CHAPTER 315: CHAPTER 315: DEPARTURE

Luckily, it was winter, the farming downtime, making it easy to get an introduction letter, and with the team leader considering Lin Xue, they happily issued the introduction letter.

The next day, after tidying up, they set off for the town, and the train tickets had been purchased in advance.

They were all sleeper tickets, and since so many people were arranged in one sleeper compartment, it was still beneficial to have connections.

Five from Second Uncle’s family, five each from the First and Second Aunt’s families, three from the Third Aunt’s family, plus two aunts, eight from Zhang Yuan’s family, and eleven from Lin Xue’s own family - a total of thirty-nine people. Luckily, Lin Xue had Wang Cheng contact a bus in advance to pick them up early in the morning.

Over half of them were children, and although the older children in each family were already sixteen or seventeen, it was their first time traveling so far, and they were too excited to sleep the night before.

Once on the bus, the bumpy ride had everyone swaying, especially the youngest child from the Third Aunt’s family who couldn’t walk yet, wrapped snugly while being held by several women in turns.

Then there was Xiao Feng and Xiao Cai, who although could run and jump, and understood adults, were still too young to avoid accidents. Lin Xia and Lin Yun each took charge of watching over them.

Wang Cuihua still packed a lot; she couldn’t bear to leave behind any clothes or jewelry, but the family took along almost all the clothes Lin Yun made for them, so there was quite a bit of luggage. Thankfully, with so many people, everyone carried a bit, so there wasn’t much left.

Everyone wore their very best clothes, with Second Uncle’s family’s clothes being the most stylish, followed by the Third Aunt’s family.

Although both adults in the Third Aunt’s family worked, they also had a small child who was fed with formula rather than breastfed.

In Second Uncle’s family, with three people working, the chicken farm had already changed to a wage system rather than work points.

Even though the wages were low, only twelve yuan a month, it was still income. Adding Bai Rumei and Second Uncle’s wages, they made nearly a hundred a month. With the two younger siblings studying at the commune, expenses were low. Thus, when they heard Lin Xue was getting married and moving to the Capital City, the family each made a new set of clothes.

In contrast, the two aunts and the two uncles’ families were more modest. Their clothes, although without patches, were not new and somewhat faded.

They had few bundles, and all together had just one small handbag, yet still helped Lin Xue’s family with their bags.

Lin Yun had the most belongings and went to the small western-style building in the county to pack a large bundle.

Originally, Sun Bing wanted to escort Lin Yun and go to the Capital City with them, but Lin Yun stopped him, saying she didn’t want to experience the pain of parting again.

She didn’t even let him come to see them off in the morning. They talked all night and had said everything they needed to say.

Lin Xue had the least luggage. As a new bride, she only had a handbag.

What others didn’t know was that she put all her valuables into a separate space, leaving just some clothes in the handbag, making it very light.

The two aunts rushed to carry her luggage, and Lin Xue, enjoying her leisure, handed it over since there wasn’t anything valuable inside.

The train was the afternoon one, and by the time they were boarding, Zhang Haijun’s family could no longer handle the rural folks and moved ahead on their own.

They carried a lot of luggage too, mostly stuff belonging to the mother and daughter. Zhang Haijun and Zhang Yu resignedly carried the bags.

Meanwhile, the other mother and two children carried nothing, walking leisurely. Zhang Ting, full of disdain, walked briskly ahead while diligently adjusting her clothes.

Lin Cuifen was similar, often tidying her clothes. Although she couldn’t wear the finest silk and satin qipaos, she donned a woolen coat.

If it weren’t for the times, she would undoubtedly dress better. Wearing such fine garments would surely get her caught immediately.

When exiting the waiting room, the group carrying luggage running to the train looked as if they were scrambling for gold.

However, Lin Xue did not laugh, because she knew that her parents, grandparents, and siblings included, had never traveled so far, and everything to them was unknown and filled with perceived dangers.

Moreover, going to the Capital City this time was for settling down, and they knew nothing in advance. They only heard from their daughter and hadn’t even seen the house. They came just like that, of course, feeling troubled inside, especially since Lin Daliang also resigned from his job.

Everything looked anxious, which Lin Xue could understand, even her two sisters, who had lived with her for half a year and seen more of the world, were nervous.

Each hugged two younger siblings. Though cumbersome and exhausting, they kept running diligently.

Lin Xue initially wanted to step forward to help carry the children, but neither sister let her, saying that although the journey was long and they couldn’t reach the in-laws’ house the same day, she was now a bride, and it wasn’t proper for a bride to carry children.

These two girls reasoned convincingly, leaving Lin Xue with no choice but to withdraw.

Zhang Yuan and Lin Xue were the most relaxed since they had nothing to carry, with their grandparents refusing to let them assist.

Upon leaving the waiting room, Lin Cuifen wanted to quickly board the train to grab a good spot, unwilling to mingle with these yokels. However, prompted by her daughter, she reluctantly turned around to help the elderly.

As a daughter-in-law, leaving the elderly to struggle behind while she climbed aboard first was impractical.

Once everyone nervously boarded the train, the children’s surprised voices were all that remained.

They looked around, touched everything, their amazement mingled with excitement.

The adults weren’t much better. After settling all the luggage, they started behaving like Granny Liu visiting a grand garden.

"Quickly find your beds and sit down! Take your time to look around later! We’re going to be on the train for five to six days; you’ll have plenty of chances to look! You’ll probably never want to ride a train again!" Bai Xianglan was the calmest of the bunch, compared with this rural brigade.

Wang Xiaofang stayed by Niu Yingying’s side, helping care for the baby. The child was close to her since she had taken care of them for a long time.

Meanwhile, Wang Yongsheng assisted his parents, letting them sit down.

The elderly and those with young children were assigned the lower bunks, while the several monkey-like children vied for the upper bunks.

The novelty of the upper and lower bunks fascinated them, having climbed up and down several times in the short amount of time.

Lin Xue and Zhang Yuan, taking their younger siblings, found a compartment, which could accommodate six people. Lin Shuang, being very thoughtful, offered her spot to her brothers and went off to find another seat.

"Xiao Shan, Little Chuan! You two go find Ruyang and the others! Let Xiao Mei come here! Xiao Shuang, you stay here!" Lin Xue instructed.

She always felt the need to be more caring towards this adopted sister because her maturity compelled her to protect her from the heart.

Even at home, she had no sense of presence, busily helping everyone instead of behaving like a child.

"Alright! Xiao Shuang, come up; the top bunk is the most fun!" Lin Chuan hurriedly helped Lin Shuang climb up while Lin Shan got down to bring Bai Rumei over.