Sweet Nostalgia of the 80s

The captain of the guard company missed them and was searching all over the city with his men.

As the sun set, Ning Chenyang and a few children reached their destination; the scar-faced old man had been sitting there waiting the entire time.

Many people who came to play had already gone home, leaving the old man sitting there all alone, looking quite melancholy.

”Chenyang, is it this grandpa?” Bean Sprout clutched Ning Chenyang’s arm, looking around nervously, ”This grandpa looks kind of fierce. Could he be a bad person?”

”Coward.” Sheng Xiaoguang wasn’t afraid at all. He fished out his change from paying the taxi fare, anxiously asked Ning Chenyang, ”Chenyang, is this trick show good? If it’s not, I’ll be really upset. I’ve spent the money my mom gave me for gifts on taxi fares.”

”Don’t worry. It’s worth watching.” Ning Chenyang patted his shoulder, saying to him, ”You don’t need to fret about the money. When my mom comes back, I’ll ask her for money to pay you back. So just relax.”

”Great! Chenyang, you’re really our Commander! I’ll follow you forever and be your guard!” Sheng Xiaoguang said excitedly.

”Alright. Let’s go! Let’s watch the grandpa do magic tricks.”

The old man performing tricks sat alone at the amusement park entrance, staring at the ground, lost in thought.

”Grandpa, we’re here!” Ning Chenyang walked over, followed by several friends.

”Kids! You finally came.” The old man smiled at Ning Chenyang and the others, pointing at the sky, ”If you had delayed any longer, I was really about to leave.”

”I almost forgot about our agreement.” Ning Chenyang scratched his head sheepishly, pointing at his friends behind him, ”We all came together to watch your magic tricks, grandpa.”

”I’m very happy.” The old man began preparing for the performance. He turned three bowls upside down on the ground, each with a ball underneath, ”Look here, this trick is called ’Three Immortals Return to the Cave’... I have a chopstick in my hand, I will draw a line on the ground, and the ball in this bowl can move to another bowl. Do you believe it?”

The four little friends watched the old man with bewildered eyes, clearly not believing it, yet unwilling to shake their heads.

”Go!” The old man called out, lifted the bowls, and sure enough, all the balls had moved to another bowl.

”Oh! That’s amazing!” The children exclaimed excitedly.

The most interesting part of watching magic tricks is the process of unraveling the mystery; adults find it intriguing, and children are even more fascinated.

The kids watched eagerly, each more focused than the last: ”Grandpa, do it two more times! We didn’t see clearly! It’s just like an immortal blowing a breath, and the balls moved.”

The old man shook his head repeatedly: ”No, absolutely not. I’ve already performed this many times; it’s getting late. If you don’t go home, won’t your parents be worried?”

”It hasn’t been many times; it’s only been five minutes.” Yu Ziyang gazed at him with big, watery eyes, ”Try a few more times, please? Our parents haven’t returned home yet; they come back very late. Show us a bit more? Please, grandpa!”

The kids all chimed in together: ”Please, grandpa!”

”Alright. Are you sure your parents won’t come looking for you?” the old man asked, unsure.

”Of course.”