Shen Xian had no idea how long he had stayed in the cemetery until his legs began to feel numb. He finally stood up, gently caressed the photo on the tombstone, promised Xiaobai that he'd bring Gu Chen with him next time to visit Xun Nuo, and then, pressing the brim of his hat down, he walked away.
His steps down the hill were noticeably lighter than when he had arrived. The knot in his heart from the past three years had gradually loosened during this monologue-like conversation. Under the blazing sun, he thought he saw Xiaobai standing behind the overlapping tombstones, smiling and waving at him.
When he drove back to the courthouse, the hearing had just concluded.
This time, the journalists and new media workers who had been camped outside the courthouse didn't continue their stakeout. Instead, they swarmed forth the moment the doors opened, blocking those coming out from the hearing and bombarding the lawyers with one question after another.