The third-class carriage is never as quiet and orderly as the first and second-class carriages. 

The atmosphere here is always noisy and chaotic, and even the faces of the staff are perpetually gloomy. 

It's a far cry from the comfortable experience of the first-class carriage, especially when the fog is thick and the rain is pouring down.

But even the first-class carriage is not always peaceful. 

There are always some people who think they are extraordinary and break the rules. 

Yue Dingtang once saw a nouveau riche who, as soon as he sat down, loudly complained that the seat was not soft enough, the carriage was too stuffy, and ordered many dishes during mealtime, even if he couldn't finish them, just to show off his wealth.

However, such people are few and far between. 

Compared to the third-class carriage, at least the first-class carriage is a place where you can quietly read a book for a while.

If you can't read, you can only sleep or daydream. 

The train was bumpy and uncomfortable, but it made it easy for people to doze off.

Ling Shu had an injury and didn't sleep well yesterday. After sitting for a while, he became drowsy. 

His head bobbed up and down, and his reading glasses almost slipped off his nose.

Yue Dingtang reached out to help push them back up for him.

Old Yuan and Old Jin across from them whispered to each other. 

The train tracks clanged loudly, and the noise was so great that they had to keep their voices low. 

Yue Dingtang couldn't hear what they were saying.

He couldn't fall asleep, so he turned his head towards the silhouette of the distant mountains without lights or fires.

Even though time was tight, before they descended the mountain, Yue Dingtang spent half an hour paying respects to his grandfather. 

He knew that after today, he might not have the chance to come back here for a long time. 

The journey began with the purpose of taking care of the old master's affairs, but it was full of twists and turns. 

It wasn't until they were close to their destination that he finally appeared at the old master's grave.

When Yue Dingtang was born, the Yue family and the Guan family had already cut off all ties. 

All communication was just fragments of his mother's words before she passed away, scattered and broken. 

He had no feelings towards the Guan family, and they probably felt the same towards him.

But the old master had set up a plan before he passed away, connecting everything together.

"My mother never regretted leaving home and traveling far away, but she couldn't come back or return to her roots in her lifetime. She had some regrets, so I came here to make up for her regrets. With the yin and yang separated, all grudges should be forgotten." 

He said at the time, after respectfully drinking three cups of light wine with the old master, he kowtowed three times.

Yue Dingtang had a complicated view of the old master.

If the old master was still alive, perhaps Yue Dingtang would sit down with the old fox, chat and play games.

He didn't like being treated as a pawn, but he couldn't help but admire the old man's clever move, bringing the Yue family members who hadn't seen each other for many years into this chess game, becoming a key piece.

If the old master was still alive, he could do more for the Guan family, perhaps even make the Guan family rise again.

Unfortunately, he passed away.

After the old master Guan passed away, according to Old Yuan's words, the only sober person in the Guan family was Third Master Guan. He didn't like to deal with other brothers, and spent his days holed up in his room doing carpentry. It wasn't because he was tongue-tied, but because he was too lazy to witness the absurd and chaotic drama of the Guan family and interact with others.

Given the current situation, he couldn't let go of the Guan family, but also couldn't save them from their suffering, so he could only pretend to be crazy and foolish.

Clear-minded people always have to endure more pain than others.

This time, with the successful transport of the treasure out of the Guan family, Third Master Guan also helped, but he didn't want to leave Fengtian with Old Yuan.

Third Master told Old Yuan that this was the root of his life, and without it, he couldn't survive anywhere else. 

The other brothers were unreliable, so it was better for him to stay and guard the house. As long as he was there, the Guan family would still exist.

Old Yuan couldn't persuade him, so he had to let him stay. 

To Yue Dingtang, everyone has their own path. 

Even if they know it's a narrow bridge instead of a broad road, some people will still stubbornly go their own way, just like his mother did back then, just like Third Master.

Some people may regret halfway and turn back or take a different path, but some people would rather go all the way, regardless of right or wrong.

Just like he used to be.

Suddenly, his shoulder felt heavy.

Yue Dingtang turned his head and saw Ling Shu leaning on him.

Instead of pushing him away, Yue Dingtang adjusted his posture to make Ling Shu more comfortable.

Ling Shu's left hand gently held his right wrist.

It was an unconscious gesture.

Yue Dingtang had noticed that Ling had done this several times, especially when he was sleeping. Later, he learned that it was due to the gunshot wound in his right hand years ago. Whenever it rained, his wrist would ache and feel weak. Ling Shu would habitually massage his right hand, as if giving himself a massage.

As the night grew darker, the train raced through the countryside and the surroundings gradually quieted down.

Even the noisiest of people needed a moment of rest, allowing their ears to find some peace.

The train let out a long whistle, crossing through time and overlapping with eight years ago.

Yue Dingtang remembered.

It was the steam whistle of a ship, reminding passengers that the ship was about to depart and urging those who had not yet boarded to hurry up.

He was the one who had missed the boat.

He was waiting for someone. 

The surroundings were bustling with people bidding tearful farewells to their loved ones, and lovers reluctant to part ways. 

With his family background, there were even more people seeing him off, including government officials who wanted to please his family, caring teachers from his school, and many male and female classmates.

Young Yue Dingtang looked around but couldn't find the person he was waiting for among those who came to see him off.

"Dingtang, who are you looking for? Du Yunning?" A close old classmate asked. "She said she would come to see you off, but I don't know why she hasn't arrived yet. Maybe Ling Shu didn't let her come. Don't wait any longer, get on the ship quickly, don't waste time. Remember to write to us when you get to France, don't forget your old classmates!"

Yue Dingtang mumbled a response, smiling slightly while his eyes continued to search.

The ship's whistle sounded again. 

Uncle Zhou, the housekeeper, urged him to hurry up to the deck.

Finally, Du Yunning appeared.

She ran up to him, holding her skirt, with a thin layer of sweat on her forehead. The sea breeze blew her hair and added a touch of tenderness to her appearance.

Her classmates naturally made way for her, and some thoughtful male classmates even helped to stop the rushing pedestrians.

"I'm sorry I'm late, Dingtang. I heard you'll be gone for several years, so I had my servants prepare some snacks for you to eat on the way!"

She handed him a small basket, covered with a cloth embroidered with Du Yunning's maiden name.

Dingtang thanked her and was surprised that he didn't feel the excitement he had imagined.

"Why did you come in such a hurry?"

Du Yunning hesitated, "Um, something came up."

Dingtang observed her carefully, "Did you have a fight with him?" 

Du Yunning forced a smile, but didn't answer. 

Her expression was enough to convey the answer.

"Young master, it's time to set sail!" Uncle Zhou reminded him repeatedly, even becoming a bit anxious.

Time didn't allow for any more idle talk.

Yue Dingtang had to carry his luggage and basket, and walked up the gangway.

When he turned around again, he was already on the deck, separated by a shallow bay from many old friends standing on the shore.

The old friends were still there, and Uncle Zhou was still at the port, conveying his concern with a caring look.

His old classmates were also waving to him, and Du Yunning was a bright spot in the black and white photos.

But her voice and appearance gradually faded away in the following years.

Yue Dingtang had already forgotten what he was waiting for at that time, but he could never forget that sense of regret.

Perhaps he just chose to deliberately forget. 

The first time Yue Dingtang saw Ling Shu was outside the classroom after class.

The Chinese teacher was talking to a stranger.

Yue Dingtang's first impression was that the person was really good-looking.

Having grown up in an environment where he had seen many beautiful people, both men and women, Yue Dingtang himself was not bad-looking, but he still considered this person handsome. That meant the other person's beauty had surpassed most of the people Yue Dingtang had ever seen.

Later, the stranger was led to the desk in front of him and became his classmate.

Yue Dingtang also learned that his surname was Ling and his name was Shu, a relatively rare surname and a quite special name. 

Shanghai is neither too big nor too small, and families who can send their children to middle school naturally have decent financial conditions. 

Yue Dingtang had heard of the Ling family, but their families are in different industries - one in commerce and the other in politics - and they have no intersection in their fields. Their elders only know each other, and there is no real relationship between the younger generation.

Ling Shu loves to talk, whether it's about astronomy, geography, history, or major events in various countries. He can always say something insightful and profound, and in the eyes of Yue Dingtang at the time, he was at least at the level of a college student.

Yue Dingtang himself doesn't like to talk and doesn't want to listen to others' chatter, but he is willing to listen to Ling Shu speak a little more.

However, the relationship between the two did not begin with talking about the world, but with a fight. 

Once, Yue Dingtang was passing by the school when he saw Ling Shu beating up a classmate. 

He frowned and went over to stop him, but Ling Shu was so angry that he didn't even spare the peacemaker and started punching him. Yue Dingtang was hit and bleeding, and the two of them quickly started fighting. When the teacher found them, they were scolded and taken to the office, where they were both put in detention and had to write self-reflection essays and call their parents.

Yue Dingtang was always a top student, well-mannered and aloof. 

But ever since he got punished by the teacher for fighting with a classmate, he held a grudge against Ling Shu, even though he later found out that Ling Shu was just standing up for his friend. 

Holding grudges was just part of his personality, something he was born with.

After that incident, Yue Dingtang never missed a chance to trip up Ling Shu. 

During a debate competition, the two people could have been on the same team, but he insisted on joining another team to compete against Ling Shu. As a result, Ling Shu's team had a girl who held them back, getting too nervous and ending up blushing and losing the debate.

That girl's name was Du Yunning.

Back then, it wasn't common for boys and girls to attend the same school, but their school was one of the pioneers in Shanghai. 

However, they were still separated by gender and placed in different classes. Du Yunning was the most stunning flower among them.

There were benches under the trees in the school, and Yue Dingtang often sat there to read when the weather was nice and the sun was warm. 

One day, he was engrossed in his book when an apple core fell from the tree and hit him on the back of his head, landing on the book in his hand.

Yue Dingtang thought to himself that he didn't want to be like Newton, who was famously hit by an apple. 

When he looked up, he saw someone with the surname Ling standing there. 

His face darkened in an instant.

"I didn't mean to, it was an accident," he said.

Ling Shu lazily smiled at him, lying on the tree like a sloth.

The tree was quite high, and Yue Dingtang thought about his tree-climbing skills and the possibility of pulling someone down to beat them up. 

After a few seconds, he was ready to leave.

Revenge is a dish best served cold.

But Ling Shu stopped him again: "What book are you reading?"

Ling Shu excelled in everything except foreign languages, whether it was his major in English or his minor in French.

How could he miss the chance to mock him? 

Yue Dingtang raised his eyebrows coldly and said, "Can't you understand it?"

Ling Shu yawned, "It's too far away, I can't see it clearly. If you don't want to tell me, forget it and kneel down."

Yue Dingtang replied, "It's the original English version of Romeo and Juliet. You can't understand it even if I tell you." 

Ling Shu exclaimed, "I thought you were reading something serious, but it turns out you're just lost in your own romantic fantasies. This story doesn't even compare to the tragic and dramatic tale of Liang Zhu from Chinese folklore."

Yue Dingtang remained expressionless, thinking to himself, "I enjoy reading it, what's it to you?"

But his words came out sharper than he intended, "Wait till you can recite all 26 letters of the alphabet, then you'd be qualified to discuss the original text with me."

Ling Shu replied, "That's true. People with narrow-minded thinking always like to show off their shallow skills, but they never discuss the actual content. You can't find a girl you like in real life, so you seek refuge in books. How pitiful!"

Yue Dingtang's veins bulged as he pointed to the ground in front of him. "Get down from there," said Yue Dingtang.

Ling Shu smirked, "You have to beg me."

Yue Dingtang, in his teens, also had a impulsive side. He immediately rolled up his sleeves and climbed the tree.

His anger gave him a boost in his climbing skills. He was about to reach Ling Shu when he reached out to grab him, trying to pull him down from the tree. 

But he didn't expect to slip and almost fall himself.

In a critical moment, his arch-nemesis, who he always bickered with, reached out and pulled him up!

The result?

Although there was some cushioning, they both fell together.

Ling Shu was pinned under him and his arm was broken.

Afterwards, Ling Shu took a few days off and when he returned to school, he was still the same lively and passionate young man who loved to debate and write.

Yue Dingtang did not go to visit him. But somehow, he had a mental block and could never say the harshest words even when he was infuriated by the other person.

Ling Shu and Du Yunning became very close.

Of course, the school did not allow students to date.

But the line between love and ambiguity was always blurry.

Walking side by side in broad daylight with a large group of classmates around them made it seem innocent enough.

The Ling and Du families were well-matched, and their parents were reportedly happy to see them together, considering marriage after Du Yunning graduated.

Yue Dingtang also thought Du Yunning was beautiful.

But his gaze often fell on the person next to her.

At that time, Yue Dingtang was dissatisfied with the situation. 

With Du Yunning being there. 

That summer, the sun was shining and school was out. 

Yue Dingtang borrowed a book from the library and planned to spend the afternoon reading it at school. He looked around but couldn't find an empty bench anywhere. Even the last bench was occupied by someone sleeping on it. 

How extravagant! 

The person turned over and it was Ling Shu. 

Only he could do such a thing. 

Yue Dingtang stopped, not too close or too far away. The clothes covering Ling Shu's body slipped to the ground. 

Yue Dingtang hesitated and struggled. 

Should he go over and help pick up the clothes and cover him? 

One second, two seconds. One minute, two minutes. 

His legs were numb from standing, and he even wished he could pick flowers like a little girl to divine his fate. 

Then someone walked over. 

It was Du Yunning. She bent down, picked up the clothes, and gently covered Ling Shu. 

Ling Shu half-opened his eyes and smiled at her. 

In a world created by heaven and earth, there was a perfect match.

Suddenly, Yue Dingtang felt like a fool.

Without hesitation, he turned around and walked away.

Many times, people think that fate is just a random coincidence.

But years later, they will realize that everything was predetermined by fate.