Guesthouse room check
He suddenly became fierce. Xu Tangmian's face tightened, all her previous goodwill towards him vanished, and after stuffing the photo back into her pocket watch, she muttered, "Crazy!"
She needs to go find money; she doesn't have time to waste talking to strangers.
Originally, she planned to buy a ticket to Beiping to visit her grandfather and ask him in person about the truth of the funeral incident. However, without a letter of introduction, she couldn't simply go to Beiping. Xu Tangmian had no choice but to temporarily postpone her plans to go to Beijing.
Suddenly, someone patted her shoulder. Xu Tangmian turned around and saw that it was the man who had caught up with her.
This guy may be handsome, but if his character is flawed, he's not her type. Xu Tangmian asked with displeasure, "What is it?"
The man insisted on giving her the money, saying, "Don't refuse, this is what you deserve."
Although Xu Tangmian was short of money, she still possessed the pride of a wealthy family. Returning lost property was a fine virtue, and in her view, she had simply done what was right; why should she expect a reward?
Xu Tangmian blinked. "I don't need the money, comrade. How about you treat me to a meal? I've been starving."
The man said, "Wouldn't it be better to pay? I have other things to do, you can eat by yourself."
Xu Tangmian, however, had no intention of letting this man go.
She was completely unfamiliar with the place, and even just leaving the house involved so many complicated procedures. There were all sorts of things like letters of introduction, grain coupons, and cloth coupons, and they were divided into local and national ones—she had no idea what to do with them.
This man seems reliable, and besides, he's handsome! As the saying goes, "many hands make light work," and she didn't want to struggle alone in this strange world anymore. Having a friend would be great!
Xu Tangmian stopped him: "Consider it as repaying me. This is my first time traveling far from home. Look, I don't even know I need a letter of introduction. Can you see me off?"
The man then stopped. "Where are you going?"
“I work at Hongxing Primary School in Meixiang Village. My name is Xu Tangmian, and I'm a third-grade Chinese teacher.” She extended her right hand.
The man shook her hand, frowned, and said, "Meixiang Village, huh? It's quite remote, isn't it? There probably aren't many buses there."
"Really?" Xu Tangmian was a little surprised. "Don't buses come every twenty minutes? I waited for a while this morning and it came."
The man smiled and said, "It's easy to catch a bus from the village to the town, but it's not so easy to catch one back from the town. How about this, I'm not in a hurry, let me take you to wait for the bus first, it would be troublesome if we couldn't catch one."
"Wait a minute," Xu Tangmian interrupted him again, "I have something to take care of before I go home."
"What's up?"
Xu Tangmian pointed to the black wallet in his hand and said with a wry smile, "You say God is unfair? How can someone lose their own wallet but find someone else's?"
"So you lost your wallet." The man seemed somewhat surprised. "Did you go to the lost and found? What are you planning to do now?"
Xu Tangmian shook her head. "I came from the lost and found. I was originally going to the police station to report the crime."
The man said, "I know there's a police station about a kilometer away. I'll take you there on my bike."
——
The police station was located in a simple, unpretentious courtyard, where a police officer in his forties received her.
For some reason, the two had to give statements separately. As soon as she entered, Xu Tangmian felt a sense of tension.
The police officer scrutinized Xu Tangmian with his sharp eyes, while he took notes in a thick notebook with a pen in his hand.
I first asked her some basic questions, and only after she answered all of them did I get to the main topic.
"Tell me how you lost your wallet?"
Xu Tangmian was full of complaints and gestured wildly: "There were so many people at the train station. I was queuing to buy a ticket, and after queuing for a long time, I finally got to the front of the line, but the ticket seller ignored me because I didn't have a letter of introduction."
"You don't have a letter of introduction?" The policeman stopped writing and stared at her sharply.
Xu Tangmian: "...That's not the point! The point is that I turned around and left, intending to go home, and when I reached into my pocket, the money was gone."
The police didn't intend to make things difficult for her on this issue, turning a blind eye and asking, "What does the wallet look like?"
"It's made of brown artificial leather, with a slight tear on the front, about this size," Xu Tangmian gestured with her hand.
The police officer then asked, "Specific dimensions."
Xu Tangmian couldn't help but think to herself, "Do you think I carry around calipers with me? Even if I take the measurements, you can't just look for the right size, can you?"
But she still didn't have the courage to say it, and honestly replied, "I don't know."
The police officer didn't dwell on it, and instead asked her, "What's in your wallet?"
Finally, they got to this question. Xu Tangmian confidently replied, "Twenty-seven yuan and fifty-eight fen, five jin of provincial grain coupons, two industrial vouchers..."
"What kind of industrial coupons?" the policeman paused, writing. "Soap coupons? Shoe coupons? Or something else?"
"I...I didn't look closely..." Xu Tangmian dared not continue speaking.
The police suspected something was amiss with her and the man, so they questioned her further before finally saying, "We understand the situation and will notify your unit of the results."
After such a long ordeal, Xu Tangmian wasn't surprised by this outcome. She nodded and walked blankly towards the door.
The sun was already setting, and she didn't know what time she would get home, not to mention that Xu Tangmian had no idea where she was going.
After arguing with the head of the teaching department like that, she probably can't go to school anymore, and she's too ashamed to go back.
Thinking that she had a good relationship with the elderly couple at the door, and that they probably wouldn't refuse if she slept on the floor at their house for the night, Xu Tangmian asked the man to take her to the bus stop.
Good things don't come true, but bad things do. The bicycle had just arrived at the station when the bus ran off right under Xu Tangmian's nose.
It just so happens to be the last bus at five o'clock.
The man scratched the back of his head, somewhat embarrassed: "I wish I had pedaled faster..."
Xu Tangmian's mind was in turmoil, and she felt a little dizzy, so she could only squat down by the roadside without caring about her image.
The money's gone, the car's gone, what will she do tonight? Walk back to the village?
Seeing the man's bewildered expression, she comforted him, "It's not your fault. There are so many cars coming and going, safety is the priority. Besides, you didn't know the last bus was at this time; you reminded me."
The man squatted down in front of her and asked, "So what are you going to do now?"
"What should we do?" Xu Tangmian took out the twenty yuan she had just borrowed from the man from her pocket. "We can only find a place to stay. There should be hotels or something near the train station, right? Or maybe... guesthouses?"
The man blinked: "You need a letter of introduction to stay in a hotel."
Xu Tangmian: "..."
"Then I'll sleep on the street."
The man smiled and patted the back of the bicycle. "Get on, I'll take you to the guesthouse."
"You have a letter of introduction?" Xu Tangmian's eyes lit up.
"Okay, I'll get you a room and then I'll leave. Make sure you remember the route, so you don't miss the bus again tomorrow."
Xu Tangmian nodded. "I'll try my best."
——
The man handed the letter of introduction to the guesthouse staff.
The waiter took the letter and checked it one by one: "Yu Chunsheng, male, 22 years old, employee of Huaifeng Town Supply and Marketing Cooperative, on official business, one person per day. Uh, what's the situation with the lady behind him?"
Yu Chunsheng quickly said, "This is my friend. She doesn't live here; she just came to check on things."
"Okay, then." The waiter replied, took the key out of the drawer and handed it to him: "Room 203. There will be room checks at night. Get water from the duty room after 10 p.m., and the door will be locked at 11 p.m. No one is allowed to enter or leave."
"Huh? You still do ward rounds here?" Yu Chunsheng paused, his hand holding the key still.
"Now that conduct issues are strictly regulated, it's the same no matter where you go."
“Okay…okay.” Yu Chunsheng responded twice, then raised his hand to beckon Xu Tangmian to follow him.
When they arrived at the door of room 203, Yu Chunsheng handed her the key, looked around the corridor, and said to her, "Looks like I can't leave yet. You'll stay here tonight, and I'll sit in the corridor. If you hear me cough, slip out and wait in the bathroom for a while, understand?"
"Understood." Xu Tangmian readily agreed, but then hesitated and asked, "What if it gets found out? What will the consequences be?"
She remembered that they used to be very strict about conduct issues, and she didn't want to be executed.
The man frowned and said, "If you're smart, how will we be found out? If you're scared, leave now. I'll stay here."
"No, I'll be smarter." Although Xu Tangmian was afraid of being found out, she was even more afraid of being homeless on the streets alone.
After taking the keys, Xu Tangmian's stomach growled a few more times.
"Are you hungry?" Yu Chunsheng looked down at her.
Xu Tangmian nodded.
"Can you go out and buy things by yourself?"
Xu Tangmian shook her head. "I have a bad sense of direction and I don't know the way."
The man sighed. "I'll go out and buy it. Give me the key. Remember to stay in your room and don't wander off. They shouldn't be checking the rooms during the day, but if they are, don't answer the door. If someone comes in, hide behind the door and don't make a sound, understand?"
"Know."
Xu Tangmian obediently returned to her room.
It was already completely dark when the man returned, looking travel-worn.
Upon seeing Xu Tangmian already asleep, Yu Chunsheng slapped his thighs with both hands: "Oh no, I forgot about that."
Xu Tangmian was a light sleeper. Hearing his voice, she calmly sat up, rubbing her eyes, and asked, "Did you buy me food?"
"I'm so sorry," Yu Chunsheng said awkwardly. "I ran into a colleague on my way out, and he dragged me to several places to take care of some things. I packed some buns for you, but when I saw you, I realized I had left them at the last place."
...
"Never mind." Xu Tangmian looked out the window, which was now completely dark. "I'm going to rest early. I'll eat tomorrow. I won't be hungry when I'm asleep."
"I'm so sorry," Yu Chunsheng apologized again.
"It's nothing, why are you apologizing to me? I should be thanking you," Xu Tangmian said with a smile.
"Then I'll go out, so as not to disturb your rest." Yu Chunsheng closed the door and dragged a stool to the corridor.
Occasionally, someone would ask him, "Why don't you go back to your room?" He would reply, "I'm writing poetry, looking at the moonlight for inspiration."
As he was writing, he leaned against the wall and fell asleep.
As night fell and the guests were asleep, Xu Tangmian opened the door a crack and saw him sitting there sleeping in a contorted position, feeling a pang of pity.
She took a small blanket from the room and draped it over him, then knelt down at his feet and whispered, "Thank you, the first kind person I've met here."
When I got up again, I suddenly saw stars.
Oh no, I have low blood sugar!
She struggled to get back to her room, but she couldn't muster any strength and eventually lost consciousness, collapsing somewhere.
Yu Chunsheng, sitting in the chair, smacked his lips twice and slept soundly.
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