Chapter 0794: Grave Sweeping

"Old Zhao, you know what? I used to think that people respected me because I was outstanding. Gradually, I came to understand that people respect me because they are outstanding. Outstanding people know better how to respect others. Being respectful to others is actually dignifying yourself."

Drinking, most of the time, depends on mood and company. For instance, Tan Kaixuan, after drinking over a dozen bottles of beer, started talking more.

Zhao Fusheng didn't drink much, after all, he had to go home in the evening and dared not drink too much. Most of the time, Tan Kaixuan drank alone.

Well, when people drink too much, they naturally talk more.

Tan Kaixuan clearly hadn't chatted with anyone like this for a long time, so he spoke quite casually.

Zhao Fusheng nodded: "It's normal. The basis for having a good time together is that both sides have the ability to flip the table and the cultivation not to flip it. It's the same with our business—harmony brings wealth."

This was the truth, and it was something Tan Kaixuan often said in his previous life. In his words, all the silent efforts and sacrifices a person makes are not to do whatever they want, but to be able to not do what they don't want to do.

But unfortunately, in the end, Tan Kaixuan never achieved that goal.

"Yeah, I also want to be a little better each year than before. Not just having more money and a smoother path, but also meeting new friends, seeing a bit more of the world, understanding things I once couldn't. Becoming a bit better, more tolerant, so I can live more freely." Tan Kaixuan suddenly became emotional, a sentimentality unusual for his age, but it didn't surprise Zhao Fusheng at all.

They say youth knows no sorrow, that one feigns sadness to write new poems. But who knows, sometimes being young doesn't mean being carefree or lacking mature thoughts.

"Let's work hard together."

Zhao Fusheng was silent for a long while, then raised his glass to Tan Kaixuan.

That day they talked for a long time, from business to life, from their respective plans for the future to the embarrassing moments in their old dormitory.

Time is the sharpest butcher's knife in the world. Whether you are a legendary general or a peerless beauty, in the end, you cannot escape the fatal pursuit of time's blade. In the desolate graves, no one will remember whether you were beautiful or ugly in life.

Well, maybe some will remember, but that's rare.

It's like if Yue Wumu knew in the underworld, he might regret his fierce resistance back then, after all, he hindered ethnic integration.

Heh...

Zhao Fusheng and Tan Kaixuan were small figures. They had no so-called national righteousness or patriotic sentiments. They just felt that after working hard, they deserved to live a happy life.

Early the next morning, when Zhao Fusheng opened his eyes, he found himself not sleeping at home but lying in the dormitory, with Tan Kaixuan still sound asleep on the bed opposite.

"Damn, what's going on?" Zhao Fusheng muttered to himself, shook his head, and tried to recall last night's events.

It seemed that both he and Tan Kaixuan had drunk quite a bit. Before losing consciousness, he had taken the guy out of the restaurant. It didn't seem appropriate for two drunks to go home, so the only suitable place was the dormitory.

So, Zhao Fusheng dragged Tan Kaixuan back to the dormitory.

As for how they got upstairs and into the room, Zhao Fusheng couldn't remember clearly.

He glanced around, found that his wallet and phone were still there, and decided not to think too much. He quickly grabbed his phone.

Zhao Fusheng glanced at it and looked helpless. There was a long list of missed calls and text messages, some from his mother and some from Fan Baobao. Clearly, he had worried a lot of people last night.

He quickly called Fan Baobao and his mother to reassure them, and only then did he sober up a bit.

Fortunately, he had told his family in advance that he was with Tan Kaixuan, or else Mother Zhao and Fan Baobao would have called the police.

"You're really something! I called you a bunch of times, either you didn't answer or you answered and didn't say anything. I'm so mad!" Fan Baobao said angrily.

"Not answering I can understand, but what's with answering and not saying anything?" Zhao Fusheng looked bewildered.

"Who knows? I just heard you snoring," Fan Baobao said irritably. "Oh, and Tan Kaixuan too, talking in his sleep..."

"Huh?" Zhao Fusheng was stunned, his face full of surprise. "What? What did he say?"

"Couldn't make it out, it was fuzzy. Sounded like 'another round' or something," Fan Baobao said.

Zhao Fusheng was speechless. That was just like Tan Kaixuan when he was drunk.

"Alright, take it easy. I have to go shoot a pictorial later." Fan Baobao couldn't be bothered with Zhao Fusheng and hung up after a few words.

Now that she was a senior, the school's rules against taking acting gigs no longer applied. For commercial events, Huayi would arrange them for her if there was an opportunity.

Zhao Fusheng put down the phone, looked up at Tan Kaixuan still sleeping, shook his head helplessly, ignored him, and got up to wash up.

He planned to check on the welfare home today. He hadn't gone before, not because he didn't care, but because he didn't dare—he was afraid he couldn't hold back his tears.

After all, that respectable and lovable old man had passed away.

People often say that youth is reckless, that the young are full of sharp edges, even like porcupines covered in spines, easily hurting many people and making many mistakes.

Once they enter society, time and life slowly smooth out those edges, turning them into polished pebbles that can be mixed into cement and become building materials.

Some become the foundation of roads, while others become towering statues.

Clearly, the old man was the latter, and Zhao Fusheng in his past life was the former. In this life, he hoped that when he left this world, he would be remembered by more people.

Leaving the dorm, Zhao Fusheng took out his phone and dialed Zhang Qian's number.

"What are you up to? Come with me to see the old man," Zhao Fusheng said, taking a deep breath.

Zhang Qian hesitated. "If it's inconvenient for you, don't go."

He knew well that as the heir to the welfare home designated by his grandfather, although Zhao Fusheng hadn't spent much time with the old man, they truly understood each other. Before he passed, the old man had said that Zhao Fusheng was a sentimental person, so after he was gone, don't tell him, to spare him the pain.

And Zhang Qian, following the old man's instructions, had not notified Zhao Fusheng right away.

"I have to go see him," Zhao Fusheng said after a long silence.

For some reason, his mood grew even heavier.