Before Song Jinyue could answer, the ticket seller took her documents, stood up, and raised a loudspeaker to call out to the people in line, telling them to wait a moment and not rush—she would be back shortly.
After saying that, the ticket seller left and only returned after more than ten minutes.
She sat down and said to Song Jinyue, “The ticket is twenty.”
Song Jinyue responded with an “Alright,” counted the money, and handed it over.
After counting and confirming the amount was correct, the ticket seller stacked the ticket and the documents together and handed them back. “This is a ticket for three days later at 2 p.m. Keep both the ticket and your documents safe. They’ll be checked again when you board.”
Song Jinyue reached out to take them. “Alright, thank you for the trouble, comrade.”
The ticket seller nodded in response.
Song Jinyue turned and left, glancing at the ticket in her hand to check how long the journey would take.
At that glance, she froze.
A sleeper berth???!!!
This…
In these times, sleeper berths required special status to purchase, didn’t they?
She didn’t have any special status—so how was it sold to her…
Song Jinyue turned her head to look at the ticket seller.
As if sensing her gaze, the ticket seller also turned to look at her.
Their eyes met.
The ticket seller raised an eyebrow.
Song Jinyue smiled knowingly, expressing her thanks once more with her eyes.
The ticket seller smiled back and continued her work.
Song Jinyue left the train station and walked home.
…
At the Municipal Public Security Bureau, after the discussion concluded, Charles suggested going to take a look at the factory.
That was exactly what the leaders had been waiting for, and they immediately stood up.
With Li Huguo translating, the group chatted and laughed as they exited the meeting room, heading outside until they reached the arranged sedan.
Just as they were about to get into the car, Charles seemed to remember something. He stopped, scanning the surroundings, but didn’t see the person he was looking for.
Charles didn’t get into the car.
He spoke up, “Wait a moment!”
Turning to Li Huguo, he asked in English, “Where is that girl?”
Li Huguo knew exactly who Charles meant but pretended not to understand. “Which one?”
The leaders, seeing Charles stop just as he was about to get in the car, were stunned.
Watching his reaction, a bad feeling rose in their hearts—was something going wrong again?
Charles grew somewhat impatient. “The one just now—the girl who knows Longguo kung fu!”
As he spoke, he gestured animatedly at Li Huguo.
Li Huguo: “……”
The leaders: “……”
The leaders who couldn’t understand looked toward Li Huguo. “Comrade Li, what’s wrong with Comrade Charles?”
Watching Charles gesture, Li Huguo cursed inwardly. What a troublesome situation.
Seeing Li Huguo remain silent, Charles turned to the leaders and, in a stiff tone, struggled to say four words, “Long…guo…kung…fu…”
The leaders: “???”
The factory leader frowned. “What kung fu?”
The public security leader looked at Li Huguo. “Does Comrade Charles want to learn kung fu?”
Li Huguo took a deep breath and forced a smile as he looked at the leaders. “Leaders, may I ask where that female comrade from earlier went?”
“Charles wants to find her.”
Hearing that Charles wanted to find Song Jinyue, the leaders were puzzled. Why was he suddenly looking for her again?
The city leader asked, “Find her?”
Li Huguo nodded.
The public security leader looked at him. “Didn’t you just tell him that the female comrade had already left? Why does he want to see her again?”
The factory leader was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan. “Yes, we already agreed to go inspect the factory. Why the sudden change?”
The public security leader asked, “Comrade Li, did you fail to translate that the female comrade had already left?”
Li Huguo suddenly raised his voice in protest, sounding wronged. “Leader, I translated it! How could I not translate it!”
The leaders hadn’t expected such a strong reaction.
That very reaction only made them more certain that Li Huguo hadn’t actually conveyed that Song Jinyue had left.
Realizing his overreaction, Li Huguo sighed and softened his tone. “Foreign comrades are just like this—changing their minds constantly, whatever comes to mind. There’s nothing I can do.”
The public security leader gave him a long look. “See if you can contact that female comrade.”
Li Huguo nodded and added, “This is the first time I’ve seen Comrade Charles take such an interest in one of our female comrades.”
As soon as he said that, the expressions of the leaders subtly changed.
The city leader looked down at Li Huguo. “Comrade Song helped Comrade Charles. The fact that he remembers her shows he is a person who knows gratitude.”
This remark not only spoke up for Song Jinyue but also praised Charles—and subtly reminded Li Huguo.
Li Huguo understood the implication and felt somewhat embarrassed.
The city leader observed his reaction and continued, “Go communicate with Comrade Charles first. Tell him we’d like to go to the factory to take a look. Inform him that Comrade Song had something to attend to at home and has already returned…”
…
After walking for half an hour, Song Jinyue was almost at the family compound.
Suddenly, a shout came from behind her—
“Comrade Song! Comrade Song!”
She paused and turned back, only to see someone pedaling a bicycle rapidly toward her.