Is the beginning of a catastrophe? The little farm cook is raising a family with a full warehouse.

The night watch drum of the hour of Xu had just struck three times, and a thin layer of frost-like moonlight floated on the bluestone road. The embroidered shoes and black boots of people passing by were crushed into silver flakes, and were immediately filled with new spots of light.

After dinner, everyone went out to visit the lantern festival. At first, everyone was walking together happily, talking and laughing.

But as the night deepened, more and more people came, shoulder to shoulder, and Zhou Xiufang's physical strength gradually began to fail. She waved her hand helplessly and said, "Grandma is tired and can't walk anymore. You young people should go and have fun. I'll go back first."

After playing for a while, the children felt a little tired, so they followed Zhou Xiufang home obediently. Only Cheng Yuntao, Jiang Yu, Shen Shulan and Xu Ranyuan continued to wander around the lantern festival.

"Make way! Make way!" The guy with a red silk belt held up a three-meter-long bamboo pole with both hands, and the iron hook on the top of the pole firmly hooked a huge lantern.

The people around moved aside and looked up at the lantern that was about to be hung high.

This is the unique "Tree Mid-Autumn Festival" scene during the Mid-Autumn Festival. In order to cater to the full moon in the sky, people tie the prepared lanterns to bamboo poles with ropes and hang them on the eaves and terraces of the top floor.

The lanterns in the imperial palace were the most exquisite and luxurious. The lanterns in the wealthy homes could be several meters high. Even the poor would erect bamboo poles to hang lanterns and gather with family and friends under the lanterns.

At this moment, a lantern is hanging high in the air, with a pattern of twined flowers painted all over it. The background is dark green like a quiet ancient pond, and the golden lines are winding like green vines, which are smart and smooth, spreading freely on the lantern.

The peony blossoms are in full bloom, its large petals overlapping in layers, crimson like ablaze clouds, pink like petals falling in the wind. Each petal is meticulously depicted, with exquisite textures and a graceful and elegant demeanor. Interspersed with the lotus blossoms are pure white petals, like snow, adorned with golden stamens. The flowers and leaves intertwine and encircle each other, stretching endlessly, with no beginning or end in sight.

The gauze lanterns fluttered in the wind, and the patterns appeared and disappeared, bringing the beautiful wishes of endless life and continuous prosperity to everyone's eyes and hearts with the breeze, attracting viewers to stop and admire.

Cheng Yuntao and others were also in the bustling crowd, looking up at the exquisite lantern in fascination. The colorful lights poured down, illuminating their faces full of amazement.

However, when Cheng Yuntao came back to her senses, she found that Shen Shulan and Xu Ranyuan had disappeared without a trace, and only Jiang Yu was still standing steadily beside her.

Cheng Yuntao couldn't help but mutter in confusion: "Where are they? How come they disappeared in an instant?"

After saying that, he stood on tiptoe, trying to find the familiar figure in the crowd, but there was chaos in front of him and he could not see any trace of them at all.

Seeing this, Jiang Yu, taking advantage of his height, stretched his neck and looked around carefully. Then he said with a hint of helplessness, "I didn't see him. I guess he got separated. There are too many people at this lantern festival. Maybe we'll run into him later."

Looking at the surging crowd around them, Jiang Yu's heart tightened, worried that he and Cheng Yuntao would also be separated. Subconsciously, he reached out and held Cheng Yuntao's hand, whispering, "There are too many people, hold on to me."

Cheng Yuntao nodded, and the two walked side by side.

After walking a little further, they came to a corridor hung with lanterns.

Here you can guess riddles and change lanterns.

Thousands of colorful lanterns are hung in the corridor. The lotus petals are clearly visible like real lotus flowers floating on the water. The thin silk reveals a soft rosy glow, which is reflected in the glass lamps like lotus flowers in the water. The Qilin lantern raises its head and steps on the clouds, its golden armor reflects the moon, its eyes are embedded with red crystals and sparkle like lightning, and its four hooves have faint cloud and thunder patterns.

The most wonderful thing is the goldfish lantern. The tail fin made of silver threads rustles in the wind, the glass eyeballs roll around like a living creature, and the brocade scales sparkle in the light, as if it will swing its tail and leap into the galaxy in the next moment.

When the lights swayed, the entire corridor looked like a river pouring down from the sky, with flowing lights floating.

Cheng Yuntao was attracted by an octagonal lantern. The wooden frame of the lantern was inlaid with thin slices made of ground clam shells, and it was painted with a picture of the twelve flower gods stepping on the moon. Even the gold powder in the peony stamens was clearly visible.

The riddle hanging next to the lantern reads: "Green grass grows on the heads of seven people, and heavy rain falls on Hengshan Mountain."

Cheng Yuntao frowned slightly, her mind racing as she pondered the meaning of the riddle.

Suddenly, her eyes lit up, she jumped up excitedly, and shouted, "I know! It's snowflakes!"

She cleared her throat and explained clearly, "The first is the character '花' (flower). Seven people have green grass growing on their heads, so '七人' forms the character '化' (transformation), and adding the grass radical makes '花' (flower). The second is '雪' (snow). Heavy rain is the radical of '雨' (rain). Falling on a horizontal mountain, the '山' character is turned sideways, and '雨' (rain) on top makes '雪' (snow). Together, they form '雪花' (snowflakes)!"

The stall owner's eyes were full of amazement, and he nodded with a smile: "Girl, you are so amazing. Many people like this lantern, but I just can't guess why. It seems that you are the one destined to own it." While praising, he handed the exquisite lantern to Cheng Yuntao.

Cheng Yuntao held the lantern in both hands, a bright smile on her face, her eyes curved into crescents. She turned to look at Jiang Yu, and seeing that his hands were empty, she pulled his sleeve and said, "Pick one too, and I'll win it for you."

"Okay!" Jiang Yu's eyes swept through the many lanterns, finally landing on the most majestic Qilin Lantern. "Then I'll ask Yun Tao to win this Qilin Lantern for me!"

"At my parents' home I am green and healthy, but at my husband's home I am pale and thin. It would be fine if I didn't mention it, but once I do I shed tears like a river." After seeing this riddle, Cheng Yuntao tilted her head, lightly tapped her chin with her fingers, and fell into deep thought.

After a while, she raised the corners of her mouth, revealing a confident smile, and said with a smile: "It's a bamboo pole used to support the boat."

Jiang Yu scratched his head with a puzzled look on his face and asked quickly, "What's the logic behind this? I just can't figure it out."

Cheng Yuntao patiently explained, "When bamboo grows in the mountains, it's vibrant and full of life. But after it's cut down and made into bamboo poles, it's exposed to the wind and sun year-round, and naturally becomes sallow and thin. When the bamboo pole hits the water while rowing, the splashes are like tears spilling onto the river."

The stall owner, listening nearby, couldn't help but give a thumbs-up and exclaimed, "Girl, you're really smart. You even guessed that! Congratulations, both of you, for winning another beautiful lantern."

"This lantern is so beautiful! Yuntao, I'm lucky to have you, otherwise I wouldn't be able to get a single lantern if I were alone." Jiang Yu obviously liked the Qilin lantern in his hand very much. He held it in the air and looked at it again and again.

"No big deal, let's go somewhere else." Cheng Yuntao tugged at Jiang Yu's sleeve, motioning him to leave.

Suddenly there was a commotion coming from the end of the street, and both of them looked up at the same time.

Thirty-six bare-chested warriors steadily advanced, carrying a sandalwood lampstand. Atop the stand stood a seven-treasure pavilion, three stories high, with emerald bells dangling from the eaves of each. A gilded lotus at the top slowly blossomed, revealing a young girl with braided hair sitting in its center. With a gentle wave of her hand, a shower of flowers descended from the sky.