NCCnovel Chapter 283 A Day Trip to Kyoto
Chapter 283 A Day Trip to Kyoto
On the morning of the second day of the Lunar New Year, Yuan Bao woke up earlier than usual.
A thin layer of frost flowers had formed on the glass windows of the courtyard house. She drew a smiley face on it with her finger, and her breath immediately formed a small patch of white mist on the glass.
The heating in the east wing was on full blast. As Yuan Bao put his feet into his woolen socks, he heard people walking around in the courtyard.
"Baby, are you up yet?" Aunt Yuan gently knocked on the door. "Your aunt has already started making breakfast."
"Get up, get up!" Yuan Bao quickly put on the bright red cotton-padded jacket—which her mother had specially sewn for her for the New Year, with white rabbit fur trimmed around the collar and cuffs.
She tied her hair into a high ponytail in front of the mirror.
At the entrance to the courtyard, my uncle was looking at the 19-seat minibus.
This car was specially arranged for them by Boss Chen as their family's private vehicle for their trip to Beijing during the Spring Festival. He also helped them hire a professional tour guide.
Yuan Bao took out the route map that the guide had planned beforehand: Tiananmen Square—Forbidden City—lunch at Wangfujing—Summer Palace in the afternoon.
Let Xiaoshan read it to everyone again.
"We're all thanks to Bao'er!" Grandpa, wearing a military overcoat, came out of the main room, carrying a steaming enamel mug.
After Xiaoshan finished reading, he asked anxiously, "Sister Bao, will we really be able to see Tiananmen Square today? Wang Xiaojun from my class said he went there last summer vacation and that the big red star on the rostrum was as big as a washbasin!"
"Of course we can, and we're going to the Forbidden City too." Yuan Bao squatted down to help his cousin zip up his jacket.
"Remember to bring your copy of 'Five Thousand Years of Chinese History,' we can use it to find the Hall of Supreme Harmony."
Breakfast consisted of hot soy milk and scallion pancakes made by my aunt.
The whole family was huddled around the large round table in the main room. Yuan Bao noticed that her grandmother had specially put a poached egg in everyone's bowl.
"Mom, don't bother, sit down and eat." Yuan's mother took the chopsticks from her grandmother's hand.
"I'm so happy," Grandma said, her eyes crinkling with laughter. "Our whole family can spend the New Year in Beijing, staying in such a nice courtyard house. I never even dared to dream of this before."
Mr. Yuan took a bite of his scallion pancake and turned to ask Yuan Bao, "Have all the seats been arranged on the bus?"
"It's all arranged. It's just our family, so it's easy."
After breakfast, at 8:00 AM sharp, the minibus slowly drove out of the alley.
Yuan Bao sat in the fourth row by the window, watching the gray walls and tiles outside the window gradually turn into high-rise buildings.
In Beijing in the 90s, the flow of bicycles was still spectacular, but many yellow "vans" had begun to shuttle through them.
Occasionally, you can see vendors selling candied hawthorns by the roadside. The bright red hawthorns are coated with a crystal-clear sugar coating and glitter in the winter sun.
"Look! Tiananmen Square!" Pingping suddenly pointed ahead and shouted.
Yuan Bao's heart skipped a beat.
Although she had visited Beijing before, she still felt a surge of emotion upon seeing it again.
The golden glazed tiles, the vermilion city walls, and the giant statue hanging in the center looked particularly solemn under the azure sky.
The minibus stopped on the east side of the square.
As soon as he got out of the car, Xiaoshan dashed forward like a cannonball, only to be grabbed by the back of his collar by his uncle: "Slow down! There are a lot of people here, don't get separated!"
February in Beijing was bitterly cold, but the square was still packed with people.
There were tour groups carrying red flags, young couples pushing strollers, and many large families like theirs traveling together.
Yuan Bao saw several foreigners wearing military overcoats filming with those bulky video cameras.
"Come on, let's take a group photo first." Mr. Yuan took out his camera from his backpack and called for everyone to stand in line.
Yuan Bao stood between his maternal grandparents and felt his grandmother's hand holding his tightly.
Grandpa straightened his back, the brass buttons on his military overcoat gleaming.
The moment the shutter clicked, a gust of wind ruffled Yuan Bao's bangs, but she smiled exceptionally brightly.
After strolling around the square, it was nearly 10 o'clock. The minibus carried them through Chang'an Avenue and headed towards the Forbidden City.
The car's heater was on full blast, and Pingping and Xiaoshan were vying for a window seat to enjoy the view outside.
"Stop fooling around," Yuan Bao pulled two packets of preserved plum candy from his backpack. "One packet each, we'll be there soon after we finish them."
There were long queues at the ticket office of the Forbidden City, but professional tour guides saved a lot of time by buying tickets for them.
"Wow! Is this where the emperor used to live?" Xiaoshan looked up at the Meridian Gate, his mouth agape, wide enough to fit an egg.
Yuan Bao's family followed the tour guide and entered through the Meridian Gate according to the planned route, visiting along the central axis.
In the square in front of the Hall of Supreme Harmony, my grandfather pointed to the pair of bronze tortoises in front of the hall and said, "These are called Bixi, one of the nine sons of the dragon, specifically responsible for carrying steles."
"I know!" Xiaoshan jumped up. "It was mentioned in 'Five Thousand Years of Chinese History'!"
In front of the Qianqing Palace, Yuan's mother held Yuan Bao's hand and whispered, "You arranged everything so well, even the time to go to the toilet was right." Yuan Bao felt a warm glow inside; this was the first time she had been in charge of planning the whole family's trip.
Upon reaching the Grand Council, Baoguo suddenly perked up: "This is the Qing Dynasty's military command headquarters? It's not much bigger than our school's gatehouse!"
"Don't underestimate this place."
My uncle interjected, "Many important military and national decisions were made here back then."
Yuan Bao noticed that his maternal grandfather had been standing in front of the Military Affairs Office for a long time, his gaze somewhat distant.
She knew that her grandfather had served in the army when he was young, so he must have a deeper understanding of these places.
In the Royal Garden, several tourists dressed in brightly colored ski suits stood out.
Pingping, holding Yuan Bao's hand, asked, "Cousin, are those ladies really here admiring the flowers?"
“Yes, look at that ancient cypress tree. Empress Dowager Cixi might have even touched it,” Yuan Bao said, pointing to a crooked tree in the garden.
Xiaoshan, uninterested in palace life, tugged at Yuan Bao's sleeve and asked, "Sister, where's the armory? I want to see swords!"
Yuan Bao was prepared; he pulled out a map of the Forbidden City from his pocket: "Don't rush, let's follow the route, we'll be at the Armory soon."
At 12:30 pm, the whole family returned to the minibus on time.
When Yuan Baoqing was counting heads, he discovered that Xiaoshan was missing and almost burst into tears. Then, the little guy ran out of the souvenir shop in the armory, holding a plastic Green Dragon Crescent Blade.
"What are you doing running around like that!" the uncle said sternly, but couldn't help but laugh when he saw his son's excited expression. "Don't do it again."
We chose a Beijing-style restaurant near Wangfujing for lunch.
The thirteen people, plus the driver and tour guide, sat at two large round tables. When the waiter pushed the food cart over to carve the duck, Xiaoshan's eyes widened in amazement.
"Come on, Grandpa, you can start eating first." Dad Yuan placed the first piece of duck meat dipped in sauce onto Grandpa's plate.
Grandma tasted a bite of the noodles with soybean paste and nodded repeatedly, "This sauce is different from the one back home, but it's delicious too."
Yuan Bao noticed that Pingping kept staring at the Arctic Ocean soda in the hands of the child at the next table, so he quietly asked the waiter to bring them a few bottles as well.
The orange-yellow soda was poured into a glass, bubbling with tiny bubbles. Xiaoshan drank it too quickly and let out a loud burp, making everyone at the table laugh.
"This afternoon we're going to the Summer Palace," the tour guide said during a break from serving the food. "Kunming Lake is frozen over now; I heard you can go ice skating there."
"Can I skate? Can I skate?" Xiaoshan immediately perked up.
“We’ll have to ask your dad if he agrees,” Aunt Yuan said with a smile, placing another piece of duck meat on Xiaoshan’s plate. “But your sister has already found out that they rent ice skates there.”
Yuan Bao lowered his head and ate the rice in his bowl, feeling a warm glow in his heart.
She recalled that at this time last year, her family was worried about her aunt's job restructuring and potential layoffs. Who could have imagined that a year later, the whole family would be able to celebrate such a lively New Year in Beijing?
Looking up, Yuan Bao saw her grandfather picking fish bones from her grandmother's bones, her uncle pouring tea for her aunt, and her aunts looking at the photos they had just taken. She felt that this was the happiest thing in her heart.