My hometown is far away in Moscow.

034 Subway Horror

In the early years, the internet had begun to gradually become popular in urban households in China. Hu Yi was exposed to the internet relatively early, spending almost every evening online during high school. He quickly got used to communicating with friends via email and also made many online friends on OICQ. This sparked his strong interest in computers, to the point that he once considered selling computer parts at a technology market after graduating from high school.

However, staying at home was inconvenient in many ways, and early dial-up internet access would also occupy the landline phone line. Whenever Hu Yi spent a little too much time on the computer, his parents would nag him incessantly, which annoyed him greatly. After arriving in Moscow, he thought he could finally be carefree and unrestrained, but he didn't expect that accessing the internet here would be even more difficult.

Internet penetration in Russia is not ideal. The Mati Dormitory Building No. 1, where they live, was hastily built to meet the needs of the 1980 Moscow Olympics. Most floors did not have internet access at the time. According to Yan Zhiwen, they could only use expensive methods such as infrared internet access and satellite internet, which were outrageously expensive and unaffordable for ordinary students.

There was a small internet cafe in the main building of the school, but the internet speed was slow, the price was high, there were few machines, and there were many restrictions. It was also often occupied by students playing Counter-Strike online, making it very noisy. So at that time, everyone usually took the subway to the Lenin Library in the city center to go online.

The Lenin Library, one of the world's most famous libraries, is located adjacent to the Kremlin and Arbat Street, occupying an entire block in the heart of Moscow. Its collection is said to number in the tens of millions. The entire complex boasts a solemn and elegant exterior, while its spacious and tall interior exudes a powerful sense of "knowledge is power."

Hu Yi really liked this place. Although he had never borrowed any books, he was always naturally drawn into a quiet and peaceful atmosphere whenever he came here. More importantly, the library had a large area dedicated to internet access, allowing people to look up various materials online. Students could enjoy relatively low internet fees by showing their ID, so he would come here every now and then.

Hu Yi had no classes this afternoon, so he left school and, without even having lunch, took the subway alone to the Lenin Library. It had been over a month since his last visit. Full of anticipation, he opened his web browser, entered the Sky Software website address, clicked to download the QQ installer, then logged into his email, carefully reading the emails from his friends, and patiently replying in pinyin—back then, the Russian version of Windows didn't support Chinese, and even after painstakingly installing a Chinese input method, the output was often just gibberish.

After replying to all the emails, QQ downloaded successfully. He double-clicked to install and logged in; the avatars on the panel started flashing. Hu Yi read through the messages from his online friends, chatted with those online, and browsed news websites. An hour of internet time passed quickly.

He moved the chair back to its original position and tiptoed out of the library. It was almost three o'clock. The sky was overcast. Hu Yi stretched and felt his stomach was a little empty. He hurried towards the subway station, reminiscing about the emails he had received that day.

My father had just registered an email account, and the first email he received was sent to him. The email informed him that everything was fine at home and included several scanned copies of family photos taken during the Spring Festival. In the photos, the family was sitting around my grandparents, looking happy and harmonious. Their joyful smiles made him feel warm and at ease.

After the college entrance examination, Hu Yi's childhood friends went their separate ways. Some were in Beijing, some in Henan, and some in Shaanxi. In their emails, they mentioned their university life and new experiences all over the country, which made Hu Yi feel both longing and a little lonely.

Dongzi, a high school classmate, failed to get into university and stayed in his hometown to attend a private college. The main purpose of his letter was to show off his newly discovered football game skills and eagerly hoped that Hu Yi would return to China to compete with him.

"That kid, all he does is brag. I'll teach him a lesson when I get back." Hu Yi smiled and walked briskly into the subway station. A train was just stopping at the platform, and he quickly walked a few steps, without checking ahead as usual, and followed others into the carriage.

The carriage was crowded. Hu Yi stood by the door, engrossed in imagining how he would thoroughly defeat Dongzi in the game after returning home. As the doors closed and the train slowly started moving, he suddenly heard someone in front of him ask in Russian, "Hey, where are you going?"

"Huh?" Hu Yi replied casually, feeling a little suspicious: he had taken the subway so many times, but had never encountered a Russian talking to him on the train. Then he looked up and saw that the person who had asked him the question was about the same size and age as him, wearing a black leather jacket and black leather pants, with a bald head except for a layer of green skin, and was grinning at him with a crooked mouth.

The two locked eyes. Hu Yi blinked and looked at the people next to him. Although their clothes were slightly different, most of them were bald.

Skinheads? Hu Yi gasped, his mind still reeling, when he was punched hard in the left ribs, followed by a kick to his shin from behind.

"Fuck you..." Hu Yi was shocked and furious. Just as he was about to turn around, he saw out of the corner of his eye that the bald man in front of him was throwing a punch at him. He quickly shrank back, and although he couldn't dodge the punch, he managed to deflect most of the force.

Before he could even regain his footing, he was struck several more times on the body and face. In his panic, Hu Yi glanced around and saw that he was surrounded by a group of bald men of varying heights. His mind went blank for a second before he instantly realized his predicament.

Although he was quite stubborn when talking about the skinheads with Li Baoqing and others, and often talked about his "glorious deeds" of fighting in groups in high school, Hu Yi knew in his heart that his skills were really ordinary. He might be confident that he could not be at a disadvantage in a one-on-one fight with his ruthlessness, but it was completely impossible for him to fight against multiple opponents like Lu Tao.

Fortunately, he understood the principle that "to learn to fight, you must first learn to take a beating." In the past, he always paid attention to the way the other party responded when fighting. Since coming to Moscow, he often imagined how he would escape or resist if he encountered skinheads. So even though he was in danger at this moment, he was not too flustered.

Right now, inside the enclosed carriage packed with passengers, escape was out of the question. Hu Yi's mind raced. He suddenly shoved aside a bald man behind him, crouched down with his back against the corner between the subway seat and the door, hugged his backpack to his chest, shielded his eyes with his left arm, raised his right arm and bent his elbow to protect the back of his head, curling himself up tightly into a ball.

Just as he got into a fighting stance, punches and kicks rained down from above like hail, pinning him down. Fortunately, the carriage was very crowded, and Hu Yi had taken a corner, preventing the skinheads from all rushing forward to attack him, and also limiting their space to exert their strength. He endured the punches and kicks, but kept his body taut without letting up. Initially somewhat panicked, he calmed down for a moment and began to plan his escape after the train arrived at the station.

But as he himself had said, the more he hoped time would pass quickly, the slower it seemed to go. The short journey felt incredibly long to Hu Yi. From the moment the train doors closed to when he was huddled in the corner, only a dozen seconds had passed. For the rest of the time, the roar of the train, the sounds of fists and kicks landing on him, the curses of the skinheads, and the shouts and screams of the people around him all mingled together, filling Hu Yi's ears.

Of course, there was also his occasional roars—attempts to prove he hadn't completely given in, and to keep himself conscious.

Hu Yi had blocked most of the attacks with his back and arms, and he was secretly congratulating himself on his impenetrable defense when he was suddenly struck hard on the forehead. He felt dizzy and lightheaded, and thought he was about to lose control and fall to the ground.

He couldn't sit down; if he made a mistake, he would be finished! He gritted his teeth and reminded himself, tensing his body, but his mind was a little muddled, and even the pain from the punches and kicks landing on his body was gradually becoming less clear.

He needed to concentrate immediately. Hu Yi's mind was a complete blank; in his desperation, he couldn't think of a way to stay alert. Suddenly, he started reciting aloud, seemingly without any context: "The charcoal seller! Cutting firewood and burning charcoal in the southern mountains! His face is covered in dust and soot! His temples are gray, his ten fingers are black! What does he do with the money he earns from selling charcoal? He buys clothes for himself and food for his mouth! His clothes are pitifully thin! He worries that the charcoal will be cheap and wishes for cold weather! Last night, a foot of snow fell outside the city! A foot of snow..."

Damn, I can't remember the rest. Hu Yi's mind went blank again, and he vaguely recalled skipping class to play games in high school. Right, in fighting games, as long as you defend, the opponent's direct attacks are hard to be effective. I've been defending, my health bar must still be long, I can definitely hold on.

With his confidence slightly boosted, he steadied himself and loudly proclaimed, disregarding all else: "Your subject Liang reports: The late Emperor passed away before completing his great undertaking! Now the empire is divided into three! Yizhou is exhausted! This is truly a critical moment of survival! However—"

The word "but" was only half uttered when the bald man in front of him kicked out, his large leather boot striking Hu Yi squarely in the nose. Fortunately, his left arm, which was shielding his eyes, slightly cushioned the impact, making the kick less solid. Even so, Hu Yi was still dizzy from the kick. He had already been curled up in a ball, making it difficult for him to breathe, and now he felt as if all the strength had left him. He swayed a few times and was about to collapse.

Just a little longer, almost there, it should be soon. His nostrils felt like a faucet had been turned on, hot blood gushing out. Hu Yi didn't dare wipe it away, remaining motionless in his defensive posture. He vaguely heard the long-awaited, steady female voice on the train's announcement system: "Attention passengers, the next station is Ahotenei Lyat."

Hu Yi's spirits lifted suddenly, like a person on the verge of dehydration in the desert seeing an oasis. He gritted his teeth and rallied. The train slowly pulled into the station and came to a stop. The doors slowly opened, and like a rabbit playing dead, he mustered all his strength and jumped up, desperately squeezing a gap between the two bald heads in front of him, rushing out without a care in the world.

Just as he was about to escape through the door, with one foot inside and the other outside, someone grabbed the back of his collar and pulled him back into the carriage. Hu Yi's body involuntarily leaned backward, and then several people grabbed his arms from behind and dragged him back into the carriage.

Hu Yi was almost dragged off balance when a skinny, bald man suddenly blocked his way, grinning maliciously as he rolled up his sleeves and walked towards him. Hu Yi felt a chill run down his spine and couldn't help but curse, "Go to hell!" He used the leverage of his grabbed arms to forcefully and awkwardly raise his leg to kick the man.