Doing It Over Again [Rebirth]

17: Gift

Inside the package were a few heavy books and a small box about three fingers wide. The book contained information about calligraphy and traditional literature. There were also two books with math and physics puzzles.

Shen Shao's confusion deepened. Who would have sent this to him?

He looked at the postmark and saw the mailing address was in the capital. He held his chin and thought about it, but he couldn't think of anyone he knew in his life who lived in the capital.

He'd heard that Shen JianBing had settled in the capital with that woman, but Shen Shao knew without a moment's thought that Shen JianBing wouldn't have sent him anything. He probably didn't even know where Shen Shao lived, let alone wanted to spend money to send him things.

Suddenly he remembered the other small box in the package. When he opened the lid he felt stunned.

The box wasn't particularly unusual, but what was inside was surprising. It was a carved jade Guanyin about the size of a thumb. Even if Shen Shao didn't know much about jade, he could tell at a glance it was a high quality piece.

There was a saying that men wear Guanyin and women wear Buddha, and there were many parents who would ask acquaintances to give an amulet to their child. Some amulets had signs of the zodiac, some had transit beads, and some had Guanyin or Buddha. Shen Shao wore an amulet when he was a child too, but it wasn't a gift. His mother sewed it herself using an extremely simple method. She took a small piece of red cloth, filled it with rice and matches, sewed it into a triangle, and tied the cord around his neck.

Later he was naughty and dropped the amulet into the water. His mother thought he was old enough to run and jump and didn't need an amulet anymore, so she didn't make another one, and certainly didn't spend money to buy one. As he grew older, Shen Shao never thought about wearing one. Now, when he saw the thumb-sized jade Guanyin, he felt a little overwhelmed.

Who exactly had sent him all this?

Shen Shao looked over everything again, but he didn't find anything useful. Even the mailing address was vague. The only thing he found was a handwritten sentence on the title page of the traditional literature book.

Happy New Year.

"Never mind." Shen Shao closed the book in his hand. No matter who the person was or what purpose they had, he decided it didn't matter.

Maybe it was the legendary Daddy-Long-Legs from the story.

Feeling a little happy, Shen Shao put the books on the shelf. As for the jade Guanyin, he didn't wear it. He locked it with the box in his cabinet.

On New Year's Eve, fireworks and firecrackers continually went off outside. Shen Shao lay in bed and listened to the noise. After a while he still wasn't able to sleep, so he leaned on the window ledge and watched the fireworks. They were beautiful, but after a long time, watching them alone felt a little boring.

The host of the Spring Festival Gala on TV was counting down the time. When Shen Shao heard the number "3", firecrackers went off everywhere. The sound was so loud he couldn't hear the TV.

The new century was here. He looked at the fireworks exploding outside and yawned.

At last the year 2000 had officially arrived.

If his memory wasn't wrong, after 2000, China's economy would develop rapidly. Prices would rise along with it. Soon, the new currency that was issued in October of last year would replace the previous currency. Countless people would sigh about spending more and more money and getting less and less for it.

After the New Year, the phrase "the 21st century" became a popular term, used so often it seemed like a required phrase in articles and newspapers, as if they weren't keeping up with the times unless they included it. It wasn't until the end of 2000 that use of the phrase began to decrease. But at least this type of brainwashing had one advantage. People gradually understood they were living in a new era, and it was time to close the book on the 20th century.