When the four of them arrived at the Jiang family's house, each of them brought a plush bear.
Jiang Qingxue pestered her, "Sister Xiaoli, why do you like this bear? I think Winnie the Pooh is cuter!"
"I think they're all cute, it just so happens that I came across this one."
Jiang Qingxue was delighted, "Sister Xiaoli, wait for me!"
A little while later, she returned carrying a Winnie the Pooh plush toy holding a jar of honey.
"Sister Little Pear, this Winnie the Pooh is for you!"
Jiang Xiaoli took the teddy bear and ruffled her hair. "Then I'll thank you, Xue!"
Qiao Xing'er chuckled, "This doll is so big, Xiao Li, you're going to several more places on business trips later, it's not easy to carry, is it?"
Not wanting to see the little one disappointed, she smiled and said, "It's okay, it's just a matter of bringing an extra suitcase."
Jiang Qingxue looked at her mother nervously when she heard her mother speak, but she clearly breathed a sigh of relief now.
However, she thoughtfully suggested, "Little Pear, you can mail Winnie and Paddington home; they're not afraid of being dropped!"
Jiang Xiaoli chuckled softly, "Thanks for reminding me, Xue!"
The group had lunch together, and then they got up to say goodbye and leave.
As she was leaving, Grandma Jiang held her hand and said, "Little Pear, are you really not coming to Chongqing for the Spring Festival this year?"
Jiang Xiaoli took her arm and said, "Grandma, I'll fly back to visit you, Grandpa, and Uncle whenever I have time. This year, I'd like to take my mom out for a trip or something."
Grandpa Jiang comforted his wife, saying, "This is Xiaoli's first New Year after getting married, so let the young couple celebrate with Guizhi."
"Oh, right, right!" Grandma Jiang laughed. "Alright, it's a deal then. Come visit us whenever you have time, or I'll fly all the way to China to catch you!"
She turned around and hugged Grandma Jiang, "Grandma, I know, don't worry!"
Leaving the Jiang family, Xiao Jincheng couldn't help but sigh, "Brother Jiang's family is really nice, much warmer than most families."
Jiang Xiaoli nodded, "Yes, they are all very good."
Neither of them voiced their regrets, because this was already the best situation they could be in.
They returned to the hotel to pack their luggage, just before their departure for the Flower City in France.
Xiao Jincheng suddenly had a bright idea. "Little Pear, it takes us an hour to get to the airport, and with check-in and waiting for takeoff, it'll take at least two hours. I heard that there are trains connecting various European countries. Can we take the train?"
She wasn't really sure about the specifics, so she said, "I'll make a call and ask."
She went to the side to call Bai Zhi, and Zou Nan said, "President Xiao, the train is too slow. There's the English Channel between Chongqing and Huacheng, and it's a long detour. Besides, our plane tickets and hotels are already booked..."
Xiao Jincheng slapped his forehead. "Hey, that's true. Taking a detour would be too much trouble."
"It's not hard work at all!" Jiang Xiaoli said with a smile. "Uncle Xiao, I asked around. There's a high-speed rail line from Chongqing to Huacheng. It only takes two and a half hours! There's one last train today."
"Two and a half hours!"
The others gaped in surprise. Yuan Dong asked, "President Jiang, even if the train went straight for two and a half hours, it wouldn't get there, right?"
On April 1st of this year, China's railways ushered in a major speed increase, with the maximum operating speed on the three major trunk lines of Beijing-Shanghai, Beijing-Guangzhou, and Beijing-Harbin reaching 140 kilometers per hour.
In most people's eyes, this is already several times faster than the previous speed of more than 40 kilometers per hour.
Places like Chongqing and Guangzhou, which are more than 300 kilometers apart as the crow flies, would take nearly 500 kilometers by train, and it would take more than two and a half hours to get there.
Jiang Xiaoli explained with a smile, "A high-speed railway called the 'Eurostar' has been opened between Chongqing and Guangzhou. After leaving Chongqing, it crosses the English Channel to enter Guangzhou, and it does indeed only take two and a half hours."
Xiao Jincheng's mouth dropped open. "My goodness, people always say that foreign countries are more developed, but this is the first time I've felt like a country bumpkin from the countryside."
After making a self-deprecating remark, he couldn't help but sigh, "When will our China have such advanced technology?!"
Jiang Xiaoli smiled and said, "It will!"
Now that they were no longer conflicted, Jiang Xiaoli told the driver to hurry up and get in the car, "To Waterloo train station."
On the way, Cao Jie asked the question she was most curious about, "Chairman Jiang, you just said that this railway crosses the English Channel. Is it an elevated bridge built between the two sides? That's amazing!"
She smiled and shook her head. "No, but it's still very impressive. They dug a tunnel under the sea, connecting Great Britain and France."
Dai Guangbin couldn't sit still any longer. "An underwater tunnel? A train going directly under the sea?!"
Jiang Xiaoli nodded. "Yes, I just heard Bai Zhi mention that the entire undersea tunnel is 50.45 kilometers long, with 38 kilometers underwater."
They were all stunned, but Xiao Jincheng laughed, "Haha, that's really impressive! Let's experience it for ourselves!"
Upon arriving at Waterloo train station, the group bought tickets and excitedly embarked on their first high-speed rail journey.
At 4:12 p.m., the Eurostar departed from Waterloo train station.
At first, no one really noticed, but as the train accelerated, everyone looked at the scenery rushing past the window with shock.
Xiao Jincheng commented, "If there were cars with this kind of speed in China, most cities could be reached on the same day."
The Eurostar they are currently traveling on has a top speed of 300 kilometers per hour.
Jiang Xiaoli recalled that when she was alive in her previous life, China's high-speed rail had already reached speeds of 350 kilometers per hour, and it would surely be even faster and safer in the future.
She smiled and said, "Uncle Xiao, our country attaches great importance to infrastructure construction. Maybe in the future, China's high-speed rail will be much faster than this!"
The others present all smiled and agreed with her, but it was clear they didn't really believe her.
The two-hour high-speed train journey ended quickly, and at 7:47 pm, the Eurostar arrived at Huacheng North Station.
As Cao Jie exited the station, she carried her large bag, opened her arms, and breathed in the fresh air of Guangzhou.
"Oh my! This foggy city and Guangzhou are so close, yet there's a time difference? It's almost 8 o'clock already!"
Dai Guangbin pushed his luggage, "Of course, you didn't know that? It takes almost an hour to get to Huacheng!"
Cao Jie suddenly realized, "Haha, no wonder! It's such a wonderful feeling to travel from one country to another by train in just over two hours!"
They got into the car sent by the hotel concierge, and Jiang Xiaoli said with a smile, "That's because our country is too big. In Europe, you can go to several countries in a day, let alone two."
Xiao Jincheng nodded, "That's right, some countries here aren't even as big as one of our provinces!"
Cao Jie chuckled, "Then it's better that our China is so vast and rich in resources."
They arrived at the hotel they had booked in advance around 9 o'clock.
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