She had already long since forgotten about the moment earlier when Jiang Cheng had ignored her feelings.
"I love you too~~~"
Jiang Cheng had originally intended to tell Reba that he had forgotten to transfer the money to her.
Seeing her with reddened eyes at this moment, he suddenly found it a bit difficult to speak up.
Perhaps it would be better to just let it go as a beautiful misunderstanding~
...The next day, Jiang Cheng arrived at his Great-Grandfather's Courtyard House early in the morning.
Just as the car stopped at the entrance, he saw Chen Ping standing beside Qiu Zheng and Qiu Yihe.
As soon as Jiang Cheng got out of the car, Chen Ping gave him a salute.
"Young Master."
Seeing that the person arriving was Jiang Cheng, joyful smiles appeared on the faces of both Qiu Zheng and Qiu Yihe.
"Xiao Jiang! Have you only just returned?" Qiu Zheng greeted him warmly.
Jiang Cheng smiled as he walked forward, lightly patting Chen Ping's shoulder before quickly turning to Qiu Zheng and approaching him with a brisk pace.
"Yes, Uncle Qiu. You're here, why haven't you gone inside??"
As he spoke, his gaze fell upon Qiu Zheng's outstretched hand, and he quickly reached out with both hands to grasp it firmly.
Qiu Zheng smiled slightly and explained, "We only just arrived as well. This young man said he needed to go in and inform the Old Master first, so I thought it would be better to wait a moment. I figured I'd take this time at the entrance to steady my nerves and prepare myself mentally."
Jiang Cheng couldn't help but burst into laughter upon hearing this.
His attention was drawn to the many bags of gifts that Qiu Yihe was carrying.
"You've come to Kyoto for the New Year as well."
However, at this moment, Qiu Yihe's facial expression was already extremely tense.
On the way there, Qiu Zheng had already told her about the extraordinary identity of Jiang Cheng's grandfather.
Upon learning this, Qiu Yihe's heart had been in constant turmoil, feeling extremely uneasy.
Seeing Jiang Cheng only made her subconsciously even more nervous.
Although the Qiu Family also had people with stars on their shoulders.
But to be honest, she didn't really have many opportunities to interact with those elders.
Because previously, the Qiu Family had focused on cultivating Qiu Zheng's older brothers rather than Qiu Zheng himself.
So, besides a few interactions when she visited Kyoto as a child...
...she had spent most of the rest of her time in Shanghai.
Qiu Yihe turned her gaze toward Jiang Cheng somewhat stiffly.
She had completely lost the relaxed demeanor she'd had when facing Jiang Cheng a few days ago.
Her expression was a bit unnatural as she nodded slightly in response, "Yes, I managed to get my annual leave yesterday, so I took the earliest flight to get here today."
"Shall I carry those for you??"
Seeing Jiang Cheng about to help her, Qiu Yihe quickly shook her head vigorously and said urgently,
"No, it's fine. I can carry these things myself without any problem."
Seeing Qiu Yihe hide her hands behind her back, refusing his help.
Jiang Cheng couldn't help but laugh.
Seeing this, Qiu Zheng spoke up to ease the situation, "Xiao Jiang, just let Xiao He carry them. She's nervous right now, and she'd feel even more awkward with empty hands. Besides, these are all gifts she specifically prepared for your grandfather."
Qiu Zheng looked at the couplet at the entrance, written in black ink on a red background with powerful brushstrokes.
He said cheerfully to Jiang Cheng beside him, "According to this young man, your grandfather wrote this couplet himself. It's truly wonderful. Your grandfather has spent his whole life wishing for the country's peace and prosperity. Ah, it's just a pity that photos aren't allowed here..."
The first line of the couplet read: "The government is efficient and the people are in harmony, singing of good governance."
The second line was: "The winds are favorable and the rains are timely, extolling the wisdom of the sage."
The horizontal scroll was even more magnificent—"Peace and Prosperity for the Country and the People."
These large characters were written in a flamboyant style, and the scent of ink filled the air.
Jiang Cheng smiled and nodded repeatedly, agreeing with Qiu Zheng's view.
Qiu Zheng gazed at the couplet, his thoughts seemingly drifting back to the past.
His lips curled up, and he couldn't help but laugh, "Haha, when your father was first forced to practice calligraphy as a child, he was so reluctant. He'd intentionally get ink stains all over his clothes every day, naively thinking that would make your grandfather let him off the hook. Who would've known that after that, every time he had to practice, your grandfather would just make him change into those old, ink-stained clothes? He had nowhere to hide..."
Jiang Cheng grumbled, "My dad's handwriting isn't even as good as my mom's."
Hearing this, Qiu Zheng couldn't help but burst into loud, hearty laughter.
After laughing, Qiu Zheng lightly patted Jiang Cheng's shoulder.
He said softly, "Haha, you have no idea. Your father was quite the troublemaker when he was a kid, a total little naughty child. However, even though he was mischievous, his grades were quite good and he was quick-witted. Even your grandfather was helpless against him..."
At this point, Qiu Zheng suddenly stopped and leaned in a little closer to Jiang Cheng.
Then, lowering his voice intentionally, he asked, "Xiao Cheng, how have your father and grandfather been getting along these past two days? Is it harmonious?"
Jiang Cheng understood Qiu Zheng's concern.
He squeezed Qiu Zheng's hands firmly, signaling him to put his mind at ease.
Jiang Cheng replied with a smile, "It's alright, Uncle Qiu. Don't be nervous, I'll take you inside."
Hearing this answer, Qiu Zheng nodded in relief, a hint of gratitude showing in his eyes.
He took a deep breath and composed himself.
Then, he said half-jokingly, "When I was a kid, the thing I feared most was seeing your grandfather. He had such high expectations for both of us. It's also been a long time since I last saw him, so I'm a bit nervous."
Jiang Jianmin had already shown him what Qiu Zheng looked like before the accident.
That originally handsome face had now become somewhat gruesome and unrecognizable.
At this moment, no matter what expression he made, it was a bit difficult to discern his actual emotions.
But right now, his relatively intact left hand could be seen...
...solemnly smoothing out his clothes.
He was tugging at his trouser leg, which had lost its support from the leg.
As if he wanted to hide the missing part.
One could clearly sense that Qiu Zheng's heart was also heavy at this moment, far from being light or happy.
Looking at this scene, Jiang Cheng's heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand, and he couldn't help but feel a pang of sorrow once again.