Ahua stared intently at the White Rabbit creamy candy in Wen Ci’s hand, swallowing hard. “Sister, is this for me?”
“Mmhmm,” Wen Ci nodded.
The middle-aged woman tried to dissuade her. “Young lady, you have to be careful when you’re away from home. Don’t just interact with strangers. Who knows, they might be bad people.”
Ahua tilted her head, confused. “But Auntie, I only met you yesterday, didn’t I? And you said you’d take me to Beijing to find a job. Are you a bad person?”
Wen Ci: “…”
Hearing this, she focused her gaze on the middle-aged woman, narrowing her eyes slightly as she scrutinized her. The woman opposite was dressed simply.
She didn’t look like someone who could arrange jobs.
“Ahua, don’t wrong a good person!”
Wen Ci didn’t say anything yet and began to play along, pretending she was also going to Beijing to seek out relatives. She chatted pleasantly with Ahua throughout the day.
Ahua’s full name was Li Huahua.
She was going to Beijing because her younger brother at home needed to go to school, and her parents wanted to marry her off to an old man. Her brother had stolen a few hundred yuan from home and given it to Ahua, telling her to run away.
Ahua had heard that the North had heavy industry, so she wanted to settle in Beijing.
After listening to Ahua’s story, Wen Ci sighed softly.
It was true that the North had heavy industry, but factories involved in heavy industry typically hired people with educational backgrounds. Moreover, the heavy industry in the North wasn’t centered around Beijing.
Beijing was the capital and had very little heavy industry.
Suddenly, the middle-aged woman sitting opposite them spoke up. “I have connections at the factory. My own grandfather’s brother is the deputy factory manager. Once we get to Beijing, how about I help you find jobs?”
A glint of cunning flashed in Wen Ci’s eyes. After talking for a whole day, she had finally waited for the middle-aged woman to show her true colors. There were many people like this woman on trains.
They usually trafficked naive and ignorant young women.
They used job offers or other promises to lure them in.
Wen Ci pretended to know nothing and asked, “But I heard you need at least a high school diploma to work in a factory?”
“My grandfather’s brother is the deputy factory manager!”
Ahua grabbed Wen Ci’s hand. “Sister, come with me for company! We can go work at the factory together. We can be colleagues and friends.”
Wen Ci smiled. “Okay.”
Early the next morning.
Using the excuse of going to the bathroom, Wen Ci found the train police. The train police held the same rank as regular police and even carried pistols at their waists.
Wen Ci glanced back, careful not to alert the suspect.
She approached the train policeman and said, “I want to report a suspected trafficker on this train.”
“Miss Wen, are you sure?”
Before boarding the train, Xu Jinghe had specifically asked the railway authorities to look out for Wen Ci and informed them of her status as a military wife. The train policeman naturally believed her.
“Certain and sure.”
“Alright. After we disembark, I’ll have my colleagues make the arrest.”
They couldn’t just arrest someone on the train based solely on Wen Ci’s word; they needed real, solid evidence.
Wen Ci suggested, “I’ll follow them when they get off.”
“Good.”
That afternoon, on the green-skinned train to Beijing, the slightly staticky broadcast announcement sounded: “Passengers, the train will soon arrive at its final destination, Beijing Station. Passengers who are disembarking, please take your carry-on luggage and prepare to leave…”
Ahua looked out the window with excitement shining in her eyes, full of longing. “So this is the capital? Can we go see the greatest square tonight?”
Tiananmen Square was a place countless people yearned to see.
A flicker of displeasure passed through the middle-aged woman’s eyes. Suppressing her feelings, she said, “The square will always be there. Let’s go get the jobs settled first.”
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