In the early years, my brother was seriously ill and had no choice but to sell a pair of earrings. Mother never mentioned exactly how much it cost. That pair of earrings was left to my mother by my grandmother.
In the later days, I knew that it was a pair of emerald earrings, about eighty carats.
At that time, Grandpa followed the Chinese Expeditionary Army into the boundaries of Yunnan, fought a bloody battle against the Japanese aggressors, and made great achievements. Grandpa was the bodyguard of General Diane Lan. On the eve of the general's battle, he gave this pair of earrings to Grandpa for safekeeping.
It is said that the earrings were carefully polished by an old craftsman in Malipo, Wenshan Prefecture. Raw materials are naturally produced in Malipo, which is very expensive. The details of why the general left the earrings in the custody of his grandfather are not known.
After the victory of the Anti-Japanese War, for a long time, Grandpa returned to his hometown and met his grandmother. At that time, the family thought that Grandpa was already dead. When Grandma saw Grandpa, she was almost stunned. Stupid.
That night, grandparents seemed to have experienced the gift of time and the beauty of life for the first time in their lives. Grandma choked with excitement, allowing Grandpa's indulgence and madness. At parting, Grandpa carefully handed over the earrings he had been carrying to Grandma.
During the Cultural Revolution, grandma and her family were doomed, doomed to become the public enemy of the people, the object of dictatorship, fought all day, and even been plundered several times. Fortunately, the earrings were not found. Grandma didn't take it with her, but wrapped it thickly with a piece of silk cloth, hid it in the cracks in the wall, blocked it with mud, and brushed it with the same color of clay, which no one could easily find out. At that time, a Red Guard pointed to the tip of Grandma's nose or eye socket and growled: you Kuomintang bitch! If there's anything else in the house that hasn't been handed over, tell me! Or break your dog's leg.
In this way, Grandma was pressed and screamed again and again, and one of her left leg was really broken by a stick or belt.
From then on, grandma dragged a broken leg, still went to the field, still worked, and still maintained a dilapidated family.
About the seventh year after the end of the Cultural Revolution, Grandpa returned to his hometown as a Taiwanese businessman. However, Grandpa never saw Grandma again. Grandma with grief and grief, as well as the native land of that affection and sustenance, with the bleak monsoon, gone forever.
At the moment when Grandma died, Grandma let her mother find the earrings in the cracks in the wall. Grandma yelled to her mother and repeatedly told her: you must take good care of it. This is the relic of a famous anti-Japanese general.
With that, Grandma's eyes gently closed.
Later, I learned that when General Dai Anlan personally gave this pair of earrings to his grandfather, he gave him the opportunity to sell them for military pay, equip the troops, and persist in the War of Resistance against Japan.
The fallen country of Chang'an is broken, only the mountains and rivers remain! We must not let the imps ravage the land of China! The general is resounding.
Yes! Grandpa gave the general a standard military salute.
Grandpa knows the value of earrings. Just because of the flames of war, we can not find a suitable buyer, let alone fall into the hands of the devils. Since then, earrings have been treasured by Grandpa. For the sake of safety, he left it to Grandma to take care of it.
At that time, Grandpa said to Grandma: as a soldier, it is possible to sacrifice at any time.
Don't worry. I'll take good care of it. I'll wait for you to come back.
Later, when Grandpa moved to the north and south, he went to Taiwan.
Now, the whereabouts of earrings are no longer known. According to my mother, the earrings were given to a bank or pawnshop and changed into coins. At that time, my brother was suffering from leukemia and was in urgent need of an astonishing medical fee.
After many years, whenever I think of the past, my mother is very sad and distressed, and even becomes a lifetime of self-remorse and guilt. Mother said, I wanted to forget everything, the more so, the more unforgettable. Grandma's instructions on her deathbed lingered in her ears.
Later I heard that at an international Sotheby's auction, there was a pair of emerald earrings auctioned for 6.7 million yuan. It's almost astronomical. To this end, I found a sample map for my mother to identify. After my mother saw it, she suddenly burst into tears. Murmured, only said: unfortunately, this pair of earrings. If the general has a spirit in heaven, I hope it will be returned to the original owner
This is the last day at the end of autumn in 1992.
Later, my mother received a letter from my grandfather from Taiwan. Finally learned that the pair of earrings returned to Grandpa's side again. Grandpa bought it at a high price. Because Grandpa saw the seagull engraved with the general's name on that pair of earrings.
No matter when and where, it is the witness of history.
Today, the earrings are on display at the General Diane Lan Museum. Often it seems that it is so green, dazzling and determined to bloom, just like the patriotic feelings of the general, which will surely flow to future generations.
When my mother heard the news, she finally smiled with relief.
This is the first time I have seen my mother smile so quietly and comfortably.
Mother said, in this life, finally put an end to a worry. Even if you leave the world, you can close your eyes.
Since then, I remember Malipo, also know the emerald, but also know the suffering and hardship of my grandparents, as well as my mother's nostalgia and hope.
Times have changed, are the emerald earrings still there? I don't know.
Author: Yang Yang
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