Capital City was very hot in July.
The buses in Capital City were very crowded in July.
Heat plus crowding—the feeling was beyond words. Close your eyes, feel the brushes against the other passengers, quietly savor life for a moment, and you could gain deeper insights into living, while also finding greater motivation to strive.
For example, when would I have my own private car?
Or, when would I have my own private car, plus a private driver?
Li Ye had a private car, and if he wanted one, a private driver too.
Yet on this blazing summer day, he still squeezed onto an old Capital City bus.
Today was the day he was to attend D School. Although both Li Zhongfa and Wen Leyu had told Li Ye to relax and not regard D School as some solemn, rigid, doctrinaire place, Li Ye still reined in some of his edge and did not drive his Santana to school.
Although Li Ye's money was clean and he had a clear conscience about buying his own car, in a place where fairness mattered most, standing out too much could easily invite unnecessary trouble.
So Li Ye had set out half an hour early, hoping to catch the bus during that brief cool spell in the morning. Only after getting on did he understand what it meant for it to be hard to return to thrift after luxury.
"Tall passenger, turn sideways. Don't take up so much room—the passengers at the next stop can't even get on. Yes, I mean you."
Li Ye had no idea how many times the conductor had already directed him to adjust his posture. With so many people on the bus, he had instinctively assumed the same "defensive stance" he used when squeezing onto the subway in