Six or seven points like

"Yes, post-war reconstruction is so important, it'll keep us busy for a while." Ji Yuxing felt a headache coming on just thinking about it; this matter was really too heavy on his shoulders.

He Zhonghua remained silent for a few seconds after listening. This matter was not only a headache for Ji Yuxing, but also for him, the newly appointed person in charge of Shanghai.

After a while, he added, "Besides work, do you have any other plans?"

"Yes, I should go to Shandong."

Because of Zhang Chenglin's appearance, Shandong was a place that all three of them were too sensitive to, so Ji Yuxing's simple sentence caused the two people present to be on edge.

"What are you going to Shandong for?" He Zhonghua reacted the fastest, and by the time he realized what was happening, the question had already been asked.

"I think Xiao Qi has been selected."

When talking about Zhang Qizhong, Ji Yuxing's eyes were full of gentleness. Since Zhang Chenglin and Chai Feixue left one after another in 1937 and 1938, Ji Yuxing rarely had a gentle expression on his face. If he did, it was only in front of Zhang Qizhong or when he mentioned Zhang Qizhong.

He's been very busy these past few years, constantly traveling to different places to fight, so he's had very little time to return to Shandong.

He only met Zhang Qizhong a total of four times.

The meaning of Zhang Qizhong's name was so auspicious to him that he always referred to him as "Qizhong" or "Little Qizhong" in conversation over the past few years. Gradually, he forgot about Zhang Qizhong's nickname. Even his colleagues who later learned of Zhang Qizhong's existence did not know that Zhang Qizhong actually had a nickname.

Ji Ruqiong has somehow been influenced by him and now rarely calls him "Sui Sui" anymore, instead calling him "Qi Zhong" instead.

"We'll see when the time comes. If it's convenient, let's call Lao Zheng and Peng Xi and go take a look together." He Zhonghua's tone was unusually wistful: "I only saw him once when Xiao Qizhong was very young. I guess he wouldn't recognize me if I saw him again now."

“Sure.” Ji Yuxing agreed to the first part of his statement, and Ji Ruqiong immediately added the second part: “We’ll definitely get to know each other.”

Her words were highly debatable. He Zhonghua raised an eyebrow, his eyes full of disbelief and skepticism.

Ji Ruqiong simply smiled and offered no explanation.

——

On the third and final day of the conference, the third agenda item was held in the morning—to commend and commemorate the heroic martyrs who fought bravely in the war, and the closing ceremony was held in the afternoon.

At the meeting, Party Vice Chairman Dai Zining read out the names of heroes who fought bravely and made meritorious contributions during the War of Resistance Against Japan and commended them on the spot.

The Party's Premier Lu Xiaoran read out the names of the martyrs who bravely and heroically sacrificed their lives in the War of Resistance against Japan, posthumously awarded them merits, and extended condolences to their families.

After the two lists were read aloud, representatives of the leaders during the War of Resistance Against Japan, Zou Yechun, Xu Xuanming, Huo Shangzhi, and Zhong Shuhuai, delivered speeches, summarizing the course of the war and praising comrades who made significant contributions in their respective regions.

"...In the Battle of Handan, Hebei in 1937, Comrade Zhang Chenglin feigned surrender to the Japanese army, exchanged 100,000 silver dollars for it, and mobilized the masses to deliver the 100,000 silver dollars to Shanghai and Shandong as soon as possible, providing timely material support to Shanghai and Shandong, and giving the two places more confidence and strength in the subsequent battles..."

"...Heroes emerge in times of chaos. Comrade Zhang Chenglin's contributions to Shandong in 1937 proved invaluable during the two years of turmoil that followed. Young students from Peking University, Tsinghua University, and other prestigious institutions also shone brightly in the defense of Beiping. This allowed me, and even more so the Party and the nation, to see the power of the younger generation. This force will ultimately work alongside the Party to propel China toward a more prosperous and powerful tomorrow..."

Both Zhong Shuhuai and Huo Shangzhi mentioned Zhang Chenglin in their speeches. Every time Dai Zining on stage heard it, she would smile kindly. Every time Ji Yuxing, He Zhonghua, Gong Jingyi and others sitting in the audience heard it, they would smile silently in their hearts and say to themselves, "Well deserved."

Five days after the conclusion of the People's Congress following the war, Ji Yuxing, He Zhonghua, Zheng Mingzhe, and Peng Xi went to Shandong to visit Feng Yue and Zhang Qizhong.

He Zhonghua originally wanted to bring Huo Yao along, but Huo Yao's father caught a cold and she went home to take care of him. So He Zhonghua could only visit Huo Yao's father and then come to Shandong with Ji Yuxing and the others.

As for Ji Ruqiong, she was bound to come along to Shandong to visit Fengyue, but the day before their departure, Dai Zining took Ji Ruqiong to Beiping.

Ji Yuxing felt that Dai Zining wanted to give Ji Ruqiong an important position, and after much persuasion, he finally convinced Ji Ruqiong to go to Beiping first.

After what happened with Zhang Chenglin and Chai Feixue, Ji Ruqiong actually just wanted to live a quiet life at home, spending her days with her loved ones. For her, that was the best life.

However, given the current situation, if he had to choose, Ji Yuxing would still want her to prioritize the country and its people, to contribute to the nation and its people, and to sacrifice her own family for the greater good. Perhaps with her, countless families could be reunited.

When He Zhonghua first saw Zhang Qizhong, he froze on the spot, and almost instantly realized what Ji Ruqiong had said to him that day: "We will definitely get to know each other."

Zhang Qizhong's features are so similar to Zhang Chenglin's that anyone who has met Zhang Chenglin will immediately think about the relationship between the two when they see Zhang Qizhong.

But as He Zhonghua looked at him, he also vaguely saw the shadow of another person in him...

He Zhonghua couldn't help but shift his gaze to Feng Yue, who was talking to Peng Xi and Zheng Mingzhe beside him. He lowered his eyes and ultimately said nothing.

Peng Xi and Feng Yue cooked lunch together, and after they finished eating, they chatted in the courtyard.

After a long while, Ji Yuxing went out for a while. When he returned, Fengyue was waiting for him at the gate.

"What's wrong?" Ji Yuxing asked, holding Zhang Qizhong's hand, his eyes filled with confusion as he looked at Feng Yue.

Feng Yue didn't answer his question at first, but instead reached out her hand to Zhang Qizhong. Zhang Qizhong obediently took her hand and stood beside her. Feng Yue squatted down and said to Zhang Qizhong gently, "Sui Sui, why don't you go play with Aunt Peng Xi for a while? Mommy will talk to Uncle Ji for a bit."

"Okay." Zhang Qizhong replied and ran into the door first. Feng Yue watched him go to Peng Xi's side before she reached out and closed the door.

"Where...is his grave?" Fengyue asked softly. The autumn wind at the end of August was still a bit hot, and with a gentle gust, it swept away most of the speaker's voice.

The fact that Zhang Chenglin's grave was not placed in a martyrs' cemetery has become a hot topic of conversation among the people in the streets and alleys. Even when people go out to buy things, they hear a lot of discussion about it.

Some say he landed in Beiping, the last place he ever visited in his life, the capital city he had always longed for.

Some say it landed in Shanghai, where Jiang Yuanxing could offer a splendid afterlife.

Some say he settled in Shandong, where his home is, and that he will eventually return to his roots.

Some say it ended up in Taiwan, which was the last bit of brotherly affection Zhang Shengmin could give him.

Fengyue didn't know the answer to this question either, so at this moment, she threw this question at her last straw, thinking... Ji Yuxing should know.

Ke Jixing stood in front of her, silent for a long time. Just when Feng Yue thought he was going to say he didn't know, he suddenly spoke up and said, "It landed in the place he wanted to go most in his life."

Ji Yuxing couldn't give her a definite answer to this question either, but Fengyue wasn't disappointed because Ji Yuxing said that she had landed in the place he most wanted to go in his life.

That would be perfect.

Since that was the case, Fengyue stopped dwelling on the issue and instead talked to Ji Yuxing about something else.

For Fengyue, the same thing happened. Only Ji Yuxing could help her, but it was too troublesome. Whether Ji Yuxing helped or not was reasonable, so Fengyue was very calm and just waited for an answer.

After hearing her words, Ji Yuxing didn't hesitate for a second and immediately nodded in agreement: "Okay, leave the approval to me. If you have any questions later, just have someone write to me and I will help you solve them as soon as I see them."

Feng Yue lowered her eyes, but her brows and eyes were full of smiles: "Thank you."

“Saying such things,” Ji Yuxing looked at her, a slight smile appearing on his lips as if he had thought of something, “is too formal.”

Around 4 p.m., the group said goodbye to Fengyue and prepared to return home.

On the way to the train station, Zheng Mingzhe and his family of three rode in one car, while Ji Yuxing and He Zhonghua rode in another.

Halfway there, He Zhonghua suddenly spoke up: "I found a photo in my hometown the other day."

Ji Yuxing looked up at him, waiting for him to continue.

"It must have been when I was only six or seven years old. The photo includes me, Ah Lin, and Gu Shiyue, the eldest daughter of the Gu family back then." He Zhonghua said with a smile, "I just realized that I met Ah Lin when I was so young."

Ji Yuxing didn't respond for a moment, knowing that this was definitely not what he wanted to say, so he waited quietly for him to continue.

“I didn’t have much contact with Gu Shiyue. I only admired her for a while when I was eleven or twelve, just like those young masters in Shanghai. I don’t have much of an impression of her.” He Zhonghua said, then suddenly changed the subject: “But the little girl in that photo looks six or seven parts like Zhang Qizhong, whom I saw today.”

A faint smile slowly crept into Ji Yuxing's eyes, knowing that he was finally about to ask the important question.

"So you're saying there's a possibility..." He Zhonghua carefully chose his words and phrases before asking his guess.

It's her.

Before He Zhonghua could finish asking his question, Ji Yuxing affirmed it.

The woman now known as Fengyue is none other than Gu Shiyue, the once-renowned eldest daughter of the Gu family in Shanghai.

"You knew?" He Zhonghua frowned deeply, his eyes filled with criticism that he had kept quiet about it.

“Ah Lin mentioned it before.” Now that things had come to this, Ji Yuxing no longer hid it from him and told the truth.

"Ah Lin knows too?" He Zhonghua was bewildered.

"Mm." Ji Yuxing nodded.

"Did Ah Lin come to Shandong because of Gu Shiyue?" He Zhonghua felt that he always had some inexplicable thoughts in his head, but he felt uncomfortable if he didn't ask.