Dragon Clan: Lu Mingfei from All Quiet on the Western Front

Chapter 81 Old Comrade-in-arms

"Of course, that thing originally belonged to you..." An old and weak voice came from the entrance of the museum, revealing the vicissitudes and fatigue of time.

Lu Mingfei turned around and saw an old man walking slowly in with a cane and a staggering gait. The old man was thin and looked as if a gust of wind could blow him down. Every step he took seemed so strenuous that he could hardly support his body, which was like a candle in the wind. The deep wrinkles on his forehead were like a dry riverbed, marking the long years.

When the staff in the museum saw the old man, they immediately came forward to support him with nervous expressions. The old man waved his hand slightly, indicating that they didn't need to come over, but the staff still stood by with concern, ready to step forward to help at any time.

"Director, why are you here?" a staff member shouted anxiously, his voice full of worry and concern.

"How could I not come when a distinguished guest comes to visit?" The old man raised his head slightly, revealing a pair of bloodshot eyes. Although the light in his eyes had faded with time, it still revealed an indescribable complex emotion, which was an obsession with the past and a deep remembrance for the person in front of him.

"I have been waiting for this day for 93 years." He waved his hand and signaled the staff around him to leave. "You all leave. I want to talk to my guest alone."

The staff looked at each other. Although they were confused and worried, they had never seen the curator so serious, so they had to obediently retreat outside the museum.

Nuonuo and Alessi also noticed the unusual atmosphere. Nuonuo recalled the past few days and suppressed her inner uneasiness. She knew that this moment would change her opinion of Lu Mingfei.

"Nono, Alessi, you guys wait outside for a while too. I want to talk to an old friend alone." Lu Mingfei still didn't turn around, but spoke in a calm tone, as if he was stating something very ordinary.

When Nuonuo heard Lu Mingfei's words, her heart was shocked. Her already clear guess had almost become a conclusion at this moment. Her hands involuntarily tightened the straps of her backpack, as if only this could calm the waves in her heart.

"Then you guys chat, I'm leaving first." Nuo Nuo tried hard to force a smile to hide her inner turmoil, then left quickly. Her steps seemed a little unsteady when she turned around. She knew that the current Lu Mingfei was no longer the bad kid she knew, and she had to report this news to the principal.

When the last staff member left, the huge museum fell into silence. Only Lu Mingfei and the old man were left looking at each other. Time seemed to freeze at this moment, and an unspeakable atmosphere filled the air.

The two of them just stared at each other silently, with countless unspoken emotions in their eyes, as if they had traveled through the long river of time and returned to that war-torn era.

Finally, it was the old man who broke the silence first. His voice was hoarse, with uncontrollable excitement and sobs, "Long time no see, Hans, I have been waiting for you for 93 years, and finally I see you again." A tear slid down the corner of his eye.

"Long time no see... Krop... But for me, only four or five days have passed..." Lu Mingfei looked at Krop's face that had become old with the years, feeling bitter in his heart, and couldn't help but mutter to himself.

At this moment, Lu Mingfei truly realized that he had crossed the boundaries of time and space. The energetic young man in his memory had now been carved by time into this trembling old man.

“How did you recognize me… and why do you know I’m still alive…” Lu Mingfei’s voice was full of confusion. He was no longer the William Hans of the past. Both his appearance and temperament had changed greatly, but why could Kropp still recognize him?

"Hill said you would definitely return to Prussia. He said as long as we live long enough, we will see you again." Kropp's voice was mixed with an indescribable belief, which supported him to live for 93 years. Although his health was getting worse day by day, he never gave up hope of waiting.

"Someone just put a note in my office saying 'The person you are waiting for has arrived'. I don't know who put the note, but I chose to believe it. I am too old and don't want to miss any opportunity."

"At first I didn't recognize you. I looked at you at the door for a long time, but as soon as you opened your mouth, I knew it. Although your appearance has changed, your voice remains the same." Kropp's voice trembled slightly, and he was so excited that he almost cried.

"Hill said that..." Lu Mingfei murmured in a low voice, his heart filled with complicated emotions.

"Krop, do you know where Hill is buried? I checked on the way here, and the Internet said that his body was burned and dumped into the river... Is that true..."

His closest comrade-in-arms, the brother who had fought side by side with him, did not even leave a complete body. After he arrived in Prussia, he did not even know where to go to pay tribute to those comrades.

"Hill's body... Sorry, I don't know. I don't even know whether he is dead or not." Krop's voice was full of helplessness.

"Many people said he committed suicide in the bunker, but I know that was just a stand-in. We were comrades-in-arms, and I knew him. If everything really failed, I believe he would have taken a submachine gun and led his commando team to the front and died in battle, rather than hiding in the bunker and committing suicide. Moreover, he still had a most elite commando team that had not yet gone to the battlefield."

Klopp's voice was heavy, his eyes flashing with memories, "Before the Jesus army reached Berlin, Paul and I met him once. At that time, his appearance had changed. His eyes turned golden, and scales seemed to have grown on his body. He told us that you would definitely come back, and asked us to bring you a letter." At this point, Klopp took out a yellowed envelope from his arms and handed it to Lu Mingfei.

"I have never opened this letter. It is specially left for you. I believe that you may find some answers to your questions in this letter."

Lu Mingfei took the envelope. The ancient paper exuded a heavy sense of history, but the envelope was intact, without even a crease. He carefully opened the envelope and slowly pulled out the letter inside.

"Captain, by the time you read this letter, I should be dead and have become a demon in the eyes of the world.

I'm sorry. I promised you not to get involved in politics and to be a painter. But when I saw the suffering of this country, I decided to stand up. I believed what you said, that I would stand at the top of this country, so I did it. But in order to restore Prussia, to clean up some of the termites in this world, and to avenge you, I still started a war. "

Lu Mingfei's eyes gradually became solemn, his fingers trembling slightly as he continued to read the familiar handwriting in the letter.

“I tried everything I could to clean up the power of the Council of Elders, but some of them still remained, and those strange forces were not limited to the Council of Elders. At that time, I had to face attacks from several countries at the same time, and I was no longer able to clean up those remnants and other forces.

But I saw the future, and I saw that you would come back and completely change the world, so I left you some things and people who will appear and help you when you need them. "

"It's just a pity that I couldn't see you again."

Adolph Hill

The letter paper trembled slightly in Lu Mingfei's hand. He could feel Hill's determination and helplessness when he wrote the letter. The feeling of loneliness of carrying a heavy burden but still moving forward crossed the torrent of time and struck Lu Mingfei's soul.

Change the world? Lu Mingfei didn’t think he could change the world. He didn’t even know what he should do.

"Krop, is there anyone else alive besides you?" Lu Mingfei slowly refolded the letter, stuffed it back into the envelope, and looked up and asked.

Kropp lowered his head slightly and sighed, "Besides me, Paul is still alive, but he got Alzheimer's disease more than ten years ago. He can't even remember his great-granddaughter. His health is not good either. He has been hospitalized and is relying on intravenous drips to keep himself alive."

"Take me to see him..." Lu Mingfei's voice was trembling slightly. Even though Paul was too old to remember anything, he still wanted to see his old comrade.

Kropp nodded, slowly stood up, found a museum staff member outside, and asked him to drive them to the hospital.

Inside the car, the atmosphere grew heavy. Lu Mingfei leaned against the window, looking at the streets speeding by, his heart filled with confusion. Time passed by as quickly as the scenery before his eyes.

"Hans, you look very confused now. I was the same after the war. I didn't know what to do." Kropp said to Lu Mingfei who was sitting next to him in silence.

"Do you still remember the money you left behind? I used that money to go to college, to the University of Munich, and have been teaching there since graduation. Paul used the money you left behind to start a business, and it's doing pretty well. Paul gave Hill the first political fund after he was released from prison."

"Later, Hill came to power and said that he would begin to distance himself from us because of what might happen in the future. He did not contact us afterwards. We could only watch his speeches from the audience every time. However, he still gave me and other comrades a lot of help in secret, until that day he told us that you would come back. After the end of World War II, the Carter family hired me to be the director of the museum here. I have been the director of the museum for half a century, and have been waiting for your arrival." Kropp recounted his experiences over the years.

Lu Mingfei just listened silently, listening to the journey these old friends had taken, but the confusion in his eyes deepened.

Before we knew it, the car stopped in front of a high-end-looking hospital.

Kropp led Lu Mingfei slowly into the hospital until they arrived at the door of a high-end ward. The door slowly opened, and a young and beautiful Prussian girl happened to walk out. Her hair was curly and golden, with a sweet smile on her face and a bright light in her eyes.

Seeing Kropp, her face immediately showed excitement, "Grandpa Kropp, why are you here!"

"Come and see your great-grandfather, and bring a friend of your grandfather." Kropp smiled at her kindly, and his old eyes looked particularly soft under the light.

"My grandfather's friend?" The girl's eyes moved from Klopp to Lu Mingfei. She was obviously a little unconvinced. "So young? Grandpa Klopp, are you kidding?"

She looked Lu Mingfei up and down, and looked at Klopp with a puzzled expression. After all, the young man in front of her was too different from the image of her grandfather's friend in her mind. Klopp didn't say much, just smiled mysteriously, and then opened the door of the ward.

The ward was quiet. An almost withered old man lay on the bed. His face was covered with deep wrinkles and his skin was dry and wrinkled like old tree bark. The sunlight shone through the glass onto his thin face, making his tired face look particularly pale and weak.

“The doctor said that my grandfather’s organs have all failed and he may lose vital signs at any time.” The girl’s voice was low and filled with unconcealable sadness.

Lu Mingfei slowly walked to the bedside and gently held the hand that was like a dead branch. The hand was trembling slightly, and the skin was cold, almost without any temperature.

"Paul, it's me, Hans, I'm here to see you." Lu Mingfei's voice was very soft.

The old man on the hospital bed seemed to have heard something and slowly opened his eyes. A ray of light suddenly appeared in his cloudy eyes. When he saw Lu Mingfei clearly, a gentle smile appeared on his tired face.

"Hans...you're here..." The old man squeezed out these words with great effort. His voice was so weak that it was almost inaudible, but tears slowly overflowed from the corners of his eyes.

Lu Mingfei looked at Paul's tears sliding down his cheeks and felt a pang of sadness in his heart. The Paul in front of him was no longer the young soldier, but an old man who was about to leave the world. However, in his heart, this name and this face would always be his best friend.

However, Lu Mingfei soon felt that the dry hand he was holding began to lose the last bit of warmth. The ripples on the heart rate monitor next to him, which had been violently fluctuating, began to slowly flatten out. Paul's eyes, which had been open, closed again, but there was still a satisfied smile on that dry face. At this moment, he finally got the final peace.

"Doctor! Doctor!" Seeing the ripples on the heart rate monitor flatten out, the girl's voice became sharp and she shouted anxiously outside the ward, her voice full of panic and anxiety.

Kropp walked forward slowly, patted Lu Mingfei's shoulder gently, and said in a low but gentle voice, "Paul should have died a long time ago, but he has been hanging on by the belief of wanting to see you again, so he has been lingering until now. Now he is finally free." There was sadness in Kropp's tone, but more of a calmness.

Lu Mingfei just stood there blankly, tightly holding the already cold hand. For a moment, he could not accept this sudden separation. Just a moment ago, he still wanted to say a few more words to Paul.

The doctor rushed to the ward quickly, but it was too late. After examining Paul, the doctor declared him dead.

Not long after, Paul's family began to arrive at the ward one after another. Although they had already anticipated this day, when they really faced this moment, sadness inevitably spread in the ward.

Lu Mingfei still stood silently in the ward, while Paul's family members gathered around the bed and cried silently. Lu Mingfei was a stranger in their eyes, but since he was brought by Kropp, no one questioned his existence. It was just that the pain of separation seemed to be something that only Lu Mingfei could truly understand and bear.

The funeral was held the next day. The Prussian sky was low and overcast, as if even the weather was mourning Paul's departure. Since Paul had been in a dying state a long time ago, his family had already found a grave for him.

The atmosphere of the funeral was solemn and dignified. White wreaths surrounded the tombstone and low funeral music echoed in the air. Kropp stood aside, watching everything quietly. His weather-beaten face looked particularly heavy at the moment.

After the funeral, only Lu Mingfei and Kropp were left standing in front of the tombstone. Everyone else had left, and only the two of them remained in this quiet cemetery.

"Hans, I'm going to die too." Kropp said softly, his voice low and calm, as if he was stating something very ordinary.

Lu Mingfei still didn't say anything. He knew that what Klopp said was true. The first time he saw Klopp, Lu Mingfei already understood that this former comrade-in-arms had reached the end of his life.

"Hans, I have lived for a century." Kropp's voice was filled with a hint of reminiscence, as if he was looking back on his long and fulfilling life.

"I have seen too many things in this world and have long walked out of the shadow of war. Even before I die, I can fulfill my greatest wish in life." Kropp continued, with an indescribable sense of satisfaction in his tone.

"My life is complete, and I think Paul's is too." He raised his head slightly, his eyes passing through the thick clouds, staring at a corner in the distance.

"But you are different, you are still living in the war." Kropp's voice suddenly became serious. He turned around and looked directly into Lu Mingfei's somewhat empty eyes.

"I'm an old man who is about to die, but you are still an eighteen-year-old young man, Hans. You can't keep dwelling on the past." Kropp's voice was filled with earnest expectations. He knew that Lu Mingfei needed to walk out of that shadow before he could truly embrace his own future. After all, he was like that back then.

"I don't know what Hill said to you in the letter, but I hope you can forget all of this and forget about us old friends. Only in this way can you really go out and live your own life."

"The war is over. You should enjoy your life instead of being immersed in the pain of war." Kropp's voice paused for a moment, then became more resolute. "The man named William Hans died a hundred years ago. The man who is alive now is Lu Mingfei."

Lu Mingfei listened quietly, and Kropp's words were like a key, trying to open the lock deep in his heart. But the lock had been there for too long, and it was rusty and could not be opened easily.

“But can I really forget it?” Lu Mingfei’s voice was filled with uncertainty and confusion, “And what can I do…”

In this world, Lu Mingfei felt unprecedented loneliness. The past was like a shadow, shrouding his heart and unable to be dispelled. He didn't know what else he could do, nor did he know where the future lay.

"Didn't they say that a school accepted you?" Kropp's voice was full of encouragement. "Then go to school. Just like I did back then, let the breath of youth dilute the memories of the war."

Klopp recalled his youth with a warm smile on his face. It was the youthful spirit that enabled him to walk out of the shadow of war and find the meaning of life again.

At this moment, a white-haired man walked into the cemetery. Although his hair was gray, this man was still full of vitality. He had a strong figure, a well-ironed suit, his hair was combed meticulously, and a bright red rose was pinned on his chest. His every move revealed confidence and elegance.

His sharp eyes swept across the cemetery and finally fell on Lu Mingfei. Accompanying him was Nuonuo, who seemed a little reserved at the moment. She stood behind the man, staring at Lu Mingfei silently.

"I'm Ange, the principal of Kassel College." The man introduced himself with a smile. His voice was deep and magnetic, revealing an irresistible charm. "The purpose of coming here is to sincerely invite you to join us."

Lu Mingfei still didn't look back, but continued to stare at Paul's tombstone, his tone calm but full of doubt, "Aren't you afraid that I'm a monster?"

Angers still kept smiling, with a hint of ridicule in his voice, "Monster? We at Kassel Academy specialize in monsters."

"Really..." Lu Mingfei nodded slightly, a complex emotion flashed in his eyes, but his gaze still stayed on the tombstone, as if he was saying his final goodbye to Paul.

"I probably still owe you money for your travel these days. I don't know what you want me to do, so just consider it as repayment. However, if your school cannot satisfy me, I will leave immediately." Lu Mingfei finally turned around and looked at Angers with a firm gaze, his tone revealing an unquestionable feeling.

Angers smiled slightly, with a hint of appreciation in his eyes, "Kassel College welcomes you."

……

The news that Lu Mingfei agreed to join Kassel Academy soon spread to a room in a luxurious manor in Munich. The decoration in the room was gorgeous and exquisite, with many exquisite oil paintings hanging on the walls and antique furniture emitting a faint sandalwood scent.

In the corner of the room, an old figure stood in front of a somewhat flawed portrait of William Hans, gently stroking the canvas with his fingers, feeling the past years.

"Long time no see, Uncle Hans." The old man murmured in a low voice, with infinite emotion and nostalgia in his tone.

"Grandpa, are we going to contact him?" A beautiful girl standing behind the old man asked softly. Her voice was clear and pleasant, revealing a hint of nervousness and anticipation.

"No, a confused wolf king cannot lead the wolf pack now. What's more, that is not a wolf king, but the biggest monster in the world." The old man turned around, his eyes as sharp as an eagle. "We have to wait until the monster understands his duty before we can go to see him. Then, he will lead us to complete the victory that we failed to achieve that year."

The girl nodded slightly. Although she was still a little confused, she had no doubt about her grandfather's judgment.

After hesitating for a moment, she continued, "Grandpa, Fu Jianmin's solar helium flash research team recently published a paper predicting that a large-scale solar storm will hit the earth in 2015. Should we prepare in advance?"

The old man frowned slightly, thought for a moment and nodded slowly, "Be prepared, opportunities always come to those who are prepared. Although these things seem far away, in this world, any abnormal natural phenomenon may bring about huge changes."

(End of this chapter)