There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line, followed only by the old woman's breathing. She chuckled softly and said slowly, "Not an old friend. My surname is Sang, the Sang of mulberry leaf..."
Ye Qingqing blurted out, "Are you called Sang Wanhua? Sang Huaiyuan is your nephew, isn't he?"
"Yes, the young lady reacted quickly. How are my elder brother and sister-in-law?" Sang Wanhua's tone was much more relaxed, and she was in a great mood. She never expected that after decades, she would be able to get news of her relatives from a photograph.
Years ago, she sent people back to Pingjiang to investigate the Sang family, and more than once. But each time the investigation revealed bad news; the family members were either dead or missing. Each time, she was heartbroken. Later, Mrs. Allen, fearing that she couldn't bear it, stopped her from investigating anymore.
But by the grace of Heaven, she was able to find her family again in the final moments of her life.
Since my sister-in-law is still alive, my brother should be alive too, right?
Sang Wanhua thought this was perfectly reasonable.
Ye Qingqing's heart skipped a beat. She hesitated whether to tell the truth, but she couldn't hide it from the end. Besides, the old lady said that Sang Wanhua was no ordinary woman and should be able to handle it.
"Your eldest brother contracted tuberculosis, and due to the chaotic situation at the time, he didn't make it through thirty years ago..."
Ye Qingqing stammered as she spoke, saying that Sang Juemin had always been in poor health, even when he was young. However, the Sang family was wealthy and could afford good medicine to keep him going. But later, due to a change in the Sang family, the good medicine became unavailable, and Sang Juemin's health deteriorated day by day. He passed away after a few years.
But she felt that Sang Juemin was actually lucky. At least when he left, his whole family was together, and no one was missing. Moreover, he didn't suffer much hardship. Otherwise, given his health, he would have died sooner or later if he had been sent down to a remote mountain village. He simply wouldn't have been able to endure it.
Sang Wanhua remained calm and sighed, "It's better that he left thirty years ago, saving us from suffering. It's just that my sister-in-law suffered. How are Huaiyuan and Huairou doing?"
Ye Qingqing's heart skipped a beat again, and she felt even more bitter. The Sang family had really suffered a lot in those years, and the old lady had really suffered. She didn't know how she had managed to survive.
"My uncle is doing well. He's now the deputy mayor of Pingjiang City, in charge of the economy. His wife's name is Sun Qiuyun, you might know her. Their son is pursuing a doctorate and is very promising..."
Ye Qingqing kept talking, not daring to mention Sang Huairou, who was the old lady's daughter.
Because the old lady had said that Sang Huairou loved to cling to her aunt when she was little, and Sang Wanhua also loved her niece very much. She had even joked before that the old lady should give her daughter to her, since she didn't plan to get married or have children.
Sang Wanhua smiled, very pleased. "Huaiyuan's greatest love is economics. It's good that he can do what he loves."
Ye Qingqing smiled awkwardly, unsure how to bring up Sang Huairou's matter, but Sang Wanhua guessed, "What happened to Huairou? It's nothing, I can handle anything."
Having gone through so much, there's nothing she can't bear anymore.
"She...she...she was sent down to a very difficult place, very, very difficult, and she was treated very unfairly. She couldn't hold on...and then..."
"She committed suicide?" Sang Wanhua asked.
"Yes……"
Sang Wanhua sighed, her voice hoarse, "Silly child, how could you be so foolish..."
The hardships will eventually pass, the gloom will eventually dissipate, and the sun will eventually shine on the earth. Perhaps if we just persevere for one more second, we can see the sunshine?
She endured so many hardships, and it was this sentence that kept her going, but she couldn't persevere in Huairou.
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