CHAPTER 198: CHAPTER 190: EXTRA (MR. YUN’S DEATH IN HIS PREVIOUS LIFE)

December 1975, Yun Mansion

December’s Beijing is covered in heavy snow, the entire city is wrapped in white, exceptionally beautiful, but Luo Datou’s mood is rather low, hating this beautiful winter. Mr. Yun has become increasingly sensitive to cold. He wondered if Mr. Yun could survive this winter?

Although it was freezing outside, Mr. Yun’s room was as hot as the peak of summer. Luo Datou had lit about ten charcoal stoves, burning fiercely, hoping to bring some warmth to Mr. Yun.

Yet, Mr. Yun’s body seemed to be sealed by the icy cold, as if the chill was emanating from deep within his heart. He was wrapped in thick quilts, but his face was still pale and his teeth chattered uncontrollably.

"Mr. Yun, drink this bowl of ginger brown sugar soup, it will warm us up!" Niu Erniu brought in a bowl of hot ginger and red sugar water that she had prepared, and Luo Datou took it from her.

Luo Datou, wearing a padded jacket and sweating profusely, stubbornly refused to take off his clothes as he fed Mr. Yun the ginger soup.

"Datu, take off your clothes, don’t overheat yourself," Mr. Yun said after drinking a few sips of the ginger soup, feeling a bit more comfortable inside.

"Mr. Yun, I’m not hot at all. You don’t know how cold it is now. My ears are about to freeze off!" Luo Datou said with a forced smile, his laughter ringing loud, seemingly to cover up his inner unease.

"Hmm, I know it’s very cold, but Datu, you’re strong and not afraid of the cold. Quickly undress, if you ruin your health, who will take care of me in the future?"

Mr. Yun gently insisted. How could he not understand Datu’s intentions? Wasn’t it just because he feared that he would be upset? Haha, he knew his own body best, and he feared he wouldn’t last much longer!

Luo Datou had no choice but to take off his clothes, only wearing an undershirt, as he was indeed very hot. He only felt much more comfortable after undressing. He carefully fed Mr. Yun the remaining ginger soup and saw that the paleness on Mr. Yun’s face seemed to have faded somewhat. Datu felt slightly relieved, surely Mr. Yun would survive this winter like before!

"Datu, hold me and take me outside. I want to see the snow."

"Mr. Yun, it’s snowing outside, and it’s very cold. Let’s stay inside, okay?" Luo Datou tried to persuade Mr. Yun, hoping he would change his mind.

"Datu, carry me outside. I just want to see what the snowflakes look like. I almost forgot what snowflakes look like!"

Mr. Yun spoke softly, showing an uncharacteristic weakness. In Luo Datou’s memory, Mr. Yun was almost godlike, but how could a god be so frail?

Luo Datou wiped his eyes, no longer opposing, as if he had anticipated something. He silently put on his clothes, bundled Mr. Yun in another quilt, and put on a leather hat and scarf for him, additionally stuffing two more hot-water bottles under the cover.

Niu Erniu’s lips parted as if she wanted to say something, but ultimately, she didn’t speak. She couldn’t help but her eyes turned red. She turned her back, wiping her eyes with her apron, and then turned back around, looking normal.

Luo Datou cradled Mr. Yun into a wicker chair and, gathering his strength, lifted the whole chair with Mr. Yun in it and carried him outside, with Niu Erniu following behind holding an umbrella to shield from the wind.

Luo Datou took Mr. Yun to the backyard, where the garden was engulfed in a white expanse, the north wind howled, and snowflakes fluttered down. The cold air pierced their bodies through every crack, but Mr. Yun didn’t feel cold at all; instead, he wished the north wind would blow even more fiercely.

"Datu, Er Niu, you two have been with me through thick and thin over the years. I thank you both here!" Mr. Yun sounded much more spirited, his voice louder.

"Mr. Yun, it’s our duty to accompany you. Datu owes his life to you. Why do you speak like this?" Luo Datou choked up.

Mr. Yun smiled and continued: "Datu, you know the passwords for both my HSBC and Citibank accounts. When I’m gone, you can withdraw that money and do whatever you want with it, whether you spend it for yourself or give it to others. After all, that money was all obtained by you."

Without waiting for Luo Datou to reply, Mr. Yun continued: "Also, about the stuff in our basement, I figure in a year or two, those four people will take care of it. When you see that the situation has stabilized, you should donate those items to the state. Considering those items, you and Er Niu should be able to live out your days in peace."

"Mr. Yun, please stop talking. I’ll follow you wherever you go! Don’t think of leaving me behind."

Luo Datou leaned on the wicker chair’s armrest, sobbing like a child, and Niu Erniu also kept wiping her tears, but the more she wiped, the more tears flowed.

"Stop this nonsense. Why are you following me? I’ve been annoyed by you all my life. Don’t annoy me in the next life."

Luo Datou was devastated, paying no attention to Mr. Yun’s words, crying ceaselessly. Mr. Yun, with his gaunt hands, gently stroked Luo Datou’s bald head, "Datu, listen to me, I hope you and Er Niu live well and make up for the days I didn’t get to live. Datu, promise me!"

Datu wanted to object, but he had always been obedient to Mr. Yun, never once having opposed him; unwittingly, he found himself agreeing. Mr. Yun smiled with relief; Datu always kept his promises, so he could depart in peace.

Mr. Yun felt the snowflakes from above becoming blurrier, as if seeing a young girl rolling snowballs on the ground, with a young boy umbrella shielding her.

"Brother, stop holding the umbrella, come make a snowman with me!"

"Brother, you’re no fun, who makes a snowman while holding an umbrella!"

"Nannan, you’re really heartless, if I weren’t afraid of you catching a cold, I wouldn’t be holding this umbrella. I’m freezing!"

"Brother, you’re the best, Nannan loves you the most!"

"Didn’t you say yesterday that you loved Dad the most?"

"Oh brother, can’t you see things change over time!"

Mr. Yun murmured with a smile on his lips, "Nannan!"

The scene shifted, a torrential flood, a young boy and a young girl clutching a broken plank, their lips turning blue, bobbing with the waves.

"Brother, I’m scared, I’m so hungry and cold!"

"Nannan, don’t be afraid, dad and Mama will come to rescue us, one we’re ashore there’ll be hot soup and blankets, brother will hold you so you won’t feel cold!" The young boy firmly embraced the young girl, continually comforting her, gradually lapsing into unconsciousness.

"Third Yun, it’s your choice, either the bigger or the smaller one, this boat can only take one more."

"Please, both of them are still children, they’re light, surely the boat can carry both!" The woman pleaded on her knees, her head knocking loudly against the floor.

"Third Yun, make up your mind quickly, or both of you will go down together."

"Take the bigger one." The man struggled to utter three words, collapsing weakly.

"No, father, save Nannan, don’t leave Nannan behind, I can swim back by myself." The young boy woke up to the arguing, shouting loudly upon hearing his father’s words.

"Father, Mama, brother, don’t you want Nannan anymore? Brother, aren’t you going to accompany Nannan? Nannan is scared!"

The young boy was knocked unconscious on the boat, barely hearing his sister’s piercing cries behind him. He tried to get up to save his sister but had no strength left in his body; gradually, the sounds grew fainter until they were barely audible, except for the soft sobs of Mama nearby.

Yet the previously kind and gentle Mama now appeared monstrously terrifying in his eyes, and the upright and honorable Father Hua seemed a pitiful creature. The young boy closed his eyes, tears slipping down, and woke the next day. He rowed for three days and nights, found his sister’s body, buried her, and then left the home he had lived in for fifteen years. From then on, the Jianghu knew the capricious and unpredictable Yun Po Bi.

"Datu, Nannan has come to fetch me, Datu, Er Niu, you must live well!" Mr. Yun, smiling at the sky, reached out to catch a snowflake.

"Nannan, brother is here, this time brother will always be with you, we’ll never be apart again!"

Mr. Yun’s voice grew fainter, ending only with a smile locked at the corner of his lips, his hand slowly fell, and the petal of the snowflake in his palm still beautiful, gently falling down.

On December 25, 1975, at 3:16 PM, Mr. Yun Po Bi, an outstanding leader of the Communist Party of China, died at home due to illness, aged sixty-three.

On the morning of December 26, the radio announcer solemnly broadcast this obituary, and the national flag at Tiananmen was also lowered to half-mast as a tribute.