Chapter 2

**Update Time: June 28, 2012**

In this world, there are too many things one cannot let go of. If Shen Huai were to die in that moment of falling from a height, what he would most regret letting go of would be his sister, Xiao Li, who would be left alone and destitute...

After placing the urn in the columbarium, the crowd of mourners quickly came out again.

Seeing Xiao Li's pale, almost translucent face and her red, swollen eyes from crying, Shen Huai's heart was once again pierced with pain.

Zhao Dong, a longtime friend and colleague at the city steel plant, drove the borrowed truck from the factory to return Xiao Li and the mourners to Meixi Town.

Shen Huai, unable to leave her alone and without an excuse to get closer, could only follow the truck in his car from a distance, heading to Meixi Town.

Meixi Town is under the jurisdiction of Xiangpu County, which is part of Donghua City, but it is geographically close to the city center.

Meixi Town is separated from the city by the wide Meixi River, connected by a concrete bridge built at the end of the 1960s.

Shen Huai only followed to the old house on the eastern side of Meixi Town and parked his car under the shade of a tree by the roadside.

What else could he do besides watching from a distance?

By the time they returned to Meixi, it was almost dark. The relatives and friends gradually left, and Zhao Dong also drove back to the city with a few colleagues.

Sitting in his car, Shen Huai felt a bit more at ease when he saw that his sister-in-law had stayed to accompany Xiao Li. He reclined the car seat and lay down, still unwilling to leave.

For the past three days, his mind had been in turmoil, and he was both mentally and physically exhausted. Shen Huai didn't know when he had fallen asleep...

After the possession, Shen Huai retained most of the original body's memory fragments.

To Shen Huai, these memories were unfamiliar, belonging to the previous Shen Huai.

Even though he could recall these memory fragments as if watching a movie, the sense of unfamiliarity could not be eliminated. It was like watching someone else's life, and he was just a spectator—this sense of unfamiliarity made Shen Huai very certain that the previous Shen Huai no longer existed.

In his sleep, Shen Huai heard his phone ring, but he thought it was just a dream.

In 1993, even a pager could attract attention in Donghua City, let alone a mobile phone.

The phone kept beeping, and Shen Huai just hugged his arm, trying to get more comfortable, subconsciously thinking the phone call had nothing to do with him—after about five or six seconds, he suddenly woke up, remembering that he had left his phone and wallet on the dashboard when he drove out of the hospital to the city government.

Shen Huai sat up in shock, rubbed his head, and warned himself: "What are you thinking? You can only live as Shen Huai from now on!"

Shen Huai squinted at the sun, surprised to find it was already late afternoon. The old house had been locked from the outside, and he didn't know where Xiao Li had gone early in the morning.

Shen Huai reached for his phone, hesitated for a moment, but still answered the call.

The voice on the other end of the phone was both familiar and unfamiliar to Shen Huai.

It was familiar because of the previous memories, but unfamiliar because Shen Huai knew he was living someone else's life.

"Secretary Shen, where are you? The city government only has three cars available besides the mayor's. You took the 927 out and didn't return all night. Have you thought about what to do if someone in the office needs a car today? If you're fine, drive back to the city as soon as possible."

The voice was low and hoarse. A round face with a large, fat nose flashed in Shen Huai's mind. It was the voice of Secretary Ge Yongqiu of the city government.

Ge Yongqiu, over forty years old, had a fair complexion but a few white spots on his face. Everyone called him "Ge Mazi" behind his back.

He couldn't say he had slept in his car outside Meixi Town after leaving the hospital. Shen Huai's voice was hoarse as he replied evasively, "I understand, I'll be back..."

Ge Mazi didn't say anything more and hung up the phone.

Shen Huai didn't take Ge Mazi's indifferent questioning to heart.

The political arena is often composed of different circles. If you don't belong to one circle, you belong to another, and each circle usually has only one boss.

Ge Mazi was the mayor Gao Tianhe's man, while Shen Huai was the secretary of Deputy Mayor Chen Mingde of the city committee.

Although Shen Huai's rank was lower than Ge Mazi's, they belonged to different circles and followed different bosses, so they usually didn't interfere with each other.

Not knowing where Xiao Li had gone early in the morning, Shen Huai could only drive back to the city.

************

As soon as Shen Huai drove into the city government compound, he saw Ge Mazi waiting for him on the steps of the city government building.

Thinking Ge Mazi was taking the opportunity to scold him, Shen Huai cursed inwardly but still stopped the car, rolled down the window, and asked, "Secretary Ge, are you waiting for me here?"

Ge Yongqiu's face was dark, but he ignored the provocative tone in Shen Huai's voice and said, "The preliminary conclusion of the fatal accident at the city steel plant four days ago has been reached. Mayor Chen wants me to listen to the report. If you have nothing else, Mayor Chen wants you to come with me. After all, you are also a victim and know the situation at the time."

Donghua City is not very large, but it is not small either, with a population of over a million in the urban area.

As a pillar enterprise of Donghua City, the city steel plant has always held a significant position in the city. Since the 1950s, it has produced over a dozen county and city leaders for the city and its affiliated counties.

Mayor Gao Tianhe, Secretary Ge Yongqiu of the city government, and Deputy Director Xiong Wenbin of the city committee and government research office all came from the city steel plant. The current plant manager, Gu Tong, is also a close confidant of Mayor Gao Tianhe.

This fatal accident happened right under the nose of Deputy Mayor Chen Mingde, which is why the city government took it so seriously. Otherwise, the death of one or two workers in a factory would not even cause a ripple in Donghua City.

Ge Yongqiu also held the position of deputy head of the city government's safety production leadership group. Although it was appropriate for him to handle this matter, given his relationship with the city steel plant, Shen Huai knew that the possibility of covering up the issue was high, and it was unlikely that the city steel plant would be held responsible.

Shen Huai was somewhat reluctant to return to the city steel plant, as he needed time to adapt to his new life, whether it was his past life or his new one.

Ge Yongqiu assumed Shen Huai would not refuse Deputy Mayor Chen Mingde's instructions and, without waiting for his answer, directly opened the car door and got in.

Ge Yongqiu glanced at the phone on the dashboard and frowned:

He, as the city government secretary, had to submit an application to replace his "big brother" phone with a new one, which was still on Chen Mingde's desk, yet this guy was already using a mobile phone...

He couldn't kick Ge Yongqiu out, so Shen Huai could only reluctantly accompany him to the city steel plant, starting his "new day" in a real sense.

************

The city steel plant covers over 2,000 acres in the north of the city. After driving through the gate, it still took some time to reach the impressive office building of the steel plant.

Without seeing Plant Manager Gu Tong come out to greet them, Shen Huai and Ge Yongqiu directly entered the office building and headed for the manager's office.

As they passed the office of the safety production department, they heard a heated argument inside.

"How did the accident happen, Zhou Dazui? You know it well. You can cover it up and shirk responsibility with the city government, but I can't let you deduct Haiwen's compensation. Zhou Dazui, do you have a conscience?"

This was Zhao Dong's voice. Shen Huai didn't expect to catch Zhao Dong fighting for compensation for him in the safety production department.

Shen Huai stopped and glanced at Ge Yongqiu:

The Zhou Dazui mentioned by Zhao Dong, coincidentally, was Ge Yongqiu's brother-in-law, who had climbed to the position of head of the safety production department at the city steel plant thanks to Ge Yongqiu's connections.

"Zhao Dong, don't spout nonsense. The nature and responsibility of the accident were determined by Plant Manager Gu. Sun Haiwen violated regulations to show off in front of city leaders, which led to the fatal fall. This was witnessed by dozens of people on the scene. The plant has already paid for his funeral, and if his sister wants to take his place in the plant, that's fine. What other compensation do you want?" This was Zhou Dazui's voice.

"Zhou Dazui, what are you saying? Xiao Li is only sixteen. Should she drop out of school to work in the plant? Even if she takes Haiwen's place, the compensation should not be reduced."

"Zhao Dong, you are also a city steel plant employee," a voice unfamiliar to Shen Huai, perhaps a new employee in the safety production department, chimed in to support Zhou Dazui, "You know the situation in the plant. Even if we could provide more compensation now, if families of future victims come to extort tens of thousands of yuan, would the plant still be able to operate?"

"Why are you talking so much nonsense? Get them out of here. If they come back, call the police..."

Shen Huai heard Zhou Dazui's impatience and saw the door of the office being opened from the inside.

Xiao Li, who had disappeared early in the morning, was pushed out forcefully, her sleeve caught on the doorknob, tearing a piece of her clothing, and a thin scratch appeared on her arm...

Seeing this, Shen Huai's anger flared up, and he punched Zhou Dazui in the face, who was pushing people out:

"Damn it! I saw the handrail break and someone fall with my own eyes. How can you still twist the facts?"

Zhou Dazui, who had opened the door to push people out, didn't expect to be punched in the face.

Zhou Dazui's nose hurt intensely, his eyes blurred, and he staggered backward.

Shen Huai didn't intend to let him off with just one punch. He followed in, unable to use his left shoulder, and punched Zhou Dazui's face repeatedly until he fell to the ground, then started kicking him...

This scene stunned Ge Yongqiu, Zhao Dong, and others standing nearby. It took them a while to react and try to hold Shen Huai back.