Great-aunt was surprised. She had not expected Mo Beihan to change the subject so quickly, but she still replied, “Three years after we were married. Times were very hard then. I almost died. At that time…”
“How old was Uncle Fang when he passed away?” Mo Beihan continued to ask questions, ignoring her additional comments.
Great-aunt Mo was intending to expound on how much she had suffered at that time. She had not expected Mo Beihan’s next question, yet she replied, “Twenty-seven years old. He was so young…”
Twenty-seven years old. He was so young. When Old Master Mo heard that, he immediately felt a rush of sorrow.
“Twenty-seven really is too young. It’s truly a pity that Uncle Fang passed away when he was so young. Oh, how old is this younger cousin this year?”
Sun Huihui was startled. She had not expected Mo Beihan to suddenly ask about her, but she thought he was paying attention to her, so she blushed. “I… I’m 19 years old this year!”
Mo Beihan smiled. “Nineteen! That’s good; you’re grown up!”
Now it was not just Sun Huihui who felt stunned, but also Old Master Mo and Grandma Mo. Great-aunt Mo and Zhou Furong were surprised, then delighted!
Mo Beihan glanced at them meaningfully and continued, “Uncle Fang passed away so young. Great-aunt, it must have been hard for you to bring up two children by yourself. You must have suffered a lot.”
Great-aunt Mo hurriedly said, “That’s right! Those were especially bad years. I was a woman bringing up two children by myself. We ate tree bark and grassroots every day, and I still had to support these two children. I don’t know how much I suffered before I managed to bring them up. Those days…”
“It was really hard. Oh, by the way, Great-aunt, how old were you when you gave birth to Aunt?”
“Twenty-three years old!”
“And how old was Aunt when she gave birth to my younger cousin?”
Zhou Furong was surprised when the subject suddenly turned to her. She replied, “Eighteen!”
“When Uncle Fang passed away, Aunt was a newborn?”
Grandma Mo nodded. “That’s right. I had just given birth and was doing my confinement, but I had to care for the two children. I…”
“Now your difficulties are over. Great-aunt, you can have a good life now. You have so many filial grandchildren, you can enjoy your twilight years.”
Great-aunt Mo immediately smiled. “I…”
“That’s right, Great-aunt, how old are you? When is your birthday?”
Birthday?
Old people usually celebrate their birthdays every decade, starting at 60 years old. Then 70, 80, 90 years old…
Birthday?
Great-aunt Mo was incredibly excited. It was almost her birthday. It would be grand if she could celebrate her birthday in the Mo house!
Besides, with the Mo family’s position, the people who were invited to attend the birthday banquet would certainly be important people and officials. The most powerful and influential people in the entire capital would celebrate her birthday. Great-aunt Mo quivered with excitement.
“I’m sixty years old this year. My birthday is coming. I…”
Mo Beihan turned to ask Old Master Mo, “Grandfather, if Uncle Fang were still alive, how old would he be this year?”
“Sixty-six!”
Fang Zhenguo was much younger than him. He was very intelligent when he was young and had worked closely with Old Master Mo. Old Master Mo treated him like a younger brother and took good care of him. They had always been very close.
That was why Old Master Mo was so grieved to find out that he had passed away so young.
Mo Beihan was surprised. He frowned. “Sixty-six? Grandfather, are you sure?”
