In such situations, some flexibility was needed.

When young people were scammed, if they were able-bodied, the police station would shelter them for at most two days before victims had to fend for themselves.

If they sent everyone to Shenzhen, wouldn’t everyone try to take advantage?

But Old Lady Xia’s situation was special – her family members who traveled with her had all disappeared. She was elderly and had previously suffered a stroke. Sending her back home was pointless as she had no family there.

However, she did have a son working in the Special Economic Zone.

The police station helped Old Lady Xia apply for a border pass while actively contacting Shenzhen. They needed to connect with Cheng Rong Group first – otherwise, what would happen if they sent the old lady there with no one to receive her?

They needed to verify two things:

That Xia Dajun worked at Cheng Rong Group.

That Xia Dajun was indeed Old Lady Xia’s son.

While the police station worked on these procedures, Old Lady Xia calmed down slightly but clutched the officer’s hand: “Comrade Officer, you must catch the bad people and save my son. He must be suffering terribly!”

The old lady inspired sympathy at first glance, but one couldn’t stay with her too long.

“Aren’t you worried about your daughter-in-law and granddaughter?”

From any perspective, the women were in more danger. Trafficked men usually ended up in forced labor, but for women, especially young ones, the outcome was uncertain. Even if rescued, they would likely suffer severe physical and mental trauma.

Old Lady Xia wasn’t particularly worried.

Her son was her flesh and blood.

A daughter-in-law would always be an outsider. Even though Wang Jingui lived with her and cared for her during her stroke, an outsider was still an outsider.

Xia Hongxia was her granddaughter, but among the three Xia granddaughters, even the loose woman Xia Xiaolan had turned her life around. Old Lady Xia resented Xia Hongxia for not bringing her honor. The Xia family had three grandsons; losing one granddaughter wasn’t worth much.

According to the police, trafficked women would… Old Lady Xia thought it might be better not to find them, to avoid bringing shame to the Xia family!

Hongbing still had two sons; he didn’t need a daughter.

Dajun only had the opportunity to leave home and make money after abandoning his wife and daughter. Perhaps her third son was being held back by Wang Jingui and Xia Hongxia.

Once Hongbing became wealthy like Dajun, would he have trouble finding a new wife?

Bah, what good was it that the loose woman got into university? She was like Liu Fen, all talk and no action – not destined for a good life!

The female police officer watched Old Lady Xia’s changing expressions as she repeatedly emphasized finding only her son Xia Hongbing. The officer felt uncomfortable. This old lady was too cruel, not even treating her daughter-in-law and granddaughter as human beings.

Why were some women the main perpetrators of gender discrimination?

The female officer didn’t understand, but the police station hurried to contact Shenzhen to send this old lady away.

…

Professor Qiao Yongkui arrived in Shenzhen from Beijing.

Professor Qiao, in his fifties, was an authority in his field. Guan Hui’e and Xie Yun personally went to Baiyun Airport to receive him. Fortunately, Kang Wei was awake, and Professor Qiao examined him carefully.

After more than an hour, seeing Kang Wei was tired, Professor Qiao reached his initial conclusion.

“The surgery was well done, post-operative care was appropriate, and he was brought to the hospital in time. The family can rest assured; his chances of experiencing aftereffects are very small.”

Professor Qiao’s diagnosis relieved everyone.

Xie Yun’s eyes reddened, but she held back her tears.

Kang Lianming’s tense shoulders relaxed considerably.

Kang Wei was truly fortunate. Even though they had saved his young life, any aftereffects would have been regrettable.

Professor Qiao’s diagnosis was the best medicine. Kang Lianming felt his deceased brother must be protecting Kang Wei; a rare smile could be glimpsed on his usually stern face.

“Professor Qiao, thank you for making this trip.”

Kang Lianming clasped Professor Qiao’s hand tightly. The professor hadn’t come under pressure from anyone’s authority. When he heard about a patient needing help, especially the orphan of a martyr, he made time for the trip.

He didn’t blame the Kang family for being overly worried – it was understandable with their only heir.

Professor Qiao added: “When the patient’s condition stabilizes, you’ll surely transfer him back to Beijing for recovery? Come see me for follow-up then, though there shouldn’t be any major issues.”

Xie Yun and Kang Lianming thanked Professor Qiao repeatedly.

Since he had come anyway, the hospital had several special cases, so they asked Professor Qiao to consult on those as well.

Professor Qiao didn’t refuse and even praised Kang Wei’s surgery, saying the Special Zone hospital had done well.

In the hospital room, only Kang Lianming and Xie Yun remained. Guan Hui’e stepped out:

“I need to prepare to return to Beijing too.”

Between work and home matters, with the Spring Festival approaching, Guan Hui’e not only had her job but also her duties as Zhou Guobin’s wife. Many people would visit during the New Year; they couldn’t leave everything to Mrs. Zeng.

Earlier in the ward, everyone had quietly listened to Professor Qiao. Xia Xiaolan hadn’t interrupted, but now she showed concern for Guan Hui’e: “Which day is your flight back? I can see you off.”

Guan Hui’e glanced at Zhou Cheng. Zhou Cheng, feeling restless and wanting to smoke:

“I’ll return to base soon.”

His leave had dragged on long enough. Now that Kang Wei was not only awake but had been examined by Professor Qiao Yongkui from Beijing, proving his injuries weren’t serious, Zhou Cheng had no excuse to delay further.

Xia Xiaolan was reluctant to part with Zhou Cheng, but in front of Guan Hui’e, she couldn’t act spoiled.

Two little figures fought in her heart, one called “Emotion,” the other “Reason.” Emotionally, she couldn’t bear to part with Zhou Cheng, but rationally, she knew their two recent meetings, especially Zhou Cheng taking leave to stay with her for so long, had already broken protocol.

Compared to other trainees who couldn’t even communicate with family, seeing Zhou Cheng twice was already special treatment!

If she clung to Zhou Cheng, it would create a bad impression. After Gao Fei’s incident, Xia Xiaolan better understood the discipline and atmosphere of Zhou Cheng’s unit. She couldn’t let others criticize Zhou Cheng or make superiors think he was too sentimental and unreliable.

“Let me and Auntie send you back. We’ll just go as far as the fishing village, not further.”

She missed him – wouldn’t a mother miss her son even more? Including Guan Hui’e was appropriate, even though she and Zhou Cheng couldn’t be intimate on the way. Sure enough, Guan Hui’e’s gaze became more loving – people needed to be considerate of each other!

…

In the hospital room, Du Zhaohui heard that the Beijing expert had examined Kang Wei.

“So there’s no serious problem.”

If there were issues, Professor Qiao wouldn’t have time to see other patients; he’d be discussing treatment plans with the Kang family. Despite his arrogance, Du Zhaohui was also relieved to hear Kang Wei was fine.

Young Master Du’s relief didn’t last long – an attendant came to report that the Yangcheng police station had contacted the company about sending over Xia Dajun’s elderly mother.

“They say his mother was scammed upon arriving in Yangcheng, got separated from others, and only the old lady remains…”

Du Zhaohui pointed at his face:

“Do I look like I run a shelter?”

The Xia family was too chaotic. Even if Xia Dajun wanted to bring his family over, couldn’t he pick a better time?!