Chapter 6: A New Journey and an Unexpected Encounter

At this moment, the bus engine rumbled to life. The driver began to call out.

“The old driver is heading out! Hurry and get on board!”

The young man withdrew his hand, saying nothing more as he headed for the door. Lin Duo quickly jogged to follow close behind him.

Settling back into his seat, Lin Duo glanced at the electronic clock at the front of the bus. It was almost time for his medication.

He rummaged through his backpack, pulling out a chewing gum box. Inside, he meticulously selected several small, differently shaped pills and swallowed them with a gulp of soy milk.

For three years, he had taken his medicine three times a day, precisely on schedule, a habit so ingrained he wouldn’t forget even away from home. Meanwhile, the young man, bored, connected his phone to a power bank and resumed playing his game.

Though it was daytime, most passengers on the bus seemed listless. Lin Duo, however, was an exception.

His large eyes constantly scanned the world outside the window with eager curiosity; everything beyond the glass was new and captivating to him.

Noticing Lin Duo’s demeanor, the young man couldn’t help but feel a touch of curiosity.

“Is this your first time on a long-distance bus?”

“It’s my first time traveling across provinces,” Lin Duo replied. She felt a good impression of the man, so she spoke without reservation. “Big brother, look, ‘Wuxian Convenience Store.’ Where exactly is this Wuxian?”

“How would I know about such a small place…” The man grumbled under his breath, yet he still opened his phone’s navigation app to show Lin Duo. “See, around this spot. We’ve traveled almost half the journey.”

Lin Duo took the man’s phone and played with it for a moment, a sense of wonder filling her.

“Our country is so vast! The bus has been driving for so long, yet we’ve barely moved on the map. If I ever get the chance, I’d love to travel across this entire map and experience all the different landscapes.”

A smile touched the young man’s lips.

“It seems you have the potential to become a fellow traveler.”

“Fellow traveler? What’s that?” Lin Duo blinked, her eyes wide with curiosity.

“It’s someone who shares your hobby of traveling to a certain place,” the young man explained patiently. “Traveling alone can be a bit dull, and some expeditions require a few companions to look out for each other.

“Since people around you might not share the same enthusiasm, travel enthusiasts from all over the country connect through various means to embark on adventures together. For example, I came to Jiangbei City previously to meet up with four fellow travelers, and we climbed Mount Daxue together.

“After the climb, the group disbanded, so now I’m taking the bus back to school alone.”

“I really envy your travels! I wonder if anyone will ever be willing to travel like that with me.” Lin Duo’s voice held a hint of sadness, for she had always been ostracized by her classmates. The only person she could truly call a friend at school was Jiang Chengying.

The young man smiled, gently patting Lin Duo’s head.

“Don’t worry. How could a cute girl like you ever lack friends? By the way, I still don’t know your name.”

“My name is Lin Duo. It’s ‘Lin’ as in ‘double wood,’ and ‘Duo’ as in ‘many’.” Lin Duo’s large eyes shone bright like black gemstones.

“Lin Duo? That’s an easy name to remember.” The young man took his phone and typed his name onto the screen. “Here, ‘Yuan Dingchu.’ You recognize all the characters, right?”

“Are you treating me like a primary schooler!” Lin Duo shot him a disdainful glare.

“Alright, alright, I know you’re not a two or three-year-old child, right?” Yuan Dingchu’s eyes twinkled with amusement. “How about we exchange numbers?”

This small request, however, put Lin Duo in a difficult position. Her original phone card had long since been discarded.

After a moment of hesitation, she told a small lie.

“My old phone card broke, and I was just planning to buy a new one once I reached Nan’an City.”

‘Broke? Can a SIM card even break?’ Yuan Dingchu thought to himself, but he didn’t voice the question. He simply nodded slightly. “Alright then, I’ll accompany you to buy a new card when we arrive.”

Around two in the afternoon, the bus stopped once more at a rest area for passengers to eat. After that, it was the final eight hours of the journey.

Lin Duo gradually lost her initial sense of novelty, pulling out a novel from her backpack and beginning to read.

Yuan Dingchu was also the restless type. He leaned over to glance at the book’s title.

“It’s a world classic. Nowadays, kids usually prefer reading web novels and quick reads. Someone like you is quite rare.”

“I don’t care if it’s a classic or not, but it’s genuinely enjoyable!” Lin Duo temporarily closed her book, her face earnest. “Big brother, what kind of books do you read?”

“Me, well…” Yuan Dingchu pondered intensely for a long while before finally blurting out a title. ” ‘Golden Scales Are No Mere Pond Dwellers!’ I finished that one completely!”

“Is it a wuxia novel?”

“Mhm, yes… pure wuxia…”

Amidst their intermittent chatter, the bus finally entered Nan’an City. Indeed, Nan’an City lived up to its reputation as a commercial metropolis. Even at night, it was ablaze with lights, skyscrapers towering in dense rows.

Coming from a small city, Lin Duo was seeing such a spectacle for the first time. Excitedly, she tugged at Yuan Dingchu, peppering him with questions.

“Look, look, that building is so beautiful! And that one, it’s so tall…”

Yuan Dingchu was quite patient, sometimes even explaining the history and background of a particular building.

Around 9 PM, the bus finally pulled into the equally bustling bus station. The moment they stepped off, a swarm of people holding signs converged on them.

“Sir, do you need accommodation?” – “Sir, do you need an invoice?” – “Sir, do you need a ride?” – “Sir, do you require special services?”

Yuan Dingchu, evidently experienced, immediately grasped Lin Duo’s small wrist through his sleeve as they disembarked. He quickly pulled her away from the dense crowd, not forgetting to caution her.

“This place is a mixed bag, and there are many pickpockets. Don’t linger too long in crowded areas. Especially since you’re a young girl traveling alone, thieves will be even more brazen.”

“Mhm, I understand!” The tall figure before her made Lin Duo feel a profound sense of security.

Leaving the station plaza, Yuan Dingchu, familiar with the area, found a phone screen protector stall and got straight to the point.

“You sell SIM cards here, right?”

The stall owner nodded repeatedly.

“We have ‘three-no’ phone cards. They come pre-loaded with 50 yuan credit, and the exact price depends on the number.”

Yuan Dingchu took the price list offered by the owner and showed it to Lin Duo.

“Anyway, the better the number, the more expensive it is. You choose.”

Lin Duo, after all, was short on cash, so she didn’t aspire to a fancy number. She obediently chose a regular 80-yuan number, exchanging money for the card with the stall owner.

After inserting the new card, Lin Duo’s phone naturally received a signal. She dialed the number Yuan Dingchu recited, and soon, they had each other saved as contacts.

And so, the ‘big brother’ she had met by chance on the bus became the very first contact in Lin Duo’s new phone.

Having finished these tasks, Yuan Dingchu checked his watch.

“Good thing this long-distance bus was quite punctual. I can catch the last 856 bus directly back to school. By the way, where are your relatives who are supposed to pick you up?”

“They… they should be here in a bit.”

Lin Duo dared not reveal that she had run away from home. In her mind, only ‘bad kids’ ran away, and she feared Yuan Dingchu would dislike her if he knew the truth.

Yuan Dingchu didn’t seem particularly suspicious.

“Alright, if you need anything, you can contact me anytime. For example, if you want to explore this city, I can be your free tour guide. Uh, my bus is here, I have to go, bye-bye!”

“Bye-bye!” Lin Duo also waved goodbye, watching Yuan Dingchu squeeze into the crowded public bus. A sudden emptiness settled in her heart.

The journey, which had briefly been a lively two-person adventure, had once again become her solitary path. Lin Duo lingered for a moment, gathered her emotions, and then set off to find a place to stay.