Chapter 53: Mid-Autumn Festival
Qingyan and Qiu Henian returned to their own home.
Qingyan intended to ask what was wrong with the other party today, but Qiu Henian already frowned and said, “I’ve seen Qin Liangchuan before.”
“What?”
Qingyan was puzzled.
Qiu Henian recalled, “When I saw his portrait before, I felt somewhat familiar, but I didn’t think deeply at the time. Today, when I saw him in person and heard him talk about his ordeal, memories suddenly flashed in my mind.”
“That year, near New Year, he was unconscious on a mountain road. I removed his blood-stained outer robe and did a simple bandage for him.”
“At that time, an official heading to Nansheng happened to pass by. I probably had urgent matters and for some reason didn’t want that person to see me, so I hid in the woods and watched him take Qin Liangchuan away.”
“Is there more?” Qingyan asked.
Qiu Henian shook his head, “I can’t recall where I came from or where I was going.”
Qingyan stared at him in astonishment, never expecting Qin Liangchuan’s disappearance to be connected to Qiu Henian.
That night, Qiu Henian had another nightmare, waking up drenched in cold sweat, pupils contracted, trembling all over.
Qingyan held him tightly, “What did you dream about?”
Qiu Henian shook his head in pain, “Many people were praying, wailing everywhere, blood everywhere, even in my eyes, everything was blood, I couldn’t see their faces…”
Qingyan straddled his lap, repeatedly stroking his shoulders and the back of his head, “It’s just a dream, everything is fine.”
After a while, Qiu Henian finally calmed down.
Looking at Qingyan’s anxious expression, he hugged his waist, burying his face in the warm and soft nape of his neck as he usually did, saying, “I’m fine, don’t worry.”
“Um,” Qingyan responded softly, hugging him tightly.
The two of them remained intimate for a while.
After a while, Qiu Henian raised his head and reminisced, “Not all were nightmares. Before that, I dreamed of a courtyard.”
“What was it like?” Qingyan asked curiously.
Qiu Henian thought for a moment, “There was a small bridge, water under the bridge, a corridor, and eaves that curled up.”
Upon hearing this, Qingyan blinked and said, “Could it be your home?”
Qiu Henian shook his head, “I’m not sure, but it feels familiar.”
After a moment of silence, Qingyan smiled and said, “So, you might be a young master from a wealthy family, Mr. Qiu?”
Qiu Henian smiled and pinched his chin.
He didn’t notice that while Qingyan was joking. There was a subtle change in his face beside the words “unknown identity,” with the inscription dimming a lot, and underneath this inscription, another faint inscription appeared.
Qingyan stared at it carefully for a long time but couldn’t make it out.
…
The next day, Aunt Li returned from the county in the afternoon.
Qin Lan didn’t come back with her, she came alone.
Qingyan was a little worried, so he went over to accompany her.
Aunt Li sat on the edge of the kang bed, calmly saying, “He told me he was sorry and that it would have been better if he had remembered us mother and daughter earlier.”
Qingyan sighed lightly, “It shouldn’t have been like this.”
Aunt Li shook her head, “It’s all fate.”
The two of them fell silent for a while, each lost in their own thoughts.
After a while, Aunt Li spoke again, “Everything that should be done is done. Today, only Ah Xiao is here. Lanzi… doesn’t want to see me.”
Qingyan advised, “Sister Lan is just feeling upset for a moment. Mid-Autumn Festival is approaching. Sister Lan and Brother-in-law will definitely come to see you during the day. You can talk things over properly then.”
Aunt Li nodded.
Qingyan thought she would be upset about this for a while, but in a short while, Aunt Li became enthusiastic again, saying she saw women in the county using flower petals for facials.
She suddenly had an idea: could she create a snowflake cream that could be used for facials?
She could also try adding flower petals, milk, or other facial ingredients.
Qingyan looked at Aunt Li with shining eyes, admiring her. Aunt Li was truly a makeup master of this era.
Aunt Li pinched Qingyan’s cheek and laughed, “You!”
…
On the day of the Mid-Autumn Festival, Qingyan climbed a ladder with scissors to trim the grapes growing on the arbor.
Qiu Henian stood below, helping by collecting the trimmed clusters in a basin. After a busy period, they filled a large basin with grapes.
Once Qingyan descended, he eagerly plucked a cluster. Qiu Henian fetched water and assisted in rinsing the grapes. Qingyan handed two grapes to Qiu Henian and kept one for himself.
The purple grapes were juicy, bursting with flavor as they bit into them. Qingyan savored the sweet and sour taste, expressing his delight. He had been waiting for this festival to fully enjoy the grapes, having restrained himself until now.
After finishing the grapes in his mouth, Qiu Henian put the remaining cluster in his hand, gently patting Qingyan’s head. He suggested Qingyan relax under the sun and eat slowly while he checked on the cooking dishes in the pot, expecting Er Yao and others to arrive soon.
Qingyan agreed with a nod. It had been planned that both families would celebrate the festival together there.
Qingyan had almost finished preparing everything, having stewed meat and vegetables with Qiu Henian earlier. They anticipated simply stir-frying the dishes upon their guests’ arrival.
Comfortably seated beneath the grape arbor, Qingyan enjoyed the sunshine and his grapes, noticing Zhang Wensheng and his wife Chen Yu entering from the adjacent courtyard, both looking happy.
Chen Yu couldn’t help but smile, saying to Zhang Wensheng, “Don’t be like this. It’s not like I’m so old that I can’t walk!”
Zhang Wensheng said, “I’m just quite nervous, afraid that you’ll stumble.”
Chen Yu turned around and gave him a slap, saying, “Don’t talk nonsense!”
Zhang Wensheng quickly raised his hand and slapped himself lightly on the face, covering his mouth.
At this moment, they finally noticed Qingyan under the grape arbor.
Zhang Wensheng happily said, “Little Brother Qingyan, sunbathing?”
Qingyan casually picked two clusters of grapes and walked over, handing them over from above the fence, saying, “The grapes are ripe. Have a taste.”
Zhang Wensheng hurriedly took them and said, “Thank you so much. My wife Chen Yu just happened to want something sour.”
Qingyan was taken aback, looking at Chen Yu’s deliberately straightened flat belly. With the experience of Qi Yuanlan last time, he suddenly understood and smiled, “Are you pregnant? Congratulations!”
Zhang Wensheng smiled so broadly that his teeth couldn’t be seen, thanking him repeatedly.
After the couple returned to their house, Qingyan stood there thinking about the expressions of the two just now and muttered to himself, “Why are they so happy to have a child?”
As he was lost in thought, the door of the neighboring house opened again, and Chen Yu came out, closing the door tightly behind him. He walked to this side with her arms crossed, looked back at the house over there, confirmed that Zhang Wensheng hadn’t noticed him coming out, and then lowered his voice sarcastically, “What’s the matter? You’ve been married for so long, and there’s no movement in your belly?”
Qingyan looked down at his own belly and said, “What does it matter to you?”
Chen Yu sneered, “Could it be that you can’t have children?”
Qingyan clicked his tongue and said, “You’ve been married longer than me. When you weren’t pregnant, did anyone ask you this?”
Chen Yu tilted his neck, “Regardless of the past, I have one now.”
Qingyan said, “Congratulations, I just said that.”
Chen Yu maliciously said, “If you don’t have a child in a year or two, Qiu Henian will divorce you sooner or later!”
Qingyan said lightly, “Why are you so nosy? Don’t you have anything better to do?”
There were footsteps inside the house. Chen Yu snorted coldly, glared at Qingyan, then quickly returned inside.
Qingyan sat back under the grapevine, not eating anything, lost in thought, trying to imagine himself with a big belly. But no matter how he tried, it felt strange.
He scratched his head and decided to stop thinking about it.
By the time Er Yao and the others arrived, the ribs in the pot were cooked perfectly tender. Qiuniang helped with serving the food, while Qiu Henian stir-fried the remaining two vegetables.
Qingyan stood at the doorway, looking out with a troubled expression.
Qiu Henian, busy with work, occasionally glanced over at him. He walked over, looked in the direction Qingyan was watching, frowned, and said, “Sister Lan hasn’t come. Normally by this time she would have arrived. After dinner, she should have returned home in the afternoon.”
Qingyan thought for a moment and said, “Should I call Aunt Li over?”
Qiu Henian nodded, “That would be good.”
When Qingyan entered Aunt Li’s room, she had already finished preparing the dishes and was sitting alone at the table lost in thought. Qingyan felt a sudden sense of understanding.
He spoke softly, “Auntie, come over to my place and celebrate the festival together.”
Aunt Li shook her head.
No matter how open-minded a person might be, accepting her husband taking a concubine and having children, she couldn’t tolerate her daughter, whom she had raised alone, not understanding her.
“I won’t go. It’ll only make everyone upset with me,” Aunt Li said.
Qingyan walked over and sat beside her. “With so many people around, all talking at once, you won’t have time to feel upset. Come on, Qiu Henian and Qiuniang are waiting for you.”
Aunt Li finally nodded.
After so many times of setting up stalls, Qiuniang’s family and Aunt Li had become quite familiar with each other. They didn’t know about Aunt Li’s family situation these past two days, but they joked around like before. Moreover, Qingyan occasionally uttered childish remarks, which eased Aunt Li’s burden. Her face even showed a smile.
They continued eating until the afternoon, when they finally finished.
Er Yao was getting a bit tipsy. Qiuniang helped Qingyan clean up the dishes and utensils, washed them, then pushed her husband and carried the child away.
Aunt Li finished her work and also planned to leave.
Qingyan looked at the sky outside and saw that it was getting dark.
Qin Lan wasn’t coming back.
Worried that Aunt Li would feel lonely if she went back alone, Qingyan persuaded her, “I haven’t played cards in a long time. Auntie, stay and play cards with me.”
Aunt Li hesitated, “Can two people play?”
Qingyan said, “Why not? Watch me create my own rules!”
Qiu Henian naturally went along with him, moved the table to the center of the room, found the cards, and the two of them sat around the table.
Qingyan was counting the cards while Qiu Henian brought grapes and mooncakes to the table.
Outside, the sky quickly darkened, and the moon gradually rose into the sky, illuminating the paper window.
Aunt Li looked at the bright light and murmured to herself, “Full moon, family reunion…”
After saying this, she couldn’t help but cover her face and cry.
Qingyan was startled for a moment, quickly put down the cards, and went over to comfort her.
Qiu Henian fetched a handkerchief and handed it to Aunt Li.
She took it and kept saying, “I’m sorry, it’s a big festival, I shouldn’t be like this…”
Qingyan said, “Auntie, go ahead and cry. You’ll feel better after crying.”
Aunt Li couldn’t hold back anymore, covered her face with the handkerchief, and burst into tears.
Qingyan looked at Qiu Henian, who sighed softly and quietly went to fetch warm water.
Just then, urgent knocking came from the neighboring yard.
Qiu Henian stood up and said, “I’ll go see it.”
The door banged and closed again. No voices were heard. After a while, there were bustling footsteps in this yard, followed closely by the door being pushed open.
Qin Lan entered the house with red eyes. After seeing the people inside clearly, she threw herself down in front of her mother, burying her head in her lap, crying loudly.
Aunt Li was stunned and anxiously asked, “Lanzi, why are you here now? Will your in-laws be upset?”
Qin Lan lifted her head, tears streaming down her face.
She said, choked with sobs, “I’ve already talked to my in-laws. I’m coming back today.”
She hesitated and continued, “Mom, I’ve been wrong these days. Can you forgive me?”
Aunt Li hurriedly helped her up and said, “Mom has never blamed you. What forgiveness is there to talk about?”
Aunt Li stood up and hugged her daughter, and the two embraced each other.
Qingyan and Qiu Henian watched this scene at the table. Unknowingly, their hands next to each other were holding tightly.
Luckily, it wasn’t too late.
Outside the window, the moonlight was just right. The moon was full, and their family was reunited!
Spoiler for the Next Chapter:
That day in the shop, when Qingyan confessed to him, he was so pure and passionate, so irresistible.
