Chapter 35 Chapter 9 - The Second Leaving My Host Plant

Three days later, on September 21, 1999, at 1:47 a.m., Taiwan experienced a major earthquake that shocked the world. I was not asleep at the time, and my subconscious action was to hold the bookshelf. The earthquake woke me, Bo Sen, brother Ziyao and senior sister Xiuzhi. The first thing we do when we wake up is to call home and ask about the situation. Mingjing and Quan also called me separately. Apart from being frightened, they were not injured. The home of me, Bo Sen, and senior sister Xiuzhi is also considered safe. Only brother Ziyao, no one answered the phone at home. The atmosphere that night was very tense, the four of us didn't speak, and brother Ziyao just kept pacing in the living room.

There was another large-scale aftershock after five o'clock. After the aftershock, brother Ziyao sat down slumped. "Brother Ziyao, I'll drive you home and have a look." Bo Sen opened his mouth. "Me too." I continued. "I..." Before Senior Xiuzhi finished speaking, Brother Ziyao immediately shook his head at her: "That place is too dangerous, don't go there." There are many cars along the way, whether on the highway or on the provincial road. Through the rearview mirror, I saw that brother Ziyao either lowered his head or glanced out the window without saying a word.

Brother Ziyao's home is in Mingjian Township, Nantou County, very close to the epicenter. When passing through Zhushan Town, there were ruins and ruins on both sides, and there were occasional cries. Brother Ziyao began to mutter to himself, but he couldn't make out what he said. When we were about to cross the Mingzhu Bridge across the Zhuoshui River to Mingjian Township on the opposite bank, we stopped the car at the end of the Zhushan end of the Mingzhu Bridge and were shocked by the sight in front of us. Many bridge decks of the Mingzhu Bridge fell off the bridge, and the piers were also crushed or severely tilted.

The bridge head was arched about three meters, and the ground nearby was also cracked. Brother Ziyao got out of the car and looked at Mingjian Township 700 meters away. He suddenly knelt down on his knees and cried. Later, we detoured the Jiji Bridge and finally arrived at Mingjian. Brother Ziyao's family collapsed, the bodies of his mother and brother have been found, and his father is still buried in the rubble. The sister-in-law was seriously injured and went to the hospital, and the five-year-old nephew miraculously only suffered minor injuries. We stayed next to brother Ziyao's dilapidated home for nearly two days.

The Japanese rescue team came and used life detectors to detect that there were no signs of life in the rubble. They said that if heavy machinery is used for excavation, the body may be injured, and the family members are asked to make a decision. Brother Ziyao lit two sticks of incense, burned some paper money, and asked his father to forgive him for being unfilial. The Japanese rescue team quickly dug up the body of brother Ziyao's father, and then formed a circle to express their condolences to the deceased. Before leaving, the Japanese rescue team also expressed their apologies to Brother Ziyao.

Brother Ziyao said thank you in Japanese. Brother Ziyao told us that his grandfather was taken as a soldier by the Japanese during World War II. After returning home, he limped one leg and hated the Japanese ever since. As a result, his father also hated the Japanese very much. "Unexpectedly, it was the Japanese who helped in the end." Brother Ziyao smiled wryly. After that, brother Ziyao often traveled between Nantou and Tainan, and entrusted us to take care of his five-year-old nephew for a few days. At that time, whenever there was an aftershock, brother Ziyao's nephew would always scream and cry.

I will never forget the wailing sound. Not long after, brother Ziyao's sister-in-law couldn't stand the blow and hanged herself in the hospital. When the common people in Taiwan are still dealing with the aftermath of the dead and comforting the hearts of the living, Taiwan's politicians have not forgotten the 2000 presidential election. In the middle of the night more than a month after the earthquake, I was woken up by the sound downstairs. Walking downstairs, brother Ziyao's room has several more cardboard boxes. "Cai Chong, wait for me to settle down and send these things over for me."

"Brother Ziyao, are you moving out?" "Well. I quit my job and went back to Nantou. I have to take care of my little nephew." Brother Ziyao answered while arranging things. I woke up Bo Sen and helped Brother Ziyao clean up together. "Okay, it's almost done. I'll give you the rest of the books." Brother Ziyao said. Bo Sen and I looked at Brother Ziyao, not knowing what to say. "Come on, one piece for each of us." Brother Ziyao gave me and Bo Sen a concrete block respectively. "Is this?" Berson asked. "A piece of my home. If you ever go into politics, please take this piece with you."

"Huh?" I asked. "Earthquakes are the least ethnically minded politicians, because the people who died under it did not distinguish between natives, outsiders, Hakkas, and aborigines. It crushed and killed all Taiwanese." Bo Sen and I nodded and took the concrete block. Before Brother Ziyao was going to get in the car, senior sister Xiuzhi suddenly opened the door and walked out. "You just left without leaving a word?" Senior sister Xiuzhi said. "Is the thing I gave you when you were admitted to the graduate school still there?" "Of course it is. I put it in my room."

"Everything I want to say is in there." Brother Ziyao picked up his luggage and waved to senior sister Xiuzhi, "Goodbye." After seeing off brother Ziyao, Bo Sen and I returned to the living room. Senior sister Xiuzhi sat on a chair, staring at the white square pottery basin given to her by brother Ziyao, in a daze. "What exactly did you say?" Senior sister Xiuzhi said to herself. Bo Sen and I also sat down and looked at it carefully. "Ah!" I exclaimed suddenly, "I see." "What is it?" Person asked me. "I love Yang Xiuzhi."

"Huh?" Senior Xiuzhi was surprised. I pointed to the "I" in "Seeing the True Self in the Bright Mirror Platform", the "Show" in "The Beautiful Landscape Outside the Purple Bamboo Forest", and the "Love" in "There is no chance of great kindness, but one body with great compassion. It is great love". "I love show? Then what?" Berson asked. "Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva is holding, what is it?" I pointed to the stone that resembled Avalokitesvara again. "Yang Zhi." Bo Sen replied. "Together, isn't it "I love Yang Xiuzhi"?" Senior sister Xiuzhi was stunned after listening.After a long time, there seemed to be tears gushing from the corners of his eyes. She stood up immediately, rushed back to the room, and closed the door. A few minutes later, she went out of the room again, eyes red, and moved the pot back to the room. For two weeks in a row, I didn't hear Senior Xiuzhi speak. Brother Ziyao, who had been my roommate for eight years since freshman year, finally left. He became the second host plant to leave me. After Brother Ziyao left, I often thought of the messy pile of books in his room. "Idiot, idiot." Brother Ziyao always likes to pat my head, and then say this sentence. Although he is only five years older than me, I sometimes feel that he is my elder. He once reminded me to make up my mind, but my resolution always disintegrated under Ming Jing's eyes. Brother Ziyao, I live up to your teachings. When Senior Xiuzhi finally spoke, I received another call from Tsuen. Because of Ziyao's relationship with the earthquake, Tsuen seldom called. Hearing Tsuen's voice, and thinking of the regrets of brother Ziyao and senior sister Xiuzhi, I suddenly wanted to see Tsuen very much. "How are you lately?" "Can we meet?" "you……" "What's wrong? Can't you?" "No, no, no..." Tsuen's voice was a little nervous, and he quickly continued, "It's just that you never offered to see me first, I... I'm surprised." "Just surprise?" "And...and I'm very happy." Tsuen's voice was very soft. "Is there any more?" I said with a smile. "Also" can we meet up? "It's my lines, you are stealing the lines." Tsuen also laughed. "Then... is it okay?" "Yeah. I'll take the bus to Tainan tomorrow." "Is there anything to do?" "Well. I'll finish at five o'clock as soon as possible, and I'll wait for you at the gate of Chengda University, okay?" "OK." "See you tomorrow." "Ok." In vain I have been an adult student for so many years, and I still don't understand the situation. After deducting the Annan campus, National Cheng Kung University has at least six or seven campuses in Tainan City. Each campus has a front door and a back door even if the side door is not counted. So here comes the question again, where does the so-called "Chengdu University gate" refer to? I had no choice but to ride a locomotive and look for Tsuen at every place that could be called "the gate of Chengda University". Finally, at the gate of the eighth school, I saw Tsuen. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting." I ran close to Tsuen, panting. "Will it be long?" Tsuen looked at his watch, "It's not past five ten." "Really?" I smiled, "I seem to keep you waiting every time, I'm so sorry." "It's okay. I'm used to waiting for you. I'll be quiet." "Quiet?" "Well. I will wait quietly and not run around. You can take your time and don't rush." "What if I leave Tainan?" "I'll wait for you to go back to Tainan." "What if I leave Taiwan?" "I'll wait for you to go back to Taiwan." "What if I leave Earth to explore Mars?" "I'll wait for you to return to Earth." "What if I leave the world?" "There's another life, isn't there?" Tsuen, will you really, always wait?