Lu Xianrun hadn't received a call from his daughter for two months and said excitedly, "Qiuqiu, why haven't you called in these two months? Your mom has been missing you."
"Dad, I miss you guys too. I have some good news—I'm coming home for a visit. I'm at the station right now. I want to surprise Mom, so Dad, don't forget to pick me up at the station in three days. Oh, I still haven't gotten my ticket. After I get on the train, I'll have my friend call you to let you know the time."
"Alright, alright, my daughter is coming back. Dad will pick you up. Be careful on your way, be very careful."
"I know, Dad. I have to go now; I need to catch the train."
Lu Jingqiu could hear the excitement in her father's voice, but she was in a hurry and worried she might miss the train.
After hanging up the phone, Lu Jingqiu borrowed a piece of paper and a pen from the person at the phone booth, wrote down a phone number, and handed it to Shen Mu who was behind her, asking, "Comrade Shen, could you help me make a call later? Just tell my dad the time."
Shen Mu took the piece of paper, glanced at it, and said, "Okay."
Seeing that he had agreed, Lu Jingqiu took out fifty cents from her pocket and handed it to him.
Shen Mu pushed the money back to her: "It's not necessary."
Lu Jingqiu insisted, "This won't do, take it, otherwise I'll ask someone else for help." She then stuffed the money into Shen Mu's hand.
Shen Mu didn't decline further.
As they hurried back, Gao Shu and Xia Lin came over with their tickets: "The train will arrive in ten minutes; let's hurry to the platform."
Lu Jingqiu took the tickets and change from them, glanced at the time, and turned to have Shen Mu take a look as well.
Zhang Yumin and a few others helped carry her luggage to the platform, and when the train arrived, they helped get her luggage aboard.
Because it was the busy farming season, there weren't many people coming and going, and she was fortunate to get a seat.
Gao Shu somehow bought several eggs and passed them to her through the window: "Eat these on the way. Keep an eye on your luggage, and don't sleep too deeply."
The atmosphere felt as if last night's words hadn't been meant for him, but then again, in her previous life, Gao Shu had always reacted this way whenever she confessed her feelings—as if nothing had happened.
Lu Jingqiu nodded, wondering whether she should give him money, when Yun Yuzhi and Li Yinger came over to say goodbye.
As the train started moving, Lu Jingqiu's eagerness to return home surged, and she waved goodbye in high spirits: "Sister Yuzhi, Sister Yingying, goodbye. You all go back now; I'll write to you when I arrive."
"Be careful on the journey."
Several educated youths waved back at her, including Gao Shu, though his hand had just been raised when Xia Lin pulled it down again.
Gao Shu looked down at her, saw Xia Lin's playful expression, and smiled affectionately.
Watching this scene, Lu Jingqiu felt no waves in her heart any longer.
As for Gao Shu, she had let go of him last night.
Or perhaps, she had let him go on the final night of her previous life.
"Is this Uncle Lu? I'm Comrade Jingqiu's teammate, Shen Mu. Comrade Jingqiu asked me to tell you that she will probably arrive at West City Railway Station around three in the afternoon the day after tomorrow, on train number..."
"Comrade Shen, thank you. Uncle has noted it down; thank you for your help with Jingqiu. If there is an opportunity in the future, you are welcome to visit our home."
"I will certainly visit if there's a chance, goodbye Uncle Lu."
While Shen Mu was on the phone with Father Lu, Xia Lin teased Gao Shu from a distance, saying, "Ah Shu, Comrade Shen Mu seldom speaks to female comrades, right? It seems he treats Comrade Lu Jingqiu a bit differently. He couldn't possibly like Comrade Lu, could he?"
Gao Shu shook his head with a smile: "How could that be, Shen Mu has no thoughts in that regard."
Xia Lin said, "Are you a worm in his stomach to answer so definitively?"
Gao Shu replied, "Anyway, such a thing is impossible. Let's go; it's not easy to come to the county town, I'll show you around."
Gao Shu was an educated youth, and after marrying Xia Lin, he temporarily lived at the Xia Family.
Gao Shu had come here since graduating, and the work points he earned in a year weren't enough to cover one person's expenses, but Uncle Gao would occasionally send him some money.
Aunt Gao didn't just send money; she had never let him lack material support.
So, Gao Shu had a few hundred yuan on him. He might not have enough to complete the three big items for Xia Lin, but buying a wristwatch was still possible.
Lu Jingqiu was more experienced; she kept her valuables hidden in her sock and sewed her money into her pants.
She only kept enough for meals over the next two days on her person.
Her seat was by the window, and the woman sitting beside her seemed like a comrade, which greatly relieved her mind.
As the beautiful countryside scenery outside the window grew more distant, Lu Jingqiu's heart slowly calmed.
The car wasn't crowded with passengers, but there was a lot of luggage; traveling far was not easy in those times, and many were visiting family, so they brought many belongings.
The person in front had even brought along two live ducks.
Nobody struck up a conversation during the journey; by noon, an attendant was pushing a cart selling items.
Lu Jingqiu glanced at the few eggs Gao Shu had given her. Seeing the woman next to her buy two buns, she followed suit and bought two vegetarian buns for a total of forty cents.
No matter when, things were always a bit more expensive on the train.
For lunch, she ate the two buns with some cool boiled water, and at night, she ate two eggs.
She had lost track of how many stations the train had stopped at throughout the day. People came and went, and now the carriage seemed to have more passengers.
As dusk fell, Lu Jingqiu gazed out at the night sky, so brightly lit with stars that the memories of her past and present life intermingled in her mind, becoming a tangled mess. The thought of her mother leaving her so early weighed heavy on her heart, nearly suffocating her.
She was finally roused by feeling stifled and looked around to find the carriage silent with most people fast asleep.
Awake, Lu Jingqiu couldn't fall back asleep for a long time. She was grateful to heaven for allowing her to return to her twenties but lamented why she couldn't have come back a few years earlier.
If she had returned earlier, she surely wouldn't have followed Gao Shu to the countryside again; she would have found a job in the city, taken good care of her mother's health, and perhaps her mother wouldn't have succumbed to cancer and left them.
She knew that life was never perfect. What she could do now was to stay by her mother's side and make her remaining days as painless and regret-free as possible.
...
In the West City Military District Compound, at the far southwest row, counting from the south, the third house was where Lu Xianrun had returned early today, a rare occurrence.
Seeing his wife busily working in the kitchen, he entered with a smile, "Lanping, tidy up Qiuqiu's room, will you? Buy some extra treats these next few days, and let's have a lavish dinner the day after tomorrow night."
Zhou Lanping put down her spoon and looked at her husband's smiling face. It seemed to dawn on her, and she asked hesitantly, "Why the sudden need to tidy up Qiuqiu's room? Is she...is she coming back?"
Lu Xianrun didn't hide it from her, "Yes, she called today to say she's coming back to visit."
Zhou Lanping said, "She called today? How come I didn't get the call?"
"She called me. She even asked me not to tell you because she wanted to surprise you."
Zhou Lanping laughed: "That child, if she came back without telling me, I'd really be mad." As she laughed, tears welled up in her eyes.
Lu Xianrun hugged his wife and quietly patted her back. Both spouses had missed their daughter dearly, day and night, and now that she was finally returning, their excitement was undeniable.
"Is she coming back alone, or with Gao Shu?"
"By herself. Lanping, when the child comes back this time, we should really talk to her. Gao Shu isn't right for her."
"Your daughter is just as stubborn as you are. If we could have persuaded her, she wouldn't have sneaked off to the countryside."
"The two of them must have endured a lot out there. Maybe she's gained some perspective."
"Let's hope so. I don't want our daughter to leave us again."
"Mm-hmm."
...
Lu Jingqiu had been on the train for three days and two nights. Since she was in a hard seat, she hadn't slept well on either night. Maybe that was for the best since it meant the thieves didn't have an opportunity to strike.
Her seatmate, a woman who seemed careless, had her pocket slit open during the night without realizing it. Luckily, there was only ten cents in her pocket, so the loss wasn't too significant.
After arriving at West City Station, Lu Jingqiu slung one bag over her shoulder and carried another in her hand.
She squeezed through the crowded exit off the train.
From a distance, Lu Xianrun spotted a petite figure stumbling out of the crowd. The figure, burdened with several large bags, moved not clumsily but with the nimble agility of a squirrel darting through the throng.
Seeing his daughter like this, Lu Xianrun's eyes uncontrollably reddened. He hurried forward with the guards, calling out, "Qiuqiu."
"Daddy."
Seeing her father, who looked thirty years younger, Lu Jingqiu felt a surge of excitement and affection, yet a thousand words stuck in her heart, not knowing how to express them.