By all accounts, Yi Yuan’s child, regardless of the time, Little Sweetheart always came first.
Even Old Chi doted on Little Sweetheart with all his heart.
This time, neither the grandfather nor the grandson came, which was a bit strange.
Hearing Yu Ruiyuan’s question, Grandma Su couldn’t help but sigh.
“Yi Yuan is still at school. I heard his parents returned from abroad to visit relatives.”
They had never met Chi Yi Yuan’s father.
But they had all met Chi Yi Yuan’s mother.
Although that woman had only returned for a short time, it was enough for them to understand what kind of person she was.
With such an attitude as a mother towards her child, it was likely that the entire family wasn’t much better.
Yi Yuan was truly an unfortunate child.
“Why did they suddenly return?”
“Who knows? They even brought their son and daughter back with them,” Grandma Su said again.
These biological parents, after being away for many years, had no feelings for their children.
It was worse than adoptive parents.
This time, they brought two children back with them. If they doted on the younger two, Yi Yuan would probably feel heartbroken.
“Yi Yuan is due to return home tomorrow evening.”
What Grandma Su could think of, Yu Ruiyuan could also think of.
But this was, after all, someone else’s family matter, and others couldn’t interfere.
“Who’s to say? Alas, perhaps Yi Yuan’s suffering isn’t enough yet!” Grandma Su sighed, not wanting to dwell on this upsetting matter.
Meanwhile, Su Xiaotian and the others were on a crowded train.
But they had booked soft sleepers, and the number of people in the soft sleeper carriage was relatively small.
The three of them boarded the train and quickly found their berths.
The school attached great importance to this research project and bought them soft sleeper tickets. For safety, they booked four berths in the same compartment.
They were carrying a lot of research materials, and it wouldn’t be good if someone took them.
With four berths for the three of them, they had ample space. Moreover, once the door was closed, it formed a sealed small space.
Su Xiaotian felt that this treatment was really good, much better than when they traveled to Rongcheng to resell goods before.
“Xiaotian, you sleep upstairs. San Gong and I will take the lower berths.”
For a girl, sleeping upstairs offered better privacy.
And if anything happened, with the two men on the lower berths, it would be easier to handle.
Su Xiaotian was already a young lady, not like when she was a child.
But rather than sharing a compartment with strangers, she felt safer sharing one with her own brothers and Shen Zizhen.
When traveling, there wasn’t much fuss. After thanking Shen Zizhen, Su Xiaotian unceremoniously climbed to the upper berth.
With no outsiders, Su Xiaotian felt very secure.
Su Xiaotian tidied her luggage slightly and placed it on the luggage rack at the foot of the bed. However, in reality, she had already taken the opportunity to put her valuables in the system space.
As soon as the group had settled down, the train began to move slowly.
They were on the 2:35 PM train.
It was still early. Su Xiaotian took a book from her bag and began to read it diligently.
For the next month, there would be a lot of work to do on the research project, and she also had to self-study these courses. Su Xiaotian felt she would be extremely busy.
Trains in the 1980s were not like today’s high-speed rail. Although not as bad as cars, they still swayed.
The train swayed like a cradle, and Su Xiaotian soon felt drowsy.
At this time, Shen Zizhen and Su Sangong were still busy discussing something, and Su Xiaotian didn’t notice.
Su Xiaotian finally succumbed to the onslaught of sleepiness and fell asleep.
When she woke up, she raised her hand to check the time. It was already 5:30 PM.
Su Xiaotian peeked out. Su Sangong and Shen Zizhen were sitting facing each other, discussing something in low voices.
After several hours, their postures hadn’t changed. The only difference was that the papers on the small table had more and more symbols.
Sensing that Su Xiaotian had woken up, Su Sangong smiled and stood up.
“Xiaotian is awake? Have some water, it’s just the right temperature.”
While Su Xiaotian was asleep, Su Sangong had cooled a cup of water for her.
It was warm now.
Su Xiaotian, sitting on the upper berth, took the cup of water handed to her by Su Sangong and thanked him before taking a few sips.
Indeed, the temperature was just right.
Third Brother said he would take care of her, and he really took meticulous care of her!
After drinking the water, she felt a bit more energetic. Su Xiaotian got down from the upper berth.
Since they were going together, she couldn’t be completely in the dark.
She sat down beside them, listened to their discussion, and looked at what they had written on the papers.
After about ten minutes, Su Xiaotian understood the core of their discussion.
“I’ve thought about the problem you’re discussing before. I think it should be like this!”
Su Xiaotian didn’t stand on ceremony and directly stated her opinion.
As she spoke, Su Xiaotian picked up a pen and started writing and drawing on the paper.
Five minutes later, she had clearly explained her opinions and suggestions.
Su Sangong and Shen Zizhen’s eyes lit up as they listened.
After listening, they exchanged glances. It seemed neither of them had considered thinking outside the box when solving problems.
Although Su Xiaotian’s words had not yet been verified, according to this analysis, it seemed theoretically feasible.
Following the suggestions made in Su Xiaotian’s words, they began to conduct in-depth analysis and research.
Seeing that they were engrossed in their discussion, Su Xiaotian did not disturb them. Instead, she carefully considered whether there were any omissions.
How to translate theoretical knowledge into practice.
An hour later, the conductor had passed by with the dining cart several times. Su Xiaotian then took out cucumbers, tomatoes, meat sauce, steamed buns, and malted milk from her bag.
The food on the train was unappetizing, so Su Xiaotian preferred to bring some food from home.
On the first day, they could eat steamed buns; on the second day, meat patties; and on the third day, white steamed buns with meat sauce, along with cucumbers, tomatoes, and apples, making it a very hearty meal.
Su Xiaotian got some hot water and made a cup of hot malted milk for each of them before calling them to eat.
“Uncle Shen, Third Brother, let’s eat first, and then we can discuss slowly.”
Seeing that it was getting dark, the two of them tidied up their belongings and prepared to eat.
Grandma Su’s meat buns tasted exceptionally good.
Yiming Pavilion didn’t have steamed buns, so Grandma Su only made them occasionally for her family.
The ingredients were much more refined than before.
Shen Zizhen smiled and said, “I haven’t eaten Auntie’s steamed buns for a long time. I really miss them.”
He had been increasingly busy lately, even attending family gatherings at the Su family’s less often.
“If you like them, eat more,” Su Xiaotian said with a smile, pushing the food container of steamed buns towards Shen Zizhen.