nChapter 127: I Love My Grandma The Most

nTranslator: Lan Editor: Efydatia

nWhat happened next in 1999? The first Shanghai International Art Festival opened, scientists decoded the 22nd human chromosome, and Macao returned to China.

nAll of the above meant nothing to Qin Guan though. He had classes and slept in his dormitory all day long. He had no part-time jobs at all.

nA hard-working guy must have taken all his jobs. Qin Guan simply did not think about it anymore. Exam season was close, and a student's duty was to study. That’s what Qin Guan did in an effort to comfort himself.

nSister Xue was at the top of the hungry agent list. The poster of the J shirts winter collection was the only thing that prevented her from starving. She had nothing else to do but enjoy herself by reading the newest Rayli and ELLE.

nThe two magazines were released on the same day. Different girls saw Qin Guan at the same time for the first time.

nShao Xiaobing stared at Qin Guan in Rayli. He was not the least bit worse than him. He actually looked cooler. Shao smacked the magazine at the corner of the table.

nYoung girls saw a fresh face in the magazine. Among greasy cream cakes, chocolate was bound to be more popular. Readers ignored the smiling Qin Guan, who was holding hands with the female model, but drooled at the photo of him and Shao Xiaobing.

nSenior high school girls were reading the magazine together in secret, fixing their eyes on the clear lines on Qin Guan’s face.

nSeveral fans of Shao Xiaobing betrayed him, and lots of businessmen began to focus on Qin Guan’s tough cowboy style.

nIf Shao knew that his behaviour would bring Qin Guan together with a representative of LEE, he would have generously left that position to Qin Quan and let him smile brightly before the camera.

nELLE readers liberated themselves from heavy work that sunny afternoon. They ordered a cup of sweet cappuccino and enjoyed their afternoon tea by looking at Qin Guan.

nThey were benevolent enough to store the magazine in their rooms and buy some accessories to show off at parties.

nSome of them were even interested in newspaper clippings. They made a catalogue of elegant photos as fashion souvenirs. In a way, Qin Guan had made his mark with some people and some families.

nThe two chief editors were quite reasonable about the sales volume. An inner pages model could promote product sales through a poster by 20%. Qin Guan was on the list of potential commercial models in their minds.

nNo chief editors of any magazine cared about the advanced style of a model, and no ordinary magazines cared about a model’s personality. Their objective was advertisment income, just like movies tried their best to avoid box office flops.

nThe final exams came before the two magazines could influence Qin Guan. Feeling like a returning king, Qin Guan entered his exam room under the admiring gazes of the academically poor students.

nHe waved at the surrounding students, who sat down together at his cue. If this had been a movie, there would have been a board hanging behind Qin Guan, with the words

"Don’t bow before me, my ministers

" written on it.

nWhen the papers were handed out, Qin Guan felt protected by the students, who were clustered around him like the stars around the moon.

nHe began to write, while the others began to copy. They finished their exam together in a harmonious atmosphere.

nQin Guan made enough money from that exam to cover his meal expenses for the next semester.

nAfter the exams, Qin Guan didn't return home with Cong Nianwei. He would be visiting his grandma for the traditional Spring Festival instead.

nQin Guan’s grandma was an old-fashioned, family-oriented old woman. She had worked hard her whole life, and her greatest wish was to see her children happy.

nQin Guan's father had left his hometown when he had been young in order to study, and he hadn't found a job back there when he’d graduated.

nHis older brother, Qin Guan's uncle, had taken that responsibility as the eldest son. He supported Qin Guans’ grandma and grandpa and took care of the fields in the village. For many years, Qin Guan's father had been inviting them to live with him in Y city, but they always refused because of their deep love for the earth and their crops.

nThat year, Qin Guan would be spending the long holiday there with his father and mother. He would be entertaining his grandparents as the representative of his family.

nAs he watched the country road, Qin Guan's father grew more and more excited. He felt his heart gradually warming up.

nQin Guan's grandma was waiting by the door, feeding the chickens as she looked out for them. At the sight of a car drawing near, she stood up from her stool excitedly, brushed imaginary dust off her clothes, and moved towards them with her wrapped feet.

nQin Guan's parents were still busy carrying things for the Spring Festival out of the car, when Qin Guan hugged his grandma. She served him a bowl of steaming hot noodles with gravy.

nThere was an old saying that claimed that the last generation of old women loved their youngest sons and eldest grandsons. As the eldest boy of the third Qin generation, Qin Guan was his grandma’s treasure.

nSitting on the warm kang 1, Qin Guan could see his father through the window, which was covered in celebratory newspaper clippings. He was doing chores for his father as Qin Guan was gobbling up his hot noodles.

nThere were smooth egg drops, diced meat, cabbage, and home-made dried shrimp in the soup. It was so tasty that Qin Guan nearly swallowed his own tongue.

nQin Guan's father didn't enter the room until Qin Guan had finished his noodles. His father only had some leftover soup as he chatted with Qin Guan’s grandpa.

nQin Guan’s mother kept his grandma company, chatting and cleaning vegetables. Qin Guan's father and uncles went to the outhouse with his grandpa, and Qin Guan led his sisters and brothers outside to play games.

nQin Guan was wondering why he was the oldest one. Their family was the largest one in the village. Based on his position in the family hierarchy, several clansmen with long beards had to call him uncle.

nThe villagers had moved there during the Qin Dynasty (221 BC-207 BC) as war migrants. The Qin clan had a long pedigree. Their ancestors had been in charge of sacrificing and official pottery production. There had been no renowned celebrities in their family.

nAccording to the records in the ancestral hall, the highest ranking officials were a thousand households of the Ming Dynasty (1368 AD-1644 AD) imperial guards, which was unparalleled among the surrounding villages.

nTranslator's Thoughts

nLan Lan

n1 Kang, a kind of heatable brick bed in the Northern Chinese countryside.

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