Bai Suxiang hadn't even had a chance to speak when Bai Fuchi continued, "Business trip, what business trip? In this day and age, are there still places without phone service? I'm telling you, if you go on another business trip to a place where you can't be contacted, I absolutely will not agree!"
"Dad... I... it's not for work..."
Bai Suxiang didn't know what to say. Guo Xiufang quickly wiped the tears from her eyes and interceded for her,
"What are you talking about? That's the requirement of the job, unless you don't want to work!"
As she spoke, she nudged Bai Fuchi.
"Hmph! If you don't work, then you don't work, I'll raise my own daughter myself!"
Bai Fuchi said indignantly.
"Alright, alright, I get it. Don't worry, I'll find a place where I can make phone calls next time I go on a business trip, is that okay?"
Bai Suxiang comforted them.
She could only do that; she couldn't tell them she had walked through the gates of hell.
Perhaps they would know later when she told stories as reminiscences, but she couldn't tell them now.
"If you don't call, you don't know how worried your mother was! Because she was worried about something happening to you, she was listless in everything she did."
Bai Fuchi complained a few times, and Bai Suxiang could hear the worry of her parents.
No wonder the house felt so quiet when she came home.
She really couldn't imagine what their lives would be like if she were married one day.
At this moment, Bai Suxiang suddenly felt a little reluctant to get married.
"Enough, what are you saying? Your daughter is fine, isn't she? And you're blaming me? Aren't you unhappy all day, like a bruised eggplant!"
Guo Xiufang said to Bai Fuchi, nudging him with her hand.
"Sizz! Hiss~~"
"What's that sound?"
"Ah! My soup, hurry! Hurry and turn off the stove!"
Guo Xiufang shouted.
Bai Fuchi hurriedly turned and rushed to the kitchen to turn off the stove.
Seeing Bai Suxiang return safe and sound, he felt relieved. The pent-up frustration and anger he had felt all at once dissipated, and he felt strength flow through him.
Guo Xiufang grabbed Bai Suxiang's hand and held it for a long time.
She had never been so worried before; all sorts of thoughts, both rational and irrational, had replayed in her mind day after day.
It was better before she saw the video message from Bai Suxiang. After seeing the message, her mind was filled with images of her daughter being trafficked, or being held captive in some forbidden place, or even being murdered...
Although she repeatedly told herself not to overthink, and offered incense and prayed for her daughter's safety on the first and fifteenth days of the lunar month, she could never shake off the wild thoughts in her heart.
Only at the moment she saw her daughter did her heart truly find peace.
Only those who have been parents can understand the state of mind behind the saying, "When a child travels a thousand miles, the mother worries."
"You two wait, I'll show you my skills today!"
Bai Fuchi, happy, decided to cook a couple of dishes himself.
He didn't usually cook much, not because he couldn't, but because he only did it occasionally.
"Okay, great!"
Bai Suxiang said happily.
Her father's cooking wasn't the best, but the taste of his dishes was decent. Perhaps it tasted good precisely because she didn't eat it often.
"Alright, then you make this meal today, and we mother and daughter will just wait to be served!"
Guo Xiufang said, pulling Bai Suxiang's hand and sitting down on the sofa in the living room.
She didn't feel like she was being overly sentimental; she simply didn't want to let go of Bai Suxiang's hand.
"Mm!"
Bai Fuchi agreed and busied himself in the kitchen.
His eagerness to cook seemed as if he might not have another chance to show off if he didn't cook this meal.
Bai Suxiang couldn't think too much; she just listened to her mother chatter about everyday matters.
Three people didn't need a lot of food, and they hadn't prepared much at home these days.
While Bai Suxiang was out of contact, they had no appetite.
Bai Fuchi quickly made two or three dishes, and the family sat down around the dining table.
Guo Xiufang seemed to have an endless amount of things to say, wanting to tell everything she had held back for nearly a month and a half.
Strangely enough, Bai Fuchi was uncharacteristically silent and didn't argue.
Normally, he would have bickered with Guo Xiufang.
"Sigh, eat, eat! We'll talk after eating!"
Bai Fuchi sighed and said.
"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back! You don't know how worried I was..."
Guo Xiufang said, glancing at Bai Fuchi, and took a mouthful of rice.
In the past, Bai Suxiang wouldn't have deliberately asked, but perhaps influenced by A Li, whom she met when she worked as a receptionist, her curiosity was piqued whenever she encountered anything gossipy or unusual.
If she didn't know about something, she felt as if she had missed out on millions.
"Don't know what?"
Bai Suxiang asked eagerly.
"Eat, eat! Eating won't shut your mouth!"
Bai Fuchi said irritably.
Guo Xiufang seemed a little hesitant, concerned about Bai Fuchi's feelings, and didn't continue.
However, with Bai Suxiang's intelligence, it wasn't difficult for her to find out the inside story.
Perhaps because she hadn't seen her daughter for so long, Guo Xiufang insisted on sleeping with Bai Suxiang that night, kicking Bai Fuchi out to the sofa in the living room.
Only then did Bai Suxiang understand the whole story.
Bai Fuchi had a relative whose daughter had run away from home. She was about eighteen years old this year.
She was considered Bai Fuchi's relative because she was the daughter of his cousin.
She ran away from home simply because she fell in love with someone online and had a conflict with her family.
Online relationships were very common in modern society, but they were unreliable more often than not.
Because of this, her family opposed her foolishness and locked her up at home, with dedicated supervision. Yet, she was inexplicably determined to contact that online boyfriend and found ways to escape!
Her family was furious, but didn't know where to find her!
They cursed her, hoping she would die outside, while simultaneously trying to find out her whereabouts, fearing she would be deceived.
Later, there were rumors that she had been murdered, which caused Bai Fuchi's cousin's family to grieve for a period of time.
They thought that if she was dead, then no one in the family could find her.
Unexpectedly, she called back, but only asking for money.
Her family scolded her soundly, but the familial bond couldn't be broken, so they gave her some money.
They also managed to find out that she seemed to be in a city called "Shamen."
Worried that she was trapped in that place, her family rushed to find her.
But there was no information at all. The girl seemed to have gotten wind of their search and disappeared without a trace.
Someone directly stated, "This time, she's most likely truly dead!"