A string of sapphire necklaces translated by Zhang Bao 2019.3.16

The day Jane Grace opened the door of the shop was the loneliest day Pete Richard felt. This small shop was left to him by his grandfather. The windowsill of the front window of the shop is piled high with all sorts of old-fashioned objects: bracelets and souvenirs worn by people in the days before the Civil War, as well as gold rings, silver boxes, jade, ivory and porcelain statues.

It was a winter afternoon, and Jane was still a child, so she stood in front of the shop for a moment, leaning her forehead against the glass window and looking in. Her serious, deep eyes examined each object, as if looking for something very special. Finally, she straightened up and walked into the store full of joy.

Pete Richard's shop was very dark, and the windows were even more cluttered. The shelves are stacked with jewelry boxes, dueling pistols, clocks and lamps. The floor was also littered with irons, mandolins, and a few other things that I couldn't name. Pete himself stood behind the counter. Although he is not yet 30 years old, his hair is already a little gray. He watched as the little customer placed a small, ungloved hand on the counter, his expression darkened.

"Sir," said the girl, "may I show the blue beads in the window?" and Petra opened the curtain on the counter and took out a necklace. As he placed the ornament in front of her, the turquoise glittered in the pale part of his palm. "The beads are perfect," the child said to himself, "can you wrap it up for me?"

Pete's expression was very cold, and he was thinking about this girl, "You are buying this for someone else?"

"I bought it for my sister. After my mother died, she took care of me. It was my first Christmas after my mother's death. I've been looking for the best Christmas present for my sister. ”

"How much money do you have?" asked Pete cautiously.

She hurriedly untied the knot in her handkerchief and poured a handful of pennies onto the counter. "All my money is here. She explained simply.

Pete looked at her thoughtfully, then carefully pulled the necklace over so that the price on it was directed towards himself and not at the girl. What should he say to her?

Her trusting blue eyes made him feel like a stab in his wound. "Please wait," he said, then turned and walked towards the back of the storage room. "What's your name?" he asked, wrapping it.

The girl said, "My name is Jane Grace. ”

Pete returned to Jane Grace with a package in his hand, wrapped in red paper and tied with a green bow. "Here you go," he said to her, "take it, don't throw it away." ”

When she ran out the door, she shrugged her shoulders with her hands and feet. Pete watched the girl leave through the window, feeling desolate in his heart. Jane Grace's expression and the matter of the necklace had been stirring the sorrow in his heart.

The girl's hair was a wheat-like pale yellow, and her eyes were a deep blue like the sea. At one point, Pete fell in love with a girl with the same blond hair and blue eyes as this girl. And that sapphire necklace should have belonged to her. However, on a rainy night, because a truck skidding on a road, his life dream was crushed. Since then, Pete has been alone and immersed in grief.

He politely pays attention to customers, but when there are no customers in the small shop, sometimes for hours on end, he is drowned in this lingering emptiness. He tried to free himself from this haze that was deepening day by day. However, Jane Grace's blue eyes reminded him of all that he had lost. Thankfully, the people who kept coming to the store before the holiday to shop eased his pain a lot. Over the next ten days or so, business flourished, and chattering women flocked to him, picking up trinkets and haggling with him. He breathed a sigh of relief when the last customer left late on Christmas night. The year is coming to an end. But for Pete, the night wasn't over yet.

The door was pushed open, and a young woman hurried in. Her hair is blonde and her large eyes are blue. He thought the woman was familiar, but he couldn't remember when or where he had seen her. Instead of speaking, she took out a box from her purse, loosely wrapped in red paper and tied with a bow made of green ribbon. Then, a blue necklace glittered in front of him.

"This was bought from your store?" she asked.

Pete raised his eyes to look into hers and replied softly, "Yes, it does." ”

"Is this gem real?"

"Of course it's true. Although not the best quality, it is indeed a real gemstone. ”

"Who do you remember you sold it to?"

"She was a little girl named Jane. She was buying Christmas presents for her sister. ”

"How much is this necklace worth?"

He solemnly told her, "Price is always a secret between the seller and the customer. ”

"But Jane never spends money, because she doesn't have pennies in her hand, how can she afford such a thing?"

"She paid the highest price a person could pay. "She paid for everything she had." ”

At this time, there was silence in the small antique shop. He saw a minaret in the distance. The bell began to ring, and it came from afar. The little package was still on the counter, but there was still doubt in the girl's eyes. In Pete's mind, an unreasonable struggle breeds strange feelings, all out of love for a girl.

"But why would you want to do that?"

He took the gift in his hand.

"It's Christmas morning," he said, "and my misfortune is that I don't have anyone to give my gifts." Can you let me come to your house and come and wish you a Merry Christmas?"

So, as many bells rang, in the midst of the happy people, Pete Richard and a girl whose name he did not yet know walked out of the shop and into the beginning of a magical day that brought hope to all of us.