The Healing Sunshine (一厘米的阳光)

Chapter 2.1 - Hazy Memories (1)

"Little Uncle, Little Uncle, aren't you really good at piano? Jǐ Yi promised me she wouldn't learn piano. I'm counting on that to beat her!"

So, was she considered a model example of a successfully-raised child? Or one of failure?

But, it seemed that none of this really had much to do with him.

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He offered up his own room for Jǐ Yi to sleep in while he went to the study to sleep on the floor. When he awoke in the middle of the night, he evidently had already forgotten about Jǐ Yi's existence. While he was heading to the kitchen, Jǐ Yi coincidentally had woken as well, and opening the door of his bedroom, she looked around blankly.

Jǐ Yi could not really remember how she had gotten upstairs here, until she saw him.

In the glow of the kitchen lights, Jì Chengyang was wearing a pair of gold, wire-framed glasses and looked very refined and cultured. He was stirring the cup of strong coffee that he had just made. As he caught sight of Jǐ Yi, he was also taken aback.

Slowly, Jǐ Yi walked up to him and said in a soft voice, "I'm going home now. Little Uncle Jì, bye."

He bent down lower and, also using a soft voice, asked her, "Will you be afraid of the dark when you sleep alone?"

Jǐ Yi was dazed. How did he know she was scared of the dark?

So remarkable.

She shook her head. "I'll turn on all the lights. I'll just be scared for a little while, and then I'll fall asleep."

"How about you stay here to sleep?" He tried as best as he could to put on a look like one would use when coaxing a little child.

She shook her head. "My mama is coming home tomorrow morning, very early in the morning. She'll be back really quick and then she'll be leaving again. I need to wait for her at home."

From the looks of it, she was very insistent about this?

So, he did not say anything more. Touching her arm, he found that her fever had already broken.

Jǐ Yi, in contrast, was very curious. She pointed at what he was holding in his hand. "What's that?"

"Coffee," he answered.

In China, there were still very few people who drank this. This was especially so in families like this one with revolutionary roots, where plain, boiled water and tea were sufficient; they truly would not know about coffee. Jǐ Yi gave an "oh," her eyes flickering over to glance at the liquid in the mug. Smiling, he quietly handed it to her and motioned that she could have a taste.

And so, this was Jǐ Yi's first drink of coffee. No sugar, but there was a rich taste of cream.

Anyway, it was weird.

After she finished her drink, her expression was very peculiar.

Jì Chengyang suddenly thought of a serious question: This was the little girl's first time drinking coffee. Would she be unable to sleep tonight?

Sure enough, he was not suited for coaxing little kids...

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Indeed, Jǐ Yi did have a sleepless night, all the way until the sky began to brighten. Early in the morning, she crawled out of bed and tidied herself up in preparation for welcoming her parents back home. However, although she waited all the way until noon, no one ended up showing up. She received only a brief telephone call that said they were postponing things by four days, and then they would be back to see her. Very disappointed, she wandered several times around her room. With nothing to do, she then went and took out the books on Grandfather's shelf, intending on re-reading them all one more time.