What happened in Wales? - is the big secret in Old Filth, so far

Nearing end of part 1 (of 2) in Jane Gardam's Old Filth, and the mosaic image gradually becomes more clear - as noted in previous posts this novel told out of chronological sequence but largely from the POV of the eponymous filth, real name Edward Feathers, looking back on his life. Now widowed, we see early on that he has in some ways made peace with his oldest rival in the (legal) profession, whom we also know (Filth does not) had an affair with Filth's deceased wife Betty - but that whole plot element has been pushed aside for the moment, maybe to return in part two? The last few chapters of part one follow OF on an ill-advised journey see his two cousins, Claire and Babs, shortly after Betty's sudden death. Gardam does a great job describing his reckless jaunt - he hasn't driven beyond his little Dorset (?) village for years and is perplexed by the traffi and the motorways (and truck drivers blast horns at him - Gardam keeps us strictly in his POV but one can guess he's driving poorly and slowly). Both his cousins, whom he has not seen in many years, are "barmy" in different ways - but from these visits we get more and more hints that something traumatic and formative happened to the three of them when they were all placed in care of a Welsh family. Gardam is playing games with us a bit, teasing us with big plot reveals but not tipping her hand at all - but it does work, keeping me reading, and keeping me curious. Some of the plot mechanics, however, are a bit clunky in this portion of the novel - e.g., why would OF's wife's obit be prominently displayed in a national newspapers, and way several days after her funeral for that matter? And is it really likely that OF would come upon an old London barrister friend on a chance stop in a remote inn? Maybe, England's like a small town in some ways (at least within a certain class - as caste-bound as India it seems), but I think at times the productive Gardam is rushing headlong and solving plot problems as the arise as best she can. Know the feeling.