ECG -Chapter 25 Those Coming from the South, Those Heading North

Lin Hao and Wu Xiaozhou turned around together and saw a youthful, bright, and charming face.

Then a fair little hand reached out. “Hello, my name is Xia Yumeng!”

Wu Xiaozhou reacted quickly. His two large hands immediately grabbed that small hand and shook it repeatedly. “Hello, my name is Wu Xiaozhou!”

Xia Yumeng giggled. “If you don’t let go, you’re going to warm my hand until it’s cooked!”

Wu Xiaozhou chuckled and reluctantly released her hand.

When Lin Hao looked at her, his eyes lit up, but he didn’t reach out. He only smiled and introduced himself. “Hello, my name is Lin Hao!”

He was secretly amazed in his heart. This girl is so pretty. She actually looks eight or nine parts similar to the female celebrity Gao Yuanyuan from my previous life. It’s just that she’s much younger, and she looks a little more youthful and inexperienced.

“Eh?”

Wu Xiaozhou turned his head and was immediately shocked. He hadn’t expected that there was another beautiful girl sitting beside him.

He and Lin Hao had boarded first. After sitting face-to-face by the window, they had both been staring outside at their fathers, so they hadn’t noticed who had taken the seats beside them later.

“Miss Beauty, my name is Wu Xiaozhou!” Wu Xiaozhou said, once again extending his large hand toward the girl beside him.

That girl’s melon-seed-shaped face was hidden behind her long hair draped over her shoulders. Her long eyelashes were lowered, and she didn’t even look at him.

“Oh, hello!” she only said that one sentence. She didn’t shake his hand, nor did she give her name.

Wu Xiaozhou withdrew his hand and scratched his head casually. He didn’t look embarrassed at all. Grinning, he asked Xia Yumeng, “You two are also going to the provincial capital to study?”

Xia Yumeng smiled and nodded.

“Which school?” Wu Xiaozhou asked.

“Normal University.”

Wu Xiaozhou immediately put on a serious expression of admiration, then extended his hand again. “Ah, a future people’s teacher! Respect! Respect!”

Xia Yumeng wasn’t fooled. She giggled and asked, “Which school are you two from?”

As she spoke, she turned her head and looked at Lin Hao beside her.

Wu Xiaozhou withdrew his hand in disappointment. Just then, the train attendant pushing a cart came over.

“Beer, drinks, mineral water—! Cigarettes, sunflower seeds, grilled fish slices—! Those in front, pull your legs in a bit—!”

Lin Hao said, “We’re from the Academy of Arts.”

“Wow!” Xia Yumeng said in surprise. “You’re musicians!”

Lin Hao smiled awkwardly. “We’re actually from the Fine Arts Department.”

Xia Yumeng’s lively big eyes showed some confusion. She glanced again at the electric bass without any packaging behind Wu Xiaozhou and asked, “You’re not music majors?”

Lin Hao looked a little embarrassed. “It’s a bit complicated.”

Wu Xiaozhou curled his lips. “What’s so complicated? We got into the Fine Arts Department, but we want to transfer to the Music Department!”

Xia Yumeng first looked surprised, then burst into giggles. “Since you know music, why did you apply for the Fine Arts Department? Besides, the score requirement for the Fine Arts is higher than that for music, it’s really strange!”

Lin Hao glanced at her long, straight, beautiful legs and thought to himself, “This girl must be at least 1.7 meters tall, right?”

Just then, the sound of a guitar suddenly came from the opposite seat. A boy stood up on his seat, and many people started clapping when they saw that someone was going to sing.

This kid’s hair is neither long nor short, and it looks like he wants to grow it long. He has a very fair face and long, narrow eyes.

Lin Hao then realized that their carriage was full of students, with not a single older person among them.

This is unimaginable for people a decade or two later. Back then, college students were pampered, and many were accompanied to school by their parents in a car.

“Everyone, my name is Wan Yong. We’re all going to the provincial capital to study, so I’d like to sing you a song!”

Applause erupted again, mixed with whistles; Xia Yumeng and the girl opposite her also turned to look.

Wang Yong was not nervous at all. The sound of his guitar continued, and he opened his mouth and began to sing:

“That day, I entered the deep mountains, letting go of all my worldly attachments;
I cast a sideways glance at the heavens, only to see a sky covered in darkness;
Watch me swing my sword and sever, sever those three thousand strands of green silk—the delusions of obsession…”

The song carried a strong Zen-like feeling, and the melody was graceful and lingering. However, to Lin Hao’s ears, it was completely unfamiliar.

After Wang Yong finished one verse, just as the instrumental interlude began, another guitar sound suddenly came from behind him.

Everyone in the carriage was stunned and turned to look behind him.

At the entrance of the rear door, they saw a scruffy man in his thirties kneeling there. A black imitation-leather pouch hung around his neck, and he held an old guitar in his hands.

“Bang! Bang! Bang!”

Three loud noises suddenly came from the other side of the carriage. Everyone turned around to look again, only to see another scruffy man kneeling on the ground. He also had a black pouch hanging from his neck, and he held a brick in each hand. The sound just now had been him smashing the bricks against the floor.

Two disabled men, one in front and one behind, had surrounded the entire carriage.

The man holding the bricks grinned and shouted loudly:

“Those coming from the south, those heading north, those from the Jiā Mù Sī Hè Port! Those visiting relatives, those going to the market, those fishing, those drying nets, those getting executed, those serving as accomplices! And those who’ve done time in the cells, received ‘education,’ suffered beatings, or even hit the jackpot!”

The man’s whole spiel flowed smoothly like running water.

“Meeting each other in the same carriage today means we’re fated! My brother will sing a song for everyone. Those with money, show your support with money; those without money, show your support with your presence!”

“Come on! Hei Zi! Let’s get started!”

The man shouted, then—

“Bang!”

He slammed the brick heavily onto the ground again, making everyone’s hearts jump.

Wang Yong had only sung halfway before these two men interrupted his performance. He felt extremely frustrated, but after glancing at those two huge bricks, he could only sit back down dejectedly.

Behind them, a hoarse voice began singing with a crying tone:

“The wanderer outside longs for you,
Dear mother…”

The familiar voice rang out, and Lin Hao’s heart shook violently!

How could this song appear here?

This wasn’t the other world anymore, was it?

Apart from himself, how could songs from that world appear here too?

Could this be what people called a coincidental overlap in creative inspiration?

……

Not long after, the middle-aged disabled man who was moving forward by supporting himself with two bricks reached Wang Yong’s seat.

Wang Yong helplessly took two yuan from his pocket and tossed it into the pouch hanging on the man’s chest.

“Bang!”

The sound of the bricks hitting the ground rang out again, scattering Lin Hao’s thoughts.

“Little brother, can you spare a little something?”

Lin Hao looked up and saw that the middle-aged disabled man holding the bricks had already arrived in front of them.

Wu Xiaozhou chuckled:

“Big brother, we’re all poor students. We really don’t have any money! I’ve been watching you two brothers for a while now, and my admiration for you is truly like the endless waters of the Songhua River—rolling on forever! Take me with you! Look, I’ve even prepared my equipment!”

After saying that, he took the electric bass from behind him and hugged it in his arms, looking at the muddy-faced middle-aged man with an expectant expression.

“Damn it!” The middle-aged disabled man spat a thick mouthful of phlegm onto the ground. “Don’t f***ing talk nonsense! Pay up!”

Wu Xiaozhou spread out his hands.

“Really no money. But I’m really good at playing bass! I can perfectly match up with your brother who plays guitar. We can make money together—wouldn’t that be great?”

The middle-aged disabled man grinned, revealing a row of yellow teeth.

“Sure. Then I’ll have to break both your legs first!”

Wu Xiaozhou gave an exaggerated shudder, pretending to be terrified. Then he grinned again and said:

“Don’t do that! Look, you and your brother both have difficulties moving around. If I’m a fully able-bodied person, wouldn’t I be able to help you two run errands or something?”

The middle-aged disabled man looked at him sideways.

The long-eyelashed girl sitting beside Wu Xiaozhou covered her nose with her hand, her face full of disgust.