Gu Jiang City is a county-level small town in Songjiang Province. It got its name because the ancient Jiang River circles around the town. The scenery is quite picturesque, boasting thematic advantaged geography and talented people. The city has over 500,000 people living within its borders, with nearly 200,000 people occupying the urban area. Gu Jiang City falls under the jurisdiction of Tongshui City, 130 kilometers away. Railway slicing the city into two distinct sections: the southern region is the city, and the area north of the railway is for railway workers and their families. This area is home to nearly 70,000 people, which is close to half of the population of the entire Gu Jiang City urban area. This division between the railway and the locals is a distinctive feature of the city.
Gu Jiang is the convergence point of Liaosong Railway, Gu Tong Railway, and Gu Ping Railway. It is a place teeming with activity, given that countless people pass through it. Meanwhile, Gu Jiang Station is one of the 38 major marshalling stations in the country. It can accommodate significant amounts of transportation, and thus, many vehicle and engine repair units are assembled here. The railway staff alone number over 10,000, and with their families included, the population is enormous!
Although the Gu Jiang Railway Region falls under Tongshui Railway Sub-bureau's jurisdiction, it does not pale next to the Tongshui Railway District where Tongshui Railway Sub-bureau's office is located. Gu Jiang Station, Gu Jiang Locomotive Depot, Gu Jiang Carriage Depot, Gu Jiang Maintenance Office, Gu Jiang Freight Office, Gu Jiang Telecom & Power Office, Gu Jiang Train Office, and many more are all situated in Gu Jiang. Every aspect of railway transportation is included here, establishing it as a template for railway-based community business operations.
At noon, Old Qi was picking cucumbers in his home garden. His elder son was on schedule for a train trip, and his young grandson had gone to his grandmother's house, while his younger son was at god-knows-where. So, it was just Old Qi, his wife, and his high school sophomore daughter Qi Mei staying for lunch in this hot weather, and he thought he could pick some cucumbers to prepare a cold dish. Picking six pieces of cucumbers, Old Qi felt that was enough as he walked out of the garden…
"Wang Jinfu from next door was passing by and saw Old Qi holding cucumbers, and greeted him, "Old Qi, are you picking cucumbers?"
"Yes, we've got nothing special for lunch. So, I thought I'd make a cold dish with some cucumbers." Old Qi recognized him and asked, "Little Fuzi, you don’t have a shift today, do you?"
"Nope, I just got back from Liaocheng last night. I haven't been awake long." Wang Jinfu, a train driver, has a busier schedule than Older Qi’s elder son Qi Jun. He doesn't spend much time at home. After answering, he asked, "Old Qi, where's your grandson, Tie Niu? I haven't seen him for a couple of days."
As Old Qi stepped out of the garden, he locked the garden gate, and said, "His dad sent him to stay at his grandma's house for a few days. This young boy is too playful to handle when his dad is not around.”
“That’s for sure. My boy also can’t behave himself when Tie Niu is at home,” Wang Jinfu replied, waving goodbye to Old Qi and began walking to the east. Just a while ago, the conductor had come by to inform him that he was scheduled to work on the 3301 Freight Train at 20:41 tonight. He had only gotten home close to midnight the previous night and barely had a chance to rest for 20 hours before getting called in again. Angry, he planned to give a phone call to the dispatcher at the train depot to vent his frustrations.
Old Qi, whose full name is Qi Shi Guo, is a retired driver from the Gu Jiang Locomotive Depot. He has driven trains his entire life and retired four years ago, passing on the baton to his second son, Qi Min. Old Qi has three sons and four daughters. His eldest son, Qi Jun, who retired from the army and got a job at the locomotive depot, started as a stoker, then climbed up to the position of locomotive driver. Qi Min succeeded his position at the Gu Jiang Locomotive Depot as an engine repairman and moved out after getting married. The first, second, and third daughters are all married, leaving only the youngest daughter, Qi Mei, who is in her second year of high school, and the youngest son Qi Hai, who couldn't get into college after graduating from high school last year.
As there are many children of employees in the depot, and the need for machine coal is limited, Qi Hai's group can only unload a few coal cars a month, making a negligible income of tens of yuan or even less than twenty yuan. He spends most of his time idle and barely comes home after mixing with the people in society.
Qi Jun couldn't afford to have a house based on his work experience when he got married. So, he built a small house in front of his home as his bridal chamber and married the village girl, Qin Lan, from Mi Jiang. Although Qin Lan was a rural girl, she finished high school and was seen as educated amongst her peers in the village. She didn't come off as a typical village girl due to her sweet temperament. Her home was not far from the Mi Jiang Station, so she was introduced to Qi Jun by a station attendant, and Qi Jun was immediately taken with her.
Qi Jun worked away from home while Qin Lan took care of the house. They lived a harmonious life, but an unexpected tragedy struck them. During Qin Lan's delivery, Qi Jun was away, and Qin Lan was sent to the hospital by her neighbors. Unfortunately, she passed away before she could even see her son, Tie Niu, due to hemorrhaging after a difficult labor. Thus, Tie Niu became an orphan since birth.
Tie Niu was raised by his grandparents. His father, Qi Jun, did not remarry for the sake of his son and poured all his grief into his work, earning the title of "Advanced Production Worker" every year, and was recognized as a "Safety Model" by the Sub-Bureau for three consecutive years. Last year, he was honored by the Liaodong Railway Bureau as an "Advanced Production Worker" and "Safety Model" and received a raise, making him a local celebrity in Gu Jiang Locomotive Depot.
At this moment, Tie Niu, bare-bottomed, was having a water fight with a few buddies in a series of water holes at the edge of a village near Mi Jiang Town. These holes, connected and of different sizes, were collectively known as "Chuan Pao". In the largest hole, they say, there's a spring, and these holes never dried up throughout the year.
Tie Niu and his friends started moving towards the deep-water area while playing with water. Qin Ju, who was washing clothes on the bank, called out, “Tie Niu, don’t go too far into that area. It's deep, so you could drown!”
Tie Niu splashed water around and replied happily, “Auntie, don’t worry, I am a good swimmer!" Saying that he started dog paddling vigorously to get to the other side of the hole.