Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 411 The Deal Is On (What's Meant to Happen Will Always Come)

All sorts of packages and luggage were carried on shoulders and headboards as people rushed towards the train doors. The train conductor watched as the crowd retreated, moving far away from the doorway, and shouted, "Slow down, don't push, hold on tight!" But it was all in vain.

At this moment, the train door became a battlefield, bayonets gleaming and close combat ensued; boarding meant victory. Every now and then, someone's bag was knocked off the train and tossed aside, the person who lost their bag screaming as they chased after it. Meanwhile, children were being pushed and crying, their cries mingling with the clamor of the crowd.

There are too many Chinese people, and the Chinese people are too poor; the desire to compete is ingrained in their very bones.

Xiao Hong and Geng Hui also got up at some point and peered out the window in surprise at the scene below the car.

Fortunately, the five of them were in a sleeper car, a place that ordinary people in this era couldn't afford to go to; the overwhelming crowds were all in the hard-seat carriages. The passengers in the sleeper carriage all strolled over unhurriedly, carrying small bags, glancing at the situation in the hard-seat carriages, sneering and muttering, "A bunch of bumpkins with no manners," before boarding the train.

Soon the carriage became crowded. People who came in looked up, carrying or lifting packages, looking for their berth numbers. The hard wooden floorboards thumped underfoot.

Just like in later years, the hard-seat carriages were packed with people like meat patties, while there were still many empty berths in the sleeper carriages. They would be filled up slowly after the train departed. This could be considered an unspoken rule. It's not easy to make a trip, so people want to earn a little money.

On trains departing late at night, passengers on the sleeper side simply lie down on the upper berths, avoiding the noise of the hard-seat side.

A dozen minutes later, the platform returned to silence. The station staff stood in a neat row on the platform. This was the procedure of watching the train arrive and depart. The originating station only had to watch the train depart, while the intermediate stations had to watch the train arrive. This was a regulation implemented by the Fengtian Railway Bureau in 90.

The train sighed heavily, trembled, made a few clattering noises, and then slowly started moving, gradually accelerating away from the station. By this time in 91, steam locomotives had been retired and replaced by diesel engines.

The train started moving, and the sleeper car fell silent. Xiao Hong and Geng Hui lay down again, and Xiao Wei and the other two returned to their respective berths. Only the clattering of the train echoed through the car. Occasionally someone would move around, but no one opened their eyes to look.

"Brother Guizi. Xiaowei, Wei~." Xiaowei was woken up from his sleep by someone pushing him. He opened his eyes and saw Xiaohong standing bent over beside his bunk. It was already bright outside the train window, and the train was still clattering along. "What's wrong?" Xiaowei rubbed his eyes and sat up.

Little Red leaned closer and whispered, "I need to pee."

Xiao Wei hesitated for a moment and said, "Then let's go. Why did you call me?" Xiao Hong pouted and punched him. He looked down, found his shoes, put them on, stood up, stretched, yawned widely, smacked his lips, and accompanied Xiao Hong to the toilet. This was Xiao Hong's first time using the toilet on a train in her life. She didn't even know what a toilet looked like and was too scared to go alone.

The two walked hand in hand to the front of the carriage, but couldn't find a toilet. Xiaowei thought for a moment and pulled Xiaohong to continue walking forward. They found a toilet in another carriage. He opened the door and let Xiaohong in while he stood guard at the door, leaning against the wall and watching the trees and fields flashing by outside the carriage. The entire route from Fengtian to Xingcheng was the Liaohe Plain, without any mountains.

A few minutes later, Xiaohong opened the door and came out, whispering to Xiaowei, "The car is so bumpy, I got some on my hand."

Xiao Wei chuckled and instinctively looked at Xiao Hong's hand. Xiao Hong blushed and wiped her hand on Xiao Wei's face. The washbasin was right across from the toilet, and the two ran over to wash their hands and faces. Xiao Wei said, "You wait here, I'll go get you a toothbrush and soap." Xiao Hong stamped her foot and said, "No. I'll come back later." She was a little hesitant.

The train conductor came over and locked the toilet door. They were about to arrive at the next station. He looked at Xiaohong and Xiaowei and asked, "Are you from this carriage?"

Xiao Wei said, "No, that class, I'm here to use the restroom."

The train attendant locked the toilet door and said, "Please go to your own carriage to wash up and use the toilet, as there might not be enough water."

Xiao Wei said, "I couldn't find it, so I came here."

The train conductor glanced at him and smiled, saying, "You're going the wrong way, it's over there." Xiao Hong giggled.

Xiao Wei looked at the toilet door and asked, "Why is it locked? Are we not allowed to use it anymore?"

The train conductor gave him a careful look and said, "We've arrived at the next station, and the toilets are closed. We'll open them after the train departs." He then took the keys and left.

Xiaowei and Xiaohong walked hand in hand back to their berths, where others were already up. Xiaohong took a toothbrush, soap, and a towel from her bag, and the two of them, hand in hand, went to find the washbasin in their carriage.

There were two faucets, one of which was already in use, so two people were squeezing into one to wash up. Geng Hui rubbed her eyes and slowly walked over, supporting herself against the wall. Xiao Hong, biting her toothbrush, went to help her and said, "Why did you come alone? What are you doing?"

Geng Hui pointed to the toilet, and Xiao Wei said, "It's locked. They said we're about to arrive at the station, and we can only use it after the train departs." Geng Hui reached out and flipped the doorknob. The door opened, and Geng Hui glanced at Xiao Wei before going inside. Xiao Wei was completely dumbfounded. Xiao Hong squatted on the ground laughing happily. Xiao Wei, embarrassed and angry, reached out and pulled Xiao Hong up, saying, "Rinse your mouth, or you'll swallow the toothpaste."

The toilet door on the train was unlocked all the way to the station entrance, and Xiaowei kept glancing at it.

Once the car started moving again, Xia Maosheng got up, came over to check on Geng Hui, and the two went to wash up together. "Breakfast, millet porridge, boiled eggs, pickled vegetables, steamed buns, and steamed bread," a woman in a white chef's uniform said as she slowly pushed a metal food cart over.

"Breakfast? Millet porridge with boiled eggs," Xiao Hong asked. "How much?" "Ten yuan a serving, with pickled vegetables, steamed buns, and leavened bread. What would you like to eat?" The older woman stopped the food cart.

Xiao Wei asked, "How much is one serving?"

The older woman said, "A bowl of millet porridge, a boiled egg, and a steamed bun or a leavened flatbread. What do you want? It's breakfast, millet porridge, boiled egg, pickled vegetables, steamed bun, or leavened flatbread, would you like that?"

Xiao Wei thought for a moment and said, "Five, six, eight portions, please. Eight portions. Four portions of steamed buns and four portions of leavened flatbread. Could you give me more pickled vegetables?"

The older sister said, "Okay, I'll get you two more portions." She put the food on the table. At this time, foam tableware was still a rare thing. You could hardly see it except on trains. In the city, the boxed lunches were all made in aluminum boxes, and you would eat them on the spot and then return the box.

The eight servings couldn't fit on the table, so they put two more boxes on a small table in the aisle. The older sister really gave them two extra servings of pickled vegetables.

"Cigarettes, fruit, melon seeds, poker, mahjong, checkers, huh?" Another truck pulled up, glanced over, and said, "Good day, you've sold quite a bit. You've met some rich people."

The woman selling food smiled as she gave Xiaowei his change, saying, "Sleeper berths are always easier to sell than hard seats, why are you up so early?"

The guy selling general merchandise scratched his head and said, "Damn, I didn't sell anything yesterday. I'm way short of my sales target."

(End of this chapter)