Rebirth Must Be Happy

Chapter 278 [276] A Narrow Victory
The teacher who accompanied her to the competition was named Tang Yuecheng. She was a middle-aged woman in her thirties, with a slender appearance and a rather crisp and efficient demeanor.

Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing parked the car and then met up with Tang Yuecheng at the entrance of the station.

How much food did you bring?

The train journey was nearly 24 hours. The school reimbursed for the sleeper berth but not for food and drinks, so Tang Yuecheng brought a lot of food with her. After saying goodbye, she asked Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing, "Do you want to go buy some more?"

"My bag is full of food."

Xu Jinhuan pointed to his backpack, indicating that he had enough supplies, and said, "Let's go."

The three of them went through the ticket check and entered the station. An hour later, they arrived at Pengcheng Railway Station. They had to wait for an hour and a half, so Xu Jinhuan suggested going out for lunch. Tang Yuecheng said, "I brought instant noodles. You guys go ahead and eat."

"Teacher Tang, we'll be on the bus all day, and we're probably going to get sick of eating instant noodles all the time."

Xu Jinhuan smiled and persuaded, "You probably know my situation. You didn't need to make this trip. I feel bad about the long journey. Besides, I can earn my own money and don't need to spend my parents' money. This meal is on me."

Tang Yuecheng was about to decline, but Xie Wanqing also persuaded her, so Tang Yuecheng had no choice but to agree. She dragged her suitcase out of the train station, ate a simple meal at a dumpling restaurant nearby, and then went back to wait for her train.

Before getting on the bus, Xu Jinhuan ran to a roadside stall and bought three pancakes, but said nothing and just put them away.

Are you and Xu Jinhuan really siblings?

After the meal, the three had become quite familiar with each other. While waiting for the car, Tang Yuecheng asked Xie Wanqing curiously, "Why does it feel like you're the one listening to him the whole time?"

"I am actually his assistant."

Xie Wanqing replied somewhat embarrassedly, "He's the boss, he's the one who pays my salary, so of course I have to listen to him."

Tang Yuecheng asked again, "Have you graduated?"

"No, I'm a junior in college, it's summer vacation now..."

The two chatted casually, with Xu Jinhuan not participating much. They quickly boarded the train after having their tickets checked, and the three of them found their respective carriages and then searched for their sleeper compartments one by one.

The three-person bunk consists of the lower, middle, and upper bunks of number 9. When we found the place, we saw a briefcase and a suitcase on the bunk, and a middle-aged man with a receding hairline in a suit and leather shoes was sitting there, chatting with his companion in the lower bunk opposite him, who was dressed similarly.

In sleeper cars, it's common to see people chatting on the lower bunks of the middle and upper berths when they're not sleeping, but it's rare to see people putting their luggage on other people's berths.

As the teacher, Tang Yuecheng immediately made a negotiation, politely saying, "Hello, we are in the upper, middle and lower bunks of number 9."

Hearing her words, the middle-aged man with the receding hairline remained seated calmly, pointed to the next room and said, "I'll switch with you. You can sleep in the next room; it's also a lower bunk."

His speech and demeanor clearly indicated that he was used to giving orders, and he had a bit of a leader's air about him. Tang Yuecheng was probably used to working in the system, and after a slight pause, she didn't know how to respond for a moment.

She originally planned to sleep on the top bunk herself, leaving the middle and lower bunks for Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing. She wouldn't mind switching bunks, but Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing would definitely not be happy to sleep separately.

"We'll sleep here tonight!"

This guy's even more pretentious than me! He put his backpack on the bed, gave a cold laugh, and said, "If you're asking for a favor, you should act like one. Who knows you when you're out and about?"

"Mediterranean" was clearly not expected to be rebuffed. He paused for a moment, and his face immediately turned bright red with embarrassment. His companion on the lower bunk next to him quickly stood up and said, "Young man, we're really sorry, we'll go back now."

He apologized repeatedly, grabbed the Mediterranean man, and, carrying his bag, quickly hid in the Mediterranean man's bunk next door.

Tang Yuecheng was stunned to see him being so assertive when he was out and about, and she was also surprised that things were resolved so easily.

Xie Wanqing was used to it, and looked at Xu Jinhuan: "Where do you want to sleep?"

Xu Jinhuan said, "I'll sleep on the top bunk. You two can choose the rest."

"I'll sleep in the top bunk."

Tang Yuecheng quickly said, "I'm a bit short, and you're so big, you'd be miserable sleeping on the top bunk... Alright, don't refuse, let's do it this way."

As she spoke, she quickly took off her shoes, stepped onto the footstool, and climbed up. Xu Jinhuan couldn't pull her down, so he stopped hesitating and put both suitcases on the footstool.

"Sister, where do you want to sleep?"

Xu Jinhuan asked, and offered a suggestion: "I've always thought the middle bunk is actually the best, and you can usually lie down on the lower bunk and enjoy the convenience... Why don't you sleep on the middle bunk?"

Xie Wanqing smiled and said, "I also want to sleep in the middle bunk."

"Okay, then you can sleep in the middle bunk."

Xu Jinhuan sat down on the lower bunk. "Take a break... Did you message them?"

Xie Wanqing: "Not yet."

"Then I'll send it."

Xu Jinhuan sent a message in the group chat to let everyone know he was safe, and only then did he have time to look around at the other bunks. The lower bunk opposite him should be the "Mediterranean" companion from before, while the middle and upper bunks were still empty.

He was trying to find a charging outlet when he saw an elderly woman and a young girl come to the door of the cubicle. The elderly woman was an old lady who looked to be in her sixties or seventies, and the young girl was a young girl who looked to be in her twenties.

The two approached the cubicle and glanced around. The girl put down her backpack and then said crisply to Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing, who were sitting on the lower bunk, "Handsome guy, beautiful lady, are you on the lower bunk? Could we discuss switching seats with my grandma? We'll cover the difference." Xie Wanqing looked at Xu Jinhuan, who smiled without hesitation and said, "Okay."

"thank you."

The girl smiled and thanked her, and the old lady quickly replied, "You can just sit here. I don't need to sleep during the day."

The girl put down her backpack and asked, "Where are you going?"

Xie Wanqing asked, "Yinchuan, where are you?"

"We got off in Lanzhou."

As the girl spoke, she took out her wallet and said, "We are in the middle and upper bunks of bunk number 10. We'll trade our middle bunk for yours, and I'll give you an extra 30 yuan. Is that enough?"

Xie Wanqing looked at Xu Jinhuan again, and Xu Jinhuan smiled and said, "There's no need to upgrade the middle bunk. I prefer sleeping in the middle bunk anyway."

"Consider it a thank you; we can't let kind people suffer losses."

The girl still handed over 30 yuan, but seeing that Xu Jinhuan refused to accept it, she took out a handful of "children's sweets" from her bag and said with a smile, "Then please have some candy, thank you so much."

Xie Wanqing took the candy and handed it to Xu Jinhuan. Xu Jinhuan took four candies, then gave two more to the upper bunk, saying with a smile, "Teacher Tang, I'm treating you to some candy."

Tang Yuecheng overheard the conversation below, and without refusing, took the food and ate it.

"Are you classmates?"

The girl sat on the lower bunk opposite her grandmother and asked Xie Wanqing curiously. When Xie Wanqing shook her head, the girl smiled and said, "I knew it. You wouldn't go out with your teacher during summer vacation. Your boyfriend is so tall and handsome."

Xu Jinhuan had just given Tang Yuecheng some candy when he sat down again and smiled, "You have excellent taste too."

The girl laughed again and said, "But your girlfriend is prettier."

Xie Wanqing was initially shy and wanted to explain, but the girl took out her phone from her pocket, which looked like a Meizu MX, and answered the call.

Afraid of disturbing Xu Jinhuan and the others, she went to the window in the corridor to answer the phone. Xie Wanqing then turned to look at Xu Jinhuan. Her already charming eyes were watery with shyness, making them even more captivating.

Xu Jinhuan said in a low voice, "Don't flaunt your wealth."

His full meaning was: when telling someone that you are going to participate in a competition, you should talk about the game and say that you have made a lot of money because of the game.

Xie Wanqing was naturally able to find loopholes and clarify that they were just not boyfriend and girlfriend, so there was no need to say so much. However, she did not refute it and took out her phone to chat with Song Zhiyu and Chen Xingruo in the group.

Chen Xingzhu was in class at the time and did not reply to the message.

Soon it was evening. Tang Yuecheng took a bucket of instant noodles to make them, and Xu Jinhuan also accompanied Xie Wanqing to make instant noodles. They also shared the three pancakes they had bought at noon. After eating and drinking their fill, they went to bed.

Xu Jinhuan dozed off two or three times in a daze. When he couldn't sleep, he would listen to crosstalk with his headphones on to relieve his boredom. When he was still bored, he would listen to the clanging of the railway tracks.

After finally enduring until a little past four o'clock, Xu Jinhuan couldn't lie still any longer and got out of bed. As soon as she moved, she saw Xie Wanqing across from her also propping herself up on her elbows and sitting up.

The cubicle doors and windows were closed, and the light was dim. I could vaguely see her long hair draped over her shoulders, her eyes gentle and alluring as she asked in a low voice, "What's wrong?"

"I'm going to the bathroom."

Xu Jinhuan answered softly, "Are you going? There will be a lot of people later, and we'll have to queue."

"Then I'll go too."

Xie Wanqing hesitated for a moment, then quietly got up and went to the restroom in the carriage together. There was no one inside. Xu Jinhuan turned to look at her and smiled, "You go first, I'll keep watch outside."

Xie Wanqing nodded shyly, went inside and closed the door, but remained silent. After a while, she heard a strong sound of rushing water coming from inside.

? ?
Xu Jinhuan raised an eyebrow and continued to wait outside. Soon, he heard the sound of flushing water coming from inside, and then Xie Wanqing opened the door and came out.

Her cheeks were slightly flushed, but Xu Jinhuan ignored it, went inside and closed the door, responding with the sound of rushing water. He secretly compared the noise level in his mind and felt that he had the advantage of height, so he shouldn't be any quieter than Sister Xie.

A narrow victory!

As soon as the two of them came out, they heard a train attendant announcing, "Lanzhou Station has arrived." When they returned to their berths, they saw that the old lady and the young girl had already packed up.

"Let's get off the bus first."

The girl specially added Xie Wanqing as a WeChat friend and said with a smile, "Next time you come to Lanzhou, I'll treat you to mutton."

The train slowly slowed down and stopped at the station. This time the stop was longer, a full ten minutes. The girl accompanied the old lady off the train. Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing couldn't sleep. Just as they sat down, they saw her come back.

"My dad sent it."

The girl was carrying things in both hands, which smelled delicious. Seeing Xu Jinhuan sitting in the aisle, she placed the things on the table in front of him and said with a smile, "Lamb soup, fried dough sticks, paomo (pita bread soaked in mutton soup), fried dough cakes, and braised dishes. Eat them while they're hot."

As dawn broke and the train arrived at its destination, many people woke up. Smelling the aroma of food, they all looked over. The girl waved to Xu Jinhuan and Xie Wanqing, then quickly turned around and got off the train.

　Thank you Curtuan for the 10,000 reward!
　　By the way, I'd like to offer a newly released book as a tribute: "My Talent Panel Can Be Allocated".
　　
　
(End of this chapter)