The place they chose to eat at was a fairly good restaurant.
Luoxian House.
Not only was the name retro, but the decoration inside was also antique. The dishes’ names were even written on bamboo plates, hung on the wall of the front desk in the lobby, quite like restaurants of the ancient times.
Far away from the hustle and bustle of the city, the simplicity and quietness of the suburbs made people comfortable as if returning to the countryside.
The place was picked by Liu Yanbo. As a veteran driver working in the city for three years, it was easy to find good quality and affordable places to eat. Especially because he passed through many streets and alleys all day.
Liu Yanbo and his colleagues came to this restaurant before. For only two to three thousand yuan, seven or eight people could eat well. Reasonable prices like this, in a city where land is more expensive than gold, was rare.
But Liu Yanbo wasn’t being stingy, he wished to take Bai Bin to a truly high-end restaurant and show off his wealth. However, he was a poor man with a total of less than 10,000 yuan in his bank account, the living expenses Yin Hanruo gave him on their wedding day. Otherwise, he would only be able to offer eggs and instant noodles.
In their private room, Shangguan Qingmeng was happily drinking wine with Bai Bin's comrades.
Yin Hanruo also had a couple of drinks and occasionally spoke a few words, becoming more approachable.
Bai Bin didn't drink. Ever since they got a table, he had been steadily staring at Liu Yanbo. It was as if he was afraid that by blinking, the person missing for 13 years would disappear again.
"Come on! Let's talk alone?" Liu Yanbo casually asked, and without waiting for Bai Bin’s reply, he got up and walked directly to the balcony.
The restaurant was thoughtfully designed. Each private room had a small balcony. Those that drank too much could breathe some fresh air and sober up, then continue to drink and drink some more.
"Try it!" Liu Yanbo leaned on the railing, took out a small hip flask from his pocket, and offered it to Bai Bin.
Bai Bin shook his head and seriously said, "I won't drink with you before you answer my question."
"Try this wine, you’ll like it." Liu Yanbo insisted, pushing the flask into Bai Bin's hands. Liu Yanbo peered up at the starry sky, into the distance.
Bai Bin looked at Liu Yanbo, then looked at the hip flask in his hand, and slowly unscrewed the lid.
The liquor was fragrant, as soon as the lid unscrewed, the strong smell of wine was immediately caught by his nostrils. Bai Bin's complexion changed straight away, first in disbelief, then joy, and finally sadness.
“This... was this the wine fermented by Uncle San?" His voice trembled.
‘Cough cough~’ His throat burned with the familiar liquor. Bai Bin suddenly took another big sip, choking back tears.
"Is the taste different? It was made by me according to Uncle San’s recipe."
Liu Yanbo looked up so that Bai Bin could not see his face nor his red eyes.
Bai Bin tightened his grip on the flask and slowly squatted, placing his other hand on the ground. Tears flowed down his cheeks, he said while sobbing, "it isn’t, not even a bit."
Ever since the two walked alone to the balcony, the others in the private room curiously watched them. No one could hear what they were saying through the glass door, but Yin Hanruo saw that in just a few minutes, Bai Bin became a mess.
"Sister, don't go, it's useless." The girl who came with Bai Bin quickly got up, wanting to help and comfort him, but was impeded by Yin Hanruo who was sitting next to her.
Bai Bin's comrades also echoed: "Sister Xue, you can't get involved in this."
...
"Young Sir Bin, stand up!" Liu Yanbo looked at Bai Bin and patted his shoulder gently with his hand, "don't let the others see your weakness!"
Bai Bin didn't speak, but his mouth was open, and he cried silently. At this moment, the bravest republican warrior was like a helpless child, heartbroken.
Liu Yanbo no longer took care of Bai Bin and lit his cigarette. After blowing a thick puff of smoke, he said:
"Young Sir Bin, you have always been good ever since a child. Your parents were always proud. Do you remember? That year you were specially recruited by the army. Before you went there, a big banquet was prepared in the village, and it was livelier than the New Year. Everyone was afraid that you would be looked down on at military school, so your mother and several uncles spent all night making you new foreign clothes. And that made me and Tan Shao envy you for a long time."
Liu Yanbo blew another puff of smoke, paused a little, then continued: "We were all so remote, we didn’t have any financial resources, but you were still growing up at that time. After going to military school, afraid that you weren’t eating well, your dad went around town every month, gathering a sum of money to send you. You can guess where the money came from, can’t you? Yes, it was the whole village’s efforts saving up for you.”
“You didn’t forget this, did you?" In the end, Liu Yanbo's eyes sharpened, "don't you dare forget, you are not living for yourself. You’re carrying everyone's hope, so put aside your weakness, you cannot lose. You have no right to lose.”
Every word plunged into Bai Bin's heart like a flying knife, and his face twisted in pain. He struggled to stand, grabbing the railing, raising his head and chest like a javelin standing in the wind. "I haven't forgotten, nor dared to forget."
Liu Yanbo strongly patted Bai Bin's shoulder. His eyes softened, and he looked at the starry sky in the distance, lightly asking, "Young Sir Bin, after so many years, have you ever gone back?"
"I did, and I take some time off to go back every year. I don’t want people to think that Qinghe Village has been cut off!" Bai Bin wiped away his tears, and also looked at the starry sky in the distance, asking: "Young Sir Bo, have you ever gone back?"
To go home, what a warm thing.
But Liu Yanbo's home was ruined. He watched his parents, neighbors, and friends die in front of him one by one. And then watched their former hometown full of laughter turn into hell on earth, full of corpses everywhere.
What kind of feeling was that?
Probably only those who experienced it could understand!
Liu Yanbo shook his head and smiled sadly. "I don’t dare."
Bai Bin looked at Liu Yanbo, not with blame, only distress, and silently handed him back the flask.
Liu Yanbo took two swigs from the flask, lit his cigarette again, and said, "young Sir Bin, you've done a good job. Everyone would have been proud to see who you are now. You haven't let them down."
Bai Bin, thirty-one years old, achieved the rank of lieutenant colonel. He was a member of the "Dragon War" Unit, and the bravest warrior of the Republic, that defended the country for more than ten years. He made countless contributions and received several personal awards from top leaders.
How could such a guy disappoint?
"No!" Bai Bin firmly said, "Everyone blames me, I was your older brother so I should have taken care of you, but I haven't."
Liu Yanbo sighed, "how can you be blamed! It was my own choice."
“At that time, why didn't you come to me?" This question had always haunted Bai Bin's heart.
"I was infected with the plague that year. I still don't know why I survived. I wasn’t sure how long I could live and if there was an incubation period. You were everyone's hope, I couldn't take any risks."
Liu Yanbo calmly explained. But Bai Bin burst into tears.
A 13-year-old child, suffering from the plague and the loss of his relatives and friends, wandered around the world alone. Maybe he quarreled with wild dogs for food, maybe he slept in the wind and rain...
No one knew what he had been through.
But Bai Bin knew that Liu Yanbo did not live an easy life during that time.
"Where on earth did you go?"
Liu Yanbo closed his eyes and let go of the railing, and the faint words dissipated in the breeze.
"I forgot…"
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