Chapter 214 Judgment
Before receiving their acceptance letters from Sheng'an Division, Qin Yue and Li Qin had sent their research notes and some manuscripts to the division as backup research materials. However, due to the Qin family's misfortunes and the car accident, their plans to report to Sheng'an Division were ultimately disrupted.
After the two died, in order to avoid the leakage of research secrets, Sheng Ansi did not send the unopened large box back to the Qin family, nor did he ever mention the matter to the Qin family, so as to avoid information security issues.
The items were stored at Sheng'an Department for more than ten years.
It wasn't until Qin Shu took the initiative to come to them, and given that so much time had passed and the original research was no longer up-to-date and had long since expired, that the Sheng'an Division returned these materials to Qin Shu.
If his childhood impression of his parents was that they were busy and lacked companionship, then now, as he rereads their notes and diaries, he truly understands for the first time what kind of people his parents are.
Their aspirations, their goals, their passion for science, their deep love for this country, and their hope that it will become better.
"...Today, on a whim, Yue and I went to a street-side barbecue stall. We chatted with the barbecue vendor, who mentioned his past dream of becoming a painter. Unfortunately, now he can only express himself through various seasonings on food, never actually picking up a brush to create a painting. It suddenly struck me how fleeting life is; some people may never be able to pursue their passions in their entire lives. Yue and I, on the other hand, have had a smooth journey, far more fortunate than most. We should be content and grateful..."
"...Today, after dinner, Yue and I took a walk to digest our food. We talked about science and human relationships, freedom and life and death. We discussed what would happen if we both grew old and passed away. The one who goes last must not be sad. The only regret is that Ashu will have no one to protect him anymore. But by then, he will surely be strong enough to protect his wife and children. He will not need to remember Yue and me then, nor will he need to grieve..."
"...From the moment a person is born, the rest of their life is a journey towards death, some sooner, some later. The advantage of science lies in making the journey less painful for everyone, in maintaining order and clearing the road when someone is eager to cut in line, so that people can walk without congestion, rather than forcibly stopping pedestrians, or even going against the current in an orderly torrent..."
"..."
Li Qin seems to be someone who loves keeping a diary. In those diaries, there are snippets of her life with Qin Yue, as well as casual conversations and musings after meals. Sometimes they are illogical, and sometimes they are just a few strokes of the pen, but they are the closest Qin Shu ever got to them.
Song Ying stood in front of the vacuum cryogenic chamber. The two bodies that should have been lying there were long gone, leaving only two sandalwood urns containing ashes.
"This is……"
"Urn".
Qin Shu gently stroked the exquisitely carved square box. "Half a month ago, my grandfather and I looked at the things my parents left behind. We both felt that perhaps more than ten years ago, we should have let them leave peacefully instead of stubbornly trying to keep them here. Lying here like that for years, decades, or even longer, even if a miracle were to happen, they wouldn't be happy."
Song Ying subconsciously looked at Qin Shu and gently took his left hand, which was hanging by his side.
"I'm not sad." Qin Shu smiled calmly, and Song Ying looked closely and realized that the smile was genuine. So much had happened in the past few months; she hadn't even had a chance to be by his side. What kind of determination would it take to let go completely? Qin Shu spoke lightly, but Song Ying knew the bitterness in his heart.
If there hadn't been this turning point in the first place, it wouldn't have mattered so much. What's most agonizing is regaining what you've lost, only to have to personally part with it in the end—that's the most torturous thing.
But she wasn't there at that time.
Even on that night, when she was attacked, Qin Shu rushed from the capital to Nancheng overnight...
She knew nothing, and naturally did nothing.
He was left to face all of this alone.
As if knowing what Song Ying was thinking, Qin Shu gently squeezed her fingers, "There was a rush at the time, and I didn't have time to tell you. Don't mind."
"How could this be..."
“I told my parents I would bring their daughter-in-law to see them. My mother wrote in her diary that she hoped if she were to die one day, she wouldn’t be buried underground to be eaten by insects. She hoped to be with my father, adrift on the ocean, chasing the wind and waves, going to farther places.” Qin Shu stroked the carving on the box. “Aying, will you come with me to see them off on their final journey?”
These two boxes of ashes, which should have been scattered long ago, were deliberately kept by Qin Shu until now.
The capital city has lakes but no sea, which is not a place Li Qin likes. Qin Shu drove eastward for over a hundred kilometers before finally arriving at a estuary.
It was already dark, and there were few people on the beach, only the rolling waves and the sound of the tide. The night wind howled, blowing Song Ying's long hair.
"From here, you enter the sea, which is the East China Sea—my mother grew up in this city on the coast of the East China Sea. She would have loved this place." Qin Shu opened the two urns, and the wind quickly swept up the ashes inside, which fell into the sea and were then rolled up by the waves.
"Father loved Mother, and he loved everything she loved." Qin Shu thought of the clumsy and awkward love poems her mother had written about her father. "He must have been happy too."
Throughout the journey, Qin Shu did almost all the talking, while Song Ying listened quietly. Only at this moment did she finally reach out and touch Qin Shu's hair, which had been blown into a mess, to straighten it. Even if it became messy again the next moment, she would comb it with her fingers again and again.
"Ah Shu, you should be happy too."
"Um."
Qin Shu gazed at the inky sea, his expression unreadable. Song Ying gently hugged him, saying, "I've always been here, before, now, and in the future."
So you are not alone at all.
Qin Shu raised his hand and slowly hugged Song Ying back, burying his head in her neck. Warmth flowed through her skin, quickly cooling in the night breeze, and finally drying completely without a trace.
"It's a bit cold, shall we go home?"
"good."
On the way back to the city, Qin Shu drove again. He seemed tireless, but his mood had improved considerably compared to when he left. Song Ying looked at his profile, and her initial worries gradually dissipated. Finally, she fell into a deep sleep in the stable car.
Shortly after they left, the sea surface reflected a layer of dark blue with a halo, which shimmered and shone as the sky brightened, and finally, the sun rose in the east, as if a new life had been born.
-
The wedding proceeded smoothly and drew closer, with good news constantly arriving.
In particular, the investigation team followed the clues from the Nancheng incident and eventually discovered that the foreign force that killed Qin Shu's parents was also related to Nancheng. Even the infectious disease that broke out in Nancheng a few months ago and was eventually solved by Ji Zhiheng and his research team was also inextricably linked to that force.
The situation escalated and eventually reached the international level.
The day before the wedding, major Chinese news media reported on a major international case spanning more than 20 years, directly involving international espionage, biological science, and human experimentation, along with a list of people who contributed to the case.
Among them, Qin Yue and Li Qin, a married couple, were prominently featured.
Thus, after more than a decade, the truth about the car accident finally came to light, and everything that Qin Yue and his wife had done was finally acknowledged.
"The National Security Department has filed a lawsuit against the M government in the name of China, demanding a thorough investigation into the scientific researchers who sacrificed their lives back then. The evidence is irrefutable. Even if they wanted to shirk responsibility, they would have to consider international public opinion. Before long, the murderers will pay the price for their crimes. Speaking of which, thanks to the Nancheng incident, Fu Hongyuan was involved and provided a lot of useful information, which helped us reduce the difficulty of obtaining evidence."
Along with the progress of this case, another piece of news also emerged.
"The matter in Nancheng has been settled. The Fu family and other individuals in Nancheng are involved in numerous crimes, and the verdict will be delivered soon. It is certain that Fu Hongyuan will be sentenced to death, Fu Yuqi will be imprisoned for ten years, and as for Fu Yushu... because he provided valuable evidence, and because during his time in charge of the Fu family, apart from expedient measures, he did not break the law or commit any illegal acts, and also maintained stability in Nancheng to a certain extent, he will be acquitted and released today. But the Fu family... from now on, will have nothing to do with him. As for Yunshan Island, it will remain."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
