Old Mrs. Song is reborn; get out of here, you scumbag husband and illegitimate child!

A passenger next to him leaned out and chimed in, "Bananas are expensive too. Even the ones with blackened peels at the supply and marketing cooperative cost over a dollar a pound. Your fruit looks familiar, like a longan, but it's so big!"

"This is what you call fresh longan, we call it dragon eye. It's when dried longan is young, beautiful, and juicy."

Song Xianglan held up a longan and pinched it between two fingers.

The milky white flesh pops out, crystal clear, and juice drips down your fingers.

"A bite of fresh longan is so sweet it warms your heart."

Passengers eager to try it out couldn't sit still any longer.

"Auntie, weigh me two jin of longan and a bunch of bananas." A man in a polyester shirt took out his wallet.

Song Xianglan brought a scale with her beforehand.

Two jin of longan were weighed, and a bunch of bananas weighed five jin.

"Longan is 2.4 yuan, bananas are 1 yuan per jin, 5 jin is 5 yuan. The total is 7.4 yuan."

The man took out a five-yuan note and a two-yuan note.

He gave Song Xianglan another 50 cents.

"Here's your change." Song Xianglan took the money and took out a one-cent bill from her pocket, handing it to him.

"Auntie, is it okay if I just want to buy five bananas?" A woman with a child next to her asked somewhat awkwardly.

"Just one is fine with me." Song Xianglan deftly picked the banana and weighed it. "When you're out and about, it's nice to have a taste and satisfy your craving. One yuan and fifty cents."

A crowd gathered around.

Everyone asked about the price.

Some handed over money, others took fruit.

Song Xianglan's basket of longan and three large bunches of bananas sold out in less than half an hour.

My pockets were stuffed full of heavy change.

Back in the sleeper car.

Song Xianglan put the empty scale in the empty basket and pushed it under the bunk, then sat down on the lower bunk and massaged her legs.

A young soldier was lying on the lower bunk opposite him.

He had a buzz cut, his hair was neatly styled, and his face was pale from blood loss.

"Auntie, you're back."

"Thank you for watching my luggage."

"It's what I should do."

Song Xianglan trusted these soldiers the most on the train; they were much more reliable than the train staff.

She untied the cloth bag that was placed at the foot of the bed.

He took out two salted fried dates wrapped in oil paper and handed them over.

"Comrade, have a fried date to tide you over. It's homemade."

The young man sat up and waved his hand.

"Auntie, no need. I'm not hungry."

Song Xianglan glanced at him.

She rummaged in her cloth bag, took out a few pieces of soft, sticky rice cakes and two tea eggs, and stuffed them directly into the man's hand.

"Take this and eat it; it makes me feel a sense of familiarity with you."

Song Xianglan pinched a fried date and took a bite. "My son is also a soldier. A few years ago, he fought in the southwest and escaped death. He was awarded the title of First-Class Combat Hero."

Now I've been demobilized and returned to my hometown. Auntie, when I see you soldiers, I feel like you're my own children.

Upon hearing the word "Southwest," the man straightened his back, a flicker of emotion crossing his eyes.

"Auntie, your son is a role model for us to learn from."

"You are the same."

The man didn't say anything, but peeled open the tea egg and took a bite.

After finishing the tea egg, he picked up the rice cake and put it in his mouth.

"tasty."

"Eat more if you like it." Song Xianglan grabbed two more fried dates and stuffed them into his mouth. "Are you on vacation visiting your family?"

"Yes. I'm recuperating and visiting relatives." The man finished the rice cake in a few bites.

Seeing that he didn't talk much, Song Xianglan didn't try to chat with him.

He rolled over, got into bed, and lay down to rest.

The train clattered and rattled forward.

Half a day passed.

It was getting dark outside.

The further north the train travels, the lower the temperature gets.

Song Xianglan got up.

He pulled out about a dozen bright red dragon fruits from a snakeskin bag under the bed, and then took a basket of longans.

She casually broke off two bananas.

Hand it to the man opposite.

"Young comrade, have some more fruit."

"Auntie, I don't eat fruit."

Song Xianglan glared at him and forcefully shoved the banana into his hand.

"My son is injured and also a picky eater. I try all sorts of methods to get him to eat. There aren't any fresh vegetables on the train, how can your body handle it if you don't eat some fruit?"

"When my son was hospitalized in Kunming, I went to take care of him. I got to know the doctors at the military hospital and learned how to take care of one's health."

The person in the upper bunk didn't speak.

The person in the middle bunk turned over and glanced down.

The soldier looked at the banana in his hand and silently peeled it.

The aroma of wild bananas wafted out.

Several passengers in the middle and upper berths leaned down.

"Auntie, do you have any fruit here? What's this bright red thing?"

"Dragon fruit. A precious treat from the South." Song Xianglan held up a dragon fruit. "It's good for clearing heat and moisturizing the intestines. Heading north, you won't be able to buy it even if you have money at the supply and marketing cooperative."

Dragon fruit grows very easily; it can thrive even in any corner.

The dragon fruit growing by the wall of Song Xianglan's courtyard is thriving; it's just like a wild one.

But in the North, it would be considered an extremely rare and precious item.

"How much is it?"

"Dragon fruit is 1.5 yuan per jin. Longan is 1.8 yuan per jin, and banana is 1.2 yuan per jin."

Several people gasped.

This is more expensive than it was previously sold in the hard-seat carriages.

Things are rare.

The further north the train travels, the scarcer these southern fruits become.

The fat guy in the upper bunk gritted his teeth, took out two yuan, and handed it down. "Give me a dragon fruit to try."

Song Xianglan gave him three dragon fruits.

"Would you like two more bananas? I won't give you change."

"Okay. Longan will do too."

Since they were all in the same carriage, Song Xianglan grabbed a handful of longans and gave them to him.

Where there are leaders, there are followers.

The two people in the middle bunk each had a pound of longan.

"Young soldier, can you watch the train for me a little longer? I'm going to walk around the carriages again." The train has stopped at four stations since we started selling fruit.

Song Xianglan wanted to make some more money.

"Okay. Auntie, I'll keep an eye on it."

Song Xianglan walked out of the sleeper compartment and called out as she walked down the aisle.

Half an hour later, the basket was upside down.

Song Xianglan's pockets were bulging with banknotes.

The joint between the hard-seat carriages.

The smells of smoke, sweat, and chicken and duck droppings mingled together.

A man with a pointed mouth and monkey-like face squeezed through the crowd and approached a thin old man wearing a gray cloth jacket.

"Godfather," Monkey Face lowered his voice, "that old woman is incredibly shrewd. She sold fruit from the south twice, with the price going up each time. A rough calculation shows she's made at least several tens of dollars."

The old man was holding two shiny walnuts in his hands.

His eyelids lifted slightly.

"Have you figured out their background yet?"

"Xiaoyue had already scouted the area. In sleeper car number six, there was a soldier who was injured and his face was as white as paper. He was going back to his hometown to recuperate and visit his family."

The old man suddenly stopped holding the walnut in his hand.

It made a crisp, clanging sound.

"Go. Be careful." The old man gestured, his eyes flashing with ruthlessness. "Take your weapon. If anyone resists, just..." He raised his hand to his neck and gestured.

"I know." The monkey-faced man touched the cold iron at his waist, then turned and blended into the crowd.

Inside the sleeper car.

Song Xianglan sat on the lower bunk.

His hands were in his pockets, clutching a thick wad of banknotes.

My heart is beating a little fast, and my eyelids are twitching.

She quickly reviewed the scene of selling the items in her mind.

Several pairs of eyes were fixed on her pocket.

Those eyes gleamed with a green light.

The eyes of a hungry wolf eyeing its prey.

Wealth should not be flaunted.

Selling such sought-after goods on a train has aroused envy among others.

Song Xianglan bent down and reached her hand into the basket under the bed.

I fumbled around for a bit.

He pulled out a gleaming butcher knife.

The blade was gleaming, exuding a bloody aura.

She casually stuffed the knife into the blanket and covered it with the corner of the blanket.

The man in the lower bunk opposite him stared intently at the bulging corner of the blanket.

"Auntie, you're being watched." The man's voice was low and a little hoarse.

Song Xianglan raised her head and met his gaze.

"fine."

She patted the blankets.

"Before I retired, I was a pig butcher at the commune's slaughterhouse. I could handle wild boars weighing several hundred pounds that were jumping around without any problem. These petty thieves should be fine."

The fat guy on the upper bunk, who had just bought dragon fruit, leaned out halfway, his face covered in cold sweat.

"Auntie, don't be so presumptuous. I've taken this train three times. Every time it was quiet at night. Those people are just after the money."

The fat man's voice trembled, and his hands gripped the edge of the bed tightly.

"Quickly take out the money and put it in plain sight next to your pillow. They'll take the money and leave."

If you take a knife and fight them, and you provoke these reckless people, they'll fight to the death.

After killing someone, they'd throw the body out the train window, making it impossible to find. By the time the train police arrived, they'd long since vanished. Besides, those people all had connections along this route.

He was practically saying outright that there were family connections on the train.

Song Xianglan remained silent.

He gripped the knife handle tightly in his hand under the covers.

Seeing that she wouldn't listen to his advice, the fat man shrank back in desperation. "Fine, if you're not afraid of dying, then tough it out. Let me tell you, I've been robbed twice already. They outnumber us and have killed people under their belts."

The fat man pulled the blanket over his head and huddled in the corner of the bed, too afraid to move.

The man opposite the fat man also spoke up, "Auntie, I still have a scar on my neck. I was almost strangled to death in the middle of the night. Later, I would rather use my connections and pay to take a sleeper car."

But the sleeper cars are the same, just not as frequent.

The person in the middle bunk quickly turned over, facing the wall and pretending to be asleep.

"I'll make them bleed tonight and avenge you." Song Xianglan acted like a dead pig that wasn't afraid of boiling water.

Those people were furious.

Even though they were grown men, they didn't dare to do it. Yet this little old lady, who wasn't even a ounce of fat on her body, really thought she was some kind of double-gun old woman.

The entire compartment was so quiet that only the clattering sound of the train hitting the tracks could be heard.

The night grew deeper.

The lights in the carriage flickered on and off.

Song Xianglan was right.

There were definitely more than one group of people on this train eyeing her as a fat sheep.

A double-crossing scheme.

It seems inevitable tonight.

Very light footsteps could be heard in the corridor.

Once, twice.

It stopped at the entrance of the sleeper compartment.

Three or four figures were reflected through the crack in the door.

He was carrying something long and thin.

Song Xianglan slowed her breathing and tensed her muscles.

The man opposite him also half-closed his eyes, gripping the iron railing of the bed with his hand behind his back. His entire position under the covers was perfectly positioned for an offensive maneuver.

A dark figure made a gesture, and then the doorknob made a slight click.