Chapter Forty-Three Arrival in the Capital

  In the old place, by the river's willow forest, Song Jie and Xiao Yan'er ran into each other.

  There are only two days left until August, and the farewell is imminent. Little Swallow grasped Song Jie's hand and refused to let go, as soon as she did, her good sister would be leaving.

  Song Jie understood her mood, so she let her hold it like that. One hand reached into the pocket and pulled out a large amber-colored Afu with a red string, handing it to Xiao Yan'er's face.

  "Yan'er sister, I'm leaving, this is for you. You gave me your favorite Ah Fu, and now I'll give you one too. From now on, whenever you see it, it's like seeing me." As she spoke, Song Jie's tears began to fall, and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't stop them.

  The little swallow took it, holding it tightly to her chest: "I didn't think I'd cry, but how can I stop?" She was also sobbing uncontrollably. In this desolate place, the two young girls who had not yet grown up cried freely, using their tears to express their parting emotions.

  The two of them cried in fits and starts, one crying and the other following suit. The sorrow in their hearts seemed to be endless and unspeakable. Both of their eyes were swollen like walnuts.

  Song Jie personally put a thumb-sized big Ah Fu on the neck of Little Swallow, and Little Swallow secretly vowed in her heart to keep it well, Nini would always be her best friend.

  Song Jie knew that childhood separations were the most helpless, because you had no way of making decisions. This separation didn't know when they would meet again, maybe never again.

  Thinking of the care and maintenance in front of her eyes, this young girl's eye sockets became moist again...

  Time's footsteps will never stop, and the day of parting has still come.

  On August 5th, the weather was scorching hot and dry. Early in the morning, Song Jie was woken up by Zhao Juan, who helped her put on a new dress bought by her grandma, with two braids tied up like sheep horns on her head.

  Song Jie was listless and lacking in spirit, allowing Zhao Juan to manipulate her at will, her small brow furrowed into a mountain.

  Zhao Juan reluctantly coaxed her, saying: "Nini, Mom knows you like it here, how about we come back again later?" In fact, Zhao Juan thought that the possibility of coming back in the future was not great, and at most she would only come back to visit a few times. The child is still young, and their forgetfulness is also great, after living in Beijing for a few years, they will quickly forget this place.

  Song Jie naturally knew Zhao Juan's thoughts and didn't refute them. As an old monster who had lived for many years, it wasn't easy to forget things. However, knowing that her mother was doing it for her own good, she couldn't help but muster up the spirit to nod at Zhao Juan.

  After finishing packing, Aunt Li came over with Xiaoyan's hand in hers, still carrying a bundle of things.

  Zhao Juan hesitated for a moment, wondering how she could possibly accept it, and after the two of them pushed back and forth for a while, she finally agreed to take it. Aunt Li chattered on about some matters that required attention, as their long-time neighbor was about to leave, and she too felt uncomfortable with the thought.

  A group of people arrived at the train station, and the first bus was scheduled for 9 o'clock, which was about to arrive.

  "Juan'er, there are boiled eggs in the bundle that I cooked for you. When you and Nini get hungry, take them out to eat, don't starve. Come back more often from now on." Aunt Li was worried.

  Since Zhao Juan came to live here, she has been taken care of by Aunt Li. In her heart, Aunt Li has played the role of a mother for these years, always helping her when she was helpless. After listening to Aunt Li's nagging, her heart also felt sour.

  Song Jie followed behind Zhao Juan, she held little Li in her arms, with a large bundle on her back the size of an adult's head, a small apple face as tender as a powder puff, no matter how you looked at it, it was cute, and passersby couldn't help but turn their heads.

  She was bidding farewell to Little Swallow, vowing that the other was her best friend and would never change. The other also expressed this, and the two reluctantly parted ways.

  The train finally arrived, Zhao Juan pulled Song Jie to the door of the car and waved her hand back at a distance.

  The emotions that Xiao Yan had been brewing for a long time suddenly burst out, and big tears rolled down her face. She wanted to run back to the train, but was pulled back by Aunt Li.

  Sharp-eyed Song Jie saw it, and had already forgotten the agreement that they were not allowed to cry when they left. Tears also fell down her cheeks, dripping onto the back of the hand holding Little Li.

  Xiao Li stretched out her tongue and licked it once, looking at her master with a puzzled gaze, unsure what this was.

  Zhao Juan bought a sleeper ticket. There weren't many people taking the train now, so she was able to buy her ticket very smoothly without having to queue up.

  Sitting on a small bed, Zhao Juan put down the package in her hand, stretched out her hand to wipe away her daughter's tears, kissed her forehead several times, and hugged the child in her arms.

  Song Jie cried and wet her mother's clothes in front of her chest, after crying for a while, she calmed down, feeling very embarrassed, quietly blushing.

  Seeing the child was fine, Zhao Juan let out a sigh of relief. Although the child would soon forget, this "soon" was also too hard to bear. Seeing her own child cry was more painful than being cut by a knife.

  More and more people arrived, and the train started moving.

  Song Jie stared out of the train window at the rapidly passing scenery, and her mood quickly calmed down. Zhao Juan arranged their luggage neatly and kept their valuables close to them. Even in a simple and honest era, there were still thieves around.

  A middle-aged couple soon walked into the carriage, the woman was a kind-hearted chatterbox, and before long she had told them all about her family, ignoring her husband's attempts to pull her back.

  Song Jie had never seen anyone as interesting as this before, and she spent the whole day and night watching him.

  By noon, Song Jie was tired of the scenery, which all seemed to be the same and caused visual fatigue. The melancholy in her heart had alleviated a lot.

  Zhao Juan poured some hot water, peeled a hard-boiled egg and fed it to her daughter with the water. The auntie opposite saw this and quickly divided some salted vegetables for them.

  Zhao Juan also gave the other party a few eggs, and her heart really felt relieved. She was afraid that there would be a troublemaker in the carriage, but this big sister and her family were really very good.

  As the freshness wore off, the external scenery also lost its appeal. Song Jie opened her small bag, inside which were her snacks and Xiao Li's food.

  Xiao Li appeared and immediately caught people's attention, without Song Jie feeding her, she was already full.

  A day and a night passed, a new day dawned with the sun rising again, the train had already arrived at the station.

  Arrived at the train station, Uncle Wutong was already waiting, and I don't know when he came from this morning, exchanging a white eye with my sister.

  Zhao Tong scratched his head, walked up and scooped up his niece, tossing her high into the air. Song Jie laughed loudly before he finally put her down.

  Song Jie took over the luggage and put it on the bicycle seat. She sat on the crossbar of the bike, and the two siblings walked slowly, chatting with each other.

  Song Jie didn't have the time to listen to what they were saying, and only focused on the scene in front of her. The high-rise buildings, although still shrouded in dusk, had already showcased their future grandeur.

  It was then that she suddenly realized that a new life was about to begin...