Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

In the evening, Xia Huifang returned. As soon as she entered the courtyard, she looked around for Xia Lanyue. Not seeing her, she went straight to her room and asked, "Is A-Yue home?"

"Yes, I'm here," Xia Lanyue heard Xia Huifang's voice and hurriedly got up. She had only intended to lie in bed for a while, but she was too tired and fell asleep.

When Xia Huifang saw Xia Lanyue, she gave an awkward smile. "Oh, you really came! I thought Pang Gao was just kidding me. How are you? Are you satisfied with this house?"

"This house is very nice; thank you for taking such good care of it, Aunt Xia."

"It's alright, don't be shy," Xia Huifang said as she entered the room. Looking around, it seemed as if she hadn't tidied the room herself. "I only have these few rooms. I live in the main room. Your brother will have to make do in the west room across the street. There's a big bed there."

"Mr. Xia showed us around, and it was quite good."

"By the way, what's your brother's name again?"

"Dai You".

“Oh, okay. You two siblings are both very good people, so why do you insist that you’re in cahoots with thieves? Really,” Xia Huifang said, staring into Xia Lanyue’s eyes. “They can’t catch anyone, so they’re framing a little girl. They don’t even look at her. How could such a good girl be like a thief? Sigh.”

"Does Aunt Xia believe me?" Xia Lanyue said with a wronged expression.

Xia Huifang nodded, "Just stay here and relax for a while. If you need anything, just tell me."

Xia Lanyue was so moved by this trust that she almost cried. She held back her tears and said, "Aunt Xia, don't worry, my brother and I are really not bad people."

Xia Huifang nodded, "Auntie believes in you."

Dinner was prepared by Xia Huifang and Xia Lanyue together. There were many people visiting today, and it was Xia Lanyue's first time coming to visit. Xia Huifang prepared three vegetarian dishes and one meat dish.

When the meal was ready, Xia Huifang turned to Xia Lanyue and said, "Go and call Pangao out for dinner."

"Yes," Xia Lanyue responded, untied her apron, and prepared to leave the kitchen, but was stopped by Dai You.

"I'll go," Dai You said, then turned and went to Xia Yao's room.

When Dai You returned, he saw Xia Lanyue and Xia Huifang sitting opposite each other. He pointed to the seat next to Xia Huifang and gestured for her to sit there. Then he sat in Xia Lanyue's original seat. In this way, Xia Lanyue was now surrounded by Xia Huifang on one side and Dai You on the other.

Xia Huifang silently observed Dai You's actions, seeing it all without saying a word. "Ah Yue, I heard you lost your memory. Are you feeling better now?"

Xia Lanyue said, "I still can't remember."

"Mother, have I finished my medicine?" Xia Yao asked as he walked into the kitchen and sat down opposite Xia Lanyue.

"Yes, I was planning to go to town to fetch a doctor today, but I was too busy and forgot. I'll have A Niu go to town to fetch a doctor tomorrow," Xia Huifang said.

“But A-Niu has to work on the farm tomorrow,” Xia Yao said, looking at Dai You.

Dai You stared coldly at Xia Yao without replying.

"I'll go tomorrow, I have time," Xia Lanyue said, noticing the awkward atmosphere and offering to go.

“I’ll go,” Dai You said, looking at Xia Lanyue. “You should get your medicine too.”

Xia Yao glanced at the two of them, picked up his chopsticks, and called to everyone, "Let's eat."

"I'm back," A-Cheng's voice came from outside the door.

"Cheng, come and eat!" Xia Huifang called out.

"You're here," Acheng said, brushing the dirt off his clothes as he walked in. "Aunt, I brought back a cartload of wheat straw, and I put it in the corner."

"Okay, let's eat quickly, we've been waiting for you," Xia Huifang said.

Acheng scooped up a bowl of rice, sat down next to Xia Yao, and began to eat heartily without any hesitation.

"Have you tallied up the grain on Li Chuan's side?" Xia Huifang asked, putting some food on Acheng's plate.

"Hmm, forty-two shi in total," Acheng said as he ate.

Xia Huifang thought for a moment, "Excluding our thirty shi, the neighbors only lost twelve shi, which means it was probably around thirty shi."

"Did Aunt Xia's family lose thirty bushels?" Xia Lanyue asked.

"Why do you care so much?" Acheng said.

"Hey, why are you talking like that?" Xia Huifang scolded Acheng, then turned to Xia Lanyue and said, "Ayue, don't mind him, that's just his temper."

Xia Lanyue snorted coldly and turned her head to the side.

Xia Yao softened the tone, "Acheng, did Li Chuan say anything else?"

Acheng lowered his head and ate a mouthful of rice. "The villagers who lost their grain all went to the village chief to tell him what happened. Village Chief Zhao has already sent people to look for the lost grain, but he hasn't said anything else."

"Do the neighbors know anything about the thief?" Xia Yao asked.

“The villagers all said they didn’t see the thieves. They only realized there were strangers and that their grain had been stolen after they heard me calling for help,” Acheng said.

"Didn't Li Chuan ask you why it took you so long to realize so much grain had been lost?" Xia Yao asked.

"I asked, and I told them I was too tired from working during the day and slept very soundly."

Xia Yao nodded.

Acheng looked at Xia Lanyue and asked Xia Yao, "How much are these two being paid? Are meals included?"

"It seems like Acheng has a lot of issues with us siblings?!" Xia Lanyue said, glaring at Acheng.

"I wouldn't dare!"

"Heh," Xia Lanyue sneered, "If it's because of the stolen grain, there's no need for that. Even a child knows that an investigation is necessary before a conviction. You can't be unaware of this, can you? Or are you angry because I said something right that day..."

Dai You nudged Xia Lanyue with his arm. "Don't make things difficult for Aunt Xia. We'll just wait for Village Chief Zhao to investigate. If you're upright, you have nothing to fear."

Xia Lanyue nodded, gave Xia Huifang an awkward smile, and then, taking advantage of the crowd's inattention, glared at Acheng. Acheng saw this and didn't back down, glaring fiercely at Xia Lanyue, who immediately glared back. The two remained locked in a stalemate, neither giving an inch in their imposing manner.

Xia Yao noticed the tense atmosphere between the two and then said, "Acheng, I invited them, so we should treat our guests well."

After hearing this, Acheng, though unconvinced, looked away and continued eating.

After the meal, Dai You offered to wash the dishes, but this time, he took Xia Lanyue with him to the riverbank.

"That A-Cheng has a lot of opinions about me, he even glared at me! Ha!" Xia Lanyue said indignantly.

"Should we leave here?"

"I won't leave. I can't swallow this insult. Besides, if we run away, they'll just say we're thieves, and they can pin anything on us!" Xia Lanyue looked at Dai You and continued, "Could you bring me some candy from town tomorrow?"

"How much do you want?" Dai You asked.

"One jin, please. And another jar of strong liquor."

What do you need alcohol for?

"Hmph," Xia Lanyue snorted coldly, "Tomorrow I'll have a few drinks with them, and when they're drunk, I'll try to get some information out of them."

Dai You looked on incredulously. "You? Drinking? Trying to trick them into talking?"

Seeing his reaction, Xia Lanyue suddenly realized that this was not something Dai Xiyue would do, and hurriedly changed her words, "I said it was you who drank them under the table, and I'll try to get information out of them."

Dai You put down the bucket in his hand, took out a handful of copper coins from his pocket, counted them, and found fifty-five. "After deducting the money for medicine and candy, there's not much left."

Xia Lanyue looked at the money in Dai You's hand with disappointment and said, "Then I won't buy the medicine. I'm all better now."

"No, you must take the medicine. Your memory depends on it."

"It's no use eating it," Xia Lanyue muttered softly.

"You've already remembered how to write your own name, which means the medicine is effective."

"Huh?!" Xia Lanyue exclaimed in surprise.

Dai You nodded. "Let's put the matter of the alcohol aside for now."

Xia Lanyue was helpless.