135. Tears at the Funeral
On the night Shengnan died, Lingling stood guard outside the morgue. There were no chairs, just an empty concrete room. The deceased were wheeled in and out on simple iron cots. Those who had been regal, those who held high positions of power, those who were calculating, those who were cautious, were all wheeled in and out on the same iron cots. Zhong Mingtong stayed by Lingling's side throughout, having done the same when Ling Letong died. Zhong Mingtong looked at her worriedly, as she hadn't eaten or drunk all day. With a wry smile, she joked, Shengnan-style, "People always say a lifelong bond is worth a thousand lives. Between us, it's a life-or-death bond." Zhong Mingtong gazed at her lovingly and said, "So you're not alone in this world. You still have me." Lingling lowered her head. She knew she felt utterly alone and helpless at the moment, but she couldn't let her vulnerability lead her to seek support and make the wrong decision, hurting herself and others. Zhong Mingtong seemed to sense her doubts and comforted her, saying, "Relationships between people are a collection of countless emotional strands, the complexities of human nature coming together. Feeling comfortable with someone is truly precious. But it's okay. You've been exhausted recently, and your body is still recovering, so don't dwell on it. You can also take this opportunity to rebuild your world. Perhaps you'll gain something different." Ling Ling nodded gratefully, but still said nothing. *~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Sheng Nan's funeral was well attended. Ren Qingshi remained silent throughout, his face ashen. He spoke to no one and was the first to leave. Qiu Qiu had also arrived from Switzerland. She noticed that Zhong Mingtong was by Ling Ling's side, while Yu Chuanbei was tucked away in a corner. After the ceremony, she took Ling Ling's arm and whispered, "What happened between you and Yu Chuanbei?" "We broke up. It was a terrible breakup. I even had an abortion because of it," Ling Ling said weakly. "Alas," Qiuqiu sighed deeply, "you were so lucky to get pregnant, but you have to abort it; and now I can hardly remember how many miscarriages I've had." The two of them sat in silence, their joys and sorrows unconnected. Their own pain woven a dense, tenacious web, leaving no solace for words of comfort to flow through. Along the roadside, lined with verdant pines and cypresses, were densely packed tombstones, each bearing a name, but long since become nothing more than Chinese characters carved into stone. The ringing of a phone shattered the cold silence. After answering the call, Zhong Mingtong whispered to Lingling, "Lingling, the hospital has...
On the night Shengnan died, Lingling stood guard outside the morgue. There were no chairs, just an empty cement room where the dead were wheeled in and out on simple iron cots. Those who had lived were elegant and regal, those who held high positions, those who were calculating and prudent, and those who were cautious and prudent—all were wheeled out on the same iron cots.
Zhong Mingtong stayed with Ling Ling the whole time. He also stayed with her like this when Ling Letong passed away last time.
Zhong Mingtong looked at her worriedly, as she hadn't eaten or drunk anything for a whole day. She gave him a sickly smile and joked with him in Sheng Nan's style, "People always say that a friendship between two people is worth their lives, but between us, this is a friendship worth losing our lives."
Zhong Mingtong looked at him lovingly and said, "So you are not alone in this world. You still have me."
Ling Ling lowered her head. She knew that she was extremely lonely and helpless at the moment, but she couldn't rush to find someone to rely on because of her vulnerability, thus making wrong decisions and hurting herself and others.
Zhong Mingtong seemed to see through her doubts and comforted her, "Relationships between people are a collection of countless emotional strands, a complex combination of human nature. It's truly precious to still feel comfortable with someone. But it's okay. You've been exhausted recently, and your body is still recovering, so don't dwell on it. But you can also take this opportunity to rebuild your world. Who knows, you might gain something different."
Ling Ling nodded gratefully, but still said nothing.
*~*~*~*~*~*~
Many people attended Shengnan's funeral.
Ren Qingshi remained silent throughout the whole process, his face ashen, and he did not talk to anyone. He was the first one to leave after arriving.
Qiu Qiu also rushed over from Switzerland. She noticed that Ling Ling was accompanied by Zhong Mingtong, while Yu Chuanbei was hiding far away in a corner. After the ceremony, she took Ling Ling's arm and whispered to her, "What's going on between you and Yu Chuanbei?"
"We broke up, it was pretty tragic, I even had an abortion because of it," Ling Ling said weakly.
"Alas..." Qiuqiu sighed deeply, "You were so lucky to get pregnant, but you have to abort it. I can hardly remember how many miscarriages I've had."
The two people sat in silence facing each other. They could not share the same joys and sorrows in the world. Their respective pains had densely woven a tough web, and there was not a single comfortable crack for comforting words to flow into.
On the side of the road lined with green pines and cypresses, there are densely packed tombstones, each with a name, but they have long since become just Chinese characters carved on the stone.
The ringing of a phone broke the cold silence.
After Zhong Mingtong finished the call, he whispered to Ling Ling, "Ling Ling, there's an emergency at the hospital. I have to leave first."
"Okay, go ahead and be careful on the road." She said goodbye to him.
After Zhong Mingtong walked away, Qiuqiu deliberately said loudly: "I will be in a hurry to leave soon and can't take you with me. You should take Yu Chuanbei's car. It's hard to get a taxi in this remote place."
Ling Ling was about to refute, but found that there was a new person paying condolences at Shengnan's grave.
Originally everyone had already walked towards the exit of the cemetery, but Ling Ling said goodbye to Qiuqiu and Longjia in a hurry and turned back.
"Xinhua." Ling Ling stood behind Rong Xinhua and called her name softly.
Rong Xinhua, dressed in a peach-pink, Chanel-style suit, exuded a vibrant energy that completely contradicted the solemn atmosphere of the cemetery. However, the icy expression on her face revealed an undeniable deadness.
Rong Xinhua didn't look back at Ling Ling, but stared directly at Sheng Nan's photo on the tombstone, muttering to himself, "I thought I would hate her especially. I dressed like this when I went out today. But - I think an 18-year-old girl has no idea what kind of man she would choose to spend the rest of her life with - if it weren't for Ren Qingshi, I think I would be as sad as you now. Ren Qingshi has officially divorced me. He filed for divorce when he heard the news of her death. Before Ren Qingshi and Hao Shengnan lived together, I was close to our leader, and there was even some ambiguity, but I never slept with him."
After saying this, Xinhua sneered a few times, tears streaming down her beautiful cheeks. "What's the point of saying this now? In the face of life and death, these crappy and filthy things are really not worth mentioning."
Ling Ling watched Xinhua come and go alone. This funeral was their farewell to Sheng Nan, parting in death. But for the two of them still in the world, whether they would see each other again in the future was uncertain.
Ling Ling stood alone in front of Sheng Nan's tombstone for a long time, until the man behind her said to her, "Go back first, it's getting dark. Come visit her later."
Ling Ling turned hesitantly to see Yu Chuanbei. She wondered how long he'd been waiting for her. She vaguely recalled their second meeting: at Qiuqiu's son's hundred-day celebration, the child had suffered a sudden emergency, and she had wept bitterly in the dark hospital courtyard. He, too, had waited for her for who knows how long. But back then, Shengnan and Xinhua had only argued and gone their separate ways. Now, they were separated by the Yin and Yang.
"--Yeah." She responded dully, and the two of them walked along the narrow path out of the densely packed tombs.
"Let me take you home." Yu Chuanbei said.
Ling Ling hesitated for a moment and said, "No, that's not necessary. I'll just take a taxi." As she spoke, she took out her mobile phone and swiped around to find a taxi app.
"It's hard to get a taxi here. By the time the taxi arrives, it will be completely dark and you'll be scared going alone." Yu Chuanbei's tone of comfort sounded more like begging.
Seeing that Ling Ling was still hesitant, he continued, "Just think of me as your driver, and you're just sharing a ride with me." After that, he went straight to his car and drove in front of her. She had no choice but to get in and sit in the back seat.
They were speechless, and the silence encompassed them, as well as the night itself. The night fell silently, and the desolate suburbs, devoid of the lights of thousands of homes, seemed bleak and sad.
Entering the city, the hustle and bustle drowned out the sadness. They were almost at Ling Ling's place, still a motel near the company. She suddenly asked him, "What did Sheng Nan tell you when she asked you to go to the hospital?"
The silence lasted for too long. Yu Chuanbei didn't react for a moment to why she suddenly spoke to him. After a while, he said, "Shengnan told me at the time that she hoped we could reconcile one day. She still felt that we were the most suitable couple. But I told her that I wouldn't dare to expect you to forgive me in this lifetime, and I didn't deserve your trust anymore. In the end, she said that no matter what, she hoped that we could at least be lifelong friends, and that if you were in trouble in the future, she hoped that I could help you. I said, of course, you are the person closest to me."
A brief silence followed. Ling Ling's uncontrollable sobs pierced the night veil that bound them, scattering them in pieces. Ling Ling allowed her grief to flow freely, her nerves, tense for days, instantly breaking down. The tears she hadn't dared to shed in front of others burst forth in torrents. This sealed compartment now gave her an unparalleled sense of security. She could finally let go of all her attachments and bare her blood-soaked sorrow.
She clutched her own shoulders and wept uncontrollably, for her best friend, now completely lost, and her once beloved lover. She had already prematurely lost her family, and now even friendship and love had been stripped from her world. There was even one thing she had deliberately tried to forget by filling her mind with other things and occupying her time: the loss of a child, a child she had decided, with unbearable speed, not to have.
She thought she was infinitely powerful. If something bad happened to her, she wouldn't want anyone to comfort her; it would be annoying. If someone came to her and offered her comfort, it would mean they didn't recognize her abilities. She believed she could handle or accept anything, and she thought she was incredibly capable, just having bad luck this time.
Now, while she still didn't need comfort, she realized she wasn't that strong anymore. Life's fragility made her feel incredibly vulnerable. She wished she were a little duller, a little more numb, unable to feel the pain so sensitively. Perhaps that way, the days ahead would be better.
At this moment, the pain suffocated her, and the continuous crying made her need more air. She gasped for breath and her whole body trembled.
Yu Chuanbei leveled his seat and turned around to hug her, but she did not accept the hug. Instead, she just rested her head on his arm and sobbed weakly.
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