Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

The door opened, and a young woman came out. She was dressed in emerald green, with thick eyebrows and narrow eyes. When she saw Tian Guang, she greeted him, "Father, you're back?"

"Yes, A-Xiang brought it back to you. He's still asleep. Is A-Kuan inside?" Tian Guang asked.

“Ah Kuan went to the fields and hasn’t come back yet,” Ah Xiang’s mother said.

“Then I’ll take the child inside,” Tian Guang said, taking A Xiang from Dai You’s arms and walking into the house.

Axiang's mother stepped aside to let Tian Guang pass. She turned around and saw Xia Lanyue. She came over to greet her, "Please come in and sit down, young lady. Axiang said that Aunt Yue is very beautiful. Seeing her today, it's true."

Xia Lanyue smiled shyly, "Your sister-in-law is quite pretty too."

Perhaps not expecting Xia Lanyue to praise her so much, A Xiang's mother smiled happily, "We country folk can't compare to you. Is it convenient for you to stay at Dad's place? If not, you can stay at my place. My house has plenty of rooms."

"It's great, Aunt Wang arranged everything very well, and she's very kind to us too," Xia Lanyue said.

“Ah~,” A Xiang’s mother smiled dismissively and continued, “It’s alright. If you’re not happy with your place, just come stay with me. There are two rooms on either side of the room behind me, which are perfect for you and your brother.”

"Thank you," Xia Lanyue said gratefully.

"Don't mention it. My name is Lin Xiu. I look older than you. You can call me Sister Lin or Sister-in-law Lin if you like."

“Then call me Sister Lin,” Xia Lanyue said. “You can just call me A-Yue.”

"Row".

After saying that, Lin Xiu pointed to the stool and told her and Dai You to sit for a while, then turned around and went to fetch the mule cart.

Xia Lanyue wanted to lend a hand, but Lin Xiu refused. So she took the medicine and wine, slung her bundle over her shoulder, and stood in the courtyard waiting.

Dai You helped unload the car and then dragged it to a corner to put it away.

Lin Xiu led the mule into the shed and then added a ladle of water to the trough.

"I didn't expect you could unload mule carts," Lin Xiu said, somewhat surprised.

"Hmm," Dai You nodded, without saying anything more.

Tian Guang came out of the house and said to Lin Xiu with a smile, "Today, Miss Yue gave A Xiang a calligraphy brush, and he still won't let go of it. Take it for him in a bit, but don't break it, he'll be heartbroken."

"Okay, sure," Lin Xiu said, looking at everyone. "Let's eat here tonight. I'll go make some porridge. We also have some fish at home."

Tian Guang waved his hand, "No, let's go back and eat. We need to go deliver medicine to Pangao now, he doesn't have any for tonight, so don't bother."

After saying that, Tian Guang walked out, with Xia Lanyue and Dai You following behind. Once outside, Xia Lanyue turned back and waved to Lin Xiu.

Xia Lanyue was curious why Tian Kuan didn't live with them. "Uncle Tian, ​​how many children do you have?"

"Three: two sons and one daughter."

Besides Tian Kuan, there's another son? It seems they've separated the family, Xia Lanyue thought to herself.

"My second son passed away three years ago."

Xia Lanyue was taken aback, realizing she had asked something she shouldn't have. "I'm sorry, Uncle Tian, ​​I brought up your injury..."

Uncle Tian waved his hand, "This has nothing to do with you, it's just his bad luck."

Uncle Tian walked ahead, and Xia Lanyue followed quietly behind. They soon arrived at Mr. Xia's house.

When she arrived at Mr. Xia's house, she realized that the "wealthy family" she had just seen was actually his family.

Tian Guang seemed unaffected by what had just been said, and continued to introduce Mr. Xia to them, saying, "This Mr. Xia is very knowledgeable. Children from the surrounding villages all come here to study, so he runs a private school at home to teach the children to read."

Tian Guang stood at the door and called into the house, "Pangao, are you home?"

Climbing high? Is that Mr. Xia's name?

Although Mr. Xia's fence was also made of bamboo, it was so high and dense that she had to stand on tiptoe to see inside.

The door creaked open a crack, and a woman poked her body out. "It's Uncle! Come quickly!" the woman said, opening the courtyard gate wide.

The woman had a dignified demeanor; although she wasn't particularly beautiful, she gave off a very comfortable feeling at first glance.

Xia Lanyue followed Tian Guang into the courtyard. The courtyard was really big. The main house faced south, and there were two rows of thatched houses on both sides. They looked much sturdier than Tian Guang's house. There was also a stone-paved path on the ground in the courtyard.

On the door frame of the west-facing room, there are plaques hanging on the left and right sides, which read "Youthful hard work will eventually lead to success" and "Never be lazy in the face of the light." This must be where the children studied.

The row of houses on the east side is probably for rest.

There was a small thatched hut on the side of the gate, which looked like a kitchen, with firewood piled up outside.

Xia Lanyue nodded approvingly; Mr. Xia's family was indeed very particular.

Tian Guang walked over and handed the medicine to the woman, saying, "Boil the medicine for climbing high into a paste and apply it to the wound, changing it twice a day."

The old woman was full of gratitude and said, "Thank you, Uncle. Please come in and have a seat."

"No need to be polite, how was the climb?" Tian Guang waved his hand.

"The fever is still high, and the foot is swollen. This medicine should help it heal faster."

Then the woman noticed Xia Lanyue behind Tian Guang, looked her over carefully, and walked closer and said, "This young lady looks unfamiliar. She must be a guest from our family. She is very pretty and looks like a well-educated and sensible girl."

Xia Lanyue bowed to the woman and said, "Auntie, you flatter me."

The woman approached and took her hand, "Young lady, are you engaged?"

"Not yet..." Xia Lanyue said.

"How old are you, young lady? Where are you from?" The woman seemed to care a lot about Xia Lanyue.

"...Auntie, what is this...?" Xia Lanyue asked, tilting her head.

"It's nothing, nothing, I was just asking casually," the woman said, not pressing the matter further. "I just feel we're destined to meet. It's a pity Pangao is sick, otherwise I would have invited you to stay for dinner."

"Alright, don't be so polite. You take care of him. How long does the doctor say it will take for him to recover?" Tian Guang asked.

The woman sighed, "Zhang the physician said it will take about a month to fully recover."

"Alright, it won't be a problem for the autumn examination, don't worry," Tian Guang reassured him.

So she still has to take the imperial examination. No wonder this woman looks so worried.

The woman nodded. “Oh, I said he’s become stupid from reading too much. He doesn’t even know when an insect bites him. When asked where it bit him, he doesn’t know. He can’t even see what kind of insect it is. His head is full of books. He can’t even take care of himself.”

After saying this, the woman looked like she was about to cry, and turned to Xia Lanyue, saying, "If he's like this, who will take care of him after I'm gone?!"

Xia Lanyue was taken aback. What did the woman mean by that? She couldn't control this matter either.

Since she was looking at Xia Lanyue, she decided to offer a few words of comfort: "Auntie, don't worry, Mr. Xia can take good care of himself."

These words clearly did not resonate with the woman. She sighed again, "Men don't know how to take care of themselves and need women to help them. He's twenty years old and still not married. Matchmakers keep coming to his door, but he doesn't want any of them. I don't even know what kind of girl he likes."

The woman shook her head helplessly.

Xia Lanyue listened and nodded, but didn't say anything more.

Perhaps because the woman had been nagging too much, Tian Guang got annoyed and interrupted her, "We're going back now. You should hurry up and prepare the medicine for Pangao. The sooner he gets treatment, the sooner he'll recover."

"When you're all better, I'll invite you to my house for dinner. You absolutely must come," the woman said from behind.

"Okay," Tian Guang replied, then waved his hand and walked out of the courtyard.

Xia Lanyue and Dai You followed behind as they left the courtyard.