Chapter 91

The distance from Wuhe County to Rongcheng is less than 400 kilometers. By train, it would take about six and a half hours.

These days, traveling is not as convenient as it will be in a few decades, when there will be airplanes, high-speed trains, buses, and private cars. Now, for long-distance travel, the train is the primary mode of transportation, especially on busy lines like the Jingguang Line. The trains are always packed with people, and it's not uncommon for accidents to happen at train stations, such as people being trampled or injured.

The train stops at Wuhe Station for eight minutes. Since Yang Jie and Liu Fei entered the platform directly from the exit, they had plenty of time to board.

After finding their seats and stowing their luggage, they said goodbye to Chen Yinglong and Li Yuan through the window. Once they saw them leave, they noticed the dense crowd of people rushing to the train, jostling and pushing each other.

Sitting comfortably in a side berth of the sleeper car, Yang Jie watched the bustling crowd outside the window, carrying large bags and trying to board the train. He said with a lingering fear, "How can there still be so many people traveling north during the summer vacation? Even a second-class station like Wuhe is so crowded. At a first-class station like Changyang, it must be even more packed. If we had to push through the crowd like them, you would have suffered a lot."

Liu Fei glanced at Yang Jie. Although she had spoken little during the journey, she was very grateful to him for buying the tickets and helping her board the train. "Even if you want me to be grateful, you don't have to say it out loud!"

"Ha ha! I'm not trying to make you grateful. I just can't stand the experience of rushing to catch a train anymore!" Yang Jie studied in Yanjing, which is nearly 2,000 kilometers from Wuhe County. Every winter and summer vacation, it was the most painful time for him.

Although the summer vacation is less crowded than the winter, there are very few air-conditioned trains in those days. In winter, the crowd can keep each other warm, but in summer, being packed in a small, crowded, and hot carriage is like being in a sauna for dozens of hours. The suffering is unforgettable.

"How long does it take to travel from Yanjing to Wuhe County by train?" Liu Fei asked curiously.

"Almost 40 hours, two days and one night. Sometimes, if you can't get a seat, you have to stand the whole way. Just thinking about it makes me shudder!" Yang Jie said with a look of regret, shaking his head.

As they talked, more and more people boarded the train.

This train is a provincial train, starting from Xinyang Station and ending at Rongcheng Station. Wuhe Station is the first stop after the train departs from the starting station. This carriage is reserved for the sleeper berths of the stations within Changyang City, so not many people board at Wuhe County.

The empty sleeper carriage was a world apart from the crowded hard-seat carriages. Seeing that the train had already departed, Yang Jie looked at Liu Fei. "It's going to be over six hours. Do you want to rest a bit?"

"Never mind. The berth doesn't look very clean. It's only a few hours, so we can just sit it out." Liu Fei got up and took out some snacks from her luggage on the berth.

"Are you always so cold? In the cultural troupe, don't you often perform in different places? Can you manage that?" Yang Jie felt awkward as Liu Fei fell silent again after a few words.

Anyone who has traveled by train knows that sitting still can be very tedious.

Especially in the 1990s, without mobile phones, tablets, or laptops, people would pass the time by chatting with strangers. They would talk about all sorts of interesting stories and current events, and the time would fly by.

Sitting face to face, staring at each other in silence for over six hours, Yang Jie couldn't take it.

Seeing Yang Jie's curious expression, Liu Fei thought for a moment and said softly, "Do you want to know about my past? Or are you just bored and looking for something to talk about?"

"Both!" Yang Jie answered frankly.

"In fact, the cultural troupe is not as pure as you think. To stand out in the troupe, besides having a good appearance and figure, who doesn't have a powerful backer?" Liu Fei cracked some sunflower seeds, turned her face to the window, and gazed at the scenery outside, seemingly lost in thought.

"Even in the student council at school, there are people who scheme and seek power. You were the lead dancer in the troupe. According to what you said, don't you also have a powerful backer?" Yang Jie saw that Liu Fei was about to fall silent again, so he smiled and asked her about her past.

Before leaving, Chen Yuan and Gu Zhongyi had both warned Yang Jie not to provoke Liu Fei, which only made him more curious.

Curiosity killed the cat. The more curious Yang Jie became, the more he wanted to know about the beautiful woman in front of him and the man behind her.

"Backer? If I had really wanted to rely on someone, why would I have been transferred to the Foreign Affairs and Overseas Chinese Affairs Office to sit on a cold bench? The lead dancer in the cultural troupe, if everything goes well, can become the troupe leader and then a deputy director of the county culture bureau. But in my case, I was promoted in name but demoted in reality, transferred to work in the county party office. If I had a backer, would this have happened?" Liu Fei seemed to be provoked by Yang Jie's words and asked sarcastically.

Yang Jie sensed that Liu Fei's words had deeper meaning. It seemed that the people who had designs on her had not succeeded, and it was because she refused that she was transferred to the county party office.

To most people, working in the county party office is better than in the cultural troupe.

But as Liu Fei said, the lead dancer in the cultural troupe can become the troupe leader and then a deputy director of the culture bureau. Therefore, transferring Liu Fei to the county party office was not a promotion but a demotion, making it difficult for her to advance and condemning her to a life of obscurity in a cold department like the Foreign Affairs and Overseas Chinese Affairs Office.

"Who has such power to transfer someone from the cultural troupe to the county party office?"

"The Publicity Minister of the Municipal Committee, Liao Fanwu!" Liu Fei said it casually, but to Yang Jie, it was like a thunderclap.

Liao Fanwu is a member of the Municipal Committee. He actually had designs on Liu Fei. Considering that the cultural troupe falls under the propaganda department and that Changyang City has only two troupes, one of which is in Wuhe County, as the lead dancer of the Wuhe County cultural troupe, Liu Fei was undoubtedly an excellent choice.

Liu Fei is beautiful, has a good figure, and an excellent temperament. As the lead dancer, her dance and singing skills are naturally high, so it's not surprising that she caught the attention of a municipal leader. However, the fact that a member of the Municipal Committee wanted to make her his exclusive possession was somewhat surprising to Yang Jie.

As Liu Fei said, if she had been willing to submit to Liao Fanwu, with a member of the Municipal Committee as her backer, it's predictable that within two years, she could have become the troupe leader and then a deputy director of the county culture bureau. From there, with some maneuvering, she could easily have moved to a position in the city, with a bright future ahead.

But Liu Fei refused Liao Fanwu, unwilling to use such a method to achieve her goals.

Liu Fei's integrity, high moral character, and refusal to bow to authority deeply impressed Yang Jie.

Seeing Liu Fei, who pretended to be calm but had a hint of sadness in her eyes, Yang Jie smiled and comforted her, "Actually, coming to the county party office isn't a bad thing. I believe working here can prove your abilities. In the future, follow me and work hard. We will show those who mock us that we can achieve success through our real abilities. When that day comes, we'll make that guy perform as the lead dancer in the cultural troupe, and we'll watch him from the audience."

"Okay!"

Hearing Yang Jie's words, Liu Fei couldn't help but smile genuinely, a smile that was so beautiful it could make the six palaces lose their color. Yang Jie, sitting opposite her, was completely captivated.

Liu Fei, who had never confided in anyone, felt a weight lifted off her shoulders after sharing her troubles. Seeing Yang Jie staring at her, she playfully scolded, "Don't stare at me like that. If you keep doing it, I won't talk to you anymore."

Yang Jie, looking at the playful Liu Fei, felt a surge of sympathy. He thought about how she had to bear the pressure from Liao Fanwu, had no friends to confide in, and even her family had left Wuhe. He wondered how she had managed to endure all this alone.

I recommend two completed urban novels by Suixi:

[bookid=2428884, bookname=《Urban Ancient Witch》] and [bookid=1167613, bookname=《Rebirth of Immortal Desire》]. I hope you enjoy them! Thank you for your support!

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