Probably Hayes was really lucky. After the blessing, several big families in the town announced that in order to celebrate the return of their children, a free banquet would be open to everyone, right in the square in front of the church.
After that, all kinds of food and drinks were brought out one by one. The tables were connected for a hundred meters. People from all walks of life in the town gathered together, and a band was playing.
Of course the most popular ones are all kinds of "fish", which are cooked in various ways, including but not limited to boiled, steamed, grilled, etc., to eliminate the odor as much as possible and retain the freshness and tenderness. It tasted like juice, but Hayes couldn't eat any more after a little.
There was laughter and laughter all around, but there was only a cold feeling in his heart, mixed with blazing anger.
While everyone is feasting on the food that others have earned with their lives, those who are really working are being shut out, especially when they see the fat bishop showing off his brand new, golden clothes to the people around him. When he saw the gem-encrusted scepter, Hayes really wanted to shoot him.
How can a bishop from a poor area get the money to purchase such a luxurious scepter? You can tell with your butt.
That scepter is stained with the blood of many fallen soldiers.
Hayes immediately lost his appetite, ate something briefly and returned to the hotel with his wife.
“.Those upper-class people who spend a lot of money, the heads of various families, and the priests who just preach the glory of the emperor. I hate them, but everyone thought before that without them We cannot fight against the enemy with our strength, but after everyone bleeds, I find that we are still unable to protect what they love.
"Hayes, in fact, this is not the case everywhere. ”
"Maybe."
Hayes was half lying on the bed, staring at the dusty ceiling full of mildew spots.
“I’m just disgusted by all that. Seeing these cruel things, sometimes, you forget the better things.”
“Beautiful things always exist. "
"Maybe, the chaplain in the war group is very brave. He has always been one of the bravest people in my opinion, but he cannot keep death and pain away. When bullets attack, faith Couldn't save him."
Alina poked Hayes in the face.
“I don’t like hearing you talk like that.”
“Yes, I don’t like it either.”
Jalina reached out to Hayes’ face and touched it With those faded scars.
“We cannot live without faith, it is something that allows people to persist in living every day.”
"Honestly, in the last moments I thought of you, not the throne."
Hayes hesitated.
“If a person’s soul goes to the throne, but his family and loved ones have to suffer in reality, then what is the point of this?”
“Where did you learn that? You heard these words?”
“My company commander, my battalion commander”
Kalina hugged him tighter.
"Hayes, this is a vast and lonely universe. We are not important. We will soon disappear and become a speck of dust in the starry sky. But now, at this moment, I am the only one. With you and Sister An, this is what I stick to."
She looked at Hayes's remaining eyes.
"No matter what, the throne is still kind to us, don't let those ugly things cover your eyes."
"I understand." The three of them left the next day Linhu Town went to the place where Habri's family was, which was not far from Linhu Town. Although the bottom nest was not peaceful during this period, it was relatively better under the "special period" focus of the Ministry of Justice. They arrived with the convoy. Went to the place called Tiecong Town.
Although it is said to be a town, it is actually very large. Its origin is said to come from a serious accident. A factory and surrounding blocks in Xiachao collapsed directly into Xiachao and fell heavily on the wasteland. Such a settlement was formed consisting of a large amount of metal debris and garbage.
Garbage in the bottom nest means treasures and resources, so it attracts a large number of scavengers.
Both Habri and Peak are from this place, but surprisingly they don’t know each other. This also shows the scale of this place. It is almost a small city, with various simple shacks and tents densely packed together. The parasites attached to the body of a certain crab are also spread throughout it, and the bustling level of people coming and going is no worse than that of some neighborhoods in the lower nest.
However, when Hayes followed the address and asked a bunch of people to find it, all he saw was a pile of blackened ruins at the end of the alley.
"Who are you looking for?"
At this moment, a door opened on one side of the alley, and an old man holding a broom came out.
"Excuse me, where is Habri's house?"
Hearing Hayes mention Habri, the old man was stunned for a moment, then shook his head, sighed, and walked to the pile In front of the ruins.
“Little Habri is a good boy, why do those bastards so cruelly arrest him to become a soldier?”
"Is this—"
The old man wiped away his tears and shook his head.
“This is the home of Mr. and Mrs. Hubry. The couple was in poor health. Mrs. Hubry was bedridden all year round. After little Hubry was taken away, Mrs. Hubry sat in bed every day. Waiting for him to come back at the door. Old Habri had to take care of her and scavenge to support the family. As a result, a year after little Habri was taken away, it was said that there might be a fire in the stove, and it was when everyone was sleeping, etc. The fire was already strong when they were found. The couple could not run out. When they were found, Old Habri was still holding his wife tightly. He may have fallen a few meters away from the door. Alas, it was tragic. They were pregnant. There is also a photo of him and little Habri. This child asked someone to take a photo of the couple when he picked up a recycling motor. He is really a very filial child. I don’t know how many more he will see these after he comes back. It's uncomfortable, uh, you are."
Hayes clenched his fists tightly. Suddenly, he turned around and hammered the wall beside him.
"Ah! Ah! Ah!!!!!!!!!!"
He roared while beating the wall, as if he was beating some non-existent enemy, which frightened the old man and took several steps back with his head shrinking.
"Hayes! Hayes!"
Jalina and Andina quickly pulled him from the left and right. At this time, the wall had been smashed by his prosthetic legs, and a shallow pit was made. The white The lime peeled away to reveal the bricks inside, and there was still blood left behind from Hayes' other fist.
“Don’t be like this, Hayes.”
“Why, woo woo hoo—why is this happening—”
Hayes lowered his head and sobbed, pressing his forehead against the wall, and slowly fell to his knees.
“It shouldn’t be like this, everyone, everyone has sacrificed and dedicated so much, it shouldn’t be like this”
His two wives squatted beside him and watched him like this, and they also She cried in distress, but still tried her best to comfort him.
After a while, Hayes asked the old man about the burial location of Habri and his wife. After the other party knew that Hayes was Habri’s comrade and Habri’s sacrifice, I insisted on taking him there myself.
It was a desolate cemetery, where the souls of no one were buried. The couple even shared a grave, and their tombstones were made by old neighbors together. They were just two very simple ones. The cross, and the photo they protected until death, was nailed to Mrs. Hubley's tombstone.
Taking the mottled and scorched photo, Hayes saw a kind couple sitting on a chair. Habri, who was covered in hair and wearing a leather jacket, stood behind the two couples with a smile and put his hands on each other. On the shoulders of adoptive parents.
Hayes took a deep breath, took out Habri's expedition manual and his nameplate, as well as the savings he had saved for his adoptive parents. He squatted down and threw a pit on the ground with his hands. Things were placed inside and reburied with soil.
The wind keeps whimpering, and the scarred warriors also keep whimpering——