Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

Xia Lanyue counted the copper coins she had earned that day three times over: one hundred and thirty coins.

Dai You, carrying a shoulder pole, watched her from the side, just smiling and not saying a word.

"What are you looking at? These are all mine," Xia Lanyue said, pulling the purse closed and putting it into her bosom.

“Ah Yue looks just like a small stall owner today.”

“Right? I learn quickly, this is no problem for me,” Xia Lanyue said smugly, raising her eyebrows. “What do you want? I’ll buy it for you.”

Dai You shook his head. "I lack nothing."

“The people in town are really rich. I thought the rice cakes would be hard to sell at ten coins a pack, but they sold out so quickly. One hundred and thirty coins, plus the fifty coins I spent on meat, that's one hundred and eighty coins. Tomorrow, I want to make more so I can earn even more money,” Xia Lanyue said.

“I’ll find a temporary job in town tomorrow, and we can earn money together,” Dai You said.

“Great, then we can go back and forth together, and we won’t be lonely on the road,” Xia Lanyue said.

"Will we leave once we've made enough money?" Dai You asked.

Xia Lanyue did not answer his question. "I talked to Village Chief Zhao today, and I understood what he meant. He said that until Acheng and the others confess and the grain is recovered, we are still suspects."

"So? What are your thoughts?" Dai You asked. "Do you still want to stay here?"

"I don't care, I just don't want to implicate Xia Yao and his mother."

"What if this matter remains unresolved for a year or two?"

"Then... is that possible?" Xia Lanyue hesitated for a moment; she hadn't considered this possibility.

Dai You nodded. "Based on the evidence that Chief Zhao has now, and the attitudes of Wei Yuanwai and the other man in admitting their guilt, it is possible." Dai You turned to look at Xia Lanyue. "I don't think we absolutely need this silver note. Let's just forget about it."

Hearing Dai You say that the silver notes might not be returned, Xia Lanyue felt a pang of heartache. "That's a lot of money! Let's wait a little longer. Besides, Xia Yao vouched for us. What will happen to him if we leave?"

"Judging from today's scene, Xia Yao's prestige in the village is even higher than Li Chuan's. I don't think Village Chief Zhao will really make things difficult for him."

"But Uncle Tian's son lost his life because he vouched for someone else."

Dai You stopped and asked Xia Lanyue, "Are you reluctant to leave? Is it because of the silver notes, or because of Xia Yao...?"

Xia Lanyue hurriedly shook her head, "No, no. We're definitely going to leave here eventually, I just think there's no need to rush." ​​She glanced at Dai You and asked curiously, "Before, when I wanted to leave, you wouldn't take me with you, but now it's the other way around? Is there something you haven't told me?"

"I just don't want to get involved in this mess."

"Oh, is that so? Look, my rice cakes are doing well. Why don't we make some money first? As for what you said, let me think about it carefully before making a decision."

Xia Lanyue cooked dinner tonight. Knowing that Xia Yao and his mother were not in a good mood, she took the initiative to cook, thinking that if she did her best, she might be able to resolve the conflict between her and Xia Yao. So, she made her specialty, braised noodles with green beans.

Even after the meal was ready and the four of them sat down, Xia Huifang was still sighing. Everyone knew that she was sighing for Xia Yao to hear.

Xia Lanyue glanced at Dai You, who was also looking at her. Xia Lanyue secretly stuck out her tongue, which unexpectedly made Dai You laugh out loud. The laughter seemed particularly abrupt in the otherwise somber atmosphere.

Dai You quickly stopped smiling and, under Xia Huifang's questioning gaze, calmly said, "Aunt Xia, try the noodles my sister made. They're fried in lard, very fragrant." After saying that, he handed Xia Huifang a full bowl.

Xia Huifang nodded, took the food, and took a bite. Her face immediately lit up with surprise. "This is so delicious! Did A-Yue make this?! A-Yue's cooking is really good!" she said, then looked at Xia Yao, gesturing for him to try it quickly.

Xia Yao remained indifferent, picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.

Xia Lanyue carefully observed Xia Yao, only to see him eating slowly and deliberately, without any expression. Xia Lanyue could not discern his emotions.

However, Xia Huifang did ask the question she wanted to know, "How is it? Is it delicious?" Seeing that Xia Yao didn't answer, she nudged him, "Say something! I'm asking you if it's delicious!!"

"Delicious," Xia Yao finally said.

"They put a lot of thought into cooking, why don't you praise them? All you do is eat," Xia Huifang said resentfully.

Xia Yao looked up, put on a fake smile, and said to Xia Lanyue, "It's really delicious."

Seeing his reaction, Xia Lanyue smiled awkwardly, "If Xia Yao thinks it's delicious, then eat more."

The meal ended in this somber atmosphere.

In the evening, Xia Lanyue went to deliver dinner to Acheng alone.

"Li Chuan, I'm here," Xia Lanyue called out from the courtyard gate.

The door to the main room suddenly opened, and Ahe ran out, "Aunt Yue!"

Xia Lanyue bent down and greeted Ahe, "Where did you go to play, Ahe? Aunt Yue hasn't seen you for the past few days."

“I went to visit my maternal grandmother with my mother,” Ahe said.

"Ahe, come back for dinner," came the voice of Village Chief Zhao from inside the house.

When Zhao, the village chief, saw Xia Lanyue, he nodded to her.

Xia Lanyue quickly responded, "Hello, Village Chief Zhao, I'm bringing food to Acheng."

Village Chief Zhao pointed to the side room, "He's in that room, go ahead."

Xia Lanyue patted Ahe's head and then went into the side room.

"Hey, the food's here! I was starving," A-Cheng said, taking the food box and asking Xia Lanyue, "Are you busy in the fields right now? Is A-Niu tired?"

“It’s planting season now, everyone’s busy planting rice, don’t you think?” Xia Lanyue said, looking around the house. “You’ve been caught up in this, which has allowed you to shirk your responsibilities.”

"Hehe, I didn't want to either, but they won't let me leave, so Ah Niu has to work harder and do more work."

"I can't say that. He's already suffering from heatstroke, how can he possibly endure more hardship?" Xia Lanyue pouted.

"Oh dear, I'll have to buy him some food when I get back," Acheng said, stuffing a big mouthful of rice into his mouth. "How's Aunt?" he asked.

"Yes, she and A Niu are busy in the fields, and Xia Yao is preparing for his exams, so they can't take care of you."

"Everyone's busy, but you're free, so we asked you to come?" Acheng asked.

These words made Xia Lanyue laugh in anger. She had never met someone so "good" at chatting before. "Does your aunt know how good you are at talking?!" After that, she simply stopped paying attention to Acheng.

That night, Xia Lanyue lay in bed, pondering what Dai You had said during the day. What if, as Dai You said, the silver notes were really held by Village Chief Zhao for a year and a half, or even longer? They couldn't just wait indefinitely. What if he dragged it out and really didn't want to give them back? Wouldn't that mean the silver notes would have been given away for nothing? Thinking of this, Xia Lanyue suddenly sat up.

No, I have to think of something, Xia Lanyue thought.

She pondered for a while, and suddenly an idea came to her mind: perhaps Xia Yao could help her, or rather, it would be mutually beneficial.

Xia Lanyue lay down, deciding to talk to Xia Yao tomorrow.