Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

In the morning, Xia Lanyue came out of the house and stretched at the door.

Just then, the door next to them opened, and Xia Yao came out of the room.

Xia Lanyue turned her head to greet him, but the words caught in her throat when she saw him. He was wearing a headscarf and a white round-neck shirt. The light-colored clothes accentuated his gentle and refined temperament. He looked so handsome that he stole her heart, and Xia Lanyue couldn't help but stare in a daze.

When Xia Yao turned his head to look at her, Xia Lanyue blushed without any self-control.

Xia Yao seemed oblivious to her expression, turned and walked straight to the gate, opened it wide, and stood at the entrance.

Xia Lanyue couldn't help but wonder what day it was that Xia Yao needed to dress so formally.

She dashed into the kitchen, grabbed Dai You, and asked, "What's going on? Why is Xia Yao dressed like this today?"

Dai You glanced outside the door. "The private school is starting today, and he's begun teaching."

"What?! I didn't hear about this yesterday," Xia Lanyue sat down on the stool, then suddenly remembered that she seemed to have heard him mention it before, "Is today the 22nd?"

"Yeah, what's gotten into you?" Dai You pushed the bowl on the table toward her. "Eat up, you're the only one who hasn't eaten."

The students arrived one after another. There weren't many of them, only five students in total, all around the same age as A-Xiang.

"How can we teach this? Everyone's learning pace is different," Xia Lanyue said, munching on a cucumber as she watched Dai You stick bamboo horses in the yard.

“I don’t know much about private schools, I’ve never attended one,” Dai You said, looking up at the sky. “Aren’t they selling rice cakes today?”

"Oh dear!" Xia Lanyue suddenly remembered that she hadn't done her important business yet, and hurriedly got up and rushed to the kitchen.

Xia Lanyue and Dai You carried rice cakes and hurried to the town.

After several days of selling, the reputation of her rice cakes had spread throughout the streets and alleys, attracting many customers. Today, as she walked over, she could see from afar that many people were already waiting for her.

“Your business is so good, why don’t you rent a shop in town? That way we won’t have to wait so long to buy rice cakes,” a young woman said.

“That’s right, that’s right. We don’t dare to leave, afraid that if we miss you and come back, we won’t be able to buy anything,” another aunt said.

"Huh? I haven't thought about it yet," Xia Lanyue said.

"Then think about it. You're running back and forth every day, it must be very tiring. Which village are you from?" the young woman asked.

“River Valley Village,” Xia Lanyue replied.

"Oh dear, that village is quite far away, it must take two hours to go there and back, right?"

"Yes, but sister-in-law's suggestion is good. I'll go back and discuss it," Xia Lanyue said.

"Who are you going to discuss this with? Your husband's family? Which family in the village are you marrying into? I've never seen you before, and I've never heard of them getting married in the village," the young woman looked around, and no one recognized her.

“I’m not married yet,” Xia Lanyue said.

"Which house are you staying at? I know that village well, tell me about it," the young woman asked curiously.

“I live at the Xia family’s house,” Xia Lanyue said.

As soon as these words came out, everyone was in an uproar.

“Xia Yao is my friend, and my brother and I live at his house,” Xia Lanyue quickly explained.

"Oh, it's alright, no need to explain. Mr. Xia is a very nice person. If you develop the relationship and stay, then we'll be able to keep eating rice cakes from now on," the young woman joked.

Everyone laughed when they heard her say that.

Xia Lanyue set up her stall and said, "Sisters-in-law, you've been making fun of me all this time. Are you still going to buy rice cakes?"

“I’ll buy it, I want three packs,” the young woman said.

"Okay, sister-in-law, take it."

In half an hour, all the rice cakes were sold out.

Xia Lanyue sat on the ground to rest for a while, not in a hurry to pack up her stall, she still had to wait for Chen Xiang.

Unconsciously, she thought of Xia Yao, of the way he looked when she saw him that morning, and of how the guests talked about him so enthusiastically. Her face flushed involuntarily. Just then, a man walked over, blocking her view and interrupting her train of thought.

Chen Xiang stood in front of Xia Lanyue, looking down at her.

Xia Lanyue hurriedly stood up and looked at him.

"Young lady, have you been setting up your stall at noon these past few days, and leaving as soon as you've sold out?" Chen Xiang asked.

Xia Lanyue nodded.

"No one's causing trouble here today, right?" Chen Xiang asked.

Xia Lanyue shook her head.

"That's good. I already introduced myself yesterday. I'm from the Street Office, and besides maintaining order, I'm also responsible for collecting taxes," Chen Xiang said.

Hearing this, Xia Lanyue understood his purpose. However, she was a little flustered because she didn't know how much the tax was. She asked cautiously, "How much do I have to pay?"

Chen Xiang noticed Xia Lanyue's worry and explained, "It's not much. The tax is 20% of every 100 coins, and if it's less than 10 coins, we charge 10 coins."

"Ah, how much should I pay?" Xia Lanyue asked.

"Heh~ Why are you asking me how much the girl is paying? Don't you know how much rice cakes you sold?" Chen Xiang said.

“I sold… Let me count,” Xia Lanyue hurriedly took out her purse and started counting, “Two hundred and sixty coins,” Xia Lanyue said, looking at Chen Xiang.

"Then you pay ten coins," Chen Xiang said, spreading his palm in front of Xia Lanyue.

"Oh," Xia Lanyue said blankly as she placed ten copper coins in his hand.

Chen Xiang put the money away. "How long do you plan to keep this stall here?"

"Hmm... about a month."

"And then you're gone a month from now?"

"Mm," Xia Lanyue nodded.

“Then for this month, you’ll be stationed here permanently. You can’t move around freely, and I won’t give this spot to anyone else. I collect taxes from mobile vendors like you every day, but I only come around dusk. Can you stay until then?” Chen Xiang asked.

Xia Lanyue shook her head. "I'll be sold out by noon and then I'll leave. Or, I can come find you. Where are you?"

Chen Xiang looked troubled, and after a moment said, "Okay, I'll come at noon, and you can pay me the tax money first."

“But I don’t know the income for that day,” Xia Lanyue said, puzzled.

"As long as it's roughly correct, that's fine. I don't know your daily income. How about this, you just pay ten coins in taxes every day. That shouldn't be too difficult for you, right?"

"What if I have something to do and can't come to the stall? Does that mean I don't have to pay taxes that day?" Xia Lanyue asked.

Chen Xiang nodded. "That's right."

"Okay, I understand. I'll come every day at noon. But I have one more question: will that Li Si come looking for trouble again?"

Chen Xiang nodded. "Yes, I talked to him yesterday. He shouldn't come back to cause trouble. If he does, just let me know."

“But I still don’t know where to find you,” Xia Lanyue asked.

“I am on the street, there is an inn there, go there to find me.”

"A guesthouse?" Xia Lanyue thought she had misheard.

“Okay, just go to the counter and tell the clerk you’re looking for me,” Chen Xiang said.

The guesthouse? Working hours at the guesthouse... Xia Lanyue couldn't help but feel uneasy.

After Chen Xiang left, Xia Lanyue went to the pharmacy to find Dai You and told him about Chen Xiang coming to collect taxes from her.

"Why haven't I heard you mention him in the past few days?" Dai You asked.

“I just met him yesterday,” Xia Lanyue said.

"You've been here for five days and he didn't notice you at all, so why did he start paying attention to you yesterday?"

“I… he said he heard about me from an aunt, which is why he came looking for me,” Xia Lanyue explained.

“Oh, it’s alright. The tax isn’t much, so we’ll just pay it,” Dai You said.

Just then, Dr. Zhang passed by and chimed in, "Young lady, you should really consider my suggestion. It's not right to avoid seeking medical help when you're unaware of your illness."

Xia Lanyue immediately understood what Zhang Langzhong meant, looked at Dai You, and smiled, "I understand, thank you, doctor."

After Zhang Langzhong left, Xia Lanyue squatted down and said to Dai You, "Dai You, I want to go home early today."

Dai You stopped what he was doing, looked up, and asked, "Why?"

"I made an appointment with Jiang Di to pick up some candy today. I'm afraid that if I'm late, it will be difficult to find him, so I want to go back early."

Dai You glanced down at the medicinal herbs scattered on the ground and said, "Alright, be careful on your journey."

"Okay, I'm off!" Xia Lanyue dashed off in a flash.