The three of them chatted and laughed as they walked together to Nick Zeller's Grand Cherokee.
Nick Zeller poked his head out of the car to greet everyone warmly, saying, "Brooke, Kenneth, hop in quickly, it's quite cold outside. The highway is probably going to be jammed for days; we're taking the back roads to the city today."
They were on the outskirts of River City.
If they took the highway, it would only take fifteen minutes to get back to the city.
But if they took the back roads, it would take at least half an hour, and with bad road conditions, it could take an hour.
Some areas still had dirt roads that became terribly muddy after rain.
The municipal construction in River City promised that next year they would turn all the dirt roads on the outskirts into asphalt roads, but unfortunately, it was not next year yet, so these dirt roads remained riddled with potholes.
Once everyone was seated, Nick Zeller carefully steered the car onto the back roads.
However, there were so many people that night, and more and more private cars were coming from the city.
They were in similar situations to Brooke's; knowing there was an issue with the high-speed rail, they came to pick up their relatives.
Thus, there were quite a number of cars parked haphazardly along this stretch of road, and many people were jaywalking.
Nick Zeller tried to avoid them, but he almost hit someone who was about to cross the road.
With a scraping sound, he slammed the brakes and leaned out to angrily shout, "What kind of walking is that!? The pedestrian crossing is over there! It's a green light here! Do you have a death wish!?"
The person was a young girl, who was startled by his words and seemed unsteady, falling in front of the car.
Nick Zeller sneered, slapped the steering wheel, and yelled at her, "What?! Trying to scam me for money, are you?! Don't you know who I am?! — Trying that with me, you'll run out of luck for several generations!"
But the girl didn't seem like she was trying to scam anyone, standing up with a wronged expression without saying a word.
A man dashed over from the opposite side of the road and grabbed her in his arms, anxiously asking, "Grace! Are you okay? Grace! You scared me to death! I shouldn't have argued with you! If something bad happened to you, how could I go on living?"
He tightly hugged the girl who had almost been hit, nearly crying.
Nick Zeller and Lawrence Winters, sitting in the front row, were quite angry at first.
But when they saw the man rush over and embrace the girl, crying his heart out, they were dumbfounded.
Nick Zeller nervously looked back at Brooke Osborne, then gave Lawrence Winters a quick glance, whispered, "...Did I see correctly?"
Lawrence Winters quietly responded, "...You saw correctly, that's Gregory Quinn, Brooke's fiancé."
Nick Zeller gripped the steering wheel, his expression slightly excited, though he kept his voice low, "That's right! Gregory Quinn! Brooke's husband!"
Lawrence Winters frowned, "...They're only engaged, he should be her fiancé, they're not married yet."
"They are; I know Brooke and him have already registered for their marriage certificate, but their new house is still being renovated, and they haven't held the banquet yet." Nick Zeller said confidently.
Lawrence Winters: "..."
"Uncle, you even know this?! You're too much of a gossip! Are you really a Great Heavenly Master or a Gossip Master?!"
The two of them whispered in the front seat, trying to keep their voices down, but Kenneth Osborne and Brooke Osborne still overheard them.
Kenneth Osborne raised his eyebrows in surprise, about to stand up.
Brooke Osborne, slightly embarrassed, held him down and stood up to look out the front window herself.
Just like Nick Zeller and Lawrence Winters earlier, she first widened her eyes in disbelief, then in anger, pushed open the Grand Cherokee's door and rushed out!