Chapter 929 Forgotten Time
After staying at Wen Lifang's house until noon, Song Chaoyuan got up and said goodbye.
When leaving, Song Yuanchao asked if he could take a copy of the photo for himself as a souvenir.
After all, due to the changes in the family in the past, there are very few photos of my parents left behind, and there is no photo of my father when he was young. This photo is probably the only photo of my father Song Guangzeng when he was young left in this world.
Wen Lifang readily agreed to this request. He exchanged phone numbers with Song Yuanchao and told him that he would call him after the remake was completed.
Wen Lifang lives alone. His wife passed away a few years ago. He has a pair of children who are ten years younger than Song Yuanchao. Now his children are all abroad. He has lived in China all his life and is not used to life abroad. In addition, the house was returned to Wen Lifang due to policy a few years ago, so he moved back in.
Wen Lifang was not short of money. Not to mention that Wen Lei left all her inheritance to him, just the policy of returning the Wen family's assets in Shanghai a few years ago was enough for Wen Lifang to live a good life.
Perhaps because of his family background, Wen Lifang is quite accomplished in painting and music, and he knows how to live life well. He is proficient in English, French and German. He now works in a translation agency, but his job is very free. He can go to work when he wants and does not have to work in the office. In addition, he is also a consultant for the small theater drama troupe.
Because of their close connections and experiences, as well as the fact that they had many things in common, Song Yuanchao and Wen Lifang hit it off right away and had a very good chat.
When Song Yuanchao left, both sides had already called each other "Brother Wen" and "Brother Song".
After returning home, Song Yuanchao specially found some of his parents' belongings, but unfortunately he didn't find any words from his father and Wen Lei after checking them all. Maybe these things were buried deep in Song Guangzeng's heart after his parents got married. If he hadn't met Wen Lifang today, no one would know about it anymore.
When Lin Yan came back, she saw Song Yuanchao sitting in the study with an iron box beside him. When the iron box was opened, it contained some old things and letters of Song Yuanchao's parents. She was very surprised and asked him what he was looking for.
Song Yuanchao sighed, asked Lin Yan to sit down, and then told Lin Yan about his meeting with Wen Lifang today.
When Lin Yan learned about the past of Song Guangzeng and Wen Lei, she was shocked and filled with emotion. This story was so shocking and unexpected, it was like a plot in a novel.
"I was just thinking, Aunt Wen waited for my dad all her life, but she didn't get a happy ending. And my dad got married and had his own family. In comparison, Aunt Wen is really not worth it..."
"I don't think so." Lin Yan shook her head and said, "I think it's sensible for Dad to do this. Besides, he is the only son of your Song family. Grandpa won't agree if he doesn't get married. And even if Mom and Dad are together, it doesn't mean that Dad doesn't love Aunt Wen. Maybe he has always kept this love in his heart and hasn't told anyone."
Song Yuanchao did not speak. After a long time, he nodded silently. Perhaps Lin Yan was right. He knew very well what kind of person his father Song Guangzeng was. Moreover, how could a man who could teach many outstanding students and devote his life to education not love life?
Just as Lin Yan said, although Song Guangzeng loved Aunt Wen, it was impossible for him to be with her at that time. In this case, what was wrong with Song Guangzeng getting married and having children from a rational point of view? He later buried this feeling in his heart and gave his love to his wife and children.
"I'm going to Gusu tomorrow."
"Are you going to see Aunt Wen?"
Song Yuanchao nodded, and Lin Yan held Song Yuanchao's hand and asked, "Do you want me to go with you?"
"No, I can go alone. It's not far anyway. I can go there and come back soon. You are busy with work. You accompanied me in the hospital a few days ago. You must have worked hard. Take a good rest these days. There is no need to go back and forth."
"Okay, you just recovered from your illness, so drive safely." Lin Yan thought about it and didn't force her. After all, Wen Lei was the former lover of Song Yuanchao's father, Song Guangzeng, and it was only right for Song Yuanchao to go and see her, but there was no need for Lin Yan to do so. What's more, what Song Yuanchao said was not wrong. Lin Yan had a lot of work on her hands these days. In addition to the work of the advertising company, she also had work for the charity foundation, and she really couldn't get away.
The next morning, Song Chaoyuan drove to the cemetery. When he arrived, the cemetery administrator was curious to see Song Chaoyuan, who had been there two days ago.
Song Yuanchao made up an excuse to get rid of the other party, and did not ask him to help him get anything. He just took a bouquet of flowers and walked towards the depths of the cemetery.
Wen Lei's grave is not far from the graves of Song Guangzeng and his wife, and the two are only about 30 meters apart. Following the sign below, Song Yuanchao easily found the place. The size of this grave is similar to other graves, but it is a newly built grave that is slightly more elaborate.
Wen Lei's name, birth date, and death date are engraved on the tombstone. At the bottom are the burial date and the words "nephew Wen Lifang stood in tears."
The tombstone is made of granite, and inlaid in the center is a porcelain photo of Wen Lei. In the photo, Wen Lei appears as an old lady with kind features, her body slightly leaning to the left, and she is wearing dark clothes. Because it is a black and white photo, no color can be seen.
Wen Lei's face vaguely resembled what she looked like when she was young. She looked at Song Yuanchao with a faint smile and gentle eyes, as if she was right in front of him.
Song Yuanchao stood silently in front of the tomb. After a long time, he placed the flowers in his hand in front of the tomb, then bowed three times to Wen Lei. After bowing, he said to Wen Lei: "Aunt Wen, hello, my name is Song Yuanchao, and I am Song Guangzeng's son. I am very sorry that I only learned about you yesterday and came late. For what happened back then, I apologize to you on behalf of my father, but I think he must have you in his heart. Now that you can accompany him, he will be very happy, and my mother won't mind."
As he said these words, Song Chaoyuan seemed to see Wen Lei smiling and nodding to him, as if she heard what he said and understood what he meant. For a moment, Song Yuanchao was filled with emotion. He stood in front of Wen Lei's tomb for a long time, until he bowed to Wen Lei three times before saying goodbye and leaving.
On the way back to Shanghai, Song Chaoyuan was playing Tsai Chin's old songs in his car. Tsai Chin has a unique voice and is one of Song Yuanchao's favorite singers. The song "Forgotten Time" echoed in the car with an infinite sense of sadness.
In the soothing song, Song Yuanchao recalled many past events, some from his past life and some from this life. Unconsciously, his thoughts filled his heart along with the song.
It was already afternoon when he returned to Shanghai. Song Chaoyuan passed by the old alley where he used to live. He thought for a moment and turned the steering wheel to drive in that direction. He arrived at the place very quickly. He parked the car on the side of the road, got out of the car, locked the door, and walked towards the alley.
"Yuanchao, how come you have time to come here today?" As soon as he entered the alley, an old neighbor greeted Song Yuanchao, seeming a little surprised that Song Yuanchao came back.
After Song Yuanchao moved out, Luo Yang lived in this house for a while. Later, Luo Yang also moved out, and then this house became empty. Except for the servants from Song Yuanchao's family who came to help clean every once in a while, Song Yuanchao has not been back for a long time.
People in the alley were well-informed about gossip. Everyone knew that Song Yuanchao had been admitted to the Imperial University of Peking and went to work in Nanjing after graduation.
Many of Song Yuanchao's neighbors were not happy about his going to work in Jinling. They privately said that going to college was not a big deal. How could a college student go to Jinling become a country bumpkin? Did Song Yuanchao make some mistakes in college and was sent to Jinling? Otherwise, why would he be assigned like this?
Some of the people who said these words expressed regret, some were puzzled, and of course some were gloating. After all, it was no small matter for Song Yuanchao to be admitted to university in the alleys. Many people said that the Song family now had another college student. It seemed that the Song family was indeed a family of scholars, but they were different from ordinary people.
Therefore, there were many people who were envious and jealous. After Song Yuanchao went to work in Jinling, these envious and jealous people couldn't help but make strange remarks, as if the previous psychological imbalance suddenly found an outlet.
But later, Song Chaoyuan did well in Jinling, and later it was heard that Song Yuanchao became the chairman of Si Te, and this matter gradually became known to everyone. Then Song Yuanchao moved away after getting married, and it was said that he had a better place to live. Everyone's perception of Song Chaoyuan changed again, and they said all kinds of things about him in private.
Of course he knew the neighbor who greeted Song Yuanchao. He was the familiar old man of the Qian family. The old man was over eighty years old, but still in good health. He was playing chess with a few old friends at a chess stall near the inside of the alley.
"Grandpa Qian, I haven't seen you for a while. I hope you are in good health." Song Yuanchao greeted him with a smile.
"I'm fine!" Mr. Qian grinned and said, "I'll continue to drink three or two glasses of wine a day, smoke cigarettes, practice boxing, play with birds, and play chess. I'll try to live to be ninety-nine!"
"Hahaha, but ninety-nine seems too low. With your body, you can easily reach over a hundred!"
"You're just a little bastard who can talk. Come on, have a cigarette!" Old Man Qian picked up the cigarette box beside him and took out a cigarette and threw it to Song Yuanchao.
"Hey, you're smoking Zhonghua now? This cigarette gets better the more you smoke it!" Song Chaoyuan took the cigarette and said with a smile, then took out a lighter and lit it for Mr. Qian first.
"I'm old and smoking makes me cough easily. The kids at home asked me to smoke better and less, so I changed my cigarettes. At first I changed to foreign cigarettes like Marlboro, but they were too strong and I couldn't get used to them. After changing a lot, I found this cigarette better and I don't cough when I smoke it." Mr. Qian answered with a Versailles expression.
"That makes sense!" Song Chaoyuan gave a thumbs up and praised sincerely.
