The train attendant brought a mop and carefully wiped the floor twice.

After Xiao Ye left Gu Xiaoxi’s berth, Lu Jiansen silently removed the bedding and sheets.

Gu Xiaoxi hurried over to help. “Let me do it. You go fetch hot water!”

“It’s fine. I’ll get the water after I finish this.” Lu Jiansen could tell the young woman was very particular about cleanliness, and with him here, he’d take care of these tasks.

But Gu Xiaoxi insisted, “You should go wash up while you’re at it! We’ll have breakfast later—I’m hungry.”

As she spoke, she directly took the dirty sheets from his hands.

Lu Jiansen had no choice but to let her, so he picked up the thermos and went to fetch hot water.

Meanwhile, Gu Xiaoxi carried the bedding in the opposite direction.

As she passed the connecting area between train cars, the train suddenly entered a tunnel, plunging the carriage into complete darkness.

Seizing the moment, she casually tossed the items in her hands into the Old Goods Storage and, while she was at it, also threw the foul-smelling trash bin on the right side into the Storage.

The instant the train exited the tunnel, she replaced the bin with a new one and slowly walked back, carrying fresh sheets and bedding.

Seeing an additional merit value and a new roll of toilet paper in the new product display hall, she already had a guess in her heart.

Since the bedsheet was for her own use, it didn’t earn any merit value but did increase her point by one.

But the trash bin was public property, and disposing of trash could actually earn merit value.

For a moment, she felt the impulsive urge to replace every single trash bin on the entire train.

However, she quickly calmed down.

Replacing one or two was fine, but changing all of them would be too bizarre and hard to explain.

After all, some bins were already old and worn out.

Returning to her berth, she swiftly made the bed.

She sat down, deliberately wrinkling the sheets a little, then quietly spent the merit value she’d just earned to activate the Garbage Sorting skill.

She soon realized that Garbage Disposal and Garbage Sorting could be combined, automatically depositing swept trash into the bins.

Just as she was secretly thrilled, the woman across from her suddenly began crying while frantically searching her pockets.

“My money… my money is gone…”

Gu Xiaoxi was stunned. “When did you lose it? Didn’t you just pay someone three mao earlier?”

The woman was frantic, pulling out all her bags to search.

“That three mao was spare change I put in my child’s pocket. I still had twenty yuan in mine—I only took it out when I paid for the sleeper ticket.”

Gu Xiaoxi: “…”

Old Qi sighed. “This might be hard to recover.”

Most likely, someone had taken advantage of the woman’s distress while her child was sick and pickpocketed her.

“What do I do now? That was all the money I had. I still need to take another bus after getting off the train…”

At this moment, Xiao Ye suddenly spoke up. “That kind-hearted woman across from you should just give you some money for the ticket. She eats meat every meal—she can spare a couple yuan.”

Gu Xiaoxi frowned. Was this woman out of her mind?

She stood up and glared at Xiao Ye, who was lounging on her berth watching the drama. “Are you lacking morals or common sense? Just because she dirtied your shoes, you made her pay three mao? Now that she’s in trouble, shouldn’t you return that three mao?”

She then smirked slightly. “Out of basic decency, how about you return her three mao, then generously donate another three mao? I’ll match your three mao too. How’s that?”

Xiao Ye immediately refused. “Why should I?”

Gu Xiaoxi raised an brow. “Because you talk too much and have a rotten heart.”

“You—”

Old Qi coughed lightly. “First, report it to the train attendant. Maybe someone found the money or saw the thief. Then we’ll see how to handle it.”

Just then, Lu Jiansen returned with the thermos. After learning about the woman’s lost money, he immediately went to find the attendant.

No one knew exactly what Lu Jiansen did, but half an hour later, the woman’s money was miraculously returned.

The woman thanked Lu Jiansen profusely and, to express her gratitude to him and Gu Xiaoxi, pulled out a large bag of dried sweet potato strips from her belongings.

“These were sun-dried at home—they’re clean, so don’t worry!”

Gu Xiaoxi knew the woman genuinely wanted to thank them, but she couldn’t just accept it without giving something in return.

After a moment’s thought, she took two hard-boiled eggs from their food bag and handed them to the woman. “Give these to your child. They’ll help with nutrition.”

“Th-thank you!” The woman, thinking of her child, didn’t refuse.

Gu Xiaoxi glanced at the sleeping child. Apart from being a little pale, the kid seemed to be resting peacefully now.

Lu Jiansen handed her a freshly prepared cup of milk and said softly, “You eat too.”

“Mhm. You too.”

From the upper berth, Xiao Ye watched as Gu Xiaoxi was doted on by the man—milk, eggs, and even meat buns for breakfast. Her heart burned with envy.

Such a lavish breakfast… Was this how capitalists lived?

She wanted to make a snide remark, but seeing Lu Jiansen in his military uniform, she swallowed her words.

In a sour mood, she ate a boiled egg for breakfast and washed it down with plain water.

At noon, Gu Xiaoxi’s meal was just as impressive—white rice, fried fish, spicy pickled cabbage, and a refreshing stir-fry of green beans with pork.

Xiao Ye watched hungrily, seething with resentment, before grudgingly buying a boxed meal.

By evening, the woman and her child disembarked, and their compartment welcomed a new passenger—a girl in a green military uniform, wearing it with striking elegance.

But when Gu Xiaoxi got a clear look at the girl’s face, she froze.

Because she had seen this girl before!

Or rather, in her past life, while sorting through her brother’s belongings after his death, she had found this girl’s photo in his wallet.

Yes, in her past life, her brother had died on a mission—just one year after the college entrance exams were reinstated!

Could she be… her brother’s sweetheart?

Noticing Gu Xiaoxi’s stare, the girl touched her face in confusion, wondering if something was on it.

Gu Xiaoxi couldn’t help but smile. “You look familiar—like someone I’ve seen before. Sorry for staring!”

The girl chuckled. “No worries. In this big world, there are bound to be lookalikes.”

“I’m Gu Xiaoxi, nineteen. Let’s be friends!” She enthusiastically extended her hand.

The girl, never before approached so warmly by another girl, smiled and shook her hand.

“Ding Lanyi. You can call me ‘sis’—I’m twenty-one.”

Hearing the name “Ding Lanyi,” Xiao Ye, in the upper berth, jolted and peered down.

Seeing the vaguely familiar face, she couldn’t help but ask, “Do you know someone named Ding Lanjing?”

Ding Lanyi paused, looking up at Xiao Ye. “That’s my older sister. You are…?”

Xiao Ye clapped her hands and called out to the opposite berth, “Second Brother! We’ve run into our sister-in-law’s younger sister!”

Xiao Lin glanced down and greeted with a smile, “Hello! What a coincidence!”

Ding Lanyi also found it amusing. She never expected to meet her brother-in-law’s siblings on a train ride.

Gu Xiaoxi, however, felt a little helpless. This “Sister Ding” was actually related to Xiao Ye and her brother.

What a twist of fate!