Li Xiufang held the square box in her arms, overcome with grief and unable to stop crying.
"Sister-in-law, I'm sorry to you. Brother Zhang sacrificed himself to save me. It's all because of me..." Su Congwen's eyes were red and he kept saying that he was wrong.
Huahua was frightened by the expressions of the two adults and couldn't help crying.
The crying of her daughter finally made Li Xiufang sober up a little. She looked at her young daughter and burst into tears. Qingshan was gone, so how could they, an orphan and a widow, live?
She was not very old, but after only a few years of marriage, she seemed to have aged more than ten years. Now that her husband was gone, she seemed to have been drained of all her energy. Her eyes were empty and numb, but her tears were flowing more and more. Her daughter was also crying loudly in her arms.
Su Congwen felt sad, but he kept saying sorry.
Li Xiufang raised her eyes and looked at the young man in front of her. He was about the same age as her brother, but he had already gone to the battlefield to defend his country. She knew in her heart that on the battlefield, guns had no eyes, and her husband did not sacrifice his life to save her, but for millions of people.
She wouldn't blame him, nor could she blame him.
"Get up," Li Xiufang finally spoke, asking Su Congwen to stand up. Her voice was already hoarse and difficult to understand. "It's not your fault. When Qingshan chose to go to the battlefield, he was ready. I'm his wife, so I should be prepared too."
As a soldier's family member, she had long known that what her husband was doing was extremely dangerous, and that she should be mentally prepared for her husband's sacrifice on the battlefield. However, no one would hope that this preparation would become a reality.
"You...your brother Zhang...did he say anything else?" Li Xiufang asked, trying hard to suppress her discomfort.
"Yes." Su Congwen calmed himself down, "Brother Zhang said that we should bury his ashes under the big yellow horn tree at the entrance of the village."
"Under the yellow horn tree? Under the yellow horn tree?" Li Xiufang muttered twice, "I know, I know."
Buried under the yellow horn tree, she seemed to know why. Her husband always liked that tree and stood under that tree to say goodbye to them when he left. Now, he wanted to sleep there forever. That was fine. She would do it and fulfill her husband's last wish.
She looked at Su Congwen and showed a smile that was uglier than crying. "Thank you for bringing our Lao Zhang back. Thank you."
Li Xiufang could see the wound on Su Congwen's face. Old Zhang had died five days ago. She knew in her heart that the young man in front of her did not care about his own safety and sent Old Zhang back as quickly as possible. This was something that not everyone could do.
"Sister-in-law, don't say thank you, don't say it." Su Congwen shook his head desperately. How could he deserve the word "thank you"? If it weren't for Brother Zhang, he might have been the one to die on the battlefield.
Li Xiufang's eyes were filled with sadness. "That's right. No matter what you say, your brother Zhang won't be coming back."
Su Congwen was silent.
"Have you eaten?" After a long while, Li Xiufang forced herself to cheer up and asked, "I'll cook for you, have something to eat."
"No need, sister-in-law." Su Congwen quickly refused, "I came here just to send Brother Zhang back, there is nothing else."
"By the way, the pension and commendation for the martyr Zhang will be coming soon. Although it can't change the fact that Brother Zhang sacrificed his life, it will make your lives a little better." Su Congwen said in a low voice, "If you need anything in the future, you can also come to me. As long as I can do it, I will definitely not refuse."
"This is my address." Su Congwen took out the note he had shuffled long ago and stuffed it into Li Xiufang's hand.
He finally stood up and saw the sad faces of the mother and daughter. He couldn't bear to watch any longer and prepared to say goodbye.
"Xiao Su, wait until Qingshan is buried before you leave." Li Xiufang said.
Su Congwen stopped.
"Qingshan will be happy to have a good brother like you by his side during his final days," Li Xiufang said slowly. "Having one more person to see him off will help him feel less lonely on his journey to the afterlife."
Su Congwen burst into tears again and nodded heavily, "Okay."
Li Xiufang stood up and said to Huahua, "Huahua, go call Second Grandpa over."
My second grandfather’s name is Zhang Jianlin, and he is the team leader of their village. He must be informed first about Qingshan’s sacrifice and burial.
"Okay." The young Huahua actually didn't know what was going on yet. She just nodded ignorantly, went out, and soon found Zhang Jianlin.
"What? Qingshan died?" Zhang Jianlin was shocked. After realizing what was happening, he was filled with grief and tears streamed down his face. "How could this happen? How could Qingshan die?"
"Uncle, these are Qingshan's ashes." Li Xiufang pointed at Zhang Qingshan's ashes lying nearby. "Qingshan said he wanted to be buried under the yellow horn tree at the entrance of our village. Look..."
"Under the yellow horn tree?" Zhang Jianlin was stunned, then hesitated. "Under the yellow horn tree is a place that everyone in our village often goes to. No one has ever been buried there before. I naturally agree, but the villagers' opinions..."
He hadn't finished speaking, but Li Xiufang and Su Congwen already understood what he meant.
"It's okay, Uncle Er. Just tell the villagers first. I'll go and ask any family that disagrees, until they agree." Li Xiufang's eyes were firm. "I can't let Qingshan's last wish go unfulfilled."
"Well, I'll go and talk to him first." Zhang Jianlin sighed and left the Zhang family in a hurry.
Soon, everyone in the village knew about Zhang Qingshan’s sacrifice and the Zhang family’s plan to bury him under a yellow poplar tree.
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