CH 56

Mo Feng impatiently sent the old woman to the backyard. Then, he ran back, sat down and picked up the chopsticks, only to find that his mother was still being courteous.

“Sir Lu, you shouldn’t have spent so much money on us!”

He replied with a smile, “It’s fine. We can’t eat that much, so the rest will go to waste.”

Mo Feng couldn’t wait to start eating, “That’s right! Mum, they’ve already come, so how can we drive them away?”

Lu Junming picked up his chopsticks, took a piece of fish and put it in Mo Yan’s bowl, “That’s right! Eat quickly, don’t leave any leftovers.”

Mrs. Liang finally picked up her chopsticks, and Mo Feng had already picked up a chicken leg. Lu Junming also started to eat, but his eyes were always on Mo Yan’s bowl. As soon as she stopped eating food, he immediately put more food in her bowl.

After eating for a while, even Mo Feng felt full and burped, and others were already stuffed.

Mo Ling turned her head to look at the yard, and she could already see moonlight, “Mum, the moon’s out, let’s go moonwatching!”

“Okay, then pack up and make some tea. We’ve eaten a lot today, we don’t need more.”

Lu Junming and Mo Yan went to the courtyard and saw that there was only a small patch of moonlight beside the west wall. The moonlight was blocked by the east wall and the kitchen. Mo Yan said, “The moon would look beautiful on the roof!”

Mo Ling heard her talking about the roof in the kitchen, and immediately stopped her, “Yan’er, you’re not allowed to go on the roof. Did you forget about the last time you fell?”

Mo Yan stuck out her tongue and replied, “I was just kidding, I didn’t really go there.”

Lu Junming said, “Why do you need to go up to the roof? My courtyard is open and unobstructed, and it’s full of moonlight. Let’s go moonwatching there instead!”

Sir Lu also said, “That’s right. My house doesn’t have a courtyard wall, and there is a pond to the southeast. Not only is the yard full of moonlight, but its reflection can also be seen in the water! Don’t bother with making tea, just have some at mine.”

Today, Mrs. Liang was satisfied. Not only did everyone get a full meal, they even got to drink free tea after that.

“Sure, you go first. I’ll come later with the moon offerings.”

Mo Yan called her sister, but Mo Ling asked her to go first, saying she’d come later too. Lu Junming pulled up Mo Yan and ran out. Mrs. Liang was worried that Mo Feng would get fat after eating so much, so she urged him to go out for a walk.

The Lu family’s yard wasn’t only full of moonlight, but also made the moon clearly visible. This was a very clear night. The moon was bright and the stars were sparse, and the entire sky was occupied by the brilliance of the moon.

Lu Junming brought out the tea table, then went to get a stool for Mrs. Liang, while Sir Lu went to get the tea. The small charcoal stove on the side dedicated to making tea was still lit, so he added charcoal and placed a small iron kettle filled with water on it.

The children were full, so Mo Yan took initiative and went for a walk around the pond. Lu Junming followed, and so did Mo Feng, but Mo Ling still hadn’t come out.

The three walked around the pond, and Sir Lu called them from the yard, “Come and drink tea. This is dark tea, and it helps with digestion.”

When sitting down to drink tea, Mo Yan found that the Lu family didn’t have any moon offerings, “Lu Junming, why don’t you have moon offerings?”

Lu Junming replied disdainfully, “I’m not asking for marriage, so why should I!”

Mrs. Liang said, “This moon offering is to Chang’e. Women ask for the beauty of the moon, men ask for a beautiful family, and the head of the family prays for a united household.”

“I’m not the head of the family, and I’m not in need of a beautiful family, now am I?”

Mo Yan stood up and asked, “Do you have an incense burner at home?”

Lu Junming nodded, “Yes.”

“Do you have mooncakes or snacks?”

“Yeah, I have them.”

“Then go offer them to the moon!”

He wasn’t allowed to say anything else, as Mo Yan had already gone under the tree, and brought the small tea table to the middle of the yard. Then, she urged Lu Junming to get the incense burner and snacks again.

Lu Junming didn’t want to do this, but Mo Yan wanted to, so he had to follow her lead. He went inside to get the snacks and the incense burner, and the two set them up on the small tea table. Mo Yan lit three incense sticks in her hands, raised her head to face the moon and said loudly, “Fairy Chang’e, please make me more beautiful.” After that, she put the incense into the incense burner.

Lu Junming smiled and asked, “Don’t people usually make wishes quietly?”

“The moon’s so far away, I’m afraid she can’t hear it!” Mo Yan had a sweet smile on her face.

A thin cloud floated past, like a veil covering the moon, and when the veil fell, the moon revealed its beauty once again. The two looked up and looked at the moon quietly, side by side, with the same smile on their faces.

Mrs Liang turned her head to look in the direction of her house. There was still no sign of Mo Ling, so she got up and said to Sir Lu, “What’s taking Ling’er so long? I’ll go back and see her.” After saying that, she left the yard and ran back.

The door of their house was half-closed. The kitchen lights hadn’t been turned off, the dishes and bowls were still unwashed, and there was still unburned firewood in the stove. The water in the kettle was steaming as well. But Mo Ling was nowhere to be seen.

Standing at the door of the kitchen, Mrs. Liang called out for Mo Ling, but no one responded. She paused for a moment and ran out, straight towards the school. When she saw someone, she slowed down and took a few steps, and when they passed her, she started running again.

Under the tree in the school, Mr. Tian was moonwatching when he heard someone whispering his name at the entrance. He knew it was Mo Ling.

“Miss Ling, come to admire the moon!”

Mo Ling’s heart blossomed. She pretended to be calm and walked over.

“Sir, why are you moonwatching under the tree?”

“I’m just an ordinary person, and I don’t want to disturb the beautiful sight of the moon, so I’m currently under the shadow of the tree.”

Mo Ling also hid under the shadow of the tree, side by side with him, raising her head slightly to look at the moon. It looked even better than before.

She quietly turned to look at Mr. Tian. His clothes were plain but his features were exquisite, like the gentlemen from the tales the storytellers told.

Mo Ling softly called him again and wanted to say something, but Mr. Tian put his index finger on his lips, and motioned for silence.

“Shh! Don’t disturb the fairy in the moon.”

Mo Ling stopped making sounds and just stared at him intently.

Mrs. Liang ran to the school, she was so tired that she stopped to bend over and pant. She couldn’t help but cough, and the sound of her cough was all too familiar to Mo Ling.

“My mother’s here!” Mo Ling turned to look at Mr. Tian, ​​who smiled lightly, “What are you afraid of? We didn’t do anything improper.”

That was true, they were still two members of opposite sexes meeting alone. Mo Ling was very flustered, “Just say you didn’t see me.” She was about to run into the house when Mr. Tian stretched out his hand and pulled her, “If you hide and your mother caught you, you wouldn’t be able to.”

Hearing the coughing stop, Mo Ling knew that Mrs. Liang was coming soon. Since she couldn’t hide, she could only go out and greet her.

The mother and daughter met at the entrance of the school, and Mrs. Liang asked sharply, “Aren’t you supposed to be doing the dishes at home? What are you doing here!”

Mo Ling didn’t know how to answer, Mr. Tian came over and said, “Mrs. Mo, I was moonwatching and saw Mo Ling passing by, so I asked her to watch the moon together.”

Post-edit notes: Time for school…again…yay…