Qin Jiao said, "We managed to escape. That group almost beat us to death. You have to go catch them, and fast!"

"Alright, you two rest here for a bit. And contact your family to come get you."

Qin Jiao wrote down her home address for them and said, "I’m going to take my sister home first. She’s had a terrible scare, and I need to get her back to our parents. After that, we have to go take the college entrance exam. Once the exam is over, we’ll cooperate fully with whatever you need for the investigation!"

The young policeman was shocked. ’These two are about to take the college entrance exam?’

"If I remember correctly, the exam is today. You have to be at the school before seven, right?"

"Yes."

The young policeman immediately waved them off. "You two hurry home. Just leave a phone number. I’ll contact your parents if anything comes up. Once we’ve caught them, we’ll wait until after your exams if we need you for questioning."

"Okay."

As Qin Jiao and Shen Yi led Xiao Shi out, a few of the officers waved to them. "Good luck on your exams! Get into a top university!"

Qin Jiao looked back, smiled, and nodded at them.

The sky was just beginning to lighten. The two hadn’t slept a wink all night and were utterly exhausted. When they reached her doorstep, Qin Jiao noticed that Shen Yi was unsteady on his feet.

She and Xiao Shi had managed to rest in the space, but Shen Yi had been riding his motorcycle nonstop to get back, without a moment’s break.

Qin Jiao said, "Hurry back and get some rest. Looking at the time, you can still get thirty-nine minutes of sleep!"

Shen Yi laughed. "Why so precise?"

"Go get some sleep. If my mom isn’t back yet, I’ll make breakfast in a bit and bring it to you. We’ll head to school after we eat. I’ll drive."

Hearing this, Shen Yi’s gaze suddenly deepened, but Qin Jiao didn’t meet his eyes. Cradling the drowsy Xiao Shi, she turned and went into her house.

It was now 6:10 AM. Qin Jiao chugged a large mouthful of Spiritual Spring Water... She had given Shen Yi some to drink earlier, but she was still worried it would affect his performance on the college entrance exam.

’I hope it won’t be affected.’

The lights were on at home. Apparently, after searching for a long time last night with no luck, the police had returned to Ping’an Town. At that point, Qin Zhonghui had his wife and sister go home first, while he, his brother-in-law Sun Jianhua, and his older brother Qin Bogang searched for the girls for nearly the entire night.

Su Yun hadn’t slept all night and looked as if she had aged several years in an instant. She was mechanically making congee in the kitchen when she whispered to Qin Na beside her, "Xiao Shi loves egg pancakes the most... Before she went out yesterday, she said she wanted them for breakfast this morning, but now she can’t have them..."

Qin Na was miserable too, the rims of her eyes red.

She wanted to comfort her sister-in-law, but she had run out of comforting words and didn’t know what else to say. In truth, saying too much would only make her feel worse.

Just then, Xiao Shi, standing in the doorway rubbing her eyes, said softly, "Mom, I want some egg pancakes."

Su Yun, her back to the door, froze. The spoon in her hand stopped moving. She turned nervously to her sister-in-law. "Xiao Na, I just heard Xiao Shi’s voice... Did you hear it?"

Watching this scene, Qin Jiao’s heart ached. She remembered that in her past life, after Xiao Shi was abducted, her mother had fallen gravely ill, as if her very spirit had been siphoned away.

When she was young, she’d always thought her parents only cared about going out to work and didn’t love her or her sister. In reality, they had always loved them deeply but just didn’t know how to show it. Or maybe, in her past life, being apart so often had made it impossible for them to express that love.

Qin Na had already seen the two sisters standing in the doorway. Tears instantly streamed down her face. Wiping them away with the back of her hand, she choked out, "Yes, I heard her too. Xiao Shi’s back, and she’s okay! Xiao Jiao kept her word—she brought Xiao Shi back!"