Rebirth in 1986: Unforgettable Regrets

"Aunt Zhang, it's me." Hearing Elder Mrs. Zhang's voice, Lian He shuffled forward, embodying the saying that one's heart grows timid when one comes near home. A person not seen for nearly twenty years now stood before his eyes, and Lian He even felt too apprehensive to look directly into the old lady's eyes.

At first, he promised he would come back to marry Hualian, but he broke his word.

"Who are you?" Elder Mrs. Zhang placed the dates on the firewood rack beside her and slowly walked forward to see who this tall man actually was.

Lian He's lips trembled, and he didn't even dare tell Elder Mrs. Zhang who he was.

Elder Mrs. Zhang stepped towards Lian He, her gaze steady. Age had not severely weakened her eyesight; she could recognize familiar people by their figure and voice alone, but it took her much longer to discern those she did not know as well.

"Aunt Zhang, I am Lian He." Lian He looked at Elder Mrs. Zhang's wrinkled face and her eyes that showed her age. Once, Aunt Zhang had completely trusted him, always on his side even when Uncle Zhang did not think much of him.

But in the end, he still disappointed her.

"Lian He?" Elder Mrs. Zhang did not initially recognize him. She shook her head: "I don't know you."

No sooner had she finished speaking than she remembered. Trembling, she pointed at Lian He and asked, "You are Lian He? Lian as in connected, He as in harmony?"

Elder Mrs. Zhang's voice rose several notches.

Lian He hung his head and said, "Aunt Zhang, the wrongs of the past were my fault."

"Leave," Elder Mrs. Zhang declared, furious and unsure of what to do. She looked around, picked up a bamboo broom, and violently struck Lian He with it, scolding furiously, "Get out, just get out of here."

"Aunt Zhang." Lian He stepped backwards.

Elder Mrs. Zhang's broom landed again and again on Lian He's suit.

"Get out." Each strike pained Elder Mrs. Zhang's heart even more. Had it not been for her misplaced trust in Lian He, entrusting her daughter to him, her daughter wouldn't have suffered so much over these years.

Back then, weren't there many better suitors for Hualian than Lian He, a sent-down youth?

"Aunt Zhang, I—I just wanted to see Hualian," Lian He implored as he retreated, thick-facedly pleading. He had traveled a great distance to Wangjiang County, to Shuanghe Town, just for the chance to see Zhang Hualian, wanting to know how she was now, and even more, if she was doing well.

"What does her well-being have to do with you?" Mrs. Zhang became agitated. After several years of struggle, her body couldn't take it anymore, and with a snap, she shut the courtyard door, locking Lian He out.

Elder Mrs. Zhang did not want Lian He to see Zhang Hualian at all costs, otherwise, Xiao Yue's origins would be impossible to conceal.

"Just go, and never come back. Our family does not welcome you." Elder Mrs. Zhang shouted at Lian He from beyond the door.

In Shuanghe Town.

It so happened that someone passing by saw Elder Mrs. Zhang quarreling with a man in a suit and feared something had happened to her.

Zhang Huafeng heard the news and immediately rushed home, encountering Lian He halfway.

"Lian He?" Zhang Huafeng recognized Lian He instantly. Despite many years passing, Lian He hadn't changed much apart from aging a bit, so Zhang Huafeng recognized him immediately.

"Hua Feng? Hualian's brother?" Lian He recognized Zhang Huafeng too; when he left, Zhang Huafeng had been just a boy. Lian He excitably said, "Hua Feng, how's your sister? I came here to see her…"

Lian He had barely finished his sentence when Zhang Huafeng threw a fierce punch at him.

Lian He was caught off guard and struck by the blow.

Zhang Huafeng showed no mercy, assaulting Lian He with both hands and feet, delivering a brutal kick.

After Lian He returned, having always lived a life of privilege with endless business talks every day, he simply was no match for Zhang Huafeng.

"Hua Feng, now that you have vented your anger, can you tell me where your sister is now?" Since Lian He had come to Wangjiang County, of course, he wanted to find Zhang Hualian.

"Don't even think about it." Zhang Huafeng subconsciously denied it. His sister had finally started living a happy life; he couldn't allow Lian He to disturb it. He said, "After you abandoned my sister and left, why come back now? You should never return."

Zhang Huafeng wiped his face, removing all the sweat from it. Breathing heavily, he looked at Lian He with anger hidden in the depths of his eyes. It was all his fault that his sister suffered. If not for him, how could his sister have gone through so much hardship back then? How many people spoke ill of her.

His sister even once sought death. If it weren't for Xiao Yue, she might have really died that time.

"Hua Feng, back then I..." Lian He wanted to apologize, but in the end, he didn't know what to say. Bowing his head, he said, "I was wrong back then. Now, I just want to see Hualian once."

Lian He pushed himself to stand up, pleadingly looking at Zhang Huafeng.

Zhang Huafeng's eyes flashed as he said, "My sister got married and moved away. She hasn't been back for many years, so stop looking for her."

"Where did she get married to?" Lian He pressed on.

Zhang Huafeng sneered. "How would it matter even if you know where my sister got married? Are you going to find her and reopen her wounds?"

"I..." Lian He's face stiffened.

That's right, even if he saw Hualian, what could he do?

What if he met Hualian's husband? How would he explain himself?

Just as Zhang Huafeng said, would he cause Hualian's family to be unhappy again?

Lian He took a deep breath. In his memory, that woman with a radiant smile, perhaps, he would never see her in this lifetime.

Zhang Huafeng couldn't be bothered with him anymore and strode home. As soon as he arrived, Elder Mrs. Zhang was sitting in the courtyard, her face filled with desolation and pain.

"Mom." Zhang Huafeng approached, concerned that Elder Mrs. Zhang might be feeling unwell.

"Hua Feng, did you run into Lian He?" Elder Mrs. Zhang asked excitedly, "You didn't tell him where your sister is, did you?"

"I didn't say anything," Zhang Huafeng reassured her. "Mom, don't worry. I lied to him saying that sister got married and moved away."

"That's good." Elder Mrs. Zhang finally felt a bit more relieved upon hearing this.

Lian He returned to Wangjiang County with a face full of disappointment. He didn't rush back but chose to stay at a hotel.

He had traveled thousands of miles to Wangjiang County; he might as well walk around and see the place.

In Wangjiang County.

Lian Qingyang, who had come along, finally found Tang Yue's home after asking many people.

Lian Qingyang was lucky. He arrived at the Tang family's place just as Tang Yue was cooking at home. Zhang Hualian had been discharged from the hospital, and Tang Yue wanted to make something delicious for her.

"Tang Yue." Lian Qingyang excitedly saw Tang Yue and strode forward. "Let's play a game."

"Lian Qingyang?" Tang Yue was excited to see Lian Qingyang, but upon hearing his words, she felt rather speechless. It seemed that every time they met, Lian Qingyang's first sentence was always about games.