Chapter 54 Story
"Grandma, are you alone?"

"Yes."

"Let me help you up."

"No, no, this was just an accident."

Xiao Xiao didn't say much, just followed the old man.

"Hey, why are you following this old woman? Isn't this a waste of time? Just go ahead."

"The old lady is really fine."

Xiao Xiao just smiled and didn't respond.

Seeing this, the old man felt helpless and could only accept Xiao Xiao's kindness.

"Thank you so much, young man."

"You are such a good man, young man."

……

"It should be here." The old man's expression was a mixture of trance and nostalgia.

Hmm? Xiao Xiao looked around. What a coincidence! Isn't this the place where he wanted to go and where the eel is?

"Grandma, aren't you going to the top of the mountain?"

"No, besides, time is merciless and I don't have the strength anymore." The old man shook his head.

"This time I came just to..." The old man's voice became softer and softer, almost like a silent whisper. There was a melancholy expression on his face, but there were a few faint lights in his eyes, and his wrinkled face glowed with a different look.

Xiao Xiao did not disturb the old man who was in a trance. It seemed that something must have happened in this maple forest that was memorable and precious to the old man.

"Young man, do you want to hear a story?" The old man came back to his senses and saw Xiao Xiao standing beside him. He smiled kindly, but his smile clearly revealed a bit of girlish brightness.

Xiao Xiao was stunned for a moment, then he slowly smiled.

"of course."

"My pleasure."

……

This is a story that, to most people, may just sound like a teenage girl's fantasy.

However, Xiao Xiao knew that this story was true.

The old man's voice was calm, but there was an obvious excitement in his voice as he recounted the strange and wonderful experience of that day.

It was the year when the maple leaves turned red. Xu Yuan, a junior high school student, had made an appointment with his classmates to go to Xiangshan to appreciate the maple leaves, but was stood up. Naturally, he was not in a good mood.

Walking alone among the maple trees on the mountain steps, even though the scenery was beautiful, Xu Yuan still felt a little depressed.

"Ah~" Xu Yuan couldn't help but screamed in the end. It's so annoying. We had clearly agreed on it before, but he didn't keep his word. It's the most annoying thing!
Just when Xu Yuan was breathing heavily, he suddenly heard a light sneer.

"idiot."

Xu Yuan suddenly got furious and asked, "Who are you calling an idiot?"

Following the sound, I met a pair of eyes that looked lazy and contemptuous.

Xu Yuan suddenly opened her eyes wide. Is this... a bird?

What a beautiful bird! Xu Yuan's face was filled with amazement.

Then Xu Yuan suddenly thought of something and her eyes almost popped out. Wait, was this the bird that just spoke?
Haha, how is that possible? It's not a parrot, how can it talk?
So, who is it? Come out, she promises not to beat him to death!

Xu Yuan looked around, but found that even if there were people around, they were some distance away from her, and the "idiot" just now was obviously coming from nearby.

And, now that I think about it, it really did seem like the sound was coming from above.

Xu Yuan was a little confused.

I looked at the bird carefully again and found that although it was very beautiful, its appearance was obviously different from that of ordinary birds.

But she didn't know much about birds. She only knew the most common ones, like sparrows, orioles, crows and so on.

Xu Yuan swallowed her saliva and looked up at the bird resting on the maple branches. The slanting sunlight dazzled her eyes. She asked tentatively, "Were you the one who was talking just now?"

She didn't know if it was her illusion, but she seemed to see a flash of surprise in the bird's eyes.

Xu Yuan looked cautious, her eyes sparkling.

The main reason was that the duck was so pretty that the girl was not afraid but rather looked very interested. Then, for some reason, perhaps because she felt that all this was like a dream, the unreal feeling made Xu Yuan subconsciously reach out and pull the long tail hanging in front of her eyes.

Like the tail of a burning flame, the bright colors almost made Xu Yuan's eyes feel like they were being burned.

The feeling in my hand is warm. It's true, Xu Yuan thought dazedly.

The duck flicked its tail lightly, and Xu Yuan fell backwards uncontrollably, and the hand that was holding its tail subconsciously let go.

Xu Yuan fell on her butt, not hard, but she was a little confused by this unexpected situation.

"Tsk, human." A strange voice, with its ups and downs, suddenly brought Xu Yuan's somewhat wavering mind back to reality.

Xu Yuan suddenly pounced under the maple tree where the eel was. Her eyes seemed to be filled with thousands of stars, so bright that they almost overshadowed the sunlight at that time.

……

The experience of that day was like a dream that was so beautiful that it was almost unreal.

She met a beautiful monster and spent a wonderful and pleasant day with it.

The scene of that day had never faded from her memory.

Unfortunately, she never encountered the monster again after that day.

She still remembered how confused and disappointed she felt when she excitedly ran to Xiangshan the next day but could no longer find the monster.

why?
Didn’t we make an appointment?

She was confused and sad.

The maple trees all around were similar in appearance, their fiery red color almost dazzled her eyes, but there was no trace of the red that she wanted to see.

Xu Yuan stood in the maple forest, looked around, and tears suddenly burst out.

Later, she came again and again, but was disappointed every time.

Later, she went to study abroad, got married, and had children. The busy life made her forget this obsession from her youth.

However, now that she is old and about to die, just yesterday, she woke up on the hospital bed and she clearly remembered her dream last night. The dream about that day was so beautiful that she almost cried.

In fact, the corners of her eyes were indeed wet.

So, she took the last adventure of her life without telling anyone, her children, nurses, and doctors.

It was also the last time she acted on her own in her life.

She is so old, but she still dreams like a little girl. The old man felt helpless and laughed, but he finally followed his heart and came here again after many years.

She didn't expect that she could still remember clearly the place where she first met the monster.

Maybe it was because the experience of that day was too incredible and too short, maybe she was just too regretful and unwilling, or even a little aggrieved, so she remembered all the details of that day so vividly, and was so reluctant to forget it, and even so... unforgettable.

……

The old man seemed to just want to find someone to talk to, and didn't care about Xiao Xiao's reaction.

So she didn't notice that the expression on Xiao Xiao's face was not what she thought, which was indifference and disdain, as if he had listened to a ridiculous story.

On the contrary, a look of understanding flashed across Xiao Xiao's face.

The old man had a slightly hunched back, his gray hair was carefully gathered in a beautiful knitted hat, there were some age spots on his thin cheeks, but he looked very neat, and even his flowery clothes were obviously the result of careful consideration and design.

Everyone who sees her will smile knowingly. This is a lovely and tidy little old lady.

The old man walked steadily step by step.

She stretched out her hand, which was no longer plump and smooth, but dry and old, as if covered by a layer of dry old bark. Even on the back of her hand to the wrist blocked by the sleeve, there were a few age spots scattered around, and the deeply wrinkled skin made people feel frightened at how thin and gaunt the old woman was.

The old man's nails were neatly manicured, but they had an ominous green hue to them.

The old man brushed the trunk of the maple tree and stroked the dead leaves scattered on the branches, with his head slightly tilted back, looking for something among the intertwined branches.

The expression on his face seemed to be both happy and sad, but the light in his eyes gradually dimmed with the passage of time.

The old man's back seemed to bend a little more.

"It really doesn't work..." There was some bitterness and some helpless relief between the old man's brows.

……

(End of this chapter)