In that short amount of time, Chen Song had already eaten two bowls of rice.

On one hand, he was starving. On the other, he was just too busy; he had to make a trip to the Prefecture in a little while.

Guan San and Dong Kui had revealed the meeting point and the contact person. He could take advantage of their unpreparedness, join forces with the Prefecture’s constables, and catch them all in one fell swoop.

Chen Song had to leave as soon as he finished eating. Hearing this, Xu Suying grew anxious. "You should have said something sooner! I haven’t packed anything for you."

"Just a change of clothes will be fine. No need to prepare anything else. It’s an urgent trip, so I’ll either be on the road or at a post station. I’ll try to be back as soon as I can."

Xu Suying got up to pack his things, while Chen Wanqing went to prepare some food for her father. After the mother and daughter had left, De’an sighed. "This is our first year after moving, and we were supposed to celebrate the New Year in our new house. It’s a shame we can’t even have a proper reunion dinner together."

"We can have a reunion dinner anytime, but we can’t always catch these wicked scoundrels. Alright now, while your father is away, you all look after the house."

"Nothing will happen to the house, I’m sure of it. It’s just that if you don’t go to the old residence for New Year’s greetings, Grandmother and Third Uncle will definitely have something to say again."

Chen Song snorted. "If they dare say anything, just tell them that there are still some unclear aspects of this case, and I’ll come back to interrogate them personally."

The people from the old residence showing up at the scene at that time were definitely not innocent bystanders. It was only because the county magistrate and his men gave him face that they didn’t expose it.

If they were smart, they would keep their heads down and live their lives quietly. If not, they could just wait for him to come back and summon them for questioning.

’After all, how could they have known those two would fall into the pit at that exact time? It’s a question I can’t wrap my head around, and I’m just dying for them to explain it to me.’

Xu Suying packed his clothes, while Chen Wanqing gathered some fried dough twists, braised meat, and other things the neighbors had given them, packing them one by one into a special bag. The family then saw Chen Song off.

In the afternoon, Chen Wanqing also had important matters to attend to: paying New Year’s visits to a few of her regular patrons.

She took Zhao Jing with her, and the two of them went to Moxiang Pavilion first.

Zhao Jing also needed to pay his respects to Mr. Wang for the New Year. Since the two of them were a family now, they decided to be frugal and just bring a single gift.

But it was by no means a small gift. The pair bought a roasted goose, a live chicken, a fat carp, and two boxes of pastries. In addition, Chen Wanqing had personally made some mood-lifting and calming incense to give to Mr. Wang’s elderly mother.

When you tallied it all up, wasn’t it quite a generous gift?

As expected, Moxiang Pavilion was closed. It was the end of the year, after all. The county school and the nearby private academies had long since started their New Year holiday, so the area was deserted. It made sense to just close up shop and go home for the festivities.

Fortunately, Zhao Jing knew where Mr. Wang lived, so he led Chen Wanqing there.

When they arrived at the Wang residence, the air was thick with the rich aroma of frying meatballs and pork ribs.

Mr. Wang’s wife and two daughters-in-law were bustling about, busy as bees. Mr. Wang and his two sons were putting up Spring Festival couplets, while the elderly Mrs. Wang was reclining on a chaise lounge in the courtyard, sunning herself.

Mr. Wang was already a grandfather, with three grandchildren running circles around the ladder. Startled, Mr. Wang, who was steadying the ladder, couldn’t help but shout, "Be careful! All of you, move aside! If you knock this ladder over and your father falls, we’ll see how you cry then!"

It was a typical scene from the daily life of a common family. But with red lanterns hanging in the courtyard, red paper-cuts adorning the windows, and couplets pasted on the doorframes, the New Year’s spirit was truly palpable, a delightful sight to behold.

Seeing Chen Wanqing and Zhao Jing arrive at their door, everyone in the Wang family was stunned.

Mrs. Wang sat up tremblingly from her chaise lounge, calling for her son and daughters-in-law to hurry and receive their guests.

The Wang family was genuinely warm and clearly very familiar with Zhao Jing and Chen Wanqing. It was obvious Mr. Wang often spoke of the two of them when he came home from work.

What was even more delightful was that this wonderful young couple were childhood sweethearts who, after overcoming countless difficulties, had finally gotten married. Wasn’t this a real-life story of lovers finally getting their happy ending?

It didn’t matter if their love story was that dramatic; in Mrs. Wang’s eyes, they were a match made in heaven.

On top of that, they were both so good-looking that Mrs. Wang was absolutely smitten, grabbing their hands and refusing to let go.

Because Mrs. Wang was overly enthusiastic, and the rest of the Wang family was also exceedingly friendly, Zhao Jing and Chen Wanqing found themselves held up. They ended up staying at the Wang residence for nearly half an hour before they could get away.

As they left, their hands were stuffed with so many things they could barely hold them all.

By then, it was late in the afternoon. If they didn’t hurry to pay New Year’s visits to their other two regular patrons, they were afraid the shops would already be closed for the day.

And sure enough, because they arrived late, one of the shops was already locked up. They didn’t know if it had closed a few days ago or just moments before.

The other shop, however, one that specialized in selling incense, candles, and spirit money, was right in the middle of its busiest season before the New Year.

Business was so good that the owner had no time to entertain Chen Wanqing and Zhao Jing.

The shopkeeper simply grabbed a bundle, filled it with a stack of incense, candles, and spirit money, and said thoughtfully, "Burn this for your ancestors during the New Year. It’ll bring you good fortune and you’ll make a lot of money next year."

Chen Wanqing didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Staring at the bundle of incense, candles, and spirit money in her hands, she thought, ’Is it really considered good luck to bring this stuff home?’