To please others? It's better to please yourself.

With so many people around, it's inconvenient to walk around. Xu Jing'an could only drink less water to reduce the number of times she needed to use the restroom.

I was so thirsty, I took a sip. The train carriages are now even more chaotic than the hard sleeper compartments.

Xu Jing'an had nothing but two steamed buns and a teacup outside, and she wasn't worried about losing anything.

But when it was time for dinner, she looked around first: some people were eating white flour steamed buns, some were eating sesame seed cakes, and some were eating biscuits, but most of them were eating coarse grains.

Xu Jing'an then took out the cornbread and slowly began to eat it, head down. She had to eat it little by little; she had to get to it!

"Mom—Mom—, I need to pee!"

The little boy looked to be a little over 2 years old and was pulling on the woman opposite him and shouting.

The woman looked young, not yet thirty. Perhaps she was worried that it would be inconvenient to carry such a small child, or that the child would move around and run around, so she simply put the child in a bamboo basket.

With so many people around these days, it's impractical to take a child to the toilet.

The woman pulled the child out of the car and helped him stand by the window. As soon as his pants came off, the little guy darted out the window.

By midnight, the train was stopping and starting, and there weren't as many people anymore. At least you could walk through the carriages! There were definitely fewer people going to the toilet now.

Xu Jing'an got up and kept saying "Excuse me, please make way" as she walked to the connection between the two carriages, which was not far from the toilet.

Several burly men were huddled together, surrounded by a lot of luggage.

Xu Jing'an glanced subconsciously at the crowd. Suddenly, someone across from her looked up. Their eyes met, both of them paused for a moment, then casually looked away.

Xu Jing'an withdrew her gaze and calmly continued walking towards the restroom.

As soon as she came out, she encountered a gay man wearing a white "Dacron" shirt and gray pants.

He was about 1.7 meters tall, in his forties, wore glasses, and had a scholarly air about him.

Holding a sleeper ticket, he was asking people around, "Comrade, do you need a soft sleeper?"

Most families are not well-off these days, so many people try to save money when traveling for work.

This has led to a situation where many people who are qualified to travel in sleeper berths (both soft and hard sleeper berths are available) do not choose to use them. This is because they can use the difference in travel expenses as a personal subsidy.

The person being questioned was also a gay man in his twenties, wearing a white "Dacron" shirt and black pants.

The young man waved his hands repeatedly, saying, "No need, comrade, I don't need it. I'm young and strong, I'll be fine!"

"Why don't you go ask some older women, women with children, or women who are in poor health?" After saying that, he walked towards the carriage on the right.

Xu Jing'an, who hadn't taken it seriously at first, immediately became alert after hearing these words.

For Xu Jing'an, good fortune never came her way.

Sure enough, the older man looked around and immediately called out to Xu Jing'an.

"Comrade—, Comrade—"

Xu Jing'an pretended not to hear, quickened her pace, turned left, and walked back the way she came. After all, the two didn't know each other; who would know who he was calling?

"Hey, this lady is calling you!"

Just as Xu Jing'an was about to leave, a woman next to her suddenly reached out and grabbed her.

Xu Jing'an turned her head to look at the large hand that was pulling her arm. The kind woman who was trying to stop her from leaving looked to be about the same age as her, around thirty years old.

He was wearing a slightly worn shirt, his facial features were somewhat hard, his frame was rather large, and he wore a long braid.

"Big sister, what did you say?" Xu Jing'an asked loudly.

"I said—someone's calling you!" The older woman pointed to something.

At this moment, the man had caught up.

Xu Jing'an turned her head and looked around, completely puzzled: "Comrade, are you calling me? What's up?"

"Let's get this straight: don't even ask for money or food! We don't know each other, and we have absolutely no connection!"

The man said helplessly, "Comrade, I didn't mean anything by it. I just wanted to ask you—"

The man glanced around, then pulled a sleeper ticket from his pocket and waved it: "Can we talk outside?"

Xu Jing'an thought for a moment and said, "Come with me."

He led the person back to the connecting area between the carriages next to the toilet. "What do you want to say? Just say it here!"

The man said frankly, "Comrade, my name is He Liang, and this is my press pass."

Xu Jing'an glanced at it but did not reach out to take it.

He Liang continued, "I was just asking if you needed a sleeper ticket. I'm constantly traveling, and things aren't easy these days, so every penny counts!"

Someone dressed in "Dacron" asked someone dressed in old cotton if they wanted a sleeper berth. Xu Jing'an found this ridiculous!

Xu Jing'an: "Comrade, where is this ticket going?"

He Liang immediately replied, "To H City! If you can't get a seat there, give me less."

Xu Jing'an: "What a coincidence, I'm there too. How much do you want?"

He Liang was about to speak when he glanced at Xu Jing'an, swallowed hard, and said, "Little sister, I won't ask for much, how about 20 yuan?"

Xu Jing'an frowned and glanced at the sleeper ticket with a troubled expression.

"Brother, if that's your price, I won't take it. Go find someone else!"

After Xu Jing'an finished speaking, she turned to leave.

"Young lady—, young lady," the man quickly tried to stop her.

"Young lady, don't rush off. How much do you think is appropriate? I'm not asking for more!"

Xu Jing'an also stopped. "Brother, I know you didn't ask for much, and ordinary people can't get a soft sleeper like this."

Pointing to herself, she said, "But do I look like someone who can afford that?"

The man followed Xu Jing'an's hand and looked her up and down, then down and up again.

The woman in front of me had a slightly yellowish complexion and was wearing faded clothes with patches on her canvas shoes.

No one who sees this can honestly say that he is not a poor man.

No one would believe it: this woman is a student at Peking University and the wife of the deputy captain of the criminal investigation team in H city.

The man clicked his tongue, realizing he hadn't expected the woman to be so good at pretending; he had miscalculated.

A few of us guys made a special trip to Beijing for this, thinking it would be an easy job. Who would have thought there would be so many people on this train!

Old Hua managed to pry open an empty sleeper compartment, which finally provided a place to settle them. It would be easier to lure them here, wouldn't it? Otherwise, what would they do with people everywhere?

Xiao Liangzi seized the opportunity to steal someone else's sleeper ticket. Now he had the tools to fool people, and the excuse was ready.

Who knew this woman would be so difficult? She's only just gotten off the train now. The employer has already paid, so I have to get this done no matter what!

There was no other way but to lower the price; otherwise, how could he continue the performance?

The man steeled himself and said, "How about 10 yuan? That's the lowest I can go!"

Upon hearing this, Xu Jing'an shook her head: "Brother, you overestimate me. Why don't you find someone else?"

He Liang gritted his teeth: "Five yuan, girl, this is a huge splurge!"

Xu Jing'an immediately slapped his thigh: "Okay, big brother! We'll do it your way!"

He Liang's face stiffened for a moment.

"I can tell, brother, you're an honest and straightforward person. No wonder everyone around me says I'm lucky; I really do meet helpful people every time I go out!"

The man chuckled and said, "Little sister, what's your name? It's fate that you call me 'big brother'!"

He didn't expect this female college student to be so easy to fool; women are all prone to being greedy for small gains.

Xu Jing'an looked at the other person sincerely: "Brother, my name is Xu Jing'an. I felt an instant connection with you the moment I saw you. I never lie."

"In my heart, we are definitely siblings despite having different fathers!"

He Liang could now truly feel that Xu Jing'an was not lying.

Because her eyes were so sincere, and her gaze towards him was so passionate.