After the massive explosion, Jiang Yan was taken to the hospital, regaining consciousness only after a full day and night.

The burns on Jiang Yan’s back were severe, forcing her to sleep face down.

Before she even opened her eyes, she heard her parents talking.

“In this condition, how could Zhou Cheng be so heartless!”

“Take responsibility, why wouldn’t he take responsibility…”

“Say something! If Zhou Cheng doesn’t give us an explanation, I’m not afraid to make a scene at the Zhou family home. There must be justice somewhere in this world.”

“With these injuries, if they don’t heal well, even her arms might…”

Jiang Yan was in a hazy state.

She could now feel the pain from the wounds on her back.

It took a while before she slowly recalled what had happened.

Before reaching Pengcheng territory, Zhou Cheng suddenly ordered everyone to jump from the vehicle. She had jumped out, and then the car exploded. She had pushed Zhou Cheng aside, and the blast wave carried flames that landed on her, igniting her clothes.

Winter cotton clothing was particularly flammable.

Jiang Yan’s mind slowly analyzed – she must have been severely burned.

But this wasn’t so terrible. She was still alive, able to hear her parents talking – that was already incredibly fortunate.

From the sound of things, Zhou Cheng must be right too.

Both she and Zhou Cheng had survived, and Third Brother Pan must be alive as well.

Having survived such a catastrophe, what more could one ask for?

Hearing her mother talk about making Zhou Cheng take responsibility, Jiang Yan wanted to stop them, but when she tried to speak, no sound came out, and she drifted back into unconsciousness.

Her parents fixated on making Zhou Cheng take responsibility, and hadn’t even noticed their daughter’s brief moment of consciousness.

Zhou Cheng wasn’t at the hospital anymore.

Despite having two broken ribs and needing bed rest, he couldn’t stop thinking about Xiaolan and thick-skinned followed Tang Hongen back to Pengcheng.

Given Xiaolan’s personality, she would make an overseas call home to report her safe arrival.

Zhou Cheng ignored Tang Hongen’s cold face, and when Tang Hongen got in the car, he called him “Uncle Tang” and got in too.

“Zhou Cheng, didn’t the doctor say you shouldn’t move around?”

“It’s fine, Uncle Tang. I’ll try not to move much. You’ve been in Yangcheng for a day – I should see you back.”

Hah, as if he could even drive.

If Tang Hongen hadn’t seen Zhou Cheng’s firm stance and clear mind when dealing with Jiang Yan’s parents, he would have kicked him out of the car.

And so, Zhou Cheng thick-skinned made his way to Tang Hongen’s home.

It was already 3 PM.

Tang Hongen, having been away all night, had naturally informed Liu Fen earlier.

But Liu Fen hadn’t expected him to return with Zhou Cheng, who was trying his best to appear natural, not letting Liu Fen see how much his injuries hurt, though the scrapes on his face and hands wouldn’t heal in a day.

“Zhou Cheng, what happened?”

“Don’t worry, just some minor injuries. I had wanted to see Xiaolan off yesterday but couldn’t make it.”

Seeing Zhou Cheng in such a sorry state, and knowing his special profession, Liu Fen couldn’t blame him for missing Xia Xiaolan’s departure.

Tang Hongen had come home just to check on Liu Fen, as he had to rush to city hall – he had an unmissable meeting at four o’clock. Though he barely had time to talk with Liu Fen, his attitude showed proper consideration for his wife’s feelings, and Liu Fen had no complaints.

“I’ll be home for dinner, so don’t cook – you didn’t rest well last night, right?”

Even rushing to his meeting, he didn’t forget to remind Liu Fen.

They had a cook at home anyway. Though he preferred Liu Fen’s home cooking, Tang Hongen firmly chose not to tire Liu Fen over having his preferred food.

Zhou Cheng silently watched his future father-in-law’s thoughtful care for his mother-in-law.

Tang Hongen’s dislike for him had reached the point where he didn’t even mind Zhou Cheng overhearing him warn Liu Fen at the door not to be fooled by Zhou Cheng’s pitiful act.

“Young people nowadays are cunning – they’ll make three parts suffering sound like seven, and if it’s seven parts, they’ll surely claim it’s twelve!”

Zhou Cheng, who had been slightly hunching to avoid aggravating his chest bones, straightened his back at these words.

Tang Hongen had made Liu Fen embarrassed – Zhou Cheng was right there, covered in injuries. Wasn’t this like pointing at a monk while cursing the bald?

Fortunately, Tang Hongen was in a hurry for his meeting and didn’t linger, finally heading downstairs.

Liu Fen didn’t heed Tang Hongen’s words, showing genuine concern for Zhou Cheng:

“How did you end up like this, child? Why are you still standing? Quickly, sit down, don’t be so nervous… Just treat this as your own home.”

Liu Fen felt slightly embarrassed at her last words.

This was her first time seeing Zhou Cheng since marrying Tang Hongen.

Would Zhou Cheng, her daughter’s boyfriend, think she was improper for remarrying?

She hoped Zhou Cheng wouldn’t think that way. Liu Fen had always liked Zhou Cheng, unlike Liu Yong and Tang Hongen who were vigilant and critical of him. Liu Fen wanted to be kind to Zhou Cheng.

She hoped that by being good to Zhou Cheng, he would be even better than Xiaolan – that was a mother’s mindset!

Zhou Cheng wasn’t glib or pretending to be pitiful, but rather sincere and proper:

“Aunt Liu, I wanted to see Xiaolan off yesterday, but couldn’t make it due to an accident. I haven’t been a good boyfriend, and I don’t know if Xiaolan is angry with me. I want to apologize to her personally – has she called home yet?”

This worried Liu Fen too.

“Xiaolan mentioned something about a twelve-hour time difference, saying when it’s daytime here, it’s night there, and that China’s time is ahead of America’s. I don’t quite understand it, but she hasn’t called back yet.”

Zhou Cheng calculated silently.

Cornell University was in New York state, twelve hours behind China – in terms of time zones, one was in UTC+8 and the other in UTC-5.

“Aunt Liu, when Xiaolan said China’s time is ahead of America’s, calculate it this way: it’s February 16th, 3 PM here now, so subtract twelve hours – it’s still 3 AM there. I checked – Xiaolan cleared customs yesterday after 10 PM, then needed time at Hong Kong airport. She flew from Hong Kong to Tokyo, then from Tokyo to America, right?”

Liu Fen remembered this clearly:

“Hong Kong to Tokyo, then Tokyo to Chicago, and Chicago to New York…”

Going abroad was such a hassle, really exhausting.

That’s why international students didn’t return home easily – it was a triple test of finances, time, and energy!

“Hong Kong to Tokyo takes over 4 hours, Tokyo to Chicago about 17 hours, Chicago to New York about 3 hours. Just the flights alone take over 24 hours, plus transfer times and the hours it takes to get from New York to Cornell University. By the time Xiaolan gets settled, it will be tomorrow.”

This matched what Xia Xiaolan had told Liu Fen before leaving.

With Zhou Cheng saying the same thing, Liu Fen’s anxious heart found some comfort:

“Then she’ll call tomorrow. On the journey, she’s busy catching the next flight – how could she have time to call?”

Yes, no time to call.

It’s alright, he would wait until tomorrow too.