Chapter 161: After Love
The first thing Chatterbox sees after waking up is the fire around them and then the smoke stinging his nose. He lets out a few coughs and pushes away the broken seat lying on top of his body.
He’s alive. He’s actually alive. He feels delighted in his heart.
“Boom!” a loud sound numbs his ears. He turns around and sees that one of the train carts has exploded into pieces. He quickly gets up from the ground in fright. The sound of the explosion continues. Even if he doesn’t die this second, he might in the next.
The moment he raises his head, he sees Cold Face lying on the control cabin’s dashboard. His head is covered with blood and he’s not moving. Chatterbox recalls that just seconds before he fainted, Cold Face was still maneuvering the train.
Chatterbox feels cold sweat all over his body, but regardless of whether or not Cold Face is alive, he picks him up and drags him out of the cabin.
F–k! He’s stuck!
The control cabin is deformed from the crash. He’s able to squeeze through the half-open doorway but can’t drag Cold Face through it.
“F–k……F–k……F–k!” he’s panicking like a cat on a hot tin roof. Tears are almost flowing from his eyes, “Cold Face! Wake up, will you!? F–k! We have to hurry and escape! I can’t just leave you behind! Hurry and wake up!”
But at his current state, he can’t assess how badly injured Cold Face is right now. He can only see his abnormally pale face, his hands are extremely cold, and he’s inhaling more than exhaling.
“Ahh——” Chatterbox mourns almost going crazy as he pulls Cold Face with all his might.
“Chatterbox! Cold Face!” a familiar voice shouts suddenly. Chatterbox turns around and sees who it is. The feeling of joy drowns him and he doesn’t know whether to cry or smile——Zhou Xiao Zhuan has led a couple of investigators with him and rushed out of a small door from the tunnel and are running toward him!
“Hurry!” Chatterbox shouts back, “Cold Face is stuck!”
The group rushes over. Two officers break the doorway and pull Cold Face out successfully. Chatterbox watches their solemn and young faces and feels that even if he dies today, he will have no regrets! It’s because this place can explode at any time, yet Xiao Zhuan and the others are risking their lives and not giving up on the slightest bit of hope to save them.
Chatterbox is completely out of energy and seriously injured. Seeing that Cold Face is saved, blackness covers his eyes as he faints and falls to the ground. It gives Xiao Zhuan and the others a fright. They carry the two of them quickly and run back into the small entrance from the tunnel.
They close the door and run for their lives. After just a few steps, they hear the deafening sound of an explosion hurting their ears and causing them to stutter.
A tall and buff officer is carrying Cold Face and Xiao Zhuan is carrying Chatterbox as they continue running. Cold Face is still unconscious and can’t feel the shaking ground or hear the explosion; Chatterbox is probably in a bit of a daze as he asks Xiao Zhuan softly, “The building, is it okay?”
Xiao Zhuan keeps running with his head down and says in a stuffy voice, “Although you guys slowed down the impact by hitting the walls first along the way before crashing into the foundation, the building is collapsing slowly, like just now.”
“F–k,” Chatterbox curses with not much energy.
“The building was constructed too poorly,” Xiao Zhuan answers, “Thank goodness that the people have evacuated to the bridge and not many are injured.”
“Mm,” Chatterbox responds and asks, “Are Leader……and Xiao Bai okay?”
Tears suddenly flow from Xiao Zhuan’s eyes. Once the tears start, he can’t seem to stop them. He carries Chatterbox on his back and continues running and crying.
“They’re fine!” he says stubbornly, “They’ll definitely be fine. Although the building has collapsed, the bridge didn’t explode. Captain Qin said the bridge didn’t explode, which means that Leader and they succeeded. Leader is such an incredible person, isn’t he? They’ll definitely be fine. They will definitely……return!”
_____
Underground.
The underground that has been buried like a tomb.
The wreckage, broken columns, debris, and flare.
Everywhere is a mess, and everywhere is depressing. The depressing feeling of death.
Two people are lying on an uneven slope embellished with flare.
Both of them are not moving.
Han Chen is lying there. He opens his eyes and the first thing he sees is the wreckage and piles of debris. His eyes are covered with blood, causing his eyelashes to stick together and making it hard for him to open his eyes.
And then he spots R lying on the ground not far away with his eyes opened. Besides the wooden stick on his chest, there’s also a gunshot wound caused by Han Chen. He’s no longer breathing. And the remote is just lying in the middle between them.
Han Chen continues lying down and not move.
He’s in a bit of a daze. But in the haziness, he seems to be able to see Su Mian from many years ago. The white school dormitory building, the gentle covering of the tree canopies. She stands below them wearing a vibrant dress, stars congregate in her eyes as she turns and smiles at him.
Han Chen smiles suddenly. His lips slowly curve into a smile.
He gets up suddenly. After they reunited, Su Mian had once asked him this.
She said: Han Chen, why do you like me so much?
How did he answer?
He said: you’re just pretending to be good after gaining an advantage. I just like you.
I like you since we were that young. A man’s true love is like a blazing yet suppressive fire. Whether it’s separation or being reunited, how do you want me to stop?
In the blurriness, he remembers that day in Jiangcheng suddenly.
On that night, in the room covered in darkness. He was smoking behind the screen feeling annoyed. He thought to himself that he must have searched for her for 1892 days, yet why hadn’t he found her? Why hadn’t she appeared?
And then she appeared in front of him like that. In her clean police uniform and refreshing face. She looked like another person, yet she felt familiar at the same time.
And then he realized that it was the face of the only person he ever loved.
The feeling of tiredness surges in his heart. His body is exhausted and can’t move an inch. He can even feel that the wounds on his body are draining his life away slowly. He wants to close his eyes; he wants to close them just like this. He wants to close them and think about her quietly and think about their lives. Even if they have no future, he never lost her.
…….
Whistle.
A crisp sound of a whistle like an eerie spirit.
It faintly resonates in his ears.
The sound is too faint and weak. He can’t make out whether it’s his illusion or it’s real. Is it his imagination from hearing her calling for him so many times, or is she really here?
“Weeeee——weeeee——” one sound after the other. It’s not clear and it’s hard to make out. It continues relentlessly in the underground covered in darkness.
Tears flow from Han Chen’s eyes suddenly.
And then he opens his eyes slowly. Using all his might, he starts to crawl. Slowly, he starts crawling toward her direction.
_____
The same sound of the whistle penetrates the dark and enclosed atmosphere.
It wakes up another person.
Another man who’s almost on his last breath of air.
His whole body is covered in blood lying on the ground beneath the foundation. He’s in an endless muddled state of consciousness. His life is drifting away slowly until he hears her whistle blowing.
He opens his eyes and very slowly, his gentle and clear pupils come alive.
Whether it’s seeking for death or life, it’s just a simple decision.
Having her or not having her in the end?
He lies on the ground listening to her blowing the whistle for a long time.
And then he doesn’t move.
He closes his eyes.
He closes his eyes just like this.
……
The one I love. The one I love dearly.
Your whistle gives him encouragement.
It also gives me the determination to die.
_____
Su Mian’s back is against the hard and cold door. It’s pitch black everywhere. There is not a bit of noise and there are no other people. She doesn’t know how long it has been and she doesn’t know where she is.
She holds onto the whistle and continues blowing on it. Her throat hurts already and her arms are numb from pain. She’s even starting to lose her feelings as she continues to blow onto the whistle one time after the other.
She’ll just continue until she can’t anymore.
She lifts her eyes and sees the endless pit of emptiness. Her tears are already dry. She thinks to herself: they’re probably going to be buried in this underground place and become a pile of bones. And perhaps, they could be buried together.
Just as she’s in the middle of her thoughts, she hears a noise coming from behind her suddenly.
She can hear some sound coming from the other side of the door.
She can’t believe her ears. The whistle falls out of her hand as she turns around and stares at that area of darkness.
In the dark, someone’s hand is searching around the door as the sound of sweeping can be heard.
Someone finally grabs onto the key. In a split second, Su Mian’s world seems to stop in time.
And then she hears the key twisting. The door is pushed open.
She can’t see the person’s face and that person can’t see hers either. She can only hear the person say faintly almost losing his voice, “Su Mian, I’m here.” And then he falls to the ground with a loud “thump.”
Tears rush out of Su Mian’s eyes immediately. She kneels down right away and hugs his body covered in blood.
“Han Chen!”
She embraces him sitting on the ground and cries painfully.
……
In his best time of age, he fell in love with the best girl.
No matter where in the world and no matter life or death, they will never part.
I will always come to your side and find you.