One Life, One Incarnation, Beautiful Bones

1

Chapter 1.1- The Unfathomable Past(1)

The rain came down in a continuous drizzle, causing Xi'an to seem like misty Jiangnan[1].

This was Shaanxi province, the vast land of the Three Qins[2], yet the ancient Chang'an city[3] was not even visible.

Shi Yi was leaning against the window and watching the street signs that were speeding by.

"What would you like to eat?" Hong Xiaoyu, who was sitting beside her, smiled and opened up the map that had been previously folded up into a small leaflet. On her mobile phone, she was flipping through various food guides while at the same time, planning out their route for after they checked-in to their hotel.

"Let's finish up the interview you're doing first, alright?" Shi Yi reminded her laughingly. The young videographer beside her had been playing with his camera, and when he heard this, he too let out a laugh.

The three of them stepped out of the car, walked through a quiet street, and passed by several houses that were scattered in the area until at last they found the place they were looking for.

The person who opened the door was a young girl, who appeared not much older than twenty. Hong Xiaoyu's interviewee was this girl's husband, a very simple and honest-looking man.

When they were all inside the house, the couple shyly invited Shi Yi and the others to have a seat.

"Don't be nervous. Just treat this like a casual conversation," Hong Xiaoyu told them with a warm smile and motioned for the man to sit in front of her.

It was a dreary, rainy day, and the room was very dim.

There was only a single lamp, placed between the interviewer and interviewee, that gave off a yellow light.

As the interview progressed with an answer given for each question asked, Shi Yi gradually got to understand the story.

The man before them came from a very poor place, and after working hard and diligently for several years, he managed to make a little bit of money. However, he did not keep a penny of it for himself and instead invested it all in the education of the people of his hometown, helping families that were even poorer than him.

He had no riches or estate of his own, no house under his name.

Yet, he was a man of noble character.

However, the reason why this story attracted the attention of the media was because of his young wife. This pretty girl there before them was actually a university graduate and also came from the man's hometown. It was because she saw his story in the news that she sought him out and then married him.

The first half of the story was very touching, but the second half was truly unexpected.

Such gloomy, damp weather and there was no form of heating installed in the room.

Shi Yi and Hong Xiaoyu had been sitting the whole time, and their hands and feet had long since become ice-cold.

Fortunately, the interview was coming to an end, and Hong Xiayu finally turned toward the girl. "Based on normal standards, your husband really cannot be considered a good spouse whom one would want to entrust the rest of her life to. What are the next steps and plans the two of you have?"