Chuxia nodded and exchanged a few words with him before preparing to leave.

She still needed to catch a train in the afternoon and couldn’t afford to be late.

By the time Chuxia and Jiang Zhida boarded the train back to Beijing, the Luo family, having finally calmed down Luo Xiaomei, rushed to Chuxia’s residence.

Upon arriving, they discovered that Chuxia had already left.

Looking through the window, they saw the house was completely empty, with nothing left inside.

Wang Yulan was both shocked and anxious, struggling to maintain her composure.

Sister Li, standing at her own door with a mocking smile, coldly said, “Don’t bother looking. Chuxia left a long time ago, and the house has already been reclaimed by the factory.”

Wang Yulan’s eyes showed her desperation. “How can the factory reclaim it? This house was allocated to Chuxia.”

Sister Li curled her lips in disdain. “The houses in the family compound belong to the textile factory. Why shouldn’t the factory reclaim it? Should they give it to you instead?”

Wang Yulan didn’t want to argue with Sister Li.

She was only concerned with finding Chuxia and asking her why she hadn’t given the house to the Luo family.

If it went to the factory, the Luo family wouldn’t get a single bit of it.

Brother Dage, beside her, frowned deeply, visibly irritated. “Second sister is determined to cut ties with the family. If it weren’t for Xiaomei’s situation, we wouldn’t have arrived so late.”

Wang Yulan shared the same sentiment but didn’t voice it. “I’ll think of another way. Sister Li…”

Sister Li immediately shut the door and replied from inside, “Don’t ask me. I don’t know where Chuxia went or how to contact her.”

Wang Yulan asked around the family compound but found no one who knew. Only Sister Li, who was unwilling to share, had any information.

Unable to find anything out, the Luo family had to leave empty-handed.

Unlike in later times, where some unscrupulous relatives might turn to the media to pressure their children, the transportation was not as developed back then.

Even if they knew where Chuxia had gone, the long train journey was too expensive for everyone to afford.

Chuxia was unaware of the Luo family’s search for her and wouldn’t have cared even if she did, as the house had already been turned over to the factory. Their search was in vain.

As the train clattered along, Chuxia felt increasingly eager to return home and see An’an.

With the exams finished and the application filled out, she was relaxed and enjoyed the scenery as they neared Beijing.

At this moment, Cen Huai’an was already on summer break.

When Chuxia arrived, she hoped he might come to pick her up.

To her surprise, she saw Cen Zhengnian and Cen Huai’an waiting at the station.

Cen Zhengnian was holding Cen Huai’an’s hand, dressed in a white shirt, dark blue suit pants, and breathable leather shoes.

His attire was always so neat and proper, unlike many men who wore vests, shorts, and flip-flops, or even went shirtless in the heat.

Chuxia had never seen Cen Zhengnian dressed so casually.

Though he did wear knee-length shorts, they were made from the same material as his suit pants, unlike Jiang Zhida’s flashy shorts.

Sometimes, Chuxia wondered if Cen Zhengnian felt hot in his formal summer attire.

But Cen Zhengnian seemed unaffected by the heat, his face free of sweat, and his gaze warm as he looked at Chuxia.

His usually emotionless face broke into a smile.

Cen Huai’an’s expression was more animated, showing excitement and joy.

As soon as Chuxia stepped out, he ran over and hugged her, his eyes shining. “Mom, I scored full marks in my final exams!”

Seeing the two of them, Chuxia couldn’t help but smile broadly, her eyes crinkling with joy. “An’an is amazing! Mom is so proud of you!”

Cen Huai’an’s face flushed with embarrassment as he lowered his head.

After a moment, he looked up at Chuxia again, his eyes seemingly waiting for something.

Unfortunately, Chuxia didn’t notice, as she was talking to Cen Zhengnian. “Why did you have time to pick me up today?”

This was something Chuxia hadn’t anticipated.

Cen Zhengnian’s work was so busy that she didn’t expect him to come to the station, let alone be home.

“Today happened to be a day off.”

Jiang Zhida, unable to bear the affectionate exchange between Cen Zhengnian and Chuxia, found it overly sentimental.

He quickly interjected, “Let’s go home; it’s too hot to stand here.”

Cen Zhengnian, bypassing Jiang Zhida, took Chuxia’s hand while Chuxia held An’an’s hand, and they walked toward the parking area where Cen Zhengnian had parked.

Cen Zhengnian had borrowed Jiang Zhishu’s car to pick Chuxia up, also for other purposes.

Seeing his mother leave, Cen Huai’an’s expectation faded as he realized she wouldn’t kiss him like last time.

But that was okay; with both parents by his side, he was still very happy.

Jiang Zhida looked at the happy family walking away and then at the luggage in his hand, feeling a silent mockery.

He couldn’t help but mutter a curse.

“Dazi, hurry up.”

Chuxia noticed Jiang Zhida lagging behind and called out to him.

He immediately flashed a cheerful smile and ran over.

Cousin is better than second cousin, at least she hasn’t forgotten about him, the unsung hero.

As Chuxia got into the car, she was delighted to see Huang Zi and Hei Zi were also on the car.

She reached out to pet the two dogs.

Huang Zi and Hei Zi excitedly wagged their tails, licking her and rubbing against her.

Cen Huai’an’s childish voice came from beside her, “Dad, I told you Mom would want to see Huang Zi and Hei Zi.”

When they were at Grandpa Jiang’s house, Cen Zhengnian hadn’t planned to bring the dogs, worried about the inconvenience of keeping them in the car for so long.

But Cen Huai’an insisted that Huangzi and Heizi missed their mother and that their mother must also miss Huangzi and Heizi. In the end, Cen Zhengnian agreed to bring them along.

Listening to his son’s words, Cen Zhengnian smiled and said, “An’an really understands his mother.”

Cen Huai’an’s lips curved into a small smile. Of course, he knew his mother thought he was the most considerate son!

Chuxia turned to see An’an with his head slightly raised, looking a bit proud.

He was so adorable that she couldn’t help but hug him and give his rosy cheeks a kiss.

Cen Huai’an’s face turned even redder, but his eyes shone brighter.

After Jiang Zhida got in the car, he noticed Cen Zhengnian was already sitting in the back.

Besides being the bag carrier, he was also the driver, and Jiang Zhida felt he had no more complaints to make.

Well, he was originally just accompanying his cousin-in-law for the exams, so having two more tasks, including Second Cousin Zhengnian and An’an, was not a big deal.

When he turned around, he was startled to see two dog heads appearing in the front passenger seat, with two big eyes staring at him.

“Huangzi and Heizi are in the car? And they appeared out of nowhere?”

Chuxia, sitting in the back, patted Huangzi and Heizi’s heads. “An’an brought them for me.”

Jiang Zhida, who was familiar with Huangzi and Heizi, also reached out to rub their heads.

He then asked Chuxia, “Cousin-in-law, are we going to Grandpa’s house or to your home?”

Chuxia and Jiang Zhida were taking the afternoon train, so they would arrive in the capital in the morning, with plenty of time until noon.

She rubbed her forehead and said, “Let’s go to my house first. We’ll tidy up a bit before going to Grandpa’s.”

Jiang Zhida looked at Cen Zhengnian, who had no objections and said, “Listen to your cousin-in-law.”

“Okay!” Jiang Zhida started the car.

Cen Zhengnian noticed Chuxia’s fatigue. He didn’t ask about the exams but was more concerned about her well-being.

“Are you tired? Rest your head on my shoulder.”

Chuxia was indeed tired. Even with Jiang Zhida driving, it wasn’t as comfortable as sleeping at home.

The car was hot, making it even harder to rest.

She yawned and said, “It’s hot.”

Without leaning on Cen Zhengnian, he took out a fan. “I’ll fan you. You can rest.”

Chuxia looked at the fan in surprise. “You prepared this?”

Cen Zhengnian didn’t deny it. He had anticipated that Chuxia or An’an might get hot, so he had more than one fan in the car.

An’an also took out a fan. “Mom, I’ll fan you too.”

Jiang Zhida, feeling a bit left out, said in a somewhat sour tone, “Isn’t anyone going to fan me?”

Cen Huai’an looked conflicted; his uncle usually treated him well.

At this point, Cen Zhengnian said calmly, “You can open the windows a bit.”

The car windows were already open, but they were not wide, and the breeze was hot.

Still, it was better than no breeze.

Jiang Zhida lowered the windows completely, allowing more wind to come in. Chuxia felt the heat on her face subside a little.

She was really tired and didn’t say much more. She yawned again and closed her eyes, leaning on Cen Zhengnian’s shoulder.

Cen Zhengnian did as he said, fanning Chuxia and making sure the breeze from the window reached the parts of her that it otherwise wouldn’t.

An’an spent most of the time fanning Chuxia and occasionally fanned Jiang Zhida too.

He was happy knowing he had taken care of his mother and uncle.