Reality or Dream?

The next morning, Meng Xintong put on her uniform and went to court to defend her client.

Before she left, she told me that my flight was at 10 o'clock, and that she had already bought the ticket for me, so I could just go to the airport.

Perhaps it was because I was too tired from being with her, but after she left, I drifted off to sleep again, and when I woke up it was already 9:30.

I didn't even have time to eat. I just got dressed, quickly washed my face, and rushed to the airport. But when I arrived, the plane had already taken off ten minutes earlier.

I checked the schedule, and there's only one flight today, with another one tomorrow night.

In other words, if I can't leave today, I'll have to wait until 9 PM tomorrow.

After hesitating for a long time, I checked and found that there were still trains departing for Suzhou on the same day.

I took a taxi to the train station and bought a ticket to Suzhou.

After buying the ticket, I realized it was a slow train. If I boarded the train at 2 PM, I wouldn't arrive in Suzhou until after 1 PM the next day.

I was really frustrated, but I had no other choice. In short, the sooner I got there, the better.

After waiting for almost two more hours at the train station, I finally got my ticket checked and arrived at the platform. Thinking back to my school days, when I traveled from Ju County Railway Station to the provincial capital, I felt incredibly proud the first time I took a train.

Later, after taking many train rides, I always felt a kind of inexplicable sadness when looking at the scenery outside the train window. As for why, I don't know.

As I stood on the platform waiting for my train, lost in thought, a voice suddenly came from behind me: "Young man, could you help me with my luggage?"

I quickly turned around and found an old lady standing behind me with her back bent.

His body was hunched over, his face was wrinkled, and his hair was gray. He stood beside me, trembling.

I'm really worried she might fall at any moment, which reminds me of my mom.

"Auntie, let me help you." The old lady looked to be in her seventies and was carrying a large canvas bag.

The old lady looked up, grinned at me, and said, "Young man, thank you."

When she smiled at me, I couldn't help but be taken aback. The old lady was over seventy years old, her voice was slightly hoarse, but full of energy, and even quite pleasant to listen to.

Most importantly, she had a set of snow-white teeth, whiter and straighter than mine.

Just as I was filled with doubt, the train slowly pulled into the station. I helped the old lady carry her luggage, and she took my arm as we boarded the train.

To my surprise, the two of us ended up in the same carriage, or more precisely, the same compartment.

I was on the bottom left bed, and she was on the second bed on the right.

Because she was older, I carried her luggage for her. When I put her luggage on the luggage rack, she kept saying thank you, thank you.

The train slowly started moving. The old lady was curled up on the small bed on the second floor, with her back to me. After a while, she began to breathe evenly.

I lay there, my mind a jumbled mess.

Every trip is an opportunity for me to engage in deep spiritual reflection. My mind is filled with all sorts of random thoughts.

Su Xiaoya, my friends and brothers, my confidantes, and the villagers in our village.

After thinking about random things for a while, I drifted off to sleep. When I woke up again, I could see the sunset in the west through the window.

The old lady was sitting opposite me, with her legs crossed, eating a big, red apple.

Seeing that I was awake, he grinned and said, "Young man, you slept soundly."

I scratched the back of my head and said with an embarrassed smile, "I probably fell asleep as soon as I got on the bus because I was too tired from doing farm work at home."

The old woman smiled, her face full of wrinkles: "Who are you trying to fool? Look at your slender fingers, not a speck of dust on them. You're definitely not a farmer."

After she said that, I realized she had a point. Although I am a farmer, I have never actually done farm work.

The old lady pulled out a big apple from somewhere and handed it to me: "Young man, have an apple."

I waved my hand: "I don't want to eat."

The old lady glared at me: "Young man, are you afraid my apple is poisoned? Don't worry, I'm old enough not to lie to you. You helped me with my luggage, so it's only right that I offer you an apple."

Seeing that she said that, I couldn't refuse, so I took the apple.

The Fuji apples from Yantai are sweet and sour, and very juicy. After eating one, I felt energized.

The old lady chatted with me for a while, and I learned that she had gone to the south to stay with her children. She also said that her children were doing business in the south and seemed to be quite wealthy.

But I didn't think much of it, thinking that if they were really rich, how could they let an old lady dress like that?

But when I think of Grandpa Zhao Jianshan, I know that his children are rich, and sometimes they don't have much to do with their parents.

I went to the restroom, then ate some food at the train's restaurant and drank a bottle of beer.

When I returned to my bed, it was completely dark outside.

I lay back in bed, my mind still wandering, lost in random thoughts.

When I looked up, I saw the old woman curled up there again, not moving at all, her body rising and falling slightly; she must have fallen asleep again.

Several more passengers, both men and women, came in. They were all on their own beds and didn't talk much.

Perhaps because I had drunk a bottle of beer, I felt drowsy and fell asleep again. When I woke up again, the lights in the carriage were off.

The air was filled with the sounds of snoring, rising and falling in waves.

In the brief moment I regained consciousness, I saw the old lady on the bunk bed opposite me suddenly slide off the bed.

That speed was much faster than that of a normal person.

I was stunned. What was going on? This old lady had difficulty moving around during the day, so how come she was getting out of bed so quickly now?

Am I seeing things or what?

By the dim light, I looked again, and the second bed was empty; the old lady was nowhere to be seen.

Out of curiosity, and also because I needed to urinate, I got out of bed, put on my shoes, and went outside.

The corridors of the sleeper cars were empty, with only the smoking area lit up.

What's going on? This old lady went to the restroom? She's so fast, her movements are so nimble.

I shook my head, twisted my neck, and stretched my body before heading to the restroom.

When I got to the bathroom door, I found that no one was inside, so I pushed the door open and went in.

He unzipped his pants and let loose, completely waking up from his drowsy state.

At that moment, what I thought about most was that old lady. The instant she got off the bed, she was as fast as an ape.

Just as I was lost in thought, a soft footstep came from the other side.

Just as I was about to open the door to go out, someone pushed the door open and forced me in.

The person moved with lightning speed and great strength. Only then did I realize that the person who pushed me in through the door was none other than the old lady sleeping opposite me.

I was even more surprised; how could she have such strength?

Just then, the old woman reached out and covered my mouth. At the same time, her voice changed, becoming clear and melodious, yet carrying a sense of pressure: "Don't speak, whatever you do, don't speak."

Hearing her clear, melodious voice, I was even more astonished. This old lady's voice was so beautiful, as pleasant as a silver bell.

But then, something even more surprising happened.

The old woman reached into her hair and gently tugged, tearing off the gray-white wig.

At the same time, she placed her hand on her hairline and pulled hard.

That old and ugly face disappeared.

Instead, she had a delicate and exquisite face with stunning features.

Her black hair, neither too long nor too short, shone with a glossy sheen, perfectly complementing her fair, delicate, and gentle face.

For a moment, it reminded me of Xiaoqian from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio.

What's going on? Am I dreaming?

How did this old lady suddenly transform into such a beautiful young woman?

But what surprised me even more was yet to come.

The girl gave me a wicked smile, and with a wave of her hand, she tore open her tattered clothes.

She wore a black, tight-fitting tank top underneath and a pleated mini skirt on the bottom.

Full breasts, long, snow-white legs...

Is this reality or a dream?