A few hours later, the military plane and the large transport plane landed at the imperial capital airport.
Zhao Liangze was already waiting to pick them up.
He had brought a convoy over to welcome Gu Nianzhi’s parents’ coffins into the National Martyrs’ Cemetery.
Gu Nianzhi and the others got down first and lined up with Zhao Liangze.
A few soldiers in military uniform carried Gu Xiangwen and his wife’s coffins down the flight of stairs.
The weather in the imperial capital was starting to heat up. Gu Nianzhi watched as her parents’ coffins were loaded into the hearse that came to receive them, and her eyes couldn’t help becoming moist again.
She took a deep breath and looked up at the blue sky. The weather was so hot that her eyes were sweating…
…
The coffins of Gu Xiangwen and his wife were finally buried at the National Martyrs’ Cemetery in the imperial capital.
Family members could visit them annually. In addition, there was also the annual public memorial held by the state.
When Gu Nianzhi had nothing to do, she would go to the memorial for her parents at the National Martyrs’ Cemetery.
She would talk to them, wipe their gravestones, and bring them some of her favorite meals and snacks.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t remember what her parents liked to eat, so she could only give them what she liked.
That day, Gu Nianzhi came again with two bouquets of Night Epiphyllum.
She placed the night epiphyllum in front of the grave, then took out a tissue from her backpack and wiped her parents’ gravestones over and over again.
“Dad, Mom, are you used to living here?”
“This is Huaxia’s National Cemetery for martyrs. The people who live here gave their lives up for this country.”
“I’m sure you guys get along well with them. You won’t feel lonely.”
Gu Nianzhi carefully plucked a fallen leaf from Gu Xiangwen’s tombstone, she nagged, “Although you guys may not care, if I’m with someone with a different outlook on life, even just saying a word will make me feel uncomfortable.”
After cleaning the tombstone, Gu Nianzhi placed the two-night epiphyllum flowers neatly in front of the two tombstones.
Her OCD was slightly triggered, and it took her a long time to arrange the two flowers into the same angle and shape.
Huo Shaoheng stood behind her and looked at her. He held a cigarette in his hand and smoked occasionally.
It was rare for him to have such leisurely time, but he did not spend it elsewhere. Every day when Gu Nianzhi came here, he would pack his things and come with her.
She stayed from morning until the sun went down, and he was never tired of it.
It was the same today.
However, not long after the sun rose, another person appeared in front of Gu Nianzhi’s parents’ tombstone.
He Zhichu.
He was wearing a casual outfit, a white custom-made linen and silk-blend shirt with a small striped collar, smoky grey straight pants in the same material, and white casual shoes. He slowly walked over.
Huo Shaoheng looked at him calmly and nodded. “Good morning, Professor He.”
He Zhichu glanced at him and frowned. “Don’t smoke so much in front of Nianzhi.”
Second-hand smoke was harmful to one’s health.
Huo Shaoheng’s fingers that were holding the cigarette twitched. In the end, he raised his hand and threw the rest of the cigarette butt into the bamboo-shaped trash can under the big tree.
Gu Nianzhi heard He Zhichu’s voice and turned to look at him. “Professor He? Why are you here?”
He Zhichu did not say anything else. He walked over to Gu Xiangwen and his wife’s tombstone and silently looked at it.
On Gu Xiangwen’s tombstone was simply written, “The grave of my late father, Gu Xiangwen. His unfilial daughter weeps.”
The photo on the tombstone was taken from Ye Xuan’s photo.
He Zhichu glanced at it and did not comment. He turned to look at Gu Xiangwen’s wife’s tombstone next to his.
He did not see the photo. He only saw a hand-painted white rose that had been sealed in plastic.
He Zhichu’s almond-shaped eyes flashed. He asked coldly, “… Where’s her photo?”
“We didn’t find any photos of her when she was alive.” Gu Nianzhi was angry when she thought about it. “That B*tch Gu Yanran destroyed all the photos of my parents.”
The family photo that Huo Shaoheng had taken at the Gu family’s villa on the Caribbean island was fake. The man and woman in it were not Gu Xiangwen and his wife at all.
When they finally saw Gu Xiangwen and his wife, they were both already dead.
Although their bodies were well preserved and lifelike in a pure nitrogen environment, they did not look like when they were alive, so it was not appropriate to use the photos of their dead bodies for the tombstones.
Fortunately, Ye Xuan’s photo of Gu Xiangwen had slipped through the purge, so it had been intercepted.
However, Gu Xiangwen’s wife was not so lucky.
Therefore, Gu Nianzhi suggested using a hand-painted white rose as her photo.
She had seen her mother’s face before. She lay quietly in the cherry-wood coffin, beautiful and clean, as beautiful as a white rose.
He Zhichu pursed his lips and said softly, “… You feel the same way too huh… you don’t even have a photo. Where did you get your affection?”
Gu Nianzhi was annoyed by He Zhichu’s tone and immediately said, “That’s my parents. Where do you think my affection came from?!”
She stood in the middle of Gu Xiangwen and his wife’s tombstone and looked like she was protecting her children.
He Zhichu was not very happy, but he was amused by Gu Nianzhi’s expression.
He shook his head and scoffed, “… You’re still quite protective of them.”
“Of course I’m going to protect them. I’m all they have left!” Gu Nianzhi’s eyes were red as she finished speaking. She clenched her fists and glared fiercely at He Zhichu.
Huo Shaoheng walked over and put his arm around Gu Nianzhi’s shoulder. He said calmly to He Zhichu, “Professor He, please have some self-respect in front of my in-laws. Otherwise, I don’t mind teaching you a few lessons on their behalf.”
“You?” He Zhichu glanced at Huo Shaoheng scornfully. “Did they acknowledge you?”
Without waiting for Huo Shaoheng to retaliate, he immediately turned to Gu Nianzhi and asked with concern, “Where have you been these past few days? I couldn’t get through to you on the phone.”
Actually, he knew where Gu Nianzhi had gone.
Gu Nianzhi’s GPS on her phone showed her coordinates at all times.
When He Zhichu saw that she was heading to the southernmost port city in the south, he thought she was on vacation, so he didn’t disturb her.
It wasn’t until she returned and started travelling between Huo Shaoheng’s official residence and the National Martyrs’ cemetery daily that she curiously came over to take a look.
“I went out to pick up my parents a few days ago.” Gu Nianzhi ran her hands through her hair that had been blown away by the wind. She was in a low mood. “Now that they’re here, I can come and accompany them every day.”
With that, she picked up the small broom that had been placed there a long time ago and started sweeping the front and back of the two tombstones.
He Zhichu stood at the side and watched Gu Nianzhi busily work with a complicated expression.
Huo Shaoheng glanced at He Zhichu and calmly said, “You’re very disappointed.”
He said it with a definitive tone.
He Zhichu lazily crossed his arms and leaned against a big tree in front of the tombstone. He sneered. “Yes, I’m very disappointed. I thought you were the one who moved in…”
Huo Shaoheng said, “…”
Gu Nianzhi’s heart skipped a beat when she heard that. She quickly turned around and said, “Ptui Ptui Ptui! Let the bad things not work and the good things do! Professor He, if you continue to spout nonsense, my parents won’t welcome you to visit them!”
He Zhichu’s face changed and he turned to leave, saying coldly, “… Who cares!”
There was a wave of strange anger and stifling in his cold, clear voice.
Gu Nianzhi stared at He Zhichu’s back and said childishly, “Hmph! I’m just not going to ask you! You can keep it in till you die!”
Huo Shaoheng said, “…”
He suddenly had a headache.
After the two of them returned from the National Martyrs’ Cemetery, Gu Nianzhi was still a little worried. She tried calling He Zhichu, but she couldn’t get through.
She was silent for a while and whispered to Huo Shaoheng,”… I think Brother He blocked me.”
Huo Shaoheng looked up from the military magazine and glanced at her, “I couldn’t wish more for it.”
Gu Nianzhi said, “…”
…
Time seemed to pass very quickly when two people who were in love were together.
It didn’t take long for Huo Shaoheng’s vacation to be almost half over.
That day, after Gu Nianzhi woke up and washed up, she saw Huo Shaoheng sitting at the dining table reading the newspaper. She asked casually, “What are you reading? Why are you so engrossed in it?”
Huo Shaoheng put down the newspaper and pressed it to the side. He picked up the knife and smeared blueberry jam on the bread. He then placed the piece of bread with the jam in front of Gu Nianzhi and said, “The cover page report on your parents’ deeds has finally come out today.”
Gu Nianzhi did some calculations. It was the 35th day after her parents’ bodies had been discovered. It was the most important 57th day of a Southerner’s funeral.
Gu Nianzhi did not understand this tradition, but she had carefully searched for information about ceremonies and funerals.
Although no one around her taught her this, she could search for it herself.
Online children were fearless.
Gu Nianzhi pursed her lips. She knew that the timing was definitely not a coincidence. It must have been arranged by Huo Shaoheng.
“Thank you for making this arrangement,” Gu Nianzhi said softly and poured black pepper sauce on Huo Shaoheng’s steak.
Huo Shaoheng looked at her without batting an eyelid, his slender fingers dragging his plate over. “You’re still being polite with me? They’re my in-laws too.”
“In-laws?” The word came out of Huo Shaoheng’s mouth naturally and sincerely.
Gu Nianzhi felt a surge of warmth in her heart that flowed into her limbs and bones. Her gloomy mood, which had been clouded for almost a month, instantly improved.
Just as she was about to drink milk, her phone rang.
She took it over and saw that it was Xiao Ye, the great beauty.
She picked up the phone and answered with a smile, “Miss, what’s the matter?”
Because Huo Shaoheng was on vacation for the past month, Gu Nianzhi stayed with him at the official residence and gave Xiao Ye a vacation.
With Huo Shaoheng as her “Personal bodyguard”, she did not need anyone else around.
Xiao Ye took this opportunity to go home and live with her parents.
She had been on the job for many years. From a young girl who had just graduated from college, she was now almost 30 years old.
Her parents were very anxious and had begun to arrange blind dates for her.
Xiao Ye had been very annoyed these days. She called Gu Nianzhi early in the morning to complain and wanted to cancel her leave early so she could go back to “work”.
Gu Nianzhi could not help laughing when she thought of the valiant and beautiful “Killing Machine” Xiao Ye going on blind dates.
She shook her head, smiled and said, “I can’t my little sister. You’ve worked so hard for so many years. It’s not easy for you to have a holiday, so you should spend more time with your parents. Don’t be like me. I can’t even be with my parents if I want to. If my parents were still alive, I would do whatever they wanted me to.”
Xiao Ye was stunned for a moment, but her frustration at her parents forcing her to go on a blind date had lessened considerably.
She sat cross-legged on the bay window in her room and said with a smile, “What if your parents let you go on a blind date? Are you willing to let Young Master Huo go?”
Gu Nianzhi stole a glance at Huo Shaoheng. He was so focused on cutting the steak that he probably didn’t hear her talking to Xiao Ye.
She pretended to pick something up and slipped down from the chair, hiding under the table. She hugged her phone with both hands and whispered, “… If they want me to go, I’ll go…”
Just as she finished speaking, a pair of long legs appeared in front of her.
She looked up and saw Huo Shaoheng’s handsome face looking down at her. He said with a smile that was not a smile, “… You should say things out loud if you dare. Don’t hide under the table. Is your skin itching again?”
