Two groups of people were planning to visit Xia Xiaolan.

She remained unaware, preoccupied with figuring out how to send Du Zhaohui away quickly.

Du Zhaohui had stayed in Ithaca for two days already. Something about Cornell University had captivated him, and he couldn’t seem to get enough of exploring.

“If he stays any longer, my classmates will think he’s my boyfriend,” Xia Xiaolan complained to Zhou Cheng over the phone.

She had inadvertently stabbed Zhou Cheng deeply with those words.

Zhou Cheng’s heart felt like it was being gnawed by ants. It wasn’t that he suspected anything between Xiaolan and Du Zhaohui – he simply disliked Du Zhaohui.

Since they’d broached the topic, Xia Xiaolan explained Du Zhaohui’s offer of payment and his request for help: “First, the compensation is considerable. Second, Du Zhaohui promised that once he takes control of the Du family, he’ll shut down their smuggling operations. I don’t completely believe this part, but those in the Du family who oppose him definitely won’t escape!”

Zhou Cheng’s heart was half frozen in ice, half burning in fire.

Only Xiaolan could evoke such complicated feelings in him.

He’d thought their relationship had grown distant, but even during his absence, while she might have had grievances against him, she hadn’t forgotten to look out for his interests.

“You want him to turn over Liu Tianquan.”

Zhou Cheng’s voice carried a hint of emotion.

Xia Xiaolan didn’t deny it.

Why shouldn’t she let her loved one know what she’d done for him?

Separated by thousands of miles, should they rely on mystical telepathy rather than communication to express their love?

“Zhou Cheng, I know this has been weighing on you. You’ve never gotten over Shi Kai’s matter. The Du family’s smuggling business definitely isn’t good, and that smuggling ship was directly under Liu Tianquan’s management – he can’t escape responsibility.”

Heaven makes one mad before destroying them.

After taking charge of the smuggling operations, Liu Tianquan had indeed become aggressive, equipping the smuggling ships with many weapons.

Zhou Cheng truly hadn’t gotten over Shi Kai’s death. Though the thug who killed Shi Kai was dead, at least Liu Tianquan should be caught to bring peace to Shi Kai’s spirit!

“Xiaolan—”

“Shh, no need to say it. I understand everything.”

Her concern for Zhou Cheng and his for her were beyond question.

As long as this fundamental premise remained unchanged, all other conflicts could be worked out.

If they no longer cared for each other, even the smallest conflict would be magnified infinitely and hurt both parties.

On the other end of the line, Zhou Cheng steadied his emotions: “You passed your driver’s test. Have you gone car shopping? Choose one you like – if you need more money, I’ll send it.”

He had no better use for the money anyway.

Xia Xiaolan just wanted a car for basic transportation. She’d found a Ford model she liked, which including tax wouldn’t exceed $4,000.

After driving it for a year in America, she could sell it and recover half the purchase cost.

“When spread across each month, including gas, it won’t exceed $300 monthly.”

Gasoline wasn’t expensive in America, just over a dollar per gallon.

If ordinary families could afford fuel costs, there was no reason Xia Xiaolan couldn’t manage it after buying the car.

Zhou Cheng felt no one could manage money better than his wife – even with money, wasn’t she still very frugal?

He asked about her weekend international student party, and Xia Xiaolan had plenty of complaints: “Don’t even mention it – it was so boring! Looks like I’ll have to keep attending these gatherings. America is full of parties big and small – birthday parties, relationship celebration parties, A+ grade parties, even breakup parties…”

She could skip them all, but that would mean being antisocial and isolated from the entire social circle.

Zhou Cheng pondered: “You might find them boring because your perspective differs from theirs. Connect with those you can relate to, don’t force yourself with those you can’t.”

Zhou Cheng worried about this himself.

As Xiaolan experienced more of the world, if he hadn’t pursued his advanced studies at the academy, they might have drifted apart.

Even revolutionary work requires like-minded people – why shouldn’t life partners? They were meant to spend their entire lives together!

Xia Xiaolan knew Zhou Cheng had a point.

There were interesting people around. Those who only talked about clothes and fashion were the boring ones, not worth wasting time on.

“You’re right. There are some ambitious young people worth talking to at these student parties.”

Xia Xiaolan mentioned Xu Jing and Ma Hai’s situation – if they approached her and she confirmed it was a worthwhile investment project, she wouldn’t mind investing a small amount.

…

This call lasted 9 minutes and 17 seconds. After hanging up, Zhou Cheng naturally felt reluctant to end it.

He’d sent his broken watch to the original manufacturer for repair. Others said it would take several months and suggested buying a new one instead, but Zhou Cheng insisted on fixing it. Money and time were minor concerns – the watch was from his wife, making it especially precious to him.

If he felt this way about a watch, one could imagine what she meant to him.

With Du Zhaohui visiting America, using their one-year cooperation as an excuse, his frequent trips would seem natural. Zhou Cheng couldn’t just stand by while someone tried to steal his wife’s heart.

Though Du Zhaohui wasn’t as tall or handsome as him, his shameless persistence almost matched Zhou Cheng’s sincerity when pursuing Xiaolan.

Even if his wife was shallow enough to only care about looks… that still wouldn’t be safe – there were plenty of handsome men abroad.

Zhou Cheng was currently in Beijing, at home.

After a month of treatment, Jiang Yan would be discharged from the hospital in a few days, so he naturally had to return.

But now he had no mind for Jiang Yan’s matters, completely focused on finding an opportunity to visit America. He even approached Zhou Guobin about it.

Zhou Guobin looked at him:

“Xiaolan’s only been abroad for a month, and you’re already restless?”

Zhou Cheng knew his father was mocking him: “First, Xiaolan and I haven’t seen each other not for one month, but for over three months. Second, after you started dating Mom, did you ever go this long without seeing her?”

They hadn’t.

Zhou Guobin met Guan Hui’e through an introduction after getting his job.

Before marriage, Guan Hui’e worked at a Beijing hospital. Though Zhou Guobin had worked in other cities for several years, Guan Hui’e had transferred to follow him. The longest the couple had been apart was when Zhou Guobin spent a year with an inspection and research group, traveling nationwide for two months without seeing each other.

Even that wasn’t as long as Zhou Cheng’s three-month separation from Xia Xiaolan.

Zhou Guobin quickly changed his tone: “How do you plan to go abroad?”

“I could join a Foreign Ministry leadership visit, or go with a state-owned enterprise inspection team… I’m just an insignificant cog – I don’t mind where I’m placed!”

Zhou Guobin was speechless.

His son had planned this and was just informing him!

“Do you look like an insignificant cog?”

—Of course not, that was just false modesty. Why was his father taking it literally? Even if he were a cog, he’d certainly be one meticulously crafted by an eighth-grade technician, precise in dimension and gleaming bright.