That night, under Xiangyu's comfort, my mood gradually relaxed.
After returning to the room, I took out the small light yellow cloth bag that my grandma left for me when she was dying.
However, after opening the cloth bag, there was actually a piece of white paper wrapped inside.
How could it be blank paper?
I was very surprised.
However, something my grandma told me a long time ago suddenly popped into my head.
Grandma said that when their tribesmen record some very secret things, they will write them on paper with milk. After the milk dries, there will be no writing on the paper, but if it is baked with fire, the writing will reappear.
So, could grandma be afraid that the information she wanted to leave to me would be stolen by someone, so she used this method?
Thinking of this, I hurriedly dug out half a candle in the drawer, and then placed the small piece of paper on the candle flame to bake.
Sure enough, not long after baking, a few words appeared on the paper.
The handwriting is crooked, and it can be seen that when she was writing, grandma must have been close to the state of being unable to control her hands, because grandma usually writes beautifully in regular script.
I took the paper off the candlelight and read it carefully.
However, after I studied it carefully, I found that there were only six words written on the paper——
Astrology, divination, destruction.
What does grandma mean by this?
Does she want me to find all the astrolabes and then destroy them?
But what does the Zhanli in the middle mean?
As I was thinking about it, I couldn't help but take out my phone and type the word Zhanli into Baidu. Unexpectedly, what popped up was Zhanli Village in Guizhou.
It is said that this Zhanli village is very small, covering an area of less than 16 square kilometers, and the place is so remote that it cannot be found on Chinese maps.
However, one characteristic of Zhanli Village is that the ratio of male to female births in this village is abnormally balanced. Almost every couple has one son and one daughter. Therefore, the natural growth rate of the population has been almost zero for thousands of years.
This is all thanks to the ancestors of the Zhanli people who invented a secret herbal recipe that can control the birth of boys and girls - Changhuacao.
According to legend, the roots of flowers and plants have different shapes. If the roots grow horizontally, eating them will give birth to a girl. If the roots grow vertically, eating them will give birth to a boy.
There is indeed something special about such a place, but no matter how special it is, it seems to have nothing to do with the things we are currently doing.
Zhanli Village is also in Guizhou. According to the old aunt, grandpa took grandma's ashes and buried them in Guizhou.
Could it be that what grandpa calls grandma’s hometown is in Guizhou?
Moreover, the fertility miracle of the eight major families for thousands of years is also related to this kind of flower replacement in Zhanli Village.
If this is the case, then those biochemical experiments and genetic engineering are simply a cover made up by thoughtful people.
Thinking of this, I seem to have figured it out.
Therefore, if grandma had the ability to write the entire sentence at that time, it should be: find the astrolabe, return to Zhanli Village, and then destroy the astrolabe.
However, in this case, I still don’t understand why I should return to Zhanli Village?
Isn't it possible to destroy the astrolabe elsewhere?
There is also the sentence that my grandfather asked my old aunt to bring to me. He said that one day when I go to Guizhou, I will meet him there.
How did he know that I would definitely go to Guizhou?
And so confusing.
But before grandma died, she still wanted me to find all the astrolabees. Even if it was to fulfill grandma's last wish, I should cheer up and carry it out without hesitation.
Thinking of this, I refolded the small piece of paper in my hand that was a little burnt due to the baking, put it back in the same way as my grandma wrapped it before, and then placed it next to my pillow.
This is the last thought my grandma left for me, and I must keep it well.
I opened the closet, originally wanting to grab a set of pajamas, take a shower and go to sleep.
Tomorrow morning I will go to the museum to look for the cultural relics donated by my grandfather decades ago.
But when I saw the neatly folded clothes in the closet, I couldn't help but burst into tears.
I took out the top set of pajamas and held them in my palms, feeling that the warmth of grandma's fingertips still remained on them.
"Brother," I couldn't bear it any longer. I hugged my pajamas and collapsed on the ground, letting tears burst into my eyes. "I don't want you to go. No, you said you would take me with you."
When you returned to Yunnan and took me back to Guizhou, you said you would teach my daughter-in-law how to discipline me so that she could leave with peace of mind. What did you do?
Are you able to keep your words? You said you like Xiangyu. Well, I will work hard to marry her back to you as your granddaughter-in-law. How about you come back? You go home. Your home is in the old house of the Zhou family, not in the old house of the Zhou family.
Guizhou." I didn't want to disturb Xiangyu, so I covered my whole face with my pajamas and sobbed softly.
I don’t know how long I cried, but after I felt that I had vented all the anger in my heart, I slowly stood up, gently opened the door, and walked towards the patio.
Originally I wanted to take a shower, but when I walked to the patio, I suddenly found that there was a faint light like a candle shining in the back hall.
Logically speaking, since grandma is no longer here and grandpa has taken grandma's ashes to Guizhou, there shouldn't be a lit candle in the back hall.
Who is where?
With an anxious mood, I stepped lightly and slowly moved towards the back hall.
As I approached the back hall, I heard faint crying coming from the back hall.
It was a woman's voice.
Could it be the mother?
I instantly quickened my pace and rushed into the back hall in one stride.
The back hall was empty.
However, the candles were indeed burning on the altar table where ancestors were worshipped.
In the incense burner in front of grandma's memorial tablet, there are three lit incense sticks, and the fine smoke above them is slowly rising.
It's mother.
Besides her, which other woman would come to offer incense to grandma and cry bitterly in front of grandma’s memorial tablet?
"Mom, where are you? Come out, I'm Cang'er," I stood in the back hall and shouted loudly to the memorial tablets of my ancestors.
But I shouted several times, but no one responded.
"Mom, I need you very much now. I need your help. My grandparents are gone, and I don't know where Zhou Lan is. Without you and dad, I would be an orphan. Don't you all want me?"
"I knelt down and cried loudly.
"Zhou Cang," a delicate voice came from behind me.
It was Xiangyu. My movement was too loud, and Xiangyu was also alarmed.
"What's wrong, have you seen your mother?" Xiang Yuhuan glanced around and then squatted down in front of me.
"She's back, but she doesn't want to see me." I raised my head and said to Xiangyu, ignoring the tears on my face.
"Could it be that I saw it wrong?"
"No, definitely not. She came back to offer incense to grandma, and I heard her crying. Who else would come to offer incense to grandma besides her? Who would be sad and cry because of grandma's death?
?”
"Zhou Cang, okay, since Auntie is back and refuses to see you, I think there must be some unavoidable reason. If you are so excited, she will not feel comfortable in the dark. It's better to just let it go.
Of course, she will appear when she should appear." Xiang Yu comforted her softly.