There were four people on the oxcart: the old couple, Chen Lin, and Chen Lian, who was home for the holidays.

Chen Lian saw Xu Su Ying from afar and immediately called out, "Auntie!"

Once Xu Su Ying was closer, he scratched his head sheepishly and said, a little embarrassed, "I’ve been studying so hard at the academy my head’s all muddled, and I got my cousin’s wedding date mixed up. Please don’t be mad at me, Auntie. I’ll go find my cousin and apologize to her later."

In truth, it wasn’t that Chen Lian had gotten the date wrong; Mrs. Li had simply never told him when it was.

It just so happened that he was completely swamped with his year-end exams around that time, so the matter had completely slipped his mind.

When he got back to the village and heard people asking why he hadn’t returned to see his cousin off on her wedding day, Chen Lian suddenly remembered, and he was completely floored.

In reality, Chen Lian didn’t need to explain. Just thinking about what Mrs. Li and the old madam were like, Xu Su Ying had already figured out the gist of why he hadn’t been there to see his cousin off.

’But she couldn’t be bothered to make a fuss about it. After all, her own son was there, so it wasn’t like her daughter was short on people to see her off.’

Xu Su Ying said, "It’s no big deal, really. You’re sitting for the exams next year; your studies are more important."

The moment she finished speaking, she saw the old madam purse her lips, looking like she was fuming but couldn’t let it out. Xu Su Ying knew exactly what she was mad about; no doubt, she had heard the news that they had bought a house in the county town.

’The old madam was the type to hate others for their successes and gloat over their failures. She couldn’t stand the thought of our branch of the family doing better than hers, so it was only natural she’d give us the cold shoulder.’

’She was a bit surprised, though. Why was the old madam suddenly holding her tongue?’

’In the past, whenever she encountered this kind of "injustice," she’d always throw a fit, cursing heaven and earth until she got her way. She wouldn’t have let it go so easily; she would have raised a huge storm and forced Xu Su Ying to pay her off before she’d stop. Was it really this simple this time? Just a few glares?’

’The excuse was ready-made: They gave their daughter a shop for her dowry and bought themselves a big house in the county town—who knows how much more they were hoarding. Their purses must be bulging, probably about to burst. Since they were so rich, why were they acting like deadbeats and refusing to pay back the little bit of money they owed for medicine?’

But they simply didn’t have time to squabble about that now.

Today was the twenty-sixth of the twelfth lunar month—the day they were going to have a great stroke of luck.

If everything went smoothly, after tonight, their family might not become the wealthiest in the county town, but they would certainly have a place among them.

With thousands, even tens of thousands, in Silver beckoning to them, who had time to bicker with Xu Su Ying!

Xu Su Ying offered the old couple a perfunctory greeting and asked, "Where are you all off to? Hasn’t Chen Lin’s leg healed? Does he still need to see a doctor?"

The old madam said in a biting, sarcastic tone, "His leg has healed, but it hurts whenever he moves. We need to have a doctor find out why before we can let him start walking on it."

Xu Su Ying’s mouth twitched. ’Of course it’s going to hurt a little when he’s just starting his physical therapy. After not walking for a month or two, his muscles and tendons have atrophied. How could he expect to stretch them back out without a little pain?’

’But there was no reasoning with the old madam about this, so she decided to just drop it.’

The two parties went their separate ways, each to their own business.

Sitting on the oxcart, the old madam muttered to Chen Lin, "Are you sure your leg is up to it? You’ll have to put in some real work today. Your father’s old and past his prime, and Li’an is still just a boy..."

Chen Lin waved his hand impatiently. "I know what I’m doing. Don’t worry."

Chen Lian turned back. "Grandmother, what kind of work are you making Dad do? Is it because it’s the end of the year and you need to move everything from the pancake stall back home to be cleaned? Let me do it. Dad’s leg hasn’t fully healed yet, so let him rest."

The three of them had kept the true purpose of their trip from Chen Lian, worried that he was too young and might accidentally let the secret slip.

That was why Chen Lian still thought they were just taking his father to get his leg checked. ’Although,’ he wondered, ’if it’s just a leg checkup, Grandfather and I are enough company. Why did Grandmother insist on coming along?’

’But he couldn’t be bothered to think too hard about it. He would just do as his elders arranged. They were his closest family, after all; they would never do anything to harm him.’

But when night fell, it was cold enough to freeze a man to death. The icy road reflected the harsh glare of the moon. Instead of letting his grandfather take them home, his grandmother directed him straight toward the Cai Family Village, which was about ten li from the county town. A sense of uncertainty began to creep over Chen Lian.

He studied at a private academy run by a martial arts master, and one of his classmates was from the Cai Family Village.

According to his classmate, there was a large grove of locust trees at the entrance to their village. Not only did the grove cover a vast area, but the trees within it were ancient.