After the Lantern Festival, Sheng Mingchuan prepared to leave the Capital City.
Chen Song and Xu Shiling were to travel with him.
Xu Shiling had limited leave. Staying in the Capital City for this long was already by the grace of Your Majesty; he couldn't stay away forever.
Then there was Chen Song, who was on official duty. How could he abandon his post indefinitely? That job was the foundation of his livelihood. If he didn't want to be constantly mocked for living off his wife, he had to stand on his own two feet.
As Chen Song was leaving the Capital City, Xu Su Ying wouldn't be returning with him. They had previously agreed that she would stay in the Capital City for the first half of the year to accompany her parents, before returning to Xinghuai Prefecture in the second half to reunite with him.
De'an had originally planned to go back with them, but after a discussion among Xu Shiniang and his two brothers, they decided it would be best for De'an to stay.
