Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

Outside, Xia Huifang walked up to Xia Yao with a complicated expression, a mixture of regret that things had not gone as planned and disappointment at his lack of ambition.

Xia Yao pretended not to see it, turned around and waved to A Niu, "A Niu, come on, throw this snake out! It's useless now."

"Why throw it away? This is good stuff, we can soak it in alcohol and drink it!" Ah Niu complained, but he didn't procrastinate. He went straight into the house, grabbed the snake's head, and came out.

"Let's just throw it away, it's creepy," Xia Yao said.

"How could that be? This is a good thing! I'll just fix the cage! I set it up perfectly!" Ah Niu looked around but didn't see the cage. "I'll just soak it in alcohol for you, then I'll weigh it down and you won't be able to get out."

"That's a good idea. I'll go get the jar of wine," Xia Huifang sighed, walked along the wall into the storage room, and brought out a jar of wine. "This one has a high alcohol content, so let's use it."

Xia Huifang put the wine on the ground, then ran to the kitchen door, keeping a safe distance, afraid that the snake would get close to her.

Ah Niu stuffed the snake into the jar and quickly slammed the lid on. "Alright, what's there to be afraid of? Look at you cowards," Ah Niu said with a laugh, then picked up the jar, held it to his ear, and shook it, as if listening for the snake's movements.

"Hey, stop shaking it, or it'll spill again," Xia Huifang said worriedly, pointing to the storage room. "Put it in quickly, and remember to weigh it down! It's scary."

"Hehe," Ah Niu laughed when he saw how afraid everyone was of snakes, then carried the wine jar into the storeroom.

At this moment, Dai You came out of the west room, ignoring everyone, and walked straight to Xia Lanyue's room, only glaring at Xia Yao as he passed by.

Xia Huifang noticed this and quickly explained to him, "Dai You, don't worry, the snake has been caught!"

Dai You didn't reply immediately, but went to the house anyway. Before closing the door, he said, "I'll look around some more and see if there are any other snakes!"

However, after closing the door, he did not immediately search for the snake. Instead, he slowly sat down against the wall, lowered his head, and closed his eyes.

Just now, he almost lost control and couldn't help but rush up and hug her, but thankfully he came to his senses in time, pushed her hand away, and rushed out.

At this moment, his heart was churning like a tidal wave, assaulting his reason, and he tried his best to suppress his emotions.

Just then, Xia Huifang's voice came from the courtyard, "I'll go check on A-Yue, she's terrified."

Xia Huifang entered the west room, where Xia Lanyue was sitting on the couch, lost in thought.

"Ah Yue, don't be afraid, the snake has been caught!" Xia Huifang came over and hugged Xia Lanyue.

"That's great," Xia Lanyue said weakly.

Seeing Xia Lanyue's absent-minded appearance, Xia Huifang patted her head and muttered, "Pat your head, don't be scared."

Seeing Xia Huifang coaxing her like a child, Xia Lanyue felt a lump in her throat and buried her face in Xia Huifang's arms.

Inside the kitchen, Xia Yao and A Niu were setting out the food. Xia Yao glanced outside and said to A Niu, "Don't mention the snake to anyone later."

"What's wrong?" Ah Niu asked, puzzled.

"This snake has caused so much trouble, it's best not to mention it, and don't say you caught it," Xia Yao said.

"Why?!"

Just listen to me.

Ah Niu thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll listen to you, cousin."

Not long after nightfall, a light rain began to fall, the pattering sound of which drowned out all other noises.

Xia Lanyue was wide awake. She sat up and leaned against the headboard, staring blankly. Her eyes kept glancing around to observe the situation, afraid that some strange creature might appear in her room. She stayed there until sleepiness overcame her and she couldn't stay awake any longer, so she slumped to the side and fell asleep.

In the early morning, the rain stopped, and Dai You lingered at Xia Lanyue's door, hesitating whether to wake her up.

The sound of footsteps was clearly heard by Xia Yao next door.

Xia Yao glanced at the doorway, couldn't help but sneer, then turned a page and continued reading.

Once everyone was up, Dai You knocked on Xia Lanyue's door. "A-Yue, are you up? A-Yue..."

After waiting for a long time, Xia Lanyue finally responded, "I'm up."

After a while, Xia Lanyue opened the door and came out. "You got up really early."

Dai You looked at her tired face and dark circles under her eyes, and felt a little sorry for her. "Why don't you skip the trip to town today and take a nap?"

"I want to go," Xia Lanyue said weakly.

"The weather is bad today; it looks like it's going to rain," Dai You said, glancing at the sky.

“We have rain gear at home,” Xia Lanyue said.

Just then, Xia Huifang called out from the kitchen doorway, "Dinner's ready!"

Dai You pulled Xia Lanyue into the kitchen.

As soon as he sat down, Xia Yao asked Xia Lanyue with concern, "A-Yue, did you not rest well yesterday? Don't go out today, stay home."

Xia Lanyue was a little surprised that Xia Yao had actually taken the initiative to care about her today. She was momentarily excited, "Ah..."

Before she could finish speaking, Dai You interrupted her, saying, "She's coming to town with me today."

"But she looks very tired," Xia Yao said, though his expression remained somewhat cold.

“She just said she was going, right, Yue?” Dai You said.

“Making money isn’t a big deal, why not take a break and stay home while I teach the children to read?” Xia Yao said to Xia Lanyue.

“Yes, yes, that’s a good idea. A-Yue didn’t rest well yesterday, her face is all dark,” Xia Huifang said, helping Xia Yao.

Xia Lanyue was a little scared when she heard that she was no longer pretty. She unconsciously touched her face and looked at Dai You, hoping to get some answers from him. However, she did not get any answers, but instead saw Dai You's eyes, which were slightly angry.

Xia Lanyue quickly said, "I'd better go. My aunt asked me yesterday if I was going today, and I have to go." After saying that, she lowered her head.

Dai You glanced at Xia Yao out of the corner of his eye, then lowered his head, picked up his food, and remained silent.

The country path was muddy after the rain. Xia Lanyue looked down at her muddy shoes and sighed.

Dai You didn't dare to say a word, but just followed silently behind her.

But when they arrived in town, they were even more dumbfounded. The ground, mixed with rainwater, had turned into black mud. In this condition, it was impossible to place the baskets on the ground, because water would seep up from the baskets and contaminate the food.

On the other hand, because the streets were wet and slippery, there were far fewer customers at the market.

The usually bustling and crowded streets were deserted today, with only a handful of vendors on the streets. Even Chen Xiang, who was always punctual, was nowhere to be seen, leaving Xia Lanyue looking disappointed.

Dai You didn't say a word, just carried the basket and looked at her. Judging from his expression, he was already prepared to be scolded.

"Look, you insisted on making me come out. How are we supposed to sell this?! It'll get soggy by tomorrow. Yao has wasted so much!" Sure enough, the scolding came late but surely.

Dai You didn't dare to talk back, he just stared at her longingly.

"Give me the load, you go to the pharmacy," Xia Lanyue said, reaching out to take the load from Dai You's shoulder.

“No, it’s too heavy,” Dai You said.

"What can we do? With this weather, who knows when we'll be able to sell them all? You can't just keep waiting here, can you?"

"How about we go to the pharmacy together and talk to Doctor Zhang about selling it in front of his shop?" Dai You suggested.

"But would Doctor Zhang be willing?" Xia Lanyue's tone softened slightly.

“These things of yours don’t conflict with his, and they can be used occasionally in emergencies. I believe he can understand,” Dai You said.

Xia Lanyue thought for a moment and realized there seemed to be no better way, so she and Dai You headed towards the pharmacy.

About ten meters away from the pharmacy, a shop assistant from a roadside shop called out to them.

"Is this young lady the one who sells rice cakes at the end of the street?" the shopkeeper asked first.

Xia Lanyue stopped in her tracks. "Yes, that's me. Would you like to buy rice cakes?"

"Wait a moment, my boss needs to speak with you," the shop assistant said, before running into the shop.