After working for so many years as a purchasing agent, they often have to rely on their subordinates to look at their faces. It was not a good look for them to be rejected by two students.
In the small space, the atmosphere was a bit tense. The brother and sister were reading books, and the two people opposite them were not in a position to talk either, so they also took out newspapers from their briefcases.
A quiet environment can easily make people sleepy, especially when they are full.
In the afternoon, Xu Manman went back to the middle bunk to take a nap, and the two of them went to the dining car for dinner.
There were fewer people in the sleeper car, and they all only brought a backpack, which they put under their heads as a pillow, so they didn't have to keep watch specially.
We had a peaceful night. Actually, there were some people who got on board during the night, but nowadays one needs a receipt or connections to buy a sleeper berth, so there were very few people on this carriage, and they didn't add any more people to their small group.
At 7 o'clock in the morning, Xu Manman woke up, tidied her bedding, and went to the lower bunk with her schoolbag. Chen Ming had already woken up.
Xu Manman went to the bathroom with her schoolbag, closed the door and slipped into the space. She took a quick shower while going to the bathroom last night, so now she just went to the bathroom to wash up.
I didn’t buy anything special for breakfast. I had the snacks I bought yesterday, which were cow tongue biscuits and date paste pastries, accompanied by a cup of jasmine tea.
Their train from Beijing to Hai City takes about 26 hours, so they will arrive around noon. Xu Manman thought that maybe her family had left lunch for them.
It was still early, so Xu Manman took out a leather notebook and gave Chen Ming an English lesson.
The two purchasing agents opposite didn't read the newspaper, but listened to the two people talking with their ears perked up. Now, listening to the English muttered by the brother and sister, it was like listening to a foreign language. They became more and more afraid to talk to them, for fear that they would appear timid as soon as they opened their mouths.
There are college students in their factory. The workers, peasants and soldiers from a few years ago are now leaders of varying degrees in the factory. They are also high-level intellectuals, but they give people the impression that they are not as fashionable as the two young men opposite.
After the conductor informed them that the train was about to arrive at the station, the brother and sister packed up their things leisurely. They had eaten all the food they had bought on the train. Now they were just simply traveling with a schoolbag each.
I don’t know whether it was intentional or not, but before getting off the car, Chen Ming turned around and said goodbye to the two purchasing guys.
Both of them were familiar with Haishi Railway Station. They followed the crowd out of the station. Before they had time to look for someone, they heard a familiar voice coming from nearby.
"Manman!", "Brother Ming!", "Sister!"
Xu Manman looked over in the direction of the voice. Wow! What a scene!
All of Haishi's brothers and sisters came, four tall and energetic young men, and four bicycles. The scene was very grand, attracting the attention of people coming out of the station nearby.
Xu Manman and Chen Ming walked over.
"Why are you all here?" She thought it was her father and uncle coming to pick her up.
Xu Jianguo, who is now a grown man, helped his sister take off the school bag on her back.
"My parents both have to go to work, and since we have nothing to do during the holidays, we all came over."
"Oh, so we're going straight home?" Xu Manman sat astride the back seat of her third cousin Xu Jianmin, much to the disappointment of her other brothers and sisters.
Second cousin Chen Feng gave the car to his brother and sat in the back seat. "We received the activity fund and will take you two out for a nice meal."
Seeing their excited faces, Xu Manman was a little curious.
Four bicycles riding side by side on the road are as cool as the uncle driving a jeep.
Passing through familiar streets, turning into alleys, and making a long circuit, we finally stopped at the gate of a small courtyard.
Second cousin Chen Feng went forward and knocked on the door. Xu Manman noticed that the knocks had a specific rhythm. Could this be the legendary private dish?
Not long after, a young man about their age opened the door. "Have you picked up the person? Come in quickly."
Xu Manman followed the crowd inside. It was a courtyard with a very small entrance from the outside. But when she walked in, she realized that it was a different world. It was the same as the Xu family courtyard in Beijing, but the overall area was much smaller than that one.
After walking through the front yard and arriving at the backyard, they could smell the aroma of food. The young man led a few people to a private room in the east wing and sat down.
"The dishes are all put into the pot according to the order. They will be ready to eat in about 10 minutes. You guys sit down and have some tea first. I'll go to the kitchen to check."
After the others left, a few people received questions from Xu Manman and Chen Ming.
My third cousin Xu Jianmin said, "He was my classmate. His family has a long tradition of making local dishes. He used to be a chef in a factory, but he had some conflicts with the factory leaders and left."
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