Chiang Xiao spent the night at Osmanthus Alley.
Knowing she had an exam the next day, Liu Pei had prepared a sumptuous dinner early in the evening. The whole family ate together amidst lively chatter, wishing her well on her exam in advance. Then they all retired to their rooms early, not wanting to disturb Chiang Xiao.
The old house felt much warmer and more inviting with people in it.
Chiang Xiao’s room had been carefully decorated by Chiang Songhai and Ge Liutao, and although their aesthetic sense was somewhat indescribable, there wasn’t much to criticize given the times.
Fearing she might find the walls too old and dark, they had pasted over them with the blank side of calendar papers.
Calendar papers of that time were quite nice—white and smooth. All four walls were covered, making the room appear overly white, and perhaps a bit too stark. So, they bought her a new calendar featuring a very beautiful actress, which they hung on the wall.
They also nailed two small wooden boards to the wall, which reportedly Ge Dejun had painted himself, a bright red.
On the boards, there was a small vase with several plastic flowers, and next to it sat a small round standing mirror.
It was the kind unique to that era, with a plastic frame and a small stand, allowing it to be propped up. The mirror consisted of glass coated in a layer of mercury, backed by a clear piece of glass with a landscape picture set beneath it.
This, apparently, had been Ge Xiaotong’s idea.
Then, Chiang Songhai also had a suggestion for Chiang Xiao.
"Little, you’re such a good painter, you could paint on the wall yourself! Then your room would be very beautiful," He had seen Chiang Xiao’s paintings and truly believed she painted very well and was making rapid progress.
He didn’t realize that this progress was something Chiang Xiao had consciously shown them.
Chiang Xiao thought his idea was good, so she painted a tall kapok tree on one of the white papered walls.
The branches stretched upward, with blossoms scattered abundantly; a few flowers even lay on the ground, creating a scene full of charm.
After Ge Xiaotong saw it, she was so impressed that she had one wall in their room covered with calendar paper as well, asking Chiang Xiao to also paint a tree for her, except she chose a peach blossom.
Chiang Xiao’s room did indeed seem much brighter because she had asked the carpenter to make her bed in a simple European style rather than an old-fashioned one, and the desk and chair were the same, all in natural wood color, polished smooth by the carpenter without a lick of paint.
With such simple and light-colored furniture set up, the room looked much brighter.
However, in the eyes of Ge Dejun, Liu Pei, and Ge Liutao, this was just bare.
They were still accustomed to the old-fashioned beds with carvings, and old-style furniture coated in red or black lacquer adorned with carvings or paintings of birds, unable to appreciate Chiang Xiao’s taste.
Chiang Xiao smiled without commenting.
Everyone to their own taste.
That night, she didn’t study late. She had already gone over everything she needed to see, and she remembered the knowledge from the first and second grades, which was still elementary for her.
Although she felt that skipping grades was, in a way, cheating, who was being harmed? The knowledge was something she had truly learned before, and only because she had a good foundation and had learned it well did she remember it after so many years. She wasn’t stealing or robbing anyone, it was all in her own head. What was wrong with skipping a grade?
Even though the news spread and caused quite a stir, eroding away any sense of modesty, Chiang Xiao had already grown accustomed to the label of top student in her previous life, so she never felt any psychological pressure.
It was just others who might not sleep well that night.