a while. Suddenly, she smiled and said, "You are really serious, child. The key to gold embroidery is not the needlework, but the wristwork."
As he spoke, he stretched out his skinny hand and drew a graceful arc in the air. "To do this, your wrist must be flexible so that the golden thread can spool out spiritual energy."
Gu Qiuyue was so fascinated by the scene that she couldn't help asking, "You've taught this unique skill to many students, right?"
Granny Li's smile faded a little, and she looked off into the distance. "Back in the day, this wasn't allowed, but there were a few people who wanted to learn it, so I taught them privately. The one with the most talent..." She paused, waved her hand, "That's all in the past now."
Gu Qiuyue noticed the evasiveness in the old man's tone, so she cleverly changed the subject and pointed to a question on the notebook to ask.
The sun shone warmly on the old and the young. The only sounds in the yard were Granny Li's patient explanations and Gu Qiuyue's occasional questions.
As soon as she returned home in the evening, Tinggang Xiao Zhang came running to her and asked her to answer the phone.
Gu Qiuyue smiled, squatted down and hugged the two children and said, "It must be your father calling. Let's answer it together, okay?"
Huahua and Shuangshuang were very excited. Each of them held one of their mother's hands and walked towards the gate of the staff housing compound.
"Yueyue, I called your office this afternoon and your colleague said you took a leave of absence. Are you not feeling well?" Xie Shiyu's voice was filled with anxiety.
Gu Qiuyue held the receiver, listening to his caring tone, her heart warmed, "I went to see Granny Li this afternoon. She's well now, and I was able to ask her more about embroidery.
Oh, by the way, the two children are with me, do you want to talk to them?"
After hearing Xie Shiyu's agreement, Gu Qiuyue put down the receiver and hugged Huahua first, letting him talk to his father, and then Shuangshuang.
The two children talked affectionately with their father for a while before the receiver returned to Gu Qiuyue's hands. "How is it going over there?" she asked.
"Everything is fine. Don't overwork yourself and eat well." His voice came through the phone line.
"I know my limits, and you should take care of yourself too." Gu Qiuyue held the receiver and smiled unconsciously. "Have you been to No. 27 Wenhua Road?"
"I've seen it. The former site of the Provincial Craft Society is now a stationery factory. I met an old security guard who had worked in the area for thirty years and said he remembered the craft society." Xie Shiyu paused. "He said that after the craft society was disbanded, the old employees went their separate ways. Some stayed in the provincial capital's cultural system and promised to help me find out if there were any people named Lin."
Gu Qiuyue's heart beat faster. She hesitated for a moment, but still told her husband about the discovery of the letter.
There was silence on the other end of the phone for a while, and Xie Shiyu's voice became particularly gentle: "Yueyue, I think you should talk to Granny Li directly. Since she treasures this letter, it means she cares about it in her heart. Some knots in her heart need to be talked out to be resolved.
After hanging up the phone, Gu Qiuyue couldn't sleep.
She tossed and turned in bed, thinking about the letter, thinking about Grandma Li's hesitant expression, thinking about Xie Shiyu's words. The next day, she finally made up her mind.
After get off work in the evening, she brought the "Embroidery Pattern Collection" to Grandma Li's house. The old woman was watering flowers in the yard and looked in good spirits.
"Mother-in-law, there's something I want to tell you." Gu Qiuyue took a deep breath and took out the letter. "I accidentally found this letter when I was borrowing a book a few days ago. I didn't want to disturb you, but I felt I should tell you..."
Granny Li put down the kettle, wiped her hands and took the letter. Surprisingly, she was not angry. She just stroked the envelope gently, with complex emotions in her eyes.
"Xiu Fen..." The old man sighed and sat down on the rattan chair, "After all these years, she still remembers me."
Gu Qiuyue sat quietly aside, waiting for the old man to continue.
"She was my most proud student, extremely talented." Granny Li's gaze grew distant. "Unfortunately, during the recent movement, her family background wasn't good, so she was forced to distance herself from me. Later, she moved to the provincial capital, and we lost contact."
The old woman's tone was calm, but Gu Qiuyue could hear the deep pain hidden in her voice. She gently held Granny Li's hand and said, "It's all in the past. The fact that she contacted you now means she's always thinking about you."
Granny Li nodded and suddenly stood up: "Wait a minute, I have something to show you."
She walked into the inner room and soon brought out a camphorwood box. When she opened the box, inside was an embroidery carefully wrapped in silk. When the embroidery unfolded, Gu Qiuyue couldn't help holding her breath.
"Spring in the Garden" - This is a double-sided embroidery masterpiece. The front side shows the colorful spring scenery, while the other side shows the quiet and beautiful scenery of autumn leaves. The patterns on the two sides are different but integrated into one. The embroidery is extremely exquisite, and every stitch is full of spirit.
"This is the painting Xiufen mentioned in her letter," Granny Li said softly. "Actually, she sent it to me over two months ago, and I never dared to open it."
Gu Qiuyue was admiring the embroidery carefully when she suddenly noticed a special mark in the lower right corner: a fluttering butterfly with a tiny Chinese character "Qin" embroidered in gold thread on its wings.
"This sign is really unique," she exclaimed.
Granny Li took a closer look and was suddenly stunned: "This mark... I seem to have seen it somewhere..." Her brows gradually furrowed, "It's not Xiufen's style, it looks more like..."
The old woman suddenly stopped talking in the middle of her words, her face changed slightly, she looked at the signature mark carefully, and her fingers trembled slightly.
"Mother-in-law, what's wrong with you?" Gu Qiuyue asked with concern.
Granny Li hesitated to speak, and finally shook her head: "Nothing, maybe I remembered it wrong." But the surprise and doubt in her eyes had not disappeared, and it was obvious that she remembered something important.
At this time, she didn't know that this unexpected discovery would lead her to an even more shocking truth.
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