A moment later, the bus arrived at the stop. Shinnshiow immediately stood up and walked to the bus's back door to get off. Since they were sitting in the far right corner of the back row, Shinnshiow actually only moved about three meters away. After getting off, he went straight to the bench at the bus stop to sit for a while. It turned out to be true. The person who had been following them all along also got off at the bus stop. He got off the bus right after Shinnshiow. However, what was interesting was that the person following that person did not get off the bus. He remained on the bus. Shinnshiow, wasting no more time, immediately got up from his seat and headed for the nearest station.
The distance was not far from there, only about two hundred meters. To get to that place, Shinnshiow had to walk about fifty meters towards the intersection. After that, turn left. From there, the train station was visible. The station was not a subway station but an elevated train station. The interesting thing for Shinnshiow was that the mode of transportation in the city was very diverse. There were several modes of transportation that Shinnshiow had never ridden. But fortunately, he had been on an elevated train like that.
Since the backpack he was carrying was quite heavy, Shinnshiow decided to take the elevator instead of taking the stairs. Arriving at the top, he immediately headed to the storage of goods. The size of the backpack was quite large, so Shinnshiow had to choose the locker with the largest size. Arriving in front of the locker, he immediately put in some coins as the cost of keeping his backpack for four days. He added a day just in case they couldn't pick up the goods on time. After the locker opened, he immediately put the backpack in it. Then he set the locker combination number. The combination lock comprised an eight-digit number that functions as a PIN. So far, Shinnshiow had always used the same eight digits when he had to leave things in the locker. He did that because if he used another combination of numbers, there was a chance he might forget. But now, he decided to use a different combination of numbers because the situation was not the same as usual.
In accordance with Jenqyih's instructions, Shinnshiow should not openly show that he was aware that someone was following him. So, after he finished putting things into the locker, he immediately left without looking to the right or left. He hurried out of the station. At that time, he chose to go down by using the escalator. After reaching the ground floor and exiting the station, he crossed the street with the other people. As Jenqyih said, Shinnshiow tried to stay close to the people around him.
Two minutes walk, there was a fairly large restaurant. After entering inside, Shinnshiow sat down at a table in the left corner. From where he was sitting, Shinnshiow could see all corners of the place. He did not see the person who had been following him. There were two possibilities. The first was that the man was still at the station and was trying to open the locker where Shinnshiow had left his backpack. The second possibility was he might be standing outside the restaurant and waiting there until Shinnshiow came out.
Shinnshiow did not know how long he would have to be there and how much longer he would be home safely. If he was still going to be hanging around outside for an indefinite amount of time, then he had to be prepared. Among other things was to fill his stomach so he would not starve. Therefore, Shinnshiow ordered not only drinks but also food. If only after that, everything turned out to be running smoothly, and Shinnshiow could quickly arrive home. So let's just say he had an early dinner.
It turned out that the restaurant sold vegetarian food. Lately, vegetarian food was indeed popular in some parts of the city, especially among the younger generation. The strange phenomenon began when a famous young singer decided to become a vegetarian. Many of his die-hard fans then tried to follow in the singer's footsteps. Then there were seven or eight other young singers who were also trying to do the same. Those seven or eight singers also had so many loyal fans that more and more people were trying to become vegetarians. These fans had friends or family, so the habit quickly spread to those people. Indeed, among the singers, there were some who could only endure being a vegetarian for a few months. But the impact had already been significant. The vegetarian wave had already spread, even to those who were not fans of those singers.
Shinnshiow doesn't really like vegetarian food. Not that he hated it, just that he would most likely choose another food if he had the choice. Basically, Shinnshiow really liked to eat vegetables. Although when he ate vegetables, he always combined the dish with meat such as poultry or fish. So, it was not too difficult for him to adapt to a vegetarian environment. This time, he chose to eat rice cooked with coconut milk. The side dish was a variety of vegetables stirred together in a sauce made of finely ground peanuts mixed with a generous amount of garlic and shallots. He loved spicy food so much that imagining that dish could make him drool.
Just waited about ten minutes, the food came. Shinnshiow ate voraciously. The pungent aroma of abundant garlic further added to his appetite. Before he finished eating, Shinnshiow had already decided to add another serving. Five minutes after he finished the first portion, the second portion arrived. At that time, he did not eat as fast and as voraciously as before. Even so, he enjoyed the dish with all his heart. One characteristic of their group members was to eat with full appreciation. Although what they often ate was not exceptional, they always treated the dish equally. Shannchyuan had always said that eating with passion was part of their respect for the people who had worked so hard to prepare the food.
After being full, Shinnshiow sat down to rest in the restaurant. He intended to wait there for a while. Even though he had not seen anyone following him since he entered the restaurant, there was nothing wrong with being more careful. Shinnshiow was sitting inside the restaurant for almost forty-five minutes. He finally felt he was ready to continue everything, according to the plan they had made.
Dusk was approaching. The sun almost slipped on the western horizon. Shinnshiow realized he had to hurry. He didn't want to find himself still wandering the unfamiliar streets when the sky had darkened. He immediately spurred his steps towards the elevated train station, where he left the backpack he had brought with him. For a moment, he hesitated about the backpack. Better to take it now or in the next few days. Of course, if he took it now, there was a risk he had to face. If later, for some reason, he had to walk fast or even had to run because someone was chasing him, then the backpack would be very troublesome for him. Therefore, he finally decided to stick to the original plan.