Chapter 52 fifty one

Maria goes on a trip (5) Suddenly a small light flashed in the darkness, it was the old man striking a match.She lit her pipe.After a while, the choking smell of tobacco leaves filled the air.The place where the old man sat seemed to be a stone plate, and there were many small stones with strange shapes on the stone plate. When Ula approached her, she was playing with those stones, and there was a sound of "squeaking", and there was the sound of running water under the stone plate. "Is it her?" The old man's hoarse voice sounded. "It's Maria, grandmother, she's here to see you."

Ulla led Maria to sit with her on the stone plate.Maria felt a pair of hot, hard hands pinching her arms, and she stopped trembling immediately, not feeling the cold at all. "That's what Jo's wife is," said her old voice again. "Maria, grandma knows your husband. When he was young, grandma hugged him and took a bath in the river with him, but Joe has forgotten these things later." Ulla said softly . "Ah—ah!" Maria was speechless. "These small stones are used by grandma to help her remember things. She will never forget anything, anything! Do you hear the sound of running water? That's not water, it's her thoughts that are fluctuating. The place where grandma lives The place is very special, and it is impossible for outsiders to find it here." Ula's words were full of admiration.

"Maria, do you understand Joe's work?" the old man asked while coughing. "I don't know, grandma." Maria said hesitantly. "Are you talking about his sales job? I think I understand. I always support him on business trips and wait for him at home." "Are you really behind him?" The voice became stern. "I'm telling you, his job is just a cover! He's two-faced." "I think so." Maria boldly said, "I'm also a double-faced person, so I came to North Island. I can't forget the past." "Actually, Joe can't forget it either," put in Ulla.

"My grandfather mentioned the cave in his story, but he didn't mention the bamboo forest. But I recognized this place as soon as I got out of the car." Maria felt like she was talking in her sleep. "It's dark in here." Ulla told Maria to stand against the wall so that she wouldn't trip over the small animals that crawled around on the ground.But where is the wall?Ulla said it was on her right.Maria fumbled a few steps to the right, but she didn't touch anything, but Ulla said that she had already touched the wall, but she didn't feel it, and everything in this room was like this.Let’s just talk about these small stones of grandma. They look like stones, but they are actually some small animals, which are pets that grandma loves.Maria wanted to retreat, to Ulla's side.Suddenly, she felt that Ula's voice was getting farther and farther away.

"Don't go to her, she won't leave the house," said grandma. "Calm down and think about your mistakes." "mistake?" "Yes. If you're tired, you can sleep right there. There are too many noisy things in this room. It's impossible for an old man like me to fall asleep. He can only doze off." "You just made me think about my mistakes." "Did I say it? It's the same whether you say it or not. How about you reach out and touch this little mouse?" The little mouse is very hard, bouncing up and down, and a bit like a glass ball.Maria couldn't be sure it was a mouse, but Grandma said it was, and that it was the one she loved the most because it represented the biggest mistake she had ever made in her life, the one that nearly killed her life.

"You used to live in a town with a granite path, but you can't find that town later? You make mistakes when you're young, and you think about your mistakes when you're old. My little mouse is very good today." "Ulla!!" Maria shouted in that direction. "Don't shout, she's too ashamed. In fact, she is there." A feeling of panic rose in Maria.What could she do in the empty "house" where nothing could be ascertained?Ula brought her here, what did she expect from her?Now she is also a little ashamed, because she can't guess the meaning of what is in front of her, but she always feels that the meaning should be obvious.

The old man let out a scream.Maria hadn't expected her to make such high-pitched sounds, like some kind of bird.Then she complained that a small animal, probably a squirrel, had bitten her cheek badly.She said she spoiled them too much, so they always taught her some such lessons. "It's a small town with dark clouds over its head." She fell into that kind of memory all of a sudden. "Ulla!!" Maria shouted again, she couldn't stand it anymore. The old grandma got angry, her voice became dry and muffled, she uttered a series of curses, and threw the stones to the ground.For a moment, Maria felt that the ground was full of small animals running around.Maria thought, so she didn't cherish her "pets" at all.When she was in such a frenzy, she didn't let Maria get close to her. Whenever Maria got close, she let out a strange growl, as if she wanted to eat her.Maria felt that she was exhausted, her legs were trembling and hurt like needles, so she lay down on the ground, letting the little animals run around her, and closed her eyes regardless.