Chapter 10: The Noise of the Era
Lu Yang folded the newspaper and carefully put it into his clothes pocket.
Now was not the time to delve into these matters.
He needed to send a certain annoying person away first.
Hearing Father-in-law’s call, Mother-in-law had already run ahead, and Lu Yang also had no choice but to pull his newlywed wife’s hand and start running.
When everyone arrived at a spot deep inside the waiting room, they found Yin Mingzhu there as expected, her hair disheveled, standing on a chair, curled up into a ball, clutching her schoolbag, nervously and fearfully guarding against everyone around her.
It seemed she had suffered quite a bit.
In such a state, no wonder Father-in-law had searched for a long time and couldn't find her.
“Girl, what happened to you? Did someone bully you? Tell your father.”
“My child, my child, how did you end up like this? Where are your classmates? You told me last night that your classmates would come to see you off. Where are they? Why aren't they here?”
Yin Laohan was only concerned with comforting his daughter.
Ma Xiulan could only cry.
Lu Yang’s eyes swept around, noticing that some people were already leaving, at least four or five, sneaking around, their faces dirty, making it hard to tell their true age, their eyes like jackals and vicious dogs, constantly glancing over. Seeing that the target was surrounded by family, they knew there was little chance left, and were already shifting their targets, quickly blending into the crowd of surrounding travelers.
Lu Yang just watched them, not stopping them.
This era had too many unexpected dangers.
Even a slight indulgence could result in a lost life.
For those who dared to take risks and commit crimes, having a spring-loaded knife, a three-edged dagger—these self-defense weapons that normal people might carry when traveling long distances in this era—appearing on these people was as common as eating and drinking.
And they were particularly bold; with the slightest conflict, they would dare to pull them out and stab vital areas, and as soon as they stabbed, they would run. Once they blended into the crowd, in such a crowded and highly mobile area near a train station, solving a case in this era was extremely difficult.
Lu Yang thought to himself: He had only been reborn; he wasn't invulnerable.
Besides, he was quite happy to see Yin Mingzhu, this foolish woman, suffer a little. Anyway, she was inside the train station; at most, they would only be after the tuition money in her bag. It wouldn't be about her as a person, would it?
Unless she was foolish enough to go with them, actively leaving the crowded station.
Heh heh, if she were that foolish, she would deserve it.
Lu Yang watched the spectacle.
After a round of comforting, Yin Laohan and Ma Xiulan, the old couple, finally managed to get their eldest daughter, Yin Mingzhu, to tell them what grievances she had suffered.
It turned out that Lu Yang had indeed guessed correctly; this foolish woman had almost been entirely swindled, both herself and her luggage.
And it was an open scam.
The cause was that several of her good friends had initially agreed to see her off and stay with her until she boarded the train, but then they all backed out and even blamed her.
They told her that since she bought a train ticket for after 6 PM, which was almost evening, why did she contact them to come see her off early in the morning? Not to mention being hungry all day, and having to buy food and drinks.
Okay, she said Yin Mingzhu would treat them.
But what about security?
In this era, transitioning from the 1980s to the 1990s after the reform and opening up, and it was late at night, and it was the most chaotic train station, you would let a group of young female students, riding bicycles, slowly make their way home in the dark from this train station, to a place they didn't even know how far away it was?
Any normal person would think that was crazy, right?
Perhaps Yin Mingzhu didn't think that much, but her classmates, especially her female classmates, had to consider their own safety, and thankfully they were all quite smart and didn't act foolishly, knowing they should go home before dark.
Otherwise, if they really waited until Yin Mingzhu was seen off, and it was already dark outside, they would probably have to wait for their fathers or brothers to pick them up, which would then cause more chaos for other families.
Yin Mingzhu was left alone like that.
After her classmates left, she wasn't actually very scared at first.
Because she had always been bold.
However, not long after, a middle-aged rural woman who had been watching her for a long time suddenly rushed towards her, grabbed her without a word, and pushed her out of the waiting room.
She was yelling: “I’ll beat you to death, you dead girl! How dare you run away from home? You made your mother and your grandmother sick! We, your uncles and sisters-in-law, had to come out to find you! Good thing I found you! Hurry up and come home with me.”
Immediately after, several more middle-aged women rushed over, saying the same things.
Yin Mingzhu was completely stunned.
In fact, not just her, even the surrounding travelers were stunned. No one knew if these words were true or false, and no one dared to stop the person on their own.
Even the saleslady at the door was confused.
If Yin Mingzhu hadn't let out a wail just before she was almost dragged out of the waiting room,
Saying that she was the top scorer in the college entrance examination for Zhao County, and that she had an admission letter from Peking University in her schoolbag, which alarmed the train police, she would have truly been abducted by these middle-aged women.
However, although the train police arrived, they didn't catch anyone.
These middle-aged women were very experienced; seeing the situation was unfavorable, they abandoned Yin Mingzhu and turned to blend back into the crowd. In this era, people's hairstyles and clothing colors were similar, so trying to find them in the vast sea of people and then having Yin Mingzhu identify them was truly not an easy task.
After that, it became much simpler.
After confirming that she was the top scorer in the college entrance examination for the County, the station was very polite. Not only did they provide her with hot water, but they also specifically asked if she needed to notify her family or school.
Many travelers in the waiting room also came forward, wanting to show her concern.
But Yin Mingzhu refused them all.
She was scared.
Scared of encountering bad people again.
Aside from the station's kindness, which she accepted, she dared not accept any kindness from travelers.
And she always felt that some people around her were looking at her strangely. Then she remembered that she still had 1000 yuan in her schoolbag, which her parents had specially prepared for her as extra university tuition and living expenses for this semester, fearing that she, a girl, would suffer in the Capital.
Immediately, she hugged her schoolbag to her chest, using all her vigilance to guard against all travelers who looked like bad people around her.
And so it was no wonder that when Yin Laohan found her, she was curled up in a ball, looking so exhausted and disheveled.
After hearing this story,
Lu Yang found it both amusing and puzzling.
“Yin Mingzhu, you are the top scorer in the college entrance examination for the County, and the only student from the County to be admitted to Peking University this year. You’re going to school in the Capital. Don’t your high school leaders and the County Education Bureau attach any importance to this? Don’t they even see you off?”
At least send a teacher.
“I, actually, yes, the County Education Bureau… they agreed for 6 PM. They also said that someone from their side happened to be going to the Capital for a business trip, so it would be convenient, and I would have a companion on the way. If I could also buy a ticket for today, they could accompany me to Peking University for registration until I was safely settled in the dormitory.”
Yin Mingzhu explained haltingly.
Including why she dared to go to the Capital alone, and why she had this ticket bought so much in advance.
Facts proved that it wasn't that they didn't attach importance, but that they attached great importance, but Yin Mingzhu deserved it.
The appointment was for 6 PM.
She arrived at 7 AM.
Lu Yang smiled and said, “Oh, so you arrived too early!”
