Life: A Black and White Film - CH 14 part4

Birthday week day 4 of 7.

I’ve always maintained that though Wen Han is ordinary, she still contains an inner strength. Do you see that here in this scene?

This story was translated with the expression permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. All forms of reproduction, redistribution, or reposting are not authorized, except by linking to hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the copy is unauthorized and has been taken without consent of the translator.

The look on Chen Yuan’s face was one of great… amusement.

With a slight smile, he said lightly, “Miss Wen Han, there is no mole in the Moscow operations team. Former Ops Leader Cheng Muyun and current Ops Leader Fu Yiming both, in front of everyone, gave their guarantees that there is no mole.”

Wen Han’s eyes met Chen Yuan’s directly. “No, he was looking for the mole.”

Due to her turbulent emotions, Wen Han was breathing heavily. With all her might, she fixed her eyes on Cheng Jiayi.

No one was allowed to escape.<>This UNAUTHORIZED copy was taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

A smile curled Chen Yuan’s lips. “Was he? Are you certain you are not being fooled by your own imagination? You love him, so you hope that Cheng Muyun is a hero. And so, in your mind, you have created a heroic image of him?”

“No, that’s not it…”<>Please support this story’s original translation at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

“You fantasize that he came here to Nepal and India carrying a debt of blood, and for his brothers and comrades, he lay in waiting in order to find the traitor?”

“No! It’s not my fantasy!”<>This is an UNAUTHORIZED copy, taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

“He abducted you, yet you want to view him as some hero?” Chen Yuan pulled off his glasses and, as if finding this laughable, shook his head. “Miss Wen Han, have you heard of Stockholm Syndrome? You are practically the most successfully tamed case of it.”

“I’m not fantasizing it! Cheng Muyun told me that from his own lips.” Wen Han sprung agitatedly to her feet.

Every person in this place knew that Chen Yuan’s superiors had disciplined him for reporting Cheng Muyun, saying Cheng Muyun had taken the law and punishment into his own hands to find the mole. In those ten years spent with Cheng Muyun, not only had Chen Yuan not earned any merit or gotten any achievements out of it, in the end, he was even disciplined. Anyone in his place would feel a grudge about that…

But his words were still too harsh.<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

Unable to continue listening to this, that official gave a cough. “Chen Yuan, let me head this questioning. You’re too sensitive about this topic.”

Chen Yuan sneered, then with a shrug of his shoulders, did not speak anymore.

That official cleared his throat. “Miss Wen Han, you may not know this, but not only did Cheng Muyun deny the claim that there is a mole, even Fu Yiming went down on record and also guaranteed to everyone that there is no mole in the Moscow operations team. From what I see, you really may be mistaken.”

Wen Han was left without a response that she could give to that. “You… Please believe me. I wouldn’t lie to all of you!”

The other interrogator was not so nice and amiable, and in an icy tone, he answered her, “Do you think we would renounce the statements given one after the other by two ops leaders, as well as the statement of this Agent Meng Liangchuan, and choose to believe you alone?”

Wen Han could therefore only shift her gaze to Meng Liangchuan. “You know, right? Meng Liangchuan, you must know, right?”

“……” Wen Han looked powerlessly at everyone.<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

Cheng Jiayi still had a look of innocence on her face, and she, too, flashed an apologetic smile at Wen Han.

Alone and helpless.<>This is an UNAUTHORIZED copy , taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

Cheng Muyun, is this how you felt back when you left Moscow?

No one you could trust? No one you could talk to?<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

Wen Han’s legs had grown weak, and her entire body was shaking. Clenching her hands tightly into fists, under the stark lamplight, she closed her eyes and tried as best as she could to calm down, and calm down some more. <>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

The questioning was soon over.<>Please support the original translation at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

Wen Han had no choice but to cooperate with them and, connected to a polygraph, answer dozens of questions, all of which were related to the members of the Moscow operations team and their information.

In the course of answering the questions, she finally understood that Cheng Muyun’s concealment of everything from her had truly been thought through and done with care and good reason. Her world absolutely had to remain unsoiled and pure; she absolutely had to be kept isolated from these secrets, for only then would she be able to return to the world that she had originally been in…

“Very good, Miss Wen Han.” The official gave a kindly pat on her shoulder. “Our people will bring you back to where you would like to go. Because you entered India using a fake passport, we will need a few days to prepare the paperwork and processes for sending you back. Please be assured, considering your relationship with Cheng Muyun, even if he is already… we will still guarantee your personal safety in Moscow.”

Wen Han did not utter a word. Her eyes were still fixated outside the window on Cheng Jiayi.

Up to now, up to this day, those who should have been ruled out had already been ruled out. There was only her…

“What other requests do you have? We will try our best to fulfill them, since, after all,” the official smiled awkwardly, “if Cheng Muyun really did abduct you, we are willing to make some compensation…”

“No. No, it wasn’t that. I am his girlfriend. I willingly came here with him,” Wen Han answered in a faint voice. “There was no abduction.”

Smiling, the official nodded. “That’s good.”<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

“But I have two conditions.” Wen Han continued, “First, your agent, Chen Yuan, openly insulted me and said that I was fantasizing after being abducted, that I had Stockholm Syndrome. I ask that disciplinary measures be taken against him. Such character and behavior of an Interpol agent gives me no trust or feeling of security with your organization. Although I am merely a Russian citizen, I also am a person whom you should be protecting, am I not?”

The official was taken aback for a moment before giving a rueful smile. “All right, then. I will report everything to my superiors according to the facts. As for disciplinary measures, it will depend on what the superiors decide.”

“Second, in these next days that I am in India, I need Agent Meng Liangchuan to accompany me. After all, I have no family or friends in this place, and I also am Cheng Muyun’s… May I say that I am his widow?”

“As long as you are willing, I have no opinions at all on that.”<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

Wen Han nodded, saying quietly, “As the widow of the former leader of the Moscow operations team, I need someone to accompany me through these most difficult few days. Out of all of you people, I trust only him.”

The official gave an awkward cough. “In regards to this, I need to ask Meng Liangchuan himself about what he thinks.”

“Can you not compel him to do it with an order? Aren’t you his superior?”

“… I am not his direct superior, but in principle, I can give that order.”

“Then please force that order on him.” Her voice grew even lighter, as if she would collapse at any moment.

So deserving of pity…<>This UNAUTHORIZED copy was taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

The official did not have the heart to see her like this, and instructing someone to go find Meng Liangchuan, he issued the command to him.

It was only a minute later that this official received a phone call regarding the results of the autopsy report. Those bodies did indeed have Cheng Muyun and Fu Yiming amongst them… Looking at Wen Han’s ashen face, the official wordlessly hung up the telephone. He did not pass on this piece of information.

When this ordinary girl returned to Moscow, she would have utterly no connection with this organization, nor would she have any chance of coming in contact with any of them who were part of it…

So regarding the fact that Cheng Muyun had already perished… he would just treat it as a secret and hide it forever.

Catching the look in that official’s eyes, Wen Han paused slightly in surprise. “Do you have any other questions that you want to ask?”

The official’s smile grew even more kind and genial. “No. You have your freedom again, Miss Wen Han.” <>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

Wen Han’s nerves, which had been stretched taut the entire time, finally loosened. The back of her blouse was completely dampened…

Heaven knew how scared she had been just a moment ago. Each sentence had challenged the limits of what she could handle. Speaking with this official who was a stranger to her, being interrogated, being questioned, and also laying out so many demands… Even now in this minute, as she recalled everything, she still could not believe that all those words had come from her.

It was his name that carried her, sustained her.<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

She did not want only to wait, wait until she had been sent back to Moscow and completely removed from the environment in which he lived… She did not want it, did not want to return to a world that was wholly without and unable to find Cheng Muyun in it. <>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator

When Wen Han left, not only was Meng Liangchuan with her, they also had a vehicle.

This vehicle would be accompanying her over these next few days as she went sightseeing or amused herself here in India. Wen Han sat into the front passenger seat. No longer were there black cloths covering the view as there had been on the trip here. She stared out at the night scene outside, all along seeming as if her soul was drifting elsewhere in the heavens.

She remained like this until the driver’s door was pulled open.

Sitting into the vehicle, Meng Liangchuan glanced at Wen Han. “You really surprised me. You were actually able to turn things around and win a round, and you were even able to get me to accompany you.”

“Why… were you unwilling to admit that he was looking for a mole?” Wen Han asked her question directly. Though she did not know what sort of relationship and interactions there were between Cheng Muyun and Meng Liangchuan, there was still a feeling in her that Meng Liangchuan must have known about this. “Why? Do you know how hard it was for him to rule out each person? We’ve finally gotten to the point where there is only one person left…”

Putting his foot to the gas, Meng Liangchuan released the handbrake and left this place where he had been interrogated twice.

Before long, they saw the field of sunflowers that they had caught a glimpse of on the ride here. <>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

The car came to an abrupt halt.<>Please support the translation at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

Meng Liangchuan motioned for Wen Han to step out of the vehicle.

Abandoning that vehicle, the two began walking on foot alongside the sunflower field in the direction of the manor estate. Meng Liangchuan fished around in his pockets for a long while before finally pulling out half of a cigarette that he had not finished smoking. Lighting up, he took an inhale. “Secretly trying to track down a mole without authorization is against the law. On top of that, so many people have died, one after the other, so even more so, we cannot outright state that. Otherwise, Cheng Muyun will be tried and sentenced, and he will need to pay with his life. Regardless of whether he is dead or alive, I do not want him to have to carry these charges on his name.”

“But only Cheng Jiayi is left! There’s a huge probability that she’s the one, right?”

“I’m not sure, and I don’t know. I’m unable to make that judgment. Only Cheng Muyun himself knows his method of ruling out each suspect and also the standards from which the final judgment will be made. No one else knows.”

Wen Han paused her steps.<>This UNAUTHORIZED copy was taken from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com

“What?” Meng Liangchuan gave a shrug. “What I said is the truth. Cheng Muyun himself told me that I should not trust anyone. He’s not even certain himself, so how can I, as an outsider, know then?”

“But…” Breathing in deeply, Wen Han forced herself to say it aloud. “What if he is dead? … We’re just going to let that mole get away?”

What if he is dead? It was not an “if”…<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

He was already dead.<>Please support the original translation at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

Recalling that autopsy report from earlier, Meng Liangchuan became silent, not knowing how he should say it. Just now, that official, whom he was well acquainted with, had told him to keep it a secret since, dead or not, Wen Han would not be able to find anyone to confirm it later on anyway. But, would it be too cruel to not tell this girl?

Wen Han shook her head once more, refuting herself. “He isn’t dead, right?”

Meng Liangchuan remained silent.<>Please read this at hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com instead

“It doesn’t matter… It doesn’t matter if you don’t tell me.” Wen Han inhaled lightly. “Even if you told me that he’s dead already, I still wouldn’t believe you.” <>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

In the spill of the moonlight, those sunflowers were not as dazzling as when they saw them during the daytime.

Their leaves quivered slightly in the breeze, and the faces of hundreds of sunflowers were all bent downwards in the same direction, as if they were gazing down at something from on high…

It was an eerie type of beauty. <>Copyright of Fanatical, hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. Translated with the express permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the translation has been taken without consent of the translator.

This story was translated with the expression permission of the author for hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. All forms of reproduction, redistribution, or reposting are not authorized, except by linking to hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com. If you are not reading this from hui3r[dot]wordpress[dot]com, the copy is unauthorized and has been taken without consent of the translator.

Completed: 1 of 1 Prologue 44 of 50 Chapter segments 0 of 1 Epilogue