Xiao Song sent Ran Yan back to the mansion. Both were straightforward people, so their goodbye was brief and without any undue sentimentality. However, once they turned around, they were deeply anxious.
In the following days, Xiao Song was extremely busy. On the first day of the month, he attended the royal banquet at his ancestral home, on the second, he paid respects to his family elders and participated in the clan feast, and on the third, he returned to Chang'an, where he visited friends and colleagues. He barely had a moment to breathe, and on the rare occasion he found time to see Ran Yan, he was stopped at the door by Mrs. Xing.
