Summer thought Tim was right after she pondered for a while.
It was already hard to know what was in Leonardo’s head in the first place. When he humbled himself and lived as the locals did over the past few days, she was really surprised by it.
There was always something about him that she would not be able to understand.
Leonardo and the elderly man were seen exchanging a few words while the elderly man patted Leonardo on the shoulder. But Summer had no idea what they were talking about.
Just then, Leonardo suddenly beckoned her.
She quickly went over.
When she got close, the elderly man looked at her, grinning from ear to ear. “Don’t you like the pickles I make? I’ll pack you a box of the pickles. Given the weather, it will still be edible by the time you get home.”
The weather in the middle of autumn was the best for wearing sweaters. Food would not spoil very easily.
Summer was touched. “Please have a seat. I’ll get it by myself.”
With the exception of the first day when she was having a fever, she had been the one doing the cooking. She knew exactly where the elderly man stored the pickles.
“Sure. You can take as much as you want. I’ll go and dig up some sweet potatoes for you. They are free of pesticides, unlike the ones sold in the cities.”
As he spoke, he went to get a hoe.
Summer quickly stopped him. “It’s okay, that won’t be necessary.”
While the weather had cleared up, the ground was still wet, especially in the field.
“I’ll just dig some up and wash them clean for you to take home. I have nothing else here.” The elderly man would not listen. He insisted on going to the field with a hoe.
Summer watched as the elderly man went on his way. She then returned to the house to pack some pickles.
The pickles were stored in a large pottery urn, which gave off a fragrant smell when opened.
She packed herself a box of it, and by the time she exited the house, the elderly man had returned.
He had been farming his entire life. Although he was old, he was still healthy and agile.
He washed the freshly picked sweet potatoes and packed them up before went into his house again. Soon after, he came out with two large bags of stuff.
Summer recalled a story she had read on the Internet long ago. It was a story about children leaving after spending the Spring Festival with their parents, who would always stuff things into their luggage.
Parents were constantly worried about their children. Before their children left home, they would always want their children to bring something with them.
Summer never had the privilege of receiving such treatment from Karen, yet she was receiving it from an old man, whom she had just stayed with for a few days.
The elderly man neatly placed the items in some nylon bags and tied the bags up. “I don’t want to trouble you two. Otherwise, I still have more things for you two to take home. I planted these myself; they’re absolutely healthy.”
Summer approached him and said nothing as she helped him tie up the bags. She did not know what to say.
Since packing had taken some time, it was close to lunchtime when they were about to leave.
The elderly man stood outside the door and furrowed his brows. “Why don’t you leave after lunch? It’s already noon.”
He did not show it on his face or express it with words, but Summer was able to sense that he could not bear to see them leave.
Sadly, life was such that people always had less time together than apart.
She and Leonardo could not have stayed there forever; they had to return to their own lives.
Summer looked up and tugged Leonardo’s sleeve. “Leonardo.” It sounded like she was begging him.
Since it was already noon, she just wanted to have lunch with the elderly man one last time before they left. However, Leonardo might not agree.
Just as she had expected, Leonardo did not agree.
“We have a lot of work to do. I’m afraid we can’t stay for lunch.” Leonardo looked at the elderly man, his expression calm and his brows slightly knitted together. After a few moments of silence, he said his goodbyes. “Take care.”
The elderly man sighed. “It’s okay. Please go. My legs won’t allow me to see you two off.”
He squatted down to pick up his cat, went back into the main hall, and closed the door behind him.
Summer had a lump in her throat. She took a deep breath and looked up slightly to fight back her tears.
Leonardo looked down at her. “Let’s go,” he said emotionlessly.
Even after they had walked a distance, Summer still could not help but look back.
It was not until they reached the spot where the copter was parked and the black-tiled, mottled two-story house was out of sight that she stopped looking back.
Leonardo and Summer sat side by side, but no one spoke a word. They were silent all the way until they reached the county city.
Cell signal was now available, so Leonardo made a call home. A maid answered the video call, and Summer could already see Rosie. The joy of seeing Rosie soothed her sadness somewhat.
Summer took the mobile phone in her hand. “Do you miss Mommy, Rosie?”
Leonardo was now behind Summer. When Rosie saw him through the camera, she scrunched her brows together. “You two went out to play but left me at home…”
Summer was startled for a second, but then she smiled. “We’ll be home soon.”
“All right, then.” Rosie pressed her face against the front camera, her face filling the entire screen.
Summer and Rosie talked for a while before Summer turned to Leonardo. “Do you want to talk to Rosie?”
“No.”
He might have rejected the idea instantly, but his actions told another story. If he did not want to talk to Rosie, why did he sit behind her? Summer thought for a second, then handed the phone to him anyway. “Here you go.”
Leonardo glanced at the screen, which was entirely filled with Rosie’s face. “You look awful like that, Rosie!” He raised an eyebrow.
Of course, Rosie understood what “awful” meant. She creased her nose and echoed what Leonardo said. “You look awful like that, Kate!”
His lips curled up in a fleeting smile as he took the phone from Summer’s hand.
He stared at the screen for a few seconds. “Have you gained weight again?”
Summer glared at him. “Don’t you know that people usually look chubbier than they really are in front of the camera?”
Rosie blinked a few times and reached down to pat her belly. “Look, fleshy.”
“I know you’re fleshy. Stop patting your belly.” Leonardo handed the phone back to Summer.
She took it and talked to Rosie for a few more moments before she hung up.
Summer had been worried about Rosie the most when she got stranded in the mountains.
Once she discovered that Rosie was fine, she breathed a sigh of relief.
They were staying in a three-star hotel in the county city, and Summer was the only woman in the group.
The rooms were arranged in a way that Tim and the other subordinates had to cram inside one room, leaving only one other room for Summer, Leonardo, or both.
Summer had no problem with it. She had been sleeping together with Leonardo during their stay in the mountains, after all.
Leonardo seemed to be the only one who had a problem.
“Where will you sleep?” he asked as they entered the room.