On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Su Qingmeng and Lin Xiuyao set out. They had already put all their belongings except furniture into the space, and only carried a few light bags with them.
A few days ago, Lin Xiuyao even went to the commune to mail a large package to make it look like he was there. They had been very cautious. Lin Xiucheng drove them to the county town on a tractor. On the way, he asked, "Did you sell your bicycle?"
Lin Xiuyao said, "I asked a friend to take it to Beijing." Actually, he had put it in a space. They needed a car when they got to Beijing, and bicycle tickets were hard to come by, so they took their old ones with them.
Arriving in the county town, the two said goodbye to Lin Xiucheng and took a bus to the provincial capital. After staying there for one night, Lin Xiuyao used his connections to buy two sleeper berth tickets.
The train was slow now, and he didn't want Su Qingmeng to sit in a hard seat for more than a day. Their train departed at noon, and after squeezing onto the train with difficulty, they arrived at the sleeper car.
The carriage was already full. Besides the two of them, there was a young man, a young couple, and an older man who looked like a cadre. Su Qingmeng and Lin Xiuyao had tickets for a middle berth and a lower berth, respectively.
The two of them sat down on the lower berth. After the train started moving, Lin Xiuyao asked, "Are you hungry?" They hadn't eaten lunch yet. Seeing Su Qingmeng nod, he took out the steamed buns he'd packed from the state-owned restaurant that morning. There was warm water in the kettle, and they had a simple meal with it.
The others also started eating. The old man bought the train lunch box, which also included a meat dish. The young couple brought their own white flour pancakes.
The young man secretly swallowed his saliva. His lunch was a steamed cornbread. Seeing that the people in the same compartment all had good meals, he felt unbalanced. Thinking of something, he started to talk, "Where are you all going?"
The young couple said they worked in Beijing and had just returned from their home in Northeast China after celebrating the Lunar New Year. The older man said he worked at the Shenyang Machinery Factory and was on a business trip to Tianjin. Lin Xiuyao said they were going to Beijing to attend university.
The young man said in surprise: "You are going to college too, me too." He looked quite proud.
The uncle said, "I didn't expect there were three college students in our carriage. That's great."
The young couple also showed envious expressions, as they would become cadres after graduating from university.
The young man boasted, "I am the only one in our commune who was admitted to a university in Beijing." The other two were only in junior colleges, but it's better not to mention them.
The husband of the young couple asked, "Which university did you get into?" The young man replied, "Beijing University of Technology."
"This university is not far from our home. Let's walk together after you get off the bus." People of this generation are very enthusiastic.
Seeing that Su Qingmeng and the others were silent, the uncle asked, "Which university did you two get into?"
When he heard that they were both from Peking University, the uncle was surprised, "That's amazing! That's the best university in our country."
The young man looked embarrassed, he didn't expect the other party to be so powerful, but he still chatted with them enthusiastically. Su Qingmeng didn't talk much, but Lin Xiuyao was very talkative, communicating with several people. He was eager to collect information from the outside world.
I didn't encounter any extraordinary people during the trip. The people in the same carriage were all pretty normal. Although the train was slow, I could still enjoy the scenery along the way. Su Qingmeng was in a good mood. At night, Lin Xiuyao said, "You go to sleep, I'll keep watch."
Su Qingmeng went to the middle bunk to rest, "Call me in the second half of the night, it's your turn to rest." As a result, when she woke up from the shaking, it was already the next morning.
"Why didn't you call me?" Looking at Lin Xiuyao's tired expression, he said, "Hurry up and get some sleep."
Lin Xiuyao rested for more than an hour before the train arrived in Beijing.
The train arrived at the station with a whistle. The crowds were so dense that they were separated from their fellow passengers. However, they found out how to take the bus to Peking University and left on their own.
Following the flow of people out of the train station, I was greeted by a spacious and clean plaza, and the station itself was imposing. Back then, the capital didn't have so many skyscrapers. The houses were much lower, mostly five or six stories high.
Su Qingmeng's nose felt sore, and she was a little excited. Although she had tried very hard to adapt after crossing over, life in the countryside was still full of inconveniences. She finally returned to the city.
Lin Xiuyao was shocked. The capital city was more luxurious than he could imagine. As a country boy, he never thought that he would come to the capital city one day.
Thinking of this, he looked at Su Qingmeng and thanked God for letting him meet his wife. However, seeing tears in her eyes, he asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"
Su Qingmeng shook her head, not wanting to say more, "It's okay, let's go."
They arrived too early, and there was no bus to pick up the new students. The two of them took a bus directly to Peking University. They were dressed simply and carried a lot of luggage to the bus. Su Qingmeng thought that in the eyes of others, they must look like country bumpkins who had just arrived in the city, which was a bit funny.
The bus at that time was a trolleybus, which Su Qingmeng had never ridden before. When they boarded the bus, there were still seats available, so they sat down at the back of the car, by the window.
Vehicles were driving on the wide road. There were cars coming and going, but not many. The traffic was not as congested as in later generations. The main means of transportation at that time was bicycles.
Su Qingmeng looked at the passing scenery. Beijing's roadsides were covered in greenery, even though the leaves had all fallen and the flowers had faded at this time of year. There were still streetlights along the roadside; this was a modern city. The pedestrians were mostly dressed in black, white, and blue, with very few bright colors. She felt like she was watching a period drama, and Su Qingmeng shook her head.
Lin Xiuyao asked, "Are you feeling unwell? Are you carsick?"
Su Qingmeng shook her head, "It's okay." It's winter now, and there is no messy smell in the car. Besides, this is an electric car, so there is no gasoline smell, so she doesn't feel uncomfortable.
It took an hour and a half to reach the station. After getting off the bus, they found a nearby guesthouse to check in.
Su Qingmeng felt a little uncomfortable. The train experience was terrible these days, and she hadn't slept well the previous night because she was in the same compartment with other people. She felt better after taking a shower in the bathroom. When Lin Xiuyao came out after showering, she asked him, "Are you hungry?"
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