I Tied Up the Travel Check-In System - Chapter 18

Tang Siqi sat up with a start. Wait!

Triple gold coin card!

Sure!

So three A-level check-ins would earn… 900 gold coins?

What a bargain!

And it was like a promotion that lasted until tomorrow night, which definitely increased the chances of completing it.

Impulsively, Tang Siqi clicked on the activation button.

But then she hesitated.

A second city…

Then there was the question. She was so unfamiliar with Shanghai, where she’d lived for years. Could she really check in somewhere else?

The thought of going somewhere unfamiliar filled Tang Siqi with trepidation.

Oh, that’s not right. The system didn’t specify a second city. So, she could open her hometown, where she grew up.

She wasn’t a homebody back then, but she was a real glutton. She’d scoured the streets and alleys of her hometown for delicious food.

After careful consideration, Tang Siqi clicked on the activation button and wrote down Wenzhou as the city name.

Yes, that’s right. She and Xu Qianning’s hometown was in this legendary place where real estate speculation and bankrupt leather factories were everywhere.

Of the many bizarre rumors circulating about Wenzhou, none concern its cuisine. Whenever Tang Siqi thought about this, she found it quite unrealistic.

[Congratulations, host! You have successfully opened your second check-in city: Wenzhou. The system presents you with a triple gold coin card. Please use within 48 hours. Total wealth: 717 gold coins.]

Xu Qianning had just returned from stocking up, and Tang Siqi climbed out of bed and opened the bedroom door.

“Qianning, I need to go home.”

“Huh? What’s going on?” Xu Qianning was a little surprised. After all, Tang Siqi had been in Shanghai for a while, but she had never mentioned returning home.

A bad thought suddenly flashed through her mind: “Is there something wrong with my uncle and aunt’s health?”

Tang Siqi quickly said: “No, no, I just… I think I should go home. I’ve been away for several months and haven’t contacted my family much. I should go back and see them.”

Xu Qianning breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile: “Yes, it’s time to go back and see them. Uncle Tang must miss you too. When are you leaving?”

Tang Siqi: “The sooner the better. I’m packing my luggage now and will leave when I’m done.”

“So urgent? Okay, I’ll help you check the train tickets and take you to the train station later.”

“Train, train station? How about I take a bus back?”

Tang Siqi had never taken a train before and was a little nervous.

Xu Qianning smiled and said, “Have you forgotten? The bus from Shanghai takes six or seven hours home. The high-speed rail is much faster.” She opened the app on her phone and said, “From now on, download the 12306 app on your phone. It’s very convenient for booking tickets. Look, this high-speed train leaves a little after 11 o’clock and arrives home in less than four hours. You won’t be home until 3 o’clock in the afternoon yet.”

Tang Siqi thought about it. Indeed, taking the high-speed rail saves a few hours. Each extra check-in earns an extra 300 gold coins.

Xu Qianning, knowing that Tang Siqi had never taken the high-speed rail before, booked her ticket for her, explaining the process as she went along.

Then, despite Tang Siqi’s refusal, she insisted on taking her to the train station.

“Just look at the train number on the signboard and you’ll find the waiting room,” Xu Qianning instructed.

“Okay, I got it.”

“Please say hello to your dad for me.”

“Okay.”

And just like that, Tang Siqi arrived at the train station for the first time and boarded the train for the first time.

It was a bit embarrassing to say, but she’d never ridden a train in her entire life. During her university years, there was a long-distance bus station right outside her school, and she’d always taken a bus home.

The high-speed train started at just over 100 kilometers per hour, then quickly accelerated to over 200 kilometers per hour after leaving the city, gradually approaching 300 kilometers per hour.

But on the train, she didn’t feel the train speeding at all; it was incredibly smooth.

This all felt incredibly new to Tang Siqi.

“Wow, this is amazing!”

What surprised her most was the charging port in front of her seat. A young man next to her pulled out his laptop and began typing away.

Tang Siqi remembered that she actually had a job, and she hadn’t even started working on the novel cover she’d received. She pulled out her laptop and drawing tablet and began sketching.

With her experience painting the Wusongkou sunrise, this client’s seascape was relatively simple.

The key to the sketch was balancing the proportions of the sea background, the small white house, and the two figures.

Unlike the Wusongkou sunrise painting, this one features a predominantly white and blue palette, creating a romantic and refreshing feel.

Everything went smoothly, and the line art was quickly completed.

When it came time to add color and detail, Tang Siqi paused. After all, this wasn’t the ideal working environment, so she’d leave it at home for the details.

The remaining work took less than half an hour to complete.

She’d agreed to submit the line art tomorrow. She exported it from the software, shared it with her computer via her phone, and sent it to the client.

The client responded quickly.

“The line art is amazing! It’s exactly the feeling I was looking for! Ahhhhh, the staring between the hero and heroine is so sweet! I’m imagining a 300,000-word, heart-wrenching love story. Please continue.”

As agreed, the client readily paid 70 yuan.

The remaining 30 yuan would be paid after the final draft was completed.

With the work almost complete, Tang Siqi felt a little hungry. Inwardly,

she was thinking she’d try not to eat anything, saving some food for when she got home and clocked out.

But the high-speed train wouldn’t arrive in Wenzhou until 3 o’clock. If she didn’t eat, she was afraid she’d suffer from hypoglycemia from hunger, so she went to the information counter to buy some.

There were already quite a few people in line, and when it was her turn, she noticed the only two options on the table were braised beef rice and potato and chicken rice, both priced at 48 yuan.

“Why are they so expensive?” Tang Siqi couldn’t help but ask.

The waiter was very friendly and said with a smile, “Miss, would you like to try a box? Both flavors are delicious.”

“Are there no other price points?” Tang Siqi asked.

“No,” the waiter replied politely, still smiling.

“Oh, then I don’t want any.”

She returned to her seat, hungry.

The guy next to her had also finished his work by then, and seeing that she was alright, he struck up a conversation.

“Are you a painter? A professional?”

Tang Siqi blushed, “I’m not much of a painter, I’m just an amateur.”

The other guy smiled and said, “I’m an amateur coder too, but I just took a quick peek and you draw really well.”

“Thank you.”

The two chatted for a while, and Tang Siqi couldn’t help complaining: “Are the boxed lunches on the high-speed rail so expensive?”

“Did you just ask? How much is it?” the young man asked.

“48,” Tang Siqi said aggrievedly.

The young man was stunned: “No, the lowest level is 15 yuan, didn’t you see it?”

Tang Siqi shook her head: “No, both are 48, I confirm.”

The young man stood up: “Come on, I’ll show you.”

Tang Siqi followed the young man, feeling like she was looking for trouble, and she shrank her head weakly, not knowing what the other party was going to do.

“We want two boxed lunches, the 15-yuan kind.” The young man said directly.

“I’m sorry, we don’t have 15-yuan boxed lunches on our train at the moment, but we have this 48-yuan boxed lunch, you can take a look.”

Without saying a word, the young man took out his mobile phone and started shooting a video: “Didn’t you say that there must be a 15-yuan boxed lunch on your train? Why not?”

The smile on the waiter’s face froze for a moment.

“Well, we’re temporarily out of stock of the 15-yuan lunch boxes…”

“But your rules say that if the 15-yuan lunch boxes are out of stock, they must be restocked immediately.”

“Well, we will restock them, but we haven’t stopped yet.”

“Then which station will you restock them at?”

“The next one…”

At this time, the passengers behind them were also discussing.

“That’s right, didn’t the news report this situation? The rules say there should be 15-yuan lunch boxes, so why aren’t there any?”

“Yeah, at 48 yuan, how can ordinary people afford it!”

“That’s a rip-off! They said they had them, but they say they’re out of stock. If this guy hadn’t been so picky, wouldn’t we all be forced to pay a higher price?”

The waiter’s smile faded, and he quickly said, “Passengers who need the 15-yuan lunch boxes can come and register with me. When they arrive, we’ll deliver the meals to your seat numbers.”

Applause broke out in the carriage, and Tang Siqi looked at the young man with admiration.

“Hahaha, you’re amazing!”

“A lot of things aren’t what they seem. Maybe they weren’t hiding it on purpose, but there are definitely passengers who were misled and had to go hungry or buy overpriced lunch boxes. These are just my experiences, developed from frequent travel.”

There are benefits to being out and about; you gain a lot of knowledge.

The two chatted as they unknowingly passed the next station. A waiter quickly delivered a heated 15-yuan lunch box to their seats.

“Sorry about the little misunderstanding just now.”

“No problem, but I suggest you prepare some extra 15-yuan lunch boxes. After all, a 48-yuan lunch box is a bit pricey for the average person.”

“Thank you for the advice.”

Tang Siqi ate her 15-yuan lunch box, feeling delighted. She’d saved a lot! And she’d even learned a trick!

And the 15-yuan one was just as good as the 48-yuan one, with a combination of meat and vegetables, and the meat dish was Kung Pao Chicken. It tasted great too. It was an incredible value!

Just then, her phone buzzed.

[Congratulations to the host for acquiring the “Train Riding” skill, rewarded with 10 gold coins, total wealth: 727 gold coins.]

[Congratulations to the host for acquiring the “Purchase Hidden 15 Yuan Boxed Lunch Skill on the High-Speed Rail,” rewarded with 100 gold coins, total wealth: 827 gold coins.]

Tang Siqi: !!!

The system is giving out gold coins again!

But why did learning to ride a train only give 10 gold coins, while learning to buy a 15 Yuan boxed lunch gave 100 gold coins?

[The system will determine the number of gold coins rewarded based on the scarcity of the skill.]

Tang Siqi suddenly realized that riding a train is a skill that most people know, while buying a cheap boxed lunch is a trick that not everyone knows, so the latter rewards more gold coins.