Chapter 155
Qi Weidong was delighted when he heard the train conductor's question: "Don't worry, I didn't misunderstand. I definitely didn't misunderstand. Comrade train conductor, I understand what you mean. You just want to take my aunt's noodle making method for free, don't you?"
The conductor blushed a little when asked this question, and said stubbornly: "We are also trying to improve the quality of the food on the train, to better serve the passengers, so that they can enjoy their journey..."
"Sure." Qi Weidong suddenly interrupted the conductor: "My aunt can give the recipe of noodles to our railway department for free. But you have to promise my aunt that in the future, you will not charge passengers who eat noodles on the train."
"Comrade, why are you making such a fuss? Our train serves passengers and it costs money. How can we let people eat noodles for free?" The train conductor angrily accused Qi Weidong.
Qi Weidong was not easily frightened. He stood up and looked down at the conductor: "You know you are paying the price, but why don't you think that my aunt is also spending time and energy to figure out how to make noodles? Do you know how much noodles, oil, and seasonings are wasted at home?"
The conductor was speechless, but he didn't want to give up the instant noodles in front of him - just kidding, this thing is hot and fragrant, just looking at it, it's suitable for long-distance travel. Combined with the reaction of the people in this car told by the train attendant, the conductor believed that if it was sold in the dining car, at least the people in the sleeping car would pay for it.
The ticket prices at that time were very cheap. It was a public welfare and all the ticket revenues went to the Ministry of Railways. The money earned from the dining car was used to provide benefits to train staff. Unfortunately, although the items sold in the dining car could be sold without tickets, the prices were not affordable for ordinary people. Therefore, not many people went to the dining car to eat. Most passengers still brought their own dry food, which led to the low benefits for train staff.
If instant noodles were available, even if they were not processed and cooked in the dining car, but only sold in bags at a small price and left for passengers to make themselves, the train conductor could imagine the rush to buy them.
So he pursed his lips and asked Qi Weidong: "Then how much do you think is appropriate for me to pay for your aunt's noodles?"
The carriage suddenly became quiet again. Everyone must be waiting for Xia Juhua's answer. The man dressed as an official, who had advised Xia Juhua to report the facts to the country the day before, had slowly walked to the front of Xia Juhua's compartment.
Qi Weidong looked at Xia Juhua in surprise - he swears to God, he said that he wanted the train conductor to pay for the production method just to make the train conductor give up, not to really make the decision for Xia Juhua and sell the recipe to the train conductor.
Xia Juhua was somewhat helpless about Qi Weidong's reaction: How could this normally smart guy be so confused at the critical moment? He was so interested in instant noodles, and he even gave him the opportunity to ask for the price. He was embarrassed, wasn't he?
Since Qi Weidong was the one she brought up, Xia Juhua couldn't let him be left hanging. She finally looked at the conductor and smiled, "Comrade conductor, you are determined to add new food varieties for the passengers. I admire your spirit of serving the people wholeheartedly."
No matter how wrong it is, flattery is always right. Xia Juhua first praised the train conductor, and then gave her own answer: "But we came to Guangzhou for important things. There will be people waiting for us when we get off the train. I don't have time to teach you dining car staff how to make noodles. I'm so sorry."
The compliment was given, and the reason was given. Logically, the train conductor should have stopped while he was ahead. But although the compliment was useful, it was not enough compared to the actual benefits. Inappropriate?"
Seeing that he was getting tangled up in a mess, Xia Juhua became a little impatient: "I don't think it's inappropriate. Buying and selling are both voluntary. You want to buy but I don't want to sell. Do you still want to force me to buy and sell?"
When the train conductor heard that Xia Juhua had been disagreeing with the idea of selling instant noodles, his face turned gloomy: "Comrade, you guys keep talking about buying and selling, and it turns out you want to speculate on the train. Do you think that because you are so mobile on the train, no one can control you and let you destroy national construction?"
He stood up and walked out of the compartment, blocking the way of Xia Juhua and the others, and shouted to the train attendant in the carriage: "Go quickly, call the train police, there are speculators here, tell them to come and arrest them quickly, don't let the bad guys get away."
Xia Juhua, who had suddenly turned into a profiteer, held down Qi Weidong, who was about to stand up to argue, and glanced at the panicked Liu Xi soothingly, her face still as stern as ever: "Conductor, you said I was a profiteer, do you have any evidence?"
The conductor turned around and looked at her with disdain: "You talk about buying and selling all the time. You must be used to speculation and profiteering. How can you speak so fluently? What evidence do you need? Judging from your clothes, you are a country girl. What qualifications do you have to sit in the sleeper? We also need to investigate whether the ticket is stolen. I advise you three to cooperate with our train police in a while."
In a few words, I was accused of stealing a train ticket. Xia Juhua was so angry that she snorted, "Okay, I am very willing to cooperate with the train conductor until he investigates my crimes of speculation and stealing train tickets."
Liu Xi couldn't help but yelled to the train conductor: "We bought our tickets ourselves, who told you they were stolen?"
The conductor saw that Liu Xi had not said anything and thought that he was just a rural youth who had never seen the world. He did not take him seriously at all and said contemptuously: "Of course you do not admit that the tickets were stolen. We can only reach a conclusion after investigation."
"Are you a reasonable person?" Liu Xi had never seen such a person before. He took out a letter of introduction from his pocket and shook it to the conductor, "We are from Ping'anzhuang Brigade in Pingde County. My sister-in-law is the brigade leader. We are here in Yangcheng..."
Xia Juhua turned around and stopped Liu Xi from continuing: "Liu Xi, don't say it. Even if you say it, he will think you made it up, or think that our letter of introduction is fake."
She turned to look at the conductor who had just spoken and asked, "Comrade conductor, am I right? You have already determined that as long as I don't sell you the recipe, you are a speculator or a thief. Only when I hand over the recipe of noodles can we clear the accusation against us."
The conductor was in a dilemma because he had seen Liu Xi take out the big red seal on the letter of introduction. At that time, seals were rarely forged, so the letter of introduction in Liu Xi's hand was most likely authentic.
Just now, Xia Juhua clearly pointed out that the train conductor might have concluded that the letter of introduction was fake without asking any questions. Now if he really said that the letter of introduction was fake, wouldn't it prove that Xia Juhua was correct?
Xia Juhua was right. She said that she did not engage in profiteering. So how could he detain people on the train and ask them about how noodles were made?
Seeing that the conductor had not responded to Xia Juhua's question, the officer finally stepped forward to persuade the conductor: "Comrade conductor, you are dedicated to maintaining the safety of the passengers on the train, and we are all very grateful. But this female comrade, after getting on the train, except for going to the toilet, she stayed in her own berth and did not sell anything to anyone, so I don't think they are speculators."
"Of course, the conductor is very alert. When he heard someone talking about buying and selling, he wanted to investigate. Everyone can understand that. Now the situation is very clear, and the train is about to arrive at the station. Has the misunderstanding been resolved?"
Xia Juhua and the other two did not expect him to stand up and speak for them. They were surprised and expressed their gratitude to him with their eyes. The man just slightly slightly, keeping his eyes on the train conductor.
Someone came forward to smooth things over, and the conductor, who was in a dilemma, breathed a sigh of relief. However, he looked at the man dressed as an officer and asked, "Did they really not sell anything to anyone after they got on the train?"
The man shook his head quickly: "Definitely not. If you don't believe me, just ask the people in this carriage. They can all prove it." Even if it was selling something on the black market, someone could not be convicted of stealing and taking the property, let alone on a train?
The conductor gritted his teeth, looked at Xia Juhua and the other two unwillingly, and snorted. At this time, the train police called by the train attendant arrived and quickly controlled both sides of the carriage. Then someone came to report to the conductor: "Conductor, the carriage has been controlled. Where are the speculators?"
Who knows where the profiteers are? !
The train conductor angrily said to the police officer who reported the incident, "I have investigated it clearly. It was just a misunderstanding. You can go back. The train will stop soon. Please check each carriage again. Don't let any bad guys go."
If she were a few years younger, Xia Juhua would have wanted to roll her eyes to the sky. If they were really that tough, why did they let the three of them go? Wouldn't it have been better to just detain them on the train?
Xia Juhua was confident that the conductor would detain them on the train because she had called Director Yang before boarding the train and told him which train she would take to Guangzhou. That was why Xia Juhua told the conductor that someone would be waiting for her when she got off the train.
If the train conductor still didn't know what was right, Xia Juhua didn't mind letting Director Yang from Beijing see the train conductor's face. But the man who initially thought that Xia Juhua should leave the matter to the state officials actually took the initiative to stand up and help them out, which made it difficult for Xia Juhua to hold on to him.
Qi Weidong obviously knew what Xia Juhua was thinking. Hearing the conductor's last words to save face, he laughed unkindly. When the conductor turned around, he took the letter of introduction from Liu Xi's hand, folded it up slowly, put it in his pocket, buttoned the pocket flap carefully, and said to Liu Xi:
"You have to take this with you. Who knows if Director Yang will pick you up later? If he arranges for someone else to pick you up and they don't know us, you have to show them the letter of introduction, or they might think our tickets were stolen."
These calm words did not scare the train conductor. Even the official who had just spoken for Xia Juhua and others looked at Qi Weidong carefully.
As if he didn't know what kind of impact his words would have on others, Qi Weidong deepened the impression for everyone: "Auntie, you are the same. Director Yang asked us to take a plane, but you insisted on taking the train. Not only did you get tired, but you were also regarded as a bad element. When I see Director Yang later, I have to tell him that we must not take the train when we go back."
Why don't you take a rocket? Xia Juhua was surprised by Qi Weidong's fantastic description, but Liu Xi took it seriously: "Are we really going to take a plane when we go back? I've never been on a plane before." It was his first time to even take a sleeper berth, or to be more precise, a train.
The train conductor's expression changed with the words of Qi Weidong and Liu Xi, and finally fixed on Xia Juhua's face. He found that Xia Juhua neither stopped Qi Weidong's nonsense nor denied the suggestion of taking a return flight. The train conductor broke into a sweat.
The director, a cadre whose job he had only heard of but never seen, was actually going to pick up this rural woman?
It would have been fine if that boy who always had bad intentions was just trying to scare me. But if this rural woman was really picked up by a director, I just thought... The train conductor didn't dare to think any further. There was a hint of uneasiness in his eyes when he looked at Xia Juhua and the other two, and he felt a little lucky.
It was his duty to check if passengers were not speculators. Even though he was a little rude to Xia Juhua this time, because of the advice of the cadre, the train attendant did not really detain her, and there were no serious consequences. Therefore, he should not feel guilty or afraid. He was fulfilling his duty. Yes, he was a conscientious and hardworking old ox.
The train went slower and slower as the conductor consoled himself, the clanging sound became farther and farther away, and finally the train braked, causing everyone on board to tilt forward and stop completely.
The train conductor had been standing in front of Xia Juhua's compartment without moving. The officer was also slowly packing his luggage, giving the opportunity to get off the train first to others. Even when the people with him had already walked to the connection between the carriages and turned back to call him, he was still packing his things slowly.
Qi Weidong certainly noticed the officer's action, but pretended not to care. He looked around and found someone outside the window looking into the car. When he saw them, he smiled and asked Xia Juhua, "Auntie, do you think that's the person who came to pick us up?"
Xia Juhua looked in the direction Qi Weidong pointed, smiled at the person outside the car window, and said to Qi Weidong, "Yes, it's Director Yang's secretary who came to pick us up. I thought it was the driver who came to pick us up, but I didn't expect that he would let the secretary run a trip."
The train conductor and the cadre heard the conversation between the two people very clearly. The cadre packed his luggage faster and quickly caught up with his companions. They got off the train together and immediately disappeared in the crowd.
The train conductor had no choice but to clear up the misunderstanding with Xia Juhua. He had said too much just now, and the cadre left too quickly, so he couldn't even find a middleman. He was unwilling not to explain to Xia Juhua, for he was afraid that Xia Juhua would see the director she mentioned, and he would be punished. He didn't know who to ask for help.
In a dilemma, Qi Weidong had already asked the train conductor: "Comrade train conductor, can we get off the train now? Or should we go to the station police station and explain the situation again?"
The train conductor's face turned red and white, and he forced a smile towards Xia Juhua: "My dear sister, it was my duty just now, so I had to be more vigilant. Is there anything that made you unhappy today..."
Qi Weidong would not let Xia Juhua take over this: "No, no, conductor, you said that what you wanted my aunt to do with the noodles is your responsibility. You are very vigilant and you are serious about your work. How can we be unhappy? Even if we are unhappy, it is you who is unhappy, right?"
If looks could kill, Qi Weidong would have been torn into pieces by the train conductor. Although this was what I wanted Xia Juhua to understand, why did it sound so unpleasant when it came out of this kid's mouth?
The two people's eyes met, and in the end, the conductor looked away first. Even after looking away, he still stood in front of Xia Juhua without moving, clearly wanting Xia Juhua to give him a clear word and not to pursue today's incident.
Seeing that Xia Juhua and her companions had not gotten off the train for a long time and that a railway worker had been standing beside them, Chief Yang's secretary thought that Xia Juhua and her companions had encountered some trouble, so he quickly walked into the carriage and asked loudly, "Captain Xia, what's the problem?"
Qi Weidong was about to speak when Xia Juhua spoke first: "It's not a big deal. It's just that the train conductor thinks the instant noodles I make are better and wants to learn from me how to make them." It's not that the train conductor wanted her to teach him the method for nothing, or else he wanted the train police to arrest the three of them for profiteering if she didn't teach him.
This was enough to make Director Yang's secretary change his expression: "That won't do. Director Yang said that your instant noodles will also be supplied to the troops in the future, and the scope cannot be expanded for the time being. Comrade train conductor, you are not thoughtful enough to ask for someone else's production method without understanding the situation."
The secretary who has been following the leader for a long time also has some official authority after leaving the leader. Although this authority is not as strong as that of the leader, it is enough for the train conductor.
The train conductor's face turned pale and sweat dripped down his cheeks. He kept apologizing to Xia Juhua and the other two. His attitude was much more sincere than before the secretary got on the train. He even stopped saying that he must ask Xia Juhua for forgiveness.
The secretary looked at the conductor deeply, then turned his gaze to Xia Juhua. Xia Juhua had already picked up her bag and was about to leave, so he hurriedly stepped forward to take it and said, "Captain Xia, let me do it." The respect in his tone was undisguised.
Xia Juhua was polite to him and followed the secretary to get off the train. Qi Weidong and Liu Xi followed silently behind them, and no one said anything. As for the train conductor, when the secretary went to take Xia Juhua's bag, he had already strode to the connection between the carriages and stepped down the steps in one big step. At this time, he had already stretched out his hand high to help Xia Juhua get off the train.
Neither Xia Juhua nor Director Yang's secretary paid attention to the conductor's raised hand, and let him withdraw it awkwardly. After Xia Juhua stepped on the ground, she turned back and said to the conductor: "Comrade conductor, you just said that you wanted my noodles. This is my duty. I hope you will do less of this kind of duty in the future."
"Yes, yes, yes," the conductor remembered that the secretary had just called Xia Juhua "Captain Xia," and he called her right away, "Captain Xia is right in his criticism. I will definitely correct it in the future, definitely correct it."
Whether such a person changes or not, it will not have much impact on Xia Juhua. She only hopes that the train conductor can remember today's lesson and curb his greed when encountering the same situation in the future - not everyone with a skill like her has a director's secretary waiting to pick him up.
After getting in the car brought by the secretary, Qi Weidong said to Xia Juhua in a somewhat aggrieved tone: "Auntie, why did you let that guy off like this? He wanted to take all the good things he saw. If you don't give such a person a hard lesson, he won't learn his lesson."
Xia Juhua certainly understood Qi Weidong's idea. After all, in Pingde County, Qi Weidong was the only one who valued other people's things. He probably had no experience of having his things remembered by others. Xia Juhua wanted to tell him that as the economy developed faster and faster, there would be more and more people like train conductors. She could teach a person a lesson, but she couldn't teach those people a lesson.
Only someone of Director Yang's level can do it. The train conductor is not the only one who needs to be taught a lesson, but all those who have the same evil intentions as the train conductor.
The secretary thought that Xia Juhua's handling was reasonable and appropriate: "Captain Xia did the right thing. After all, the train conductor didn't really do anything to you. As long as he doesn't make other mistakes in his work, he shouldn't be punished because of today's incident." Even if they wanted to deal with the train conductor, they had to find loopholes in his work first.
When Qi Weidong heard the secretary speak, he immediately shut up and stopped talking about unpleasant things. Although he did not work in a formal unit, he still had basic common sense. Although he seemed to be complaining about Xia Juhua just now, he was actually reminding the secretary not to let the train conductor off easily.
The secretary has already said that the train conductor will have to make other mistakes in his work before he can deal with it, so why is he still worrying about it?
How does one know if the train conductor has made any other mistakes in his work? It is obviously not something that he, who hangs out in the black market in Pingde County every day, can find out. His secretary has to step in to find out.
As for Director Yang, it is unclear whether people know about what happened today or not. It is enough for the secretary to take action.
Qi Weidong, who had calmed down, stared at the appearance of Yangcheng like Liu Xi, and felt that it was more magnificent than the Chengping area. Before he could see enough, the car had stopped and arrived at the guesthouse that Director Yang had arranged for Xia Juhua and the others.
The conditions of the guesthouse this time were better than those during the Expo, and similar to the one Xia Juhua had stayed in the capital of L Province. She still had her own room, while Qi Weidong and Liu Xi had one room each.
After the secretary escorted the group to the door, he told Xia Juhua about the follow-up arrangements: "Captain Xia, friends from Country A will arrive in Guangzhou tomorrow. Director Yang wants to meet with you during dinner. What do you think of these two comrades?"
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