Author-san, if the ship you are giving is what I think it is, Proofreader-san and I are unimpressed…
Welcome our new proofreader: Black Ice! #he_cracks_me_up
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After receiving the 100 yuan chat fee, Jing Ling was too lazy to talk more with Jiang Shao and Lin Yuanhang, leaving the dead end street with her faded white schoolbag and heading down the dusty street to the park to wait for the bus. The half-hour bus between the city and countryside used to be a longer bus, now it was a short-route bus with only about ten seats in all. The door that opened for boarding was the same one for getting off and the body of the bus was dirty as if it had rolled in the mud. Luckily, it was only two yuan for fare.
Jing Ling was going to see someone. In the memory of the original host, he was not the only child. He had a sister named Jing Qiu, who was five years older than him. His mother died of illness just a few years after he was born. His father worked far from home for most of the year. He was brought up by his sister. When he was in his second year of high school, his father had a car accident on his way home for the Chinese New Year. Three unlicensed black cars fell down the cliff due to a landslide. Their father was among the 11 people that were in those vehicles. In this case, don't mention any compensation, even the funeral expenses needed to be paid out of pocket. Jing Qiu, then a migrant worker, rushed back immediately after receiving the news and did not leave even after the funeral was dealt with, because he was about to be a junior* in high school, this was the most important period for him, she considered it not to be wise to have no one looking after him.
*T/N: grade 11/third year of high school
Jing Qiu, found a job in a nearby town, serving food and washing dishes for 1500 yuan per month. Her brother's tuition and living expenses depended on her meager wages so she could only live frugally.
Yesterday evening, Jing Ling received a call from Jing Qiu, informing him that she had asked her boss for a leave to accompany him to the college entrance examination and would be coming back home after work today. Jing Ling more or less knew the schedule of this kind of work. Generally, she was busy till very late and could only take a taxi to go home.* But this kind of worn out place couldn’t be seen even by ghosts. How could she go home? She asked without thinking and the answer was that her boyfriend promised to take her home**.
*P/N: She’s being frugal and she can take taxi?
**T/N: I feel like this means that she is staying at her boyfriend’s home since how can you have your boyfriend take you home if you are embarrassed for the taxi driver to see your home but let’s keep reading
Although not her own older sister, Jing Ling was still prepared to pick her up by herself.
He waited at the entrance of the park for about ten minutes before the bus arrived. Seven or eight people were waiting alongside him. When the door opened, a group of people rushed out and when they were finished getting off, the people waiting for the bus rushed up. By the time Jing Ling finally got on the bus, the seats were full. She didn’t care so she found somewhere to stand.
The bus swayed as it headed away from the town towards the countryside.
Jing Ling called Jing Qiu shortly before he got off. After she got through, she said hello. An angry voice came from the speaker. “I am talking to you. What phone call are you answering? Is it your brother’s again? Jing Qiu, I tell you, if you want to enter the door of my Li family, you will break off that relationship with your younger brother! My mother said that we don’t have wild children* in the Li family!”**
*T/N: wowa, if the original was considered a bad boy…
**P/D: Momma's boy…
Then, there was Jing Qiu’s voice, which sounded a little unfocused. “Xiao Ling, I have something going on right now. I’ll call you later.” After that, she hung up the phone.
By this time, the bus had reached its destination. People on the bus got off one after another and Jing Ling followed them. As the sky darkened, the street lights on both sides of the street lit up and the warm, bright yellow light filled the field of vision. At last, it was beginning to look more modern.
It had been more than a year since Jing Qiu first came to work in this town. The former host had never been to the place where she worked*. Therefore, the former host had very little impression of this place. Fortunately, Jing Qiu had mentioned it several times. After Jing Qiu's phone call yesterday, Jing Ling checked the map of the town with her school's computer. She memorized the signs on the buildings of the surrounding streets.
*P/N: How can it begin to look modern if Jing Ling hasn’t been there before?
For her, it was not difficult to find Jing Qiu’s workplace. The only problem was that it was a little far away, which could be easily solved. Just hail for a taxi. Oh no, there are no taxis in this place, only small pedi-cabs.
After getting on the pedi-cab and announcing the place's name, Jing Ling counted her current assets*, which together with chat fee just earned, totaled 346 yuan and 5 fen**.
*P/N: do it before you get on!
**T/N: fen = dime
“So poor ah!" She sighed, "Just have to put up with it."*
*P/N: thought you were empathizing with the sister’s hard work before
About a third of the journey, they passed a florist's shop and Jing Ling beckoned the rider to stop. She got out of the pedi-cab and went into florist's shop, took a bunch of packaged roses, paid for them, and then got back on the pedi-cab. The pedi-cab moved again and rider asked as he pedaled, "Is the bouquet for your girlfriend?"*
*T/N: thought you were poor Jing Ling~
P/D: She is, just everyone else is poorer.
Jing Ling held the flowers and answered, "Yes, it is."
I Want Some More