Li Mo
This summer, in the end, came to a cruel end.
His brief moment of lucidity before death seemed like fate maliciously depleting the last bit of energy in his life account.
After that tender yet heartbreaking conversation, Liang Xinchong fell into a coma again, and his vital signs began to decline irreversibly and precipitously.
The doctors tried everything, but they could only delay the inevitable moment.
Liang Xinchong left one early morning.
The darkest hour before dawn had just passed, and the sky outside the window was tinged with a deathly pale, fish-belly white.
The alarm from the monitor was no longer a sharp scream, but a long, steady beep that signaled the end of the alarm.
drop--------
The curve representing the pulse of life stretched into a cold, straight line on the screen, devoid of any undulations.
The world fell completely silent in Li Mo's ears.
She didn't cry or shout. She simply walked forward quietly, pushed aside the nurses who tried to stop her, bent down, and gently pressed her cheek against his chest, which still retained a trace of warmth.
There, the steady, powerful heartbeat was no longer heard.
She remained in that position for a very long time, as if trying to hear the echo of his last heartbeat.
Until medical staff had to help her away and cover his body with a white sheet.
The moment that blinding white covered his face, Li Mo's body trembled violently, as if all her soul had been ripped away, and she fell straight backward.
Waking up is like entering hell.
The mourning hall was set up in Yuehai.
The photo chosen is one taken during his university years. He is wearing a white shirt, his hair is neat, his eyes are bright, and he has a spirited smile on his lips. That was how he looked when his career was just starting to take off and he was full of hope for the future.
Li Mo, dressed in black with a mourning band on her arm, knelt beside the coffin like a lifeless jade sculpture.
She stopped wailing, but tears flowed uncontrollably and silently. Whenever someone bowed, she mechanically kowtowed in return.
Tang Keqing, Zhang Shan, Lin Shusen... all my high school classmates came.
Looking at the familiar smiling faces in the photos, and then at Li Mo, emaciated and with empty eyes beside the coffin, the boys gritted their teeth and their eyes reddened, while the girls couldn't help but sob softly.
Zhang Shan clenched his fists until they turned white, and finally could only slam his fist heavily against the wall.
Teacher Yuan Hai also came.
This usually serious teacher stood before the student's spirit, remaining silent for a long time. He simply bowed deeply three times, and when he looked up, his eyes were glistening with tears behind his glasses.
Zhou Man and Shen Peixian supported each other, their hair turned white overnight, as if they had aged twenty years. Zhou Man cried until she almost fainted, repeatedly murmuring, "My son... my Chongchong..."
Shen Peixian held Li Mo tightly, as if she were the only piece of driftwood she could find in the abyss.
After handling all the funeral arrangements and burying his ashes in a quiet cemetery in Yuehai with a view of the mountains, Li Mo locked herself in their home in Beichuan.
His presence still lingered in the house.
The coat he casually left on the sofa, the toothbrushes lined up side by side on the washstand, the client photos he hadn't finished editing in the study... every single one of them was like a slow, agonizing death.
A few days later, amidst extreme grief and numbness, she remembered something.
She picked up his phone, and with trembling fingers, entered her birthday and unlocked it.
She clicked on the Weibo icon with countless followers. After careful consideration, silence, and tears, she finally mustered all her strength and typed out a short message.
Liang Xinchong V: My husband, Liang Xinchong, passed away on [Date] due to severe injuries sustained in an accident. He was a warm and sincere man, loyal to his loved ones and his ideals. Life was too short, but we were fortunate to have met. In accordance with his wishes, the funeral arrangements have been kept simple and have been properly handled. Thank you all for your continued attention and love. This account will be permanently retained as a memorial.
Wife: Li Mo kowtows
There are no pictures, only these few hundred words.
The news was like dropping a nuclear bomb on a calm lake.
The comment section exploded within minutes:
"I don't believe it!!!!"
"Didn't you just post your honeymoon vlog a few days ago??? Tell me this isn't real!"
"A fairytale romance... how could it end like this..."
"Those who don't love each other torment each other, while those who love each other are separated by death."
"Was it an accident? What kind of accident? My condolences, blogger!"
"God, what are you doing?! Look at what you've done!!!"
"I cried all night long. They went from school uniforms to wedding dresses..."
"Life is too short, but we are fortunate to have met..." I burst into tears...
"Attorney Li, please, you must stay strong!"
"God, look what you've done!!" This comment received countless likes and reached the top, becoming a collective cry of shock, heartache, and resentment.
Li Mo didn't look at it again.
She turned off her phone, curled up on the sofa, and hugged his sweater tightly in her arms. There seemed to be a faint trace of his scent on it.
Outside the window, the summer sun was still blazing, cicadas chirped incessantly, and the world clamored on.
But her summer ended the moment she saw the monitor show a straight line.
What he took away was not only the boy named Liang Xinchong, but also the complete Li Mo, whom he had once deeply loved.
After that, there was no more story between Li Mo and Liang Xinchong.
Autumn came quickly to Beichuan. The sycamore leaves outside the window began to turn yellow, and occasionally one or two would fall, swirling and landing on the glass table on the balcony that they had chosen together.
Li Mo did not leave Beichuan.
She stayed in this home filled with memories.
This is the little home that belongs to her and Liang Xinchong.
Zhou Man and Shen Peixian took turns keeping her company. They were careful not to mention that name easily, but silently helped her clean and cook, and looked at her with worried eyes.
She seemed perfectly normal.
She goes to the law firm on time, handles cases in a clear and organized manner. She greets her colleagues with a gentle smile, participates in discussions, and even brews herself a cup of her favorite green tea on a quiet afternoon.
However, she no longer went to the movie theater they used to frequent.
However, the song she kept playing on repeat on her phone was forever stuck on "Rainy Day".
However, the jasmine on her balcony withered quietly before autumn arrived because no one cared for it.
Tang Keqing and Zhang Shan often texted her, inviting her to go out and relax.
She mostly declined, simply saying, "It's okay, don't worry."
Only once, Tang Keqing forcibly dragged her out to a coffee shop, and as he watched her quietly stirring her coffee, tears suddenly streamed down his face.
Instead, Li Mo handed her a tissue and said softly, "Ke Qing, don't cry, I'm fine."
She was just a part of my life, taken away forever.
It's like a piece of the softest part of my heart has been ripped out. There's no intense pain, just an emptiness, with a cool breeze blowing through.
One weekend morning, she was alone and began to organize his things.
His camera and lenses were carefully wiped clean and stored in a desiccant box.
She neatly categorized and placed the award certificates and contracts. She did this very gently and slowly, as if afraid of disturbing something.
Finally, she opened the bottom drawer of the desk.
Inside lay a thick notebook with a kraft paper cover, next to which was the glass jar she knew so well, filled with colorful paper stars.
She opened her notebook.
It's neither a business plan nor a photography journal.
Page after page, it was covered with photos of her taken from various angles—doing homework in the classroom, running on the playground, taking a nap in the art studio, eating with her head down in the cafeteria… from high school to university, and then later.
Next to each photo, he wrote a few words in his flowing handwriting.
"She refused my water again today, and I felt a little wronged."
"Her smile is so beautiful, like a blooming jasmine."
"She said she wants to take the entrance exam for Beichuan University, so I'll work hard."
"Starting a business is so hard, but the thought that she's waiting for me helps me keep going."
"I secretly kissed her today, and she didn't notice. I was happy all day."
"You married her, Liang Xinchong. You are the luckiest person in the world."
On the last page, there was a photo of their marriage certificate, and below it, only one line of text: "Li Mo, loving you is the best decision I've ever made in my life, without a doubt."
Tears instantly blurred my vision; one drop, then two, fell onto the yellowed pages, blurring the ink.
She didn't make a sound, but her shoulders trembled slightly as she let the sorrow she had suppressed for so long flow quietly in this undisturbed morning.
She picked up the glass jar and unscrewed it.
Colorful stars spilled out. She picked one up casually and, instinctively, gently unwrapped it along the crease.
On the crumpled note was his familiar handwriting: "I saw her walk by at the basketball court today and shot a three-pointer. I hope she saw it."
She trembled as she opened another one. "Rainy Day" is a beautiful song, but she looks even more beautiful when she's asleep.
One more. "Momo, let's be together forever."
She unpacked them one by one, as if unsealing their short yet long lives.
Each note is a fragment of youth, piecing together the sincere, passionate, and unreserved love of that young man.
Sunlight streamed in through the window, and dust particles danced in the beams of light.
She smoothed out each of the torn slips of paper, folded them neatly, and put them back into the depths of the drawer, along with the thick notebook.
Then, she put the remaining, unopened stars back into the glass jar and tightened it.
She didn't burst into tears; she just sat there quietly for a very long time.
Finally, she stood up and went to the balcony.
The autumn sky is high and blue, like a piece of washed glass.
She knew the boy in his school uniform who was running and waving at her on the playground;
The boy who awkwardly drew the curtains for her in the art studio;
The man who proudly declared his love for her to the world in a venue with tens of thousands of attendees;
They'll never come back.
In the years that followed, the mountains remained mountains, and the waters remained waters, but the trace of that person could no longer be found among them.
She will spend the rest of her life alone.
When the wind blows, she looks up at the sky.
It was as if, above the clouds and among the stars, there was someone carrying a camera, smiling at her just as they had back then, with gentle eyes and brows.
Liang Xinchong, the rest of your life is so long.
How can I forget you?
(End of article)
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