Before questioning Zhao Xuran about whether he knew, Gong Ruini suddenly remembered a very important matter.

"Coming from the United States, don’t they need to adjust to the time difference?" Gong Ruini was puzzled.

"Didn’t they just get off the plane and say they’re pressed for time? Are Americans really that dedicated?"

Alright, they’re quite dedicated during work hours, but flying long distances and immediately getting to work without rest—will they be clear-headed?

Adjusting to the time difference is quite painful. In their state of mental muddle, can they chat with Gong Jiaxin?

Wow, Gong Ruini was a bit angry. "It would have been better if they hadn’t come; isn’t this giving people hope and then pushing them back into despair?"

If there’s no movement for a long time, Gong Jiaxin might be sad but would recover.

Zhao Xuran picked up the unfinished documents and continued reading. He was busy at work but hurried back after receiving Gong Ruini’s call.

He didn’t know why he was coming here earlier, but after finding out it was to meet Parsons’ instructors, he was shocked.

"It shouldn’t be, if they’re unwilling, they could simply not respond." Flying all the way to China costs quite a bit.

True, if they really aren’t satisfied, why go through so much trouble—just send a rejection would do.

"Maybe they didn’t come from the United States at all."

Not from the United States? That’s right; if they came from a country without a time difference, like Japan or Hong Kong, there would be no need to adjust.

"That’s good." Gong Ruini was very confident in Gong Jiaxin; she felt this sister was definitely talented. As long as the other side didn’t have a prejudice against Chinese people, they wouldn’t reject such a promising candidate.

Gong Ruini actually thought if this time Gong Jiaxin didn’t get into Parsons, she would ask Zhao Guangran to gather information on well-known design schools in Europe.

Gong Ruini vaguely remembered that out of the world’s top three design schools, two were in Europe. A trip to Europe would also be nice to experience its history.

Zhao Xuran wasn’t in a hurry; it wasn’t about his brother anyway, so why worry? Besides, he heard Zhao Guangran mention once that Gong Jiaxin’s designs were quite inspiring.

Hold on, Zhao Xuran found something odd now too. "How did Xuran suddenly get closer to your sister?"

Before, Zhao Guangran rarely mentioned Gong Jiaxin, and when Gong Jiaxin mentioned Zhao Guangran, there wasn’t a nice tone.

How did their relationship improve after Zhao Guangran went abroad? There’s something not right.

"How would I know." Gong Ruini, equally puzzled, replied, "I was just about to ask you."

She called Gong Jiaxin her sister, and Zhao Guangran would call her sister-in-law.

If Zhao Guangran and Gong Jiaxin ended up together, what would they call each other?

They could call each other by name as peers, but what about calling the next generation?

Gong Ruini felt it was a headache, and suddenly remembered a Korean drama she watched in a past life, sigh.

Zhao Xuran wouldn’t consider these things; for him, regardless of Gong Jiaxin being Gong Ruini’s sister, she would be marrying into the Zhao Family, following the family’s generation hierarchy.

"If Guangran could forget about Cao Na, it wouldn’t be bad."

"Ah." How come the issues they care about are so different? Come on, Zhao Guangran should have forgotten Cao Na long ago.

Thinking of how his uncle used to like his classmate and, after finding out she had a change of heart, was sad for a while, but eventually forgot about her and got along well with Wan Qiweng.

"The main thing is Cao Na still hasn’t started a relationship, and keeps coming to our house." Zhao Xuran had unresolved feelings about Cao Na.

"You know her mom and her sister too." Zhao Xuran had wanted to discuss this topic with Gong Ruini for a long time but never found the chance.

"Don’t worry, she’s not foolish; her career is her priority now." Several times, Gong Ruini noticed that Cao Na would slow her steps when passing by Zhao Guangran’s yard.

Her eyes would redden; if she had truly forgotten Zhao Guangran, it wouldn’t be this expression.

Really? Zhao Xuran thought Gong Ruini was oversimplifying things, but arguing with his wife over someone unrelated would be foolish.

"In a few days, let’s find a time to go to the Hot Spring Villa."

What, go there? It’s alright in the winter, but Gong Ruini instinctively didn’t want to go during the summer. Despite hot springs being good for health, soaking in such hot weather feels like roasting.

"There’s no time for any other place recently, too busy." Zhao Xuran was genuinely apologetic. Previously, every year during vacation, regardless of being busy, he would go out and enjoy some time.

Busy. Sigh, being busy is a key issue for them. "What about next year, are we still going out?"

Actually, Gong Ruini didn’t care much about traveling. At that time, tourism had not become an economic growth point, and traveling was truly about seeing things in their original state.

Though food has improved compared to the previous years, it’s still not great, and accommodation is really not worth mentioning.

The reason Gong Ruini insisted on going out every holiday was to instill a habit in Zhao Xuran so that he’d habitually consider traveling during vacations.

"Sure, but next year we should go further. How about we go see the pandas?" As for places like Jiuzhaigou, Gong Ruini was not interested.

That place probably isn’t famous yet, and most importantly, you can only get there by car, all mountain roads. Just thinking about it makes her back ache.

As for seeing pandas, they could conveniently check out the natural beauty of Qingcheng Mountain and then climb Emei Mountain; hotpot is definitely not to be missed.

"Okay." Zhao Xuran initially wanted to ask why Gong Ruini wasn’t worried about the long train ride, but then realized they could just take a plane.

As they discussed where to wander during vacation, they didn’t think about how Gong Jiaxin would feel at the moment.

Gong Jiaxin was extremely nervous. Actually, when she arrived at the door, she suddenly wondered if it was okay to come alone. What if they were bad people?

She wanted Ni Zi to come up as well, but then thought if she always had Gong Ruini with her, how would she manage alone in the United States later?

She’d have to sit on a lengthy flight alone, not knowing if Zhao Guangran would pick her up at the airport.

"Just treat it as practice." Comforting herself with a couple of words, she checked the room number again and knocked on the door.

Soon, a stern-looking middle-aged woman opened the door.

Facing that stern face, Gong Jiaxin felt a surge of anxiety.

"I’m here for the interview." Once the words left her mouth, she realized that wasn’t right, she was about to switch to English.

"You’re Gong Jiaxin, right?"

Phew, why is this person speaking Chinese—and fluently at that? Could she be a bad person? But thinking it through, she realized there was nothing she had for someone to plot against.

"I’m the interpreter." Zhang Yu took out a sheet of paper and compared it. "You received a call for a Parsons interview, right?"

Upon hearing this, Gong Jiaxin lowered her guard. Apart from her family, no one knew which American university she was applying to.

"Hello." Gong Jiaxin followed Zhang Yu inside.