scapegoat

Unable to contact Lang Zhongming, Xiao Yang called Su Huiyun almost with the little energy left.

"Hello? I want to ask for leave..."

Su Huiyun told him on the phone that those who were not on the Mid-Autumn Festival overtime list did not have to go to work, so Xiao Yang lost all energy to keep going, hung up the phone and went back in the car again.

The whole family was so surprised that he went and returned, and he couldn't notice it, so he locked himself in the room and didn't want to care about anything.

Lang Zhongming was ill, and this was Xiao Yang's first peaceful night at Lang's house.

The sun began to set, and the color of the dusk seemed even more oppressive in Xiao Yang's eyes. He felt very uncomfortable, but he couldn't cry.

Professor Yuan Jianzhen was his tutor in college and the only person who visited him after he was imprisoned.

After he came out, Xiao Yang originally wanted to wait for his life to be a little more stable before visiting his former mentor, but unexpectedly, it was too late.

Xiao Yang drowsily thought about Professor Yuan's care for him in the past, and gradually fell asleep.

Early the next morning, Xiao Yang went out to see Professor Yuan off by car.

Professor Yuan's children and grandchildren immigrated overseas and settled in the United States in their early years. Only the granddaughter has always accompanied the professor in China.

Today, all the children and grandchildren he hadn’t seen for many years came back, but the one who cried the most was Yuan Yuan who was raised by his side. The other relatives were even more indifferent. They were already nibbling melon seeds and drinking tea, chatting about the trivial matters of every family and the neighbourhood. gossip.

Xiao Yang greeted Yuan Yuan dully, Yuan Yuan stood up with tears in her eyes and poured him a glass of water, and handed him pastries, all of which should be done in funerals.

"My condolences." Xiao Yang couldn't say any good comforting words, so he could barely squeeze out this sentence.

Yuan Yuan invited him to sit in the room.

Xiao Yang went inside, and a few aunts were helping to fold the paper ingots, and the lively conversation had already begun.

Going further inside is a little quieter.Yuan Yuan took him into the bedroom.

In the bedroom, the old professor was lying straight on the bed. On his cold face, he was only a little older than ten years ago, and there was no other difference.

All of a sudden, Xiao Yang couldn't hold back his tears.

Yuan Yuan's eyes were also red: "There are still a few of your seniors and juniors outside, do you want to meet them?"

Xiao Yang shook his head violently, unable to say anything.

His reputation has long been rotten. Since the first time he took the blame for Lang Zhongming, there has been no normal contact between him and these brothers.

Professor Yuan is the only one who supports and believes in him. Now that the professor is gone, he really becomes an orphan.

The body will be put into the coffin soon, Yuan Yuan and Xiao Yang walked out of the bedroom and sat in the living room to relieve their emotions.

Xiao Yang remembered that Yuan Yuan used to have a very rich fiancé, and the old professor was also financially well-off in his early years, but looking at this room now, the high-end tea sets are all dusty, and those with gaps are still in use. There is a very luxurious tea set. Big oven, broken and dumped in the corner.

"You... how are you doing?" Xiao Yang asked Yuan Yuan hesitantly.

He wasn't sure whether he should take out the money in his pocket. After all, the money was not clean, but it was the only thing he could give after all.

"After my wife and I got married, we had no children and had to come back often to take care of my grandpa, so my mother-in-law didn't like me very much, and even him... My husband found a young and beautiful girl later, and that girl became pregnant. divorced him."

Yuan Yuan suddenly lowered her head, and her tone of voice began to deviate, and she couldn't help crying: "I have something, I'm very sorry..."

Xiao Yang's breathing was stagnant.

"I came here to tell you before, I told you not to send money anymore, not because grandpa was disappointed in you, but... because I was getting married at that time, and I was afraid that their family would mind that grandpa kept dealing with students who committed crimes. The relationship is so good...At that time, Grandpa started to feel ill, so I advised him not to come to see you...He has never been disappointed in you, he is the one who believes in you the most..."

Xiao Yang's eyes were bloodshot: "I know."

"Actually... Grandpa has been thinking about you very much... He said that you are his most satisfactory student, but you have no good future... Please forgive me...don't...don't blame me..."

Xiao Yang laughed at himself and fell silent.

Yuan Yuan was still crying, the sadness and guilt accumulated over the past few days almost broke her down.

Xiao Yang asked: "Professor Yuan...did he know that I was out?"

Yuan Yuan cried even harder all of a sudden, and couldn't give any response.Xiao Yang lowered his head and didn't ask any more questions.

Next, the entire funeral process proceeded little by little. Xiao Yang didn't talk to anyone anymore, and walked the whole way with the big team alone, sent the old professor to the crematorium, and then turned and left without saying a word.

At this time, he really didn't want to go back to Ling's house, so he walked aimlessly for a while, and saw a familiar street sign.

He unconsciously walked to the previous school.

In order to take care of Lang Zhongming, he didn't dare to fill in too far when he was choosing a university.

Fortunately, City C is also considered a major education city, with many key schools.Xiao Yang ended up studying directly at the local E University for 4 years.

This road is the only way from Lang's house to E University. He used to walk it several times every day, and he couldn't be more familiar with it.

Xiao Yang closed his eyes, calmed down for a while, then raised his feet and walked in the direction of University E.

The sycamore trees along the road were gloomy and green, reflecting countless mottled lights and shadows, Xiao Yang thought for no reason of the days of studying in the past, listening to lectures, taking notes, and taking exams...

In a blink of an eye, these things were so far away from him.

Gradually approaching E University, Xiao Yang began to feel something was wrong.

No matter how prosperous a university is, it shouldn't be like it is now. The roads are full of people, men, women and children, carrying bags and suitcases, rushing forward in a hurry.

At the end of the road, Xiao Yang stopped.

The street is still the same, but the school has been demolished and rebuilt into a station.

The wide arc-shaped low-roofed building is like a giant female crouching, lying in the center of the overcrowded square, with various small vendors scattered, and the aroma of boiled corn overflowing.

Xiao Yang walked into the ticket hall and stood in front of the empty and bright glass window, surrounded by people coming and going, and there were no canteens, playgrounds, or self-study classrooms...

The side of the river that was dug out by hand was full of people who studied in the language class early, but now the road has been filled with soil, and the gurgling water and falling flowers have long since disappeared between vehicles.

Xiao Yang just cried silently.

The past few days have been too depressing, he has never shed tears in prison, but he can't control his tear glands, he can only tremble and take a deep breath.

All of a sudden, he remembered many things.

In the first two years after entering the second prison, Professor Yuan often visited him to comfort him.

The Second Prison cooperates with several manufacturers. The daily labor of these prisoners is to work mechanically on the production line. Of course, there will be some meager income.

He has no family, and all his income goes into Professor Yuan's account.

At that time, Professor Yuan's life was still very affluent, and his salary was a drop in the bucket, but he always wanted to have an elder who would give him a place to be filial.

Professor Yuan knows himself as a student, so the old professor who never accepts bribes, even a 50 yuan voucher, has been silently accepting Xiao Yang's money.

Then one day, Yuan Yuan, the granddaughter of the old professor, came to look for him in the prison and told him not to send any more money.

Since then, the old professor no longer came to visit him.

He always thought that the friendship between teachers and students had come to an end, but he didn't expect... He only knew this now that he was gone, really ironic.

Xiao Yang touched the filthy money in his pocket, and remembered that the old professor had run a project to support poor students, which was under the name of the school, and it should still be there now.

Anyway, he can't spend much money on a daily basis, let them flow into a better asset account, so it's good to accumulate some money.

Xiao Yang stayed at the station very late, and it was getting dark before taking the car back to Lang's house.

Lang Zhongming is already healed, and he is still the social elite who looks like a dog in his coat.

"Yo, you still know how to come back." He walked towards Xiao Yang step by step, leaned over and said, "I seem to have forgotten to tell you, don't go out for a walk if you have nothing to do, lest you be seen by acquaintances, and you will remember the scandal back then, and shame the Ling family."

Xiao Yang was in a bad mood today, and he was already suppressing his anger: "It's not me who shamed the Ling family."

Lang Zhongming was devastated by this sentence, and Xiao Yang lowered his head again not to look at anyone, nor to reveal his emotions.

Lang Zhongming gritted his teeth and refused to let him go: "I warn you, you'd better not go to places like the station, lest I find out again... I will follow the location and catch you back to feed the dog."

Xiao Yang was about to leave, but was pulled back by Lang Zhongming: "What is that on your face?"

Lang Zhongming's fingertips brushed over the opening on Xiao Yang's face that was drawn with a pen, and Xiao Yang trembled: "Grandpa's strokes."

Lang Zhongming snorted coldly, said "It's a pity", turned and walked away.

Xiao Yang was finally able to return to his own room, but Lang Zhongming was in good health, so of course he couldn't escape tonight.

Unexpectedly, Lang Zhongming pressed the positioning device on him, and he didn't know how much this Hongsheng big boss who covered the sky with one hand would lose, and he was worth dealing with himself like this?

That night, Lang Zhongming did not let Xiao Yang go easily.

Xiao Yang's jacket was properly dressed, even the first button was fastened firmly, and he knelt on the floor with his legs apart, facing Lang Zhongming's precious camera to fulfill Mr. Ling's request of "do it yourself".

The black lens of the camera is like a huge eye.

Lang Zhongming, on the other hand, spent his time admiring his flushed face at the moment, wondering whether such punishment was enough.

"I'm not going to the station..."

Xiao Yang spoke too softly, Lang Zhongming didn't hear clearly: "What?"

"I didn't plan to go to the station, I thought the school was still there...I want to go back to the school to see..."

Lang Zhongming was stunned for a moment before he remembered that the original site of the station, which had been newly built for less than two years, was the alma mater he shared with Xiao Yang.

Only then did Lang Zhongming notice his bloodshot eyes and swollen eye sockets, obviously from crying for a long time.

"What's the matter, have you cried? E University has moved to the suburbs, it's too noisy there, you want to check the address another day." It was rare that Lang Zhongming didn't say any bad words.

Xiao Yang didn't know where he got the courage suddenly, he raised his head and looked directly at Lang Zhongming: "Teacher Yuan passed away."

Lang Zhongming was stunned: "What..."

Professor Yuan is a famous person in E University. At first, he became famous because of his high failure rate in courses, but after taking his courses, everyone will recognize this serious old man.

In particular, the old man's talk about "Dream of Red Mansions" can make boys of science and engineering who are not interested in red studies listen with gusto.

Lang Zhongming remembered that when he was a freshman, he also missed Yuan Jianzhen's class.

At that time, Xiao Yang was about to graduate, and Lang Zhongming also attended Professor Yuan's last class.

At that time, the reluctance of the whole class was so strong that he, a "bad student" who spent all day in his company, was also infected. For the first time, he realized what "teacher and student" are.

After graduation, he quickly devoted himself to Hongsheng's business, and he has not thought of his short student days for a long time.

Speaking of it, Xiao Yang was an out-and-out good student at the beginning, serious and steady, never missed classes or failed subjects, and had in-depth research on his favorite subjects.

Although Xiao Yang is shy, because of his good grades, he has maintained a very good relationship with several teachers.

On the contrary, he knew that he would have nothing to do with the teachers after graduation, so he didn't even remember a few faces of the teachers.

Xiao Yang looked up at him coldly, and a hoarse voice sounded: "You said you wanted to take Teacher Yuan's class as a sophomore, did you choose?"

Lang Zhongming was about to say something, but Xiao Yang interrupted him: "Oh, I forgot, later on you concentrated on breaking the law, how could you have time for any classes?"

Lang Zhongming didn't make things difficult for Xiao Yang because of his rude words, because he was right.

That incident happened not long after listening to Mr. Yuan's last class.

He was young and energetic, and wanted to play tricks to get his father to do something. He used his own network to make small moves within Hongsheng, but was caught by the shareholders.

If it wasn't for this, Xiao Yang wouldn't have to take the blame for him.

Lang Zhongming hesitated, but still whispered "I'm sorry".

Xiao Yang felt strange that two people apologized to him in one day.He lowered his head again: "Can I go back?"

Lang Zhongming nodded, Xiao Yang stood up and went back silently.

That night, Xiao Yang couldn't fall asleep anyway. He lay down and thought of Professor Yuan's care and expectations for him, and smelled the indelible scent of Lang Zhongming on his body, and felt disgusted.

It wasn't until dawn that Xiao Yang couldn't help feeling nauseated, got up and vomited for a long time, and then barely fell asleep.

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