Chapter 134 - I Made a Promise to Him (1/2)

Chapter 134 (I Made a Promise to Him) The Last Words of Zhao Yuan’s Dead Father Engraved on Their Minds

Zheng Zihuan’s funeral was very simple. Not long afterward, Zheng Kai took his father’s ashes home and buried his father’s cinerary casket in a cemetery in the county where Zheng Zihuan had spent 12 years with his wife and child.

Zheng Kai had insisted on not letting people pay tribute to his father, so the four guys, Zhao Yuan, Lin Wenxi, Gu Xi, and Wang Xiang, had to ask around for the address for a long time. Today, they came to the cemetery together.

“Twelve years of unrequited love was burned to ashes, inch by inch. Now that the candle has turned into ash, your tears can now dry. In this way, you can leave this world with a smile.” Having said this, Lin Wenxi asked Zhao Yuan, “Did Uncle Zheng really leave with a smile?” Zhao Yuan nodded. He had smiled as if a big load had been taken off his chest, and it looked like he preferred dying. Many times Zhao Yuan thought about his smile, and all kinds of feelings would well up in his heart.

“You don’t blame Brother Kai’s mother, do you?” Lin Wenxi asked.

“I don’t blame her. She is also a pitiful woman.” Zhao Yuan said.

“If she hadn’t loved him so deeply, she would not have blamed him so much. Zheng Kai’s mother should have known that Uncle Zheng was gay, but she chose to linger on in the steadily worsening condition of their marriage. Was she unlucky or was she too crazy about Uncle Zheng? Or did she hate him too much? Otherwise, why didn’t she fulfill Uncle Zheng’s wish even when he was already dead? She wouldn’t even let his ashes be buried in his hometown. Instead, she buried him here,” Lin Wenxi asked.

“Uncle Zheng would definitely not keep that fact from her deliberately. Maybe everything was not of his own free will,” Zhao Yuan said.

“Had he known that he was gay earlier, would he have had much fewer regrets?”

“You can tell from Gu Xi’s situation whether Uncle Zheng would have felt regret or not. I only know that if he had realized it earlier, he might not have hurt another woman’s feelings. However, if that were the case, there would be no Zheng Kai in this world. If Aunt Ciyun had not met Uncle Zheng twenty-one years ago, she would not have given birth to A’kai. Would she be willing to choose that? All things are interrelated and connected, forming a cause and effect chain. It is hard for us to tell whether something is a blessing or a curse. A toast to Uncle Zheng! May his soul rest in peace.” Suddenly it seemed that Wang Xiang had seen through the vanity of the world and said something that greatly shocked Lin Wenxi.

“I only wish Brother Kai all the best.” With this, Gu Xi poured a glass of wine onto the ground.

“If there is a next life, may you be a woman and fall in love with a decent man. He is not married, and you are not married. He will play the flute for you while you will hold the torch for him.” Lin Wenxi prayed silently. He threw a glance at Wang Xiang and thought, “This Wang Xiang, will he cherish Zhang An’an in the future?” At the thought of the promiscuous sexual relations of those men in this world and the emotional specificity Zheng Zihuan had proved with his life, Lin Wenxi’s tears gradually flowed down. He reached down and gently cupped a handful of dirt in his hands with his handkerchief.

“Wenxi, what’s the matter?” Zhao Yuan asked with concern.

“It’s nothing.” Lin Wenxi held back his tears. It was not until that moonlit night, leaning against the window alone, that he shed the tears he had choked back that day.

“On his way back, the moon hanging in the sky shone on his graceful figure.” Whether it was when he was awake or asleep, this was the only sentence Lin Wenxi could remember that night.

Zhao Yuan’s father lay quietly at the foot of a mountain in his hometown. There, the rising sun shone on the river before the mountain, making the river sparkle, while the glow of the sunset reflected on the water. The scene made people feel drunk, like the feeling of first love.

Lin Wenxi heard of the funeral and hurriedly arrived in the countryside. He saw a man and a woman standing before the lonely grave.

“He met my mother here.” Zhao Yuan whispered. At this moment, the red lantern that used to be placed over the doorways was burning. The tongues of flame looked like they were sobbing and smiling. The special meaning of this lantern surpassed every unbreakable bond between lovers and every everlasting oath in this world.

Silently, Lin Wenxi scattered the pure dirt in his hands onto the ground with great care.

“Do you mind?” Lin Wenxi asked.

“I don’t mind.” Zhao Yuan answered.