Hospital 444

"Dad, where has Mom gone?"

In the evening, there were only a few dishes on the dining table in the Hai family’s living room.

In front of the dining table, only Hai Jian Shi, Hai Han, and Hai Yin were present, but Ji Danshu was nowhere to be seen.

That’s why Hai Han asked this question.

Hai Yin seemed to be adept at reading the room and asked, "Dad, is Mom angry? She just called me from my uncle’s house..."

Hai Jian Shi’s face was somewhat pale.

"Dad!" Hai Han also became worried and said, "If you had a fight with Mom, you should hurry to Uncle’s house and bring her back!"

Hai Han knew that Grandpa’s death had left Mom emotionally unstable. At this moment, Dad’s comfort was very important to her.

"I... We both have some things to think over..."

When Hai Jian Shi said this, he seemed as if he had lost his soul.

From a young age, Hai Han rarely saw his dad with such an expression.

This was not like Dad at all.

At the age of ten, Dad dared to venture out to sea with fishermen much taller than him. He wouldn’t shrink back even if they encountered storms on the high seas. Especially the experience of catching a sperm whale that year, even though he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he was immensely yearning for it.

When Hai Han was six, he was once attacked by three ferocious dogs. The madly barking dogs chased after him at great speed. At that time, many people were on the street, but none dared to step forward to help. When Dad saw what was happening, he leapt into action, his fists of iron, and in just a few blows, he killed all three dogs barehanded. The most unbelievable part was that none of the dogs managed to bite Dad even once before they died. Particularly with one of the fierce dogs, one punch from Dad burst its skull. Back then, to his eyes, Dad was comparable to Wu Song.

Dad’s character was just like his name, like a solid rock, unshaken by any storm, he was the pillar of this home. He seemed born to belong to the sea, an idol to everyone on the island.

It was hard for him to imagine Dad showing the expression he had now.

"Go ahead and eat. I often help cook for the crew at sea too. The taste might not be the best, but it will certainly fill you up,"

Having heard this, Hai Han had no choice but to pick up his chopsticks.

What exactly happened between Mom and Dad? Even if they argued, wouldn’t they at least say a word to him before going straight to Uncle’s house? Logically speaking, since Uncle had been keeping Grandpa’s death a secret, Mom should be resentful towards Uncle, right?

"Let me tell you a story."

Seeing the heavy atmosphere at the dining table, Hai Jian Shi spoke, "Once upon a time, there was a young man who fell in love with a girl."

Interest immediately piqued in Hai Han upon hearing this.

Although Hai Jian Shi said it was a story, it was probably a real experience, right?

"That girl was very good at painting. With her brushstrokes, she could always capture and depict the beautiful scenery before her eyes..."

...

"Danshu, did you have a fight with Jian Shi? How long do you plan to stay here?"

"Let’s finish dealing with Dad’s funeral first," Ji Danshu said emotionlessly as she sorted through her brother’s piled-up dirty clothes and threw them into the washing machine. "I don’t want to go back for now. I can’t tell the kids in front of them that it was their grandpa, nor can I make them understand why their grandpa who already passed away died a second time."

Ji Danyang sighed.

"I... didn’t mean to keep it from you on purpose..."

"Everything’s gone wrong."

Ji Danshu started the washing machine.

"Back then... Dad performed a sea burial for that woman who was beaten to death by her husband..."

"It was a strong demand from the family. Although their daughter was murdered, they still harbored a sliver of hope,"

Back then, domestic violence wasn’t as condemned as it is today, nor was the concept "There’s only zero or countless times of domestic abuse" as deeply ingrained in people’s hearts. Husbands beating wives was seen purely as a domestic issue. Moreover, various rumors spread around the island after the incident occurred.

After all, she was beaten to death because her plan to elope with her lover was discovered. Therefore, to some islanders, it seemed normal for a husband to strike out upon finding his wife cheating. In the past, he always used the suspicion of his wife’s infidelity as a reason to beat her, much like An Jiahe in "Don’t Talk to Strangers." And when the cause turned out to be true, it was easy for people to assume the woman was promiscuous to begin with. Would anyone consider Wu Dalang abusing Pan Jinlian as domestic violence?

"Back then, many on the island cursed them as an adulterous couple. You should know, at that time, there were still laws against hooliganism, and it was completely different from today. Their only request was that Dad would make up the daughter who was beaten to death, and give her a sea burial, giving her a chance of reincarnation. Maybe... there could be an exception, and she could be reincarnated?"

Ji Danshu listened to these words, her expression somewhat numb.

Her hand pressed the buttons on the washing machine.

"That lover committed suicide... right?"

"Though despised by many, after retrieving his body, his parents reportedly submerged it in the ocean. Whether he committed suicide or still held out hope..."

"Back then, they didn’t plan to elope," Ji Danshu suddenly turned her head, "Their plan, from the beginning, was a suicide pact."

"Huh?"

"I’ve washed your clothes... I’m going to take a shower now, keep an eye on the washing machine drain."

Ji Danshu said this as she went into the bathroom with a change of clothes.

She had already figured it out.

From the start, they planned the suicide pact.

Back in those days, divorce wasn’t as easy as it is today, and the police could hardly intervene in domestic violence cases, at most mediate. A hooliganism charge could be enough to send that lover behind bars.

Rather than eloping... to give up this life and die together in the ocean, they would then be reincarnated on the island. Eighteen years later, they would gradually regain their past life memories.

By then, they would no longer be adulterers. Instead, they would be a pair of young lovers free to love each other. As long as they didn’t speak out, nobody would know about their past lives. After reincarnation, people’s appearances change completely, but once memories are restored, they could recognize each other through the unique way of connecting they agreed upon before their pact.

For example...

Painting.

Ji Danshu still remembered meeting her Hai Jian Shi for the first time after moving from Yuehe Town to Han Iron Town.

At that time, he saw her painting.

That painting...

That oil painting imitating Leng Mu’s style...

Caused a huge misunderstanding.

Indeed, that couple had both been reincarnated.

Suddenly, Ji Danshu squatted down.

Allowing the hot water to pour over her head.

Outside the bathroom, Ji Danyang was also feeling agitated.

The death of their father, the upheaval in his sister’s marriage, it all gave him a headache.

He opened a can of beer, took a sip, and heard the sound of the bathroom door opening to his left.

He drank a sip of beer, not daring to look at his sister Danshu now.

"Danshu, I’m sorry, I should have told you earlier. It’s my fault... When dad and I went to Hospital 444 back then, we only wanted to keep you in the dark, not to let you know all this..."

The sound of footsteps from his sister stopped behind him.

Ji Danyang continued, "Actually, dad recognized her at first sight, Leng Mu was that woman, she..."

Suddenly, he heard the sound of Ji Danshu crying from the bathroom on the left.

"Huh?"

The footsteps just now... clearly came from behind... right?

Ji Danyang immediately turned his head!

At that moment, the lights in the room... went out in an instant!