Su Su bought a sleeper ticket.
With the ticket in hand, she quickly found her assigned carriage.
The compartment wasn’t large. Inside were two sets of three-tier semi-soft sleeper berths. Each berth came with a simple pillow and blanket—the quality was average, but they looked warm enough. Only the sheets appeared somewhat yellowed.
Su Su took out her own clean bedsheet and replaced the yellowed one from the train. When traveling, even with limited conditions, she didn’t like to wrong herself—especially since the trip from Shanghai to Black City would take a full three days. This wasn’t something you could just “endure” and get through.
She had just finished putting away her luggage when a woman wearing a floral short-sleeved top and gray trousers came in, pulling along a little boy. The woman had short, ear-length hair and dark skin, clearly someone who worked in the fields year-round. When she saw Su Su, her slightly upturned eyes swept over her back and forth, her expression turning sour.
Wang Defang had come to Shanghai this time to visit relatives and had специально gone to the department store to buy a floral short-sleeved blouse. She had thought she looked quite fashionable. But the girl in front of her wore a plaid dress, her black hair naturally draping over her shoulders, her skin delicate and fair—whiter than snow. She looked like someone straight out of a magazine. Standing next to her, Wang Defang felt she looked like a middle-aged woman by comparison and clicked her tongue in displeasure.
The boy had a lollipop in his mouth. As soon as he entered, his eyes lit up. He climbed onto Su Su’s berth using both hands and feet and started jumping.
“Mom! I want to sleep on this bed!”
Before long, black footprints appeared on the clean bedsheet.
The woman withdrew her gaze from Su Su and smiled as she praised her son, “Alright, alright, you can sleep there. Just like my son—never suffers a loss wherever he goes! This berth really is nice. Looks cleaner than the others.”
Su Su frowned and explained, “This is my berth.”
The woman rolled her eyes at her, plopped down without a care, and started cracking sunflower seeds, tossing the shells onto the floor at will.
“There are so many berths in the carriage. Why don’t you just sleep on another one?”
Su Su’s brows knitted tighter. She refused again, “No.”
Seeing this, the boy burst into loud wailing. He lay on the bed, rolling around and kicking his legs, tearing the brand-new sheet.
“I won’t! I won’t! I want this bed!”
“You bad woman! You’re bullying me!”
Su Su didn’t indulge him at all. She grabbed the brat by the collar, yanked him off the bed, and gave his屁股 several hard swats, making him cry for his parents, tears streaming down his face.
“Mom, save me!”
The woman immediately rushed forward, shrieking,
“Stop right now! He’s just a child—why are you arguing with a kid?!”
Su Su remained expressionless. “If you, the mother, won’t discipline him, then I’ll do it for you. No need to thank me.”
The woman was so angry her face turned red. This little girl might be young, but she sure had a sharp tongue!
The entire carriage fell silent. Su Su turned her back without another word, changed into a fresh set of sheets, and lay down comfortably to rest.
The train rolled along slowly, its rhythmic noise like a lullaby, soon making Su Su drowsy.
When she woke up, it was already dark outside.
A train attendant pushed a metal trolley through the aisle, calling out as they went,
“Cigarettes, sunflower seeds, sausages—”
“Freshly cooked spiced tea eggs! Filling and delicious!”
“And boxed meals—braised pork boxed meals, fatty and lean, super fragrant!”
The smell of food filled the air.
Su Su felt a little hungry and quickly called over the attendant, buying a braised pork boxed meal packed in an aluminum container.
The boy stared fixedly at the meal in Su Su’s hands, swallowing hard. When he saw her finish it quickly without giving him even a bite, he started crying and throwing a tantrum, lying on the floor and making a scene.
“Mom, I don’t want steamed buns with soybean paste!”
“I want braised pork too!”
“I want to go to the dining car—take me there!”
The woman’s head throbbed from the noise. She shot Su Su a vicious glare.
“What’s there to eat?!”
“Money doesn’t grow on trees!”
“I’m not like some people, who don’t know the meaning of thrift at all.”
Su Su ignored the snide remarks from the mother and son. The aluminum lunch box had to be returned to the attendant anyway, so she got up and headed toward the dining car.
Behind her, the pair followed along, also heading in the same direction.
At this time, there weren’t many people in the aisle. Most passengers were leaning back in their seats, half-asleep.
Suddenly, a hunched elderly woman reached out and grabbed Su Su.
“Miss, just one look and I can tell you’re kind and pretty. I don’t know where the restroom is—could you please take me there?”
Su Su frowned, sensing something strange. The restroom was clearly right there in this carriage—why insist on having her lead the way?
She looked up again and saw a fierce-looking man near the restroom, glancing in their direction from time to time.
Something was wrong!
In this era, human traffickers were common on trains, often working in pairs. Near stations, they would exploit people’s sympathy, lure them to secluded spots, knock them unconscious, and drag them off the train to sell.
Children would have their hands chopped off and be forced to beg on the streets. Young women would be sold to remote mountain villages to bear children, living lives worse than death.
These two were very likely human traffickers!
Wang Defang, following behind, curled her lips. This girl was pretty enough, but she had no compassion at all. She called out discontentedly,
“Hey, didn’t you hear someone talking to you? Life’s hard when you’re traveling—what’s wrong with helping this auntie out? It won’t take much of your time. Such poor awareness, such bad manners!”
She then turned to the old woman warmly. “Grandma, my son knows where the restroom is. Let him take you.”
The elderly woman’s eyes flickered. This girl was pretty—if she could be sold to some remote mountain area, she’d fetch a good price. Who would’ve thought she’d be so sharp and not take the bait at all?
Still, a little boy would sell for a decent price too.
“Alright, alright, then I’ll trouble the little one,” she said.
Su Su frowned and hurriedly stopped them. “There are so many people on the train. It’s easy for a child to get separated. What if he gets abducted by traffickers?!”
Wang Defang curled her lips. “Where are there so many traffickers? You don’t want to do a good deed, but you won’t let others do it either? How does that make sense?”
People of this era were generally warm and simple, with much lower vigilance. Seeing she couldn’t stop them, Su Su made a snap decision and shouted loudly,
“Human traffickers!”
“Help—there are human traffickers here!”
The carriage, which had been half-asleep, instantly woke up at the shout! Passengers hurriedly pulled their children tightly into their arms.
Hearing the noise, the attendant rushed over. “Where are the traffickers?”
Su Su immediately pointed at the elderly woman.
“It’s her!”
“And that limping man by the restroom too—don’t let him get away!”
The surrounding passengers reacted at once, restraining the man who was trying to slip away.
The elderly woman’s triangular eyes filled with bloodshot veins, her gaze like a poisoned dagger as she stared viciously at Su Su.
Her eyes rolled, and she plopped down on the floor, slapping her thighs and wailing loudly,
“Oh my! How can you falsely accuse innocent people like this?”
“I only asked you to lead me to the restroom! If you didn’t want to help, you didn’t have to bully an old woman like me!”