Chapter 167: Floating

"East, West, South, North and Center, to make a fortune, go to Guangdong."

This jingle, which suddenly became popular in the late 80s as reform and opening up continued to deepen, spread throughout China in the early s, inspiring the ambitions of countless migrant workers to go south to seek their fortune.

Far away from their homeland, they are wandering and struggling in a wave of change that has not been seen in 5,000 years. Although in a sense this group can be described as "humble", history must admit that no matter they are ordinary assembly line workers, small vendors who are unwilling to work in factories, or foot massage technicians who spread their legs and enjoy themselves on a chopping board that is two meters long and one and a half meters wide, this group of people who have drifted south have carried the magnificent process of China's reform and opening up over the past 40 years.

Since 1992, more than 1000 million people from other provinces have flocked to Guangdong to work every year, and the floating population has exceeded 2600 million. While this group of migrant workers who left their homes in the great era quickly led to the vigorous development of the private economy in the coastal areas, it inevitably put tremendous pressure on China's extremely backward railway transportation at that time.

It was early July in 1993, the height of summer, the best time of the year, the peak period for students to graduate and leave school, and the heyday of migrant workers going south. In this era without 12306, buying a train ticket to the south during the Spring Festival and graduation season was the most painful time of the year for everyone.

Even if you have bought a train ticket, a seat is out of the question for most ordinary people. Every time the train passes a station, waves of people rush towards it like refugees. The scene is so tragic and spectacular that it is hard to imagine.

Because of the large passenger flow, trains used to transport goods or livestock would also be used at this time. This type of train carriage had only one window, which was 30 cm long and wide. In that era, it was commonly known as a "stifling car". Just like the name of this image, it was suffocating. During the day, the sun was shining and it was as hot as a sauna; at night, the temperature dropped sharply and it was freezing cold. Every time a train was picked up, the first thing the staff did was to check each tent one by one to see if there were any dead people in the carriage.

Zhang Yunqi and his party took the most primitive green train of the 60s, with an average speed of kilometers per hour. There were also huge crowds of people, and there was no place to stand in the aisles. Most people stood on one leg. The toilets were always full, and it was common to wait for several hours and end up with feces and urine drying in the crotch of the pants. But no matter what, it was at least better than a stuffy train.

In addition to the few people who had been agreed upon, Wang Guibing and Ma Shi also went south this time. Ma Shi just returned to Jiangchuan a few days ago. After Zhang Yunqi talked to him, he took him along. Because the people brought this time are not yet adults and the journey is not very peaceful, Wang Guibing and Ma Shi can take care of his safety for him.

Actually, Zhang Yunqi didn't know how Ji Ling convinced her father Ji Zhong to allow her to travel as a girl. Although Ji Zhong called him, he didn't say anything, but just asked him to take good care of Ji Ling.

He didn't know why Ji Zhong trusted him so much.

Except for Zhang Yunqi and Wang Guibing, it was the first time for everyone else to take a train. They were very excited, eating the snacks they brought with them and looking around. It was graduation season, and there were many graduates from Xiangnan College on the platform, crying and hugging each other, especially the girls, some of whom were limp. The scene was more like a battlefield than a graduation farewell. When the train left the platform, waving arms and tears flew together. The scene was quite touching, even though they were all freshmen in high school.

After the train left the platform, Wang Xiaokai and his friends leaned against the windows to watch the river moving farther and farther away and receding. Perhaps for them who grew up on this land and were leaving it for the first time, there was a wonderful feeling at that moment, like a dandelion leaving its mother's body.

There were nine people in the group. Zhang Yunqi and his sister Chunlan sat together, facing Chujian and Ji Ling. In the next compartment sat Wang Guibing, Wang Xiaokai, Tian Zhuangzhuang and Yang Wei, while Ma Shi sat alone in the seat diagonally opposite. Wang Xiaokai's table started playing cards as soon as they got on the train. They had a lot of fun in the smelly, crowded and bumpy carriage. This attitude of being able to entertain oneself no matter where they were was quite enviable. However, Zhang Yunqi was not interested in this game and would get sleepy as soon as he played. Chujian, Ji Ling and Chunlan did not know how to play cards, so they chatted and talked nonsense.

The one who was in the best spirits was Ji Ling. She brought a very metallic Konica camera and took a lot of photos on the way. Chu Jian next to her brought a book, but didn't read it because the bumpy train made her dizzy.

The seat where Chu Jian sat was close to the aisle, which was packed with people. A skinny, dark-skinned migrant worker was leaning next to her, carrying a large bag. There were so many people that his feet were almost suspended in the air. He relied on one arm to lean on the edge of the seat where Chu Jian sat, supporting himself to stand on one leg. The train at that time had no air conditioning, and the weather in July was stuffy, hot and dry. The carriage was like a steamer, and the migrant worker was sweating profusely, and it was particularly unbearable.

Perhaps he couldn't bear it at first sight, so he stood up and gave his seat to the migrant worker.

The migrant worker pulled his hand out with great difficulty and waved it, then grinned, revealing a mouthful of bright white teeth: "You are a student returning home from another place, it's not easy to study abroad, I'll just stand there."

Amid the clanging sound of wheels, the green train bound for Guangdong galloped across the Central Plains like a wild horse. Ji Ling took a camera and took a lot of photos.

In that invisible film, there is a picture of a couple who couldn't buy a seat and slept standing together in each other's arms; there is a picture of a family of three squeezed into one seat, me holding you and you holding the child. Of course, there is also the moment when the farmer smiled at the first meeting.

Zhang Yunqi gave his seat to the farmer uncle and chatted with him. He looked very old, but he was only 38 years old. He was from Sichuan and was very shy. After chatting for a while, he said that he went to Guangdong to work and earn money. He was not married yet. He had a niece. Her parents were gone, so he was supporting her. Now his niece was a freshman at Southern Hunan Normal University. He could not afford to support her by farming, so he left his hometown and moved south.

It has been more than ten hours since the migrant worker got on the bus and he has not eaten anything. In the middle, Wang Guibing ordered a box lunch. He asked how much it cost, but said nothing after that. He just sat there. However, he was in good spirits, especially when talking about his niece. He said that he had raised her for several years before she went to the normal school, and now that he has lived for half of his life, he has no plans to get married, and wants to support his niece until she graduates from college and has a stable job.

Zhang Yunqi asked him: "How is your niece's grades?"

"Very good, the first college student in our village, and a student of a prestigious university." He smiled happily. The feeling hidden in the smile was something Zhang Yunqi could feel every time he showed his mother the test paper with a perfect score in his previous life.

(End of this chapter)