The young men across from them heard Zhao Nuanyue say they were siblings and moved in closer. It was all because Zhao Nuanyue was pretty; they wanted to talk to her too.
They were all young; without conversation, the journey would have been quite dull.
The train traveled for a full day and night. At every stop, more people would get off. They would wave goodbye to each other, and the train car gradually emptied.
Those who part today may never meet again. Zhao Nuanyue felt she truly understood what it meant to be ships passing in the night. They were like rootless duckweed, drifting with the wind and flowing with the current.
The place Zhao Jinghai had arranged for Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuan Yang was the same one where Zhao Nuanyue had labored in her previous life. Although it was remote, it had mountains and water. It was extremely isolated, meaning it was less affected by the outside world, and its resources were relatively plentiful. If they ran out of grain, they could find food in the mountains or the rivers. No one would starve to death there.
A place like this was perfect for escaping disaster, and Zhao Nuanyue felt a little more at ease.
Zhao Nuanyue was very familiar with the place, so she wasn't afraid. Even with a younger brother in tow, Zhao Nuanyue was confident she could provide for him and take good care of him.
Another half-day passed. The train stopped at a county town, and dozens of soldiers boarded, lining up as they came on.
Many of the people near Zhao Nuanyue had already gotten off, leaving only a few young people headed for Labor County. Seeing the empty seats in their area, the soldiers came over and sat down near them.
These men had solemn faces and sharp eyes. Their gazes swept over everyone as if they were inspecting criminals. A hush fell wherever they passed; no one dared to speak.
At first, everyone was tense, but then they relaxed. After all, they were just poor students answering the nation's call. In the grand context of the era, people were relatively tolerant of them. So, while they remained silent, they weren't as nervous as they had been moments before. Zhao Nuanyue, however, wasn't scared at all. She grabbed her and her brother's enamel mugs to go get hot water.
As Zhao Nuanyue walked past the soldiers, she naturally drew their gazes.
While she was getting water at the end of the car, she noticed someone speaking in a low voice with the train conductor. The voice was deep but pleasant, as rich and elegant as a cello, and it even sounded faintly familiar.
'What kind of man has such a beautiful voice?' Zhao Nuanyue wondered. 'And why does it feel so familiar?'
Zhao Nuanyue looked up and found her gaze locked by a man with a resolute face and piercing eyes. His stare was incredibly aggressive, but what made Zhao Nuanyue's heart pound in panic wasn't just his face or his eyes—it was the man himself.
He was Hua Yusen.
In her past life, he had been her patron. Though the man was cold, he was true to his word and had helped her get her revenge.
In a way, that made him her benefactor. But she had repaid that debt with her life; she no longer owed Hua Yusen anything.
But the sight of Hua Yusen immediately dragged Zhao Nuanyue back to her unbearable past life. A pair of jade-like arms, a pillow for a thousand men; a touch of crimson lips, a taste for ten thousand. While the numbers were an exaggeration, there had still been more than a dozen men.
'I'm reborn,' Zhao Nuanyue thought. 'I have to plan everything carefully. I will not repeat the mistakes of my past. Not even for my former benefactor.'
So, Zhao Nuanyue filled her mugs and scurried away in a panic, not even noticing when the boiling water scalded her hand.
Watching Zhao Nuanyue's panicked retreat, the train conductor frowned and asked, "Do you know that young lady?"
Hua Yusen shook his head. "I'm out on duty from dawn till dusk. Where would I have the chance to meet such a pretty young lady?"
"You're too intense, you probably scared the poor girl," the conductor laughed. "You can't be like that. When you get to be my age, you'll understand. Keep this up and you'll never find a wife. You'll see how tough life is once you're a lonely old bachelor."
Hua Yusen just smiled, completely unconcerned. He took a sip of water. "Just because you couldn't find a wife doesn't mean I can't. I happen to be a man with a fiancée."
The conductor scoffed at Hua Yusen's words and shook his head. "All right, all right, stop showing off that noble and elegant fiancée of yours. I have to make my rounds. I'll stop bothering you. When you're back in Jincheng City, we'll have a proper get-together."
"Mm," Hua Yusen nodded. It was rare to run into an acquaintance, so he'd chatted a little longer than usual. He walked over to his comrades and, seeing an empty seat next to Zhao Nuanyue, plopped right down into it.
When Zhao Nuanyue turned her head and saw it was Hua Yusen, she flinched and shrank back.
'This isn't right! In my past life, I definitely didn't meet Hua Yusen here! Our first meeting wasn't supposed to be for another five years!'
Zhao Nuanyue thought back carefully. 'Oh, god. In my past life, I took the train to the resettlement area on July twenty-sixth. But today is July twelfth. The date is different, so of course the people I'm meeting are different too.'
A wave of fear washed over Zhao Nuanyue at this thought. 'Will the place I'm going to be different too? Will the people in the village be different?'
'I hope it hasn't changed,' she prayed. A familiar environment would give her a sense of security. If she were sent to a different place, she wouldn't know anyone's temperament or what the conditions were like. Her life would inevitably be filled with difficulties.
Zhao Nuanyue was so frightened by her own thoughts that her face grew pale.
Hua Yusen was a little speechless. 'Didn't I just sit next to her?' he thought. 'I haven't done a thing, but this girl is already trembling in fear?'
Zhao Nuan Yang noticed his sister's strange behavior and glared angrily at Hua Yusen.
"Nuanyang, it's okay. I'm just hungry," Zhao Nuanyue said, not wanting her brother to provoke this dangerous man. Anyone who crossed Hua Yusen either ended up dead or ruined. She and her brother were all alone now; they couldn't afford to offend anyone.
Hearing his sister's words, Zhao Nuan Yang pulled a hard steamed bun from his bag and offered it to her. "Sister, eat!"
Zhao Nuanyue did her best to avoid looking at Hua Yusen while she reassured her brother.
Hua Yusen found this interesting. 'Am I really that scary?' he mused. He hadn't even said a word, yet he'd frightened the girl into a trembling mess. As a result, he couldn't help but glance their way from time to time.
Hua Yusen found himself momentarily lost in thought.
'I have to admit, the girl is beautiful,' he thought. 'She's young now, but in a few years, she'll be the kind of woman whose beauty could topple nations.'
'This train is full of young students from Jincheng City, sent to the countryside to aid in reconstruction. Are they part of that group too?'
Not wanting to frighten Zhao Nuanyue and her strangely behaved brother any further, Hua Yusen struck up a conversation with the other young people nearby. Just as he'd suspected, they were all headed to the countryside to receive re-education and support local development.
Coincidentally, he was also on his way to Labor County for a mission.
Bound by discipline, the conversation was mostly one-sided, with Hua Yusen asking questions and the others answering. In this way, he managed to get a general sense of their situation. For instance, he learned the names Zhao Nuanyue and Zhao Nuan Yang, as well as their destination.
The train journey lasted two days and two nights. After several transfers, they finally arrived at Labor County in Sizhou.