"Human traffickers? What human traffickers?" De’an didn’t get it at first, but it dawned on him a moment later. "Dad, you’re talking about those two rich merchants, aren’t you? Weren’t all the things in their carriage recovered?"

"They claim everything was recovered, but I’m sure plenty of things were hidden away. And as for whatever the villagers who passed by snatched up, who’s going to know unless they confess?"

And the folks from the old house had run into that unlucky carriage late that night.

The three siblings from the Li family didn’t have time to rummage through the carriage for goods, because they were busy trying to save people, hoping to earn an even bigger reward.

The folks at the old house came away with nothing. Knowing the third brother’s "a thief never leaves empty-handed" philosophy, he definitely would have rummaged through the carriage for valuables before leaving.

When Chen Song brought it up, De’an nodded. "That must be it."

Xu Su Ying chimed in, "If we want to know whether they hid anything, we just need to go ask at the pawn shops in the county seat. The third brother’s leg is broken, so he can’t walk. Your grandfather is as honest as they come; the old woman would never entrust this to him. And your grandmother doesn’t trust Li’an and Mrs. Li. If something was going to be pawned, your grandmother would have to do it herself. All we have to do is go to every pawn shop and ask if an elderly woman has come in alone to pawn something recently. We’ll get to the bottom of it."

Others might have a hard time asking about this, but if Chen Song asked, the pawn shop owners were sure to tell him everything they knew without holding anything back.

Chen Song had already been planning to go and ask. 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

If the old woman really did pawn some things, get some Silver Coin, and pay back her debts, that would be one thing. But if she got a large sum of Silver from somewhere else, he would have to investigate carefully to see if this was another scheme targeting him.

The family of three arrived at the graveyard as they talked.

Chen Song and De’an got off the ox-cart, went to the gravesite to burn some paper offerings, and spoke for a while.

Xu Su Ying stayed on the ox-cart, waiting.

If any passing villagers greeted her, she would point to Chen Song and her son kneeling at the grave. "He passed the scholar-candidate exam, after all. He came back to let the elders know, so they can rest easy in the underworld."

The villager would naturally be full of praise. "Your family is certainly blessed with good fortune. Your son is so accomplished, and you picked a good husband..."

"Things will keep getting better."

Chen Song and De’an returned shortly after. Chen Song took the reins, and they started for home.

De’an said to his mother, "You must be thrilled you didn’t have to visit the graves, aren’t you?"

"Well, even if I wanted to go, your grandfather wouldn’t allow it."

"Heh, you think I don’t know you? Even if Grandfather let you visit the graves, you’d find an excuse to get out of it."

Xu Su Ying flatly denied it. "Don’t you dare slander your mother. I’m not that kind of person."

’Privately, however, Xu Su Ying thought the rule forbidding women from visiting graves was absolutely wonderful. How much bowing and scraping did that save her over the course of a year?’

’She’d be even happier if she didn’t have to prepare the offerings or buy the incense and joss paper, either.’

De’an said, "Just listen to yourself. So sarcastic! I can smell the sour grapes from a mile away."

Xu Su Ying said seriously, "I truly don’t care. It’s fine if I can’t visit the graves, and it’s fine if I’m not buried in the ancestral tomb when I die. Once I’m dead, what do I care if the world floods? You two brothers could toss my body in the wilderness for all I care, and I wouldn’t have a single complaint."

De’an was annoyed. "What are you even talking about!"

Chen Song’s brow furrowed as well. "Toss your body in the wilderness? What nonsense are you spouting? You’re my wife. Wherever I am when I die, that’s where you’ll be. If these two rascals dare to bury you anywhere but next to me, I’ll come back as a ghost and never forgive them."

De’an rolled his eyes. ’Great, more public displays of affection!’

’Will Dad get indigestion if he goes one day without pledging his undying love to Mom?’

The ride on the ox-cart was so excruciating that the moment they reached the village, De’an leaped off.

"I’m going to walk and find Jing. Dad, you can take Mom home first."

They had been away for two months, so he needed to check on the house. He had to see if there were any leaks and if too many leaves had collected on the roof. If there were, they needed to be cleared out quickly to prevent them from clogging the gutters and causing water to seep into the rooms.

Chen Song called out to his son, "Your mom and I are getting old. You’re really just going to leave all that work to us?"

"I’m not worried in the slightest! You’re strong and healthy, and you and Mom will live for at least another hundred years. I’m just giving you this little chore so you can loosen up a bit." ’It would save them from having nothing better to do all day than nag him. His head was already buzzing from it.’