Qingmu sometimes wondered if a shadow lived in his mind, or if that shadow had already taken control of his body, while his true self was imprisoned in some corner.
He was a very lazy person, even too lazy to recall his past, but there were always some strange things that would often stimulate his mind to think about who he was and where he came from. At these times, he seemed to become a wandering Plato on the street, standing in a dark corner and contemplating the ultimate questions of life.
However, his mind is often blank, like a newly opened Word document.
Many people thought he was a lucid dreamer with special abilities, but the truth is, he never dreams. He can easily enter other people's dreams, but he himself has never dreamed.
How ridiculous it is that someone who can easily enter other people's dreams can't dream themselves!
But Qingmu didn't find it funny at all; instead, he felt a strange sense of fear.
The material of dreams is memory. Without memory, a three-dimensional dream space that can be cognized cannot be constructed. Perhaps you can have a four-dimensional dream, but that is something your conscious mind cannot comprehend. It will not remain in your memory. Without memory, it is as if nothing happened.
Qingmu is like someone without memories.
He himself couldn't figure out whether he couldn't remember or was just too lazy to remember.
Even so, he wouldn't be as curious about the outside world as a child, because everything in this world was familiar to him.
Just as he had never flown on a plane in his memory, he was quite familiar with airports.
Even without Shi Dazhuang, he could still wear slippers, shuffling through the crowd, accurately find the airline's service counter to get his boarding pass, then go through security, and board the plane, as if he had just gone through the whole process yesterday.
However, he still encountered a problem: his S.T. Dupont lighter could not pass through security.
Security personnel suggested he store it at the airport; if he absolutely had to take it, he would have to disassemble all the parts, pack them separately, and then check it in as baggage.
Qingmu ultimately chose to store it.
Shi Dazhuang threw his disposable lighter into the trash can and laughed, "Look how simple this is! From now on, I'll buy cheap things; expensive things are just a burden."
Qingmu thought Shi Dazhuang made sense and decided to go back to using matches when going out, since he wouldn't feel bad about throwing them away.
The B737 has only one boarding gate, so economy class passengers have to go through the first class gate.
Qingmu and Shi Dazhuang both disliked being in crowds, so they lined up at the very end of the boarding queue.
As they passed the first-class section, they saw a large woman arguing with a flight attendant. Several economy class passengers turned around to look, blocking the aisle.
It took Qingmu a while to understand. The fat woman had bought an economy class ticket, but seeing that the eight first-class seats weren't full, she found a window seat and sat down. The flight attendant asked her to go to the economy class to take her seat according to her boarding pass number, but she refused and insisted on sitting in first class.
"Why can't I sit? This seat is empty, why can't I sit?" The fat woman's voice was so loud that it made the cabin walls vibrate.
The flight attendant, bowing slightly with her hands on her knees, said softly, "You purchased an economy class ticket, which is not allowed here. This is first class. If you insist on sitting here, you can purchase a first-class ticket."
The woman snorted, "Isn't it just that you want me to buy a ticket? Isn't it just that you want money?" She picked up her phone, swiping and cursing, "Money-grubbing!"
The flight attendant waited for her for a long time, and when she didn't move, she reminded her again that she either had to buy a ticket or go to her seat in economy class according to her boarding pass.
The fat woman said, "Can't you see I'm applying it? It's so annoying!"
The flight attendant said, "You can only buy plane tickets on your phone, not change your boarding pass."
The woman said, "Then why don't you just change it for me? I've already bought the ticket, it's not like I'm cheating you out of your money!"
The flight attendant said, "I'm sorry, ma'am, you must go to the airport lobby in person to get your boarding pass. There are still a few minutes before takeoff, if you don't go now, you'll be late!"
The woman flew into a rage. "A few minutes? You expect me to run to the lobby to get my boarding pass and then run back in a few minutes? Isn't this blatant extortion? You made me buy a ticket, and then you flew away! This is outrageous!"
The flight attendant said, "If you feel you're running out of time, please sit in economy class. We will provide you with the best service."
The woman yelled, "You're just a waitress! Call your manager! If you can't even handle something this simple, you can just wait to be laid off!"
The passengers watching the commotion grew impatient. Some started cursing the fat woman for being shameless, buying an economy ticket but refusing to leave in first class. Others thought the flight attendant was inflexible and demanded that the airline resolve the issue as soon as possible.
The flight attendant looked a little aggrieved, but still smiled and said, "Ma'am, your behavior is affecting other passengers and may cause flight delays. If you insist on this, I will have to call the air marshals."
The woman yelled, "That's a threat! I'm going to file a complaint! I want you fired!"
The flight attendant straightened up after bending over for a while, and was about to ask the captain and air marshal for help when she suddenly saw a disheveled man walking towards her and smiling at her. She felt as if something had hit her head, and she felt a kind of dazed feeling, like she had just woken up.
The entire cabin fell silent. She could only hear the clatter of slippers dragging on the carpet. The sound seemed to possess a calming magic, and suddenly all the grievances and unpleasantness she had felt because of that unreasonable, overweight woman vanished.
The plump woman looked up, thinking it was an air marshal, and, feeling somewhat guilty, said firmly, "This seat is empty, why can't someone sit here? Isn't this a waste of resources?"
Seeing that Qingmu's attire resembled that of a beggar rather than a government official, she frowned and asked with disdain, "Aren't you their leader?"
Qingmu said, "Of course I'm not their leader. I'm here to catch a flight, and you've taken my seat."
The fat woman looked at him suspiciously. "Your seat? You beggar, you think you can afford first class? Who are you trying to fool!"
"I have my boarding pass," Qingmu said, pulling a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket.
The plump woman examined the slip of paper closely, silently reading the words on it. " Duke Zhou interpretation, psychological counseling, fortune telling, human... uh... human-dog naming?..."
She burst out laughing, "Are you crazy?!"
Qingmu said in a serious tone, "Don't you know that first-class boarding passes are different from economy-class passes?"