Dong Qiangqiang's Story of Leaving Germany

There was still some time before boarding the plane, so Dong Qiangqiang took out his notebook and continued to revise his report. He used to be very resistant to repeated revisions. He always felt that he could avoid endless revisions later if he thought about it before writing. But since coming to Germany, repeated revisions have become unavoidable. After all, neither German nor English is his. My mother tongue, I can make new discoveries every time I revise it. The more I revise it, whether it’s getting used to it or getting irritated, I no longer have the resistance and irritability I had when revising articles before, and I can accept this matter calmly and calmly.

He was thinking about it while correcting it, not paying attention to the people around him. When the speaker above his head reminded him that he would be on the plane in thirty minutes, he was surprised to find that there were many more passengers on the plane than when he came.

Most of the passengers were wearing masks, with only their eyes exposed, and those who spoke through the masks seemed to be whispering even in normal voices. Dong Qiangqiang had no intention of eavesdropping on other people's conversations, but Xu spoke a foreign language for a long time, which made him develop the habit of listening to others without realizing it. The topic he heard the passengers talking about was how to leave the city as soon as possible.

He couldn't help but secretly look at these commentators. Most of them were Chinese men in suits and ties. They looked like well-educated elites. Their tone of voice was often urgent and anxious. The reason why these people are talking about this topic is probably related to the fact that a press conference related to SARS is being broadcast on the TV next to the boarding gate.

In the prevention and treatment of SARS, China has officially cooperated with the World Health Organization. The WHO notified relevant domestic institutions of the recent SARS situation around the world and spoke highly of China's handling of SARS. All effective measures taken. Chinese representatives also introduced the SARS situation in some provinces.

What caught Dong Qiangqiang's attention was that subsequent reports stated that the situation of SARS in the country had become stable and controllable, and that the public did not need to worry too much, let alone hoarding supplies. TV footage shows that people in some cities have taken the initiative to take off their masks in public places. The relaxed expressions of people seem to mean that SARS will soon become history and the whole thing will end at any time. Dong Qiangqiang couldn't help but think of the scene in the hospital lobby that night when he visited the two elders of the Gu family. He felt vaguely that something was wrong but couldn't say anything.

The plane took off on time at 20 o'clock in the evening. It was expected to fly to Helsinki, the capital of Finland, in about 10 hours. After waiting for 2 hours, it took another 3 hours to fly to Frankfurt, Germany. When it landed in Germany, it was 4 o'clock in the morning the next day. Considering that the whole journey took almost 15 hours, Dong Qiangqiang did not intend to waste time by sleeping. He put away his luggage and continued to work on the report.

When he was tired and sleepy from writing, he asked the flight attendant for a cup of coffee, and walked slowly back and forth in the narrow aisle of the cabin. As he walked, he thought about whether the logic of the report was consistent and what data he should add to support his views and predictions. Where can I write more boldly or even radically? At this time, most of the passengers had fallen asleep, and the cabin seemed to be filled with a layer of gray fog with most of the lights turned off. Only a few small lights were still holding on. He continued to drink as he wrote, and in the end he switched to vegetable juice because he was worried that drinking too much coffee would lead to a large loss of calcium.

The plane went smoothly without even a decent bump, and landed in Frankfurt as scheduled.

His report was successfully completed before it was launched. He even redesigned the cover of the report and wrote the text introduction on the Cicada Catching website.

After not sleeping all night, he was satisfied that he had not wasted any time.

After walking across the long corridor bridge, he followed the crowd to the customs to check his identity, and went to the carousel to pick up his luggage. He was calm and natural when he was questioned by the police on the way. He still vividly remembered the rush when he went abroad for the first time. But it was already two years ago.

He connected to the airport WiFi and sent the report to Duanmu first, then dragged his luggage out of the customs gate. I don't know whether it was because it was too early or for some other reason, but the person who picked him up was not very good. He saw an old white man with a shiny white head leaning on the railing and waving and smiling at him.

"I'm worried that you won't be able to get up so early." Dong Qiangqiang pushed his luggage and walked towards Lao Bai with a smile. He thought Lao Bai had shaved his head, but when he got closer, he realized that his hair was actually shorter than a hair-inch, and the hair was thick and smooth. The scalp is almost completely white.

Lao Bai who came up to him first gave Dong Qiangqiang a big hug, then patted him hard on the shoulder, and asked with a smile: "How was it? Does it feel like you've been away from this world since you came back this time?"

Dong Qiangqiang originally thought that Lao Bai would be frowning because of business difficulties. Seeing that his energy and conversation were normal, he was slightly surprised and joked: "Why has your hair turned gray? Are you following Wu Zixu?" Lao Bai ignored his sarcasm and continued to ask. : "You have such a bad mouth, you didn't eat on the plane, okay? Are you hungry? Why don't you eat something before leaving? It's still early anyway, and there won't be any traffic jam on the road."

"I didn't sleep and drank enough water." Dong Qiangqiang made a gesture to let Lao Bai go first. He lowered his head and looked at the watch. It was just 4:, "You said before that the train system was on strike again?"

"Yes, the lovely German working class is on strike again."

"If I remember correctly, there have been two strikes in less than three months, right? The Germans really love strikes, but didn't labor and management reach an agreement before?"

"This strike is coming fiercely. What you are encountering now is the third round of warning strikes in the public transportation sector across Germany. Nearly a hundred strike demonstrations have not only shut down the train system, but also shut down buses, subways and trams. Now, you are lucky that the aviation system did not follow suit this time. Except for Bavaria and Saarland, buses and trains are still operating normally throughout Germany. All other federal states are following suit (strike), and some states are even going on strike. Lasted all weekend."

"Aren't they going on strike on weekends? Why didn't those two states follow suit?" Dong Qiangqiang asked curiously.

"The newspaper said that labor and management have reached an agreement."

"For a higher salary?"

"Are you a layman? Germans go on strike not just to improve their wages. Of course, striving for higher remuneration is definitely the first theme of the strike. In addition, they also strive for better work benefits, fewer working hours, and more Paid holidays and extra shifts, and the occasional strike by environmental groups for the climate crisis.”

Dong Qiangqiang thought to himself: I don’t know how far-reaching the impact of the strike will be on the transportation industry. I will have to study it carefully when I get home. If I can know the news of the strike in advance, I may have the opportunity to short-term.

Seeing that he was silent, Lao Bai asked, "What are you thinking about?"

Dong Qiangqiang questioned: "It is their right for them to strike, but passengers are miserable. Public transportation is severely restricted. Those with cars can still drive by themselves. What about people without cars? Doesn't this mean that everyone is encouraged to buy private cars in disguise? ? They keep saying they want to protect the environment, but they are helpless when it comes to strikes. This shows that when personal interests are involved, the Germans are not as kind as they say. "

Lao Bai nodded in agreement: "What you said is true, but no one can solve this difficult problem yet."

The two of them were pushing the luggage trolley through the airport, chatting and wandering aimlessly. When they stopped, they happened to be standing in front of the restaurant where Dong Qiangqiang ate before departure. (End of chapter)