Chapter 345: Can This Road Really Be Taken by a Car?

Chapter 345: Can a Car Really Handle This Road?

The next day, they were returning to the village, so Fu Tinghua was up at the crack of dawn.

It wasn’t just their family of four going back—Huang Chaoming, an agronomy expert, was also accompanying them to study the durians and sugar oranges Su He had planted.

When Fu Tinghua got up, Su He was still asleep. He tiptoed downstairs and headed to the kitchen, only to find Wen Qing already up and preparing breakfast.

"Mom, you don’t have to wake up so early to make breakfast every day. I can just buy some outside," Fu Tinghua said, feeling guilty about his mother-in-law’s efforts. He’d told her more than once.

Nowadays, many people in the city sold breakfast, and it was a booming business.

Most folks rushing off to work didn’t have time to cook, so they usually just grabbed a quick bite.

"No way. If we can make it ourselves, why waste money buying it outside?" Wen Qing replied with a smile.

It warmed her heart that her son-in-law cared about her well-being.

But after a lifetime of hard work, she was used to waking up early to cook breakfast. She couldn’t help it—she’d wake up at the same time no matter what.

"Go wash up. Breakfast will be ready soon. You’re heading back to the village later, right?" Wen Qing asked while steaming buns on the stove.

"Yeah, that’s right." Fu Tinghua didn’t press the issue further and went to wash up.

Perhaps because they were returning to the countryside today, Su He subconsciously didn’t linger in bed.

After opening her eyes and seeing the dawn-lit sky outside, she quickly got up.

When she went downstairs to the kitchen, she saw Fu Tinghua already sitting at the table, eating breakfast.

The moment Wen Qing spotted her daughter, her face brightened like sunshine.

"Sweetie, why are you up so early today?" Wen Qing asked with a smile.

She knew Su He wasn’t exactly a morning person these days, so this was quite a surprise.

"Well, we’re going back to the village later, aren’t we?" Su He replied, slightly embarrassed. It seemed her habit of sleeping in was already well-known at home.

Waking up a little earlier made everyone make a big deal out of it.

"Right, then do you want breakfast now? See what I’ve made—pick whatever you’d like."

After saying that, Wen Qing let Su He figure it out herself.

Su He peeked over at Fu Tinghua’s plate, saw he was eating sweet potatoes, and without saying a word, turned to go wash up.

Fu Tinghua: ?

Su He went to wake up the two kids, got them washed up, and then had breakfast together with them.

"Dr. Fu, where are we meeting Expert Huang?" Su He asked between mouthfuls.

"He should be on his way," Fu Tinghua replied while helping their son and daughter with breakfast.

"Oh."

Su He thought "soon" might take a while, but lo and behold, just a few minutes later, Wen Qing came in and said a car had pulled up outside, apparently here for Fu Tinghua.

Su He and Fu Tinghua shared a look, and Su He broke the silence.

"That fast? Go take a look outside."

Fu Tinghua didn't hesitate and told his daughter, "Finish eating on your own—Daddy’s going to check something."

Then he went out to meet Huang Chaoming.

Huang Chaoming was accompanied by two men, who Fu Tinghua guessed were his military escorts.

"Ting Hua, am I too early? Hope I’m not interrupting." Huang Chaoming asked with a smile.

"No, we’re just eating breakfast. Want to come in?" Fu Tinghua invited.

"We’re good—already ate. These two are my security detail. Hope that’s okay?" Huang Chaoming asked again.

"It's fine." Of course, Fu Tinghua didn’t mind. If these two were accompanying Huang, then the ones originally assigned to follow him probably wouldn’t come along.

As long as someone’s keeping an eye out, it’s fine.

Su He and the kids hurried through breakfast, grabbed a change of clothes, and went to find Fu Tinghua.

If they missed anything, they could just get it from the space system—Fu Tinghua knew she had one.

Come to think of it, Su He still hadn’t turned in her mom Wen Qing’s embroidery to the space system.

She’d been so caught up in real life, she’d almost forgotten about the space system entirely.

"Dad!" Su He led the kids to the door, and Niu Niu was the first to shout, "Dad!"

Fu Tinghua was talking with Huang Chaoming at the time and turned when he heard his daughter’s voice.

Huang Chaoming spotted Niu Niu too. His son was already grown—almost twenty.

When he returned to China, he had come alone, without his family.

His family didn’t get it—why give up a good life in the U.S. for a struggling country with shaky policies? Wasn’t that just asking for hardship?

But Huang Chaoming wanted to help build his homeland and see China grow.

So he packed up and came back, no hesitation.

After the attack in Wencheng, he kept it from his family.

If they knew, they’d have dragged him back to the U.S. ASAP.

Why rock the boat?

"Your daughter’s adorable," he blurted out.

He’d wanted a daughter, but his wife’s health limited them to one kid.

"Thank you," Fu Tinghua replied politely.

They moved fast—soon, everyone was in their cars, driving back to the village.

Fu Tinghua’s family took one car; Huang Chaoming and his two escorts trailed in another.

As they drove, Su He eyed the two silent, stone-faced men and asked Fu Tinghua, "Are they Expert Huang’s bodyguards?"

"Yeah, probably." Fu Tinghua held the steering wheel, seemed focused on driving, yet he responded to every question Su He asked.

"What about the people protecting you? It's been so many days, and I haven’t seen them at all." Su He found it strange. Was the whole protection thing just talk?

"They’re around, just keeping a low profile. They wear plain clothes and look no different from ordinary people." Fu Tinghua knew who they were, but they rarely showed themselves.

"Alright."

Su He watched as the scenery outside the window gradually changed, heading down the familiar road toward home, feeling at ease.

Instead of driving to the Fu family home, Fu Tinghua turned onto a side road leading straight to the house he shared with Su He.

Huang Chaoming’s car followed behind, and the driver was dumbstruck at the narrow road ahead.

Is this even wide enough for a car?

Su He fell asleep in the car and woke up as Fu Tinghua was edging down the narrow path home.

"Why are you taking this route? It’s so narrow—can the car behind us keep up?"

Without even looking up, Fu Tinghua chuckled and replied, "Don’t worry, their driving skills are better than ours."

As it turned out, the saying ‘practice makes perfect’ held true.

The driver behind them, maneuvering through that narrow lane, came dangerously close to the ditch.