bookcurios Chapter 1799 Pen Pal
Chapter 1799 Pen Pal
The case is basically closed at this point.
The law has provided a fair and compassionate ruling; all that's needed now is to apply for a court ruling.
Li Xiangnan had been in Luzhou for the past few days. In his spare time, he looked at the scenery of Luzhou and took the opportunity to talk to Zhang Zhidong about the general reform path of Southern Anhui Province in the future.
He originally planned to return to Yanjing the day after the event, but Zhang Zhidong was so enthusiastic that he insisted on staying a few more days.
There was no other way; Li Xiangnan had a deep affection for his hometown of southern Anhui, and Zhang Zhidong, despite his advanced age, was not ashamed to ask him questions. He took this opportunity to express his personal thoughts in a thorough manner.
Of course, he hadn't been idle these past few days. He had been wandering around the city with Defa, trying to find out where Mu Huanrong was staying. Unfortunately, they hadn't found anything.
On a sunny afternoon, Li Xiangnan pushed Chen Hanguo in a wheelchair for a walk in the backyard of the Municipal Bureau.
The warm sunshine dispelled the chill of late autumn and seemed to soothe the heart-stopping events of the past few days.
"Hanguo, how have you been feeling these past few days? Is there anything that's bothering you? You must tell me while I'm still here!"
Li Xiangnan stopped, reached out and sat down on the stone bench opposite him, looking at the boy in front of him with a calm gaze.
Chen Hanguo's eyes had become much clearer. Although they still carried the weakness of someone recovering from a serious illness and a moment of barely perceptible confusion, they were no longer the kind of chaotic state that someone else had taken over.
Upon hearing this, he shook his head, his voice soft, but much clearer than before.
"Brother Li, I'm fine now... It just feels like I had a very long and terrible dream... I feel very tired."
Do you remember what happened in your dream?
Li Xiangnan asked tentatively, wanting to confirm whether Hu Jianjun's personality still existed, or what mark he had left on Chen Hanguo.
Chen Hanguo frowned slightly, as if trying hard to recall something, but in the end he shook his head in confusion.
"I can't remember clearly... I just occasionally see some chaotic images... There were many people, and it was very noisy... I feel sad and angry when I think about those things..."
He paused here, then looked up with a hint of fear in his eyes.
"Brother Li, they...they all say there's another person living inside me, is that true? The way they look at me...is it like...I'm a monster?"
Seeing the genuine fear and self-doubt in his eyes, Li Xiangnan smiled and patted him on the shoulder in a hearty manner.
"Han Guo, you're not a monster! In many people's eyes, you're a hero! It's just that you happened to fall ill. Now that the root cause has been found, it will be easier to treat. Professor Lu and the others, and I, will keep an eye on you! You will definitely get better!"
Chen Hanguo nodded and breathed a sigh of relief, "So it was an illness!"
Li Xiangnan hummed in agreement, then, as if suddenly remembering something, asked, "By the way, before you had that dream, or rather, after you got into university, did anything special happen? Like... did you make any new friends? Or did you receive anything special?"
Chen Hanguo's eyes flickered almost imperceptibly. He subconsciously avoided Li Xiangnan's gaze and looked down at the fallen leaves on the ground.
After a long while, as if he had recalled enough, he shook his head and said, "In my memory, nothing special happened. I studied, took exams, studied and took exams, my life was very ordinary, just like everyone else's!"
His subtle movements did not escape Li Xiangnan's notice.
He understood perfectly well that Chen Hanguo was hiding something.
Behind this concealment may lie the key to Hu Jianjun's personality, the key to truly choosing him and then making contact with him!
Li Xiangnan took out a cigarette from his pocket, smoked the whole thing, and then decided not to ask any further questions.
At this moment, it would not be wise to press a young man who has just experienced a dramatic change and is emotionally unstable.
In the darkness, Li Xiangnan could sense that there was an invisible thread connecting Chen Hanguo to events from twenty years ago.
However, Li Xiangnan has been pondering these past few days what exactly this line is.
Even now, facing Chen Hanguo, he still couldn't guess.
Perhaps, as Zhang Zhidong said, it really does require time and opportunity to discover.
"Alright, let's go back!" Li Xiangnan stood up, pushed the wheelchair away, and said, "We'll walk around their playground, then go back to the room to rest!"
At this point, he added, "You must take good care of yourself and stay healthy. Of course, as a top student, you should also focus on your studies and become a pillar of the nation!"
Sunlight shone on the two of them as they strolled and stopped in the backyard.
As they approached the stairwell, Chen Hanguo suddenly tugged at Li Xiangnan's sleeve.
"Brother Li... will you... come to see me in the future?"
Li Xiangnan smiled and patted the child, who wasn't much younger than him, on the shoulder. "Of course I will. I'm from southern Anhui, and I'll come back to Luzhou whenever I have the chance!"
A glimmer of hope suddenly ignited in the boy's eyes.
"I miss you. Can I write to you?"
"Of course!" Li Xiangnan felt a warmth in his heart and gave an affirmative answer at that moment, "Write down my address and write to me anytime!"
"it is good!"
The next day, Li Xiangnan bid farewell to the reluctant Zhang Zhidong and prepared to return to Yanjing.
However, an unexpected visitor disrupted Li Xiangnan's schedule.
"Xiao Li, Defa! I've heard about it for a long time. Oh my, thanks to you, the case in Luzhou has been cleared of a grievance from twenty years ago! Our Honghui Chamber of Commerce and many fellow villagers are deeply grateful!"
Hu Yubin immediately shook Li Xiangnan's hand warmly, saying, "Now that we're here, why not travel another 600 miles south to go back and take a look!"
Li Xiangnan and Wang Defa exchanged a glance and saw that the other had the same thought in his eyes.
After days of tireless investigation, everyone's nerves were on edge and they really needed to relax. Li Xiangnan had indeed had this idea in mind and had even discussed it with Ruobai, but he was worried about her health and didn't put it into action.
This is good...
"I've got the car all ready!" As if afraid Li Xiangnan would refuse, Hu Yubin pointed outside the courtyard, where Dong Chengfang was already standing by the car, waving enthusiastically.
"Haha, since Chairman Hu has so kindly invited us, then we would be impolite to refuse! Perfect!" Li Xiangnan agreed with a smile, then turned to say goodbye to Zhang Zhidong, "Uncle Zhang, I'll be going now, I'll come to see you again during the New Year!"
"Thank you!"
He didn't say anything more than those two words.
But true feelings cannot be replaced by any amount of words.
Li Xiangnan nodded, and under his earnest gaze, got into the car and left.
The destination, 600 miles away, also gave Li Xiangnan a sense of trepidation, as if he were approaching home.
However, while Li Xiangnan and his group were heading to Hongshan County, Chen Hanguo, accompanied by his family, went to sweep the graves of Hu Jianjun's family of five.
The tombstone was prepared by Li Xiangnan and his family, who also helped with the burial. The tombstone is engraved with the names of Hu Jianjun's family of five, including the unborn Hu An.
Many people from Luzhou came to pay their respects to the unfortunate Hu Jianjun family, creating a poignant scene.
After the memorial ceremony, Chen Hanguo asked his family to wait for him at the foot of the mountain, saying that he wanted to be alone for a while.
After everyone left, only Chen Hanguo remained in the entire cemetery.
The autumn wind swept by, swirling up countless withered leaves, creating an extremely desolate scene.
The naivety and confusion on Chen Hanguo's face faded, replaced by a complex and indescribable emotion.
After lighting three cigarettes for Hu Jianjun, he glanced around to make sure no one was watching, then slowly pulled out a large stack of yellowed, torn letters from his pocket.
Over the years, he has read these letters countless times.
He knelt down and burned all the letters in front of the grave.
The flames flickered, greedily devouring the yellowed letters.
The writing and ink twisted and changed color in the flames, eventually turning into wisps of smoke and a pile of ashes.
Looking at the flickering flames, Chen Hanguo spoke softly in a voice that was deep yet clear and mature, in a way that belied his age:
"Brother Hu, your family can rest in peace now! Those four beasts have already paid the price!"
"I've done right by my pen pal!"
The flames flickered, and eventually the ashes were blown away by the wind and completely disappeared.
Chen Hanguo stood up, took one last look at the tombstone, and turned to walk down the mountain.
His figure, silhouetted against the autumn sun, appeared exceptionally lonely, yet also as light as if a tremendous burden had been lifted from its shoulders…