News from Taiwan

Chapter 60 is a surprise!
Morning light streamed through the gaps in the hotel curtains, casting long, thin patches of light on the carpet that stretched all the way to the bedside.

As soon as Jiang Guier sat up, her fingertips touched the phone next to her pillow. The screen lit up, and Shen Huaizhou's WeChat message was at the top. She opened it and saw a Word document with the name "Mr. Chen Mingrui".

Almost instantly, her heart skipped a beat. She immediately sat up straight, gripping her phone, and opened the message. It contained photos of several old files with the caption: "Resident of Guangming Military Dependents' Village, South District, Taipei City, 1952. Worked odd jobs at a rice shop in Ximending."

Jiang Guier's fingertips repeatedly traced the four characters "Guangming Military Dependents' Village" on the screen. It seemed that this was the military dependents' village she had visited yesterday.

At this moment, the words suddenly gained warmth, and she slowly recalled the words spoken by the elderly people in the military dependents' village. She clearly remembered someone saying, "In the old days, rice shops were all located at the entrance of alleys."

At this moment, separated by decades, she finally gained a little indirect understanding of her great-grandfather.

"It's really found..." she murmured softly, her eyes instantly lighting up. Great! Finally, there's news.

She came to Taiwan suddenly, without any preparation. She was completely lost and confused. She was fighting a desperate battle, only to find that she had no trump cards and was filled with anxiety.

Now there is finally hope.

Jiang Guier continued to listen to Shen Huaizhou's voice messages, but the corners of her mouth kept falling. Shen Huaizhou's voice was low and tinged with fatigue. "Good morning, Ms. Jiang. I asked a friend in Taipei to check the military dependents' village records. Mr. Chen Mingrui lived at No. 7, Row 3, Guangming Military Dependents' Village in 1952. He moved out in 1961, and we couldn't find his household registration records after that. It seems that he moved out of the military dependents' village and his whereabouts are unknown. My friend is still asking around. Don't worry."

The light that had just begun to ignite was extinguished as if by a sudden gust of wind, and the temperature at my fingertips also cooled down.

She remembered her mother saying that "her great-grandfather might have passed away a long time ago," and her nose inexplicably stung with tears. Her slightly furrowed brows were even reflected on her phone screen.

It turns out we still haven't found it.

She took a deep breath and buried her face in the pillow.

It's truly painful to have hope ignited only to be extinguished...

She lay on her pillow and thought for a moment, perhaps it wouldn't matter if she couldn't find the person.

At least we know where my great-grandfather lived and what he did back then. Following these traces will bring us closer to him. When we go back, we can tell my great-grandmother what Taiwan is like and what my great-grandfather encountered back then.

It can bring some peace of mind to the person who has waited a lifetime.

Thinking this, her eyes hardened again, and she quickly replied to Shen Huaizhou: "Thank you. Although I haven't found any new information, you've already helped me a lot."

She held the phone to her ear, and Shen Huaizhou's voice came through the receiver, lower than usual, with a slightly sleepy hoarse tone: "I know you're anxious. I had a friend stay up half the night last night to check the files. That's all we have so far... If you can't find it, don't force yourself. I can ask someone else for help."

Jiang Guier pondered for a long time in front of the screen, and only typed "Thank you. I'll go for a walk near Guangming Village today to see if I can run into someone who knows the truth." After thinking for a moment, she added a little sun emoji—afraid that he would see her disappointment.

She put down her phone, walked to her suitcase, and rummaged through her clothes. Finally, she chose a light yellow silk Chinese-style top with soft satin buttons at the neckline and tiny dark blue orchids embroidered on the lapels. She paired it with white wide-leg pants.

She placed her YSL hobo bag on the bed and divided the NT dollars she had exchanged with Lu Qing yesterday into three portions: one in the bag, one in her pants pocket, and one in her notebook. She had to make sure everything was perfect today, as yesterday's embarrassing situation was still fresh in her mind.

After getting ready, I went out. As I passed through the hotel lobby, I saw fresh phoenix flowers that had just been placed there. The orange-red petals were covered with morning dew, which lifted my spirits considerably.

She had just reached the revolving door when she heard someone call "Miss Jiang" behind her. Lu Qing was leading his team towards the restaurant; they were all wearing matching dark gray polo shirts. Yan Jin was clearly on his way to meet a business partner, and he spotted him as he was about to leave the hotel.

Jiang Guier's outfit made her easily recognizable here; she had very big eyes.

Jiang Guier waved to the group from where she stood, but didn't approach them. Instead, she turned and left the hotel.

Lu Qing clutched his phone, the screen lit up, as if he had just finished reading a message. He quickly caught up with him, "Where are you going? Aren't you going to wait a little longer?"

Before she could finish speaking, a taxi pulled up on the side of the road. Jiang Guier opened the car door, turned around, and smiled at him.

"I'm going to the vicinity of Guangming Military Dependents' Village. Mr. Lu, you're busy, don't worry about me."

After saying that, he bent down and got into the car. Just before the car door closed, he waved to Lu Qing gently, his eyes showing a slightly apologetic distance, afraid that Lu Qing would ask him about Shen Huaizhou again.

Lu Qing had the words on the tip of his tongue. He wanted to say that his senior brother was already on the plane to Taiwan, but when he saw Jiang Guier get into the car and turn to wave at him, he swallowed his words and had other thoughts in his mind.

"Be careful on the road, and call me if anything happens!"

Lu Qing stopped, smiled, and shouted out the car window. After watching the taxi slowly drive away, he looked down at his phone. The screen showed Shen Huaizhou's flight information; he had already boarded. He replied with "OK".

He was somewhat looking forward to their meeting; if he revealed the truth now, it would lose its surprise.

He glanced in the direction the taxi had disappeared, a smile playing on his lips. He refused to believe that Jiang Guier could remain so calm even with his senior brother's arrival.

In the taxi, Jiang Guier looked at the receding street scene outside the window. She thought of Shen Huaizhou's hoarse voice and the 30 missed calls from last night. Suddenly, she felt a pang of guilt. A stranger had gone to such lengths for her, yet her own mother had frozen her bank account, her best friend had betrayed her, and her employee had deceived her...

The outcome of this search for her family is uncertain, but at least for now, someone across the strait is thinking of her, which deeply moves her.

Shen Huaizhou is such a good person!!
She sent Shen Huaizhou a photo of phoenix flowers by the roadside, with the caption: "The phoenix flowers in Taipei are in bloom. I'm going to walk the path my great-grandfather used to walk."

At that moment, Shen Huaizhou was at Hong Kong Airport, sitting on a flight from Hong Kong to Taipei.

Just as Shen Huaizhou was about to switch his phone to airplane mode, he received a message from Jiang Guier. He tapped the message and hovered his finger over the photo Jiang Guier had sent, zooming in carefully.

This photo was taken from inside the car, and you can still see Jiang Guier's face, which is not very clear, reflected in the glass.

It's been a long time, Miss Jiang.

At Shen Huaizhou's feet was a black backpack containing newly printed documents. He didn't tell Jiang Guier that he had actually made some progress on the clues about her great-grandfather after 1961 and wanted to take her there to confirm them in person.

The clouds outside the porthole were edged with gold, like his barely suppressed anticipation. He wondered if she would be surprised and wide-eyed when he saw her.

(End of this chapter)