Zheng Dongsheng's doubts about Lu Qiao's sudden arrival and sudden departure from the Orange Garden were finally answered after Shen Fei and others arrived at the Orange Garden. Lu Qiao's detention again left him with no hope and he was disheartened.
For the past few days, Zheng Dongsheng's head has been in severe pain, and he always feels like his blood is rushing upwards. He mustered up energy and stayed with Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi for three whole days. He also guarded his precious daughter and was forced by Lu Lu to do facial masks several times. Family affection and friendship no longer infected his aching heart. He kept silent, hiding his discomfort in front of Shen Fei, and even refused the help of the nurse.
It was not until Shen Fei and the others left the orange grove that he collapsed again and could no longer walk.
In January 2008, the freezing disaster suffered by the southern provinces, which attracted national attention from the Party Central Committee and the State Council to the people of the whole country, also caused huge losses to this city in the south.
¡°Misfortune never comes alone for Zheng Dongsheng. An ice disaster caused one-third of his citrus trees to freeze to death.
Zheng Dongsheng, who was lying on the bed, fainted several times. After Zhang Junyi and Liu Daqiang learned of the situation, they forced Zheng Dongsheng to go to the hospital, but Zheng Dongsheng refused. In desperation, Zhang Junyi asked everyone around Zheng Dongsheng to stay close to him, observe the development of Zheng Dongsheng's condition at any time, and report the critical condition of his condition at any time. Then we asked a hospital in the city to arrange a family bed. Then he told Liu Da that all the workers at the old city reconstruction site had come to wrap thick straw ropes around some of the fruit trees that had not frozen to death.
Shen Fei, who received a call from Zhang Junyi, dispatched 10 trucks of insulation materials. However, the Shanghai-Hangzhou Expressway, the Shanghai-Nanjing Expressway, the southern section of the Beijing-Zhuhai Expressway, the southern section of the Beijing-Fuzhou Expressway, and roads leading to or detouring from city n were closed due to ice. And failed to succeed.
Shen Fei, who was going crazy with anxiety, while dealing with various tasks from the previous year, had to constantly discuss the prosecution of Lu Qiao's case with Zhang Junyi on the phone, comfort his parents, and deal with a man who was on the verge of mental illness. Su Suli who keeps having manic episodes.
¡°Perhaps the freezing disaster is a sign of something that is bound to happen in the human world. During that time, Shen Fei failed to go to Chengdu City several times due to highway closures, plane delays, train delays and other reasons. All the pressure was on Zhang Junyi's shoulders. During the day, he worked at the old city reconstruction site, and at night he returned to the orange grove to help Zheng Dongsheng deal with the frost protection of the fruit trees. He also had to listen to the modifications of the defense opinions from two lawyers. Extremely busy.
Zhang Junyi, who was busy with everything, received another call from Liu Daqiang, telling him that Lu Qiao's mother was seriously ill and had been sent to the hospital for rescue!
When Zhang Junyi rushed to the hospital with an unshaven beard, even Xiaolu who was beside his grandma¡¯s bedside didn¡¯t recognize him.
The old lady learned that Lu Qiao had a sudden myocardial infarction after being interrogated. It was a large-scale infarction and he was already in a coma. Xiaolu kept crying. Zhang Junyi was also caught off guard. Liu Daqiang had a way to transfer his wife and the second wife's wife to the hospital to take care of the terminally ill old lady. Zhang Junyi immediately made a decision: the nanny would go home to take care of Xiaolu, he would go to the orange garden in the evening to help Zheng Dongsheng handle matters, and return to Lu Qiao's house in the middle of the night to guard the door, take care of Xiaolu, and arrange Xiaolu's daily life. Liu Daqiang went all out on the construction site to strive for the year-end progress to meet the city government's target management requirements.
Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi, who were busy with everything, full of anxiety and dizzy, didn't know if they had time to think about Lu Qiao in the detention center.
Lu Qiao¡¯s case was not delayed by the freezing disaster, and even progressed faster than expected.
The case is transferred to the court. At Zhang Junyi's request over the phone, Fang Qin, without saying a word, traveled thousands of kilometers away from the ice disaster area to N city, and prepared all the paperwork with lawyer Gong for the defense.
The only thing Zhang Junyi was gratified about was that Fang Qin told him that the two lawyers agreed on a plea of ??not guilty. Zhang Junyi excitedly called Shen Fei about the good news.
When the Procuratorate¡¯s ¡°Prosecution Opinion¡± was sent to the detention center, Lu Qiao did not sign it. The people from the procuratorate said: If you don¡¯t sign, we won¡¯t sign. If you don¡¯t sign, we will consider it as having been served. When Officer Qiu handed the "Prosecution Statement" to Lu Qiao, she put it under the mattress without even looking at it.
?Then the lawyer requested to meet. Officer Qiu wanted to take Lu Qiao to the interrogation room to meet with the lawyer several times, but she did not go. Officer Qiu brought back the lawyer's "defense statement" for Lu Qiao, but she still didn't even look at it and put it under the mattress.
It was freezing cold in the prison cell, and the detainees were wearing cotton-padded clothes piled on top of each other. They still couldn't sit still and wanted to jump. Because you can feel the blood circulating through beating.
This southern city has never suffered such an ice disaster, and the design concept of southern prison buildings has never included the addition of ducted heating for the sake of a once-in-a-century event. The windshield that is always open all the year round and the surveillance window are so tall and large that even if you stack Arhats on top, it is difficult to seal the window tightly with a quilt. Even if you can seal it tightly, it is a serious violation of prison regulations. This??The helpless people can only appreciate the sadness of life and endure the cold invasion in this environment.
There are dozens of ice cubes more than a foot long hanging from the steel lattice above the prison cell patio. A white sheet that Lu Qiao washed when there was no ice had been hanging outside, freezing to death. The detainee in the same room had to help put the sheets in, and she would glare at anyone who touched the sheets. So the bed sheet has been hanging outside, like a flag or a curtain, being invaded and destroyed by the Bing Lingzi night after night.
The court¡¯s hearing notice was also sent to the detention center, date: 9:00 a.m. on January 26, 2008.
Lu Qiao took the court hearing notice from Officer Qiu and stuffed it under the mattress without reading it as usual.
Shen Fei first went north, then east, then took a boat, then took national roads and even provincial roads, rural roads and village roads, and finally saw Zhang Junyi, who had lost his original shape.
"Has the court date been set?" Shen Fei asked.
"It's decided." Zhang Junyi replied weakly.
"Let's meet the lawyer." Shen Fei said.
"Old Zheng looks like he's not alive for a few days." Zhang Junyi wiped the corners of his eyes with his hand.
"Hurry to the hospital!" Shen Fei stood up: "Let's go to the Orange Garden."
¡°Let¡¯s go see the old lady first, it¡¯s not possible anymore.¡± Zhang Junyi stood up and said.
Shen Fei was stunned. Then the two of them walked quickly and rushed to the hospital in the same car.
The old lady has been sent to the emergency room, and outsiders are not allowed to enter. Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi stood at the door of the emergency room, looking at the doctors and nurses coming in and out. Looking at the rescue situation inside through the large glass window, their tears were like broken beads that couldn't stop.
Shen Fei hugged Xiaolu, who had been crying, and recalled the kindness Lu Qiao's parents had shown him twenty years ago; recalled the voices and smiles of these senior cadres who had transferred from the army to the local government; recalled what he had learned from them. Excellent moral character; recalling that he had let down the love of the two old people after returning to Shanghai until he recalled that he pushed Lu Qiao into the abyss of pain again and again, he finally burst into tears, and no one could stop this seemingly tall man. And a man with excellent temperament.
It wasn¡¯t until the doctor came out with a critical illness notification form in his hand that he asked family members to sign that Shen Fei stopped crying, signed his name on the form with trembling hands.
Two hours later, all the facilities in the rescue room were evacuated from Lu Qiao¡¯s mother¡¯s bedside, and a white sheet was covered on Lu Qiao¡¯s mother¡¯s body.
The large glass windows allow you to see everything. At this time, Shen Fei had no tears anymore. He stared blankly at the white sheets and hugged Xiaolu tightly.
Lu Qiao from the detention center stood up and came to the white sheets where she had been drying for more than half a month. Because she found that the frozen sheets were shaking back and forth as if blown by the wind.
Telepathy came to Lu Qiao at this moment. She burst into tears and couldn't stop them.
In the afternoon, Director Chen received a call from Liu Daqiang: Lu Qiao¡¯s mother passed away.
Director Chen said: "Lu Qiao has not stopped crying since the morning, and she is still crying until now. She has been moved to the health room and given salt water."
Liu Daqiang understands Lu Qiao's heart. He said to Director Chen: "Don't tell me, Brother Qiao, don't say anything. If she wants to cry, let her cry. As long as she can cry, she won't keep it in her heart and get sick."
Director Chen¡¯s eyes were filled with tears: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I will take good care of you, Brother Qiao.¡±
Lu Qiao¡¯s mother¡¯s body was sent directly to the funeral home. Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi contacted Lu Qiao's mother's work unit and the city's veteran cadre bureau, and learned that the city had set up a funeral team, which would be responsible for all the aftermath. Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi rushed to the Orange Garden the next afternoon.
Zheng Dongsheng, who was dying, finally saw his daughter, Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi. A string of tears trickled down the corners of his eyes. After looking back, Zheng Dongsheng only said one sentence clearly to Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi: "Adopt my daughter and take good care of Qiao Qiao and Peng Peng." He continued to bleed from the corners of his mouth and nose, and finally passed away at the age of forty-seven years old. Month and nine days.
The village director surnamed Zhang and other village cadres invited a doctor to diagnose the incident as "sudden cardiac death." The doctor issued a certificate and sent it to the funeral home.
Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi finished the farewell party for Lu Qiao's mother and waited for her body to be cremated. Then Shen Fei held the urn, Xiaolu held her grandma's photo, Zhang Junyi was guarding her, Liu Daqiang and Xiaoqiang set off firecrackers, and the group The old lady's ashes were sent to Lu Qiao's father's grave for burial together.
The next day, Shen Fei and his party came to the funeral home again and put Zheng Dongsheng in a suit that he had never worn in his life. A small farewell party was held, and only a small wreath was placed next to Zheng Dongsheng's body. On the left handband was written: "A life of righteousness and two sleeves of breeze", and on the rightOn the strap of her hand it was written: "Heaven and earth will be with each other forever." Signing: "Lu Qiao brings his son Zheng Xiaopeng and his daughter Zheng Xiaolu to express my condolences."
This small elegiac couplet was written by Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi.
Zheng Dongsheng¡¯s cemetery is in the same cemetery as Lu Qiao¡¯s parents, just below the hillside of Lu Qiao¡¯s parents¡¯ cemetery. The tombstone is engraved with: "The Tomb of Master Zheng Dongsheng". On the lower left is "Son: Zheng Xiaopeng, Daughter: Zheng Xiaolu Weeping Li".
Finally, Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi struck a match and lit the small wreath at the same time.
With the shrill cry of Xiaolu, the burning wreath floated towards the sky with a puff of blue smoke, then dispersed and disappeared.
The funeral arrangements are all over. Shen Fei and Zhang Junyi finally met with the lawyer.
On the day of the court session, there was still a cold wind accompanied by ice, and scattered snowflakes were flying in the air.
Lu Qiao was handcuffed and walked out of the cell. Officer Qiu took advantage of the situation and stuffed two chocolates into Lu Qiao's pocket.
The police car was honking all the way and driving very fast. After entering the city, the speed of the car continued unabated. That mighty wind fully reflects the deterrence and inviolability of the dictatorship.
Lu Qiao got out of the police car and was taken to an isolation room behind the court by the bailiff, waiting for the court time to arrive. During this period, several bailiffs and judges came into the isolation room one after another. Lu Qiao didn't even raise his head. Some of them poured a glass of water for Lu Qiao, and some brought him a pack of cigarettes. Lu Qiao knew very well who sent these people to take care of him. But she just didn't want to say thank you, just didn't want to give anyone a smile.
Lu Qiao looked at his handcuffed hands. He had already developed several frostbites, and his fingers were as red and swollen as carrots. The jade hands she once had had long gone, and she actually looked at her frostbitten hands and smiled.
A judge handed her a freshly lit cigarette and brought it directly to Lu Qiao's mouth. Lu Qiao caught it with his handcuffed hands and barely looked up at the judge as a greeting.
There is no greater sorrow than the death of one's heart. Lu Qiao seemed to feel that she had died long ago. She even saw her parents and Zheng Dongsheng.