Chapter 51 The Temperamental School Bully (End) (2/2)

Having more skills is never a bad thing. After retiring, Zixi started studying jade gambling.

Jiang Yanli laughed heartily as she picked up her granddaughter, the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes resembling an unfolded fan.

When he looked at Zixi, his gaze was as focused as it had been in his youth, only now it held a touch of gentleness that came with the passage of time.

Zi Xi took the tea her husband handed her; two jasmine blossoms were at the bottom of the cup.

When she was young, she casually remarked that the tea brewed by Jiang Yanli was too bitter. Later, he learned to add her favorite sweet flowers to the tea.

*

In the boardroom, Jiang Li pushed the contract toward the British jeweler with a full head of silver hair across from her. On the lapel of her sharply tailored suit was an antique jade brooch given to her by her mother.

"A 3% premium is our bottom line."

Jiang Li's voice was calm and unhurried, much like her father's tone when negotiating.

When the other party finally signed their name, soft applause came from outside the glass curtain wall of the conference room.

Jiang Li turned her head and saw her parents standing side by side in the corridor. Her father was wearing a dark blue Zhongshan suit, and her mother was wearing a dark green cheongsam. Their temples were frosty, but they still looked elegant.

For decades, they have maintained the same matching couple outfits.

"Hey, Mom and Dad, what brings you here!"

“How could we miss our little pear’s first independent negotiation? Wow, these terms are even more rigorous than I imagined.”

Jiang Yanli walked in, patted her daughter's shoulder, and lightly tapped the contract with her finger.

Zi Xi smiled slightly and stepped forward to straighten her daughter's collar. Her daughter was a perfect blend of their genes, beautiful, confident, and intelligent.

They are very relieved about their daughter, who has a good son-in-law and a lovely daughter named Xiaoman.

*

During the season when wisteria blossoms, Jiang Yanli fell asleep on a recliner, with their golden wedding anniversary photo album spread out on her lap.

Eighty-seven-year-old Zixi gently covered him with a blanket, her gaze sweeping over the yellowed photos: photos of them side-by-side as they became provincial champions, photos from their university days in the library, and photos from an amusement park…

Although Jiang Yanli's strange illness meant he could only see her face, he looked exceptionally happy in the photo.

Her finger stopped on the last and largest family photo, taken at Xiaoman's birthday banquet last year, where four generations of them took a group photo in the courtyard of the old house.

In the photo, Jiang Yanli is embracing her, and she is leaning on Jiang Yanli's shoulder, their white hair intertwining in the spring breeze.

Jiang Yanli did not wake up that night. Zi Xi calmly changed his clothes and finally put their wedding ring back on his gradually cooling finger.

The next morning, the maid found Zixi lying peacefully on Jiang Yanli's chest, having stopped breathing.

She wore a matching outfit with Jiang Yanli, and the jade hairpin was still adorning her white hair.

On their clasped hands, the wedding rings and jade thumb rings shone quietly in the morning light.

On the day of the funeral, Jiang Li read aloud her parents' jointly signed will during her eulogy: "...Life will eventually come to an end, but how fortunate we were to meet in the river of fate, to learn from each other and grow together, and to become each other's most precious treasures. Our little pear need not grieve; we are simply going ahead to prepare our home for the next life..."

The two wisteria vines that they planted in front of the grave when they were young are now growing tall and spreading out.

As the spring breeze passes by, petals fall like rain, and in a daze, the photos of the two people on the tombstone seem to remind them of their fleeting encounter in class years ago.

[Host~ Congratulations on completing the second world. Emotional detachment in progress...]

[You have won the wholehearted love of the male lead, Jiang Yanli, and are rewarded with 1000 points.]

[Fulfilling the original owner's wish beyond expectations, rewarded with 1000 points.]

Back in the system space, Zi Xi rubbed her face. In the previous world, maintaining her persona had almost made this cheerful little girl expressionless.