Inviting the Moon to the Farmhouse

Chapter 131 Reunion with Dai You

Dai You sat dejectedly in the corner with one arm draped over his leg and his head hanging low. He did not notice Xia Lanyue's arrival.

His hair was disheveled, his clothes were torn, and his face was covered in stubble and dirt that he hadn't shaved in a long time. He looked lifeless, and it took Xia Lanyue a long time to recognize him.

Xia Lanyue couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.

She walked quietly to the fence, put down the food box, gripped the fence with both hands, and softly called to him, "Dai You?!"

Dai You seemed to wake up with a start, opened his eyes, looked at her, and after recognizing her, immediately scrambled to her side. His eyes widened, filled with a complex expression, "A-Yue?!"

At this moment, Xia Lanyue looked even more aggrieved than Dai You. She had so much to say to Dai You, but she didn't know where to begin. She tried her best to hold back her tears, but as soon as she opened her mouth, "You..." she could no longer control her emotions and burst into tears.

"Don't cry," Dai You reached out to wipe away her tears, but when he saw his own dirty hands, he withdrew them and carefully cleaned them on his body before daring to wipe away her tears.

Xia Lanyue is like a child.

Dai You felt sorry for her seeing her like this, but there was nothing he could do but silently cry with her.

After crying herself to sleep, Xia Lanyue finally spoke through sobs, "I thought you weren't coming back. Why did you leave me and run away!"

Dai You shook his head, "I didn't, I just..." Dai You couldn't finish his sentence.

"Why did you come back so late? Why did you hit Village Chief Zhao? Are you stupid?!" Xia Lanyue vented her pent-up emotions.

Dai You stopped talking and listened to Xia Lanyue's scolding.

Xia Lanyue stopped talking when she got tired. At that moment, he noticed that Dai You's chapped lips were bleeding.

"They hit you?" Xia Lanyue asked in shock. "Or did they not give you water?"

Dai You quickly shook his head and turned his face to the side.

Xia Lanyue became anxious. "Why are they like this? I'll go find them," she said, and stood up, but Dai You grabbed her arm.

"Don't go, I'm fine," Dai You said, then started coughing.

Xia Lanyue panicked. She didn't know what was wrong with Dai You, but seeing him like this, it was definitely bad. She began to blame herself for not coming to see him sooner, for letting him suffer so much. Thinking about this, tears fell again.

"They said they're going to lock you up for a month," Xia Lanyue said, crying. "What should I do? Should I go to the magistrate and report him for embezzling money from the people? Would that work?"

Dai You quickly shook his head and comforted her, "Don't go, I'm fine, one month is one month, I'm not afraid."

Xia Lanyue felt utterly powerless; with Dai You like this, there was nothing she could do. She suddenly remembered she had brought porridge, quickly wiped away her tears, and took it out of the food box, intending to feed Dai You. Only then did she realize that the bowl was too big, and the gaps in the slats were too narrow; she couldn't push it in at all. After several attempts, Xia Lanyue knew this wouldn't work, so she simply picked up a spoon, scooped up some porridge, and handed it to him, saying, "You drink."

When Dai You saw her like this, he was stunned for a moment, seemingly quite surprised, and then quickly leaned over to take it.

And so, Xia Lanyue fed Dai You porridge spoonful by spoonful.

Dai You ate his porridge, but his eyes never left Xia Lanyue's face.

"That's all. Are you still hungry?" Xia Lanyue asked, looking at the empty bowl.

Dai You looked at Xia Lanyue and shook his head.

Xia Lanyue's mood had calmed down a bit, and she began to talk to Dai You about what had happened these past few days. She wanted to know what Dai You had been through during this time.

It turned out that after Dai You stormed off that day, he went to Guangzhou and exchanged the silver notes Xia Lanyue had given him for cash. He planned to use the money to take Xia Lanyue away from here!

"What about the money?" Xia Lanyue asked anxiously. She suddenly remembered that the money might be enough to buy Dai You's freedom.

“The money was taken by Village Chief Zhao and his gang,” Dai You said.

Upon hearing this, Xia Lanyue slumped to the ground, deflated. The money was gone, and her hopes were dashed once again.

Xia Lanyue felt utterly powerless; she didn't know what to do.

Dai You saw through Xia Lanyue's thoughts. "It's alright, A-Yue, I'll stay here for a month, it'll be fine," Dai You comforted her.

"But how come you're alright? Are these injuries on your body? Did they beat you up?" Xia Lanyue burst into tears again.

Dai You looked at his clothes. "I'm fine. It's just that I ruined the clothes you gave me."

"I can buy more clothes, but I'm worried about you here," Xia Lanyue said, lowering her head.

Just then, Xia Yao's voice came from the doorway, his tone gentle, "A-Yue, we should go."

Xia Lanyue looked at Dai You; she didn't want to leave yet, and there was still something she wanted to say.

Dai You's eyes showed some sadness. He looked at Xia Lanyue, then looked towards the door and asked, "Did you come with him?"

“Yes, I’m living at the Xia family’s house now,” Xia Lanyue said, noticing Dai You’s expression turning sour.

Dai You frowned. "Where have you been staying all this time?"

"I stayed with Jiang Di and his mother for a while before I went to the Xia family," Xia Lanyue said cautiously, thinking that he might have heard the rumors before, so she explained, "My relationship with him is not like what is being said outside, don't believe those nonsense and misunderstand anything!"

Dai You's eyes seemed to light up. "So, all those words were false, right?"

It seemed her guess was right; Dai You had indeed heard those rumors. Xia Lanyue nodded firmly to Dai You, "Yes, they're all just rumors, don't believe them." After saying that, Xia Lanyue leaned closer to him, wanting to tell Dai You Xia Yao's secret, but suddenly remembered her promise to Xia Yao and was afraid that Dai You would spread it and ruin things, so she shut her mouth again.

Dai You stared intently into Xia Lanyue's eyes. "What's wrong?"

Xia Lanyue shook her head, "It's okay, just trust me."

Dai You breathed a sigh of relief and gave a knowing smile.

Xia Lanyue was relieved to see that Dai You was happy, but then a new problem arose: knowing her importance in Dai You's heart made her feel a lot of pressure.

Just then, Xia Yao's urging voice came from outside again, "A Yue, we really should go." Although he was urging her, his tone remained calm and unhurried.

Xia Lanyue looked at Dai You, "I'm leaving now. I'll come see you again tomorrow. What would you like to eat?"

“I…I like everything you make,” Dai You said, giving her a smile in return.

"Alright, I'll come see you again tomorrow," Xia Lanyue said, and with difficulty, she stood up, leaning on the railing.

Dai You quickly stood up, took Xia Lanyue's arm, and looked at her worriedly, "Ayue, is your injury still not healed? You shouldn't come tomorrow."

"It's alright, I'm much better now, don't worry about me," Xia Lanyue gave him a reassuring smile, then reached for the food box on the ground, slowly walked out, and waved to him before leaving, "I'm leaving."

However, after she came out, the village security guard locked the door, which made Xia Lanyue feel sad again.

Xia Yao looked at Xia Lanyue, who was in a bad mood, but did not comfort her. He simply reached out and took the food box from her hand.

Xia Lanyue was taken aback for a moment, then said to Xia Yao, "Thank you for bringing me to see Dai You."

“You’re welcome, this is our deal,” Xia Yao said.

"Also, thank you for not yelling at me just now," Xia Lanyue said, then slowly walked outside.

Xia Yao stood behind her, a faint smile on his face.