"You’ve come a long way... How is Ashu doing in North Continent?"
Ashu’s mother held a cup of hot tea, looking slightly nervous as she gazed at Bai Xiu. The young man looked like a nobleman from a wealthy family. Could Ashu really have made such a friend?
In the records of "Deep Sea," it was noted that before Ashu became a Sacrificial, his deeds were recorded. However, what Ashu had told his parents before leaving Huaiyin City were not recorded, as he was ultimately an insignificant person, a mere dust of the era. No one cared what he had said, just as no one cared... where he had gone.
Bai Xiu took a sip of tea.
A robust and mellow voice sounded from outside.
"Mrs. She! Do you remember me?"
"Ashu often talks about you, saying that he wants to come back to visit... It’s just unfortunate that he’s still stationed at the Fortress. Xiao Chi and I took a holiday, and we just happened to pass by Huaiyin, so we came to see you on his behalf." A plainly dressed middle-aged man entered, his smile warm and his laughter filled with joy, as he effortlessly picked up the little girl who was drawing in the corner.
The middle-aged man pulled out a toy from his inner pocket, like magic. It was a nearly wilted sunflower, a plant almost unseen in the cold region of Jiangbei.
The little girl’s eyes sparkled with curiosity.
"Do you remember me?" the Bai Family Patriarch asked with a smile, handing over the flower.
The little one took the sunflower, carefully smoothing the nearly wilted petals, and said softly, "You are the bad man who took brother away... Bai... Silly Uncle..."
Bai Xiu’s expression was complicated.
The real name of the Bai Family Patriarch was Bai Xiaochi.
After so many years... this was the first time anyone had addressed the Family Head this way.
The woman, clearly angry upon hearing this reply, came to the child and corrected her seriously, word by word, "You must not say that! It’s very impolite..."
"It’s alright, it’s alright... She’s still young."
Bai Xiaochi was not the slightest bit angry, instead, he smiled and put the child down.
He approached Bai Xiu, placed the package he was carrying down, and said softly with a smile, "Ashu asked me and Xiao Chi to bring some specialties from North Continent, along with some money... It’s all in this package."
The child, clutching the sunflower, pulled on her mother’s sleeve, quietly watching the two men.
She muttered, "Brother... hasn’t come back for a long time..."
Ashu’s mother looked at the package on the table, her expression complex as she seemed to be thinking about something.
"Please wait a moment."
After taking a deep breath, she carried the child to the next room.
"Why did you come here?"
Bai Xiu didn’t disturb the calm in the room but instead communicated using his spiritual power.
Bai Xiaochi replied using his spiritual power as well.
His face still bore a faint smile.
No one would imagine... the Bai Family Patriarch, known for his decisive killings, could have such a "kind and friendly" side.
"Some things are not in the records of ’Deep Sea’. Higher clearance doesn’t necessarily grant you the knowledge," Bai Xiaochi said lightly.
"Bai Zesheng doesn’t know the information about ’Qu Long’ because I personally took away this Sacrificial... Ashu’s wish is for his parents’ records to be effectively protected."
"Effectively protected... means being lonely, relying only on each other as father and daughter?"
"... If you insist on interpreting it that way, yes, that is the most effective protection."
Bai Xiaochi looked at the man on the bed and calmly said, "This man is already dead. Even if Gu Changzhi came back to life, he wouldn’t be able to survive."
Because he knew... the Family Head was telling the truth.
"We can’t bring a dead person back to life, but we can make sure... that the living continue to live."
Bai Xiaochi spoke softly, "When Ashu awakened his Extraordinary Ability, there was an accident. His physical condition was very poor and he needed constant medication to stabilize his body. He approached the Bai Family, hoping to keep taking the medicine and live as long as possible. He volunteered to become a ’Sacrificial’, with his only request being that his mother and sister be taken care of. I can guarantee that this small courtyard is the safest place in Huaiyin City, no matter what happens, it won’t disturb the mother and daughter’s life."
"Joining the army in North Continent... that poor excuse was actually his own invention."
"People need hope to live," Bai Xiaochi said sadly. "The world we see isn’t the same as ordinary people see it. They see the ECG still showing the fluctuations of life, but we see the complete shattering of the brain’s spirit; the man on the bed is beyond saving."
The same goes for Ashu.
What Ashu saw in himself was a doomed, short-lived life.
But what he wanted the mother and daughter in the little courtyard to see was a son stationed on the frontier, still with the hope of returning home.
"If you think... a Sacrificial should have a glorious death, then you can tell them the truth," Bai Xiaochi said softly. "They will know Ashu is dead; whether he died on the Frozen Prairie or somewhere else... probably isn’t so important to them. But by doing so... you destroy the hope Ashu left for them. This thread of hope is the most precious gift he left for them."
Bai Xiu silently clenched his fists.
By entering this courtyard, he would witness such a scene.
It wasn’t what he had anticipated...
Everything in this courtyard was filled with hope.
Ashu’s mother soon came back out, alone this time.
She didn’t avoid the "husband" lying on the bed.
Gathering courage, her voice trembling, she asked, "Gentlemen... did something happen to Ashu?"
He had been stationed at the North Continent Fortress, day after day, year after year... Though he had written letters and sent messages.
But Ashu had never returned since he left.
She had begun to worry, to doubt, long ago.
But the one she truly missed... who dared to think too much?
At this moment, she was only hoping for one answer.
Even if this answer... had only a slight possibility, she was willing to believe it.
Bai Xiaochi looked towards Bai Xiu.
"There’s no such thing."
Bai Xiu smiled easily, speaking softly, "Ashu asked me to tell you that he is doing very well in North Continent... please don’t worry."