I'm really good at this.

Upon suddenly hearing this secret, Zhang Hong guessed quite a bit.

But he didn't say anything.

It's not that I'm afraid of being silenced; civilized society doesn't silence people anyway.

The main reason was that he knew the old man was already a little confused, so he just listened to what the old man was saying.

"In the next life, I shouldn't have sent you to cover the retreat."

Although the old man was not very clear-headed, he could speak fluently.

However, he kept repeating that sentence after that.

Helpless, Zhang Hong could only advise, "There's nothing we can do about it. You were a commander back then, so it's normal for someone to cover the rear."

A soldier's duty is to obey orders, and as a commander, Jia Shen naturally had to protect the children who had left.

Therefore, there's nothing wrong with sending someone to cover the retreat.

Although this was a mission that would inevitably lead to certain death.

However, Zhang Hong felt that the fact that he was willing to go to the afterlife at that time meant that he had already figured this out.

Then what's the point of worrying about it for a lifetime?

"But you're not a soldier... and I had my own selfish motives too. At the time, all I wanted was to live and go back to see my wife and children..." Old Master Jia Shen's chest heaved violently. "In the next life, I'm sorry... take me with you, so we can keep each other company on the road to the underworld..."

Zhang Hong roughly understood.

Unlike Grandma Lu Yingzi, who firmly believed she hadn't died in her next life, Jia Shen, like the group of teenagers back then, actually knew that he had definitely sacrificed himself in his next life.

He just can't get over his own mental hurdle.

Because Lai Sheng did not volunteer to cover the retreat, or perhaps Lai Sheng had offered to do so, but Jia Shen, out of momentary selfishness, sent him to complete this certain death mission.

And he was not born a soldier.

So even though Jia Shen himself became a war hero over the decades, received various medals, and had many children and grandchildren.

The more guilty he felt, the more remorseful he became.

This shows that he is actually a kind and upright person at heart.

However, everyone has selfish desires, and he was tormented by his conscience his whole life.

Zhang Hong didn't know what to say.

There's a saying that goes, "You have no right to speak if you haven't experienced it."

He wasn't involved and didn't know what that grandfather in his next life was thinking in his final moments.

Is it regret?

Is it steadfastness?

Or is it resentment towards Jia Shen?

He knows nothing.

But he had to do something, no matter what.

Seeing the old man becoming increasingly agitated, Zhang Hong patted the back of his right hand, which was gripping his own, and whispered, "I forgive you."

For some reason, the old man's mood calmed down.

He released Zhang Hong's hand and closed his eyes.

Zhang Hong quickly glanced at the medical equipment beside the hospital bed.

Heart rate and pulse are normal.

The old man was probably exhausted from the drastic change in his emotions; he fell asleep.

With a sigh, Zhang Hong tucked the blanket around him and placed the old man's hand on his lower abdomen to prevent his wrist from pressing on the IV tube.

Then, he turned and left the ward.

Whether or not that grandfather in the next life would forgive Jia Shen, Zhang Hong didn't know.

But he couldn't let his efforts go to waste.

No matter what, he is a national hero.

As he left the ward, facing the concerned Jia family members, Zhang Hong smiled and said, "The old man is already asleep. I have other things to attend to. Please contact me if you need anything later."

After exchanging pleasantries, Zhang Hong led Lin Muqing, who was standing at the door, away.

They have a lot to do. They'll rest tonight, and tomorrow they need to contact Liang Luo or Liu Yishou and ask Sun Zheng to help them get introductions to people at the TV station.

I'd give them this TV series for free to broadcast.

But CCTV is still the best option.

This kind of positive propaganda TV series should have no major problems.

Back in his hotel room, Zhang Hong smoked several cigarettes in a row.

There's one more question he just can't figure out.

Why is Grandpa Jia Shen so convinced that he is in his next life?

Why are Grandma Lu Yingzi and the others so kind to me? They have absolutely no airs about them.

These are all questions that Zhang Hong can't understand.

If he couldn't figure it out, he would ask. He took out his phone and dialed his dad's number.

The call was answered quickly.

"What's wrong, son?"

Zhang Hao was at home in Beijing, looking at photos and information of several girls on a tablet.

Zhang Hong's mother, Liu Yan, looked at it more carefully than he did.

These girls are the ones who have become quite close to Zhang Hong over the past few years.

Among them are Lin Muqing and Bai Xueye, and even Liu Meng, the female lead of "Bloody Youth".

However, Zhang Hao certainly wouldn't tell his son.

Zhang Hong, on the other end of the phone, obviously didn't know about this either. He immediately asked, "Dad, what's my grandfather's full name?"

This certainly doesn't mean I'm not close to my grandfather.

In fact, in his previous life, he grew up in his grandparents' house.

However, he had never asked his elders' names.

I only remember that my grandmother's name was Cui Xiulian. This was because once when I needed a household registration book for some business, my grandmother was the head of household on the first page.

Zhang Hao was a little confused as to why he wanted to know his grandfather's name, but he still gave the answer, "Your grandfather's name is Zhang Luoyu. 'Luo' as in 'falling' and 'yu' as in 'feather.' Why are you asking this?"

"It's nothing," Zhang Hong smiled. "I just recently found a name called Laisheng, which must have been from seventy or eighty years ago. I thought it had something to do with me."

He felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders.

What? I told you there's no such thing as a coincidence.

The reason why Grandma Lu Yingzi and the others were kind to me was simply because they had good personalities, and because I was polite and had the talent of a director.

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He was about to hang up the phone when his father's next words froze the smile on his face.

"Laisheng? I haven't heard that name mentioned in decades." Zhang Hao sighed. "Your great-grandfather was named Zhang Laisheng. He went to teach in the east, but he abandoned his wife and children and never came back."

Your great-grandmother, a lady from a respectable family, had to raise my father, your grandfather, single-handedly. That's why this name is taboo in the family; the old man doesn't acknowledge having a father who abandoned his wife and children. What's wrong? Where did you hear that name from?

Zhang Hong chuckled and said, "It's nothing, I just overheard someone mention it. I'll hang up now, Dad."

After hanging up the phone, Zhang Hong took out his cigarette case to get a cigarette, but the case was empty.

He crumpled it into a ball and threw it into the trash can.

After a long silence, he suddenly laughed: "So it really is my own family's business, what a coincidence!"

So, in his confused state, Grandpa Jia Shen mistook himself for Zhang Laisheng when he was young, because that was his great-grandfather.

It was because his grandfather and father got married and had children relatively early that he was actually a generation younger than Jia Xu, but only a few years younger than him.

That's why Grandma Lu Yingzi and those grandfathers were so kind to me.

They probably guessed it just by looking at their own faces.

That's why they insisted on making this TV series themselves.

Zhang Hong went through it all from beginning to end.

First of all, when my great-grandfather went to teach in the east, he probably thought he would bring his wife and children over after he had established himself.

As a result, they happened to run into Japan's undeclared invasion.

Then they encountered the group of young soldiers led by Jashin.

Because I am a teacher, I felt that I should protect these children, so I stayed instead of leaving.

Because they were in a war-torn region, they didn't have time to write letters, since the war in China had only lasted three months.

During the final retreat, whether voluntarily or at Jia Shen's request, Great-Grandfather stayed behind to cover the rear, and remained there forever.

His great-grandmother back in his hometown, seeing that he had lost contact with everyone, assumed that he had abandoned his wife and children.

Although my great-grandmother was from a respectable family, she was also a strong and independent woman who raised my grandfather all by herself.

It was because of this that Grandpa did not acknowledge his father, always believing that it was the father who abandoned him and his great-grandmother Zhang Hong.

Meanwhile, in the capital, Grandma Lu Yingzi was waiting for Grandpa, and Grandpa Jia Shen had been tormented by his conscience for sixty or seventy years.

Then, a year ago, he filmed "Clouds Fall into the Mortal World" and also starred in Uncle Liu's "Blood-Red Youth".

Because he appeared on camera, some of the elderly people may have seen themselves while watching TV and then realized that they looked very much like their great-grandfather, Zhang Lai.

Moreover, that drama was filmed during that era, so Zhang Hong's attire might be similar to that of his great-grandfather back then.

Then, they found themselves and wanted to make their own TV series based on their great-grandfather.

In order to save money, Zhang Hong himself took on the role of "Wei Laisheng" in the drama...

So they invited Zhang Laisheng's great-grandson to film this TV series, both to help Grandpa Jia Shen let go of his obsession and to let the world know about Zhang Laisheng's deeds through his great-grandson's hands.

If that's the case, then Grandma Lu Yingzi must have known long ago that Great-Grandpa had already sacrificed himself at that time, so why did she wait for sixty or seventy years...?

And there's also Grandpa's obsession.

Zhang Hong made a decision: he would go back to his hometown and tell his grandfather about it.

PS: (*^▽^*)

I like it, I'm really good at it, I'm really good at it.