Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

Chapter 164 A Date with Jiang Di

Xia Lanyue sat by the window, looking out.

She was conflicted, unsure whether she should go to Xia Yao.

After all, she was still somewhat angry.

After thinking about it for a while, I decided to go find him anyway.

To her disappointment, Xia Yao went up the mountain with Village Chief Zhao to pray for blessings and did not stay at the official residence.

Xia Lanyue hadn't heard Xia Yao mention these things; perhaps he didn't want her to feel awkward meeting Village Chief Zhao.

With nowhere else to go, she thought of going to Wang Xiang's shop. There would be a lot of people there today, and the rice cakes would surely be selling very well. Moreover, Jiang Di might be there too; she hadn't seen Jiang Di in a long time.

Thinking about it, I walked to the shop, and sure enough, there were a lot of people there.

The customers coming out of the shop already had strings of rice cakes, resembling candied hawthorn skewers, in their hands.

Wang Xiang is indeed efficient and reliable.

But since she has a share, she should also do her part.

Xia Lanyue walked into the shop and greeted the shop assistants, "Hello everyone."

Abei smiled and said to Xia Lanyue, "Sister Dai, you're here! That's great!"

Xia Lanyue smiled. Every time Abei saw her, he had an innocent and carefree look, which made her feel a bit infected by his innocence.

Then, she noticed the gourd-shaped rice cakes on the counter and paused for a moment.

She then remembered that she had forgotten to tell Wang Xiang about her styling that day.

So, they quickly got to work, making some crumbs of candied fruit and sticking them on, thus creating a complete snowman effect.

This process brought the dull rice cake to life.

"Wow, this is still the best way. Sister Dai, you really have a way with things," Abei couldn't help but praise.

Xia Lanyue smiled shyly.

However, after Xia Lanyue's decoration, the snowman rice cake immediately became popular and soon the supply could not meet the demand.

Wang Xiang was so busy in the backyard that she was almost exhausted.

"Abei, come here," Wang Xiang finally couldn't hold back any longer and called out to Abei.

"Coming, shopkeeper!" Abei hurriedly ran towards the backyard.

Xia Lanyue was busy attending to customers and didn't have time to greet Wang Xiang.

Soon, Abei ran back, "Sister Dai, could you go to the backyard and help Manager Wang?"

“Okay, I’ll go,” Xia Lanyue put down what she was holding and walked towards the backyard.

Wang Xiangjian greeted Xia Lanyue politely, "Thank you for your trouble, Miss Dai."

"What are you saying, Manager Wang? I really should do my part," Xia Lanyue said, rolling up her sleeves and walking over.

As the two were busy tending the fire and tending the pots, their feet were steaming, Jiang Di suddenly pushed open the back door and walked in.

Having not seen Jiang Di for a few days, Xia Lanyue felt that he had matured a lot, which made her almost not recognize him.

She paused for a moment, then stood up. "Jiang Di? You're back?"

Jiang Di smiled and nodded at Xia Lanyue.

Xia Lanyue was all too familiar with that smile.

Wang Xiang glanced behind Jiang Di and, seeing no one with him, asked, "Why did you come alone? Where is Miss Lian?"

Miss Lian? It seems to be the girl who went on a blind date with Jiang Di, Xia Lanyue thought to herself.

“She… had something to do and didn’t come,” Jiang Di said, her eyes darting away.

"Oh, I see. You've got a conscience after all. You came back to help out when you knew you were busy today," Wang Xiang said, her hands still busy at work.

Jiang Di ignored Wang Xiang's words and looked at Xia Lanyue, "Dai Xiyue, it seems you still remember."

Xia Lanyue was a little confused. She didn't understand Jiang Di's meaning and didn't know what he was referring to. "Remember what?"

“It’s nothing. Today is the Lotus Festival. Is this your first time celebrating a festival in town? Come on, let me show you around the market,” Jiang Di said to Xia Lanyue.

Xia Lanyue was taken aback. She looked at the stove and then at Wang Xiang. She clearly felt that this was where things needed to be done more.

Wang Xiang's expression turned a little sour. She said to Jiang Di, "No, you have to stay here and help me." Then she turned to Xia Lanyue and said with a smile, "Miss Dai, if you want to go, go and have a look. It's quite lively today."

Xia Lanyue felt a little embarrassed to go out and play by herself since they were all busy, and she didn't really want to go with anyone. "It's okay, I'll go with you."

“How would she know what’s fun?” Jiang Di beckoned to Xia Lanyue, “Come on, I’ll take you to see.”

Xia Lanyue looked hesitant.

"How can she have the nerve to go out like this?" Jiang Di said to Wang Xiang with a hint of reproach, then stepped forward and grabbed Xia Lanyue's sleeve. "Let's go, it's a rare holiday."

"Sigh," Wang Xiang said, seeing Jiang Di's behavior, she seemed to think it was inappropriate and immediately stepped forward to stand between the two of them. "You, you're not allowed to leave."

Xia Lanyue pulled her sleeve back. "It's okay, I don't really want to go."

When Jiang Di heard this, she knew it was because of Wang Xiang, and her face showed displeasure, so she didn't say anything more.

However, when Wang Xiang delivered the rice cakes to the front hall, Jiang Di grabbed Xia Lanyue's arm and slipped out through the back door.

"Jiang Di, let's not go," Xia Lanyue said, stopping as she stepped out the door.

Jiang Di snapped out of her daze, looking somewhat disappointed. "We agreed to go to the Lotus Festival together, have you forgotten?"

"No, it's just that you should spend more time with that girl you were on a blind date with. Why did you ignore her during such a lively time and just go on a date with me?"

Jiang Di turned his face away. "There's no such girl. We're not a good match and we don't see each other anymore."

Xia Lanyue was taken aback; this was something Jiang Di hadn't mentioned earlier. "Why?"

"What do you mean 'why'? If it's not suitable, it's not suitable. Come on, let's go boating together. It'll be so lively today," Jiang Di said, pulling on Xia Lanyue's sleeve and starting to walk forward.

Xia Lanyue felt this was inappropriate and quickly pulled her sleeve back.

Jiang Di stopped and turned to look at her, his disappointed expression already concealed. "What's wrong? Don't you want to go?"

Xia Lanyue hesitated for a moment, not wanting to spoil his mood, "Go ahead, but don't pull or tug at each other, that's not good."

Jiang Di smiled. "Okay, you decide. Let's go then."

Xia Lanyue smiled and nodded, then followed Jiang Di to the lakeside.

The road wasn't long, but Xia Lanyue always felt uneasy, as if there were eyes watching her from behind, making her feel a chill down her spine.

She looked back several times but didn't see anyone. She realized she was being paranoid, so she stopped thinking about it and just followed Jiang Di, chatting and laughing as they walked forward.

In less than half an hour, they arrived at the lake. The lake was very large and the scenery was beautiful. The lake surface was covered with lotus leaves, with lotus flowers standing on them, and boats could be vaguely seen passing by.

However, there are too many people who want to take a boat tour, so you have to queue!

Jiang Di realized her mistake and looked at Xia Lanyue, "Are you hot? Shall we find a shady spot to wait for a while?"

Xia Lanyue nodded, then looked around.

The few trees were already crowded with people seeking refuge from the heat.

Jiang Di seemed to realize this as well, so she looked around and then walked towards the lake.

Xia Lanyue watched as Jiang Di plucked two lotus leaves from the lake and returned. She knew that Jiang Di was asking her to use them to shield herself from the sun.

Jiang Di jogged back and waved the lotus leaves in front of her, "Which one do you want?"

Xia Lanyue smiled and took one, saying, "This one," and then placed it directly on her head.

Jiang Di put the one she was holding on her head as well, then pointed to the tree in the distance, "Let's go over there."

Xia Lanyue glanced at the tree; there were slightly fewer people under it. However, she then realized that the people around them were staring at them. She suddenly felt a little worried, wondering if her outing with Jiang Di today would reach Xia Yao's ears, or if Xia Yao would misunderstand. How would she explain?

"Jiang Di, why don't we go back? It's too hot," Xia Lanyue said to Jiang Di.

Jiang Di concealed the disappointment in her eyes and pretended to be indifferent, "Then... okay."

Xia Lanyue still caught a glimpse of emotion in Jiang Di's eyes, and immediately felt a pang of guilt. But she knew she couldn't offer Jiang Di any comfort.

As they walked back, they passed a tree, and under the tree, a woman with her face half-covered by a round fan let out a sneer.

Xia Lanyue couldn't help but turn her head to look, but she didn't recognize many people, and the woman was covering half of her face, so she didn't know who the person was, but she could feel the person's malice.

She turned to Jiang Di and asked, "Who's that woman? She looks like she's laughing at me."

Jiang Di looked in the direction of her gaze and said, "That's Widow Li from the next village, Li Tao."

"What?!" Xia Lanyue exclaimed in surprise, she had actually run into Li Tao!

Xia Lanyue felt quite displeased by Li Tao's disdainful gaze. Judging from Li Tao's expression, she must have recognized her. No wonder, her eyes held a hint of jealousy, like that of a rival meeting her lover.

Xia Lanyue ignored her and walked straight ahead.