The Nightmare Experience of a Useless Person

A deep, resonant male voice interrupted Qingjun's thoughts. She looked up and realized that the once empty room was now packed with people.

Xiao Tao, Xuan Xuan, and Ali knelt on the ground, crying together. Xiu Lian also returned, and A Yu stood behind her, sobbing uncontrollably. It was only thanks to his adoptive parents that he didn't faint.

They're back, they're all back.

"Brother Jiang! It's me! It's Qiao Shen! Qingqing and I have come back to see you with our three children!" It was Old Master Qiao speaking in the hall. He was afraid that Old Jiang wouldn't hear him, so he kept bending down and getting close to his ear.

"Ali, Xiaotao, and Xuanxuan, you all raised them, and they're all such good kids! They're practically like half-daughters to Brother Jiang! They're all back today! I'll have them tuck you in!"

Old Master Qiao supported his back, his thick eyebrows furrowed deeply, looking as if he were in pain, but he still forced himself to beckon the three girls forward.

Each of them held a piece of red cloth, and with the help of Mr. and Mrs. Qiao, they covered Chiang Kai-shek's body with it, one piece after another.

It turned out that the thin red cloth was a quilt.

"Brother Jiang, the children have covered you with a blanket! Now that you're going down there, please make sure you're well covered up and don't catch a cold! Take good care of yourself, and also bless these three children so they can grow up safe and healthy!"

Old Master Qiao's voice echoed in the room. He was afraid that Old Jiang wouldn't hear him, so he shouted louder and louder with each word. But only Qingjun knew that the shouts were vibrating in the air, but they couldn't reach his ears. What was lying there was just a shell.

No matter how much care and longing you give, Old Jiang can no longer hear it. No matter how many blankets you cover yourself with, your cold body will never warm up again. He will soon rot, stink, and become unrecognizable.

However, more and more red blankets were added to Chiang Kai-shek's body, layer upon layer, completely covering his exposed hand.

"Old Jiang, it's me, Xiulian! I've come back to see you today, and I even brought you a book I wrote. I'll have Brother Jiang Shuo burn it for you later, so you can read it when you're bored on the way! What do you think? Aren't I a pretty successful woman now?"

"Old Jiang, Acha is back. I'm doing very well now. I have food and shelter thanks to my own abilities. Don't worry about me."

"Dr. Jiang, I'm Zhao Qin. Do you remember me? You treated my son's leg ailment before, and he's completely recovered now! Thank you so much. Without you, my son wouldn't have been able to keep his leg. I just wish I had come to thank you sooner..."

"Old Chiang, I've come to see you! I never expected you'd leave me first, hahaha, how could you leave me before me..."

"Mr. Jiang, thank you for your guidance. I am a doctor now..."

……

Familiar companions and unfamiliar faces came and went, blurring into silhouettes in Qingjun's vision. She was too tired to see anything clearly, only able to hear the deep concern and endless gratitude whispered in her ear. The incense they lit illuminated the dark mourning hall and the empty night.

It seems, without our noticing, something has returned. The deep affection in those whispered words filled the emptiness, dispelled the loneliness, and proved that those beautiful memories had never been forgotten. Thus, the end of life is no longer just about closing one's eyes and stopping breathing...

Life is like a summer flower, and death is also magnificent.

This was the first time Qingjun had felt this way. Life, born so vividly, died so concretely…

It is not merely the gathering and dispersal of spiritual energy; it is a unique period of time, growing on everyone's very bones like flesh and blood. If you want to sever it, you must wield the blade yourself, let blood flow like a river, and let flesh and blood fly everywhere.

Therefore, I can't bear to part with it.

After exhaustion, a new wave of suffocation surged forth. Qingjun dragged her heavy body out of the mourning hall, only to see a faint glimmer of light streaming through the cracks in the sky.

Daylight broke again, but nothing changed.

She wanted to take a few steps forward to breathe in the fresh air, but she felt her steps were heavy on one side and weak on the other, swaying from side to side as if she were walking in the clouds.

Left foot, right foot, Qingjun steadied herself, but almost fell to the ground.

It was Xiao Tao. She rushed out of the house, leaned against the wall and started vomiting. Her stomach was probably empty, so she couldn't vomit anything. Then she started coughing incessantly.

Qingjun's heart tightened, and he quickly stepped forward to support Xiaotao's trembling arm. Xiaotao trembled as she tried to open the small bag at her waist.

Qingjun was one step ahead of her. In her exquisite handbag was a brocade box. When she opened the box, there were small pills inside. Qingjun sniffed them; they were good medicine for calming the mind and stabilizing the spirit.

After taking the medicine, Xiao Tao's condition immediately improved. She leaned on Qing Jun's shoulder, breathing softly, with a few tears still clinging to her trembling eyelashes.

Qingjun let her lean on him, and gently stroked her arm with his right hand, only then noticing that Xiaotao had become plump and her arms were fleshy.

Chiang Kai-shek was right. Qingjun felt a pang of sadness again. He was right. The children had found better families, were well-fed, warmly clothed, and had access to good medicine. They had all become much stronger.

"Don't cry, Xiao Tao. Don't cry anymore. Old Jiang said you need to calm down."

Her calm breathing became rapid again, and Xiaotao shrugged and buried her face in Qingjun's body, letting her tears fall onto her clothes.

"I miss him, what should I do? Where can I find him now?"

She had spoken too quickly, so Qingjun could only rub Xiaotao's back and try to coax her with some words.

"Little Peach, Little Peach," she called urgently, "Do you still remember the Goddess of Immortality?"

The little person in my arms nodded.

"The Goddess of Longevity is incredibly powerful. She knows the Lord of the Underworld, the deity in charge of reincarnation. How about we make a wish to the Goddess of Longevity and ask her to put in a good word for Old Jiang with the Lord of the Underworld?"

After hearing Qingjun's words, Xiaotao really stopped crying. She straightened up and looked at Qingjun.

"So, after Grandpa Chiang Kai-shek was reincarnated," she sobbed, "did he still recognize me?"

"..."

"Does he still know the way home? What if he has a new home and doesn't want Lok Sin Tong anymore?" Xiao Tao's eyes were round and glistening with tears, full of seriousness.

"..."

Qingjun couldn't answer, probably because the answer was too obvious, and she couldn't even find any nonsense to cover it up.

"I still want Grandpa Jiang, who can cure diseases and save lives, who smiles at me, and who buys me candy. His loofah soup is delicious. I'm hungry, I want to drink loofah soup!" The little person, not getting a positive answer, frowned, and two strings of tears slid down his cheeks, into his mouth, and down his neck.

Qingjun was stunned until the child in her arms was taken away.

"Of course!" said Xiulian. "You wouldn't understand, would you? In the underworld, there's a pond of lotus flowers, said to be nurtured by human longing. Its lotus seeds are large and sweet; eating these seeds can make you remember everything from your past life!"

"Really?" The muffled voice was choked with sobs.

"Would I lie to you? Old Jiang is a top-notch doctor, he'll definitely recognize these lotus seeds. When he's reincarnated, he'll bring Ma Tang and Ah Lang back with him." Xiulian told the story without needing to prepare a script. "When Old Jiang comes back and finds out you didn't listen to him, he'll be furious."

Xiao Tao immediately covered her mouth, obediently nestled on Xiu Lian's shoulder, and fell asleep as Xiu Lian swayed with her steps.