Since she had memories, the young girl has never known what sadness is. Her life is always full of joy and laughter. In spring, her father takes her to the fields to watch the streams thaw and the grapevines sprout new branches among the trellises.
In the summer, her mother taught her how to swing the racket to make the white windflower balls fly against the bright sunshine; in the autumn and winter, the family gathered around the warm stove, letting laughter replace the cold wind and spread throughout every room in the room.
corner.
Even the grandfather who seemed very stern and always kept a serious smile on his father would still smile when facing her, and would often bring her candy, storybooks and various toys that children like; living in Lei
The residents in the small town of Gram are all kind and amiable, and the children, old and young, are frequent visitors to Chatoli Manor. They go to the orchard to climb trees, catch fish by the river, and go into the bushes to pick wild fruits... those beautiful and beautiful things.
The vivid memories together constitute her unforgettable childhood.
However, when did this situation change?
Probably seven years after his father and mother were married, that is, the sixth year after little Sino was born, Leonard Jean Goldstaff, who gradually felt the weight of the family, spent the last harvest festival with his wife in the hospital bed.
, in order to fulfill the oath made by the White Thorn Flower family and the aliens thousands of years ago, they boarded a ship bound for the Eastern Continent.
From that day on, everything changed. She saw her grandfather in a daze in the study all day long, sometimes looking into the distance with melancholy eyes, with regret that could not be concealed in his eyes; she saw her mother wasting away day by day in the hospital bed.
He regained his former high-spirited appearance on the court, but still murmured the name of the traveler in his sleep; he also heard with his own ears how people in the small town discussed why the respected lord abandoned the glory of White Thorn Flower and participated in the competition.
Such an unjust war harms innocent people on a distant continent...
She told her mother all the comments she heard, but her mother always gently stroked the girl's head after coughing and said softly: "Because they don't understand how important your father is to bear. His inner feelings are
The pain will not be less than anyone else, but there is still a reason to do it. All this is for the family and for you, Xino. One day you will understand, but now, I hope you don’t blame him.
, okay?"
But--
Although she is young, the girl who has gradually formed her own values cannot help but think: If it is really for her family and for me, then why is he not there when my family and I need him most?
He obviously promised to protect us no matter what, but for another oath, he seems to have started to break his promise.
Looking at her mother's increasingly haggard face, the sensible girl did not say these words, but perhaps the seeds of paranoia were planted at that time.
The year that his father Leonard returned to his hometown was also the year that his mother Mistian passed away. A fortune from a foreign merchant ship helped the Goldstaff family buy back their ancestral forest land that had been lost for many years, and the ancient vows were renewed.
After being executed, the aliens who had long been desperate finally found a new home here, but at the cost of the destruction of another home. When Leonard returned home, he only saw the cold face of his daughter and the tranquility of his wife.
's remains.
"What do you want to prove, father?" Little Xino asked indifferently: "Is the so-called oath more important to you than anything else?"
"You and Mystian are the most important to me."
"But do you know that mother's last wish is to see you?"
"..."
Leonard was silent and stepped forward to touch his lover's cheek, but was stopped by the girl.
She didn't let him get close.
From that day on, the father and daughter became strangers and never spoke a word again.
…
Xino lived alone for a long time.
She didn't want to live under the same roof as her irresponsible father, and she stubbornly refused the help from her grandfather. She lived alone in the most remote room in the Chateau Manor. In fact, it was not bad.
Because even when she still lived with her father, there were not so many words between father and daughter, and they would not laugh and talk like they did a long time ago. The death of a wife and a mother is like drawing a clear line between them.
The gap is firmly frozen by the frosty winds of winter in the fields of Grindelwald, with no possibility of melting.
Sino didn't know that such a gap had also appeared between her grandfather and her father. She began to become indifferent and withdrawn, with little contact with the outside world. Her only friend was Brandi, who she received from her grandfather on her seventh birthday.
The gift she received. Her changes were so drastic that everyone who knew her would be shocked by her. However, her long absence from the scene has already caused the servants in the manor and the residents of the town to gradually forget the existence of the eldest lady. She only visits her mother's grave every year.
When the time comes, she will return to people's sight, but it is only a quick glance and disappears like a dream.
When she had become accustomed to loneliness and thought she would always be lonely, on an ordinary day, her father Leonard suddenly appeared in her hut and said to her: "I'm not here to ask for your forgiveness.
Xino, I just want to say a few words to you, at least as a father."
I don’t know whether it was the last sentence that touched her, or the girl suddenly remembered the scene of her mother whispering "Don't hate him" before she died. She opened her mouth, but couldn't say the word of rejection. Then, the snow that had been frozen for many years melted briefly,
That day, Leonard and Xino talked a lot, but he was the one doing most of the talking, while Xino listened silently.
He mentioned his encounter with his lover Mistyan, saying that everyone thought he fell in love with her after Mistyan won the championship, but in fact the two met much earlier than that, when he was in the park.
When he saw the girl with amber eyes waving the racket seriously, he was convinced that he should be deeply in love with her. It was because of his encouragement that Mistian decided to participate in the tournament, and her destiny began.
, everything is already determined.
He asked Xino about her dream and asked her if she still loved the sport of fenghuaqiu as she did when she was a child. He said that your grandfather thought that you were more talented in swordsmanship, riding and martial arts, and once wanted you to inherit the song.
The mission of the Cetaphil family, but I know you don’t like those things, child, so I have already told him that you are qualified to choose the path you want to take. Be free and unrestrained, and do what you like. I hope
Promise, even if you cannot succeed, you must persist in your dream.
Finally, he also talked about the past between himself and his father, Xino's grandfather, and admitted that he had not been an obedient child since he was a child. He had made his father so angry that he chased him around the town with a stick several times.
He was prevented from being overtaken by the townspeople; he said that he had even run away from home, and it was then that he met your mother, and they got married before returning to live in Chatoli Manor, and then they had a child.
daughter.
"Because of you, my father is not so strict with me. Maybe he doesn't want me to embarrass myself in front of my children."
He chuckled lightly and said: "At the same time, I gradually understood his mood at that time, both as a son and as a father. In this way, we settled the differences and could sit down and have a good conversation again, just like me
It’s the same as sitting here talking to you now.”
What did he want to express?
Do you hope that I can understand him the same way he understood his grandfather?
The girl looked at her father who was completely immersed in memories, and somehow her heart was a little blocked. She opened her mouth to say something, but couldn't say a word. They chatted like this for a long time, and finally, when the chat ended, her father whispered
He said to her: I'm sorry. Then he turned around and left. She stood there blankly, watching the generous and firm figure in her memory gradually drifting away, gradually leaving her. Suddenly, she felt an uncomfortable feeling, as if he would last forever.
Leaving and never returning to oneself is like the cunning mother who said she would always be with her but took the first step and cruelly deceived an innocent girl.
She opened her mouth to call his name, but found that she couldn't make a sound.
Because she felt very uncomfortable, so uncomfortable... that she couldn't breathe.