"In nineteen twenty-nine, we don’t let go; in three-nine four-nine, we walk on ice."

While the old folks were huddled at home avoiding the winter chill, or leaning against the wall basking in the sun, the nearby children were going crazy. Ping’an had already made quite a few friends in just a couple of days.

No matter how cold it got, nothing could stop the children from running wild at the alley entrance. On snowy days, they were unstoppable, from snowball fights at the alley to skiing once the snow was packed solid. Zhou Jiao couldn’t see any of the kids until dinner time.

Their family quickly integrated into the neighborhood thanks to these kids. With Zhang Guoqing’s childish enthusiasm creating all sorts of ice-skating contraptions, in less than a week, the neighbors started calling out for Xiao Wu whenever they met. Even Zhou Jiao, who was supposed to be resting during her pregnancy, often received small dishes of pickled sour dates or pieces of sauerkraut.

Before dawn, Zhang Guoqing was out jogging along the moat again, exchanging greetings and chatting with familiar old men, and slowly jogged back home.

Passing a restaurant, he queued up to buy some deep-fried dough sticks before he was about to leave when someone bundled up like a bear blocked his way, staring longingly at the dough sticks in his hand.

Zhang Guoqing wasn’t reluctant to share; he knew if he casually gave them away, it would attract criticism. In those days, food was a lifesaver, especially something like dough sticks.

He consciously avoided and walked aside, but after a few steps he felt a bit of pity. From the figure, it seemed it was an elderly person; who wouldn’t be in desperate need to ask for charity unless they were truly in dire straits?

If his family were short on food themselves, for the sake of his wife and son, he couldn’t pretend to be generous. With a sigh, Zhang Guoqing turned around and saw the person following him.

Zhang Guoqing looked again with surprise. Among all the people queuing, young or old, why did this person single him out? Did he have "good guy" written on his face?

The "round ball" quickly rolled a few steps forward when he saw Zhang Guoqing stop, making Zhang Guoqing twitch with worry that the person might fall.

"What are you looking at? It’s me. Are your eyes blind?"

Zhang Guoqing’s eyes widened immediately, the voice was too familiar. Even though a few months had passed, he’d only been willing to play the fool once.

"Old man, you..."

A hand pulled down the scarf, revealing the old face from last time. Seeing Zhang Guoqing recognize him, the old man immediately shifted his attitude, humming with pride.

In the freezing weather, seeing the old man wearing a not-so-warm cotton jacket, Zhang Guoqing couldn’t bear to argue: "How about I treat you to breakfast?"

"That’s more like it. If you don’t respect the elderly, you’ll regret it. Lead the way; we’ll talk at your place."

Zhang Guoqing smiled at his self-assuredness. Whoever this old man was, he seemed to know his household’s situation well.

The northern wind was howling, felt like needle pricks on the face. Zhang Guoqing, being young and strong, felt nothing, but this elderly man, seemingly harmless, wasn’t warmly dressed.

He kept quiet along the way, avoiding icy patches on the ground, leading him home earlier.

His instinctive actions made the old man smile, watching his back as he nodded and shook his head intermittently.

As Zhang Guoqing opened the courtyard gate and circled the screen wall, he saw his son braving the cold wind practicing horse stance in front of the main house. He didn’t disturb the child and knocked on the west room window: "Wife, we have a guest."

In a blink of an eye, the old man circled Ping’an, inspecting him back and forth. The child only glanced at him initially and continued his horse stance, ignoring him.

The old man was unhappy and started muttering: "Such fools, big fool gives birth to a little fool. Freezing cold weather, not lying in bed keeping warm, just fooling around."

Ping’an smiled at him and then closed his eyes immediately.

"Ah, not so foolish, eh? Come, chat with me! How old are you? How many years have you been practicing? Is your breathing technique some sort of secret manual?"

Zhang Guoqing, after receiving Zhou Jiao’s response, came beside them and couldn’t help but laugh hearing the conversation. This old guy certainly had a knack, just by observation could deduce his son’s practicing the mental method.

Masters are peculiar! Who knows if being targeted by him is a blessing or a curse?

"Old man, why don’t we sit in the study for some warm tea and wait for breakfast?"

The old man waved his hands: "Don’t disturb me; I’m having a good chat with this little fellow."

Zhang Guoqing rolled his eyes to the sky. How bored must one be to talk nonsense with eyes wide open? If he didn’t see the man meant no harm, he’d suspect he was here to snatch his son.

"... The third breath, if taken too forcefully, can damage the lungs. Different seasons have varying rhythms. ... Is the one who taught you aware of the difference between young and old? ... Yes, smart, suppress the Dan Tian qi and exhale slowly, counting to ten... Cycle repeatedly, start with steady deep breaths..."

Zhang Guoqing unconsciously followed and understood as he guided.

The old man glanced at him: "Big fool, how old are you?"

Zhang Guoqing chuckled after being scolded.

"I’m impressive, right? Don’t underestimate me, even though I don’t know martial arts, these are trivial. Eating your bowl of noodles doesn’t shortchange you, does it?"

"Certainly, you look like a master at first glance."

"Cut the flattery. You’re secretly cursing me for being an old leech, eating at your expense."

"Impossible! Don’t misunderstand me."

"Fine, I won’t leave now."

"What?"

"What what? See, you don’t mean it. Poor me, without any kin, might as well let me die early and reincarnate soon..."

Ping’an was startled by the old man’s sudden change. Who is he? What’s going on?

"Old man, I’ll take care of you!"

The old geezer turned upon hearing that, seeing a little girl standing behind him with a bright smile, eyes shining. Finally, the main figure has arrived!

"You mean it?"

Zhou Jiao smiled at him: "You already had it figured out, didn’t you?"

"You know who I am?"

Zhou Jiao shook her head: "I don’t know you. But you carry the scent of herbs, pointing out the flaws in the child’s mental method—either a medical family or a renowned doctor."

The old man circled around Zhou Jiao after hearing that: "Is it true, as rumored outside, you have a photographic memory?"

Zhou Jiao’s eyes flashed: "It’s exaggerated, barely considered better than average memory."_

As soon as she finished speaking, her right hand was grabbed, instinctively ready to resist, but noticing him examining her fingers, she frowned, holding back discomfort.

"What a pity, back then the Huang Family’s acupuncture was unparalleled, yet without successors." The old man shook his head, sighing repeatedly.

Zhou Jiao retracted her hand, opened her palms, glanced at them, then swept her gaze to the old man: "Listening to your accent, you’re from Ba Shu. May I ask who you are?"

Zhang Guoqing tugged at her, gesturing for the old man to move inside, smiling: "It’s cold outside; let’s continue in the living room."

Zhou Jiao glanced at the departing duo, touched her son’s head: "Time’s up, that’s all for today." The child usually practiced boxing, but with concerns now, she didn’t want her son exposed too much.