Chapter 39
There weren't many people boarding, so they didn't have to squeeze in with the crowd and quickly found their carriages according to their tickets.
When they arrived, the carriage was empty.
Shen Mingzheng put his luggage away and turned to look at the girl standing by the car window, looking out. He could see her porcelain-white profile and reddened eyes.
From this angle, you can vaguely see the scene on the other side of the platform.
Shen Chongshan and Feng Min were comforting the boy who was crying terribly. The couple kept glancing at the train. Even a big man like Shen Chongshan couldn't quite handle this scene of parting, and he felt a little sad.
Gu Xi stood there blankly, tears welling up in her eyes again, and she cried her heart out.
She didn't look away even after the train started moving.
Shen Mingzheng reached out and pulled her into his arms, saying helplessly, "Don't cry. Your parents don't want you to be too sad; it's bad for your health."
Gu Xi couldn't hold back and buried her face in his chest, silently shedding tears.
It wasn't until the train's announcement came on that her mind, still reeling from crying, snapped out of it. She quickly pushed him away, turned around to look around, and finally breathed a sigh of relief when she realized that only the two of them were in the carriage.
She hadn't forgotten that this was a special era, where even holding hands between a man and a woman could be considered indecent assault, let alone embracing in public.
Shen Mingzheng didn't mind being pushed away by her, but he felt that she was quite strong.
He pulled her to sit on the lower bunk, took out a handkerchief to wipe her tears, and opened a military water bottle so she could drink some water and avoid dehydration.
After this, Gu Xi's emotions gradually stabilized.
She was a little embarrassed and said with her head down, "Big brother, I'm fine! You didn't get much sleep last night, go to sleep first."
Shen Mingzheng looked at her, lifted her face, examined her features, and was finally relieved to see that she had calmed down.
They had booked two lower berths, and at that moment, there was no one else in the entire carriage except for them.
In those days, sleeper tickets were always hard to book. Ordinary people without legal status could only book seated tickets, so many sleeper seats were empty.
Shen Mingzheng took out the bag containing the food, pulled out a clean pear from it, and handed it to her.
Gu Xi took it, said thank you, and silently ate the pear.
The pears that had just come to market weren't very sweet and had a slightly astringent taste, but they were a rare treat at this time of year. Aunt Wang had bought them especially for them to eat in the car.
They were the only ones in the carriage, making it easy to put their luggage away. Shen Mingzheng arranged everything neatly, placing the bags of food directly on the small table next to the window.
After doing all that, he looked at the person sitting there eating a pear and thought she looked like a little rabbit, taking small bites with her cheeks puffing out, which was quite cute and made him want to laugh.
Perhaps noticing his smile, she looked up at him, somewhat puzzled.
Shen Mingzheng cleared his throat and asked, "Do you want to take a nap?"
She got up early today; she probably hasn't had enough sleep yet.
After sharing a bed with her for a few days, he had figured out her rest schedule. Perhaps it was due to individual differences or her weaker constitution, but she needed to sleep for at least eight hours every day, otherwise she would feel very unwell. Of course, it would be good if she could sleep for nine or ten hours as well.
However, this kind of work schedule is completely different from those who work hard and sweat for their jobs. If I go to work in the future, I can't sleep like this.
Shen Mingzheng didn't think there was anything wrong with this. Just as his mother had told him, all she needed to do right now was rest and recuperate. Having a healthy body was more important than anything else.
He married her because he wanted the two of them to live a good life together.
Gu Xi munched on a pear and said somewhat indistinctly, "Big brother, you should go to sleep first. I'm not sleepy yet. I'll sleep when I'm sleepy."
Shen Mingzheng hummed in agreement and then asked, "Want to read a book?"
He stuffed a few books into her bag, worried she might get bored on the road, to help her pass the time.
Gu Xi was curious about what kind of book it was. There was a duffel bag that he had packed, but she didn't know what was inside. She didn't look at it much, only that it was very heavy.
When she saw him take out the book, she was speechless.
One look at the cover and you know it's a collection of revolutionary quotations, a must-read for people of this era. She had read it in school, of course, and even decades later, she still remembers many of the quotations perfectly.
Although somewhat speechless, Gu Xi still took it and planned to review it again.
Then, Shen Mingzheng lay down on the bed opposite him to catch up on sleep, while Gu Xi sat by the car window, slowly reading through the red Quotations to pass the time.
And so the morning passed in a flash.
As noon approached, Shen Mingzheng opened his eyes and sat up.
Seeing this, Gu Xi glanced at her watch and asked, "Big brother, would you like to eat?"
Shen Mingzheng nodded. He went to the train's restroom to wash his face first. When he came back, he saw that Gu Xi had already laid out several aluminum lunch boxes from the bag. Opening the lunch boxes, one contained freshly made pancakes, another contained refreshing cold dishes, and the last contained boiled eggs.
Only the portion available at lunchtime.
There's nothing we can do about it. It's hot, and if we make too much food and can't finish it, it will easily spoil and we'll waste it.
The two sat facing each other and had lunch together.
After lunch, Gu Xi lay down and took a nap.
The train rattled along, and Gu Xi couldn't sleep soundly, not only because the space was cramped and crowded, but also because the swaying of the train made her instinctively feel uneasy.
When she woke up from her afternoon nap, she wasn't feeling well and seemed a bit dazed.
"Gu Xi?" Shen Mingzheng looked at her pale face with concern, noticing that her complexion would become extremely pale whenever she didn't get enough sleep, which was very worrying.
Gu Xi roused herself and said to him, "Brother, I'm going to wash my face."
Realizing the water in the kettle was almost gone, I grabbed the military-style kettle and planned to refill it at the water dispenser later.
Gu Xi went to the train's washroom to wash her face and bumped into a middle-aged woman holding a child.
The middle-aged woman was dressed simply, with many patches, clearly a country woman accustomed to farm work.
The baby in her arms was strapped to her chest in a baby carrier. The child looked very small and was fast asleep, with rosy cheeks and slightly dry lips. Seeing Gu Xi washing her face, she moved aside with the baby in her arms and then hid in the bathroom next door.
After washing her face, Gu Xi didn't rush to leave. She took out a handkerchief to wipe the water off her face and then wiped her hands clean.
Perhaps because I hadn't slept well, I felt a tightness in my chest and a bit nauseous. Plus, the train had been exposed to the sun for most of the day, and the afternoon temperature was high, making the entire carriage very stuffy. Even though there was a breeze blowing in through the open windows, it didn't alleviate the discomfort much.
She leaned against the window, letting the wind blow on her, and decided to take a break.
At this moment, a middle-aged woman carrying a child came out. She was startled when she saw Gu Xi standing there and cautiously hugged the child hanging on her chest.
After she washed her hands, she passed by Gu Xi and was about to leave when someone suddenly grabbed her arm, pulled her over, and pressed her against the car wall.
"What are you doing?" The middle-aged woman leaned against the car wall, looking somewhat nervous, and shouted sharply.
Gu Xi looked at her listlessly and said, "Auntie, your child doesn't smell good. There's a medicinal smell on him. Did you force-feed him medicine in there just now?"
"What did you say? I don't know!"
The middle-aged woman spoke sharply and struggled fiercely, but the hand gripping her was like an iron clamp, with such great strength that she couldn't break free no matter what she did.
She's a young woman who looks very thin and frail, but I don't know how she can be so strong.
The commotion attracted the attention of the flight attendants, who rushed over to ask what was wrong.
Just as the middle-aged woman was about to shout, Gu Xi quickly covered her mouth and said, "Comrade, I suspect she is a human trafficker. She kidnapped this child and drugged him."
The train attendant looked at her with a mixture of disbelief and skepticism, but adhering to the principle of not missing any possibility, she quickly went to notify the train conductor.
Soon the train conductor arrived with his men and saw a young and beautiful woman tightly covering the mouth of a burly middle-aged woman, pressing her against the carriage wall. Both were somewhat dazed.
Wow... this woman is so strong! You can tell at a glance that the middle-aged woman is used to farm work and should be quite strong, but she just couldn't move her.
Humans are visual creatures. Although he was skeptical, seeing that Gu Xi, a young and beautiful woman, insisted that the middle-aged woman was a human trafficker, he decided to believe her for the time being.
When the train conductor inquired, Shen Mingzheng also came over.
When Gu Xi didn't return for a long time, he thought something had happened. When he came over and saw this scene, he was also a little stunned.
Upon hearing the whole story, Shen Mingzheng immediately took out his military officer's ID to identify himself and said, "This is my wife. I believe she wouldn't wrong anyone. If you trust me, I can help interrogate her."
He took the blame upon himself and stood by Gu Xi's side without any hesitation.
When Gu Xi saw him coming, she finally released the middle-aged woman she had been holding down and let the train conductor take control of the woman.
The train conductor tried calling to the child on the middle-aged woman's back, but found that the child couldn't be woken up no matter how he called, so he was already mostly convinced.
Then Shen Mingzheng left with the train conductor and others to deal with the middle-aged woman's matter, while Gu Xi returned to the carriage to wait.
About half an hour later, Shen Mingzheng returned with the train conductor.
Shen Mingzheng's expression was cold and unreadable, while the train conductor looked delighted and was exceptionally enthusiastic when he saw Gu Xi.
He stepped forward, grasped Gu Xi's hand, and said excitedly, "Comrade, thank you so much! We've found out through interrogation that the woman was indeed a human trafficker!"
Gu Xi reacted calmly, a smile appearing on her face, and asked with concern, "How is the child? Did the medicine have any effect on him?"
Such a young child was given that kind of medicine; I wonder what the effects will be.
She recalled news and online reports from later generations, where many trafficked children suffered from long-term effects after being drugged, some even becoming mentally impaired, their lives ruined, which was extremely abhorrent.
The train conductor said seriously, "We have arranged for the doctor on board to take care of the child. At the next station, we will take the child to the hospital for a check-up."
After saying all this, he couldn't help but ask, "Comrade, how do you know that woman is a human trafficker?"
He was very curious about this matter and secretly sized up Gu Xi. She looked like a gentle and weak woman, like a daughter who had been pampered at home and had never experienced anything. It was hard to imagine that she could not only hold down a middle-aged woman with considerable strength, but also act so decisively.
Gu Xi said calmly, "I've encountered this kind of thing before. I even met human traffickers on the bus."
She was referring to a similar incident five years ago when she traveled to Beijing with Feng Min on a train. She noticed the faint smell of medicine on the child, though it was very faint, but she could definitely smell it.
"I have a very sensitive nose; I remember the smells I've caught," she said somewhat embarrassedly. "I was washing my hands when the woman came over with her child. She seemed quite wary of me, so I became suspicious..."
If she makes a mistake, she can just apologize. They're just strangers she met; it doesn't matter if she's disliked.
After hearing her finish speaking, the train conductor suddenly realized what she meant and felt grateful to Gu Xi once again.
The train conductor highly praised Gu Xi's behavior, said a lot, and indicated that the matter would be reported so that the organization could award her a banner or something similar.
Gu Xi: "..."
After finally seeing off the enthusiastic train conductor, Gu Xi felt a little listless again.
However, after sitting in the car for half a day, she found it rather unbearable.
Seeing that she didn't look well, Shen Mingzheng took out a pomegranate, broke it open, and handed it to her.
The pomegranate was very sour. Gu Xi had only taken one bite when her face scrunched up from the sourness.
She prefers sweet to sour, perhaps because she had a tough childhood and instinctively craves sweetness. She has a particular fondness for sweetness and likes to pick the sweetest fruits, but unfortunately, sweet fruits are relatively rare these days.
Shen Mingzheng saw her face scrunched up from the sourness and almost laughed.
Thinking about what had just happened, he looked at her with a strange gaze, mixed with an indescribable flutter in his eyes. He felt that the girl in front of him seemed perfect in every way, and there was nothing about her that he could not be satisfied with.
If love at first sight begins with physical appearance, then true love stems from appreciation, possession, and character.
After this incident, the train conductor took great care of their carriage and even had someone bring them a sumptuous dinner, including white rice, fragrant braised pork, braised fish, and stir-fried vegetables that were clearly prepared in a special way.
This gave Gu Xi a rare appetite, and she ate all the vegetables and even ate a few more mouthfuls of rice.
Shen Mingzheng took care of the rest. He picked out the lean part of the braised pork and handed it to her, watching her open her mouth and eat it, a satisfied look on his face.
These days, he has discovered that she doesn't like to eat fatty meat, only the lean parts. Unless the fatty meat is fried until it's crispy and fragrant, she will eat a few bites. Even if the braised pork is made to be fatty but not greasy, she resolutely refuses to eat the fatty parts.
She's quite a picky eater.
At night, there were only two people in the carriage, and it was very quiet.
The two slept in separate beds, but Gu Xi was in a daze and couldn't sleep soundly.
Half asleep, she noticed a dark figure crouching there rummaging through something. Without thinking, she threw the handbag she was holding at the figure. Shen Mingzheng, who was on the opposite bed, immediately got out of bed and subdued the person.
"Aww—"
The piercing screams attracted the attention of the flight attendants.
The train attendant turned on the lights and was stunned by what she saw in the carriage.
When he saw Gu Xi and Shen Mingzheng in the carriage, his first reaction was, "What, it's that couple again? They catch human traffickers during the day, what are they doing at night?"
Gu Xi said, "This is a thief, he's trying to steal our things!"
The man pinned to the ground by Shen Mingzheng yelled, "I didn't! I just went into the wrong carriage... Ouch, it hurts! Be gentle!"
The force that twisted him was like a mountain pressing down on him, causing him to scream in pain.
Shen Mingzheng remained unmoved by the man's claim that he had entered the wrong carriage and directly handed him over to the train conductor.
Train conductor: "..." What's going on now?
When Shen Mingzheng returned, Gu Xi asked, "Did he confess? Or is he still insisting he went to the wrong carriage?"
Since the other party didn't manage to steal anything, if he insisted that he had gone to the wrong carriage, the train conductor wouldn't be able to deal with him properly.
Shen Mingzheng calmly said, "He confessed." He used some special methods and confessed quite quickly.
He then added, "This is a habitual thief. After boarding the train, he would deliberately pass through each carriage and specifically target people who looked wealthy to steal from."
As he spoke, he looked at Gu Xi, who was sitting opposite him.
Gu Xi tilted her head to look at him, then belatedly realized what he meant and asked in surprise, "Do I look rich?"
Although she does have money, it's money from her marriage, not money she earned herself. She feels she's incompetent, having relied on adults for everything from childhood to adulthood. After all, she just graduated from high school and hasn't earned a single penny yet.
A smile appeared in Shen Mingzheng's eyes. "Yes, he thinks you're rich."
If it were Gu Xi five years ago, perhaps no one would have thought she was rich. But five years later, she is clean and beautiful, dressed in appropriate new clothes, and sits there quietly, just like a girl from a wealthy family. It's easy for people to misunderstand her, and it's no wonder that she was targeted by thieves.
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