MMB Chapter 16 Picking Up the Money and Dividing the Loot
Chapter 16 Picking Up the Money and Dividing the Loot
In 2003, transportation was not as developed as the high-speed rail network is today. There was no 12306 online ticket booking system, nor were there direct trains from Chengdu to Shenzhen.
To get to Shenzhen, you have to take a train to Huicheng first, and then transfer to the Guangzhou-Shenzhen Railway.
Lin Feng packed his luggage quickly, took a small amount of cash and bank cards, and headed to Rongcheng Railway Station.
After queuing for half an hour, I finally managed to snag a hard sleeper ticket for the K191 train bound for Huicheng that very night.
At 7:30 p.m., the waiting room of Chengdu Railway Station was bustling with activity, and information about various trains was scrolling across the large screen.
Most people go to the Guangdong and Guangxi regions, and they are mostly young adults.
"Attention passengers, boarding for train K191 has begun. Please proceed to waiting room 3 to queue for boarding."
The queue was long and the crowd was overwhelming. Lin Feng made his way through the crowded aisle and found carriage number 12.
The corridor in the hard sleeper carriage was narrow, and the luggage racks were already crammed full. Lin Feng's berth was in the middle of the carriage.
The dark green berths are divided into three levels: upper, middle, and lower. The lower berth tickets are the most expensive, while the upper berth tickets are the cheapest.
Lin Feng's ticket was for a middle bunk, and the sheets were fairly clean.
He stuffed his bag into the middle bunk and, before the person on the lower bunk arrived, sat down on the edge of the lower bunk to rest.
The hard sleeper compartment had six berths. On the lower berth opposite, sat a fat man in his forties, wearing a polo shirt, who was clipping his nails by the light coming from the train window.
Upon seeing someone approaching, the fat man glanced at Lin Feng.
Not long after, a man in his thirties with a buzz cut and wearing a plaid shirt walked in. His seat was the lower bunk where Lin Feng was sitting.
Lin Feng stood up: "I have the middle bunk, I'll sit here for a while."
"Please sit down," the man in the plaid shirt said politely.
Another middle-aged woman arrived, with her hair styled in small curls and clipped with a hair clip. She was carrying a bulging travel bag. She stood at the door of the cubicle, looked at the tickets, and then pushed the travel bag onto the luggage rack with some difficulty.
"Let me help you." The man in the plaid shirt stood up, took the travel bag, and pushed it up with a force.
"Oh, thank you!" the woman said repeatedly, taking out a tissue from her handbag to wipe the sweat from her forehead. Her eyes, however, were glancing in Lin Feng's direction.
A few minutes later, a man in a navy blue suit appeared at the door. He wore a white shirt underneath, and a silver watch was visible on his wrist.
The man's gaze swept quickly across the cubicle, from the fat man to the woman, then to the man in the plaid shirt and Lin Feng.
After trimming his nails, the fat man put the nail clippers into his pocket and greeted, "Boss, going on a business trip?"
The man in the suit hung up his coat and replied simply with two words: "I suppose so."
Then, he took out a magazine from his suitcase and started reading it.
The last person to come in was a young woman.
She had delicate features and a tall figure. She wore a floral shirt and blue trousers that were a little short at the ankle, revealing her slender ankles. She carried a canvas bag.
The girl looked at her ticket and searched for her berth.
"Little girl, the upper bunk is over there," the middle-aged woman pointed.
The girl then moved in and laboriously climbed onto the upper bunk.
All six people were present in the cubicle.
The train clattered away from the platform, and the city lights outside the window were gradually swallowed by the night. Lin Feng climbed into his middle bunk and lay down to rest.
The clanging of wheels hitting the rails was exceptionally clear in the silence. Lin Feng had his eyes closed, yet he could clearly perceive every movement inside the carriage.
After an unknown amount of time, footsteps were heard in the corridor.
The footsteps were very light. They approached quickly from one end of the carriage and paused for a moment at the door of Lin Feng's compartment.
Lin Feng peered out through the gap in the bed.
A tall, thin figure bent down near the door of the cubicle and then quickly disappeared.
The whole process took less than ten seconds.
Lin Feng lay back down, his heart beating slightly faster.
About three minutes later, a noise came from the lower bunk.
The man in the plaid shirt got up and picked up his things at the door of the cubicle.
"Huh? What's this...?"
He stood at the entrance of the corridor, looking around, holding a manila envelope in his hand.
The fat man got up, put on his shoes, and went over: "Hey bro, what's up?"
"I found something." The man in the plaid shirt opened the envelope a crack. "Look."
The fat man leaned closer, his eyes widening immediately: "Wow! So much money!"
He deliberately lowered his voice, but in the quiet carriage, everyone in the compartment could hear him clearly.
The middle-aged woman quickly got out of bed and squeezed next to the two of them: "Let me see... Good heavens, there's also a gold chain!"
The three people formed a circle.
The fat man licked his lips: "Who threw this?"
"I don't know," the man in the plaid shirt said, looking puzzled. "I just got out of bed to go to the bathroom, and I found it right at the door."
The middle-aged woman's eyes darted around: "How many are in here?"
The fat man took the envelope, moistened his fingers with saliva, and quickly counted the contents: "One, two, three... five thousand two! This chain..." He weighed it in his hand, "It's worth at least two thousand."
All three of them fell silent.
The man in the plaid shirt swallowed hard. "How about... we hand him over to the train police?"
"Train police?" The fat man shook his head. "It's the middle of the night, the train police are all asleep. Besides, what if... someone pocketed it?"
The middle-aged woman looked around and said, "Why don't we split it? We can't find the owner anyway."
The fat man's eyes lit up, but he immediately hesitated: "This...isn't this inappropriate?"
"What's inappropriate about it!" the middle-aged woman said. "The three of us saw it, so we'll split it equally. Nobody will tell anyone."
The man in the plaid shirt was still struggling: "But..."
"No buts!" the fat man interrupted him, his gaze sweeping into the cubicle.
The three men entered the cubicle: "Excuse me, gentlemen, we're sorry to have disturbed you. We found something and would like to ask for your help in deciding what to do with it."
The man in the suit stood up and put on his coat: "What is it?"
"Look, we found an envelope with money and a gold chain inside. We don't know what to do with it."
The fat man said, "We want to hand it over to the train police, but we're afraid... Sigh, you're a knowledgeable person, what do you suggest we do?"
The man in the suit was silent for a few seconds: "It should still be handed over to the authorities."
The middle-aged woman suddenly interjected, "How about this, we all share? This boss, this young man, and that young woman all saw it. Let's split it equally, how about that?"
The atmosphere changed immediately after she said that.
The man in the suit shook his head: "It's not my money, I don't want it."
"I don't want it either," Lin Feng also refused.
The fat man then looked at the girl: "Little girl, what about you?"
The girl whispered, "I don't want it either."
The fat man's face darkened: "If none of you want it, then the three of us can split it? But you saw it, what if you report us..."
The man in the plaid shirt quickly tried to smooth things over, "Don't say that, they're all honest people." He looked at Lin Feng and the man in the suit, "How about this, you two just pretend you didn't see anything, and the three of us split it up. We won't say a word, okay?"
The man in the suit did not answer.
The three fat men exchanged glances, seemingly hesitant.
Just then, hurried footsteps came from the end of the corridor.
A tall, thin man came running up, sweating profusely and looking anxious. He kept looking around as he ran, shouting, "The envelope... my envelope!"
He rushed to the door of the next cubicle, bent down and searched around, but couldn't find it. He was so anxious that he stomped his feet.
Seeing the three fat men huddled together, he immediately rushed over: "Gentlemen, have you seen my envelope? It's a manila envelope!"
The fat man instinctively hid the envelope behind his back.
The tall, thin man, with sharp eyes, snatched the envelope, opened it, and his face instantly changed: "Where's my money? Where's my 30,000 yuan? How come there's only this much left?"
"How much? Thirty... ten thousand!!"