That evening, on Chang Street in Jia County.
Chen Chuan, Manager Wang, and a few plainclothes members of the Security Bureau walked along the bustling street.
The sides of the night market street were lined with food stalls. Lantern-adorned shops selling all kinds of trinkets stood one after another. There were also activities like riddle games, pitch-pot, wrestling matches, and amateur opera performances. In the distance, fireworks occasionally burst into the sky.
For a small county town, it was certainly lively. According to Manager Wang, the Qixi Festival itself would be the most raucous day, when almost half the county's population would be out and about.
This was also the government affairs office's biggest worry. They were afraid things would spiral out of control. Yet, they couldn't just order everyone to stay home—even if they issued such a rule, it would be impossible to enforce.
Regardless, the atmosphere at least allowed them to slightly relax their frayed nerves.
