You hidden in my heart - Chapter 63.3

Chapter 63.3

The Panlong mausoleum area was quite a distance from the parking lot. Once the family of five got out of the car, they made their way from the parking lot to Panlong.

On their way, Yu Wenyin and the elderly Li couple discovered that Lu Yuling’s mother, Lu Rongyue, was also buried there.

Before this, the Li couple had no idea. After all, who would wander around a cemetery, and who would be brave enough to check out the tombstones one by one?

So when they found out, the three adults were all taken aback. They couldn’t help but reflect on how fate was truly determined by the heavens. 

‘What’s that saying? If you’re not from the same family, you won’t enter the same door.’

But what shocked them even more was still to come—

The landscape of Panlong Garden resembled a slumbering dragon, with Li Zhang’s tomb positioned right at the dragon’s head.

Once the family of five entered it, they took a right turn and headed south. After just a few steps, they unexpectedly spotted Zhao Hailan.

Zhao Hailan stood before Li Zhang’s tombstone, gazing intently at his photo with an expression of a mix of helplessness and gratitude.

Yu Wenyin was utterly shocked, and even Mr. and Mrs. Li were taken aback. 

‘Zhang’er had been gone for nearly a decade, and this is the first time Zhao Hailan has come to pay his respects at the grave.’ Mrs. Li couldn’t help but murmur, “What a day! What brought him here?” 

Lu Yuling was equally shocked, instantly frowning. He truly hadn’t anticipated running into Zhao Hailan. ‘This guy is like a stubborn adhesive, impossible to shake off no matter how hard I try.’

Though Li Xining was surprised, she understood exactly why Zhao Hailan was visiting her father’s grave today. After all, when she turned down the money yesterday, she had mentioned, “We won’t be celebrating Valentine’s Day tomorrow; instead, we’ll visit my father’s grave.”

However, she never thought Zhao Hailan would actually show up. If she knew that, she would never have said that to him.

At that moment, Li Xining realised that Zhao Hailan was incredibly single-minded in everything he pursued, seemingly determined to not give up until he reached his goal.

As they approached the tombstone, Yu Wenyin greeted Zhao Hailan with surprise, as if she had just noticed him. “Hey, Mr. Zhao, what brings you here today?”

Zhao Hailan caught the playful tone in Yu Wenyin’s voice, but he kept his cool and replied apologetically, “Zhang has been gone for nearly ten years. I should have visited him sooner.”

Yu Wenyin thought to herself. ‘That’s sweet of you to say. If it weren’t for your son being in love with my daughter, you probably wouldn’t have shown up for another decade.’ Still, she didn’t talk back with Zhao Hailan and began to arrange her offerings.

Even though Zhao Hailan didn’t visit the dead often, he understood the customs and brought a tribute today.

Yu Wenyin was quite blunt. She shoved his tribute aside and put her own in its place. While doing this, she remarked, “You can pick whichever one you want to eat. I won’t pressure you. Anyway, I can’t control you now.”

Li Xining was cleaning her father’s tombstone with a white towel. After hearing her mother’s comment, she couldn’t help but chuckle. 

At that moment, Lu Yuling suddenly said to her, “Let me take care of it.”

Li Xining initially wanted to decline with a “No thanks”, but then she realised that Lu Yuling must have strong feelings for her father, so she accepted and handed him the towel.

In the black-and-white photograph, Li Zhang still appeared gentle and refined, dressed in a suit and gold-rimmed glasses. 

He was a wonderful husband, a great father, and a loyal friend.

In Lu Yuling’s memory, Uncle Li had always been kind and easygoing. During his growth, Uncle Li also played the role of a father.

It had been ten years since he came to visit Uncle Li’s grave and clean his tombstone, so he cleaned it very carefully, not leaving out any corner.

After placing the offerings and wiping the tombstone, they began burning paper.

When the paper burning was almost over, Li Xining took out the letter written to her father from her pocket, pinched the bottom of the envelope and lit a corner. When the fire started, she threw the envelope into the flames.

Yu Wenyin smiled and asked her, “What did you write to your dad this year?”

When her mother asked her this question when she was a child, she would answer honestly, but after she turned thirteen, she stopped answering and would only reply in a proud tone. “I won’t tell you.”

It was the same this year. 

But this time, right after she finished speaking, a strong gust of wind suddenly swept through, bringing a fierce flame straight towards Lu Yuling, who was standing nearby. Luckily, Zhao Hailan was quick enough to pull him back; otherwise, his clothes would have surely caught fire.

This sudden turn of events really took everyone by surprise.

Yu Wenyin looked at her daughter in shock. “What did you say to your dad? Just look at how furious he is.”

Li Xining replied with confidence, “I honestly didn’t write anything.” Yet, deep down, she felt puzzled because she remembered what was written in the letter yesterday. [Lu Yuling, that irritating guy, calls me his little wife every single day and wants me to marry him right after I graduate.]

But seeing her father’s reaction, Li Xining thought he must be trying to convey to Lu Yuling, “Not a chance.”

After burning the letter, they bowed in respect.

The elderly couple didn’t need to bow to their son. 

Yu Wenyin and her daughter bowed three times to her husband.

When it was Lu Yuling’s turn, he knelt down and kowtowed three times in front of Uncle Li’s tombstone. With each bow, he silently promised. “Don’t worry; I will take good care of her.”

The strong wind that had been blowing finally calmed down.

At last, it was Zhao Hailan’s turn. He also knelt and kowtowed three times to Li Zhang.

On the way back, the Li family tacitly kept silent about the fact that Lu Rongyue was also buried in this cemetery area because Zhao Hailan was there. Since Lu Rongyue had not told her son the truth before her death, it showed they were never to see each other again in life or death.

So they couldn’t go against Rongyue’s wishes and let Zhao Hailan disturb her again.

But Lu Yuling didn’t know the inside story. As a son, he couldn’t leave the cemetery without even looking at his mother, so he said to Yu Wenyin, “Auntie, you go first. I have to go see my mother.”

Upon hearing unexpected news, Zhao Hailan’s footsteps suddenly stopped.

Yu Wenyin and the old couple couldn’t do anything to stop the young man, so they had no choice but to agree with him.  “Go ahead; we’ll wait for you in the parking lot.” After that, Yu Wenyin looked at her daughter again and said, “You should follow Yuling too, and don’t forget to kowtow to your aunt.”

Li Xining had initially intended to go with Lu Yuling and was anxious that her mom wouldn’t approve, but to her surprise, her mom encouraged her to go with Lu Yuling. She felt a mix of shock and joy, quickly responding, “Sure!”

Then, Lu Yuling took Li Xining’s hand and guided her toward the heart of the mausoleum area.

Zhao Hailan stood still. His gaze fixed on Lu Yuling, revealing a deep sense of longing and unmasked sorrow.

At that moment, Mr. Li sighed and remarked, “Don’t go. You should know if Rongyue wants to see you. Don’t trouble her.”

Zhao Hailan stayed quiet.

Mr. Li shook his head and walked away.

When they reached the tomb, Li Xining wiped the tombstone with the white towel she had just used to clean her father’s tombstone. She was meticulous and serious, even more so than when Lu Yuling had cleaned her father’s tombstone earlier.

Lu Yuling couldn’t help but chuckle. Looking at his mother’s photo, he shyly said, “Mom, I brought my wife to meet you today.”

Li Xining turned and shot him a glare and muttered, “So annoying!”

“You called me annoying in front of my mom? Hmph, you’re angry and hard to please!” Lu Yuling instantly transformed into a little princess.

Just then, a burst of wind blew through. An adjacent tree’s trunk smacked Lu Yuling on the head, causing him to groan and hide his head, exclaiming, “Ouch…”

Li Xining gloated. “See? Even your mother despises your hypocritical behaviour.”

“Don’t just blame everything on feudal superstition. This is just a natural occurrence.”

Li Xining let out a cold snort and ignored him. After she tidied up the tombstone, she and Lu Yuling knelt and bowed three times to his mother.

Once they stood up, Lu Yuling turned to Li Xining with a serious expression and said, “After you bow to my mother, you belong to me. If you don’t marry me later, you’ll be lying to my mother.”

Li Xining responded. “That depends on how you treat me.”

Lu Yuling replied, emphasising each word, “I promise you in front of my mother that I will treat you well and cherish you for the rest of my life.”

Li Xining stayed silent but held his hand.

Lu Yuling gripped her hand firmly and led her away.

Have a nice day!