Xiao Zhen took a deep breath and slowly began to recount the stories of Mr. Zhang during his lifetime. His teachings filled with wisdom and love echoed in the room.
On the day of the funeral, the whole city seemed to become solemn.
Xiao Zhen stood in front of the tomb, placed the jade pendant next to the tombstone, and said softly: "Old Zhang, rest in peace. I will pass on what you taught me forever."
After he finished speaking, a breeze blew by, like Old Zhang's final response. Xiao Zhen turned and left with deep nostalgia, and Old Zhang's story will remain in everyone's heart forever.
After Xiao Zhen finished the funeral of his old butler and half-life mentor, Lao Zhang, with a tired look on his face, he did not immediately fly to the capital to start new research. He had no mood to do it, so he stayed at home.
That day, the housekeeper, Lao Kong, knocked on Xiao Zhen's study door. "Lao Kong, what can I do for you?"
"Xiaozhen, I'm here to say goodbye to you. I'm also retired. Xiao Kong will be back from the Middle East soon. After he completes the handover of "Xiaozhen Restaurant", he will come to Shanghai to take over the family affairs." Lao Kong said
"Okay, thank you Master Kong for taking care of me for so many years. It's time for you to go home and enjoy the happiness of family. I will visit you often when I return to my hometown. This is the property right of a villa over on Yuzhou Lianglu. This is your pension. Don't refuse me."
Xiao Zhen took out the retirement gift he had prepared in advance from the drawer and handed it to Lao Kong...
The Wujiaochang Town Garden was still bluish-gray in the morning mist. When Xiao Kong opened the gate of Xiao's house with the brass key, the old clock struck six.
He tiptoed through the corridor lined with calligraphy and paintings, but stepped on a loose teak floor at the kitchen door - the creaking sound woke up Wu Ma who was cooking porridge.
"He's a young man after all, and his steps are three pounds heavier than Old Kong's." Wu Ma opened the clay pot and stirred the chicken and scallop porridge. The steam covered her reading glasses.
"The academician has breakfast at 7:20. Go to the study and iron the Reference News."
Xiao Kong was in a dilemma, holding the newspaper that still smelled of ink.
When he was managing the "Shaw Town Restaurant" in Dubai, the most complicated thing was to handle the Sheikh Prince's reservation request, but now he had to study the temperature settings of an antique iron.
When Xiao Zhen sat down at the dining table on time, there was still half a piece of sycamore leaf stuck in the fold of the newspaper.
"The sand in the Middle East feeds people, but it destroys the ability to iron newspapers." Xiao Zhen knocked on the porcelain bowl with a silver spoon. Xiao Zhen saw that the ink painting on the bottom of the bowl was the orchid pattern that Lao Zhang loved the most.
The real test came on the third night. Xiao Zhen needed to check the experimental manuscript from 1995. Xiao Kong searched the library for four hours with a flashlight, finally finding the brown paper package in the interlayer of "The Mustard Seed Garden Painting Manual".
As he carried the documents into the study with a head full of cobwebs, Xiao Zhen was comparing two sets of data with a magnifying glass. Without looking up, he said, "Zhenbei also loved stuffing candy wrappers into his painting manuals when he was a kid."
Xiao Kong gradually found the trick and started to record on the tablet: the master wants to drink Mingqian Longjing tea with Shen Dacheng's rice cake on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays; the humidity in the study must be maintained at 55%-60%; the address on the remittance slip to his hometown in Yuzhou must be written with a brush.
It was not until one rainstorm that he found Xiao Zhen standing in front of Lao Zhang's room, staring at the "Snow Scene and Cold Forest" on the wall, that he realized that the most important rules were not written on paper.
"This is a Northern Song Dynasty copy completed by Master Zhang." Xiao Zhen suddenly spoke as Xiao Kong handed over the warm ginseng tea. "Back then, it was torn into three pieces, and he managed to keep them together while lying on a straw mat in the cowshed for two months."
The sound of a glass hitting the wenge coffee table brought him back to his senses. Xiao Zhen waved his hand and said, "Go distribute the navel oranges sent from Zhenbei to the neighbors. If Old Zhang is here, give each family six."
On the eve of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Xiao Kong finally cracked the most mysterious ritual of the Xiao family.
When he placed the five-nut mooncakes in front of Mr. Zhang's tablet as Wu Ma instructed, he turned around and saw Xiao Zhen wiping the jade pendant in the moonlight.
The mooncake on the altar suddenly cracked, and Xiao Zhen actually laughed childishly: "Look, Old Zhang thinks the filling is too sweet."
When the sycamore leaves fell on the blue brick floor, Xiao Kong could already find every book in the library with his eyes closed.
But he could never learn the old Kong's technique of polishing walnuts. The pair of dull lion heads from the Qianlong period always turned like rusty bearings in his hands.
After National Day in October, on the seventh day after Old Zhang's death, Xiao Zhen had no choice but to go to the cemetery to say goodbye. Dongfeng Space City Command had called three times a day, urging Xiao Zhen to preside over the landing of the second batch of cargo and personnel on the moon. Xiao Zhen arrived at the cemetery and stood quietly for a long time before Old Zhang's grave. The autumn wind rustled the fallen leaves, making a rustling sound like a whisper. "Old Zhang, I have to go. I'm needed at the Space City," Xiao Zhen said softly.
On his way to Dongfeng Aerospace City, his thoughts were still on Old Zhang.
After arriving at the Space City, he quickly got to work.
The atmosphere in the command room was tense and busy, with various instruments flashing.
However, during the critical cargo and personnel landing operation, Xiao Zhen suddenly saw the image of Lao Zhang encouraging him.
With his unwavering will, he successfully commanded the landing. In the days that followed, Xiao Zhen worked even harder.
Whenever he encountered difficulties, Lao Zhang's past teachings would become his motivation to move forward. In his spare time, he would express his longing to the sky.
In the Xiao residence, Xiao Kong is constantly growing and gradually becoming a qualified housekeeper.
He continued the tradition left by Lao Kong and Lao Zhang and took good care of the Xiao family.
Xiao Zhen knew that even as time passed, Old Zhang's spirit would connect all of them like a bond, and this memory and emotion would always remain in this city and this family.
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