Wen Yue nodded. “Then another day.”

Jiang Zhuo added, “Then Jingyan can come another day.”

When they said “another day,” everyone knew that could be any year or month.

Whether they were family or not, many details could be sensed without needing to explicitly mention them.

Su Qingran glanced at Pei Jingyan, just about to say goodbye when Jiang Chenlin stepped in between them.

Su Qingran felt a mix of amusement and exasperation.

Pei Jingyan, however, had already silently moved to the sofa area to grab his jacket.

At that moment, Su Qingran’s phone pinged with a notification; it was a video from Zhai Wei.

She opened it to find that Zhai Wei had sent two videos, both featuring Hetian jade material—one was blue flower jade, and the other was Loulan tricolor.

Su Qingran was so captivated by the videos that she forgot everything else, her mind automatically starting to sketch designs for what she could carve.

She couldn’t wait to call Zhai Wei. “Senior Brother, didn’t you say there was only one Ruoqiang yellow material? Where did these two come from?”

Zhai Wei laughed. “I thought that yellow material was great, but then I saw these two and thought you’d definitely like them. The blue flower is going to be publicly auctioned at the upcoming public sale, and the Loulan tricolor was released alongside the yellow material. Everyone is keeping an eye on them. If you want them, you have to act quickly.”

Su Qingran hurriedly replied, “I’ll fly over tomorrow; I’ll make sure they reserve them for me.”

Zhai Wei said, “No problem. I’ll be there for the next few days, and I’ll send someone to pick you up at the airport.”

After hanging up the phone, Su Qingran was still buzzing with excitement.

Nearby, Jiang Zhuo had overheard her and asked, “Xiaoran, are you going out tomorrow?”

Su Qingran nodded. “I need to fly to Urumqi and then transfer to Yutian. My senior brother found some good materials for me; I need to check them out in person.”

Jiang Zhuo turned to her son. “Chenlin, go with Xiaoran tomorrow.”

Jiang Chenlin paused slightly. “I have something to take care of early the day after tomorrow.”

“What’s that?” Jiang Zhuo said discontentedly. “Xiaoran is going to Xinjiang by herself; what if it’s not safe…”

“It’s something for the department; it’s been planned for a while, and I really can’t pull out.” Jiang Chenlin then turned to Su Qingran and asked, “Xiaoran, can you wait a few days?”

Su Qingran shook her head. “I’m worried if I get there too late, someone else will snatch them up. This is really important; I’ve been looking for good materials for the carving competition that happens every three years, and I haven’t found anything particularly satisfying. If the materials in Yutian work out, I’ll need to focus on the competition for the next few months.”

After explaining, she turned to Jiang Zhuo. “Auntie, it’s fine. My senior brother will pick me up over there, and everything is arranged. Chenlin is the president of the student union; he has his responsibilities, and I can handle things myself.”

Jiang Zhuo nodded. “Then I’ll find a couple of bodyguards to accompany you.”

Su Qingran smiled. “It’s okay; my dad will definitely make arrangements!”

“Alright then,” Jiang Zhuo finally relented. “Just call us anytime while you’re over there.”

Su Qingran responded with a “Okay,” and then eagerly went to book her flight.

Meanwhile, Pei Jingyan had taken his jacket and left after greeting Jiang Zhuo.

As he passed by Su Qingran, she seemed so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn’t even look up or notice his departure.

That evening, after finishing dinner at the Jiang family’s home, Jiang Chenlin accompanied Su Qingran back to the Su family.

The door was opened by Su Qingran’s cousin, Su Qiantang. When the girl saw Jiang Chenlin, she quickly nodded her head and then hid behind Su Qingran.

Jiang Chenlin smiled. “Qiantang seems to have grown taller again?”

Su Qiantang was four centimeters shorter than Su Qingran. She hid completely behind her cousin and didn’t make a sound.

Su Qingran waved at Jiang Chenlin. “Alright, my little Qiantang is shy, so I won’t keep you.”

Jiang Chenlin, clearly used to this situation, nodded. “Okay, I’ll leave then. Tomorrow I’ll take you to the airport.”

Once he left, Su Qiantang came out from behind Su Qingran.

The girl was seventeen, with large eyes and a small, delicate face, her fair skin making her look adorable.

“Elder sister,” she said in a very soft voice, “where are you going tomorrow?”

Su Qingran took her hand and sat her down. “I need to go to Xinjiang to pick up some materials.”

Saying this, she took out a bag of candied chestnuts from her bag and smiled. “I passed by your favorite place today and bought these, but they’re a little cold now.”

“Wow!” Su Qiantang’s eyes lit up, and she happily took the chestnuts.

The two sisters sat down together to eat candied chestnuts, and Su Qingran asked, “Where are Mom and Dad?”

“Out for a walk, they haven’t come back yet.” Su Qiantang had already peeled a chestnut and fed it to Su Qingran. “Sister, eat.”

Su Qingran chewed and ruffled her sister’s hair. “Good Qiantang, always so filial!”

Su Qiantang’s lips moved, wanting to explain that “filial” shouldn’t be used this way, but her tongue got tied, and her little face turned slightly red. Su Qingran thought she looked adorable and pinched the soft flesh of her cheek.

Su Qiantang’s original name was Qin Qiantang, and she was now in her first year of high school. When she was four, her family went to the beach, and they encountered a rip current. She was swept into the water, and her parents, who couldn’t swim, struggled to keep her afloat until help arrived. However, her parents never came back.

After experiencing such a traumatic event at a young age, Su Qiantang developed aphasia and was later taken in by Su Qingran’s family for care, remaining unable to speak.

Su Qingran remembered that it wasn’t until Su Qiantang was eleven, after seven years of psychological therapy, that she first produced syllables. Su Qingran held her close and couldn’t help but cry, feeling both comforted and excited.

However, Su Qiantang was still socially anxious and timid; she didn’t want to speak in public. Over the years, aside from her cousin’s family of three, no one knew she had learned to communicate with others.

As the two sisters played and joked, Su Qingran’s parents returned home. Upon hearing that their daughter was flying to Xinjiang the next day, her father, Su Zhen, slapped his thigh. “You need to take a few bodyguards!”

Saying this, he went to call his secretary.

The Su family wasn’t originally a wealthy family; twenty years ago, Su Zhen was just a small supermarket owner.

Wanting the best for his daughter, he invested the money he made from the supermarket into a small beverage company.

By coincidence, that company released a drink that was recommended by a popular star at the time, making it a big hit.

Su Zhen earned a considerable profit from dividends, and when the shareholders of the company planned to exit after the drink lost its popularity, Su Zhen took the opportunity to acquire the entire company.

At that time, Su Qingran was still very young, and Su Qiantang had just moved in after her family incident.

Su Zhen dedicated almost all his time to the company, while his wife, Lu Ruolan, took care of the two girls as they grew up.

Later, Su Zhen would often say that Qingran and Qiantang were his lucky charms, as his company continued to grow until it became a leading beverage enterprise in the country. Almost all of his subsequent investments in other projects also yielded satisfactory returns.

However, the wealthy circles in Jing City never acknowledged the Su family’s existence; they considered Su Zhen just a lucky nouveau riche, incomparable to the longstanding heritage of families like the Pei and Jiang families.

But neither Su Zhen nor Lu Ruolan cared about this.

They treated Su Qiantang as their own daughter, and the family of four lived happily together.

At this moment, everyone sat together eating candied chestnuts, and after Su Zhen had eaten five of them, he suddenly realized, “What happened to the diet we talked about?”

Lu Ruolan laughed. “You need to eat well to have energy, right?”

Su Zhen thought about it and said, “Oh right, that makes sense.”

In the next moment, Su Qiantang peeled a chestnut and placed it in his palm.

Su Qingran picked up her phone and took a picture of the pile of chestnut shells, posting it on her social media with the caption—

“Today is Hamster Home.”

The senior brother was the first to give her a like, and soon several friends followed suit.

Then came Jiang Chenlin, who commented, “I have no chestnuts to eat, seeking comfort.” Su Qingran replied to him with a cute, tsundere emoji.

Just as she was about to put down her phone, another like popped up. The profile picture was a scenic photo of a rocky beach, the kind that the system defaults to, clearly resembling the style of an elderly cadre in their sixties.

Su Qingran was wondering who it was, and when she clicked in, her first reaction was that she must have seen it wrong.

It turned out to be Pei Jingyan.