Teacher Sun's expression softened a bit, she patted the car seat, "Get in!", An An raised an eyebrow, curiosity flashing in her eyes, "Where are you taking me?"

  "You'll know when you get there." Mr. Sun smiled wryly.

  She saw Mr. Sun's mysterious face, and for a moment, she was hesitant on her face, the words of refusal that were about to come out of her mouth were swallowed back, she jumped onto the back seat of the bicycle, after sitting steady, she grabbed the corner of Mr. Sun's clothes, hesitated, "Then hurry up, I still have to go back and help my dad! There are a lot of things at home!"

  Teacher Sun pedaled her bicycle a bit faster upon hearing this. "Don't worry, I'll send you back." She took An'an to an old-fashioned pawnshop located at the entrance of a hutong alley.

  The door of the pawnshop was very old and had many holes bitten by insects. An'an wanted to stay at the door, but was called in by Teacher Sun together with others.

  After entering, I found that the courtyard was very large and empty compared to the outside wall. It took two doors to reach the innermost part. An old man with a bent back and a cane came out, and upon seeing Teacher Sun, he responded faintly, "You've come?"

  Mr. Sun nodded respectfully, "Master Yan, I've come to fetch something." This form of address was quite strange; if it had been ten years ago, just the three words 'Master Yan' would have been enough to intimidate people.

  A pair of bright eyes kept looking back and forth at the two people, the curiosity in those eyes was not hidden at all, there's a secret here!

  Old Master Yan tapped his cane and praised, "You've brought a young girl with a clear and upright gaze, come in with me!"

  An'an quietly followed Sun teacher into the inner room, which looked like a pawnshop from the outside but was no different from an ordinary home inside. If there had to be a difference, An'an thought it was just that there were more cabinets.

  There were indeed many wardrobes, the whole house was filled with those tall standing cabinets. Old Master Yan searched from his waist and pulled out a bunch of keys, according to the list on the cabinet, he found the three words "Sun Hongmei", he moved over a stool, stepped on it, tiptoed, and took out the cabinet.

  Come and see! The old man's movements are really dangerous! At such an advanced age, he still climbs to this high place, holding the cabinet and taking it down. It's really heart-pounding to watch. She glanced at Teacher Sun and saw that Teacher Sun shook his head at her, so An'an swallowed back the words that were on the tip of her tongue.

  Teacher Sun is more familiar with Lao Yezi than she is. Since Lao Yezi went up alone, it indirectly means that there's no problem.

  After Old Yan took out the small trunk, there was still a layer of burlap on top of it, obviously carefully taken care of. After removing the burlap, there were only two things inside: a pocket watch and a necklace.

  The pocket watch was old, with a bronze color, but it had been wiped clean and didn't have a speck of dust on it. After Sun teacher took the pocket watch over, he carefully polished it once more before handing it to An'an. "An'an, this is for you now." Although Sun teacher hadn't told him where the pocket watch came from, An'an knew that something stored in such a unique way must be very precious.

  An'an hastily shook her head, refusing, "I can't accept it." It was too valuable. Teacher Sun's expression softened a bit as she coaxed, "Take it! If you call me 'Mom' just once, then take it, and bring it to show me tomorrow."

  An'an sighed and said seriously, "Teacher Sun, whether it's a watch or a pocket watch, it should be given by the groom's family." Why is it coming from the bride's side? What kind of thing is this!

  Ms. Sun stuffed the watch into An's chest without saying a word, "Take it, or Mom will get angry." She said "Mom" instead of "teacher", which already revealed her identity.

  An'an could only accept it silently, but she had made up her mind to go back and persuade her father to buy a nice watch for Sun teacher as well.

  That necklace, Teacher Sun reluctantly touched it again, but then let Old Man Yan put it back, instructing, "Old Master, when I one day can't afford to eat, take this necklace away. From then on, no matter if it's me or Anan, you can give this necklace to either of us." For some reason, Anan always felt that Teacher Sun was entrusting him with her last wishes.

  Teacher Sun has gone through a special decade, originally this kind of valuable thing was very common, but nine out of ten were lost, only this necklace and a pocket watch were left, it took the effort of nine cows and two tigers to preserve them.

  Even if her and grandma's days were spent in hardship, they never thought of pawning them off. Rather than saying this is a pawnshop, it would be better to say that it's a place where everyone helps take care of things, all of which have been painstakingly gathered from various places.

  The old man looked at Sun teacher, then looked at An'an, and carefully put the small tray away again. He said lightly, "Come earlier! If you come later, I might kick my legs and be gone, and this thing will also follow me into the ground."

  An'an couldn't bear to hear such words and was also afraid of life and death separations. She didn't know what had happened to the old man in front of her, but as she walked closer, she discovered that one of Lao Ye's eyes actually had no focal length, meaning he was half-blind.

  An old man has been guarding this place for many years, and at what cost, in order to preserve these things.

  Teacher Sun's expression tightened a bit, she promised, "If you're not around one day, I'll burn paper for you." Old Man Yan had children in the early years, but they left early, leaving him alone. The Yan family used to run a pawnshop business, and in the early years, the pawnshop was smashed beyond recognition, and many of their belongings were lost. Later, when policies improved slightly...

  Mr. Yan and the old master slowly found back the things they lost before, they are doing business, emphasizing integrity, the employer handed over the things to them, as long as it's not a dead end, they all have the responsibility to keep these things preserved, it's just that this guard has been so many years past, don't look at the cabinet with so many small compartments, actually many of them are empty, just stuck with a name.

  This empty and desolate courtyard was once very prosperous, but now it has declined.

  An An, who had just stepped out of the door, listened to Mr. Sun's narrative and fell silent for a while. She felt that she was both unfortunate and fortunate. Unfortunate because she had come from her own good world into this era, but fortunate not to have crossed over into the most turbulent decade.

  Sun Hongmei saw that An'an was feeling a bit down and comforted her, "It's nothing, everyone has their own fate, whether good or bad, that's what they should endure."

  An nodded slightly and said in a low voice, "Teacher Sun, are you going home with me?" referring to her own home, not Grandma's.

  Teacher Sun patted the car and told An'an with practical actions, "Come on! But I have to go back and prepare my wedding dress." They had a custom here. On the eve of the wedding, they couldn't meet the groom, otherwise...

  Even Teacher Sun cannot avoid this common practice.