Chapter 70: Aftermath of the Calamity

What Tang Xin did not know was that, far away, the man driving with utmost concentration could not keep his attention on the road every moment. Because of the special nature of his work as a driver, Li Sheng always treated every trip with particular seriousness. When on the road, he tried to focus all his attention, letting nothing and no one distract him. This used to be easy for him, but now, the gentle figure of that delicate woman would flit through his mind from time to time.

Li Sheng began to doubt his own self-control, especially when he recalled his sweet wife’s earnest reminders before he left. He even felt a sudden urge to give up driving altogether and change his line of work when he returned home. Yet he knew that, if he wished to provide a better life for his wife and family, there was no better choice for him right now than being a driver. Otherwise, as an uneducated man from the countryside with no connections, all that awaited him was a return to the fields—a hardship his young wife could never bear.

Wang Dongliang, sitting seriously in the passenger seat, watched Li Sheng’s movements closely. Noticing the weariness on Li Sheng’s face, he hesitated before saying, “Li Sheng, take a break. You can’t drive while exhausted. There’s not much road left—I’ll take the wheel.”

Although Li Sheng was the younger of the two, he was quick-witted and an excellent driver. Wang Dongliang, despite having trained for a while, had never driven alone on the road. Normally, a long-distance trip required two drivers to take turns to prevent fatigue, but Wang Dongliang lacked confidence—especially since this stretch of road was far from smooth. So, most of the time, it fell upon Li Sheng to drive.

This was the main reason the transport team could never spare Li Sheng for a vacation. Besides Li Sheng and another driver, the two assistants had no solo driving experience and dared not attempt a long-haul journey themselves. Only now, as they neared their destination, did Wang Dongliang finally muster the courage to offer to drive the rest of the way.

They had been on the road for over ten days, and the monotony was stifling. Accidents could happen all too easily. It was thanks to Li Sheng’s steady and reliable nature—he was the most dependable driver in the entire team—that the captain assigned him all the important tasks. Wang Dongliang only ever felt at ease on the road when Li Sheng was at the wheel. He had worked hard to be able to learn from Li Sheng, and truth be told, this time they owed him a great deal.

Once, their vehicle had stopped for a break just as they encountered a crowd up ahead. Wang Dongliang, bored from having only each other for company on the long journey, had wanted to join the commotion. Li Sheng, however, was firmly opposed. Despite his fatigue, he forced himself to drive a long distance to the next rest stop before finally allowing himself to pause.

Wang Dongliang had barely begun to complain when, chatting idly with the driver of a neighboring truck, he learned that Li Sheng’s quick decision had saved them from disaster. That group of people had been blocking the road to rob passing trucks, a gang of desperate criminals who would stop at nothing for money. A few other drivers, drawn by curiosity, had joined the crowd—only to lose both their lives and their cargo, as the gang had beaten a man to death and stolen everything aboard.

Remembering this, Wang Dongliang often broke into a cold sweat, patting his chest and asking Li Sheng, “Brother, my good brother, how did you know something was wrong and drive away so quickly?”

They had truly escaped calamity. If he had insisted on dragging Li Sheng along to satisfy his curiosity, it could have been them in the news.

“That road isn’t safe, and it’s not far from the mountains,” Li Sheng had replied. “We needed to be careful.” Wang Dongliang admired him all the more; these were principles he understood, but, faced with real danger, he knew he would not have handled it so well.

After a moment’s thought, Li Sheng skillfully pulled the vehicle over and let Wang Dongliang take the wheel while he moved to the passenger seat. When Wang Dongliang started the engine, he was not as silent and focused as Li Sheng had been, and soon began to talk about home.

Sometimes he called Li Sheng “brother,” partly in jest, but also out of sincere respect for his driving skills and character. In fact, Wang Dongliang was older, with several children already at home.

Chattering away, Wang Dongliang suddenly grinned and asked, “Li Sheng, I heard your wife is a city girl, a sent-down youth—she must be beautiful, right?”

She certainly was beautiful, and delicate too. At the thought of Tang Xin’s sweet smile, Li Sheng couldn’t help but smile as well. He knew there was much talk about his marriage, both in the team and among the sent-down youth. In particular, he was aware of the rumors regarding his wife’s past friendship with Lu, the young intellectual. Still, he trusted his wife; since she had chosen to marry him, she would live a good life with him.

Yet he had no intention of discussing his wife too much in front of others. With a faint smile, he simply said, “Whether she’s beautiful or not, I don’t know. But she’s a good woman. Marrying me, she’s suffered enough.”

After a few more words, Li Sheng closed his eyes to rest, determined to sleep soundly once they reached their destination. He needed to refresh himself before the journey home. In the past, his trips were often months long, but at least he knew his parents were home, and as long as he brought back enough supplies, all was well.

This time, though, after just ten days away, it felt as if he had been gone forever. He missed his wife terribly. Now there was one more person at home. His little sister always called his wife a “goblin,” but to Li Sheng, his wife was more like a sly little fox. His parents had waited eagerly for him to marry, and his mother was certainly not the kind to torment her daughter-in-law. Li Sheng was confident that the little fox, left alone in his home, would still manage just fine.

Still, his longing was intense, and he worried constantly—would his delicate wife kick off the covers at night and catch cold? The fact that they had avoided danger this time, he felt, was thanks to her. If not for her repeated warnings before he set out, reminding him to be careful and telling him stories about robbers and thieves, he might not have been so alert.

Not only Wang Dongliang, but even Li Sheng himself shuddered when recalling the incident. Long-distance drivers, after all, needed more than just skill; with so many desolate stretches along the way, safety was always a vital concern.