The originally wonderful and exciting trip was suddenly spoiled by a third party, leaving Chris and John deeply uncomfortable, as if they had swallowed a fly. To make matters worse, Alba's seat was right between them, creating an intensely awkward atmosphere for all three.

Chris and John inwardly sighed, closed their eyes, resolved not to speak to Alba, and planned to feign death until they reached China.

But once the plane took off, Chris, who was resting with her eyes closed, suddenly heard Alba weeping softly beside her.

Opening her eyes out of curiosity and confusion, she saw Alba hunched over the airplane seat, sobbing quietly and wiping away tears.

Though Chris didn't know what was wrong, her kind nature prompted her to offer a tissue.

Alba took the tissue without looking up, crumpling it tightly in her hand, but made no move to wipe her tears, letting them stream down her face.

Chris couldn't help but ask, "Alba, if you're homesick, why don't you just book a flight back as soon as we land? I'll pay for it."

Alba lifted her head, her makeup slightly smeared by the tears, and cried out, "Why are you being such a fake do-gooder?"

Chris sighed helplessly, "Regardless, we were classmates. You're coming to China with us, we can't just abandon you. What is wrong?"

Alba stared blankly at Chris for a moment, then suddenly pouted, rushed into Chris’s embrace with an expression of utter grievance, and began to cry loudly, "Chris, that bastard Jack dumped me for some tramp!"

Chris managed a wry smile, "John actually guessed right? You didn't come with us to China just because of this, did you?"

Alba wailed, "I feel like such a complete joke. How could he do this to me!"

Chris sighed again with resignation, patiently comforting her long-time rival. She said, "Maybe this is for the best. Perhaps going to China will let you start a new relationship."

John’s hostility toward Alba also dissipated considerably. He leaned over, making faces to join the excitement, and chimed in, "Right, Alba, I know plenty of handsome Chinese guys. Want me to introduce you to a few?"

Chris shot John a look: "Shut up. Besides your Shifu, who else do you actually know?"

John shouted back, "I know the mayor!"

Chris remembered the Mayor Luo whom John had once greeted so casually, and she burst out laughing, "Oh yes, if you’re not afraid of him arresting you and throwing you in jail, go find him!"

Alba cried for a while and her mood stabilized considerably. Wiping her tears, she turned to Chris and said, "Chris, I’m sorry. Jack dumped me yesterday, and I was in a bad mood. I just needed someone to vent to. What I said was out of line; I apologize."

Chris generously extended her hand to Alba, "Let’s forget the past. Shall we be friends now? Even if it's just friends while we’re in China, and rivals again when we return?"

Alba looked at the hand Chris offered, then suddenly smiled and shook it, "Fine then. Let’s call it a temporary truce."

This beautiful woman with South American flair had moods that arrived and departed quickly. She quickly sat up straight, dried her tears, then retrieved her small handbag, carefully checking her makeup in the mirror. Once finished, she turned to John, looking excited again. "Hey, are you two really eloping to China? Wow, that sounds so romantic!"

Seeing Alba switch from weeping to laughing so quickly, faster than any Hollywood actor, John couldn't help but smile ruefully. "Alba, stop messing with me! Chris and I are just friends; we're going to China to study under a master!"

Alba blinked, asking curiously, "Study under whom?"

The mention of studying under a master made John excited. He turned, speaking with animated gestures, "We're going to apprentice under a very, very powerful Chinese man!"

Alba grew more curious. "How powerful? Powerful in what way?"

John gesticulated wildly, "A grandmaster who can dodge bullets within five meters, catch a living person falling from the fifth floor with his bare hands, and fight off dozens of thugs single-handedly!"

Alba couldn't help but burst into loud laughter. "John, what you’re describing is Superman. He’s not in China; he’s in Hollywood!"

John couldn't help but retort angrily, "Alba, I am not joking with you!"

Alba sobered up, looking at John with an equally puzzled expression. "I’m not joking either. Superman is definitely in Hollywood!"

John sputtered in frustration, "Everything I just said is true! Ask Chris if you don't believe me!"

Seeing John’s genuinely angry face, which didn't look like an act, Alba turned to check with Chris, tentatively asking, "Is it true?"

Chris nodded very seriously. "It’s absolutely true. We saw it with our own eyes. I even managed to film it on my phone originally, but unfortunately, the professor at the exchange university confiscated my memory card... Ah, I could have won a Pulitzer for that!"

Alba shook her head repeatedly, chuckling. "Impossible. I don't believe it. How can such a person exist in this world?"

Chris smiled faintly, "Alba, when you meet him, you'll know!"

Alba laughed, "If such a person really exists, then I’ll apprentice under him too!"

As soon as she said that, John burst into loud laughter. "Impossible!"

Alba, slightly piqued, asked back, "Why is that impossible?"

John glanced at Chris, who happened to look back at him simultaneously. Both of them laughed and said in unison, "Because you don't speak Chinese!"

Alba stared at them with her bright blue eyes and countered, "What does speaking Chinese have to do with not being able to apprentice under him?"

John said with evident schadenfreude, "It’s a rule from the Shifu. He said that anyone who wants to learn his skills must first learn Chinese, or he won't teach them!"

Alba frowned. "Can't I hire a translator?"

John laughed heartily, shaking his finger. "No, no, absolutely not!"

Alba stammered, "Then is it too late for me to start learning now?"

John grew even more smug. "Chinese is very difficult to learn. It’s too late to start now! And even if you learned it, the Shifu might not accept you!"

Alba frowned again. "Why is that?"

John pointed at Chris. "Chris’s Chinese is good enough, right? The Shifu wouldn't take her either! Because the Shifu said his martial arts are only passed down to men!"

Alba, who already possessed a stubborn and extreme personality, coupled with some feminist leanings, instantly became enraged. Ignoring that they were on an airplane, she shot up from her seat and cried out, "What kind of man is that? What era still harbors such a decaying ideology, as foul as sewage? You people actually want to apprentice under someone like that? Good heavens, have you both lost your minds?"

She was already tall, and standing up on the plane made her stand out conspicuously. Everyone on board turned to look at her. A flight attendant immediately approached her, smiling softly, "Ma'am, please speak quietly, thank you!"

Seeing all the eyes on her, Alba forced a smile and sat down sullenly, muttering under her breath, "What's so great about him? This is clearly gender discrimination!"

After grumbling quietly for a moment, she turned to Chris and asked, confused, "Hey, since you know it's highly unlikely you'll become his disciple, why are you still going to China?"

Chris remained focused on the copy of the Huangdi Neijing in her hands, responding calmly in Chinese, "Where there's a will, there's a way!"

Alba looked utterly bewildered. "What?"

John chuckled, explaining the phrase in English, then laughed again, "There’s another saying..."

John then spoke in Chinese: "...Sincerity moves mountains, and gold is opened by sincerity!"

Alba stared at him as if he were an alien, saying, "What, what? Say that again?"

John repeated the phrase slowly, word for word. Alba tried to parrot it back, but no matter how she tried, the sounds came out incredibly awkward.

After several attempts, Alba covered her face with her hands and lamented, "God, I think my tongue just tied itself in a knot! I'm starting to regret coming to this country with you! How am I supposed to converse with these Chinese people whose tongues can tie themselves in knots?"

Chris fought back a smile and said lightly, "When we land in Shanghai, you can take the next available flight back. I’ll buy you the ticket."

Alba immediately dropped her hands and shot her eyes open, declaring, "Don't think you can shake me! I won't bail at the last minute. I must see what this detestable, damned, misogynistic jerk looks like! I'm going to berate his chauvinistic mindset to his face, scold him for his rotten, antiquated views, and make him realize he lives in the 21st century, not some ancient society!"

John looked horrified and quickly said, "No, no! The Shifu will be angry! He is very formidable; you absolutely cannot anger him!"

Alba glanced at John. "Why are you so nervous?" Then, a realization dawned on her. "Oh, you’re worried that if I anger him, he won’t take you as a disciple either, right?"

John nodded with a pained smile.

Alba laughed triumphantly. "Hahahaha! Then from now on, I’m the leader of this little group! Anyone who doesn't listen to me, I’ll cause trouble and stop your apprenticeship!"

John clutched his forehead, groaning in agony, "Heaven help me, why did I have the impulse to send you the flight details?"

John turned his head to look at Chris with a pained expression, only to see the blonde, blue-eyed beauty calmly reading her book. He couldn't help but ask, "Chris, aren't you worried?"

Chris let out a soft sigh. "What is there to worry about?"

Alba smiled smugly. "Exactly, exactly! Hey, John, from now on, you’re my subordinate. You have to listen to me, or else, hmph..."

Before she could finish, she heard Chris say slowly, "I heard that the number of missing persons in China annually is quite staggering... I believe one more American won't make much of a difference."

Alba's smile froze on her face. John, on the other hand, started roaring with laughter. After a fit of laughter, he suddenly became serious, looking at Chris and saying earnestly, "Chris, how about when we land, we bury Alba behind the airport?"

Chris closed her book and replied seriously, "No, it would be better to keep her in the luggage hold."

John frowned. "Alba is too tall, and she has a large frame and quite a bit of flesh. What if she doesn't fit?"

Chris snapped her fingers. "Haven't you seen The Texas Chainsaw Massacre?"

Alba looked between the two of them and nearly screamed in frustration. "Can you two murderers please refrain from discussing murder plans in front of the intended victim?" Her voice suddenly pitched up an octave as she pointed sharply at John, "John, explain yourself! What do you mean by 'I have a large frame and quite a bit of flesh'?"

Chris could no longer contain herself and burst into helpless, gasping laughter.

Alba ground her teeth and said, "You two bastards, don't think you can scare me! When I meet this guy, I will absolutely tear him down verbally and verbally flay him!"