Her fundamental skills were solid, and she also possessed good concentration, able to sit motionless for hours without fatigue—an ability she had cultivated over several years. Otherwise, sitting for hours just to repeat the same task would drive anyone else mad.
She practiced embroidery for hours, then wrote a couple of characters in large script, before exiting the system and preparing to go to sleep, as she still had school to attend the next day.
In the blink of an eye, another winter’s snow began to fall, frosting the earth. It seemed as if last year’s cold had not yet passed, and now another was upon them. Time really flew by. Chun Xiangnuan still remembered, when she first awoke, how her brother had brought her home and saved her life. Now she was almost twelve years old. Children in the countryside started school late; she began at the age of eight and was now in the sixth grade. Her brother, who was a few years older than her, was also in the same grade.
A sixteen-year-old sixth grader, who by future standards should have been a high school student, was still attending elementary school. She had no idea how old her brother would be when he was ready to take the university entrance exams.
"Knock knock..." A knocking sound came from outside. Qin Xiangnuan walked over and opened the door. In recent years she had grown taller and her face had filled out, becoming prettier, as they now had enough food to eat. No, actually, she was quite attractive, especially with an aura of scholarly refinement that seemed to give off a fragrance of books from afar.
The door opened to reveal none other than Aunt Hua.
"Nuannuan, someone brought you something. The station staff delivered it," Aunt Hua said.
Someone had sent her something, which puzzled Qin Xiangnuan. She knew no one who would do such a thing. Who could it be? She took a large package from Aunt Hua’s arms and carried it inside.
"Eh, Nuannuan, who sent you these things?" Granny Lu came out of the kitchen and was also surprised to see the large bundle Qin Xiangnuan was carrying. It was clearly mailed, but who could have sent it?
"I don’t know, let’s just open it up," Chun Xiangnuan said as she took out a pair of scissors from the house. She turned the snakeskin bag over, which had no address written on it, because it had not been sent through the post office but rather brought by an acquaintance, so she had no idea who had brought it.
With a snap, the bag tore open, and a shade of military green became visible. She unfolded the bag, spreading out its contents.
"This is a General’s coat," Granny Lu said hurriedly, picking up a piece.
"It’s new," she added, noting the fresh smell of cotton cloth. The large package contained only two coats, showing just how thick they were; folded neatly, they clearly had never been worn, with the cotton’s fluff still intact.
Qin Xiangnuan held the General’s coat in her arms, her fingers gently caressing it, still uncertain who had sent it. They didn’t know anyone in the military; they had no recollection of any such acquaintance in two lifetimes. So who could it have come from?
Could it have been a mistake, sent to the wrong person?
She picked up the coat again, feeling here and there. It wasn’t until she slipped her hand into the pocket of the General’s coat that she noticed something.
Eh, something’s in here?
She took out what was in the pocket, finding not a letter, but a note.
She carefully unfolded the note—a few lines of text in a distinct and strong calligraphy appeared. Being trained in calligraphy herself, she understood that this style showed some accomplishment in the art, and from the brushwork, it had to be the product of at least a decade or so of practice.