Chapter 81 Who is calling his name, with the vast and distant echo of the Tohulasu grassland?
Bota invited them to sit down and brought milk tea. She asked Qin Tian a question, and Qin Tian nodded quickly, took a sip of the milk tea, and expressed his praise. She looked at Tong Zhongyuan and said a few words. Bota nodded in understanding and took a cup of milk tea.
Qin Tian said to Tong Zhongyuan, "She's worried that we won't be used to it. I told you that you just got sick and can't drink tea."
Seeing this, Ah Pa asked Qin Tian a few questions. Qin Tian didn't understand and looked confused. Ah Pa made another gesture and said something different. Qin Tian was stunned for a moment, his expression a little embarrassed. Then he continued to talk, and smiled when he finished.
Bota brought a glass of milk and placed it in front of Tong Zhongyuan, explaining, "Goat milk."
She gestured for him to take a sip to see if he was used to it. Qin Tian knew him well. In such an occasion, he would drink soy milk, let alone goat milk, without batting an eyelid.
Sure enough, Tong Zhongyuan followed suit and drank half a cup in one gulp before putting it down and smiling.
Ah Pa looked at him, said a few more words to Qin Tian, and smiled at him again. Tong Zhongyuan turned to Qin Tian and raised his eyebrows, meaning, "Why don't you turn it over yet?"
Qin Tian covered his mouth with his hands as he laughed. She had already seen that he had been defeated this time. He had been stubborn and silent before, but now he finally couldn't bear it anymore and came to ask her.
She shifted her seat, moving closer to him. She chuckled and said, "She likes you very much. She says you're handsome and very special. She knows you were sick and is a little worried about your recovery. She was very happy to see you drinking goat's milk. She said that drinking milk from the grassland will make you healthy. The men on the grassland are the strongest."
Tong Zhongyuan felt that they had been laughing and talking so much while watching him, so there was no way they could just say a few simple words. But since he couldn't ask, he could only say, "Thank her for my concern. I'm sorry I don't speak Kazakh. But I respect her very much; she reminds me of my grandmother."
Qin Tian also raised his eyebrows, looked at him sideways, and said jokingly: "Thinking of your grandmother? Your grandmother is also in England?"
Tong Zhongyuan covered his lips and whispered, "You can say grandma. I've forgotten what they look like anyway."
Qin Tian burst out laughing, then quickly covered her mouth to control her expression. Tong Zhongyuan lowered his eyes and gazed at her with a smile.
Seeing the two of them whispering affectionately, Bota and Apa couldn't help but smile. Apa whispered to Bota in Kazakh, "I asked the girl earlier if this was her lover, but she was too shy to admit it. Give him some goat milk to nourish him. It was great to be young. I miss it so much."
Bota responded and went to get a pot of hot goat's milk and filled it for Tong Zhongyuan.
Qin Tian relayed Tong Zhongyuan's words to Ah Pa, who smiled cheerfully. Seeing the atmosphere had warmed up, Qin Tian explained his purpose. He explained that he was from the Shanghai Museum, collecting rare ethnic minority items such as dresses, embroidery, carpets, and carvings. These precious artifacts, worthy of being passed down through generations, would be carefully preserved at the museum and displayed to visitors both at home and abroad.
After listening to this, A'pa pondered for a while, walked to the wooden box in the corner of the yurt, took out a package from the box, put it on the table, and untied the knot on the package.
The package contained two ceremonial robes, one for women and one for men. The women's gown came with a veil and a cap. The gown was embroidered with gold and silver thread, and the cap was set with gemstones. Qin Tian lifted the veil; it was kosai embroidery. Although kosai embroidery has been preserved and passed down as an intangible cultural heritage, such an ancient style and intricate needlework are rare. The men's gown was luxurious and grand, with dark embroidery, a fur collar, and a silver jeweled belt. Belts are a symbol of status in Kazakhstan, and these two gowns were worth a fortune.
Qin Tian told everything he knew about Kazakhstan and praised the two extraordinary robes.
Bota and A'pa were delighted. Bota said, "This belt was handed down from my great-grandfather, who was once the chief of the tribe. This women's robe is from my A'pa when he was young, and the men's robe was worn by my great-grandfather. Clothes of this quality are hard to find nowadays. They are very valuable to her."
Qin Tian unconsciously rubbed her earlobe. She was already imagining how the two robes would look in the Shanghai Museum's exhibition hall, the gold and silver embroidery revealing a noble and soft luster under the lighting. Knowing their value, she felt a little reluctant to ask Ah Pa to part with them.
She hesitated for a moment, then spoke. If she didn't speak, she wouldn't even have a chance, so at least she'd try. She earnestly asked Ah Pa if she could transfer the two robes to the Shanghai Museum, offering her the highest price it paid for folk art.
Ah Pa replied cheerfully, "I'm very happy to know that the two dresses are worthy of being in the museum. But the time hasn't come yet, so I'm going to keep them for a while longer and leave them to her children. I can leave them my contact information so that when the time comes for them to go to the museum, I can find them."
Tong Zhongyuan didn't understand what they were saying. When he saw the light in Qin Tian's eyes gradually dim, he knew she hadn't succeeded. Under normal circumstances, he would have tried to help her, but now that they couldn't communicate, he felt like his hands and feet were tied, unable to do anything.
Qin Tian hid his disappointment and gave his contact information to Bota and Apa, saying cheerfully, "Not only clothes, carpets, embroidery, belts, but anything representative, you can contact me."
"Also," she took out a bottle of perfume from her backpack and placed it on the table, "this is my gift for you, please accept it."
She had thought the journey would take a while, so she bought some lipstick, perfume, and cigarettes. She gave the lipstick and cigarettes to Aimu and Director Jiang, and now only the last bottle of perfume remained in her bag.
A'pa accepted it graciously and asked Qin Tian if she could open it now. Bota and A'pa happily sprayed each other with perfume, instantly filling the yurt with a sweet floral scent. Although it was autumn, the vibrantly colored carpets and tapestries looked like blooming flowers, swaying in the spring breeze.
Bota took out a beautiful white hand-embroidered women's hat with a large cluster of owl feathers on the top from the box and gave it to Qin Tian.
"This is the hat I wore before I got married. It's a pity that I have two sons but no daughter."
Qin Tian liked the hat very much. She didn't hesitate to untie her ponytail and put it on with a smile. Bota and Apa were very happy and kept praising her for looking like a real Kazakh girl.
Apa and Bota chattered rapidly in Kazakhstan, and Bota ran to rummage through the box again. After a while, he brought back a set of women's clothes.
Although Tong Zhongyuan didn't understand what they were saying, he could still recognize the perfume, hat, clothes, and the warm atmosphere. He whispered to Qin Tian, "I'll wait for you outside."
He stood up, bowed to Apai and Pota, opened the door curtain and walked out of the yurt.
Bota watched his back disappear into the doorway and asked Qin Tian, "Has your lover always been so shy?"
Qin Tian was speechless for a while and said, "I don't know either. He is my colleague."
Tong Zhongyuan stood outside the yurt. The vast expanse of grassland and rolling hills stretched as far as the eye could see. The sound of enthusiastic drums drifted from the distance. Director Jiang explained that these were peak tourist season days, and there would be many celebrations to attract visitors.
He waited a moment, but Qin Tian still hadn't emerged. Intermittent laughter drifted from the yurt; it seemed they all got along well. Qin Tian's personality was hot when warm, cold when cold, perfectly suited to the passionate nomadic people. He didn't know how she'd managed to talk to him without taking the two robes. For her, interacting without a purpose was easier; once she had something to ask of someone, she became unnatural. That night, during their dinner in London, she'd been so intrusive about his private life that he'd mistakenly assumed she was interested, leading him to say foolish, self-righteous things.
She had tried to defend him, saying that she wasn't in love with him yet, but she would love him in the future. That statement was the ultimate shame of his life.
Tong Zhongyuan walked deeper into the grassland, his fingers brushing against the tips of the grass. A slight tingling sensation spread from his fingers to his heartstrings, and the autumn breeze carried a slight chill. After that night, he locked this memory away in a book of unpleasant events, never to think about it again. Since when did it sneak out, occasionally reminding him? When he recalled it again, he no longer felt the shame that had made him flee, only amusement and an involuntary flush on his face.
"Tong Zhongyuan!"
His name came with the wind.
He turned around.
A Kazakh girl stood there gracefully, like the Tianshan red flowers blooming on the grassland, swaying in the wind.
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