After seeing off the aunts who came to visit her, An Moxue returned to her parents' room, took out the contents of the box, which contained two letters, addressed to: An Moxue - To My Dear Son.
Remembering what her parents once said, if one of them were to sacrifice their life, she should open the letters that her parents had left for her.
An Moxue opened the first letter, which read: "My dear daughter, when you open this letter, it means your father is gone. As a soldier, I am always ready to sacrifice myself for my country, to die on the battlefield. This is my final resting place. Don't be sad. My youngest son, do not slacken your efforts, be strong, and hope that one day, our land will be safe and sound! When family members come, we will drink three cups of wine, sing songs, and tell our stories. How wonderful! How wonderful! It's like those days, when we sat by the bedside with candles, talking all night long. We watched the locust blossoms fall outside the window, the setting sun fading, half covered in spring rain and half in mud. We look forward to the day when we go to sleep, when the people are healthy and everything is rebuilt. We have no regrets in this life, and we will return. Return." —Are these the three boards on the west bookcase in the study in Huaihua Hutong? Should we hurry? "Return," if not, should we retreat?
After reading the first letter, I opened the second. This one was from my mother: My dear daughter, I regret that I couldn't see you get married, start a family, and have children. I can't accompany you on your journey from now on. If you miss me and can't sleep, I allow you to think of the bedtime stories I told you when you were little, but don't think for too long, or I'll worry. Wear more clothes as it gets colder. If you have stomach cramps during your period, make some motherwort tea. It's in the kitchen cabinet; it's best to boil it in hot water for a few minutes, then steep it for a few more minutes before drinking. Don't take your youth for granted. Don't drink tap water; always boil it first. If your padded jacket and trousers aren't warm enough, don't try to save money by making them yourself. Ask someone to help you; don't force yourself to learn things you can't. Don't get married before you're twenty. You're too young, and I'm afraid you'll be deceived by unscrupulous people. Sweet words and empty promises are all just that—sweet talk. To see if someone is sincere, look at their actions, not just their words. Find someone you like who also likes you, then get married, have children, and live a good life. You must be strong; everything will be alright. Take good care of yourself; Mom believes in you.
After reading the letter, An Moxue recalled the events but found nothing further. However, a host of questions arose.
I crawled under the bed and found a hidden compartment where the headboard and the bed met. Following my father's instructions, I opened the compartment and took out a small wooden box.
He took it back to bed, thought about it again, and slowly pressed the box a few times. With a click, the box opened and he took out all the contents: a household registration book, a land deed (property certificate), and a bankbook. When he opened it, he was surprised to find 23,000 yuan, written in the original owner's name.
Now I don't have to worry about becoming poor.
I put everything into the big box and stored it in the bedside table in the bedroom. Just as I was about to tidy up the bed, there was a knock on the door.
When I opened the door, I saw Uncle Zhang from next door, who was the political commissar of my father's independent regiment.
Before she could speak, she heard Uncle Zhang say, "Mo Xue, have you eaten? Are you feeling better? If not, come to my house for a meal. Your aunt has prepared your portion, it's already cooked."
These past few days, Uncle Zhang has been inviting Mo Xue to his house for meals whenever he has time, but Mo Xue has refused each time with various excuses, and she has never gone.
"Thank you, Uncle Zhang. I've just finished eating, so I won't go to your house. I slept for most of the day and I'm feeling much better now."
"I'm here to talk to you about two things. One is about moving; the organization has decided to rent you a place, and you can only stay in this room until the end of the month. The other is about the pension; bring your household registration book tomorrow morning and I'll go with you."
"Okay, I understand, thank you Uncle Zhang."
"Okay, see you tomorrow morning."
An Moxue closed the door and returned to her bedroom to begin tidying up the original owner's room.
I glanced at the calendar on the table: June 22, 1968. So today must be June 23.
Open the wardrobe, and here it is!
There were seven skirts for summer alone, three white shirts, three floral shirts, two pairs of army green pants, three pairs of black pants, one pair of gray pants, two short-sleeved shirts, two skirts, three sets of military uniforms, one Lenin suit, three sweaters (one red round neck, one white turtleneck, and one black V-neck), two pairs of woolen pants, two sets of cotton-padded jackets and pants, one military overcoat, one military cap, one cotton military cap, one set of red woolen hat, scarf, and gloves, and one pair of large cotton gloves.
The next bundle was neatly wrapped, containing a stack of fabrics: red plaid wool, military green khaki, pure cotton with small floral prints, white polyester, green polyester, and pure cotton white cloth.
Below was a wool blanket, and inside the cabinet hung a military satchel; there was nothing else.
Wrap all the clothes in a cloth and put them in the closet.
The first drawer of the five-drawer cabinet next to it contained White Rabbit milk candy, orange-flavored hard candy, two bags of milk powder, two cans of malted milk powder, sponge cake, and Beijing-style eight-piece snacks.
The second lock was on. I took out the key and opened it. Inside were a bunch of small boxes. The first one I opened: a Glashütte Original women's watch—black leather strap, white screen, understated yet sophisticated, a tenth birthday gift from my parents. The second one: an Omega women's watch—brown leather strap, deep sea blue diamond, noble and luxurious, a gift from my parents when I passed the junior high school entrance exam. The third one: an Inna watch—gemstone flower, entirely gold, with five rubies set on the dial, flamboyant and wealthy, a gift from my parents before they went on a mission, a high school graduation gift, given in case they couldn't finish in time for her graduation. The fourth one: a Nanjing Zijinshan women's watch, which I wore in junior high. The fifth one was a box containing only a ticket voucher for a Plum Blossom women's watch, which should belong to the watch on my bedside table. The sixth box contained a bunch of keys, which should be the keys to our home in Huaihua Hutong. There was also a stack of money, all ten-yuan bills, bound in bundles of ten with identical faces, fifteen stacks in total, amounting to 1500 yuan.
Everything in this drawer has been stored in the bedroom.
The third, fourth, and fifth drawers of the chest of drawers contained the original owner's books from childhood to adulthood.
The bed had just a simple set of bedding, nothing else, but it was very thick, and the quilt, sheets and pillows were a matching set with small green floral patterns.
There were shoes in a wooden box under the bed, three layers deep: leather shoes, cloth shoes, sandals, eight pairs in total.
On the desk were high school textbooks. Opening the left drawer revealed pencils, erasers, rulers, set squares, compasses, and pens. Closing the drawer and opening the right one revealed a bottle of face cream, a comb, a small mirror (the kind that can stand on the desk), a hair tie, and a wallet. Taking out the wallet, I counted the money: twenty-two yuan and fifty-nine cents, plus a bunch of coupons, mostly food and meat coupons.
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