“and said ‘x is like y’ to illustrate a point.”

Not all of his parables are described in this way. The Rich Man and Lazarus, for example.

My point is simply, one cannot demand literal reading just based on the term 3 days and 3 nights. Even in English we don’t demand that phrase is literal. Check in a hotel for 3 days and 3 nights—any part of that time frame counts, you will be charged—it doesn’t have to be literally 24 hour days.

That’s just an English example. But remember, we’re not dealing with English or even modern notions of time. Again, I refer you to my earlier Rabbinic quotes.