Li Ling handed over his certificate from the car window. The sentry in the guard box carefully inspected it and returned it to him, then raised the road pole to let him go.

The roads in the military compound are not complicated, with only a few comings and goings. Li Ling drove north, passed the office area and dormitories, and entered the residential area.

When the car stopped and Li Ling pulled the handbrake, Hu Pingtao really didn't know what to say.

He was now certain that the "old leader" Lei Yue referred to was his father.

But this is all Lei Yue's fault. Generally speaking, soldiers who have transferred from the army to local areas will habitually call their superiors "old chief" or "old superior". But Lei Yue always said "old leader", so Hu Pingtao

There was no connection between the two from the beginning.

After picking up his things and getting out of the car, Hu Pingtao watched Lei Yue walk up the steps and knocked on the door.

A familiar woman came out and opened the door.

Lei Yue smiled and saluted: "Hello, Teacher Li. It's the holidays, I'm here to see you and the old leader."

With a smile in her eyes, the woman nodded politely in return: "It's Xiao Lei, long time no see, you..."

When the words came to her lips, she suddenly saw Hu Pingtao standing next to Lei Yue, smiling at her, and she was stunned.

Hu Pingtao stepped forward and shouted seriously: "Mom!"

This is his mother, Li Jinglan.

Lei Yue felt that the whole world became unreal in an instant, countless thoughts were running rampant in his mind, and he instantly lost his thinking ability.

Li Ling and Kong Chengli opened their mouths wide, not enough to fit a duck egg in, but their teeth could be clearly seen.

Li Jinglan immediately hugged Hu Pingtao, as if it was the most precious treasure that might be lost if he let go.

"You kid, you left without saying a word, which kept me awake for the past few days."

"If your Uncle Bear hadn't called me, I would have been so anxious."

"Why do you want to become a policeman? It's not a bad thing. Just tell your father. There's no need to sneak away alone!"

She held her hands tightly, chattering, tears welling up in her eyes, and kept complaining.

Lei Yue looked dumbfounded.

After a long time, he slowly asked: "Teacher Li, you and Xiaohu... this is..."

Li Jinglan held a very high position in Zhaocheng and was known as a strong woman. Every time she came to visit her old leader, Lei Yue was in awe of her. He had never seen her act like this before.

"This is my son." Li Jinglan quickly wiped the corners of her eyes with the back of her hand, but grabbed Hu Pingtao's wrist with her left hand. After recovering, she looked at Lei Yue and others in confusion: "Xiao Lei, Xiao Hu and others

Why didn't you know he was my son when you came back together?"

At this moment, Lei Yue had a clear understanding in his mind, and he had already greeted Director Xiong Jie's relatives countless times. He repeatedly cried out: "I...I really don't know! Xiaohu never said it, no one told me!"

"It's not too late to know now." Li Jinglan, who was in a good mood, said with a hearty smile: "Come in, let's talk later. No one is allowed to leave today. You all stay here to eat and have a few drinks with my old man."

Li Ling and Kong Chengli walked behind.

Looking at Lei Yue's back, Li Ling approached Kong Chengli and whispered in his ear: "Bet ten yuan, Xiong Bureau will definitely know who Xiaohu's parents are. Team Lei was screwed this time."

Kong Chengli nodded with lingering fear: "The Xiong Bureau is very shady. I came to this place with Lei Dui last year, and his old leader was the commander of the military region! If he had known about this relationship earlier, Lei Dui would not have taken Xiaohu

Offer it up?"

Li Ling said with emotion: "Look at what they did. When Xiaohu was in our anti-narcotics team, he never mentioned his parents or showed off. If he hadn't come to the door today, I guess he would never have said anything. Think about it again.

Thinking about others, just last month, I went to the district government to do something. When I passed by the service window, a little girl was sitting inside and yelling about what kind of bureau her father was, the deputy section level... Tsk tsk tsk tsk, that loud voice is almost useless.

The microphone is off."

Kong Chengli scolded: "You don't understand this. Rumor has it that if you have a good father, you will save ten years of hard work."

Li Ling raised his hand and pointed forward: "Then how do you explain Xiaohu's matter? His father is the commander, his mother also has a very high position, and his sister is not a mortal either."

Kong Chengli was stunned for a moment and asked: "Who is Xiaohu's sister?"

"Have you heard of Beitong Group?" Li Ling lowered his voice: "A well-known large domestic company, its stock was listed in Xiangjiang a few years ago, and it immediately became popular on the same day. Some people said behind the scenes that Xiaohu's sister relied on his parents

Doing business, but the Lei team said that these are all baseless nonsense."

"Beitong Group?" Kong Chengli's eyes lit up: "Brother Li, you mean, that is Sister Xiaohu's property?"

"Director of the group. I also heard what Captain Lei said."

"Then their family is not short of money! But I see that the clothes Xiaohu wears are only a few dozen yuan at most."

"That's why we call it low-key, and this is a real good family tradition. Think about it when we solved Li Lihong's case, Xiaohu fell whenever he wanted. With such a big wound on his leg, he didn't complain or complain about being tired, and he didn't do anything about it.

Special treatment. It’s not like those second-generation officials and rich people outside who talk about their parents and money.”

…

Hu Chong sat on the sofa first.

This is an old man with gray hair, and he exudes a strong military atmosphere. The lines on his face are hard, showing a resolute temperament. Because he is at home, his shirt buttons are open, but he maintains a straight sitting posture and is not angry.

Self-prestige.

After greeting Lei Yue and others respectively, Hu Chong looked at his son who came to stand in front of him and stared at him seriously for a long time without speaking.

Li Jinglan was a little worried next to her, and quickly came over to persuade: "It's a big holiday, Xiao Lei and his colleagues are here. If you have anything to say, we can talk about it tonight."

Hu Chong glanced at his wife first and said calmly: "You don't need to teach me these things."

Hu Biyuan and his wife arrived at noon. She came over, sat down next to her father, and took Hu Chongxian's arm: "Dad, my little brother doesn't want to be a soldier, but he hasn't done anything bad either! It's great to be a policeman, you

Look at Brother Lei, that’s the best example.”

Hu Chong first lifted his arm from his daughter's arm: "Go and bring me my coat."

Lei Yue and others were completely speechless.

Li Jinglan was at a loss: "It's almost time to eat, where are you going?"

Hu Chong stood up from the sofa first and took a deep look at his son standing in front of him: "Let's go out with me."

…

Hu Pingtao followed his father all the way to the external publicity room of the Military Region Information Department.

This is a large room covering an area of ​​more than 200 square meters. The white walls are hung with military propaganda materials, ranging from the Nanchang Uprising to the self-defense counterattack after the founding of the People's Republic of China. They are mainly pictures of people and related introductions.

There are many old items on display in the hall, ranging from bugles, rifles, dishes from the Red Army period, to JF District era bills, bayonets, military uniforms, to current military rank marks, as well as military district competition ranking results in recent years, as many as hundreds of cabinets.

There is a glass cover on the table to keep out the dust, so wipe it clean.

This place is open to the outside world and anyone can come in. Nearby schools also use this place as their second classroom, and students often come to visit.

Hu Pingtao has been here more than once.

Hu Chongxian stood in front of display cabinet No. 2 and stared for a long time at an old military cap, an old kettle, and a five-pointed star cap badge that had been obviously burned by fire and had a mottled surface placed on a white tablet.

"Do you still remember the book I asked you to read when you were a kid?" Hu Chong didn't turn around yet. Although he was asking a question, his tone was very serious.

Hu Pingtao replied seriously: "Remember, "Garland Under the Mountain"."

It was one of the enlightenment books in his childhood.

"When you grow up, we can talk about some things."

Hu Chongxian slowly turned around and looked at his son with complicated eyes. There was expectation, blame, dissatisfaction and anxiety: "What do you think of Zhao Mengsheng?"

(Note: Zhao Mengsheng, the protagonist of "Garland Under the Mountain".)

Hu Pingtao was slightly startled. As a young man, he never thought that his father would ask this question. He was at a loss for a moment and had all kinds of thoughts. He looked at his father who was wearing a military uniform with a serious expression, and then looked at the labeled items in the display cabinet.

Hu Pingtao vaguely felt that he had grasped a certain key point as a relic imprinted by time, but under the pressure of his father's majestic aura, he found it difficult to speak and could not speak.

"It was a special era. Zhao Mengsheng represented a special type of people, that is, the children of high-ranking cadres."

Hu Chongxian's voice was very calm, without deliberately emphasizing: "War means killing people, but if there is no war, national peace cannot be guaranteed. Why do I keep letting you read that book? And let you write a lot of reading diaries? Just

Because you are my son."

"During the self-defense counterattack, I was just a deputy commander. I won't say how cruel that battle was. No soldier of the Republic flinched. Ordinary soldiers are brave, and the children of high-ranking cadres are not cowards. Of course, I

I don’t speak for everyone, but most people, especially the ones I know, are good people.”

"The commander of the 160th Division is my old superior. He transferred his son from the rear base to the front line and unfortunately died."

"Commander Mao's only son joined the war as a forward, but his legs were blown off by a landmine and he also died."

"You know Uncle Yu. His eldest son died while attacking Gaoping, and his second son also died in the battle when he covered the retreat of the troops."

"There is also Uncle Song from Dongjiang Province. He was the deputy commander of the 22nd Division. His son and two nephews were killed in the war. Old Song would come to our Yunnan Province every Qingming Festival to visit his grave.

Dead relatives.”

"Some people are born with privileges, such as Zhao Mengsheng, and you." Hu Chongxian looked at Hu Pingtao with sharp eyes: "From the deputy commander to the commander, I have led many soldiers and seen all kinds of things.
Chapter completed!