A remote mountain village in the Southwest.

This was Shi Kai’s hometown.

It was truly poor—otherwise, Shi Kai wouldn’t have started working in his teens.

Shi Kai didn’t have Zhou Cheng’s luck and capabilities to be quickly promoted within two years of starting work. Shi Kai had risen slowly through the ranks.

But within dozens of miles around, mentioning Shi Kai’s name would evoke genuine admiration.

Several years older than Zhou Cheng, Shi Kai had been pressured by his leaders to return home for matchmaking two years ago. He had married a worthy wife who, despite seeing him only a few times in three years, had borne him two children.

His elder daughter was two years old, and the younger one was just months old.

Besides having young children below, Shi Kai also had elderly parents above.

Shi Kai had lost his father early, raised by his half-blind mother. He had a brother with intellectual disabilities who stayed home to farm.

With such family circumstances, even after Shi Kai became a cadre and sent his entire salary home, he couldn’t fundamentally improve their situation.

The Shi family Zhou Cheng saw was extremely poor.

Looking at Shi Kai’s sunny, positive personality, who could imagine his home was this impoverished?

Zhou Cheng brought Shi Kai’s ashes home and knelt before Shi Kai’s mother.

The half-blind mother couldn’t see clearly, only making out a shadowy figure:

“Juan Hong, is that Xiao Kai returning?”

Shi Kai’s wife Wei Juanhong covered her mouth, crying uncontrollably. Shi Kai had returned, not walking, but cradled in an urn.

While Mother Shi couldn’t see far, Wei Juanhong saw clearly—a young cadre kneeling before her mother-in-law holding an urn, with more uniformed people standing outside the courtyard.

The bamboo fence separated the yard into two worlds. So many uninformed people, yet they made no sound.

The family dog barked frantically, sensing strangers.

Mother Shi finally sensed something wrong. Unable to see clearly, she relied on touch.

Her hands touched Zhou Cheng’s face, “Xiao Kai’s face was rounder, his nose wasn’t this high… You’re not Xiao Kai!”

Mother Shi’s hands trembled. Shi Kai’s brother stood nearby, sniffling, “Not brother, not brother—”

“Mother, Shi Kai he…”

Wei Juanhong wailed, unable to speak through her tears.

The months-old infant in the house also began crying.

Zhou Cheng held the urn tightly and kowtowed to Mother Shi: “Auntie, I’ve brought Shi Kai home. Please accept my condolences!”

Everything before Mother Shi was a blur.

She felt not only her eyes were blind but her ears weren’t working either. She heard every word but couldn’t comprehend its meaning.

Wei Juanhong’s crying made her heart race.

The little grandson was crying too.

Originally, due to family planning, Shi Kai couldn’t have two children, but because his brother was intellectually disabled, Shi Kai and Wei Juanhong were granted an additional birth quota.

Rural people thought differently—poverty didn’t encourage having fewer children, but rather finding ways to have more to share the burden of elder care.

The Shi family’s situation was especially unique. Shi Kai would certainly have had to care for his intellectually disabled brother for life. Now they had their second child, but Shi Kai was gone. Wei Juanhong felt the sky had fallen!

People waiting outside the courtyard entered, including leaders from Shi Kai’s unit and the academy.

They solemnly explained the circumstances of Shi Kai’s sacrifice.

“…Comrade Shi Kai is awarded the title of martyr and will be buried in the Martyrs’ Cemetery. May his heroic soul rest in peace.”

Before they could mention the martyr’s compensation and work arrangements for relatives, the Shi family had broken down in tears, leaving the unit leaders unable to continue. Who wouldn’t be moved by such crying? Unit leaders dreaded such tasks the most. Being a martyr was glorious, but for the martyr’s family, it was devastatingly painful!

Zhou Cheng was eventually helped up—his knees had gone numb from kneeling.

After notifying the family, they needed to bury Shi Kai in the local Martyrs’ Cemetery. Mother Shi had to be supported to attend. Shi Kai’s brother, understanding his big brother in the urn would be buried, cried and made a scene.

Wei Juanhong held both children, silently weeping—a heartbreaking sight to all.

“With Shi Kai gone, how will this family survive!”

Zhou Cheng heard villagers discussing this.

He pondered the same question. The state would provide compensation which, compared to current farmer income, wasn’t small.

But money gets spent. The Shi family’s situation was special—now basically only Wei Juanhong remained as a labor. She had to support Mother Shi, her intellectually disabled brother-in-law, and two children. The money would eventually run out.

“The unit will coordinate with local authorities to arrange work for the relatives. This follows national policy, don’t worry.”

Everyone understood Zhou Cheng’s burden.

In such circumstances, they could understand Zhou Cheng.

Shi Kai hadn’t just died in front of Zhou Cheng—he had pushed Zhou Cheng away and died himself.

Did Shi Kai know he would die when he pushed Zhou Cheng away?

No one now knew Shi Kai’s thoughts then. It was just that split-second decision—now Zhou Cheng lived while Shi Kai died. With Shi Kai’s family in such conditions, how could Zhou Cheng rest easy?

After completing the mission, Zhou Cheng followed to Shi Kai’s hometown.

Shi Kai was properly buried in the Martyrs’ Cemetery. Seeing Shi Kai’s hometown so poor and family conditions so difficult, Zhou Cheng couldn’t just leave.

Tell himself the state would care for Shi Kai’s family and they’d live happily?

That would be self-deception!

The family’s pillar had fallen, leaving only Wei Juanhong, who married just three years ago, as labor.

Wei Juanhong was still so young—what if she remarried? Who would care for Shi Kai’s two children, a half-blind mother, and an intellectually disabled brother?

But Zhou Cheng had no right to tell Wei Juanhong “You can’t remarry.”

Being a serviceman’s wife was hard enough, with the husband home maybe once or twice a year. In the Shi family’s situation, even though Shi Kai was a cadre, Wei Juanhong couldn’t have followed him before…

As the wife, what about her mother-in-law and brother-in-law?

Being a martyr’s widow was even heavier than being a serviceman’s wife.

Zhou Cheng had met many martyrs’ widows. While traveling nationwide selling cigarettes, he had visited the families of comrades who died at the front.

Not to mention distant cases, the best-off martyr’s widow was Kang Wei’s mother—what had Xie Yun’s life become these years?

That was someone with good material conditions. There were those worse off, like the Shi family before him.

Zhou Cheng desperately wanted someone to talk to.

What would Brother Pan do in this situation?

He wanted to talk with Xiaolan—she was so clever, she’d always have appropriate solutions.

But neither Brother Pan nor Xiaolan were here. Zhou Cheng could only force himself to handle it.

Mother Shi was bedridden with illness, and Shi Kai’s brother couldn’t communicate normally, leaving only Shi Kai’s widow Wei Juanhong for Zhou Cheng to talk to.

“Sister-in-law, what are your plans for the future?”

Wei Juanhong’s eyes were swollen to slits. She responded very slowly to Zhou Cheng’s words.

What plans?

“Shi Kai said after finishing his advanced studies he could be promoted again. He said his salary would increase. He said he’d come back… He said he’d transfer to civilian work later, could work in the county, and the whole family would be reunited.”

Now Shi Kai lay in the Martyrs’ Cemetery, and this young cadre asked about her plans.

She just wanted Shi Kai alive!