Sense of ceremony.

At night, Lu Zhou and Ye Qingchen returned to the Guobao community.

Wang Fang opened the door. "You're back. Xiao Ye, are you tired from the journey?"

"Auntie, I'm fine."

Wang Fang gently touched Ye Qingchen's face. "Oh my, you've grown so beautiful. When you were little, I used to tell your mother that you'd grow up to be a stunning beauty."

At the same time, she caught a glimpse of Lu Zhou holding Ye Qingchen's hand, which made her suspicious. She asked Lu Zhou, "Are you two just friends?"

Lu Zhou looked at Wang Fang and chuckled, "Mom, we've known each other for a while."

Upon hearing Wang Fang's words, Ye Qingchen blushed and quickly withdrew her hand.

Seeing her shyness, Wang Fang thought that something was fishy. She invited Ye Qingchen inside, saying, "Come on, let's go in and change our shoes. Sit in the living room. I'll go call your dad."

Immediately, Wang Fang hurried into the study. Lu Zhou felt helpless. His mother's scrutinizing eyes and her brisk steps indicated that she was probably going to report everything to his father.

"Let's go, let's sit in the living room for a while."

"Okay."

Before long, the whole family was seated neatly in the living room.

Since it wasn't a formal conversation, Wang Fang turned on the TV and randomly chose a drama to watch, while Lu Yong picked up a newspaper and started reading.

"Have you two eaten? I can heat up some food for you."

"Mom, we ate after we went to the beach. I called you to let you know."

Wang Fang grumbled, "I was asking Xiao Ye. Why do you interfere? Are you full?"

Ye Qingchen smiled and said, "I already ate, Auntie. I'm not hungry."

"Ashou, go to the kitchen and peel an apple." Lu Yong spoke up.

Lu Zhou felt his position at home plummet. "...Okay."

Wang Fang held Ye Qingchen's hand, smiling with her eyes almost closed, and asked, "Xiao Ye, how did you and Ashou meet? When did it happen?"

Lu Yong, pretending to read the newspaper, secretly listened. Ye Qingchen replied, "It happened last month. Ah... Brother used to live downstairs in my house."

"In the university town? You and your mother moved there after leaving Binhai?"

"Yes, Grandpa bought a house there. At that time, the university town hadn't been built yet, and it was just a village for farming."

"Oh, if only Ye Ping had told me earlier. I should have visited when Ashou entered university. Why didn't your mother come this time? It's been years since I last saw her."

"She came too..."

At this moment, Lu Zhou came out with a fruit plate. "Mom, take it easy. You're asking too many questions, like you're conducting an interrogation."

Upon hearing this, Wang Fang scolded, "Look at that, he's defending you. Are you two talking about marriage?"

"..."

"I'm not your mother!"

"..."

"Well then, I'll ask my daughter-in-law. I didn't ask you. You're almost thirty, why are you acting shy and hiding things?"

Ye Qingchen giggled, covering her mouth, "We've talked about it before. He moved to the apartment downstairs."

"Ah! How come I didn't know? It's been a year or two..."

She glared at Lu Zhou with fierce eyes and said, "I'll lecture you later."

"No, Mom, Xiao Ye and I are

not..."

"Shut up and sit next to your dad. Don't stay here and bother us. Put the apple down, give it to Xiao Ye. If you want to eat, get a bowl from the kitchen."

After saying that, Wang Fang pulled Ye Qingchen aside and started chatting.

Lu Zhou sat next to Lu Yong like a wilted plant. Lu Yong turned his head and asked, "So, are you really dating Xiao Ye?"

"Well, not really."

"Your mom is just saving you."

"Huh?"

"If you had spent two years living downstairs with another girl, and now it was Xiao Ye, if you really started dating, wouldn't you feel awkward?"

"... Shameless." Lu Yong laughed and scolded.

"Alright, she probably came to pay respects to his father. She's not in a good mood. This old Chen says it's over, and I feel empty inside. You should get along well and not do anything bad."

Lu Zhou sighed, "Her mother also passed away."

"Well, sigh, I won't ask anymore. Comfort her well."

Earlier, Lu Yong had arranged everything regarding Chen's cremation and burial. He had also contacted Ye Ping, but after their first conversation, he couldn't reach her again.

At first, he thought she didn't want to have anything to do with Chen, even in death. She didn't want to spend money and even avoided it. So Lu Yong took care of everything for his old friend. It was only after hearing Lu Zhou's words that he understood.

"Well, I know. Dad, why did Uncle Chen take over that mess in the first place?"

"It's hard to say."

"He did save some people back then, like our family and the construction team. But now it's just a different group of people shouldering the burden. Eight hundred million, the hard-earned money of countless ordinary people."

"It's difficult to determine the right and wrong of your Uncle Chen. People's hearts are too complicated. Everyone has their own obsession."

"Obsession?"

"Just like Old Chen. Without that thing, he wouldn't be able to live. Otherwise, it would be a massive debt, and it still wouldn't kill him. He would just have to spend a dozen years in jail."

"What about you?"

"Maybe it's you and your mother. It's hard to say."

That night, Wang Fang and Ye Qingchen quickly changed the bedsheets in two rooms. The two women slept in the master bedroom, while the two men slept in Lu Zhou's guest room.

Early on the day of Qingming Festival, because they still had to bury Ye Ping, the atmosphere among the group was somewhat heavy.

At the cemetery, many mourners came to pay their respects at the graves. Some were sad, some were calm. In any case, there was no joy to be found in such moments.

The four of them cleaned the area around Chen's grave, burned paper money, and lit incense. With these rituals, the worship was considered complete.

Having finished tending to Chen's grave, they still had matters to attend to in their hometown. Although society now emphasizes simplicity, disregarding the timing and the number of people, Lu Yong and Wang Fang hurried back to take care of it.

It seemed like a matter of maintaining a sense of ceremony. But ultimately, if a person dies without anyone to remember them, it would be a bit tragic.

Therefore, Ye Ping's affairs were entrusted to the two younger ones.

Lu Zhou accompanied Ye Qingchen to the cemetery's office area. Following Ye Ping's wishes, they chose a plot of land near Chen's grave.

After finalizing the inscription, paying the fees, and obtaining the cremation certificate, Ye Qingchen held the urn in her arms. Tears had already flowed from her face multiple times, and the cloth was soaked.

Lu Zhou held her hand gently, about to speak, but Ye Qingchen shook her head.

The staff member spoke, "Please accept my condolences, Miss Ye. It will take one to two weeks for our cemetery to prepare the materials. You can take the ashes with you for now, and once our procedures are complete, you can set a date for the burial and bring the ashes back."

After a moment, Ye Qingchen handed the urn to the cemetery staff and said, "Thank you."

"I hope everyone can find closure." Lu Zhou thought to himself.

As he wiped away Ye Qingchen

's tears, he said, "Let's go, back to Guangnan. We'll come back once the cemetery notifies us."

Ye Qingchen nodded and walked out of the cemetery with Lu Zhou.