"I haven't paid the security fee yet!" Liu Zi said somewhat embarrassedly.
"The boss said it would be deducted from your share of the profits. Besides, I'm also a veteran. It's only right that we help our comrades and their families who want to visit the martyrs." Xu Er's usual playful demeanor vanished, replaced by a serious expression.
Hearing Xu Er's words, Liu Zi was somewhat moved.
As for the dividends that she didn't know when she would receive, she didn't care about them for the time being.
Things went smoothly afterwards, and Liu Zi and her group managed to book a flight to Ming City on the 17th.
However, this trip was not as easy as the last one to Anshi, especially since Liu Daqiang and Aunt Zhang had been preoccupied with worries these past two days.
Liu Daqiang specially prepared two cases of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor) to be shipped in advance, planning to have a couple of drinks with his comrades later.
Aunt Zhang also secretly prepared something for her son, but Liu Zi had no idea what it was!
This time, Li Song led the team again, and he accompanied them with two other people.
Liu Daqiang was initially quite opposed to it. It wasn't wartime, so why hire bodyguards? They could manage on their own.
Liu Zi explained that the child was too young, and being close to the border, if they encountered any trouble, the other party could simply run away, and they wouldn't be able to catch up.
Upon hearing Liu Zi's hypothesis, Xu Mei hugged her two granddaughters with a worried expression.
She made the final decision: to follow Liu Zi's method, knowing that caution was always better than disaster.
Li Song gathered everyone together a day in advance to explain the situation in Ma County.
"The county we're visiting this time, Ma County, is located on the southwestern border of my country. Its southern border is adjacent to the ancient Yue Kingdom. The terrain is mainly low and medium-altitude mountains and valleys, and it has a subtropical plateau monsoon climate with an average temperature of around 17 degrees Celsius. So you don't need to bring too many warm clothes. Just bring some insect repellent for the children."
After briefly introducing the relevant situation, Li Song changed the subject and talked about the things they needed to pay attention to.
"Because it borders the Yue Kingdom, I've heard that smuggling is rampant, and the security situation is rather chaotic. Please don't travel alone. Also, during the war, both sides planted many landmines on Laoshan Mountain, so please be careful not to enter the woods or bushes."
"Is it that dangerous?" Xu Mei asked worriedly.
"Do the children still want to go?"
"Don't worry, Auntie. With me and my two colleagues here, we'll protect everyone," Li Song reassured Xu Mei.
"Just remind the children not to run around."
At this moment, Lingzi stepped forward and said to Xu Mei, "Grandma, I want to go. I'll be good."
"I will be good too!" Qiqi raised her little hand.
"In that case, let's all get some rest tonight, and set off as a family tomorrow," Liu Zi decided.
The following day, after a flight of more than four hours, the plane landed safely at Ming City Airport.
Li Song had arranged for a car to pick them up from the airport in advance. They bypassed the city and went directly from the airport to Ma County.
As time went by, Aunt Zhang's hands were clenched tightly together.
Seeing this, Liu Zi was a little worried about her health, so she quietly instructed Lingzi to bring her some water and food.
Seeing Lingzi's thoughtful care, the old lady relaxed considerably and a smile appeared on her face.
The national and provincial highways were in poor condition at the moment, and being in a mountainous area, the long drive made both Aunt Zhang and Xu Mei feel carsick.
It was nearly 400 kilometers away, and there was no highway. The group drove for more than ten hours and arrived in Ma County in the early morning of the 18th.
The two children were so tired that they fell asleep right there in the car.
The conditions here are limited, so Liu Zi and her group booked a guesthouse, which is only slightly cleaner.
After a long day, no one complained. They quickly washed up and went to sleep.
The actual ceasefire has only been going on for five or six years now, and this small county town looks scarred. The earthen walls, blackened by gunfire, tell people that the smoke of war has not completely dissipated here.
Although they went to bed late, everyone got up early in the morning.
Liu Zi asked the staff about the surrounding area, and she and Li Song went to the market to buy incense, candles, fruit, and steamed buns.
Liu Daqiang wouldn't let Liu Zi buy flowers, saying they were flashy but impractical, and that it would be better to buy some food instead.
He said that back then, being able to eat steamed buns in the foxholes was considered a good improvement in their meals. When comrades got together, there weren't many formalities; as long as there was wine and steamed buns, that was enough.
Liu Zi listened to her father, and since they weren't buying flowers, she took it upon herself to buy a lot of small apples and oranges instead.
The green hills bury loyal bones, and the mountains and rivers remember heroic souls.
The Ma County Martyrs' Cemetery is nestled against green mountains and faces the nation.
The martyrs' cemetery is the final resting place of 966 martyrs, the youngest of whom was only 16 years old.
Liu Zi led Aunt Zhang to the management office to find Zhang Qiang's location, while Liu Daqiang took his wife and granddaughter to the Laoshan Memorial Site.
The site was just renovated before the Qingming Festival, and the environment has been greatly improved compared to before.
Guided by the administrator, Aunt Zhang walked step by step toward the place she had been longing for.
Halfway there, Liu Zi stopped first, wanting to give the old lady some space.
Not long after, a heart-wrenching cry rang out.
"My son! Your mother has come to see you."
Aunt Zhang could no longer utter a word, and her heart-wrenching cries carried further and further away on the gentle breeze.
Liu Zi walked over slowly and finally saw the old woman's son, Zhang Qiang.
The photo on the tombstone shows him still so young, full of energy, smiling and looking ahead.
Aunt Zhang was crying uncontrollably. Liu Zi went over and hugged her, and together they looked at the tombstone.
"Brother Qiangzi, this is Liu Zi. Don't worry, I will take good care of Aunt Zhang." Liu Zi gently patted Aunt Zhang's back to help her catch her breath.
"Auntie, don't cry. Don't worry Qiang Zige."
"Hmm!" Aunt Zhang nodded weakly and sat on the ground for a while to recover.
"Qiangzi, guess what delicious treat your mother brought you?" Aunt Zhang shakily pulled a cloth bag from the pocket she had brought. Inside the bag were scallion pancakes she had made early the previous morning.
"You love scallion pancakes the most..."
Liu Zi didn't interrupt Zhang Da Niang's conversation with her son, but quietly placed the fruit she had brought in front of the tombstone.
People need to release their pent-up emotions after a long time. Zhang Qiang is Zhang Da Niang's mental illness, so let her have a good cry this time.
The Martyrs' Cemetery in Ma County is built by burying the martyrs in chronological order of their deaths, from bottom to top.
Liu Daqiang's comrades who sacrificed their lives are buried at the foot of the mountain; they have already gone that way.
Liu Zi left Aunt Zhang and Zhang Qiang to chat, and quickly walked down to the foot of the mountain.
Fruit, steamed buns, incense, and candles were offered. Liu Daqiang gave a solemn military salute.
"Zhang Zi, I dreamt about you a few days ago. Did you know I was coming to see you and were overjoyed?"
Liu Daqiang and Xu Mei took towels and wiped the tombstones for them.
"Back then, you said you loved steamed buns the most. You grew up eating food from many families and never saw anything good. It wasn't until you joined the army that you realized how delicious white flour steamed buns were."
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