"Commander, this is probably against regulations."
Zeng Guangzhao reached into his pocket, took out two gold bars, and handed them to the gatekeeper.
“A friend of mine just wanted to know how his friend was doing. You know, if a woman is in poor health, she can easily die in prison.”
The jailer at the gate accepted the two small yellow croakers, his constipated look gone, and said with a smile, "Then hurry back. Our captain will be here to check on you in half an hour at most."
Ms. Li was identified as a leader of the Communist Party, so she was detained separately from the others.
Zeng Guangzhao could only go inside, but he could not have close contact with Miss Li.
Miss Li was disheveled and her clothes were covered in bloodstains, clearly indicating that she had suffered a great deal.
Zeng Guangzhao stood outside the cell and, as if chatting casually, said, "I heard that the crabapple blossoms are about to bloom. Spring came late this year, so the flowering period will probably be delayed as well."
Upon hearing this, Ms. Li, who was lying on the ground, struggled twice with her tightly closed eyes before suddenly opening them.
She coughed twice, her tone regretful: "Who says otherwise? I wanted to go to my aunt's back garden to admire the flowers, but now I can't."
"If the crabapple blossoms don't bloom, there are still peach blossoms and roses."
"I'm afraid I won't be able to attend. Please tell my aunt that I can't attend her birthday celebration."
Zeng Guangzhao clenched his fists hidden in his sleeve. He stared at Miss Li's pale face and said in a deep voice, "Yes, your aunt will wait for you."
Miss Li gently raised the corners of her mouth, her face so pale it was almost transparent.
"I really want to personally pin a peony in her temple; it's her favorite flower."
Zeng Guangzhao reached out and gripped the cell bars. Miss Li lay on the ground, gazing at him with tears welling in her eyes, yet she tried to smile.
“My birthday is July 7th. My ancestral home is in Beiping. I don’t remember much from my childhood, but I vaguely know that it was a county town with a long bridge on both sides, with stone lions on the railings.”
Zeng Guangzhao paid close attention to those words, staring intently at Miss Li.
Miss Li smiled through her tears and said to him, "I hope that every year on the anniversary of my death, someone will come to my grave to offer a bouquet of flowers."
Zeng Guangzhao gritted his teeth, about to speak, when the jailer who had taken his gold bars rushed over nervously.
"Sir, it's almost time for your shift to change. You should leave now."
Ms. Li closed her eyes again, lay motionless on the ground, as if she were dead.
The last time Zeng Guangzhao saw this revolutionary was in the early morning light.
She was covered in blood and looked utterly disheveled, but in his eyes, she was surrounded by a pure white light, sacred and inviolable.
Zeng Guangzhao left the prison cell and drove to the teahouse.
Just like Yi Mu, he knocked on the teahouse door in rhythm.
Soon someone came to open the door. The man, wearing glasses, had heavy dark circles under his eyes and looked tired.
Zeng Guangzhao barely glanced at him. He walked to the front desk and said, "I'd like to buy a pack of tea and a pound of banana chips."
The man quickly and efficiently wrapped the things up for him.
Zeng Guangzhao took a cigarette from the pack, lit it, and the scarlet flame reflected on the glasses of the bespectacled man, giving off an ominous look.
"The crabapple blossoms will never bloom again. July 7th, Shishizi Bridge, Wanping County, Beiping City."
He left those words behind, picked up the oil paper package, and walked out of the teahouse without looking back.
The shopkeeper stood there for a long time, then took off his glasses, covered his eyes with his hand, and wept silently.
On the road to revolution, many lives, like flowers, were sacrificed; they were cut in half before they could even bloom.
Therefore, on the day of victory, we must deliver a fatal blow to those executioners!
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