Chapter Eighteen: A Tribute to the Fiftieth Anniversary of the Motherland!

Liu Dehai has committed suicide!

The people at the dining table were all stunned into silence. None of them had expected to hear such news.

"What is going on?!"

Cong Gui stood up abruptly, his face turning ashen. "How long has it been since he was sent back into custody? How could he commit suicide right under your noses?!"

The young soldier looked filled with self-reproach as he explained, "After we locked him up, we thought everything was under control. Later, when someone came to deliver food and called out for Liu Dehai, there was no response."

"We opened the cell door only to find that Liu Dehai had bitten off his own tongue and died..."

"He was a ruthless man, I suppose."

Xiao Bo let out a cold laugh. "Bitten off his tongue to commit suicide? Dying to escape punishment? I’m afraid it’s more likely to cover up something much bigger!"

The group fell silent. What Xiao Bo said was exactly what everyone else was thinking.

"Old Commander, should we go over and take a look?" Sun Weiguo asked, looking toward Ye Yuan.

Ye Yuan nodded. He had only taken two steps when he stopped and looked at Ye Yan'an and Sun Ting. "You two young ladies shouldn't come along; stay here and finish your meal."

"No! I want to go too!"

Sun Ting stood up without hesitation. "I work for the television station, and I was personally responsible for reporting on this. Even if Liu Dehai committed suicide to escape justice, I must be a witness to this event!"

Sun Weiguo, standing nearby, spoke up proudly, "This girl, her personality doesn't take after me at all—except for this hatred of evil; that she definitely got from me."

"Fine." Ye Yuan nodded. "If you aren't afraid, you can come along. But Yan'an, you are not allowed to go."

Ye Yan'an was not just a young girl, but a student. Ye Yuan had seen the bodies of those who had bitten off their tongues before and knew how horrifying the sight was; he did not want his granddaughter to see such a scene.

"Okay." Ye Yan'an nodded obediently. "Grandpa, I'll wait here for you all to return."

Cong Gui turned to the young soldier beside him. "Guard this place. If anything happens to Yan'an, don't blame me for what happens!"

"Yes, sir!" The young soldier stood at attention and gave a military salute. "I guarantee the mission will be accomplished!"

Ye Yuan and his party headed straight to the detention center.

Liu Dehai’s body had already been moved to the courtyard, covered by a white sheet. Ye Yuan stepped forward, reached out, and pulled back the cloth.

Liu Dehai had indeed died a miserable death; his expression was twisted like a malevolent spirit, his face bloated and turned a deep, bruised purple. His eyes were wide open, looking as though they had been soaked in blood, as if he were staring at them with spiteful resentment.

Biting one's tongue to commit suicide results in intense pain after the initial numbness, which causes the throat to constrict, effectively rendering the person unable to think. Due to the body's involuntary reaction, the victim gasps desperately for air, which causes the severed tongue to block the windpipe. Because of this, death by biting one's tongue is usually caused not by the pain itself, but by asphyxiation.

"Ah!" Sun Ting gasped and hid behind her father.

Sun Weiguo looked helpless. "I told you not to come, but you insisted."

Hearing this, as if to prove herself, Sun Ting gathered her courage, stepped forward, and took a few photos of Liu Dehai’s face.

"Sacrificing one's life to keep a secret?" Liu Ping looked coldly at the corpse. "If only you had known it would come to this, why act that way in the first place?"

"Send him back to Liu Dehai’s home," Xiao Bo ordered.

Four soldiers stepped forward, lifted the stretcher carrying the body, and walked toward the vehicle in the distance.

Sun Weiguo’s gaze was icy. "Letting him die so easily—it’s too good for him!"

"Do we still need to continue gathering evidence regarding Liu Dehai’s crimes?" Xiao Bo asked.

"Collect it! Of course, we must collect it!" Sun Weiguo said without hesitation. "This man was a cancer on Hehe County. Now that the cancer has been removed, we still need to know exactly how much evil he committed!"

"Let’s go, let's head back," Ye Yuan sighed.

His keen intuition told him that things were not over yet. He had a lingering feeling that a storm was brewing. In the past, it was this extraordinary intuition that had allowed him to escape danger time and time again.

Back at the restaurant, the atmosphere in the private room was clearly not as lively as it had been at the start. Although Liu Dehai had been brought to justice, for some reason, no one could truly feel happy.

Sun Ting was drinking her beverage when she suddenly looked up at Ye Yuan. "Grandpa Ye, there is something I would like to discuss with you."

"What is it?" Ye Yuan asked with a smile.

"Our station wants to produce a program called 'Walking the Red Path Again'." Sun Ting looked at Ye Yuan with anticipation. "Our station manager asked me to inquire if you would be willing to participate in the recording. It will be broadcast live across the country, showing the program to the entire nation."

"Nonsense!" Sun Weiguo scolded immediately. "How old is the Old Commander? You’re asking him to join in on your station’s foolishness? If something were to happen to him, who at your station would take the responsibility?"

"I actually think this is a good idea," Political Commissar Liu Ping suddenly spoke up. "With the fiftieth anniversary approaching, having an old hero tell the stories of what happened back then would allow the people to understand the hardships of those days and cherish their current lives even more."

"What’s the use of you all talking about it here?" Xiao Bo said with a smile. "Shouldn't this be decided by Old Hero Ye himself? What is the use of you all talking so grandly?"

Once this was said, everyone's eyes turned to Ye Yuan, waiting to hear his thoughts.

"Political Commissar Liu has a point," Ye Yuan said slowly, his voice calm and steady. "With the fiftieth anniversary approaching, while I can still walk and speak, I would like to do something more for our country."

"Yay! Grandpa Ye is the best!" Sun Ting cheered excitedly, hugging Ye Yuan’s arm.

Seeing that Ye Yuan had agreed, Sun Weiguo did not insist further.

"However, I don’t want to go anywhere else," Ye Yuan added. "If you want to record the program, bring everything here to Hehe County."

"This..." Sun Ting hesitated. "This isn't something I can decide on my own. I need to discuss it with the station leadership."

"That is fine," Ye Yuan nodded.

Xiao Bo struck while the iron was hot, looking at Ye Yuan. "Old Hero Ye, those medals you threw into the courtyard—they haven't all been dug up yet, have they?"

"I would like to request that we keep sending people to dig. We absolutely cannot let any single military medal remain buried!"