On the afternoon of April 1, Li Ye and the others arrived in Nyingchi, a day ahead of schedule.
Yang Yumin and the others began contacting the relevant departments, preparing to visit the martyrs' cemetery the next morning before setting out for Lhasa that afternoon.
But the road-weary relatives of the martyrs could not wait any longer. One after another, they said they wanted to go see for themselves first.
"Let's go today! The sooner we sweep their graves, the sooner our hearts can rest easy. I've dreamed of him several times these past few days."
"Comrade Yang, please understand us. It's been more than twenty years. We truly can't wait any longer. Let us go take one look first. Tomorrow, we promise to cooperate with the memorial ceremony."
"You don't need to take us there. We can walk there ourselves. I just asked the comrades at the hotel—the cemetery isn't far from here."
"..."
Yang Yumin and the others hurriedly contacted the relevant departments and arranged to visit the graves that very afternoon.
One look at these elderly people was enough to tell that if they were not allowed to see their sons, they definitely would not sleep that night.
In plateau regions, a lack of rest could easily cause health problems. These elderly people had been traveling for a week, and their strength had already been greatly drained. They had to be put at ease as soon as possible.
Once they arrived, the crowd, who had obeyed discipline all along the way, was suddenly let loose like sheep. They scattered in every direction, anxiously searching for their relatives' gravestones.
Several hundred people suddenly wandering through the cemetery left its caretakers unable to stop them even if they shouted, and unable to help them all even if they tried.