Gu Tao also took the train on his return journey. When the pace of life slows down, people's moods tend to change accordingly. Watching the green train clatter forward, he sat in front of the small seat in the sleeper carriage, flipping through a book left behind by the previous traveler on the bed. It was a very dull book, even the title sounded strange—something like "Meme-da" or similar.
Judging by the book, the previous traveler was likely a girl, and not a very authentic petite bourgeoisie type. After all, true petite bourgeoisie usually read proper books. But nowadays, many people's reading ability is almost nonexistent—anything over 300 words gets skipped under the excuse of being "too long; didn't read." This is precisely why fragmented books are so popular: breaking knowledge and stories into tiny pieces to sell makes for a handy strategy. After all, people still need to read something—better to fake sophistication with ease than to burden themselves with painful reading.
