Strangely... none of the parents from the three families tried to stop their children from rushing out to help their friend on Chinese New Year's Eve.
When they heard that the younger brother and his friends needed to drive to another province overnight but had no driver, Qu Ziyao became excited.
"I'll drive! I'll drive! I have a license."
However, her enthusiasm was firmly shut down by Jiang Yun, "How many times have you actually driven since getting your license before going abroad? Better sit this one out! Why not let your dad drive?"
Qu Zizhou laughed when he heard this, "How is my dad who just came back from Guinea any better than my sister who came back from England?"
"Neither of you will do. I'll drive," Jiang Yun thought, since her husband hadn't driven while abroad, his skills might not even match hers anymore.
In the end, Jiang Yun didn't need to drive either. Gu Junxing wasn't comfortable with the teenagers taking a cab or hiring a designated driver across provinces, so he arranged for their family driver Gao Feng to take the three of them.
Since it was Chinese New Year's Eve, a time for family reunions, Gu Junxing felt bad about calling someone to work, so he offered very generous compensation - more than a typical monthly salary.
Gao Feng was having New Year's Eve dinner with his wife and parents when he received Gu Junxing's message. Within seconds, his coat was thrust into his hands, and his family supported the decision without hesitation.
"Hurry up, don't keep your boss waiting."
When Qu Zizhou's and Chu Mingyan's families heard that Gu Junxing had arranged a driver, they felt much more at ease. Chu Mingyan's mother even drove her son to the Gu residence first.
Before Chu Mingyan got out of the car, his mother handed him a bag, "I don't know if they brought money or packed enough clothes. There are two down jackets in the bag, some water bottles, and I've put some cash in there for you."
Time was tight, so she couldn't prepare anything more.
After thanking the adults at the Gu household, she drove back home.
Nanny Zhang quickly packed several thermal containers with dumplings, hot dishes, and soup for them to eat if they got hungry on the way.
Butler Su was so worried that he wanted to go with them, but Gu Junxing talked him out of it.
Gu Junxing told Butler Su: "Let the kids handle their own matters."
The three teenagers themselves were actually excited and thrilled about this unknown journey.
Before they left, Nian Suian instructed Gu Zhijing: "Remember to let us know when you arrive."
She also told them to find a hotel in the city to rest for a night after picking up their friends, rather than having the driver make the return trip immediately to avoid fatigue.
Watching the car disappear into the distance, Gu Zhijing's grandmother, Madam Ye Wenru, remarked with a smile: "Our Zhijing has really grown up."
They were traveling in a seven-seater SUV, with the three of them sitting in the back row, leaving the middle two seats empty for Qi Anlu and his mother.
After getting on the highway, they realized they needed to quickly find out where Qi Anlu was exactly. They only knew which city his hometown was in, but not his specific location.
"Let's just video call him directly," Gu Zhijing asked Qu Zizhou, who was sitting in the middle, to make the video call to Qi Anlu.
At that moment, Qi Anlu was eating dumplings at Aunt Xiao Wen's house, and he felt there was something strange about the relationship between his mother and Aunt Xiao Wen.
He had thought this Aunt Xiao Wen must be his mother's good friend, but after arriving, she wasn't particularly warm towards them. Yet it couldn't be said that she was unwelcoming either. As soon as they arrived, she had poured them hot water and gone to the kitchen to make large plates of dumplings for both of them.
When he received the call from his friends, the three of them were eating dumplings in silence, with the Spring Festival Gala on TV providing the only sound in the living room.
Since this wasn't his home, Qi Anlu didn't feel comfortable moving around freely, so he just answered the video call in the living room.
Qi Anlu noticed that as soon as he picked up his phone, Aunt Xiao Wen turned down the TV volume.
"Qi Anlu, where are you? Guess where we are?" Qu Zizhou held the phone up high so all three faces could appear in the frame.
Seeing the three of them together, with what looked like a car interior in the background, Qi Anlu had a bold guess but thought it couldn't be possible.
"Send us your current address, we're coming to get you," Gu Zhijing said, looking into the camera.
"Coming to get me?! I'm safe right now, don't you need to celebrate New Year's Day? Quick, go back home."
"Too late for that, we're already on the highway. You'd better send us your address quickly."
"Alright then, I'll send it right away. Please be careful on your way here."
After hanging up, Qi Anlu told Zhou Xinfang that his friends were coming to find him, to take them back.
"Your son is much better than you," Aunt Xiao Wen suddenly remarked. Qi Anlu didn't understand what she meant, but Zhou Xinfang lowered her head upon hearing this.
"Anlu, give me your phone, I'll send them the address. The town's middle school isn't far from here, it'll be easier for them to navigate to."
Qi Anlu obediently handed over his phone.
"Alright, you two continue eating."
It would take five to six hours by highway to drive here from Jinjiang.
After dinner, Aunt Xiao Wen brought two quilts, "I don't have extra rooms for you to sleep in, so you'll have to make do with the sofa tonight."
But neither Qi Anlu nor Zhou Xinfang felt sleepy. Qi Anlu was thinking about his and his mother's life after they returned, and about his friends who were traveling towards him.
Zhou Xinfang received a message from her sister saying that their mother had gone to the Qi Family, asking them not to divorce her, but was driven away by the Qi Family. Her father and brother were now out looking for her.
[If you've made up your mind, stay hidden and don't let them find you.]
The Zhou Family members were searching around town, not believing that mother and son would leave overnight.
They even checked the town's only hotel but didn't find them.
At home, Zhou's mother was furiously cursing her daughter for being ungrateful.
"Marrying Qi Wenhan was the best thing that could have happened to Zhou Xinfang, and now with her son already grown, she wants a divorce. How shameful."
"Qiaofang, do you know where your sister might have gone?"
Zhou Qiaofang had married locally and was called back by her mother after this incident. In her mother's eyes, it was an enormous scandal for the Old Zhou family that her useless daughter dared to ask for a divorce from her professor son-in-law.
Zhou Qiaofang had a vague idea, but...
"How would I know? I need to get back home now, my child will cry if I'm not there."
Sure enough, this response angered her mother again, "What use are you! If you're going to leave, then leave!"
Zhou Qiaofang didn't take offense and simply left for home.
After searching for half the day and checking all their relatives' homes in town without finding anyone, the Zhou Family members, tired of the dark and cold, finally gave up and went home.
Back at home, Zhou's father said to his wife, "Maybe they've already left town, what's the point of searching?"
"That wretched girl, coming home all quiet and now daring to get a divorce!"