Rust II

"Please note that the express train T4789 from city C to the south of city B is about to be checked in. Passengers who take the express train T4789, please prepare in advance, bring your belongings, and go to waiting room 3A for ticket check. "

2006.02.12.13:29

The square of the city station in City C is crowded with people, and the information and dates of the upcoming trains are scrolled on the huge electronic display screen in turn. The bell towers gathered together, and rushed to different directions in the center in an instant, and quickly disappeared behind the security gates.

Lin An stood at the end of the line outside a certain security checkpoint with a suitcase in hand, narrowing his eyes slightly facing the sunshine, with a gentle smile on his face.

"Mom, I've arrived at the station and I'm waiting for the security check. Well, don't worry about it." He said softly to his mother on the phone, paused, perhaps hearing what Lin's mother explained again, and smiled again , Reassured: "How come, there will be no danger. Ganzhou is not as bad as you imagined. It has everything it should have. It's just that the location of my school is a little bit off, but it doesn't matter. Colleagues and students are very warm and kind, and I don’t have any friends there, if there is anything, they are willing to help.”

In the end, the smile on his face deepened a little, and while slowly moving towards the security check entrance with the team, he said a little helplessly: "Didn't I explain all this to you in detail when I was at home? Why did you start again?" Don't worry?"

Lin's mother sighed heavily in her hometown in County X, and for some reason, she just couldn't really feel at ease.

She still remembers that at the end of the year before last, she was busy at home with the small field left by the back door, when Lin An suddenly returned to County X with her luggage full of exhaustion, which shocked her back then, and was busy Ask the other party what's wrong, why don't you go to school on a good weekday, and instead run home.

Lin An didn't answer directly, but said that she was too tired recently and wanted to take a break, so she asked the school for half a month's leave.But half a month later, without warning, he told her solemnly that he had decided to resign from X, and was going to participate in a three-year voluntary teaching trip to province J organized by the Ministry of Education at the beginning of next month. Activity.

Lin's mother was so shocked that she felt that something had happened to the other party in X. Otherwise, how could she have given up such excellent working conditions and suddenly wanted to go to Ganzhou thousands of miles away to support education?

And without any warning.

But no matter how she asked her afterwards, Lin An kept silent about the matter, and just kept explaining repeatedly that he was just tired, and wanted to go out for a walk by the way, and just happened to catch up with such an event, so he took the initiative to sign up. Also tell yourself not to worry and not to think too much.

Lin's mother couldn't ask the answer she wanted, and she had no choice but to watch the other party approaching the day of the long journey step by step, and then received a letter of approval from the Education Department one day, and then began to check Tickets were booked, luggage was packed, and finally it was the eve of departure.

The mother and son were separated again, and Lin's mother's worry and uneasiness reached the highest point on the eve of the parting, but in the face of her almost begging questioning, Lin An's response was still the same few words that had been repeated countless times before.

It wasn't until he arrived at the bus station in County X that before he was about to get on the bus to the train station in City C, he put his arms around the shoulders of his mother, whose eyes were already quietly red, smiled pale and weakly, and said sorry softly.

Then he boarded the bus without looking back.

Mother Lin's worry has been firmly rooted in her heart since then, and it is difficult to get rid of it. Even after more than a year, the mental state and voice revealed by the other party from the phone calls to report safety and greetings have become Being more and more sunny and positive cannot completely erase her depression and anxiety.

Fortunately, Lin An's return home during the Spring Festival gave her some comfort.The other party did look more energetic, and the light in his eyes did not know why. Apart from the gentleness and calmness in the past, he seemed to be more determined.In addition, when talking about what I saw and heard in southern Jiangxi, what I poured out in my words is really not a trace of pain, but full of joy and peace.

However, no matter how happy and peaceful, Mother Lin still couldn't hold back the worries that kept rising in her heart when the holiday ended and she faced parting again. So until Lin An's people had arrived in City C, she still couldn't help but make another phone call. He repeated what he had just explained at the X county passenger station not long ago.

Lin An listened patiently, reassured, and with guilt, followed the team through the security check, then found a seat in the waiting hall, and waited for more than ten minutes before the radio began to broadcast his train number information and reminded that the ticket check was about to start , ended the call with Mother Lin.

But I didn't want to hang up the phone, and after digging out the ticket from the backpack, the phone in my hand vibrated again, and then the screen turned on automatically, and a text message flooded in.

Lin An glanced at his left hand. After standing up and carrying the bag back in an orderly manner, he pulled the suitcases close to his side and lined up in the long queue waiting for the ticket inspection. mailbox.

But amidst the din of people, a message from "Ding Hua" was lying across the top of the screen.

——Have you got in the car yet?

Lin An glanced quickly, and saw four extremely concise words, which quietly jumped into his sight.

Not far away, the notification sound of the opening of the ticket inspection machine sounded "beep", and the staff who assisted the ticket inspection stood under the gate exit and reminded the black crowd: "Come and line up, you can pass."

The team suddenly began to move forward on a large scale, and the further they moved forward, the more blurred the boundaries between teams. Crowds of people from all directions gathered in a group, vying for the nearest and most convenient ticket inspection machine.

Lin An dragged his luggage with difficulty amidst the crowds and crowds, and finally passed the ticket inspection along with the crowd a few minutes later, and quickly got off the elevator with the scattered crowd, found his own compartment and seat, and put away his luggage. sat down.

After everything was settled, he looked at the still crowded aisle, and only after the passengers around him had almost taken their seats did he take out the mobile phone that he had stuffed into his coat pocket just now in his haste.

I saw that the screen that had been unlocked again was still stuck on the interface of the sudden text message.

He looked at the few words on the text message for a while, thought for a while, and replied two words briefly: on.

Then he put the phone back into his pocket with a hint of doubt, but he didn't want to turn around a little and dig out the biographies of the characters that he picked up at the market in County X during the Spring Festival from the bag he was carrying. There was another faint vibration in the pocket.Lin An froze for a moment, then changed hands and took out the phone again.

--be safe.

I saw this line of words appeared in the inbox that had not yet exited.

The sender is also displayed as Ding Hua.

Lin An stared at this line of words for a while, and a stronger sense of strangeness suddenly crossed his mind, but he didn't think too much about it. After hesitating for two seconds, he replied again: "Okay."

After a pause, I added another sentence: Thank you.

The train finally started, and the mobile phone has been completely silent since then. During the 12-hour drive, from day to night, and from night to dawn, the sun and the moon quietly passed by the countless fields and wasteland beside the track. Completed the rotation and alternation again and again.

After the train completely stopped at the platform in the south of Ganzhou City, there were not many people left in the carriage. Most of the passengers got off at the Ganzhou City Station at the previous stop. Simple, and like Lin An, passengers who need to go to the bus station to transfer to a relatively remote small town in Ganzhou.

Lin An's luggage was relatively simple, except for a suitcase filled with clothes from various seasons and a carry-on bag, he had nothing else, so after a little tidying up, he got out of the car first and arrived at the passenger terminal ahead of schedule. stand.

The bus to County A only leaves twice a day. The noon bus was not in line with the train from City C to Gannan, so we had to give up. The remaining bus in the evening was still nearly two hours away.

Before the days of early spring have had time to get out of the cold winter, the wind blows in through the windows of the waiting room of the passenger station, making people's hands and feet numb from the cold.

Lin An soaked a bowl of noodles at the water receiving place, picked a corner place and ate a couple of casual bites, and called Lin's mother to report that he was safe, then rubbed his hands and moved around on the spot.A few minutes later, after my hands and feet were warmed up, I sat down again, and dug out the biographies of the characters I hadn't finished reading on the train from my bag, to pass the long waiting time.

But before the book turned two pages, the phone in his pocket buzzed again.

Lin An hurriedly finished reading the episode in front of him, and subconsciously reached into his coat pocket, but after taking out his mobile phone to look at it carefully, he suddenly found that the thing that appeared on the lit screen was still from Ding A text message from Hua.

He stared at the short message with only three words "Are you here?" for a while, and the doubts in his heart resurfaced.

But after waiting for a few seconds, I recalled the phone call from the other party’s sudden New Year’s greetings on New Year’s Eve, plus these three text messages with obvious caring meanings that I have received continuously since yesterday afternoon. A little bit of gratitude.

So after hesitating for a while, Lin An decided to call back in person, which can be regarded as a response to the rare concern of the other party.

However, it is regrettable that the person who asked about his itinerary eagerly just ten seconds ago did not know whether the other party was busy and inconvenient to answer the call. The beep ended automatically and was not picked up.

The wind penetrated from the transparent door curtain that was lifted from time to time not far away. Lin An put down the phone, frowned slightly, and then stretched it out. After a little thought, he lowered his head and switched the interface of the address book back to the message box, sending A message passed: it has arrived.

After hesitating for a while, he added a word of thanks as before: Thank you Ding Ge.

The other party did not respond.

Lin An suppressed the doubts in his heart, waited for a while, collected his mind, and looked at the book in his hand again. After more than an hour, he followed the ticket inspector's prompt and got on the bus to the next destination.

The road in Ganzhou is much bumpier than that in City C, especially the area leading to the outskirts, which is often so bumpy that people can jump out of their seats.However, the scenery outside the window is very good. Unlike the buildings that can be seen everywhere in City C and the more and more shops along the roads in County X, what is most common here is the scattered shade of trees that can't be seen as far as the eye can see, and the people who are hidden behind the shade of trees. The looming wider farmland.

Lin An looked at the scenery outside the window, and an hour later, under the setting sun, he got off the car at the finish line.

After another half-hour walk, I finally arrived at the school before it was completely dark.

After tonight, it will be the school's official registration day, so apart from Lin An, several other faculty members have also arrived at the school, and it happened to be the Lantern Festival, so everyone sat around in the simple office, each holding a A bowl of Lantern Festival brought from the cafeteria and a few random fried side dishes, gathered together for a festival.

When Lin An arrived, the other three "old" colleagues had almost finished eating. Hearing the movement of the wheels of the suitcase rubbing against the ground in the corridor, they poked their faces out of the door and smiled at him: "Hey, Mr. Lin, Come? Hurry up, put your luggage in the dormitory, and come over and have something to eat together." After finishing speaking, one of his closest friends, Teacher Cui, turned around and turned to the other two new arrivals in the room. The two volunteer classrooms introduced half-jokingly: "Wait, let you see the number one county grass in our S county in 5 minutes."

Suddenly there were two chuckles in the room.

After a while, Lin An settled his luggage in a small single dormitory next door, and walked into the office next to Mr. Cui's urging, and while sitting down, he said goodbye to the other two colleagues. After saying hello, finally, a pair of eyes full of gentle smiles fell on the two unfamiliar faces opposite.

Cui Qing brought him a bowl of porridge cooked with glutinous rice balls from the pot, pulled out a pair of chopsticks and put them on the table in front of him, and introduced them to both sides with a smile, "Come on, introduce, this is me Just mentioned Lin An, Teacher Lin." Then he turned around, "These two children are newcomers this year, from the Normal University in City B, and they graduated this year, and they said before graduation that they wanted to make some contributions to public undertakings. , so I came here for an internship.”

After saying that, he blinked at Lin An again, and said slyly, "It's still a couple."

Lin An smiled. Cui Qing had actually mentioned this in a text message a few days ago, so he was not too surprised to hear it again, so he only slightly hooked the corners of his lips when he heard the words, and chatted with the two juniors in a gentle voice. After a few words, they fell silent and carefully tasted the porridge and Yuanxiao in the bowl. After waiting for more than ten minutes, they heard that the topic had changed to the teaching progress of the new semester, and then put down the bowl and rejoined the discussion.

The Hope School they are in is the only school that covers nine-year compulsory education in this town and several nearby towns. Including the resident Cui Qing, there are no more than six in total.Under such limited conditions, 90.00% of the students studying here barely finish junior high school, basically ending their student career completely.

However, the situation this year is slightly different. Among the few dozens of third-year junior high school students, it is rare for a few students to have outstanding grades. Lin An feels that if the financial subsidies are in place, these two students may even It is very hopeful to stand out in the high school entrance examination and try to sprint to the high school in the city.Therefore, during this vacation at home, he specially formulated a targeted counseling plan, and brought it up in this discussion.

The reason why everyone chooses to gather here is more or less to bring hope into this land and let the role of education play the greatest role here as much as possible. Therefore, as long as the fate of these children can be slightly changed, even if The effect is minimal, and I am willing to try it.

So several people discussed with high spirits, and soon decided that starting this semester, they would organize a weekend free tutoring class for the third grade of junior high school. The top ten students in each monthly exam can participate. month's senior high school entrance examination.

Under the rather heated discussion, the teaching tasks of the teachers of each subject were quickly assigned. Cui Qing also found out from his desk the test scores of all the junior three students before the winter vacation, and drew a line on the spot. I wrote a list of the top ten by hand and planned to announce it at tomorrow's registration meeting.

When the discussion was almost over, the two new young girls and boys quickly integrated in. They were half-grown children who had not yet completely left the campus. They were bold, enthusiastic, and aggressive. After some discussions, they were already excited. There was a slight red light, as if what was about to be invested was not a teaching career, but a battlefield full of flames.

And as soon as they get to know each other well, the topic will naturally open up slowly.

Under Cui Qing's smiling question, the young couple talked about their experience from the original intention of choosing a major to the experience of traveling all the way to Ganzhou to be a volunteer, and then shared two simple and shy words. The process of people getting acquainted and falling in love, so for a while, a discussion that was originally considered serious, suddenly shrouded in an unspeakable youthful but sweet atmosphere.

Lin An listened quietly all the time, occasionally meeting the eyes of the two children on the opposite side, and then raised his lips and smiled at them.

"Oh, by the way, I don't know if Mr. Lin is married yet?" Unexpectedly, a few minutes later, the girl suddenly turned to ask him with a smile.

Lin An was taken aback for a moment, and after two seconds, he lowered his eyes slightly and shook his head with a smile.

The girl looked very surprised, said "ah", and after blinking, she seemed to want to continue asking something, but Cui Qing took the conversation.

He glanced at Lin An, who was smiling and silent at the side, and joked: "You teacher Lin, you are so focused on the students in our school, you don't care about your children, let alone getting married, and now you don't even have a girlfriend. Not yet."

As he spoke, he teased the silent Lin An, "Am I right? Teacher Lin?"