Chapter 85: The Civil Affairs Bureau Happens to Open its Doors
A year ago, on that overcast, rainy day, Gu Qili remembered the drizzle that persisted throughout the night and showed no signs of stopping even the next day.
It was also the third day after Gu Dezhong’s death. She had completed all the procedures and laid him to rest in a cemetery he had chosen while he was still alive.
After the Gu Family went bankrupt, Gu Dezhong suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage. Though resuscitated, he became a vegetative patient, bedridden in the hospital for nearly three years—that was the most torturous period for Gu Qili, attending classes by day and keeping vigil by night at the hospital, exhausted to the point of looking haggard and unrecognizable.
There were almost no outsiders at Gu Dezhong’s funeral, with only her uncle and a few of his friends who helped out. Her mother was abroad.
Gu Dezhong had countless friends during his lifetime, but after the Gu Family went bankrupt, it was as if they had evaporated from the world. Not even one was willing to show up for his death, afraid of getting involved in troubles.
At that time, Gu Qili truly experienced the fickleness of human relationships.
In the incessant dreary weather, the cemetery was sparsely populated. Her uncle and the helpers had gone, leaving Gu Qili alone. She didn’t want Gu Dezhong to feel lonely—he had always enjoyed lively surroundings, making friends over drinks, widely known to everyone. Yet due to unwise choices in friends, no one saw him off in the end.
She sat in front of the tombstone, whispering to him, talking about her future plans.
Gu Dezhong’s biggest wish during his life was to buy back his winery, the result of his lifelong painstaking efforts and deep affection.
The vast winery was of significant value. Though Gu Qili desired to fulfill his wish, her own insignificant capabilities were not enough.
She sat in front of the tombstone for a long time, without an umbrella, her clothes soaked through and her hair sticking together in clumps, haphazardly draped over her shoulders.