The next day.
The sun had just risen.
Morning. Downstairs of the quarters.
Dong Xuebing walked out of the building with a big and a small suitcase. He squinted his eyes to avoid the sunlight and found his Land Rover parked in the courtyard. He opened the boot and placed his luggage in it. After that, he called the County Government Office Director Ma Bin and asked him to come downstairs. Dong Xuebing gave Ma Bin the keys to his dormitory and office and signed the documents. Now, Dong Xuebing had completely severed his ties with Zhen Shui County. He had completed the handover and the social intercourse. It was time to leave.
Dong Xuebing had wanted to leave quietly. He had said his goodbyes to everyone and did not want to create any commotion. That's why he woke up so early. But maybe he had stayed downstairs for too long, or maybe he was too loud with Ma Bin. Someone overheard him.
After a while, many people came downstairs.
There was Pu An, Chang Juan, Li Xiaona, and so on.
"Mayor Dong."
"Why are you all here?"
"I need to send you off. Why are you leaving so early? I thought you will be back in the morning. "
"Thank you, everyone. You don't need to send me off."
"Wait a while. I still have some local specialties for you."
"Sigh … I am leaving secretly because I do not want to trouble you all."
"Mayor Dong, no … I should be calling you Chief Dong. Be careful on your way back. This is a mask. I heard there is a Bird Flu outbreak in Beijing recently. You must be careful."
"Ok. I will take it. Thank you."
"Drive slowly. Have a safe journey. Come back when you are free."
"Ok. Take care. We will meet again if there is a chance."
Many people came out of the building, and Dong Xuebing saw Jiang Fangfang's face through a window. Dong Xuebing nodded to her and bid farewell to everyone. After that, he boarded his car and waved goodbye to everyone. Dong Xuebing could not stand this kind of situation and felt sad. He turned on the music and played Wang Feng's song. It was a passionate song, and it washed away the sadness and melancholy in his heart. Dong Xuebing opened the side window and let the wind blow on his face. His hair and clothes fluttered in the wind. He held the steering wheel and started humming.
Half an hour later, the car drove out of the county.
Dong Xuebing did not turn back. His eyes were looking straight ahead, and he said in his heart. "Goodbye, Zhen Shui."
One hour …
Two hours …
Three hours …
In the morning, Dong Xuebing crossed three cities and headed east.
At noon, Dong Xuebing had lunch at a small town restaurant and continued to listen to music as he drove. He is not on the road anymore. It is more like a sightseeing tour. Sometimes, Dong Xuebing will stop by a lake and smoke a cigarette. He will even walk around the lake for a while before continuing.
He walked and stopped.
How carefree and leisurely.
All the burdens on his body had been put down. Now, he had no official position, no job, no worries, and he enjoyed this rare leisure.
"I want to live in full bloom …"
"Just like flying in the vast sky …"
Dong Xuebing was singing at the top of his lungs. Because the windows and sunroof were open, the cars passing by Dong Xuebing's Land Rover will look at him speechlessly. Dong Xuebing's singing is not good. But in this environment, Dong Xuebing's skin is very thick and does not care about anything. He just sings and shouts whatever he wants to.
In front.
It's the highway service zone again.
Dong Xuebing parked his car there and went to the bathroom.
After he came out, he was too lazy to go to a restaurant again. He went to the supermarket to get some snacks and burgers before leaving.
"Hitchhiking?"
"Yes. Is it convenient?"
"Where are you going?"
"I am not familiar with this area. Anyway, it is towards Beijing."
"That place? That's not on the way. I need to exit the highway in front."
"Haha … it's fine. Thank you."
Outside the supermarket, Dong Xuebing heard a middle-aged woman talking. She seems to want to hitchhike and is asking a young couple driving a Jetta if it is on the way. Dong Xuebing is not unfamiliar with hitchhiking, but he had never tried it before. When he heard the woman is going to Beijing, he took another look at her. Although he could not see her face, he can tell she is not young from her back view. Her black leather shoes and black stockings are old-fashioned. Her shoes are not very new, and young women will not wear these. Also, she has a voluptuous figure and a hoarse voice. She should be in her forties. Eh? Why does she look so familiar?
Over there.
The woman tilted her head and went to ask the next young man.
"Can I hitchhike along the way? It is towards Beijing. "
"Beijing? I am also not going there. "
"Where are you going? Can you give me a lift? "
"I am in a hurry. Sorry, sister. Please ask again."
"It's fine. Thank you, young man."
The woman ran into a wall a few times and did not get on the bus. She looked at the scorching sun above her head. It was already past two o 'clock in the afternoon, the hottest time of the summer. The shirt on the back of her back was stained with a lot of sweat. The bra strap was translucent, and it seemed to be the color of flesh. She saw no one is around and wiped the sweat off her forehead. She went to a shady spot under the supermarket's roof to hide from the sun.
Dong Xuebing returned to his car and reversed. He thought for a while and drove towards the woman. He wound down the window and shouted. "Sister, are you going to Beijing?"
The woman covered her eyes with one hand. "Yes."
Dong Xuebing could only see half of her face. "I am also going back to Beijing, and it is on the way. But I might not reach Beijing as I need to go to Fen Zhou first."
"It's fine. Just give me a lift."
"Alright, then get in the car."
"Ok. Thank you, young man."
The woman walked out of the shade and stepped on the hot ground.
Dong Xuebing put down his hand, and he could see her face. Her hair is tied up in a bun, and she is wearing gold-rimmed glasses. If it were someone else, Dong Xuebing would subconsciously glance at her chest and thighs. But this time, Dong Xuebing did not do that because he was stunned by her face.
The woman, blinded by the sun, pulled the door open and got into the car.
Dong Xuebing exclaimed. "Teacher Jiang! Hahaha! It's really you! "
Jiang Min looked at Dong Xuebing and laughed. She pointed at him and hesitated for a while. "Dong … Dong Xuebing."
Dong Xuebing was surprised. "Ah … You still remember me?"
Jiang Min was also surprised and laughed. "You had just graduated three years ago. How can I not remember you?"
This woman is a teacher from Beijing United University. When Dong Xuebing was in university, Teacher Jiang was not only Dong Xuebing's Computer Science Class 1's form teacher, but she also taught Advanced Mathematics. She had taught Dong Xuebing for four years, and after Dong Xuebing's father passed away, his family's financial situation was very poor. She knew about this and had dragged Dong Xuebing to her dormitory to cook for him. When Dong Xuebing was about to graduate, he failed one of his subjects, and Teacher Jiang helped him to pass. That's why Jiang Min is Dong Xuebing's most respected teacher in his university life. Dong Xuebing did not expect to meet her here.
Dong Xuebing is overjoyed. "I didn't expect to meet you here. Why are you here from so far away? Don't you have lessons? "
"It's summer holidays now."
"Ah … I had forgotten about this."
"Haha … I am here for a holiday. I am getting older, and my health is getting worse. I want to move around, and that's why I came out with my colleagues."
"Why are you hitching a ride?"
"Isn't this popular among young people? I also want to experience it. "
"Heh … it's dangerous for you to travel alone, and this is such a remote place."
"A few of my colleagues drove here together. Teacher Zhang, do you know about this? Oh, you might not know about this. After your graduation, your new teacher, Old Zhang, fell sick. He had gone to the hospital, but he did not recover. After that, they drove back. Old Zhang needs to rest, and there is not enough space in the car. So, I told them I want to walk around alone and did not go back with them. Now, I want to hitch a ride. " Jiang Min pushed her gold-rimmed glasses up her nose, "I was planning to go to Wei Yang City in the afternoon to have some fun and then look for a hotel. But the driver who took me here this morning had something to do, so he left me at the service area. I asked for a long time, but no one was heading towards Wei Yang. Either they didn't want to give me a lift, or they didn't want to give me a lift. Look, I'm sweating all over, and there's no place to take a taxi.
"What a coincidence. Hahaha."
"You are also going back to Beijing?"
"Yes, and I am not in a hurry. If you don't mind, you can tell me where to go. I will give you a ride."
"I even asked you to be my driver?"
"Heh, that is what I should do. It is my honor."
"It has only been a few years since you graduated, but you are getting better and better at talking. Among the students in our class, you are the only one who does not like to talk and is very introverted. This society is really good at training people."
"Actually, I do not like to talk now. Didn't I meet you, my teacher? I am very happy, and when I am happy, I talk a lot."
"You make it sound nice, but I have never seen you come to see me after graduation."
"Ahem, well, I have been working in another city, so I did not take care of you. This time, I will be your full-time driver for a few days as punishment."
"Hehe, okay. If it is on the way, let's go together. I am a woman, so I feel a little guilty."
"With me here, you can rest assured that you will be safe. Then, your driver and bodyguard will drive. Let's go!"
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
