Chapter 71
◎Tangtang and Her Brother Arrive in the Capital◎
At the critical moment, a hand in a military uniform suddenly grabbed the man’s wrist holding the knife. With a crack of a bone breaking, the man’s expression was filled with pain, and the knife in his hand fell to the ground.
In the train’s crew cabin, after Tangtang and her brother had given their statements, they were taken here to rest.
The crew cabin was about three or four square meters. A single iron-frame bed was placed against the wall. The white old cotton quilt was stamped with a dark red “Railway Special Supply” seal. There were also two chipped enamel mugs. To express their gratitude for Tangtang and her brother’s bravery, the crew members had specially arranged for them to rest here. Although the space was not spacious, compared to the noisy and crowded carriage where it was even difficult to sit comfortably, it was much quieter and more comfortable here.
Su Juesheng was still shaken. “That was really too dangerous just now. You almost lost an eye. I still feel like my heart hasn’t returned to my chest. But Tangtang, you’re really amazing. How did you know those two were human traffickers?”
Before Tangtang could speak, the man in the military uniform who had blocked the knife for her just now walked in.
The man stepped into the crew cabin, his posture as straight as a poplar tree. He looked to be in his forties, with a few white hairs at his temples. He had sword-like eyebrows and star-like eyes, and his eyes were as sharp as an eagle’s, but he spoke very kindly.
Tangtang and the others had already had a brief conversation with this man and knew that his name was Lu Junshan. He was forty-six years old and was an officer in a certain military unit in the capital. He was returning to the capital from another place on this trip.
Lu Junshan handed a bottle of medicinal oil to Tangtang. “This is a medicinal oil for promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis.”
Just as Tangtang was about to get up to take it, the pain from her arm made her suck in a sharp breath. Seeing this, Su Juesheng quickly took it first, unscrewed the lid of the medicinal oil, poured a little into his hand and rubbed it warm, and then carefully rubbed it on the bruise on her arm.
This medicinal oil was clearly good. It had a strong medicinal smell. When spread, it was a translucent orange color. When it came into contact with the skin, it was not a fiery, stimulating sensation, but a gentle warmth. After rubbing the medicinal oil, the purplish-blue bruise quickly faded.
“Those two have already confessed. They stole the child at a pier in another place and were preparing to deliver him to the buyer in Weinan. The two of them were just accomplices, pretending to be a couple to cover up. They have already been handcuffed and detained. The child was fed sleeping pills, but the dose was not large, so it shouldn’t have a major impact on the child’s health. Both of them said it was their first time trafficking a child. We don’t know if this is true or if there are other victims. After the train arrives, they will be handed over to the railway public security bureau for handling, and then we will try to find the child’s family.”
Su Juesheng couldn’t help but clench his fists. “They really are human traffickers. They’re too despicable. They should be cut into a thousand pieces!”
When Su Juesheng was a child, he had heard his father say that in this world, even theft and fraud were not unforgivable crimes. Only human trafficking was truly a crime that deserved to be punished by a thousand cuts.
“The little girl is very brave. She even dared to chase after them directly. If it weren’t for you, the child’s family would probably have to live in pain for the rest of their lives. How did you notice that something was wrong with that pair of human traffickers?” The admiration in Lu Junshan’s eyes was hard to conceal.
Tangtang looked up at his eyes and answered truthfully, “The way the woman was holding the child was wrong. The child’s head hit the seat, but she didn’t seem to care about the child at all. When the child cried, the first thing she did was not to check if the diaper was wet or to breastfeed the child, but to feed the child water? A three- or four-month-old child doesn’t need to drink water. What kind of parents are like that in this world? And when she heard me say that she had a Nanyang accent, her reaction was very strong. Anyway, everything seemed wrong.”
Thinking about it now, that woman had probably switched to the seat opposite them because she thought that she and her brother were two easy-to-fool students.
Hearing her words, Lu Junshan couldn’t help but give a thumbs-up. “The little girl is not only smart and brave but also has a delicate heart. Ordinary people would not be as observant as you.”
From the moment he entered the door until now, Lu Junshan had been constantly praising her. Tangtang was a little embarrassed.
After saying that, Lu Junshan looked around and noticed the luggage at their feet. “Are you going to university in the capital?”
Su Juesheng grinned with a mouthful of white teeth and couldn’t help but straighten his back. “Yes, my sister is going to Capital University, and I’m going to Capital University of Transportation.”
Lu Junshan looked at the brother and sister’s clothes and estimated that these two children were probably from the countryside. He hadn’t expected them to be so talented. “Good! It’s not easy to get into a university in the capital from the countryside! This is a great happy event that brings honor to your ancestors!”
Lu Junshan’s gaze fell on Tangtang, and he said with a smile, “Speaking of which, my daughter was also admitted to Capital University this year. She’s about the same age as you.”
“A little girl as smart and brave as you will definitely be outstanding at Capital University.”
Tangtang’s eyes sparkled. “Then I’ll take that as a good omen.”
“I’m getting off at the next stop. I need to stay and take care of some things. It will take another fifteen or sixteen hours by train for you to get to the capital. There are crew members outside. If you two have any needs, just ask them.” Remembering something, Lu Junshan took out a soft leather notebook from his pocket, tore off a page, and quickly wrote a string of numbers on it. “This is my contact information in the capital. If you encounter any problems in the future, just ask.”
“Alright, I’ve got it. Thank you.” Tangtang took the note.
As Lu Junshan walked out, he also reminded them, “Capital University and Capital University of Transportation are not far from each other. There should be teachers from the school at the train station to pick you up. You can just follow them to the school to register. Remember to keep your household registration transfer certificate and letter of introduction safe. Don’t lose them.”
Tangtang nodded. “We know, Uncle Lu.”
After Lu Junshan left, only Tangtang and her brother, Su Juesheng, were left in the crew cabin.
They had left home at five or six in the morning to rush to the county, and then had been jostled on the bus for four or five hours without a hot meal. They had finally gotten on the train, and just after eating a little, they had run into human traffickers. Now, they were sore and tired all over, with no strength left.
Su Juesheng sat down on the bed with a plop and couldn’t help but let out a sigh when he lay down. “Tangtang, this is really nice. We’re also in a sleeper car.”
Although having a hard seat was already very good, the hard seat was hard and crowded, and the hard backrest was uncomfortable. Su Juesheng was tall, so his neck and legs had to be curled up. After a long time, his shoulders and back were as sore as if they had been trampled by an ox. If he could lie down more comfortably, who wouldn’t want to?
“Yes, this is really nice,” Tangtang couldn’t help but say.
The sleeper cars on the train were not for public sale. Ordinary people couldn’t buy a ticket even if they had money. They had to have a certificate from their work unit to exchange for a sleeper car ticket.
Tangtang hadn’t expected them to be able to get a sleeper car. Just as she was about to climb to the upper bunk to rest, Su Juesheng quickly said, “You can sleep on the lower bunk. You still have a wound on your arm.”
After saying that, Su Juesheng quickly climbed to the upper bunk, leaving the lower bunk for his sister.
Tangtang looked at her brother gratefully and lay down on the lower bunk. It was so blissful to be able to get a sleeper car on the train. Surrounded by the clattering sound from all directions, she looked at the iron frame above her head for a while with her eyes open, then closed her eyes and fell asleep.
Although the sleeper car was quite comfortable, it was still on a moving train and not very stable. She felt that although she was asleep, she had only entered a very light sleep, and her consciousness was still there.
It was already around noon the next day when they arrived in the capital. Tangtang and her brother carried their luggage out of the train station.
The moment they walked out of the train station, a gust of air rushed towards them, forcing her to close her eyes. The moment she opened her eyes again, a tide of people rushed into her sight.
Seeing the tall buildings everywhere, the torrent of people and vehicles in the streets and alleys, the noisy voices of people were like a flood, and there were swirls of black bicycles everywhere.
It was the brother and sister’s first time in such a big city. They were inevitably stunned at first sight, standing there dumbfounded.
My goodness, so many tall buildings, so many people, so many bicycles.
The road was wide and large, more than three times wider than the road in their Yuhuai Village. Lilac and paulownia flowers were blooming on both sides of the road, looking very beautiful. Public buses were everywhere, the shops were crowded with people, and there were long queues in front of the food stalls with steam rising.
So this was the capital.
All of this was undoubtedly a huge shock to them. So outside of Yuhuai Village, Yuanlin County, and Xiangyang City, there was such a big place.
Tangtang swallowed her saliva. “Brother Juesheng, there’s someone holding a sign for Capital University over there. Let’s go and ask.”
Su Juesheng also came back to his senses and nodded. But before they could go over, the teacher holding the sign had already noticed them.
“Are you new students of this year?”
“Yes.” Tangtang took out her admission letter from Capital University and showed it to him.
The teacher returned the admission letter to her and said with a smile, “I am a teacher at Capital University. Classmate Su Xintang, you are the first batch of students after the restoration of the college entrance examination. The capital welcomes you, and Capital University welcomes you. Our school has a bus waiting outside. You can come with me.”
Tangtang and Juesheng followed the teacher. Sure enough, there was a public bus waiting by the roadside to pick them up. Several students were already on the bus.
The brother and sister got on the bus. Tangtang sat down by a window. The melody of “The East is Red” was playing on the bus’s radio, passionate, loud, and powerful. She looked at the city scenery that came into her sight outside the window, and her heart also became as surging as the melody of “The East is an” that was playing.
Youthful and passionate, novel and beautiful.