Chapter 193 Departure
Luo Yang stayed in the cemetery for most of the day. He talked a lot with his comrades, expressed all the words that had been pent up in his heart, and cried heartily.
When Luo Yang stood up and said goodbye to his comrades, he felt much better. He wiped away his tears and silently told his comrades that he would come to see them again.
"No one wants to think about what happened back then. Let the past be the past. We who are still alive should live better. This is also their expectation..." On the way back, Wang Hu couldn't help but persuade Luo Yang.
Luo Yang nodded. In fact, he understood the truth, and he was not actually responsible for the tragedy that year. But if Zhou Hongqi and the others had not asked Luo Yang to run out first to find people to put out the fire, and they had stayed to continue to stop the fire from spreading, they might have burned to death.
However, there has always been a hurdle in Luo Yang's heart that he could not get over. Many times he blamed himself for not being there when his comrades needed him the most. And when he rushed back with his men, the raging flames had already swallowed up all those familiar figures.
The fire burned for three days and three nights. Their bodies were found deep in the ruins only after the fire was over. Their bodies had been burned to charcoal, but their outlines could still be vaguely discerned. Their comrades were still trying their best to put out the fire as they did at the moment before their death. When Luo Yang saw this scene, he fainted due to being unable to accept the fact.
Afterwards, Luo Yang fell seriously ill. For a long time, whenever he closed his eyes, he could see the raging flames all around him, as well as Zhou Hongqi and others shouting desperately at him.
"Go and call for help! Go and call for help! We are here! Go and call for help!"
This voice kept echoing in Luo Yang's ears, and Luo Yang could never forget it. From that day on, the cheerful Luo Yang became silent, and it was not until a long time later that he gradually recovered from the nightmare.
Although Luo Yang now looks no different from before, deep down in his heart he knows that the guilt and pain for this incident will accompany him throughout his life.
Just like what he said in front of the grave, he was a deserter and failed to stay with everyone at the most critical moment. Many times, Luo Yang even thought that if he and Zhou Hongqi were buried in the sea of fire together, it might be a relief for him.
Zhou Hongqi and his comrades left their hope of life to themselves at the last moment, but their lives were fixed at the most brilliant moment of their lives. It was for this reason that Luo Yang has been doing his best to do something for his fallen comrades, and this was an important reason why he gave up the job arranged by his parents and took Dabing and Junzi to work in the black market.
Luo Yang made a lot of money in the black market, and if he had enjoyed all the money himself, he would have lived a very good life. But in fact, most of the money he earned was sent to Zhou Hongqi and his family, because he knew that the families of these comrades needed his help more, and now he could only do his best for them in this way.
This time when Luo Yang asked for leave, he was going to visit the homes of his comrades and at the same time go back to the Great Northern Wilderness to see his brothers and sisters who were buried there.
After visiting Zhou Hongqi and the others, Luo Yang, led by Wang Hu, went to the graves of Old Man Wang and the old branch secretary again. He presented flowers to the two old men, lit a stick of incense, and kowtowed several times.
"Brother Huzi, I need your help." When they returned to the cabin in the evening, Luo Yang, who had calmed down, said to Wang Hu.
He took out a stack of money from his bag and said to Wang Hu in confusion, "I don't know when I can come back this time, and my leave will be up soon, so I won't be here for many days. Keep this money and help me repair the graves of Hongqi and the others. Every year on Qingming Festival, Winter Solstice and other memorial days, please help burn some incense and paper money..."
"Repairing the graves is no problem. I'll take care of it. As for the rest, don't worry. I'll take care of it as long as I'm here." Wang Hu agreed and pushed the money back : "Don't use the money. Although your brother Huzi is not rich, you don't need much money to live in the forest. Repairing the graves is just hard work. I can do it when I have time. As for the rest, they sacrificed their lives for the country and for this forest. These are what I should do."
Luo Yang shook his head and said, "How can I ask you to help me for nothing? This won't work..."
"Luo Yang, if you keep saying that I'll get angry. You know my temper. Put the money away. This matter is settled!" Wang Hu said bluntly . Seeing that he was so determined, Luo Yang had no choice but to nod and put away the stack of money.
Luo Yang stayed in the cabin that night and left at dawn the next day. He was going to visit the educated youth site today and then return to the county town to take the train back to Yanjing. He had been away for so many days and his vacation was about to end.
Wang Hu brought Gou Wa and accompanied Luo Yang to the educated youth site. Returning to the place where they had lived for many years, Luo Yang felt much calmer than yesterday.
From a distance, the educated youth site seemed to be the same as before, but when we got closer we found that it was not much better than ruins.
The mud houses and courtyards were built by the educated youth in the Great Northern Wilderness. Luo Yang was one of the participants. But now they are all abandoned. The educated youth who lived here have long left. With their departure, no one lives here anymore.
The ground was covered with weeds, some as tall as half a person, hiding the originally trampled path in the dense grass, making it difficult to distinguish if you don't pay attention.
Wang Hu used a hatchet to help clear the weeds on the path, walked slowly forward, and soon arrived at a small courtyard.
Standing outside the courtyard gate, Luo Yang looked at the extremely familiar place in front of him. The scene of the past flashed through his mind. He gently pushed open the half-open courtyard gate and stepped into the courtyard. The wall of the courtyard had collapsed for a large part due to disrepair, and even the yard was full of weeds and dust.
The earthen house was built with mud. Many houses of educated youth in the Great Northern Wilderness were built like this. The house in the courtyard was generally kept intact. Luo Yang pushed the door and found that it was locked. The lock had long been rusted and no one knew who had the key.
Perhaps the last educated youth who locked the door and left did so subconsciously, just like locking the door before leaving home. But he would never have thought that he might never come back after leaving. Now Luo Yang, who did not have the key, could not enter the house and could only stand outside and look into the house through the gap.
The furnishings in the house were still familiar, almost the same as when I left. However, as no one had lived there for many years, the simple furniture and belongings in the house were covered in dust and looked gray.
After staring blankly for a long time, Luo Yang felt a sense of loss in his heart. He sighed and turned away without looking back. When he and Wang Hu walked a long way along the path, he subconsciously looked back, as if he wanted to remember everything in front of him firmly in his mind, just like when he left that year.
The bus to the county town arrived on time. Before leaving, Luo Yang and Wang Hu hugged each other tightly. Wang Hu patted Luo Yang on the back and told him not to worry, that he would definitely do what he asked. He should be careful on the way back and come to see him again when he has time.
"Thank you, Brother Huzi, thank you..." Luo Yang said goodbye to Wang Hu with tears in his eyes, turned around, picked up his luggage and got into the car.
When the car started slowly and headed towards the county town, Wang Hu still stood there and silently watched Luo Yang leave. When the car drove far away and the rear of the car could no longer be seen clearly, Wang Hu sighed and subconsciously reached into his pocket to take out a cigarette.
But when he touched it, he was stunned, because the hand that reached into his pocket touched a thick stack of something. When he took it out, he found it was a thick stack of banknotes, which looked like there were thousands of yuan. He didn't know when Luo Yang secretly put it into his pocket.
"Alas..." Wang Hu subconsciously looked up in the direction of the car, trying to call the car that Luo Yang was sitting in to stop and return the money to Luo Yang. But by then the car had already gone out of sight, Wang Hu waved his hand in the air, and finally let it go helplessly.
"This kid..." Wang Hu smiled bitterly and shook his head helplessly. After thinking for a while, he picked up the dog beside him and walked slowly towards his cabin in the woods.
