As I emerged from the police station, Fatty immediately rushed over, asking me what happened.
I explained the situation, and he breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought something serious had happened, Fatty here was scared to death!"
"What were you scared of?" I asked him irritably.
"I was eating my instant noodles, minding my own business, when suddenly a railway police officer shows up and tells me to get off the train without a word. As soon as I got off, I was cuffed. I was thinking if it was about you going into that tomb…"
Before he could continue, I quickly glared at him. "You didn't tell them everything, did you?"
"How could I? Fatty isn't the type to betray his friends. I wouldn't say a word even if you beat me to death!"
"Then what did you say in there?"
"Nothing much. After I was brought in, a police officer asked me a few questions about my situation, and then no one bothered with me anymore."
I let out a breath. "Good thing you didn't confess without being interrogated. Otherwise, it would have been a case of 'protesting too much'!"
"Brother Xiang, even though we went into the tomb, we didn't take anything from inside. This doesn't count as grave robbing, does it?" Fatty said.
"You're still talking!" I quickly covered his mouth and pulled him away from the police station.
If anyone overheard that, we'd be back for more 'tea' soon.
Just as we were about to leave, a police officer suddenly called out to us, making me nervous.
"Officer, is there anything else?"
"This is the bus ticket the station got for you. There's a bus going to Mohe the day after tomorrow."
"Thank you, Officer. Thank you."
Walking out of the police station compound and onto the street, I sighed.
I hadn't planned on taking the bus the day after tomorrow. I was thinking of going to the station to see if there were any other buses to Mohe. Just as I was about to hail a taxi, I heard a familiar voice.
"Thief!"
I froze for a moment, then turned to see the girl from the train. She was coming out of the police station, laden with bags, a smile on her face.
"Can you stop shouting nonsense?" I said, annoyed. If it weren't for this girl, I'd probably still be on the train.
"I'm sorry… I misunderstood you on the train just now."
"You knew you misunderstood me, yet you still called me a thief?"
"I didn't know your name," the girl said, taking her hand out of her glove to introduce herself. "I'm Jiang Lingxi. What do you call yourselves?"
I was about to ignore her, but Fatty sidled up and shook her hand. "You can call me Fatty. This is my buddy Xiang Fei, Xiang like Xiang Yu, Fei like airplane."
"Where are you two going?"
"Where else? To the station, of course," I replied curtly.
"Then I'd advise you not to bother. There definitely aren't any buses to Mohe right now. The soonest one is the day after tomorrow," Jiang Lingxi said with a smile. "How about this, I was wrong before. I apologize, and I'll treat you to a meal."
I was about to say no, but Fatty chimed in, "That would be great! Thank you for your generosity."
I glared at him, asking with my eyes, "What's with you, you rascal?"
Fatty leaned into my ear and whispered, "Brother Xiang, someone's treating us to a meal. Might as well eat it."
My eyes darted around. "You're not by any chance taken with her, are you?"
"How could that be! I'm just doing it for the food!" Fatty said.
"What are you two whispering about?" Jiang Lingxi asked.
Fatty replied, "Nothing, I was just telling him not to be angry with you anymore. Anyone would have misunderstood in that situation."
Jiang Lingxi smiled. "You men, why are you so petty?"
"I…"
Before I could say anything, Fatty was already trotting over to help her with her luggage.
That darn Fatty, so much for friendship when girls are around!
We soon arrived at a restaurant, and Jiang Lingxi ordered several stewed dishes.
Stewed ribs, stewed potatoes, stewed vermicelli – all hearty farmhouse fare.
I have to admit, the stews were quite delicious.
During the meal, Jiang Lingxi told us that her hometown was Mohe and she was going back to visit relatives.
This girl worked in another city and happened to be on vacation, so she decided to go back home for a while.
"What are you two going to Mohe for? Tourism?" Jiang Lingxi asked, taking a sip of hot tea.
"No, we…"
I shot Fatty a look and replied, "Yes, I'm going there for tourism."
"You really know how to pick your time. Coming here for tourism now, aren't you afraid of the cold?"
"We're from the south. We rarely see snow, so we wanted to come and have a look," I said with a smile.
"Southerners?" Jiang Lingxi glanced at me, then at Fatty. "He's from the north, isn't he?"
"Absolutely. I'm a bona fide northerner. He's from the south, and I'm accompanying him this time," Fatty grinned.
"What do you do?" Jiang Lingxi asked.
"Antique business," Fatty blurted out.
"Antique business? What's that? Collecting antiques?"
"Something like that," Fatty said. "Brother Xiang has a very large antique shop in Guangling, and I work for him."
"Oh, I didn't realize you were a boss?" Jiang Lingxi said with a smile.
"Don't listen to Fatty's boasting. We're just running a small business. He's a boss too, what do you mean 'work for him'? The way he says it!" I said.
"You two are really interesting," Jiang Lingxi said with a smile. "You don't seem like bad people. Fate brought us together. How about this, I'll take you to Mohe."
"How will we get there?" Fatty asked.
"If you're not in a hurry, you can wait for the bus the day after tomorrow. If you're in a hurry, we can share a ride."
"Share a ride?"
"Yes, I know a driver here who often drives long distances. I've already contacted him, and he'll be here to pick me up soon. How about it? Shall we go together?"
While I was still considering, Fatty agreed. "Sure! It'll be nice to have company on the road."
Jiang Lingxi smiled and looked at me. "So, it's settled then?"
I pursed my lips and sighed. "Alright, then thank you for the trouble."
"What trouble is that? When we get to Mohe, I can be your guide. Is there anywhere you'd like to go?" Jiang Lingxi asked.
"I haven't decided yet. We'll see when we get there," I replied.
"Okay, I'll go to the public phone and call that driver."
I pulled out my phone and handed it to her. "No need for that. Use my phone."
Jiang Lingxi looked at the Motorola in my hand and smiled. "They say southerners are rich, and it's true. This phone is worth several months of my salary."
"Sister Lingxi, what do you do?" Fatty asked with a smile.
"I do geological surveying. You wouldn't understand even if I told you," Jiang Lingxi said, taking my phone to call the driver.
By about seven in the evening, we got into a pickup truck.
The driver, Jiang Feng, was Jiang Lingxi's acquaintance and a distant relative. He introduced himself as soon as we got in.
The driver was in his forties, a rather hearty northeastern man, and polite. As soon as we got in, he offered me and Fatty cigarettes.