With three superpowers at his fingertips, he could dominate the 1970s.

When the five arrived in the county town, it was already broad daylight. The sun shone from the east, making the dirt road in front of the train station shine white.

It was just time for breakfast.

There were a few people sitting sparsely in the waiting room.

The two families stood at the entrance of the waiting room, looked at the train timetable above their heads, and then looked at each other.

Two trains, in two directions.

Qi Zhengli and his wife returned to Kyoto, while Jiang Zhiyu and her family of three traveled south to Shanghai.

The tickets are not on the same train.

Liu Hong held Jiang Zhiyu's hand tightly, stroking the back of her hand, reluctant to let go.

"My dear daughter... once you've settled your parents in, you absolutely must come to Kyoto." Her voice trembled slightly. "Your godfather and I are waiting for you in Kyoto."

Jiang Zhiyu patted her godmother on the back and smiled, "Don't worry, godmother, we'll definitely come to Kyoto first once we're settled."

She paused, then lowered her voice: "There's someone over there. I've already made an appointment; they absolutely have to come."

Liu Hong was taken aback, not quite understanding who she was talking about, but she didn't ask any further questions—this girl always had her own methods for doing things.

Jiang Zhiyu took a slip of paper out of her pocket and handed it to Qi Zhengli.

"Godfather, call this number as soon as you get off the train. He'll arrange the rest."

Qi Zhengli took the slip of paper, looked at the number on it, folded it up, and put it in his shirt pocket.

"Alright, don't worry about us anymore." He looked at Jiang Zhiyu, his eyes filled with relief and a touch of emotion. "Take good care of your parents and yourself along the way. You always have your own ideas—I won't say anything more."

He added, "When you come to Kyoto, be sure to visit the old house. You know the address."

Jiang Zhiyu nodded.

Liu Hong held Su Wanqing's hand and talked for a while, mostly about being careful on the road and sending a letter when she arrived. Su Wanqing responded to each request, her eyes slightly red.

Qi Zhengli and Jiang Boxun exchanged a glance. The farewell between the two men was always simple—they said nothing, just shook hands firmly.

"They're gone."

Qi Zhengli tugged at Liu Hong's sleeve.

Liu Hong released Su Wanqing's hand and followed her husband toward the north ticket gate, turning back every few steps. After a few steps, she turned back again and called out to Jiang Zhiyu:

"My dear girl—you've arrived in Kyoto!"

Jiang Zhiyu waved her hand.

She didn't look away until Qi Zhengli and his wife disappeared into the crowd at the ticket gate.

The two families have now officially parted ways.

-

The waiting room was stuffy and hot, the benches were full of people, and the air was filled with the smells of sweat, tobacco, and instant noodles.

Jiang Zhiyu glanced at the timetable—their bus wouldn't depart for another hour.

"Should we register and find a guesthouse to rest?" she asked her father.

Su Wanqing rolled her eyes at her: "Why spend that money! We can just wait here for a while."

Jiang Zhiyu stuck out her tongue and let them go.

The three of them wandered around the waiting room for a while. Jiang Boxun found a seat by the window and sat down, staring blankly at the railway tracks outside. Su Wanqing took out the eggs that Aunt Wang had given her from her bundle, peeled three, and gave one to each of them.

Jiang Zhiyu took a bite—it was lukewarm, the egg white was tender and smooth, but the yolk was dry and hard to swallow.

She mentally gave Aunt Wang a thumbs up for her cooking skills.

-

An hour later, the three got into the car.

This time, Jiang Zhiyu didn't ask Seventeen to help her get the tickets—cheating with the space was convenient, but when she could use legitimate channels, she didn't want to make an exception every time.

She took a letter out of her personal storage space.

That was the letter of commendation personally written by the train conductor after he helped Old Man Zhong resolve the train accident. Was the letter stamped with the railway department's official seal?

Jiang Zhiyu took the letter and went directly to the train conductor.

The train conductor was checking the passenger roster in the crew room when he heard a knock on the door. He looked up and saw a teenage girl holding a letter in her hand.

"Hello comrade, I helped Zhong last time..."

Before he could finish speaking, the train conductor had already taken the letter and read it.

His expression changed several times—first he was stunned for a moment, then he suddenly remembered.

During a recent safety meeting, the higher-ups cited many examples related to this incident and specifically commended several passengers who acted bravely. One of them was—

He stared at the name on the letter, then glanced at Jiang Zhiyu.

"You're Jiang Zhiyu?"

Jiang Zhiyu nodded.

Without saying a word, the train conductor stood up and went to process her ticket exchange.

This news spread throughout their circle; this young man was a rising star in their railway system—at least for now.

-

Jiang Boxun and Su Wanqing boarded the train with their sleeper tickets, still somewhat dazed.

They knew their daughter was capable, but they never expected that even the train conductor would make things easy for them.

The three of them entered the sleeper car.

The four-person room was empty.

Everything was clean and tidy, the bedding was neatly folded, and a pot of hot water was placed on the small table.

Su Wanqing couldn't sit still any longer—she rummaged through her bundle and pulled out the clean sheets Jiang Zhiyu had specially prepared for them, and quickly began making the bed. Her movements were swift and efficient.

Father Jiang then placed his personal luggage piece by piece onto the luggage rack, stacking them neatly and even tucking in the corners of the bundles.

The three of them had just finished tidying up and hadn't even had a chance to sit down and catch their breath when the door to the private room was pushed open from the outside.

The train conductor and a young train attendant stood at the door.

The train attendant was carrying three boxes of lunches, while the train conductor was carrying a bag of apples.

Father Jiang quickly stood up: "This—"

Su Wanqing waved her hand, "No need, no need, we brought our own food—"

The train conductor didn't give them a chance to refuse and placed the apple directly on the tray table. The train attendant then placed three boxed meals on it as well.

"This young comrade helped us a lot last time!" The train conductor looked at Jiang Zhiyu earnestly. "He saved so many people; you must accept this small token of your gratitude. Many of the train attendants on this line know you. Please don't refuse."

Jiang Zhiyu wanted to refuse, but after seeing the train conductor's expression that left no room for refusal, and then looking at the three still-steaming lunch boxes on the table, she had no choice but to accept them.

"Thank you very much, conductor."

The train conductor nodded in satisfaction, glanced at their already prepared berths, and said:

"You three should get some rest. Don't worry, I've already given the order that the last berth in this compartment won't be sold. You three can rest easy."

As he spoke, he closed the door to the private room.

-

The private room fell silent.

The only sounds were the clanging of the train and the whistling of the wind outside the window.

Mr. Jiang sat on the lower bunk, holding a boxed lunch. He had some food on his chopsticks, but he didn't put it in his mouth for a long time. He watched the scenery flashing by outside the window—farmland, villages, ponds, telephone poles—receding frame by frame, as if rewinding.

His face showed a mixture of excitement and confusion.

What excited him was that he could finally go back. It had been almost a year, and he had dreamed countless times of that alleyway in Shanghai, the sycamore tree in front of the villa, and the office in the university that had been ransacked during the raid.

The complicated part is that I don't know what I'll face when I go back.

Of the students he had taught over the years, some had denounced him, some had spoken up for him, and some had remained silent with their heads bowed. He didn't know what to say when he saw them again.

Su Wanqing sat opposite him, eating her meal with her head down, without saying a word.

The two ate in silence, occasionally glancing at each other before looking away.

Jiang Zhiyu is quite carefree.

She quickly finished her boxed lunch, climbed onto the upper bunk, pulled the blanket over her head, and drifted off to sleep.

Su Wanqing looked at the bulging blanket and couldn't help but smile.

"This child..."

Jiang Boxun glanced at it, shook his head, feeling both helpless and amused.

Outside the window, fields and villages flashed by.

The train clattered and rattled all the way south.

The Shanghai Stock Exchange is still waiting for them.