At nine o'clock in the morning on Sunday, Li Xiaohe appeared at the Maozhong City funeral home, and he was going to attend the farewell ceremony of the county magistrate Kuaiyulin.

Maozhong is a prefecture-level city in Cangji Province, Kuai Yulin's family is in Maozhong, and before going to the county, he served as Secretary of the Party Committee and Executive Deputy Director of the Maozhong Municipal Bureau of Culture and Sports. Two years ago, Kuai Yulin was transferred from Maozhong to Siyuan and served as the head of the government of the county under the jurisdiction of Maozhong City.

When an incumbent official dies, it is a normal practice that the unit in which he or she currently works or the unit with which the personnel relationship is located should handle the funeral affairs and organize a farewell ceremony. However, Kuai Yulin's farewell ceremony is very special, and the organizer is neither the Siyuan County Government, nor the Culture and Sports Bureau, which has worked for eight years, but Kuai Yulin's family.

The reason for this situation is mainly due to the identification of the cause of Kuai Yulin's death, and the organization has not yet given an authoritative statement. If it is characterized as a public death, it should naturally be Siyuan County to handle its funeral, and it should be a grand farewell. If it is determined to be a sudden death from drinking, then the matter is complicated, and further identification is needed. Now that the superiors have no conclusions, naturally there will be no unit to come out, which official is willing to cause trouble?

Regarding the place and exact time of the farewell ceremony for the body of the county magistrate, Li Xiaohe inquired about Sister You, who is the wife of the county magistrate. Originally, on the second day of his appointment in Shuangsheng Township, Li Xiaohe was going to visit his eldest sister in the city and also come to pay tribute to the county magistrate, but he was rejected by Sister You. Although the reason given by Sister You was "I don't want to see guests now", Li Xiaohe understood that the eldest sister didn't want to let herself run around more, and she didn't want to bring too much trouble to herself.

I was going to come yesterday, but the day before yesterday I received a notice from the county that the higher-level leaders were going to pass by Shuangsheng Township the next day, and the township secretary Zhao Qiang went on a business trip and did not return, so Li Xiaohe had to wait obediently in the township, but he didn't wait for the news until it was dark, and the leader took another road. Li Xiaohe had no choice but to go to the county seat overnight, take the train in the second half of the night, and rush to Maozhong City at eight o'clock this morning.

Today's sky was also gloomy, adding to the heavy atmosphere of sadness, Li Xiaohe walked towards the courtyard of the funeral home.

The "dong dong" salute sounded, and two columns of men and women wearing filial piety shirts let out a mournful cry and walked inside from the door.

Li Xiaohe noticed that from time to time there were figures in the courtyard holding portraits, sad relatives, and colorful wreaths.

A familiar but much more erect figure appeared in front, Li Xiaohe hurriedly ran over and shouted "eldest sister".

The rickety body turned around, and before he shouted the word "Xiaohe", he was already teary-stained.

When he saw this figure just now, Li Xiaohe already felt that his nose was sour, and when he saw the other party's teary eyes at this time, he couldn't help but roll down his tears.

"Xiaohe, the mind is received, the work is so busy, why do you have to come all the way over?" With tears in her eyes, Sister You made a hoarse voice.

"Eldest sister, I have to come, otherwise I will ...... in my heart" Li Xiaohe's voice choked.

Sister You raised her trembling hands and climbed on the other party's arm: "Good brother." ”

"Eldest sister, county magistrate." Li Xiaohe let out a sad sigh, stuck to the other party's shoulder, and made a "woo" sound.

"Old Kui......" Sister You slapped this unrelated relative and let out a sad voice.

The bitter crying of the two is not only the death of the county magistrate, but also the twists and turns, as well as so much sadness and helplessness.

Although this place is full of sadness and sorrow, it is still rare for such a scene to appear in the courtyard, and people in the past can't help but cast their eyes, and many people think of four words: relatives to meet.

"Mom, don't cry. Brother Li, mourning. A voice rang in their ears.

Separated from the other party, Li Xiaohe looked up and saw a face with pear blossoms and rain in front of him. It was Kuai Jiaojiao, the daughter of the county magistrate, who was studying in college and had two years to graduate. This cheerful and lively girl in the past was now full of sadness, her eyes were deep-set, and her spirit was low, and she was obviously hit hard. Stretching out his right hand and patting the little girl on the shoulder, Li Xiaohe made a resolute voice: "Arrogant, strong, look forward." ”

"Brother Li, thank you, look forward!" The girl nodded heavily.

A voice came: "Those who are attending the farewell ceremony of Kuai Yulin, please line up here, friends on the right, and relatives on the left." ”

"Eldest sister, let's go over." Wiping the tears on his face, and helping Sister You, Li Xiaohe walked outside the Crane Tour Hall. The three of them stood left and right as required.

An older man with a white corsage in order, this old man is Kuai Yulin's uncle, an old engineer, he brought Kuai Yulin up, and Kuai Yulin is the de facto father and son. Li Xiaohe has seen this old man many times, and the old man gives him the impression of being wise, optimistic, and talkative, but today the old man seems to have lost his soul, his eyes are empty, and his expression is slightly dull.

"Old man." Li Xiaohe greeted softly.

"Here we go." The old man responded, but did not turn his head, apparently the mind was not here at all, but a mechanical response.

Li Xiaohe turned his head to look, and his heart couldn't help but feel sad again. There were only two queues, and relatives were longer than friends. On the other hand, the two families not far away, old friends account for at least eighty percent.

Once upon a time, the magistrate of Kuai County was also the head of a government, although it was not public, but there was no lack of time to call and hug, but now it is so bleak. Of course, some people are suspected of taking tea and cooling, but I am afraid that it is more about protecting oneself and even drawing a clear line; Otherwise, even if it is shown to the living and to colleagues, there will never be such a small number of people.

In this group of friends, there was not a single familiar face before and after, and most of them were people who knew the destiny of heaven, or were older. Obviously, these people have withdrawn from their careers, or they have no opportunity to enter, which should be the reason why they dare to show up here.

Looking at everything in front of you, how can you not sigh that the world is hot and cold, and how can you not sigh that the world is impermanent?

There should be someone younger than me, right? With this doubt, Li Xiaohe turned his head again to look back and forth, left and right, and what he saw were all uncles and uncles. He couldn't help but wonder, and he couldn't help but be angry: how could he not come?

Under the guidance of the staff, Li Xiaohe walked into the farewell hall with everyone, and a large color photo of the county magistrate came into view.

This is a life photo, which should be a corner of his own community, with blue skies and white clouds. Kuai Yulin was wearing a gray sportswear, doing exercises on the gym equipment, and there were unknown flowers of various colors behind him. The picture is so realistic, so vivid, as if the person in the painting is about to come out at any time.

After entering the hall, the team was readjusted, and the two columns became six columns, and Li Xiaohe stood in the first row. Looking at that kind face with a smile on his face, not only was his eyes misty again.

Under the auspices of the staff, the farewell ceremony began.

To Li Xiaohe's surprise, the person who introduced his life was actually the old man who seemed to have a slightly abnormal look, the uncle of the county magistrate.

The old man flicked his arms slightly, pushed away the support of his relatives, straightened up his already rickety body, and walked to the small table with his head held high.

Li Xiaohe found that the old man changed into a person in an instant, returned to his original healthy state, and was even more energetic.

Coming to the small table, the old man bowed deeply to the crowd, bending nearly ninety degrees.

Slowly straightening up his waist and pausing slightly, the old man reached the back of the small table. took out a piece of paper from the pocket of his clothes, opened it gently, and the old man made a voice: "Relatives and friends, my name is Kuai Chengren, I am Kuai Yulin's uncle, his name was chosen by me, and I brought him up." I am the leader of his life, and I am also his bosom friend in life and career. I wrote the words on this piece of paper myself, and I can memorize them word for word, but I want to read them out as a sign of respect for the deceased. Comrade Kuai Yulin, born in ......"

Through the vague mist, Li Xiaohe noticed that the old man Kuai Chengren's tone was calm and resolute, and he couldn't hear the sadness in his voice or the melancholy on his face, but only a solemn and righteous face.

What surprised Li Xiaohe even more was that it was the old man Kuai Chengren who gave the eulogy.

Before giving the formal eulogy, Kuai Chengren bowed to everyone before going to the back of the small table to speak: "It was I who insisted on giving a speech for Yulin, and I wanted to give him another ride in this way." As he spoke, the old man read according to a new piece of paper: "Comrade Kuai Yulin......"

With the voice of the old man, the voice and smile of the county magistrate became more vivid, and all kinds of the past came to mind again, just like what happened yesterday.

"Yulin, rest in peace! Yulin, rest in peace! Kuai Chengren's voice suddenly became much higher and much dumber.

Li Xiaohe looked at Kuai Chengren, and he found that the old man's lips were moving and his hands were trembling at this time, but he still insisted on bowing to everyone.

This time, Kuai Chengren did not insist, but was supported by the younger generations and slowly walked into the ranks of relatives.

As the staff's voice fell again, the low-key mourning music began.

The mist in his eyes gushed out instantly, and Li Xiaohe walked forward slowly, around the crystal coffin, looking at the remains of the county magistrate. The person lying inside has changed, his whole appearance has changed, his complexion has changed, and his expression has changed. But it hasn't changed, that is, the former leader and the big brother in life - Kuai Yulin County Magistrate.

With a deep bow three times, Li Xiaohe bypassed the crystal coffin and held Sister You's hand with both hands, and the two cried silently again.

"County magistrate, Xiao Chen sent you." The call sounded, and a man stumbled into the hall, fell to his knees with a "plop" and ran to the transparent box on his stomach.

Hearing this familiar voice and seeing the figure curled up in a ball, Li Xiaohe cried again. This time it was the tears of happiness, and the hot and cold state of mind had a heavy warm color.

"Yulin, Yulin, ah......" An old wail suddenly sounded, and a thin figure collapsed to the ground.