I became the Counterpart of the Winner in a Period Novel

Chapter 438 - 377: End of the Story

Looking at the box full of jewelry, Secretary Xiao Chen, comparing it to their empty hands, wished they could find a hole to squeeze into.

The watch originally meant for Yan Jinzhi felt like a hot potato; giving it was awkward, not giving it was also awkward.

But it couldn’t escape Old Sir Yan’s sharp eyes.

"What? That good-for-nothing didn’t bring a gift for Ming Yue?"

Secretary Xiao Chen quickly wiped their sweat, thinking to themselves that the big boss didn’t even know his son had a girlfriend, so how were they supposed to prepare a gift, especially since you’ve always kept it such a secret?

But they couldn’t speak up, so they swallowed their bitterness instead.

"Sir is busy with work, but he’ll definitely make it up later when he’s free."

Old Sir Yan just chuckled, making Secretary Xiao Chen’s face turn red with embarrassment.

Grandpa Feng quickly tried to mend the situation, "Cough, cough, understandable, understandable. Xiao Chen, you haven’t eaten yet, right? Come, come, let’s wrap dumplings together. We’ll have dumplings for dinner."

The awkwardness finally ended, and Secretary Xiao Chen dared not linger. They quickly shoved the gift and envelope into Yan Jinzhi’s hands and dashed out as if they were being chased by wolves.

Jiang Mingyue: "..." She seemed to catch a whiff of something peculiar.

After that, Old Sir Yan temporarily stayed in the courtyard, and Jiang Mingyue accompanied him, playing chess, drinking tea with him every day, going out to gather wild duck eggs; the days were very harmonious.

A month later, Old Sir Yan was finally set to return to Beijing, having agreed that once his grandson’s matters were concluded and he returned to Wuyun Mountain, they would head south to meet Shen Fanghua with a marriage proposal and arrange their wedding.

In the summer of the following year, Yan Jinzhi’s experiment was finally a success, and his matters in the desert region were temporarily wrapped up. Holding the approved marriage report, Yan Jinzhi rushed day and night back to Nanxi City.

By then, Old Sir Yan had already arrived in Nanxi City for over a month and had discussed the wedding arrangements with Shen Fanghua. He marveled at the changes in Qingshan Village, far better than he had imagined, a thriving scene that should be.

After marriage, the young couple soon became pregnant, and Old Sir Yan was overjoyed, so much that he didn’t want to return to the capital and indeed didn’t return. Wherever his grandson was, it was home. He would lead his grandchild in the future!

In the summer of ’68, Jiang Mingyue gave birth to a set of twins, a boy and a girl, at her second brother Jiang Shuangyi’s hospital.

Old Sir Yan named the two children; the older great-grandson was called Yan Lin, and the younger great-granddaughter was called Yan Yan. He even specially crafted golden lock pendants, each engraved with their names.

Yan Bohan was again a step behind, much to Old Sir Yan’s irritation.

This time, without Old Sir Yan saying a word, Yan Bohan himself felt annoyed. Therefore, he filed for a long-overdue leave, determined to regain his dignity.

And his efforts were not in vain; the first words his little granddaughter uttered called him grandpa, and at that moment, Yan Bohan almost burst into tears of joy; it was not easy.

As for the young grandson Yan Lin, since Yan Bohan thought he would speak late, he didn’t mind until one day when the little one called Old Sir Yan "Grandpa Zeng" without breaking the rhythm, clearly not for the first time. And Old Sir Yan finally revealed that Yan Lin spoke a month earlier than Yan Yan, with his first words being directed at him as Great-Grandpa.

That was quite a moment for Yan Bohan!

But he was at peace with it, as it turns out, the grandson was just like his father.

Nine years later, the country reinstated the college entrance exam. The two kids waited with their grandmother outside the examination room, as it was their mother’s first exam day, and they had to cheer her on.

However, unlike the adults who could sit still, the twins played in the nearby small garden. Yan Lin was practicing skateboarding, custom-made by his father, perfectly suited for him and his favorite pastime.

Yan Yan wasn’t interested in skateboarding; she was more interested in making friends.

She suddenly saw a particularly handsome little boy, ran up to him, and took his hand.

The little boy first frowned, but upon seeing Yan Yan’s face, he smiled suddenly and pulled two pieces of chocolate from his pocket to give her.

"If you eat my candy, we’re friends now. Hi, I’m Qiao An."

"I’m Yan Yan."

Yan Yan, huh? Qiao An pondered over the name repeatedly, and suddenly it flashed in his mind—that wasn’t she the daughter of his dad’s sworn friend? So, recognizing them as kin was necessary, close at hand this way, he could truly be her childhood sweetheart.

Yet, it was a bit of a pity; since his mom’s brief relationship with his dad, she raised him alone. Later, seeing that other kids had dads, he also wanted to find his own, and he ended up finding that man, Qiao Mingtang, a scoundrel.

Fortunately, over the years, that scoundrel hadn’t had a woman around him, except for abandoning his mom, he was barely qualified.

One day, on the twins’ tenth birthday, Qiao Mingtang went fishing early in the Shisha Sea, preparing to make a delicious fish feast for his godson. However, he returned without fish but with a mother and child, announcing them as his long-lost wife and child.

This peculiar birthday feast astonished the twins, leaving them with an unforgettable memory for life.

Meanwhile, Jiang Mingyue had become a highly esteemed figure in the criminal investigation field, someone everyone addressed respectfully as "Professor Jiang." The criminal investigation field, with her contribution, solved numerous significant cases; she was a model and inspiration for the younger generation.

Yan Jinzhi was even more remarkable. He had entered Guo Jia’s secret archives, becoming a first-tier protected individual by Guo Jia, surrounded by countless visible and invisible guards.

When Yan Yan and Qiao An, the two young ones, grew up and married, it was already 1990.

Yan Yan’s uncle, Jiang Ming’an, had become a hot figure in the business world, his group encompassing real estate, hardware, dining and hotels, predicted to be the world’s wealthiest man in ten years.

And Yan Lin’s other uncles each had accomplishments.

Uncle Jiang Jian Country was steadily ascending, now his position was in the province. Oh! And there was another one, Xu Modun, who was also his uncle.

Then, Jiang Jian Jun, now someone remarkable in the military, seldom seen just like his aunt, also in the military. But the cousins came back to visit their mother whenever there’s a break.

His little aunt rooted in Qingshan Village, yet Grandpa Feng said she lived very comfortably. Right, Grandpa Zeng passed away a few years ago due to old age.

Yet Yan Lin felt that Grandpa Zeng was always alive, always watching him.

One year, Jiang Mingyue took out treasures from the space, some handed over to Guo Jia, and others kept in her private museum.

And the curator was Yun Di.

Later, as the museum’s fame spread abroad, many came from overseas to visit.

The authorities took the opportunity to negotiate, suggesting the private museum remain hers, but they could collaborate with Guo Jia. They would provide people to maintain daily operations, only asking for an official name as a part of it.

Jiang Mingyue agreed; a win-win situation, why not?

This year on Jiang Mingyue’s birthday, Yan Jinzhi refused to have a feast at home and secretly took his wife on a trip.

When they arrived at Wuyun Mountain again, it was no longer the mountain in their memories. After years of efforts, Wuyun Mountain was now entirely occupied by the military; no civilian could get close at all.

Not even Xiao Qingting could.

By the way, years ago, the couple cast a wide net and caught Liu Chu’s master.

And they never expected that the one desiring the Taotie Necklace was an old acquaintance.

Xiao Qingting was the girl she protected in a past life, but it turned out "she" was no girl—just young Gong Ye from the Gong Family, known as prodigal Gong Mingsheng, skilled in disguise.

Years ago, her cousin went to the South Sea to deliver research materials No. 9, while she stayed to guard the base. Unexpectedly, Xiao Qingting, whom she had saved years ago, was caught. She had become family over these years; how could she watch any harm come to her?

Jiang Ming Yue chased after without regard for her own safety, which led to the incident at Wuyun Mountain Base, never expecting it was all a setup. However, as Xiao Qingting defended, it was cousin Gong Boyan who tricked him. He thought bringing her there was just to extract some data, and he could return to being himself, guarding her. But when she vanished into smoke, he truly regretted it.

Maybe the remorse was too dense; after plotting against and ruining cousin Gong Boyan, he rebirthed himself.

He knew she was here, but shameful, he’d never appear in front of her. He later plotted a series of events, yet Jiang Mingyue and Yan Jinzhi designed his capture, leading to the disbanding of his Black Phoenix Organization, and he was duly punished by the law.

Except for the first year when Jiang Mingyue and Jiang Ming’an visited his grave and offered incense and burned paper, they never went back.

Be it hatred or forgiveness, it no longer mattered.

At this moment, the two descended Wuyun Mountain hand in hand, and some things will eventually become the past, only their connection is destined, cherished like honey!

The End Spring 2023