In the midst of astonished glances,
the middle-aged man obediently stood up.
At this point, even his facial expressions had begun to contort.
Chen Fang comfortably walked to the seat by the window and released his hand.
Only then did the middle-aged man let out a long sigh of relief, collapsing back into his seat.
Nobody knew what exactly had happened in the anti.
But during the journey that followed, the middle-aged man was neither noisy nor disruptive, not even daring to look in Chen Fang's direction.
Only the middle-aged man himself knew the acute pain he had endured the mont Chen Fang had grasped his shoulder, so much so that his throat was inexplicably blocked, stopping him from crying out.
An hour quickly passed.
The bus hadn't yet reached the station.
The middle-aged man left his seat in a hurried scramble.
Chen Fang got off the bus.
He then saw the familiar petite figure ahead.
It was the sa old man from the bus, carrying a huge leather suitcase, the contents of which were unknown but seed very heavy.
"Let help you with that,"
Chen Fang ran up to him and said.
The old man waved his hand, saying, "There's no need; I haven't even thanked you for what happened on the bus."
Chen Fang grabbed the suitcase from his hand.
True to his observation, it was indeed quite heavy.
"Young man, you're not from Rongjiang, are you?"
He asked as they walked.
Chen Fang nodded and replied, "I am here to study."
"Oh, studying is good. If we had educational opportunities like today back in our ti, we would have died laughing,"
said the old man.
The two of them chatted off and on like this.
Until they reached the exit of the station.
Seeing the old man looking bewildered, Chen Fang asked, "Sir, where do you need to go? I can take you there."
"Don't you have things to do?"
asked the old man.
Chen Fang waved his hand, saying, "It's okay, it's nothing major, and my formal studies only start the day after tomorrow."
"Since it's no bother, sure, I don't know my way around anyway. I've even forgotten how to hail a cab in my old age,"
muttered the old man.
Chen Fang hailed a cab from the roadside, and once they were both inside, he asked, "So sir, where are we headed?"
"Washan Village."
said the old man.
The driver frowned, turned around, and asked, "Washan Village, that place is remote and far, are you sure you want to go?"
Chen Fang noticed that the old man's expression suddenly beca sowhat vacant.
He said, "It's fine, just go, I'll pay."
The driver took a look at Chen Fang, figuring he could afford it, and pressed the gas pedal to drive off.
He was right; Washan Village was indeed remote and far away, taking over an hour just to get there.
Upon arriving, they were t with a desolate hilltop, no villages nearby, not even a person in sight.
Chen Fang paid the driver extra, asking him to wait a bit longer.
At this point, the old man, regardless of anything else, began ascending the hill, suitcase in hand.
Normally, Chen Fang could have gone back already.
But thinking about the old man climbing the hill alone, he worried and decided to follow.
After about ten minutes of walking,
the old man stopped before a hilltop.
Chen Fang looked around, noticing nothing but so weeds, and could still make out traces of houses that had once been there but were now overgrown with vegetation.
He was just about to ask the old man why they were here.
When suddenly, the old man knelt down with a thump, tears streaming as he said, "Ah Bao, Xiao San Zi, Da Hei, Hu Zi, I've brought you ho..."
Chen Fang was completely dumbfounded.
He hastily asked, "Sir, what's the matter?"
The old man did not answer him.
Instead, he opened the enormous suitcase.
To his astonishnt, it contained four ashes urns.
Besides the urns, there was also a military shovel inside.
Such an item should not have been allowed on the train; how did the old man manage to bring it?
Amidst his confusion.
The old man had already picked up a pickaxe and started digging a spot.
Chen Fang could no longer just watch.
He said to the old man, "Old man, let help you."
The old man paused and handed the pickaxe to Chen Fang.
Chen Fang took the shovel and got busy.
The weather was warm at the end of May, and it was now noon, with ground temperatures reaching over thirty degrees.
Chen Fang continued shoveling, and after more than an hour, his clothes were soaked through nurous tis.
He persisted.
Because during the process, the old man revealed the reason for his visit to Washan Hill.
He said his family na was Qin, his na was Qin Ye, and he was 74 years old.
56 years ago, there was a village here called Washan Village, where he grew up.
That year, he was 18 years old. When foreign enemies invaded, he and four childhood friends from his village—A Bao, Xiao Sanzi, Da Hei, and Hu Zi—joined the party's army and participated in the grand war to defend the holand.
In every battle that followed,
he never missed a single one.
Of the five brothers, only he was left in the end.
All five brothers had a wish before they died: they hoped to return to their hotown one day.
This had also been the old man's long-term desire.
A while ago, he finally located the last person, Hu Zi's ashes, and then traveled by car from Yuanjing, bringing the ashes of the four brothers to Washan Village.
It was this story
that made Chen Fang persist.
After the grave was dug,
the old man carefully placed the ashes of the four n into the hole Chen Fang had dug. Along with the ashes urns, their military dals, which they had cherished, were also placed inside.
The old man gazed at these urns for a long ti,
before reluctantly saying to Chen Fang, "Bury them."
Chen Fang thought for a mont and said, "Old Master, your brothers are martyrs. Why not place them in the Martyrs' Cetery? Or let the local governnt know, so they can build a special cetery for them."
Qin Ye waved his hand and said, "No need. They said as long as they can return ho, it's enough. There's no need for a grave or a monunt. Naked we ca, and naked we shall go; Washan Hill is their root. Let them rest in the arms of Washan Hill."
His words were deeply moving.
Since the old man had made up his mind,
Chen Fang had nothing more to say.
He then refilled the grave with earth.
Logically, since it was a grave, there should at least be a mound, but the old man also said that wasn't necessary; flattening the surface would suffice.
After finishing all this,
it was already past three in the afternoon.
Chen Fang was also exhausted.
By the ti he took the bus back to downtown Rongjiang City, it was already past five in the evening.
Covered in dust and dirt,
Chen Fang was just about to say goodbye and find a hotel to take a good bath and rest when the old man said, "Ah Fang, look, you missed lunch because you were helping . Let treat you to dinner."
"There's no need, Grandpa Qin…"
He was about to refuse,
but worried the old man wouldn't have a place for dinner.
After thinking it over, he said, "How about I treat you instead?"
"That's fine,"
the old man agreed imdiately without a second thought.
He casually pointed to a grand restaurant behind him and said, "How about we go to this Riches House?"
He certainly knew how to pick.
Even though Chen Fang rarely visited the provincial capital, he had heard of Riches House. It was one of the most upscale restaurants in Rongjiang City, and once inside, it was impossible to leave without spending several thousand.
Thinking of the old man as a hero,
Chen Fang was reassured and said, "Alright, this one it is."
It was also fortunate.
The last private room was secured by the two of them.
After being led into the private room by the waiter, Chen Fang handed the nu to Qin Ye.
Qin Ye didn't hold back, ordering seven or eight dishes in one go,
and they were all quite expensive ones.
Although it pained Chen Fang a bit, he held back his discomfort.
Just as they were waiting for the dishes to be served, a waiter hurried in, bowed to Chen Fang and Qin Ye, and said, "I'm very sorry, but there has been a mistake; this private room was reserved by soone else."
What is this supposed to an?
Are they trying to kick us out?
Chen Fang asked, "What should we do then? We've already ordered our food."
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