Not far behind the old house, on the Hubu Hill, was the famous scenic spot Ximatai, where the legendary hero Xiang Yu, after overthrowing the Qin dynasty, proclaimed himself King of Western Chu, made Pengcheng his capital, and built the Congtai to watch horse shows, conduct military exercises, and review his troops. In history, it was ranked alongside the Suzhou Gardens and the Six Dynasties Stone Carvings of Nanjing as the three treasures of Jiangsu. Unfortunately, it was destroyed in the flames of war and was not preserved as well as the other two sites.

Throughout history, various dynasties built many structures on the grounds of Ximatai, such as the Tai Head, Sanyi Temple, Minghuan Shrine, Jukui Academy, Songcui Mountain House, and Stele Pavilion. As time passed and the world changed, the buildings of the past have all but disappeared. After restoration, Ximatai has reappeared in the world with a majestic and resplendent look. As a child, Ryan Bennett often sneaked in with some friends to play and have fun.

……

Early the next morning, Ryan Bennett and his brother-in-law hurried to the old house. However, the rented car could only be parked at the entrance of the alley. Ryan Bennett and his brother-in-law got out of the car and walked toward the old house, stepping on the thick snow.

The old house of Ryan Bennett's family had three single-story rooms and a spacious courtyard. In the middle of the courtyard stood a tall jujube tree, beneath which there was a stone table and several stone stools. He remembered that every summer, the family would sit on the stone stools in the courtyard to eat and cool off. Now, since no one had sat on the stone stools for a long time, they were already covered with moss.

Originally, Ryan Bennett's mother would come here to clean once a month, but since the house was about to be demolished, she stopped coming after packing up their things. The spacious courtyard was overgrown with weeds, and a large character "demolish" was written on the outer wall. Since construction was set to begin after the New Year, the neighboring residents had already moved out. While everywhere else was filled with the festive atmosphere of the New Year, this place seemed a bit desolate and lonely.

The room in the middle was where Ryan Bennett's grandfather used to live. After his grandfather passed away, the room was left empty and was usually used to store odds and ends. When he was a child, Ryan Bennett always felt the room was gloomy and never dared to go in. As he grew up, he visited the old house less and less and lost interest in going inside.

As for the grandfather he had never met, Ryan Bennett only knew from his mother that his grandfather was a geologist who had worked in the Yunnan and Myanmar regions after the liberation. Because of this, during the chaotic ten years, he was falsely accused of collaborating with the enemy and persecuted, which also implicated Ryan Bennett's grandmother, causing both elders to pass away early.

"Xiao Rui, it's very dusty inside. Don't come in. I'll move the things out. You just help out here from outside."

His brother-in-law opened the door to the middle room, and a cloud of dust rushed out, making Ryan Bennett cough and retreat repeatedly.

Sunlight reflected off the snow and shone into the room, faintly revealing two rectangular wooden chests about a meter long each in the corner. The purpose of their visit this time was to move these two chests back home; the other small items had already been taken by Ryan Bennett's mother.

"It's fine. I rarely went into Grandpa's room anyway. The house will be gone soon, so let's take a look! These chests are big—wow, they're really heavy. Let's carry them out together..."

Ryan Bennett walked back into the room and tried lifting one corner of a chest, feeling its weight immediately.

Nowadays, few people use such heavy wooden chests to store things. These two must be old items left from the past. The lacquer on the outside was already peeling, and the surface of the chests was carved with floral patterns. Two iron locks hung from the finely crafted hasps.

Originally, Ryan Bennett had planned to visit Ximatai today, but seeing these two large chests completely put an end to any thoughts of sightseeing.

No one knew what was inside the chests, but they were certainly heavy. After the two of them loaded the chests onto the car and brought them home, they were both drenched in sweat. However, upon returning home, they received good news: the house next door was basically settled. Ryan Bennett's mother's colleague had agreed to handle the transfer procedures after the New Year, and the price was set at thirty-eight thousand, several thousand less than originally discussed. This made both Ryan Bennett and George Carter very happy.

After helping move the chests, George Carter took his leave. After all, the New Year was approaching, and he still had a lot to do at his own parents' house. After her brother-in-law left, Ryan Bennett's mother went to visit an old colleague, leaving Ryan Bennett alone at home.

Looking at the two large chests in his room, Ryan Bennett felt an urge to open them. After all, the memories of the past would disappear with the demolition of the old house, and these things left by his elders had become all the more precious in the eyes of the younger generation.

Ryan Bennett found a few keys in his mother's drawer and tried them. Sure enough, he was able to open the two chests. Overjoyed, Ryan Bennett quickly lifted the lid of one chest and found it was filled with books. The covers were yellowed, showing their age.

Carefully taking out a book, Ryan Bennett checked the publication date and found it was the original work of Li Siguang, a 1953 edition of "Chinese Geology." Opening it, he saw it was filled with pictures of fossils and maps. After a quick look, Ryan Bennett carefully put the book back, believing that such a 1953 edition could now only be found in some of the larger libraries.