Without a mobile phone or internet, the train had malfunctioned. Li Banfeng just sat silently in the carriage.
Li Banfeng only felt a bit bored, but the situation for the other passengers wasn’t nearly as good.
「The next morning」
They could still bear it.
By noon, they could barely hold on.
By evening, their patience had worn thin.
There was a specific type of person who could die if they went a single day without food.
These people were known as Food Cultivators.
"Let me off the train! I’ll fucking curse your ancestors! I’m starving to death here!" a Food Cultivator yelled, grappling with a train attendant.
"Don’t fucking talk to me about rules! I need to eat! I can’t starve to death here!" another Food Cultivator shouted, rushing forward.
Despite the intense struggle, Li Banfeng could tell that the attendant’s demeanor was very restrained.
"Sir, please return to your carriage!"
THUMP! With a muffled sound, that passenger’s words were no longer as vehement.
"Sir, the train has not reached the station. We cannot let you off midway."
THUMP! Another muffled sound, and the other passenger’s emotions also stabilized somewhat.
"Sir, the entire train crew expresses our deepest apologies to you."
THUMP! A third muffled sound, and the third passenger fell completely silent.
CLANG!
The attendant herded the passengers back to their respective carriages.
CLANG!
The attendant closed the carriage doors one by one.
On the first day, Li Banfeng heard of six such incidents.
The number was still manageable.
Apart from the Food Cultivators, the other passengers could endure a day of hunger.
「By the second day’s dusk」
The situation had started to get out of control.
"Sir, you look so handsome, and you’re so kind-hearted. Just let me get off for a little bit, please? I’ll be right back."
"Ma’am, the train has not reached the station. We cannot let you off midway."
"Sir, I’ll just be gone for a moment! Five minutes! It won’t even take five minutes!"
"Ma’am, this is our regulation, and I am acting in accordance with the rules."
"Rules are rigid, but people are flexible! Sir, I really fancy men like you. Won’t you give a girl like me just five minutes, please?"
"Thank you for your compliment, ma’am. Please return to your carriage immediately."
"I fucking want to get off this train! I can’t starve to death here! I’ll fucking fight you!"
DING CLANG! DING CLANG!
"Help! He’s hitting a woman! Are there any real men in Puluo State? Come fight him!"
Li Banfeng sipped his instant noodles.
That night, the attendant endured thirteen assaults but eventually persuaded all the passengers back to their carriages.
「By the third day」
Things had calmed down somewhat.
It wasn’t that they didn’t want to cause trouble anymore; it was that they no longer had the energy.
After three days without food, not many people still had the strength to make a disturbance.
Even those who had some strength couldn’t afford to waste it; they knew they were no match for the attendants.
Li Banfeng stayed in his carriage the whole time, barely moving. Two containers of instant noodles a day were enough for him.
But this couldn’t go on. By nightfall, only five containers of instant noodles remained, and Li Banfeng was getting nervous.
KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!
A series of knocks sounded. Li Banfeng’s eyebrows twitched; he tensed, on alert.
He had experienced starvation. He knew a starving person was capable of anything.
The knocking was soft, and the knocker’s voice was cultured.
"Friend in there," the voice said, "I’m begging for some food. I don’t need much, just a bite. I can endure it myself; I want to give some to my wife and child."
Li Banfeng stood a step from the door, holding a spicy snack strip and a thermos of hot water, waiting for the person’s next move.
The person outside made no move. His tone remained polite. "Friend, I know food is precious. I’m not asking for charity. I’ll buy it."
The man seemed to realize this was inappropriate and quickly corrected himself. "I’ll trade food for food. Please, I’m begging you."
Li Banfeng spoke, "If you have food, why do you want to trade with me?"
"Because... my child is afraid to eat this."
"What is it?"
"I can pass my food to you first. You just need to open the door a crack."
Li Banfeng’s heart pounded. After a long silence, he twisted the lock and cautiously opened the door a crack.
This wasn’t rashness; it was caution.
He wouldn’t allow the man to enter the carriage, but he had to give him a chance to negotiate.
Although he couldn’t see the man, he sensed a peculiar aura from his voice alone.
Every word the man spoke was humble, yet carried an undercurrent of steadiness and calm.
As an orphan who had to fight off bullies, Li Banfeng had dealt with all sorts of people.
Li Banfeng thought,
Through the crack in the door, the man first passed his "food."
The moment he saw that "food," Li Banfeng mentally praised himself.
It was a bluish-black object, partly flesh, partly bare bone.
Judging by the arrangement and number of bones, it was a human hand.
"Whose hand is this?" Li Banfeng asked.
"My own," the man answered calmly.
Li Banfeng looked at the hand, nearly half of which had been gnawed away. He turned, retrieved two containers of instant noodles, and passed them through the crack in the door.
This was clearly beyond the man’s expectations. He hadn’t dared to hope for even one container; he truly only wanted a single bite.
"This is too much, really, you don’t have to..."
"Take them. And take your hand back too," Li Banfeng said, passing the severed hand back to the man. "Find a hospital. Maybe it can still be reattached. It should be possible."
Li Banfeng locked his compartment door. From outside came a continuous stream of thanks:
"Thank you, thank you, thank you..."
The voice was low and cultured, but no longer as composed.
The man’s voice trembled, sounding as if he might break into tears at any moment.
As the voice faded into the distance, Li Banfeng returned to his bunk, opened his backpack, and took stock of his remaining food.
Three containers of instant noodles, one bag of potato chips, and one and a half packs of spicy snack strips.
Enough for two days. If he ate sparingly, perhaps three.
「As dawn approached」
A steam whistle shrieked, startling the languid passengers awake.
The train started.
CHUG! CHUG!
Listening to the rhythmic chugging of the Steam Engine, Li Banfeng felt it was the most beautiful music in the world.
RUMBLE!
The train suddenly jolted. The violent tremor threw Li Banfeng from his bunk.
Instant noodles, potato chips, spicy snack strips, his backpack—everything spilled onto the floor.
RUMBLE! RUMBLE!
The train continued to shake violently. Li Banfeng curled up in a corner of the compartment, clutching his head and desperately shielding his vital areas.
he thought.
After a few moments of violent jolting, the train gradually steadied. Li Banfeng heard the announcer’s voice: "The malfunction has been resolved, and the train is now proceeding safely. We are passing through a rough section of track, so please refrain from moving about unnecessarily."
Li Banfeng sighed in relief and quickly gathered his scattered food.
The instant noodles, potato chips, and spicy snack strips were undamaged.
But the backpack was gone!
Startled, Li Banfeng immediately searched around.
The compartment remained pitch-dark; the power had not been restored.
After searching for some time, Li Banfeng finally fumbled for and found his backpack under the bunk.
The space under the bunk was very narrow. Li Banfeng reached in and tugged hard. The backpack came free, but the package inside it snagged on something under the bunk.
He had used too much force, forgetting the backpack’s zipper was open.
He reached under again, felt for the package, and found it was wedged tightly.
Li Banfeng thrust his entire arm under the bunk and pulled hard.
RIP!
The package came free.
The outer cardboard box was torn. Inside, the bubble wrap was also ripped.
Li Banfeng held the package and moved to the window. he thought.
By the flickering light filtering through the window curtain, Li Banfeng began to open the package.
He removed the torn cardboard, then the ripped bubble wrap. Inside was a layer of tin foil.
After removing the tin foil, he found a layer of Yellow Paper.
Peeling off the Yellow Paper revealed wax paper.
And beneath the wax paper, there was a layer of silk.
When he finally lifted the silk, Li Banfeng saw the object’s true form.
In the dim light, Li Banfeng couldn’t quite make it out at first.