Wandering in the vast darkness

Chapter 73 The Accident Arrived Too Early

It's rush hour now, and I need to get to Tiyuchang Road and Dian Dian's school before 7 PM.

Yu Wenhao took out a plastic bag from the cabinet. Inside the bag were three scallion rolls. He had bought them from the cafeteria at noon because he knew he might not have time to get dinner that day.

Yu asked, walked out of the workshop, went directly to the parking lot, drove away, and temporarily stopped accepting orders and did not open the APP.

This was his first time attending a parent-teacher conference at school. Jiang Yihe told him not to bring anything else, just bring his face or his shamelessness. Yu Wenhao felt that no matter whether he wanted to save face or not, being late was definitely unacceptable.

Yu Wenhao checked the navigation and found that both Gengshan West Road and Hanghai Road were blocked by a single red line. These two roads are already narrow, and with the road construction going on, it's no wonder they're congested at this time of day.

There are only a few roads into the city. If he doesn't want to take a detour and go via Desheng Elevated Road, his only option is to take Zhijiang Road. Although Zhijiang Road isn't much better, it's already a yellow line with intermittent red dots. Each red dot represents a traffic jam. For ride-hailing drivers, seeing red dots on the navigation is the most annoying thing.

Yu Wenhao recalled the college student he picked up in the Xiasha University Town that day, who was cursing and swearing the whole way. His rant was spot on; all he cared about was selling the land to build houses, unwilling to leave even an extra lane. Now, almost every family owns a car. New roads like Zhijiang Road, the main thoroughfares from Jiubao and Xiasha into the city, only have three lanes. Would adding one more lane kill them? Would the traffic still be this bad?

Once the houses next to it are built and sold, this place will definitely be completely congested. And it's not just congestion; if it rains even slightly, the road will start to flood. The two tunnels at the intersection of Hanggao Road and Tanggongju Road will be flooded up to half the size of a car. When people get there, they'll have to turn around and take Hanghai Road or Genshan Road instead.

Fortunately, it didn't rain today. Yu Wenhao drove on and off, finally arriving at Qianjiang New City. He then drove to Jiefang East Road, passing through the Xincheng Tunnel and the Xinkai River, finally reaching Jiefang Road.

When they arrived at Jiefang Road, Yu Wenhao was taken aback. He had thought that if even Zhijiang Road was already so congested, Jiefang Road would be impossible to move an inch, especially since it was the city center.

After thinking for a while, Yu Wenhao figured it out. One reason was that at this time of day, traffic was restricted, and many cars were blocked outside and couldn't get in. Another reason was that most residential areas were now built on the outskirts of the city, and factories and large internet companies were even more so. Everyone was moving away from the old city center, and fewer and fewer people were living in these old, dilapidated residential areas in the old city.

Unexpectedly, Jiefang Road was completely clear. Thinking back to the day before yesterday when I picked up and dropped off my elderly relative, there was no traffic jam either. I find this very strange. What kind of logic is this? How come the outskirts of the city are so congested, while the city center is so clear?

Dian Dian said, "It's right here at school."

He checked the time and was greatly surprised to find that it was only 6:30, and he had already arrived. With a try-it-and-see attitude, he followed the cars in, cleared the peach blossoms, and arrived at the main gate of Baochuta Experimental School.

At this time of day when people get off work, they travel from the north of the city to the west, or from the east to the south, basically staying close to the city's perimeter. This creates the strange phenomenon that the outskirts are very congested, while the center is surprisingly clear.

Yu Wenhao drove in, parked the car according to the security guard's instructions, and turned off the engine. Since it was still early, he reclined the seat and picked up the steamed buns he had brought to eat.

There were already more than a dozen parents in the classroom. Yu Wenhao went in and found Dian Dian's seat.

The day before yesterday was already an accident. That customer came from Qibao to eat on Zhongshan Middle Road. Yu Wenhao dropped her off before receiving the old man's order.

Today, four classes had parent-teacher meetings, all held in their own classrooms. The school's primary school building is a four-story, U-shaped building. Grades four, five, and six are on the top two floors, while grades one, two, and three are on the bottom two floors. The junior high school is located in another U-shaped building at the back.

Yu greeted him and said, "Okay, then I'll go in."

Yu asked if he was there for a parent-teacher meeting, and the security guard waved him in. It turned out that because of the meeting, and knowing there was no parking outside, the school had specially made room inside for parents to park—that was quite nice.

Yu Wenhao quickly called out, "Dian Dian."

To his surprise, the school gates were open, and the cars continued to drive in. The security guard at the gate asked him something and then let them through. When it was Yu's turn to greet the guard, the guard came over and asked him what he was there for.

Yu asked, "We're having a parent-teacher conference, so where are you going?"

Dian Dian's classroom was on the second floor. When Dian Dian arrived at the classroom door with Yu Wenhao, she told him that the third seat from the inside in the second row was hers, and that her name was on the desk.

Dian Dian turned around and saw it was him. She immediately ran over and asked him with a smile, "Uncle, why did you come out from inside?"

"Don't go outside the school, you know? It's not safe," Yu Wenhao said to Diandian. "I'll take you home after I'm all better here."

It was getting dark outside. After finishing the steamed buns, Yu Wenhao remembered that Dian Dian had only told him that she was going to a parent-teacher conference, but hadn't told him where it was or where he was going to go later. He then immediately remembered that Dian Dian had told him yesterday that she would wait for him at the school gate.

This wasn't just Yu Wenhao's first time attending a parent-teacher conference; it was also the first time in over twenty years that he had stepped back into a primary school classroom, giving him a sense of novelty. At the same time, he felt a pang of sadness. If Qianqian hadn't fallen ill, she would surely be attending classes in a similar classroom, and he would definitely be here for her parent-teacher conference, sitting in her seat, just like he was now.

Dian Dian said, "Don't worry, Uncle, we're not allowed to go out. My classmate and I are downstairs. You'll see me when you come down."

"Every parent is sitting in their own child's seat." Diandian said to Yu Wenhao, indicating that she already considered Diandian as Yu Wenhao's child.

Yu Wenhao rarely comes to the city center at this time. Usually, the first order he receives after get off work is for customers near his workplace, and the destination is also on the outskirts of the city. He rarely ventures into the city center. It's usually after 8 or 9 pm that he receives customers heading from the outskirts of the city towards the city center.

Yu Wenhao said, "I'm early. When I arrived, you hadn't even reached the school gate yet, so I came in first and parked the car."

Dian Dian nodded "Mmm," and Yu Wenhao thought the way she nodded was very similar to Qian Qian.

Yu Wenhao quickly drove to the intersection of Tiyuchang Road and Taohua Lane. There were no parking spaces on the roadside. Yu Wenhao saw several cars drive into Taohua Lane. Yu Wenhao had never been inside before and wondered if there was a parking lot inside.