War Photographer's Notebook

Chapter 1898 The Historian's Lament
After hanging up with Sui Sui, Wei Ran dialed Li Yizhong again.

"Brother Wei, have you found any leads?" Li Yizhong asked immediately as soon as the WeChat call connected.

During the days when Wei Ran was learning his skills from the father and son in his hometown, he had never contacted him. He was certain that his current contact was not just for casual conversation.

"We have some leads," Wei Ran paused, "Do you have some time lately?"

"Yes!" Li Yizhong answered without hesitation.

"Let's go to Qing Island, and meet there."

Wei Ran paused for a moment, then finally couldn't help but ask, "I have another question, I don't know if it's convenient."

"convenient!"

Without hesitation, Li Yizhong gave an affirmative answer: "Brother Wei, just ask whatever you want."

"Mr. Lu, I mean, do you know where your girlfriend Lu Yue's grandfather's ancestral home is?" Wei Ran asked.

"Know"

Li Yizhong replied, "Brother Wei is from the same hometown; his family is from Langfang City in Hebei Province."

"What a coincidence," Wei Ran thought to himself, shaking his head. "Did they ever come back to look for their relatives back then?"

"Yes, of course we've had one."

Li Yizhong sighed, "The Lu family in that village was wiped out by the Japanese back then. They have no relatives left, they're long gone."

Upon hearing this, Wei Ran took a deep breath and said, "Let's go to Qing Island as soon as possible."

"Okay!" Li Yizhong excitedly assured him, "We'll get there as soon as possible!"

Is it a coincidence?

As Wei Ran put down his phone, he asked himself this question.

It may indeed be just a coincidence that Brother Lu came from Langshi "back then," but the fact that his father made him learn a snack-making skill probably meant that he knew Brother Lu would be obsessed with learning how to make sesame cakes and sausages.

What about in a world without its own history?

Wei Ran couldn't help but sigh inwardly. In a history without his own, did that Brother Lu, that veteran who survived the Savage Mountain, ever eat any snacks from his hometown?

Wei Ran preferred to believe that the old soldier who was homesick and cursed the Jiang family did eat that food between 1950 and 1987, even if it was just wishful thinking on his part.

Otherwise, it would be too bitter.
Whether it was a coincidence or wishful thinking, the immediate priority was to send Cheng Guanyin home for a family reunion as soon as possible, or rather, to get to Qingdao Island as quickly as possible.

This time, he did not choose to travel by plane.

It took a lot of trouble, procedures, and time to airlift that big knife from Taitung to China.

Instead of calling Qin Ershi at this time to ask for help in finding a way to get a green light, he might as well ask him to do something else so he could drive there himself.

It was only about 500 kilometers away. Wei Ran glanced at the sky outside the window and decided to set off.

If he hurrys a little, he might be able to find a place to take a nap once he reaches his destination.

Wei Ran packed all the prepared food, such as sesame cakes and sausages, into the insulated box in the borrowed car, put the large knife into the suitcase and then put it into the trunk. He then drove away from Tianjin.

Meanwhile, Sui Sui, who had returned to Kazan earlier, also began making emergency arrangements.

Qin Ershi, who received Wei Ran's call a little later, was also mobilized.

Amidst the busy lives of these young people, Wei Ran was the first to arrive at his destination after a journey of more than six hours.

At this moment, the city seemed to have just fallen asleep, and every now and then you could see some private cars rushing to their destinations.

Wei Ran randomly found a hotel to stay in, quickly ate some of the sesame seed cakes and other snacks he had brought, and then habitually checked the room before taking a comfortable shower and going to bed.

When he was woken up by his phone alarm, it was already eight o'clock in the morning.

Yawning, Wei Ran got up and took another shower. Without daring to delay, he drove to the airport and picked up Li Yizhong and Lu Yue, who had just come out of the arrival gate.

"Brother Wei, have you found Grandpa Cheng's family?" Li Yizhong asked before the two could even shake hands.

"Probably, but I haven't had time to verify the specifics yet."

Wei Ran shook hands with the other person. "Anyway, come with me and you'll see."

Upon hearing this, Li Yizhong and Lu Yue exchanged a glance and finally stopped asking questions, obediently following Wei Ran into the van he had borrowed from Qin Ershi.

"Where are we going?"

After Wei Ran started driving according to the navigation, Lu Yue couldn't help but ask curiously. She had just heard clearly that the destination of Wei Ran's phone navigation was a place called "Donghe Aquatic Products".

"I'll take you guys to eat seafood," Wei Ran said with a smile, trying to be perfunctory.

The address given in the metal notebook was this, but he didn't really know what was there. All he could do was step on the gas and make the car go faster.

"Brother Wei, how did you find it?" Lu Yue finally asked another question that Wei Ran couldn't answer for the time being.

I'll answer that question last.

Wei Ran said vaguely, "Perhaps you will have the answer yourselves in time."

Since Wei Ran said so, Li Yizhong and Lu Yue could only suppress their curiosity and instead chat with Wei Ran about film cameras and Lu Yue's great-grandfather.

During a little over an hour of casual conversation, Wei Ran finally followed the navigation and drove the car onto a narrow road located between the dock and the seafood market.

After struggling to find a parking space and park the car, Wei Ran opened the car door, but Li Yizhong had already opened his suitcase.

Seeing Wei Ran looking at him with a puzzled expression, Li Yizhong explained with a simple smile, "My grandfather asked me to bring his camera."

As Li Yizhong spoke, he took out the Pentax camera, which showed signs of extensive use, from his suitcase. After skillfully attaching a 165mm F2.8 lens to it, he continued to explain, "He said that if I could find the family of the madman, I must use this camera to take some photos of them."

In addition, my father has already rushed back after receiving the news. If it is confirmed that he has been found, he also hopes to meet with Grandpa Cheng's family.

He said he received a lot of care from Grandpa Cheng when he was a child.

"Let's hope we didn't come for nothing. Let's go."

As Wei Ran spoke, he stepped out of the driver's seat, went around to the trunk, and picked up a small fishing tackle bag that was specifically used to store the large knife.

After Li Yizhong and his companion got out of the car, the three of them followed the navigation instructions and walked a short distance before finding a small shop with a rather small storefront at the corner of this secluded alley.

Just like the destination entered into Wei Ran's mobile phone navigation, the store's signboard name is "Donghe Aquatic Products".

Stepping into this small shop, you'll see two large, oxygenated fish tanks lining both walls, filled with fresh seafood such as shrimp, crabs, snails, and fish.

Overall, the seafood in this small shop's tanks is all inexpensive; the most expensive item that looks to be is probably the swimming crab.

Directly opposite the main entrance, there was a large fish tank filled with a large group of beautiful little fish—clearly not for eating.

On one side of the fish tank where these ornamental fish live, there is a door that is not very wide.

Above the doorway, a blue and white lightbox sign reads: "Da Dao Seafood Processing".

"Do you want to buy some leftovers?"

Behind the aquarium, a man who looked to be in his fifties or sixties enthusiastically greeted customers in his local dialect, "Buy seafood and get your pipes tied up. Spend 100 yuan and get a free glass of baijiu!"

"us."

Let's just pick a little bit to try.

Before Li Yizhong could say anything, Wei Ran interrupted, "Boss, you can decide how to arrange it. It's just the three of us, so let's order the dishes for a thousand yuan."

Oh dear! I can't eat that much!

The boss was clearly an honest man; he even seamlessly switched to fairly standard Mandarin, saying, "We don't have any big lobsters or king crabs here. Five hundred should be enough for you three young men."

"Then bring us some good wine."

Wei Ran said gently, "We've just arrived. If the boss isn't busy, would you like to have a drink with us and tell us where we should go for fun?"

"Come, come, come inside and sit down!"

The uncle warmly invited Wei Ran and his two companions into the seafood processing plant next door.

This shop is also small, with only seven or eight tables at most, but it has a good location on the corner of the road, and you can see the small dock not far away through the window.

Perhaps because it wasn't mealtime, there were no other customers in the restaurant except for a huge orange cat that looked like a gas cylinder lying on the windowsill.

"Second brother? Second brother!"

The uncle switched back to his dialect and called out in a loud voice, "Hurry up! We've got a guest! Bring out a thousand yuan, and all your signature dishes! Bring out the best wine too!"

As he spoke, the man walked to the counter and skillfully began brewing tea.

At the same time, a loud shout came from the kitchen, and then a burly man with the typical build of a man from eastern Shandong came out carrying a plastic basket. After greeting the three of them warmly, he went next door to start selecting ingredients.

Taking this opportunity, the three of them also observed the exceptionally clean little shop and soon noticed something.

It was a large sword, an anti-Japanese sword, a sword with nicks and chipped edges, and a conspicuous red silk ribbon tied to its end.

The large knife is placed in the most conspicuous position on the wine rack display case behind the bar. On the left and right sides are the store's business license, a family photo, and some individual photos.

"Come, come! Have some tea!"

The uncle who brought them in warmly served them freshly brewed tea, followed by three steaming white hot towels.

Wiping his hands with a hot towel, Wei Ran asked with a smile, "What's your surname, sir? And why is there a big knife displayed in your shop?"

"My surname is Cheng, the Cheng of 'one journey through mountains and one journey through rivers'."

After the kind and open-minded uncle introduced himself, he proudly pointed to the large knife with his thumb and explained, "That large knife was left to me by my grandfather. It was used to behead Japanese soldiers back in the day!"

"That's a treasure to ward off evil spirits," Wei Ran exclaimed with a smile.

"That's not the case!"

Uncle Cheng said proudly, "I've had that knife on display at my shop since the day it opened. It's more effective than any Guan Yu."

Just then, another uncle came in carrying a half-full basket of affordable seafood. After a brief introduction, he said, "This is enough for you. I'll bring you more if you need more later."

"I'll do whatever you say, Uncle," Wei Ran readily agreed.

Before the uncle could even enter the kitchen, Uncle Cheng, who was there to greet them, had already brought over a small basin of hot water, followed by a pot of baijiu (Chinese white liquor) that he had warmed in a small stainless steel basin. "There's plenty of liquor, you can drink first."

After saying that, Uncle Cheng brought over a few more plates of cold dishes.

"Brother Wei," Li Yizhong looked at Wei Ran with a hesitant expression.

"Eat first, we'll talk after we've filled our stomachs," Wei Ran said, warmly inviting Uncle Cheng to sit down and have some food together.

After being politely refused, Wei Ran did not insist. He simply picked up the wine pot and poured a glass for Li Yizhong and Lu Yue, and Wei Ran firmly steered the conversation between the three of them to the realm of film cameras.

Before long, plates of steaming seafood were served one after another. After two cups of grain liquor, Li Yizhong and Lu Yue, whose faces were already flushed from being plied by Wei Ran, mindlessly took the medical rubber gloves that Wei Ran handed them, put them on, and started eating.

With delicious seasonal seafood and cups of warm white wine, Li Yizhong and Lu Yue completely forgot about the purpose of their trip and were utterly captivated by the food.

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Wei Ran quietly slipped a thousand yuan into the bottom of the largest plate, then, burping contentedly, called out, "Boss, let's settle the bill."

"You're here," Uncle Cheng, who was guarding the seafood shop, walked in, picked up the menu clip from the counter, glanced at it, and said, "Total..."

"Uncle Cheng, your seafood is delicious. How about I pay the bill with this?"

As Wei Ran spoke, he opened the fishing gear bag he had brought and took out the large knife wrapped in red cloth, placing it on the counter.

First, Uncle Cheng glanced warily at Wei Ran, who showed no signs of drunkenness. Then he looked at Li Yizhong, who was also not drunk, and Lu Yue, whose face was flushed but who remained sober.

After confirming that none of the three men intended to get drunk and amuse themselves, he finally lifted the thick red cloth and saw what was wrapped inside.

"Second Brother? Second Brother? Second Brother!"

Uncle Cheng spotted the inscription on the large knife at a glance, and then began to stammer and shout loudly.

"What's wrong?"

As the questioning continued, the uncle who had just been in the kitchen ran out and noticed the large knife on the counter.

Almost subconsciously, I glanced at the large knife on the wine rack behind the counter, then at the large knife on the table again.

Finally, the uncle turned his gaze to Wei Ran, who was all smiles, and Li Yizhong and Lu Yue, who were holding up a large camera and snapping photos of them.

"Where did this knife come from? This...this knife...where did it come from?" the uncle who ran out of the kitchen stammered.

"From Taitsu Island"

Wei Ran smiled and said, "This was specially delivered to you, gentlemen. How about we use this big knife to treat you to a free seafood meal?"

"Third brother, here."

The uncle who ran out later took a deep breath and said, "Call my older brother and fourth brother and tell them to come back quickly and tell them that Grandpa has been found."

"Yes!" Uncle Cheng quickly responded, took out his phone, and dialed the number.

"You...you came here specifically for this purpose?"

"I haven't asked yet, but what's your name, Uncle?" Wei Ran asked with a smile.

"My surname is Chen, Chen with the ear facing east."

The man in charge of the kitchen said, "We don't share the same surname, but we're like brothers from the same family."

"Uncle Chen, shall we sit down at another table and talk?" Wei Ran asked.

"Come on, come on!"

Uncle Chen finally realized what was happening and invited Wei Ran and the other two to sit down by the window.

None of the three of us are descendants of Cheng Guanyin.

Wei Ran spoke first, “Cheng Guanyin, a veteran of the War of Resistance Against Japan, passed away in 1998. I’m sorry we’re late; it’s been so long since we found this place.”

"He...sigh—!" Uncle Chen let out a long sigh.

"Uncle Chen, why don't you tell us about your family first?"

Wei Ran glanced at Uncle Cheng, who was walking over with two large knives, then turned around and asked.

"Alright"

Uncle Chen said, "The Cheng Guanyin you mentioned is our great-grandfather. He also has a younger brother named Cheng Bingquan."

As he spoke, he pointed to the name engraved on another large knife that Uncle Cheng had brought over, "These are two brothers, and their large knives were forged by their father, our great-grandfather."

Next, Uncle Chen and Uncle Cheng temporarily closed the doors of both shops and then gave a detailed explanation.

Simply put, after the sons of the Cheng brothers, Cheng Guanyin and Cheng Bingquan, were adopted by Chen Shun, the family settled down on Qingdao Island.

Cheng Guanyin's son, Cheng Huaiqian, entered the No. 6 State-owned Cotton Mill after he came of age and worked there until his retirement.

Cheng Bingquan's son, Cheng Xiaoxian, was even luckier. Thanks to the care of his adoptive father, Chen Shun, and his elder brother, Cheng Huaiqian, he was able to go to university smoothly and was a legitimate college student. After the turbulent years ended, he was assigned to work in a shipyard until his retirement.

The two brothers each had two sons, and both made their eldest son take their adoptive father's surname, Chen.

That's why, in the generation of Uncle Chen and Uncle Cheng, the eldest and second eldest brothers of the four brothers all have the surname Chen, while the third and fourth brothers all have the surname Cheng.

Moreover, the man sitting in front of Wei Ran, named Cheng Xianggen, is Cheng Huaiqian's second son and Cheng Guanyin's grandson.

In their generation, the eldest son surnamed Chen and the fourth son surnamed Cheng are a retired bus driver and a high school teacher who has not yet retired, respectively.

The second and third brothers, who jointly run a seafood business and a small restaurant, were actually sailors when they were young.

What is particularly poignant is that the ship they worked on even docked at Tainan's port—at that time, Cheng Guanyin was still alive.

Amidst this regret of being so close yet so far, the eldest of the four brothers, Chen Fengnian, and the youngest, Cheng Xiangshui, also rushed over.

After introductions and stopping the eldest of the four brothers from insisting on kneeling in gratitude, Wei Ran and Li Yizhong heard some good news from the four brothers—

Both Cheng Bingquan's son, Cheng Xiaoxian, and Cheng Guanyin's son, Cheng Huaiqian, are still alive and in very good health.

It was only at this moment that Li Yizhong, at Wei Ran's prompting, began to talk about "Grandpa Cheng" from their fathers' and grandfathers' memories. At the same time, Lu Yue, sitting next to him, also showed them the old photos they had brought.

After quietly leaving the small restaurant, Wei Ran walked to the seafood shop next door, took out his portable wine flask from his pocket, tapped it against the glass fish tank where the ornamental fish lived, and then tilted his head back to gulp down a mouthful of spicy white wine.

Stepping out of the shop, he found a spot by the door where he could get some sunlight, sat down against the wall, lit a cigarette, and took a satisfying puff.

Amidst the billowing smoke, the big fat cat also came over, jumped onto his lap as if it were an old friend, and shamelessly rolled over to expose its belly, which was probably full of seafood, while Wei Ran scratched its itch.

Just then, Qin Er Shi also called.

"Have you found him?" Qin Ershi asked as soon as the call connected.

"found it"

Wei Ran stroked the belly of the big, fat cat, squinting at the harbor across the road. "What about your side? Can you do me a favor?"

"The Cheng Bingquan couple you mentioned are old, declassified criminals."

Qin Ershi said, "So this doesn't count as a favor, and even if it were, it wouldn't be for you or me."

"How long will it take to get down?" Wei Ran asked directly.

Today happens to be Monday.

Qin Ershi said, "Give me your identity information today, and then take them to apply normally. If it doesn't come through by Wednesday, it will definitely arrive by Thursday."

"Thank you," Wei Ran said. "Will you be going?"

"I won't go," Qin Er Shi said, unusually refusing.

"In that case, I'll go by myself."

Wei Ran thought for a moment and said, "How about letting Sui Sui serve as the deputy leader of the family-finding team?"

"understood"

Qin Ershi said decisively, this shrewd man clearly understood Wei Ran's implication, "Go with peace of mind, leave the rest to me."

"Hang up," Wei Ran said with a smile as he hung up the phone.

After smoking a cigarette in the sun and petting the cat to his heart's content before returning home, Li Yizhong had already finished telling the story of "Grandpa Cheng".

Mr. Wei

The eldest son, Chen Fengnian, shook hands with Wei Ran gratefully. "We're going to tell my father the news. You should come with us too."

The three of us just had a few drinks.

Wei Ran handed the keys to the other man, saying, "Could you gentlemen please help us get a car?"

"Let me open it for you."

The refined and gentle Cheng Xiangshui took the keys from Wei Ran and, accompanied by the three young men and three other middle-aged men, walked towards the van parked in the distance.

"You're from Tianjin?"

Cheng Xiangshui glanced at the license plate on Wei Ran's car and asked curiously.

“They flew in from Taitung,” Wei Ran explained with a smile. “I drove here.”

I am a high school history teacher.

As Cheng Xiangshui opened the driver's side door, he said, "I've told the children in class about the Long March photos you found, the old photos of the Northeast Anti-Japanese United Army you found, and the photo of the red flag at the Capitol Building that you found."

"It seems I often appear in Teacher Cheng's classes?" Wei Ran asked with a smile as he ushered Li Yizhong and the other man into the car.

"yes"

As Cheng Xiangshui started the car, he said with a smile, "Overall, apart from having a lot of girls around you, you're a good role model for the children."

I'll take that as a compliment.

Wei Ran said calmly, "There's no point in explaining this kind of thing."

"I have a class tomorrow, would you like to teach one of my students?"

As Cheng Xiangshui drove away, she asked, "I bet they'll be thrilled to see you."

"That's fine."

Wei Ran shook his head decisively, "I don't consider myself a good role model, so I won't mislead the children."

What do you think history is?

As if in casual conversation, Cheng Xiangshui initiated a topic with a touch of academic and philosophical rigor.

"I suspect Professor Cheng will have other questions later."

Wei Ran smiled and said, "How about we ask them all at once? That way, I won't give contradictory answers, which would be very embarrassing for me."

After a good-natured laugh, Cheng Xiangshui posed the remaining questions, "Indeed, there are still questions. I want to know, in the eyes of historians, what is history, what is a history book, and what is a historian?"

History is

Wei Ran smiled. "History is the truth, and only the truth. History books are lessons, and only lessons. Historians."
The historian is merely a paraplegic, an observer and narrator whose eyes and mouth can barely move.

He can recount the truth he sees and analyze the lessons he learns. But he cannot control history, nor should he ever attempt to do so.

Historians, in particular, cannot conceal any truth, good or bad. They can choose to remain silent, but they cannot lie.

"I will pass that message on to the children," Cheng Xiangshui seemed particularly satisfied with Wei Ran's answer.

After just a few casual words, Cheng Xiangshui had already driven the car into a residential area right next to the coastline.

Before even stopping the car, Cheng Xiangshui pointed to two elderly couples practicing Tai Chi in the small square inside the residential area and said, "Those are my parents and my uncle and aunt. To make it easier to take care of them, we brought them here to live with us a few years ago."

"You've all gotten so old."

Wei Ran looked out the window at the sprightly old man and couldn't help but be momentarily lost in thought. For a historian like him, time seemed to be passing by far too quickly.

(End of this chapter)