sbdcsierra Chapter 258 Return 1
Chapter 258 Return 1
Chapter 258 Return 1
At 6:10, the train departed on time. The journey took 11 hours and arrived in Luzhou at 5 pm, which was an hour earlier than the night train.
After arriving in Luzhou, he had to go to the bus station to buy a ticket and take a bus back to Wucheng County. The time was a bit tight. It was already night when he arrived in Wucheng County. He had to carry the washing machine and the box and walk back...
Fortunately, I have worked hard this semester.
Qiu Huoming leaned back in his chair and thought about his journey.
The rising sun shone in obliquely from the right window. In the carriage, besides the sound of the wheels hitting the tracks, there was also the sound of people chatting at the top of their lungs.
Qiu Huoming glanced at the middle-aged man next to him who was snoring loudly. He had a weather-beaten face and his clothes were patched with several patches. However, he did not bring much luggage, which was quite surprising.
Although the clothes of the young couple opposite are old, they are almost without patches and their hair is neatly combed, so they must come from a well-off family.
Qiu Huoming hugged his backpack and closed his eyes.
In this environment, I feel dizzy when reading. The car is shaking so much that I might as well sleep.
Half asleep and half awake, I felt the man opposite me stand up and close the car window, closing the only gap.
As the man spoke, he rummaged through his bag.
The man ate a pancake, wrapped another one and put it in his arms.
"Are there still cars at night?" Qiu Huoming asked.
It’s really hard to describe the current buses.
Qiu Huoming touched his stomach and felt a little hungry, but fortunately, he looked at the time and thought the next stop would be arriving soon.
They chatted in low voices, and Qiu Huoming's eyelids gradually became heavy.
I glanced at my watch and it was almost 9 o'clock. I slept so well.
"Yes, we have to go back and forth after getting off the car."
He turned his head and looked at Qiu Huoming and said, "You must know that you may not be able to buy a bus ticket when you arrive in Luzhou. If you buy a ticket for the same day, you still have to take a 10-hour bus. It's a night bus, and it will be daybreak when you arrive in the county."
Some of the villages along the way were also very dilapidated, and Qiu Huoming withdrew his gaze.
At the end of the aisle, the middle-aged man was walking back with difficulty. It seemed that he had just gone to relieve himself.
He thought about it, turned around and asked Qiu Huoming, "Want one?"
Now that things have come to this, there is nothing we can do but sit still.
He didn't know how long he had slept, but he was suddenly woken up by a knock on the head.
As time went by, more and more people responded in the carriage.
The middle-aged man glanced at him and smiled, "Brother, you still have a place to sit. In the carriage ahead, several people are lying under the seats."
When I opened my eyes, I found that my head had hit the wall of the carriage.
He yawned. The young couple opposite him were sleeping soundly. The woman's head was resting on the man's shoulder. The middle-aged man next to him was gone.
He struggled to stand up and stretched his waist on the spot. He was tall and his head was already under the luggage rack.
"I've been catching the train so early in the morning that I haven't had time to eat. Little boy, are you from Luzhou too?"
The man glanced at him and said with a smile, "I'm from a nearby village. How about you, boy? You look like you're still studying, right?"
Hearing this, Qiu Huoming was stunned for a moment. The last time he saw Director Jiang from Wucheng Middle School, he drove for half a day to get there. Now that he thought about it... that was because he was driving a jeep and didn't stop along the way...
In the narrow aisle, there were several passengers without seats, with their heads drooping and looking drowsy.
The middle-aged man walked back and carefully sat back in his seat. He then cursed, "Where the hell did all these people come from? I don't even have a place to step."
The tiger claw I had this morning was digested long ago.
He took out his military water bottle and took a sip of water. He didn't dare to drink more at the moment. With so many people in the car, it would be difficult for him to go to the toilet.
A man on the ground responded, "You at least have a seat. I'm going to sit here all night."
Qiu Huoming quickly shook his head, "I'll wait for you to stand by, and order some snacks outside."
I had originally planned to get home in four and a half hours, but now it seems that was simply a pipe dream...
There is almost no green as far as the eye can see.
The man breathed a sigh of relief, took out a sesame cake and started eating it by himself. The sesame seeds and fragments that fell were caught by him deftly, without missing a single grain.
Qiu Huoming nodded, "It's winter vacation, go home for the New Year."
"There's a scarf in the bag, tie it on."
"The wind is so cold." The woman opposite said in a low voice.
Not far away, there was the sound of a child crying, and everyone was used to it.
Qiu Huoming sat back down. Someone in the back seat had opened the window and was smoking. The smoke drifted over directly, mixed with the cold air from outside, making him shiver.
"I have to make two more trips." The man was probably used to it, and said nonchalantly, "I won't get home until the next day."
It was cloudy on this stretch of road, and the scenery outside the car window became increasingly desolate, revealing the desolation of winter.
"Don't worry, wait until a few more people get on board, and then I'll have to get down there too..."
The man wiped his hands, groped inside his old cotton-padded jacket whose color could not be seen, and took out an oil-paper package. He opened it carefully, and inside were two slightly crushed sesame cakes.
Qiu Huoming recognized the accent of the man next to him, "Uncle, are you from Wucheng County?"
The man smiled, and the wrinkles on his face deepened. "It's okay, I know the way well. I'll take you there when the time comes..."
"Thank you, uncle. Are you working in Shencheng?" Qiu Huoming asked.
The uncle nodded, "Be a painter, a craftsman."
No wonder he always smells like tung oil.
While they were talking, the young couple across the street woke up and listened to Qiu Huoming chatting with the man in a listless manner.
After a while, the car stopped.
Qiu Huoming immediately stood up and opened the car window. Before he could stick his head out, a cart came over and an auntie leaned close to the window. "Tea eggs, steamed buns, meat dumplings, and hot water..."
(Trolley on the platform)
"Auntie, give me two meat buns, two tea eggs, two steamed buns, and fill the kettle for me..."
When the aunt heard that there was business, she immediately responded with a smile, reached out to take the kettle handed to her by Qiu Huoming, and filled it with water skillfully.
The man next to him yelled, "You little boy, why don't you ask the price..."
Qiu Huoming smiled and said, "The price is written on the cardboard."
The auntie raised her eyebrows and said, "The prices are clearly marked. The food in our station is much cleaner than outside."
As he spoke, he packed the food, put it in an oil paper bag, and handed it to Qiu Huoming.
After getting the change, Qiu Huoming took it and put it directly into his pocket, then he retracted his head and sat back in his seat.
The young man opposite also bought two tea eggs, one for him and his wife.
The auntie leaned out of the window and continued to shout, "Tea eggs, meat buns, steamed buns, all freshly made, does anyone want any?"
Seeing that there was no more business, she stepped back and continued to push the cart forward...
The man had just eaten a sesame cake and still had some food in his stomach. He glanced at the food Qiu Huoming had just bought and said with a smile, "Half-grown boys are the biggest eaters, just like my son."
Qiu Huoming opened the paper bag, a burst of fragrance came out, and several pairs of eyes in the car looked over.
Those who had brought food took it out immediately, and those who didn’t could only swallow their saliva and close their eyes, hoping that out of sight, out of mind.
Qiu Huoming took out a steamed bun and handed it to the man, "You have one too."
The man quickly waved his hands, "How can I eat your food?"
"I bought too much, help me eat one."
The man hesitated for a moment, then reached out and took it.
The steamed bun was still hot. Qiu Huoming specially selected the cheapest food for him because he was worried that he would have concerns. When he saw him take it, he smiled and said, "Uncle, did you bring a water cup?"
"I brought it, there's a teacup." The man stood up hurriedly, opened his mouth and bit the steamed bun, stretched out his hand to open a hole in the blue and white bag on it, and felt around inside.
He took out an old teacup with peeling paint, the inside of which had been stained an uneven dark color by tea stains.
Qiu Huoming held up his kettle, filled it up for him, and placed it on the shelf by the window.
Qiu Huoming then peeled a tea egg and started eating it.
The train squeaked and shook, and the young man opposite stood up and closed the window.
The train "clang, clang" and blew its whistle as it moved forward...
The carts on the platform gathered one by one, and the staff watched the train leave...
"Let's buy some meat buns at the next stop." The young woman opposite glanced at Qiu Huoming and said to the young man next to her.
"Buy it. I heard there are steamed cakes to eat..."
The young man smacked his lips and said, "There are also boxed lunches..."
Qiu Huoming glanced at his watch. It was only a quarter past nine.
He ate all the tea eggs and a meat bun before stopping and tying the oil paper bag. The water in the kettle was not so hot anymore, so Qiu Huoming took a sip of the water and felt refreshed all over.
The man also finished eating the steamed bun, took a sip of the warm water in the teacup, and then looked at Qiu Huoming with a look that was already somewhat intimate.
"My last name is Cui, and the villagers call me the fifth son of the Cui family. I live in Hemao Township. If you have time during the New Year, come visit us and I will take you to catch birds..."
"Uncle Cui, my name is Qiu Huoming. What kind of birds do you have?" Qiu Huoming asked curiously.
"There are many, the most numerous are white cranes..."
Uncle Cui opened up and talked incessantly.
The young couple opposite had no interest in the topic, so they leaned in close and whispered.
Several more people got on at this stop, and the passage became even more crowded.
The luggage racks above were already full, and the rest of the luggage was piled on the ground. Some people without tickets leaned on their luggage, some simply lay down on the ground, and a few sat at the connection between the carriages and chatted.
Fortunately, it is winter now, and with so many people gathered together, the smell is not that bad.
Uncle Cui spoke a long speech, then stopped because of a dry mouth, and picked up the teacup to drink water.
Qiu Huoming had nothing to do anyway, so he simply took out the pocket radio from his backpack.
The young couple opposite stopped their conversation and watched Qiu Huoming fiddling with the radio with interest.
After a while, the channel was found and a melodious song came from the radio. Uncle Cui praised: "This song is beautiful."
The young man across from him also smiled and echoed, "I even bought a tape of this song."
The young woman thought for a moment and said, "It's Zhu Mingying's "Oh, My Homeland, the Sea"!"
“She has a really nice voice.”
Several people sitting on the ground also started shouting, "Young man, speak louder!"
Qiu Huoming smiled and turned up the button.
After this incident, the atmosphere in the carriage became much better. Originally, everyone would quarrel because of bumping into each other or squeezing each other when going in and out, but after listening to the singing, everyone started talking and became a little familiar with each other, and they didn't feel comfortable quarreling anymore.
Half an hour later, the signal became worse, and Qiu Huoming changed the channel, which was listening to a storytelling program.
Someone else started shouting, "Hey, just listen to this..."
Qiu Huoming followed suit and stopped what he was doing. Everyone had nothing to do, so the discussion stopped and everyone started to listen carefully.
Near noon, a food truck came to deliver food. "Sunflower seeds, cigarettes... hot water. Please make way, comrade, and move your legs..."
There were waves of commotion along the way.
Qiu Huoming filled his stomach in the morning. There was still a steamed bun and a steamed bun in the oil paper bag. He didn't want to buy anything for the time being.
Let the food cart push past.
It has to be said that these train conductors have great skills, being able to get in and out surrounded by so many people.
The train stopped several times, and in the afternoon, Qiu Huoming put away the radio.
Everyone was excited in the morning and had lunch at noon. In the shaking carriage, everyone gradually became sleepy. Soon even Qiu Huoming fell asleep.
The train arrived on time at 5 pm.
Qiu Huoming, carrying a backpack on his chest and a suitcase in his hands, struggled to squeeze towards the door. Some passengers who wanted to get on the bus could not wait any longer and simply signaled to the people at the windows to help open the windows.
They stuffed their luggage in first, then climbed in through the window.
When Qiu Huoming and Uncle Cui squeezed out, they saw this scene.
Uncle Cui smiled and said, "I've climbed there before, too. Today there aren't many people there. Wait a few days and you'll see..."
Qiu Huoming had also experienced the Spring Festival travel rush, but in later generations, with more means of transportation, people had more choices, so it wasn't as exaggerated as it is now.
Qiu Huoming waited for a while with his luggage ticket before his luggage was delivered. He quickly took the luggage ticket and took out the washing machine. The comrades at the station helped him transport the goods to the exit with a cart.
Unexpectedly, Uncle Cui had been waiting at the exit. When he saw him coming out, he hurried over to greet him and said, "Little boy, why did you just come out? You have too many things. I'll help you carry them."
He bent down, without waiting for Qiu Huoming to reply, and swung the washing machine onto his back. His body was bent at 90 degrees, and he held his blue and white bag in one hand.
"Uncle Cui, put it down, I can do it myself..."
Qiu Huoming held the washing machine and tried to take it down.
"Let's go, otherwise we will be late and have to buy tickets." Uncle Cui's low voice came from under the washing machine. He walked forward at a fast pace.
Qiu Huoming had no choice but to follow and took the blue and white bag from him.
The long-distance bus station is just diagonally opposite the train station. It looks not far away, but it took more than ten minutes to walk there.
(Waiting room in the 80s)
After entering the hall, Uncle Cui, who was sweating profusely, put the washing machine on the ground.
Uncle Cui was illiterate. He looked at the window and said, "Little boy, buy me a ticket and I'll give you the money."
Qiu Huoming took the money and walked quickly to the window.
There was already a long queue here. Fortunately, it was close to evening and many people bought tickets for the next day. When it was Qiu Huoming's turn, he was actually able to buy two bus tickets back to Wucheng County.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead and walked quickly to Uncle Cui.
"Uncle, we are lucky. We bought the tickets for tonight."
Uncle Cui originally said that if he couldn't buy a ticket, he would spend the night in the waiting room.
The ticket was for 6:15 in the evening, so the two of them didn't have time to chat any more and walked quickly towards the platform carrying the washing machine.