Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

Suddenly, five people were standing at the door of Xia Lanyue's small house.

"Ah Yue, what happened to you? Your mouth and teeth are black! Could you have been poisoned?!" Xia Huifang asked Xia Lanyue seriously, clearly very nervous.

"I..." Xia Lanyue was extremely embarrassed.

"She's fine. I just gave her some mulberries," Xia Yao said casually, then, to everyone's surprise, asked, "They're delicious, aren't they, Yue?"

Xia Lanyue was taken aback, nodded, but her eyes unconsciously turned to Dai You.

Sure enough, Dai You's face darkened when he learned the truth.

Xia Yao was unusually talkative at this moment, whether on purpose or not. "These mulberries were brought to me by the child. I couldn't bear to eat them, but thinking that A-Yue was sick, I gave them all to A-Yue. It seems that A-Yue really likes these mulberries, and she ate them all."

Upon hearing this, Xia Huifang immediately smiled and said, "Well done. Next time you have something good, save it for A-Yue first."

Dai You sneered and turned to walk out of the courtyard.

Everyone could tell that Dai You was angry, but they were a little confused.

Xia Lanyue quickly explained to everyone, "I was teasing my brother just now, and I scared him. He's angry now. I'll go check on him. Aunt Xia, you all go ahead and eat." Then she ran out in a flash.

Xia Huifang glanced at Xia Yao, then waved her hand, signaling everyone to go eat.

Xia Yao followed behind Xia Huifang, a smug sneer on his face.

Dai You walked along the path towards the end of the village, with Xia Lanyue jogging behind him.

Dai You didn't turn around, but he knew it was Xia Lanyue following behind him. "Go back and tell them not to save me dinner."

“I won’t eat either, I’ll just take a walk with you,” Xia Lanyue said.

Dai You suddenly stopped, turned around and glanced at Xia Lanyue, hesitating to speak, before continuing to walk forward.

In the distance, a familiar figure approached them; it was Fan He.

Xia Lanyue ran over and greeted her, "Fan He, it's been a long time."

Fan He smiled and said, "Yes, I heard you've become famous recently for selling rice cakes in town."

"Huh?! Really? Tell me about it," Xia Lanyue asked.

“Really? I heard it from my sister. She even asked me for some. I was just thinking of buying some from you so I wouldn’t have to go to town,” Fan He said.

"Hey, we're neighbors, I'll bring you a few packs tomorrow."

"That won't do, you still have to pay. How much is a pack?" Fan He said, glancing at Dai You behind her, then lowered her head in embarrassment.

Her shy demeanor made Xia Lanyue think that she had feelings for Dai You!

Xia Lanyue smiled and turned to look at Dai You, only to find that Dai You was staring at her with a cold expression. She immediately felt bored and turned her head back.

Xia Lanyue took Fan He's hand and said, "Then it's settled. I'll bring it to you later tomorrow."

"Mmm," Fan He said shyly as she ran back to her home.

Xia Lanyue was already imagining Dai You's panicked expression when he found out Fan He's feelings for him. Thinking of this, she couldn't help but laugh out loud, "Hehehe..."

Not seeing Dai You speak, Xia Lanyue couldn't help but turn around to look, only to be surprised to find that Dai You had disappeared without a trace!

"Hey, Dai You, come out quickly..." Xia Lanyue called out, walking to the end of the village, but she didn't see him.

"I won't lie to you anymore... really... don't be angry..." Xia Lanyue ran to the bamboo forest to look for him, but to no avail.

Xia Lanyue couldn't think of anywhere else Dai You could have gone. Suddenly, an idea popped into her head: perhaps he had already gone home?

She hurried back to the Xia family home, but Dai You hadn't returned yet. However, Wang Cui had come. Wang Cui was sitting alone in the courtyard, as if waiting for someone.

"Ah Yue, come quickly," Wang Cui waved to Xia Lanyue.

Xia Lanyue walked over.

Wang Cui pulled over a stool and gestured for Xia Lanyue to sit down. "Lanyue, can I ask you something?"

Xia Lanyue sat down. "Aunt Wang, please speak."

"Your brother isn't married, is he?"

"Um"

"So what's his thought? Well, let me just say it directly: he's met Fan He, what does he think of her, is she interested?" Wang Cui asked directly.

“Huh?! He’s not married yet, but I can’t make decisions about his affairs,” Xia Lanyue said.

"I'm not asking you to make the decision. What's your family's opinion? He's your sworn brother. Have they made any arrangements for his marriage? Has your father mentioned this to you?"

Upon hearing this, Xia Lanyue realized that Wang Cui was trying to find out if Dai You and Fan He were interested in each other. However, seeing the look in Dai You's eyes that almost popped out of their sockets, she knew he would ignore her if she continued to talk nonsense. So, Xia Lanyue stammered, "Yes, he has someone he likes, and their relationship is very stable. He's probably planning to find a matchmaker to arrange the marriage when he gets back."

"Oh, that's a pity. Today, Fan He's father asked me to play matchmaker. His second daughter, Fan Miao, is engaged and the wedding is in August, so we need to find a family for Fan He as soon as possible. I've been thinking about it, and the first person that came to mind was Dai You. I really like this boy, so I was thinking of giving it another try. But your Aunt Xia said he went out. Where did he go?"

“He… won’t be back for a while,” Xia Lanyue said. “However, our family is in the capital, and matchmaking requires the parents’ consent, right? I’m afraid it’s too late anyway. Why don’t we try someone else and not waste any more time?”

Wang Cui felt a little regretful, but she knew that Xia Lanyue was right; the two were destined to be apart.

“Aunt Wang, have you talked to A Niu about it? He’s a very honest man,” Xia Lanyue said.

“Aniu is only seventeen, and Acheng is even older, nineteen, but…” Wang Cui suddenly leaned closer to Xia Lanyue and whispered, “Their father is unreliable, and no one wants to marry into that family.”

Xia Lanyue understood, "But his father is his father, and it also depends on the person. Fan He also said that she likes men who can work. A Niu is strong and honest, so he will definitely treat her well. If she says she doesn't agree, we can find someone else!"

Wang Cui looked at her, thought for a moment, and said, "Then I'll ask." After saying that, Wang Cui called Xia Huifang out, and the two went to the main house to talk.

Xia Lanyue went into the kitchen, ladled out a bowl of rice, and began to eat.

"What did Aunt Wang say to you?" A Niu asked Xia Lanyue.

"It's a secret!" Xia Lanyue continued, "Where is Xia Yao?"

“He went back to his room to read,” Ah Niu said with a smile.

"Ah Yue, Dai You is your sworn brother?!" Ah Cheng asked Xia Lanyue, picking up the conversation.

"correct."

"What did he do before? What was he doing before your dad took him in?" Acheng asked.

“He was my father’s bodyguard and saved his life!” Xia Lanyue said, raising her eyebrows.

"I thought he was so amazing, always acting all high and mighty!" Acheng said irritably.

“He’s really amazing, how could my brother not be amazing?!” Xia Lanyue said stubbornly.

"Mmm," A-Cheng mumbled dismissively before lowering his head to eat.

Before they had even finished their meal, Wang Cui and Xia Huifang came out of the house smiling.

Wang Cui greeted Xia Lanyue and then hurriedly left.

Xia Lanyue had a premonition that this would work.