Chapter 460: The Sheepskin Scroll

When she arrived at the Zhang household, only the three elders were home; everyone else had gone to work.

The three elders were overjoyed to see Li Yiyi return. One after another, they brought out all the best food and drinks in the house to treat her.

“Grandpa, Grandma, Grandpa Hua, you don’t need to fuss. I’m not thirsty or hungry. I just came to see you—and there’s something I’d like to ask the three of you,” Li Yiyi said with a smile, pulling them down to sit since they hadn’t stopped moving since she arrived.

“You silly girl, what could you possibly need to ask us? You’re already so capable,” Hua Qiubai said with a pleased grin.

Hearing her grandfather praise her, Li Yiyi smiled and replied, “Grandpa Hua, I’m not a genius. Of course there are still things I need to learn from you.”

With that, she leaned in mysteriously and said, “Sit tight. I have something interesting to show you.”

The three elders were instantly intrigued by her mysterious tone. Their eyes all turned to her, curiosity piqued.

Li Yiyi smiled and pulled out the sheepskin scroll she had brought from the R Institute.

“Girl, let me take a proper look at that,” said Grandma Zhang with urgency as soon as the scroll appeared.

Seeing her reaction, Li Yiyi quickly handed over the scroll.

Grandma Zhang examined it carefully. After a while, she called out to her husband, “What are you standing around for? Go get my glasses! This is something good!”

Old Man Zhang had taken a quick glance and, to him, it was just an old, yellowed piece of paper. He didn’t understand why his wife was treating it like some kind of treasure.

“Alright, alright, I’ll get your glasses. Just wait here,” he muttered, still obediently getting up to fetch them from the room.

Hua Qiubai sat nearby, watching the scroll in Grandma Zhang’s hands. Even though he wasn’t holding it himself, he could already tell it was something extraordinary.

“Girl, where did you get this thing—was it taken from a tomb?” Hua Qiubai asked, turning to Li Yiyi.

Just as she was about to answer, Grandma Zhang spoke up, “Qin Dynasty. This is from the Qin Dynasty. The writing on it is from that era.”

Startled, Li Yiyi swallowed her words and looked at Grandma Zhang with admiration. “Grandma, you’re amazing. This really is something unearthed from the Qin Dynasty. I can’t believe you recognized it. Looks like I came to the right people.”

Grandma Zhang was a little embarrassed by the praise and waved her hand. “It’s just a bit of knowledge. My father’s generation worked in the cultural relics field. I saw and heard a lot growing up, so I picked up a thing or two.”

“I knew it—my grandma is the best. Can you help me figure out what’s written on it?” Li Yiyi gave her a thumbs-up with a grin.

Grandma Zhang chuckled and waved her hand modestly. “I’m not that good. I know someone better—an old university professor I used to know.”

Just as she finished speaking, a loud huff came from behind them. It was Old Man Zhang returning with the glasses.

For some reason, he looked quite upset.

Li Yiyi noticed and asked with concern, “Grandpa, you don’t look so good. Are you feeling unwell? Do you want me to give you a few acupuncture points?”

“You don’t need to worry about him. He’s just bored and overthinking as usual,” Grandma Zhang cut in before he could answer, sounding annoyed.

Old Man Zhang huffed even louder and plopped onto the sofa. “You old woman! You’re saying I’m overthinking? Tell me honestly—are you going to pretend that man surnamed Qin didn’t have feelings for you back then? Why else would he have stayed single all these years? He must still be hung up on you!”

Grandma Zhang shot him a glare. “I don’t have time to argue about ancient history. You’ve been harping on this for decades. Aren’t you tired? Because I sure am.”

She held out her hand. “Where are my glasses?”

Despite his annoyance, Old Man Zhang obediently handed over the glasses.

Ignoring her sulking husband, Grandma Zhang put on the glasses and went back to studying the scroll intently.

“These characters—I can recognize some, but there are many I don’t understand,” she admitted after a while.

Li Yiyi still looked delighted and encouraged her, “It’s okay even if you can only read a little. Just tell me what you can understand.”

“Alright, I’ll give it a try,” Grandma Zhang replied, feeling more confident thanks to her granddaughter’s trust.

After reading for a while longer, she finally said, “The first part basically says that there’s no such thing as real longevity in this world. But through proper dietary methods, we can improve our constitution and strengthen the body. That way, we can achieve a state of vitality and spirit, which is the secret to a long life.”

She paused and stared at the lower half of the scroll for a long time before finally saying, “I’m sorry, Yiyi. I can only make sense of this much. I can’t quite understand the rest—but I think there’s one person who might be able to.”

Li Yiyi instinctively asked, “Who is it, Grandma? Do you know them?”

Grandma Zhang was just about to respond when another loud huff cut her off.

“Of course your grandma knows him! She was pretty close with him, too. He even used to court her back in the day. But in the end, he was still defeated by me,” Old Man Zhang said smugly.

Just as he was about to continue bragging, Grandma Zhang shot him a glare that made him flinch. The rest of his words died in his throat, and he sat there with a pitiful expression.

“If you can’t say anything useful, then don’t speak at all. One more word, and I swear I’ll stop talking to you for good,” Grandma Zhang warned him, clearly annoyed.

Old Man Zhang immediately surrendered. “Alright, alright. Don’t get angry. If you don’t want me to speak, I won’t.”

Off to the side, Hua Qiubai turned his head to stifle a laugh.

Before he could finish chuckling, Old Man Zhang caught him and gave him a playful elbow in the side.