One day passed uneventfully.
The next morning, Su Yang and Zhou Chengcheng drove back to Songhai.
The villagers of Tugu Village were very hospitable, and Su Yang had drunk quite a bit the previous night.
"Chengcheng, if you're tired or sleepy, you can sleep!"
"Okay, then I'll take a nap."
Zhou Chengcheng hadn't slept well for two nights and a day. Su Yang had been relentlessly active like a hungry wolf, never tiring.
Su Yang took out his phone and contacted Lu Qi.
"Boss, are you back?"
"Not yet. What's Shangguan Yi's situation?"
"Shangguan Yi is still lying in the hospital, but it seems experts have been sent from the capital. Our people can't infiltrate."
"That's good. Call me if anything happens."
Su Yang hung up the phone. After the car merged onto the highway, they sped back to Songhai.
Meanwhile.
Songhai First Hospital.
Shangguan Yi lay on the hospital bed. Several middle-aged men were in the room, reporting on their work.
"Young Master Shangguan, the members of the Fierce Tiger Commando have arrived in Songhai in batches. Do you have any further instructions?"
Shangguan Yi pondered for a moment. The Fierce Tiger Commando was a special unit secretly trained by the Shangguan family.
With a total of five hundred members, each was an elite, capable of fighting a hundred.
Normally, this commando unit carried out clandestine missions, eliminating enemies for the Shangguan family.
"Once they arrive, make sure to eliminate all of Su Yang's people, but be discreet."
"Yes!"
After Shangguan Yi made arrangements, he looked at the men before him.
These were all trusted confidants of his father, Shangguan Zhongtang, each possessing exceptional skills and extraordinary martial prowess.
"Uncle Yan, you and the others go find Shen Qiu and the rest. Kill them if you can."
Shangguan Yi handed over a document, which contained the profiles of the five D-class prisoners from the prison earlier.
"Young Master, I recall Lord Zhongtang mentioning these individuals. Haven't you recruited them?"
"Su Yang was one step ahead. They are our enemies now."
Shangguan Yi gritted his teeth. He hadn't accomplished anything since arriving in Songhai.
He hadn't recruited any experts, his fiancée Duan Wanjun had been slept with by Su Yang, and his loyal subordinate Lin Feng had been captured.
This string of setbacks had driven Shangguan Yi to the brink of madness.
"Alright, Young Master, rest assured. We will go and kill these prisoners now."
...
Longpan No. 1.
Su Yang arrived home after several hours of driving.
"Chengcheng, wake up. We're home."
"Ah... so soon!"
Zhou Chengcheng stretched lazily. Returning to Songhai felt like they had been away for a long time.
Outside the door, Jiang Wanying was already waiting.
"Brother Yang, I missed you so much. You're finally back."
Jiang Wanying jumped up happily and hugged Su Yang tightly.
"Where are the others?"
"Sister Man Ge and the others have gone to the company to work. Sister Xiao Lu has also gone to the Security Bureau to handle documents."
Su Yang nodded and, carrying Jiang Wanying, entered the villa.
In the spacious villa, only the three of them were at home.
"Brother Yang, what do we need to decorate here? It's almost New Year, we need some atmosphere."
Jiang Wanying brought over a large box of balloons and rabbit plush toys.
This was Su Yang's first New Year in this balanced world, and he suddenly became interested.
"Little Wanying, tell Heizi to buy some potted plants and lanterns. We'll decorate everything today."
"Okay."
Jiang Wanying excitedly contacted Jiang Hei. The group busied themselves inflating balloons, hanging them all over the house.
Zhou Chengcheng arranged the rabbit plush toys, red, white, and colorful ones everywhere.
The Queen and the Princess, who had heard the news, also joined in. Neither of them had any experience celebrating New Year in Longguo.
Lilianne pointed outside the door, "Mr. Su, can you teach me how to write the couplets for the main entrance?"
Su Yang smiled, "You haven't learned Longguo's characters, so it might be difficult to learn."
"Don't worry about that. I studied Chinese characters in Great Britain. Although my writing isn't great, I know the basic structure of Chinese characters."
"Oh? Then I'll write one for you to see."
Su Yang brought out the Four Treasures of the Study and began writing couplets in the hall.
He wrote the upper couplet: Old year adds a few joys. The lower couplet: New year climbs another floor. The horizontal scroll: Bidding farewell to the old and welcoming the new.
Lilianne clapped her hands and praised, "Mr. Su's calligraphy flows like water, completed in one go. The spacing between each character is very standard. You write very well!"
Her Majesty the Queen also nodded in admiration, "Longguo's characters are profound and extensive, with a cultural heritage of over five thousand years. It is truly admirable."
"Don't just praise, there's plenty of red paper here. Feel free to write whatever you like."
Su Yang put down his brush and handed the couplet templates to them.
Lilianne smiled slightly. She wrote: Upper couplet: Green bamboo leaves three parts. Lower couplet: Red plum heralds spring for ten thousand homes. Horizontal scroll: Spring returns to the earth.
Although Lilianne's handwriting was a bit crooked, there were no misspellings, and she didn't write characters backward.
She studied the regular script, writing stroke by stroke, better than most Longguo people.
Su Yang gave her a thumbs-up, "It's already remarkable that you, a foreigner, can write Chinese characters. Keep practicing!"
"Hehehe, thank you for the compliment, Mr. Su. Mother, you should write couplets too."
Her Majesty the Queen was eager to try. She took the brush and wrote according to the template.
Her handwriting was shaky and unformed. Without any foundation, she found it very difficult.
Some characters were even missing a stroke, and it took her a long time to complete a pair of couplets.
Upper couplet: The people are at peace, the country is prosperous, in a golden age. Lower couplet: Favorable weather and timely rain, singing praises for the glorious year. Horizontal scroll: The people and the country are peaceful and prosperous.
Her Majesty the Queen awkwardly put down her brush, comparing her writing to Su Yang's and her daughter's.
"Oh my god, my writing is too ugly. I've wasted several sheets of paper."
"Mother, you've written very well. The first time I wrote, it was much worse than yours."
Lilianne took pictures as she spoke and then posted the three people's couplets on her social media.
Jiang Wanying and Zhou Chengcheng also each wrote a pair:
Upper couplet: Peace and good fortune inside and out bring good luck. Lower couplet: Family joy brings wealth. Horizontal scroll: Auspicious stars shine brightly.
Upper couplet: Every year brings prosperity and abundant sources. Lower couplet: Every year brings peace, longevity, and happiness. Horizontal scroll: Auspicious stars shine brightly.
Although the couplets written by the two were not as good as Su Yang's, they were considered neat.
"Brother Yang, you should write them. We need to put up couplets at your parents' place too."
Su Yang thought of his parents, as well as Liu Xu's villa and Zhang Suqin's villa, so he wrote several more pairs of couplets.
Upper couplet: Sunrise on river flowers, redder than fire. Lower couplet: Spring comes to river waters, greener than blue. Horizontal scroll: Birds sing and flowers are fragrant.
Upper couplet: Every day, wealth and fortune come as desired. Lower couplet: Every year, blessings and prosperity arrive with spring. Horizontal scroll: Happy New Year.
Upper couplet: Everything is auspicious. Lower couplet: Every family is happy and forever healthy. Horizontal scroll: Prosperity in all seasons.
Basically, the couplets for each villa were done.
Lilianne looked at the couplets Su Yang had written, noticing that each one used a different font.
"I truly envy how beautiful your Longguo characters are. Unlike in Great Britain, where we only have twenty-six letters. No matter how you write them, they're all the same."
"Even with twenty-six letters, the combinations can be quite complex. When I was learning English, memorizing vocabulary nearly made me sick."
"Hahaha, Mr. Su is truly humorous!"
As they chatted, the villa and its surroundings were almost fully decorated.
Jiang Hei drove back, having bought more than ten large lanterns.
"Heizi, has anything happened at Wanbaozhai recently?"
"Brother Yang, people have been scouting the area for the past two days. It seems someone is planning to make a move on Wanbaozhai."
Jiang Hei reported all the recent anomalies to Su Yang.
"Brother Yang, those people are all unfamiliar faces, and they are martial artists. We should prepare early."