"Little Fan, you have so many things to say to your ancestors?" Xia Xue asked curiously.
"It's nothing much, mostly to explain to them so they'll agree to us being together," Lin Fan said, looking up at the ancestral tablet with a devout expression.
Instantly, Xia Xue felt a mix of emotions, as if her heart had been stirred like a pot of five-flavor sauce. You were just intimate with Song Yue, and now you're thinking of me? All the good things are falling into your lap!
"Don't talk nonsense!" Xia Xue chided, "Be serious!"
"I am being serious!" Lin Fan leaned closer to his sister-in-law and said, "I lack nothing now, except for marrying you."
"If you say it again, I'll be angry!" Xia Xue said with a straight face, her voice rising slightly.
Lin Fan froze. The moment his sister-in-law started crying, he had wondered if his affair with Song Yue had been discovered. But after hearing her explanation, it didn't seem like it. So what was going on now?
Lin Fan opened his mouth, but no sound came out. He couldn't confess without being prompted, could he? With such a hope, the Spring Festival passed uneventfully. Lin Fan hadn't expected that it wouldn't be until the third day of the Lunar New Year that Luofeng Village would truly return to normal.
While the family was sitting on the sofa watching television, they happened to switch channels and saw a news report on Yunqing TV. Heavily armed police were escorting a prisoner with a black cloth bag over his head into a prison van. The reporter explained, "After the efforts of over a hundred officers, a major murderer who had absconded to our city has been apprehended..."
"That's not right!" Lin Fan frowned, his eyes filled with confusion. The prisoner in the video was definitely a man. Could Wang Xiaoli have transformed into a man again?
Xia Xue and Song Yue, unaware of the situation, both looked relieved. Luofeng Village had a restless New Year; there were police tape and checkpoints everywhere, and residents were advised against visiting each other, which made them feel quite frustrated.
"Finally caught!" Song Yue exclaimed excitedly. Xia Xue nodded vigorously, "It's good that they caught him!"
It wasn't just them; soon, cheers and laughter echoed from the neighbors outside, creating an atmosphere even more lively than on New Year's Day. Lin Fan took out his phone, thought for a moment, and then put it back in his pocket. He hadn't contacted Tian Mengyao for several days. He wondered how she was doing. There was no use worrying now; when she returned, she would naturally know everything she needed to. Lin Fan calmed himself and continued watching the variety show.
Unexpectedly, Lin Fan's peaceful life was soon shattered again. As Luofeng Village and the surrounding villages returned to normal, the number of people visiting relatives surged. On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, as Lin Fan was discussing going to Xiajiagou with his sister-in-law, he was suddenly summoned by a patient. A man in his forties, drunk, had fallen and injured himself on his way home.
After receiving the call for medical assistance, Lin Fan had no choice but to return to the clinic and open for business. The work then didn't stop. People with stomach problems from drinking, hands injured by firecrackers, food poisoning from eating the wrong things... Lin Fan was busy from morning until past three in the afternoon before he could finally catch his breath.
"I'll go back and see how Sister-in-law is preparing." Lin Fan stretched his aching back. Just as he stepped out, he was drawn to a flashy red sports car.
"Su Yurou!" What was she doing here? The charming and graceful Su Yurou took off her sunglasses and alighted from the car gracefully.
"So busy, huh? I've been waiting since two o'clock." Su Yurou smiled flirtatiously, "Happy New Year, Doctor Lin."
"Happy New Year, Sister Yurou, why are you here?" Lin Fan felt a sense of relief. After all, to come find him immediately after Luofeng Village was unsealed would bring some comfort.
"Little Fan, have you forgotten something?" Su Yurou, as usual, walked up to Lin Fan and placed her hand on his shoulder.
"I..." Lin Fan frowned. He hadn't promised Su Yurou anything.
"Don't you remember?" Su Yurou winked. "After the New Year, shouldn't you be going to your mother-in-law's house?"
"M-mother-in-law?" Lin Fan finally understood, but he became even more confused. Although he and Su Yurou had a brief romantic encounter, their relationship wasn't that serious. If they met his parents, things would change!
"What? You don't want to acknowledge it?" Su Yurou's expression changed slightly. She ran her long, elaborately decorated fingernails lightly down Lin Fan's neck and whispered, "Think carefully. This is your village. If you dare to be a heartless man, I'll let everyone in the village know."
"Sister Yurou, there's no need for this, is there?" Lin Fan smiled bitterly. To threaten me during the New Year? Is she crazy?
"Of course, there's a need!" Su Yurou said righteously. "Everyone else is bringing their significant others home. How can I not bring someone back?"
"Take your hand off me first, someone's coming." Lin Fan reached out to push her arm away and nodded towards someone in the distance.
"Take your hand off me!" Su Yurou shouted, then said with a straight face, "Is there something wrong with me being seen? Am I not good enough for you, Lin Fan?"
"You are good enough, and you can be seen." Lin Fan was anxious, but he couldn't do anything about her.
"Then what are you afraid of? Don't worry, I won't embarrass you." Su Yurou drawled, "If you don't want to go back to meet my parents, that's fine. Since I'm free today, I'll go to your house and meet your sister-in-law, will that do?"
"No! I'll go with you!" Lin Fan immediately surrendered. His sister-in-law had been preoccupied lately, being forgetful about everything. If Su Yurou caused another scene, it would be disastrous!
"It would have been better if you agreed earlier." Su Yurou smiled triumphantly and finally took her hand away.
Phew~ Lin Fan let out a long sigh, turned his head, glared at Su Yurou, and asked, "What exactly are you thinking?"
"I'm not thinking much. You had a comfortable New Year, do you know how difficult it was for me?" Su Yurou's eyes held a complex emotion as she continued, "Now you're reluctant about this and that. When you were so enthusiastic with me, why were you so reluctant?"
"Alright, alright." Lin Fan made a stop gesture with his hand. "I'll make time and definitely go with you."
"No, we're going tomorrow!" Su Yurou's tone was firm.
"Tomorrow I..."
"Think about it again." Su Yurou looked at Lin Fan threateningly.
Lin Fan, afraid she would do something drastic that the villagers would see, finally compromised. "Tomorrow, it's tomorrow."
"Hmph!" Su Yurou was finally satisfied. Lin Fan clasped his hands together and bowed to Su Yurou, "My dear grandmother, why don't you go back first? I'll go home to prepare gifts and such, and we'll meet tomorrow."
"Okay, as long as you've agreed, anything is fine." If it weren't for her parents pushing her, Su Yurou wouldn't have come all the way to Luofeng Village during the New Year to threaten Lin Fan into submission.
Watching the red sports car raise a cloud of dust and gradually disappear from his sight, Lin Fan sighed helplessly, "You didn't say you wanted responsibility back then!"