Chapter 42 He single-handedly founded Jianghe Ri...
Ning Yao, who was far away in Beijing, was unaware of everything that was happening in Shanghai.
She sat quietly in the teahouse, sipping chrysanthemum tea and listening to the storyteller recount half of the Oath of the Peach Garden. After thoroughly experiencing Beijing's teahouse culture, she leisurely left the teahouse.
To travel from Beijing to Shanghai, you can choose either a train or a ship.
She naturally chose the train, since she didn't know whether Wen Changhua would choose to take a ship to England or disembark to find her.
After calming herself down, Ning Yao found herself surrounded by the sounds of Beijing dialect and the square-shaped buildings of the city. She recalled a map of Beijing she'd seen before, where even the streets appeared perfectly square – a sight that was both serious and fascinating.
Ning Yao smiled and walked towards the rickshaws parked next to the teahouse. "Master, do you go to the train station? How much?"
Despite her best efforts to pronounce clearly, she couldn't hide the fact that she was from out of town.
The rickshaw driver, dressed in a brown jacket, grinned with a dark face and spoke in a thick Beijing accent, saying, "It's not far from the train station, 15 coins will do."
It's not far, but it costs 15 coins? Ning Yao did the math in her mind, and it didn't seem that cheap.
So, in front of them, Ning Yao took out her small purse from her waist, weighed it in her hand, poured it out and counted it, "20 coins, okay, I have enough money. Master, let's go."
After this frank and open exchange, the master felt embarrassed and said, "Never mind, I was just kidding. I'll charge you 12 coins."
12 coins wasn't particularly cheap, but Ning Yao smiled broadly as if she had gotten a good deal. "Then thank you, Master."
He turned around and got into the rickshaw.
The driver pulled the cart slowly. Ning Yao sat on it, watching the hurried pedestrians on the road, her eyes sweeping over Beijing's clean streets and unique shops.
She secretly planned to find a place to call Ning Ge once she arrived at the train station. Judging from the time, Ning Ge should be in class at school now, so she could just call the school directly.
As for what Ning-ge will do to beat or scold you after you return to Shanghai, that's another matter.
Perhaps because it was the first time she had made a decision on her own, she felt exceptionally relaxed.
Even the wind blowing on my face smells like freedom.
Perhaps because I was in a good mood, everything seemed to go very smoothly.
After arriving at the train station, Ning Yao easily bought a ticket for a train departing for Shanghai in half an hour. The only downside was that there were no phones available at the train station.
The train station was bustling with people, and many of them looked at the little girl with great curiosity.
Alone, with an excessively happy smile on his face, he seemed to be enjoying the anticipation of a long journey ahead, yet he carried nothing in his hands.
It's very contradictory.
Ning Yao ignored the curious stares of passersby and found her seat on the train, a window seat.
She gazed out the window, her heart yearning to return home. She lamented that she hadn't brought her camera with her.
The train from Beijing to Shanghai travels very quickly; before the sun had even set, Ning Yao had already arrived in Shanghai. Her home is a bit far from the Shanghai Railway Station, so Ning Yao decided to take the tram back.
Ning Yao was quite familiar with the soft, melodious Shanghai dialect, and listened casually. However, she did not expect to hear people discussing Yumin Academy.
"Hey, did you hear? Yumin Academy was surrounded by police this morning."
The tram hadn't arrived yet, and the two on-site staff members maintaining order were chatting idly.
"What?! What happened?"
"I heard they're looking for someone. Some people say that someone from Yumin Academy is spreading rumors and making inappropriate remarks. I'm not too sure, I just know that they were surrounded, all the students were dismissed, and they haven't been freed yet."
"That seems to be a big deal."
"Of course, it's probably spread all over Shanghai."
"..."
Ning Yao's heart skipped a beat. She suddenly remembered what she'd overheard at the Beijing port. So, they'd already locked onto their target? Then, Brother Ning…
No, we can't let things get chaotic.
Ning Yao forced herself to calm down, broke away from the queue, and turned around to find a rickshaw.
While looking for a rickshaw, Ning Yao took out a piece of cloth from her waist, covered her face, and said to the rickshaw driver in a muffled voice, "Master, please take me to this place."
The address she gave was the location of a clothing store in front of Yumin Academy, which was neither too far nor too close to the academy, and just within easy reach of its main gate.
"Okay." The rickshaw driver looked at the little girl with her face covered and asked with a smile, "What happened to your face, little girl?"
Ning Yao mumbled, "It's an allergic reaction."
"Oh, then the young lady must take good care of herself."
Ning Yao was gambling on taking a rickshaw.
Rickshaws are much more conspicuous than trams, but Ning Yao thought that when they were arresting people, they wouldn't necessarily look at the rickshaws with people coming and going.
Furthermore, what she doesn't know is whether the police have identified specific individuals. If Brother Ning has been identified, what about her? Will she also be under surveillance?
At this moment, Ning Yao's only consolation was that everyone, including her classmates and teachers, knew that she had gone abroad today.
The more anxious she was, the slower time seemed to pass. Even though the rickshaw was moving very fast, she still felt it was too slow. She clenched her fists, constantly wishing it would go even faster.
Ning Yao didn't arrive at the clothing store until the city lights came on.
"Hey, the little girl has arrived."
Ning Yao nodded: "Yes, we've arrived, thank you, Master." As she handed over the money, she quickly glanced at the main gate of Yumin Academy.
Two uniformed police officers stood upright at the entrance, observing the passersby. It seemed the lockdown had not yet been lifted.
Does that mean... Ning Ge or other related personnel haven't been caught yet?
As Ning Yao spoke slowly to her master, a series of thoughts raced through her mind.
She browsed around the clothing store for a while before leaving, casually walking in another direction.
She planned to go home and check. If there were people like this guarding her door, it would probably mean that Brother Ning was still safe.
But as she walked, Ning Yao felt something was amiss. If she went there alone like this... she would be too obvious, too deliberate. If someone was lying in wait in front of Ning Ge's house, wouldn't she become the rabbit lying in wait?
So, Ning Yao turned her foot without making a sound and headed towards Sun He'an's house.
Brother Sun is probably at home at this time.
With this thought in mind, Ning Yao made her way to Sun He'an's house, taking small steps. She was a little flustered, but she couldn't panic. She could only keep encouraging herself.
Meanwhile, the front door of Ning Yao's house was wide open, and several patrolling police officers were changing shifts at the entrance.
"Well? Did you find anything?" The tall, thin man offered cigarettes to two patrol officers who were about to leave.
"Hey, no. We were so quick, I never thought we wouldn't be able to catch anyone."
"Who is that person? He's the one who founded the Jianghe Daily. It's normal for him to have some tricks up his sleeve."
"Hey, I heard that guy has a younger sister..."
"Yes, that's true, but I interviewed a few of her classmates today, and they all said that she dropped out of school a couple of days ago and took a ship abroad this morning. She's probably adrift at sea now."
"Tsk." The man, a cigarette dangling from his lips, shook his head and sighed, "Then it wouldn't have been the information leaked today..."
The group chatted for a while longer before handing over their shifts.
On the other side, Ning Yao quickly arrived at Sun He'an's house, where a bright yellow light was on inside.
Ning Yao hesitated for a moment at the door, but still knocked.
"Who is it?" A familiar voice rang out from inside the house.
Ning Yao said in a trembling voice, "Brother Sun, it's me."
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