In a dim bar in Longcheng, Yu Mingyuan sat in a corner, drinking strong liquor alone.
Since the end of the war, Yu Mingyuan has become taciturn and extremely decadent. At first, Su Tianyu wanted him to take over the work of the association, because after the 1975 conference, everyone knew that Lao Li would have to retire in the next term, and after the decentralization of various units, Yu Mingyuan was the most suitable for this position.
But unfortunately, no matter how Su Tianyu persuaded him, Yu Mingyuan was unwilling to take up the main position. In the end, Gou Liuzi had no choice but to give him the title of vice president of the association, but he was also absent-minded, rarely went to the unit, and rarely appeared in public.
Dabai even came back from Bana City several times specifically to drink with him and enlighten him.
But when the two met, they talked about their entrepreneurial days, thought of Tonghui, thought of Kong Zhenghui's betrayal, and those good times, and they actually hugged each other and cried.
Su Tianyu saw that this was not going to work. Yu Mingyuan's illness was not cured, and Dabai was about to become depressed. In the end, he could only verbally restrict Foreign Minister Bai from entering the country and not allow him to visit Yu Mingyuan again.
In fact, Gou Liuzi knew in his heart that Yu Mingyuan was the one who couldn't get over the hurdle in his heart, and he blamed himself for many things.
…
In the bar, Su Tianyu walked to the table, bent down and sat opposite Yu Mingyuan.
Yu Mingyuan raised his head with drunken eyes, his expression was dull for three seconds, and then he asked with a stiff tongue: "You... why are you here?"
"You want to drink, otherwise why are you here? I'm already married, how dare I flirt with women?" Su Tianyu loosened his collar, turned his head and gestured to the waiter, picked up the bottle and said, "You like to drink, right? Come on, let's drink together!"
Yu Mingyuan stared at him blankly: "You don't have to worry about me all the time. I'm an adult now. If there's anything I can't figure out, do I still need your guidance?"
"Why do I care about you so much?" Su Tianyu curled his lips: "You let go, but I still have a lot of things to do. How can I have the time to enlighten you!"
"So... are you really drinking?"
"Come on, cheers!" Su Tianyu rolled up his sleeves, took the wine glass handed over by the waiter, and started drinking with Yu Mingyuan.
The folk singer in the bar sang about youth, ideals, and his views on the world on the stage. Su Tianyu and Yu Mingyuan didn't say anything nonsense, they just clinked their glasses and drank in silence.
That night, the two of them didn't know how much they drank, but they knew that when the party was almost over, there was no one in the bar. Various strong drinks were placed on the small table, and Hou Guoyu and Daxiong, who were worried about the two of them, also went into the room to wait and protect their safety.
In the early hours of the morning, Longcheng's General Manager Su had completely lost his composure and drank under the table. He sat on the ground, rubbing his cheeks like he had ADHD, and said in a hoarse voice: "You said you wanted to do one last thing, and I promised you. But after the thing was done, you didn't come back to life! What do you mean, are you really trying to make me feel uncomfortable?"
When Yu Mingyuan heard this, he burst into tears instantly, covering his cheeks and crying, mumbling: "Fuck it, Xiaoyu... I miss Tonghui, I miss Xiaorou... I miss him too! He made a mistake... and he died, but we have been together for more than ten years!!"
Su Tianyu heard this and sat on the ground in a daze and replied: "Mingyuan, there are some things we have to accept. Gu Baishun, who hates you the most, clearly arrested you but didn't kill you. You and I are both mortals, not gods, and we can't control everything. We are still alive, and there are people around us who care about you. If you become useless, who can you be worthy of? Let's not talk about others. Do you hope that Xiaorou will come back and see you like this?!"
When Yu Mingyuan heard this, his voice trembled, and he cried and murmured: "... Xiaorou is in this situation because of me! Can she come back?"
The Sunset Plan was orchestrated by Yu Mingyuan, which directly led to the assassination of the traitor Commander Wang, the capture of the former Foreign Minister of the Military and Political Department of District 1, and even affected the direction of the war in Longcheng.
This matter could not be hidden. The people in District 1 hated Yu Mingyuan very much, especially the military units, who even thought about organizing an assassination. However, due to the tense relationship between the two sides, the other side was also afraid of an accidental discharge of the gun, so they chose to give up.
This is why Yu Mingyuan became depressed. He felt that not only did he fail to save Wen Xiaorou, but he also harmed her.
District One knows about the relationship between the two, so they still don't agree to replace Wen Xiaorou and continue to keep her under house arrest.
In the dim bar, Su Tianyu slowly raised his arm and patted Yu Mingyuan's cheek: "Hey, look at me!"
Yu Mingyuan raised his head blankly, his face full of tear marks.
"Do you believe me?"
"I fucking believe you. I always... believe you!" Yu Mingyuan was drunk and his mind was hazy.
Su Tianyu hugged his neck and said word by word: "If you come back alive, I will find a way to get Xiaorou out within three years!"
"You are comforting me."
"I swear to the heavens that she will return home within three years!" Su Tianyu glared, "It will be a great honor for the new chief of District One to solve this mess and successfully win back the previous foreign minister of the Military and Political Council. Do you understand? You just stay well and don't worry about anything. I'll take care of the rest!"
"Is there... a chance?" Yu Mingyuan's voice trembled.
"Yes, there must be!"
"Okay, okay, okay!" Yu Mingyuan said three "okay" words in a row and nodded solemnly.
The two drank all the wine on the table and left the bar with the help of Hou Guoyu, Daxiong and others.
As soon as he went out, Su Tianyu answered An Qiqi's call. He drunkenly pressed the answer button: "Hey, I said I was drinking, why are you calling me for such a long time!"
"Who are you talking to?!"
"... Sorry, I thought it was my daughter calling..." Su Tianyu staggered and immediately changed the topic: "Chief An, do you have any instructions?"
Four years ago, An Qiqi and Su Tianyu officially got married and gave birth to a son and a daughter. The boy was three years old, and the girl had just turned one.
As soon as An Qiqi heard the word "instructions", she immediately said excitedly on the phone: "I'm telling you, everything is ready here..."
Not far away, Yu Mingyuan was standing on a brightly lit street, staring at a street in a daze. Coincidentally, that street was the first office of the five founders of Longcheng when they started their business. The earliest Tongji Club rose on that street. Everyone had too many memories and youth, all left in that small courtyard.
"Let's go, brothers! Goodbye!!" Yu Mingyuan waved at the street like a lunatic, his eyes red.
Su Tianyu hung up the phone, walked over, and asked softly, "What the hell are you yelling about?"
"Haha, nothing... Say goodbye to the past." Yu Mingyuan hugged Su Tianyu's neck: "Let's go to my place and continue drinking!"
"I can't drink, brother! I have to go home. I haven't seen you for a week. If I don't go back, I won't be able to keep my girl and my wife."
"…Okay, say hello to them and their mother for me. I miss them, too."
"Get lost!"
"Haha!" Yu Mingyuan laughed.
"Okay, let him go home. We two brothers will drink with you." Hou Guoyu held Yu Mingyuan and said, "You decide how to play. We two brothers will accompany you."
"Good brother!" Yu Mingyuan nodded.
Just like that, the guards sent Su Tianyu away, while Hou Guoyu and Daxiong accompanied Yu Mingyuan to the Security Brigade and continued drinking.
…
A dark night passed.
The next day was sunny and cloudless.
Yu Mingyuan, who had a hangover last night, slowly opened his eyes while lying on the bed. When he turned his head to look around, he found that the environment in the house was extremely unfamiliar.
"Where the hell is this?" Yu Mingyuan sat on the bed, rubbed his face, frowned and muttered.
He really had a blackout last night. He just remembered that he left together with Daxiong and Hou Guoyu, but he had no idea where they went or what they did.
“Ha~!”
Yu Mingyuan yawned and was about to get out of bed with his aching body, but suddenly he found that he was wearing a brand new suit, and there was a bouquet of flowers on the table around him, and even his socks had been changed.
“… Shit, am I still dreaming?!” Yu Mingyuan began to doubt himself. He was confused and was ready to lie down and get up again.
“Bang!”
At this moment, the door was suddenly pushed open and a large group of people rushed in.
"Come on, get up quickly!" Hou Guoyu shouted loudly, his face looking very anxious.
Yu Mingyuan looked at him blankly: "... What are you doing?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Da Xiong, Qiu Ge, and even Lu Feng, Su Tianbei, Su Tiannan and others all came. A group of middle-aged men, more than 20 of them, bared their teeth and looked at him.
"I... I'm really not awake yet?" Yu Mingyuan kept questioning himself in his heart. He thought he was hallucinating because of drinking.
"Something big has happened, get up quickly!" Hou Guoyu ran over and shouted.
"What's the big deal?" Yu Mingyuan asked weakly.
"You're getting married right now, isn't that a big deal?!"
"Ah???" Yu Mingyuan had a dull expression.
"Lift him up, come on brothers, give me a hand!"
“Hualala!”
Everyone rushed forward, put new leather shoes on Yu Mingyuan without saying a word, and carried him out of the house.
"Marry what? With whom??!"
Yu Mingyuan's puzzling shout was heard in the corridor.
…
9:56 am, old General Office.
Yu Mingyuan was surrounded by people and pushed into the ceremony hall. As soon as his feet stepped on the red carpet, the wedding march sounded around him.
The music was cheerful and exciting. Yu Mingyuan turned his head and looked around, and found that the tables on both sides were already full of guests, with more than 300 people present. In addition, Li Mingsheng, An Zecheng, his aunt Yu Zhen, An Qiqi, as well as Tan Mingchao, Tan Hengqiang, and the veteran garrison commanders were all present.
This scene stunned Yu Mingyuan. He looked at the main stage in astonishment, where a banner was hung - Welcome to the wedding of Mr. Yu Mingyuan and Ms. Wen Xiaorou.
When those words appeared in Yu Mingyuan's mind, he still couldn't believe it was true.
Su Tianyu came over and said, "In order to get you drunk, I vomited all night last night!"
Yu Mingyuan looked at him blankly: "... This... This?!"
Next to him, Gu Baishun said with his hands behind his back, "The replacement of the last batch of prisoners of war was completed yesterday afternoon. If the unfortunate foreign minister had not been sent back, he might have died in Longcheng, so everything was moved up. Your wife... came back from the sea, and General Su went to pick her up in person."
Hearing this, Yu Mingyuan looked at Su Tianyu, tears instantly streaming down his face, and he cursed excitedly: "You fucking lied to me!"
Su Tianyu pointed to the back of the stage and said, "She's right there, go ahead!"
"Go ahead, don't just stand there!"
"Go ahead, bro!"
“…!”
An Qiqi and Wawa kept urging him from behind, and Yu Mingyuan gradually came to his senses. Surrounded by the best men, he walked towards the stage, step by step.
Yu Mingyuan and that woman walked on this red carpet that was less than a hundred meters long for fifteen years!
When the music played around him and the host shouted congratulations, Yu Mingyuan's mind went blank.
He quickly approached the entrance where the bride was entering, staring at the veil that blocked his view, holding a rose with tears in his eyes.
"Please invite the bride to the stage!"
After the shout, the gauze curtain was opened, and the woman who had been waiting for Yu Mingyi for more than ten years walked out in her wedding dress.
Behind her, Tan Mingchao and Wawa's daughter, as well as Su Tianyu's son, held up the hem of her wedding dress, with smiles on their faces, and clumsily scattering flower petals.
The lights in the room were focused, and Wen Xiaorou was wearing light makeup, with wrinkles on her face. She also had tears in her eyes and said softly, "They said they want to have a wedding... I don't know... Are you willing?"
Yu Mingyuan looked at him, opened his arms, and hugged her tightly: "I'm... sorry... I made you wait for so long. Of course I am willing, I should have married you a long time ago!! Thank you, Xiaorou... Thank you so much, after all these years... you are still willing to wear a wedding dress for me!"
Wen Xiaorou turned her head and wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes: "... I was there with only one belief, I had to come back and put on this dress."
The two hugged each other tightly, going through the waiting, going through the whole fifteen years.
The long-distance relationship finally ended and the wedding began in a joyful atmosphere.
In the final segment, Wen Xiaorou threw roses backwards, looking for the next lucky person who was about to get married.
But unexpectedly, the rose hit Dabai on the head. He instinctively caught it with his hand, looked around awkwardly, and murmured reservedly: "Damn, this is a clear sign that I am an adulterer! Just asking politely, is remarriage against the law?!"
"Let me remind you that General Manager Bruna's successor press conference will be held in a week." Su Tianyu replied.
"I have always been loyal to love!" Dabai said without hesitation.
"Ha ha ha ha!"
Everyone laughed.
In a joyful atmosphere, the wedding was coming to an end, and at the invitation of the master of ceremonies, everyone went on stage to take a group photo.
Yu Mingyuan and Wen Xiaorou stood in the center, with old-school generals such as An Zecheng, Li Mingsheng, and Tan Hengqiang sitting in the front row. On the left and right sides were Su Tianyu, Dabai, Fei Pingsheng, Su Tiannan, Su Tianbei, Xin Xiaodong, Tan Mingchao, Wawa, An Qiqi, and behind them were Wang Daolin, Lu Feng, Wei Xiangzuo, Gu Baishun, Daxiong, Hou Guoyu, Sun Wei, Xing Yao, Lao Qian, Yao Doudou and others.
"Everyone, smile!"
"eggplant!!!"
“Crack!”
The picture froze, and time seemed to have stopped in the 79th year of the new era.
…
Two years later, it is the 81st year of the New Era.
The political tug-of-war with District 1 finally ended, Longcheng declared independent sovereignty, and the legitimacy of its regime was publicly recognized by the coalition government.
A year later, under the close political ties between Huaqu and Longcheng and the opening of policies, a large-scale return home wave appeared in both places. Many elderly people who had been drifting overseas for half a century set out on the journey back to their hometowns, and through local organization departments and reception departments, they searched for relatives who were forced to separate in the war.
At the same time, official departments of the Chinese District and Longcheng also held cultural exchange activities based on Chinese civilization.
Su Tianyu visited the Chinese district again, bringing his wife, children, his elderly second uncle and other family members back to the old ninth district in the northeast that the old people missed so much.
In a deserted cemetery outside Songjiang City, the Su family held a ceremony to worship their ancestors.
Su Tianyu's youngest son was just five or six years old. He looked at his second grandfather, kneeling on the ground, with tears on his face, kowtowed to the newly tidied grave mound, and kept murmuring: "Mom and Dad... We are back, we are back!"
Seeing this scene, the son looked up at Su Tianyu and asked: "... Dad, why do we come here to worship our ancestors?"
Su Tianyu touched his head and responded softly: "Because this is our hometown. Our deceased relatives are buried here... Our roots are here!"
…
In the Laomo area, in the memorial hall of the Tianshenshan Battle, Jiangzhou, representing the Hua area, is visiting everything in the exhibition hall with his wife and children, followed by a group of Hua area generals.
This exhibition hall was jointly funded by Longcheng and Laomo District to commemorate the soldiers who died on this battlefield. It was they who passed through the swamps and deep forests and changed the situation in the Laomo area.
Next to a sculpture group, Jiangzhou and his group stopped to watch.
The background of this sculpture group is in a forest deep in the mountains. Sculptures of more than 30 soldiers are gathered together. Some are shooting, some are clearing ammunition, and some have fallen in the trenches.
They were ragged, pale and thin, but their eyes were firm and sharp.
Jiangzhou's son was not very old, only about six or seven years old. He held his father's hand and asked in confusion: "Dad... why did they come to such a far place to fight?"
Jiangzhou stared at the group of soldier sculptures and responded calmly: "Because they want to go home!"
"Why go home and fight?"
“Because someone won’t let them go.”
“Are they martyrs?”
“… Of course they are martyrs!” Jiang Zhou stared at the Chinese people who looked like him, and added in a hoarse voice: “They are also history, history that your generation must remember!!”
The guide came over and said emotionally: "This sculpture group recreates the Tianshenshan Battle, with scenes of the blocking of the Second Company and the Third Regiment of the Interspersed Army. They all died in the last blocking battle, with an average age of 26... The youngest was 17 years old, a new recruit who had just joined the army from Longcheng."
Jiangzhou took off his hat when he heard this and shouted, "Stand at attention!"
All the generals took off their hats and stood straight.
“Salute to our comrades who have completed this journey of thousands of miles back home!!”
As the shout fell, the surrounding generals stood at attention and saluted, including Jiangzhou's son and all the Chinese people who were visiting the memorial hall.
The journey home was thousands of miles long and took two generations nearly fifty years to finally complete the journey.
Five years later, Su Tianyu led Longcheng and Huaqu to start negotiations on "returning home".
(End of the book)