Here is my translation:

Summer didn't have much more to say, nodding and putting on her hat as she headed out.

"Wait." Qiu Ning stood up, gently but firmly taking Summer's bag from her. She found a form inside and looked at it, filled out thoroughly, not sure if she felt more relieved or saddened. "Are you really going to do this? Mom doesn't think this is a good idea."

Summer took the form back, folded it up, and put it back in her bag. "We have to try before we know."

Qiu Ning's hands trembled, and her heart trembled with them. She forced a smile. "Mom will support whatever decision you make, but you have to promise me not to wrong yourself. If this path doesn't work out, we'll take another. We'll find the right direction eventually."

"Yes, I promise you."

Qiu Ning could barely hold her smile, knowing her daughter's temperament all too well. Others only turned back after hitting a wall, but she would smash through and keep going, just like back then...

Looking up at her daughter who had grown much taller than her, Qiu Ning said nothing more in the end. "Go on, be safe."

Green Garden was an old neighborhood, its six-story walk-up buildings once the best location when they were built as the third and fourth most desirable floors. Though not as beautiful and uniform as modern communities, Green Garden was famous in the city for its lush greenery.

Slowing her pace on the shaded brick path, Summer felt the heat dissipate, surrounded by cicada calls. She tilted her head, squinting at the sunlight filtering through the treetops, reminded of a line she'd read somewhere: "Watch the swaying tree shadows, listen to the chirping cicadas, dream of splendor, capture the summer breeze."

Summer thought, there was no splendor in her dreams, nor could she feel the summer breeze now.

The air conditioning in the taxi was blasting, making her pores open wide for comfort, though she felt a bit uncomfortable. But she didn't ask the driver to turn it down, instead watching the hurried pedestrians outside.

The driver kept glancing at his passenger in the rearview mirror, thinking she must be an ex-soldier from her posture, shoulders and back – telltale signs that remained even if discharged long ago, unlike him.

He instinctively sat up straighter, trying to hide his potbelly, about to check the mirror again when a screeching sound came from ahead. The car in front slammed on its brakes, and he stomped hard on his own, well aware as an experienced driver that the sound was tires skidding on the road.

Glancing in the rearview mirror, he met his passenger's gaze and explained with a shrug, "Looks like there's an accident up ahead."

Summer checked her watch – they were early, with plenty of time.

After a moment, unable to resist, the driver rolled down his window to see what was going on. The first thing he heard was a scream. He craned his neck to look, not caring if he bumped his head, seeing a bus veer sideways not far ahead. Startled, he heard his door open and close behind him. Turning, he saw his tall passenger had gotten out.

"Do you have any emergency tools?" Summer quickly assessed the potential situations as she asked, handing the driver a hundred yuan note.

"Yes, yes." The driver took the money and pointed to the trunk. Summer strode over, opened it and found a toolbox, selecting a small hammer and a wrench, weighing them in her hand before heading toward the bus.

"Wait, I'll get you change."

Summer waved the tools dismissively without turning around, clearly indicating the money was for buying them.

Gritting his teeth, the driver also got out and ran toward the bus. Whether retired or active duty, once a soldier, always a soldier – an identity he often forgot but now remembered vividly.

This was a four-lane road, the intersection not far ahead. Though not a main road with traffic police directing during rush hour, it had several old neighborhoods nearby. The sideways bus was blocking two and a half lanes, quickly causing a traffic jam.

Someone had already called the police, fire department, and ambulance. People inside and outside the bus looked toward it, able to see movement through the uncurtained windows, but the doors remained closed, signaling something amiss.

As everyone watched that direction, they soon noticed Summer approaching with tools in hand. Some started to stop her, hesitating as they wondered if she was an undercover officer – an amateur wouldn't try anything at a time like this.

But Summer didn't make any rash moves, her ingrained caution from years of experience holding her back. She approached from the side for a better view through the windows. Though the curtains blocked outside vision, they also afforded Summer a vantage point.

This was no ordinary accident. At the front, a man around 35 held a child hostage, a knife to the child's throat. Summer estimated there were 13 or 14 other people on board, and judging by the driver not opening the doors, he was likely incapacitated.

Summer frowned. Breaking a window was easy, but the hard part was rescuing the passengers unharmed, especially the child.

With no time to weigh better options, the situation inside escalated as the man waved his knife menacingly, yelling something. Summer made a split-second decision on her plan of action.

Just as she was looking for leverage, a long white sedan pulled up beside her. The window rolled down, revealing a man in sunglasses with a roguish grin as he took them off and pointed to the roof.

Summer had no time to waste. "Pull up closer," she said in a low voice.

As she stepped forward to make room, the man deftly maneuvered the car back and forth until it was perfectly positioned where Summer needed it.

Summer took a few steps back, then ran and jumped onto the roof, crouching down hidden from view. Taking a deep breath, she gathered herself, then without hesitation swiftly shattered the four corners of the front window before kicking through the glass. Before anyone could react, she had flipped inside the bus, swinging the wrench toward the hostage-taker's head. Instantly closing the gap, as he instinctively dodged the incoming wrench, she was already there, hammering his arm holding the child to loosen his grip. In that split second of weakness, she snatched the 4 or 5-year-old child away, kicking the man's legs out from under him and pinning him down with her foot – the entire sequence taking only 5 seconds!

It was as if the bus had been paused. The woman who had been wailing with smeared makeup now had her mouth agape, forgetting to cry until the child was thrust into her arms, causing her to burst into laughter and tears as she clutched him tightly.