Zhao Qingyun took two boxes and said, "Take one box to Xu Shen and the other to Xia Ning."

Xu Lai was deeply moved. They were all her relatives, but Zhao Qingyun didn't distinguish between them at all, treating her family and friends as his own.

After she delivered the items, Xu Shen gave her a box of mooncakes, and Xia Ning also gave her a box. Xu Lai was both amused and exasperated, "We've already bought mooncakes at home, why are you giving me more? How am I going to finish them all?"

Xia Ning smiled and said, "Eat it slowly, it has a long shelf life."

She took the mooncakes home, rested for a while, and then got up to make snow skin mooncakes.

She poured the premixed snow skin powder into a bowl, added hot water and stirred until it formed a dough. She kneaded it until smooth, then divided it into three portions. She added matcha powder and purple sweet potato powder to each portion to make the colors look better.

Then divide the dough into 50-gram portions, flatten them into thin wrappers, and fill them with taro paste or red bean paste.

Pinch the dough tightly, then place it in the mold and press it into the shape of a mooncake. Sprinkle some cooked glutinous rice flour on top to prevent sticking.

After a busy afternoon, she made a full plate, about thirty or so mooncakes. Xu Lai took out the boxes she had bought, packed them one by one, and then took the mooncakes she had bought to return the favor.

For dinner, they ate hairy crabs. She washed the crabs clean, but didn't untie the ropes, because as soon as she untied one, the crab tried to crawl out of the pot.

Turn the crab over so its belly is facing up, place ginger slices on top, and steam for fifteen minutes.

During the meal, she didn't touch the crab. Grandma Jiang asked in confusion, "Why isn't Xiao Lai eating crab? Is she allergic to seafood?"

Grandma thought for a moment and said, "No, she ate quite a bit of that seafood porridge last time."

Xu Lai smiled and said, "I'm not allergic. I just didn't want to get my hands dirty, so I wanted to wait until after I finished eating before peeling the shells."

As they spoke, Zhao Qingyun had already peeled a crab, handed it to her, and wiped his hands with a tissue. "Eat up."

Xu Lai felt embarrassed. "What are you doing? Grandma and Grandma are here. You're only giving it to me. How can I eat it?"

Grandma Jiang chuckled and said, "Don't worry about us, just eat. I don't like eating things with shells either."

After dinner, the moon had already come out, big and round. She brought out a small table, put fruit and mooncakes on it, and then called everyone out to admire the moon.

She cut the big mooncake into pieces. Grandpa and Grandma ate a few pieces and then went back inside to watch TV. Grandma Jiang couldn't eat too many mooncakes, so she took one as a token and went back too.

Only the two of them remained in the courtyard. Zhao Qingyun poured himself a cup of tea, feeling choked by eating mooncakes alone.

The two sat quietly, lost in thought, their hands clasped tightly. The atmosphere was peaceful and beautiful when Xia Ning suddenly arrived on her electric scooter.

"Xiao Lai, I'm here to play." She turned a corner and parked the car in the yard.

Seeing Zhao Qingyun there, she exclaimed, "Am I disturbing you?"

Zhao Qingyun took a sip of tea and said, "You already know, why ask?"

Xia Ning moved a stool over and plopped down. "I'm not leaving. I don't care what you say. Xiao Lai isn't just yours."

Zhao Qingyun didn't argue with her and looked up to admire the moon.

A moment later, a voice came from the doorway again, and Xu Shen came over, fanning himself with a palm leaf fan. "Oh, what a coincidence, so much food."

Xu Lai was worried that the unfinished mooncakes would go to waste, but Xu Shen's arrival made things much easier; he could be forced to eat them.

He pulled up a stool, sat down, forked a piece of cantaloupe, and said, "There are exactly four of us. How about we play mahjong?"

Xu Lai thought for a moment and realized that there really was mahjong at home, but no mahjong machine; it had to be played by hand.

Xu Shen nodded: "Fine, let's rub it. Hurry up and bring it over."

She went to the storeroom, took out a small box, cleaned the table, laid a cloth on it, and then poured out the mahjong tiles.

Xu Shen shuffled all the cards and said, "Let's start drawing."

Xu Lai was a skilled player, and she quickly arranged the tiles. Zhao Qingyun, on the other hand, was not very experienced. He had played mahjong with his cousins ​​during Chinese New Year before, but this was his first time playing by hand.

Soon, the first game began, and Xu Shen won the first game. He said triumphantly, "How about that? That's how strong I am."

Xia Ning scoffed, "You're finished. As the saying goes, 'I'd rather be torn to pieces than win the first hand.'"

Xu Shen snorted, "I believe in my luck."

They didn't play for money; the loser would just stick a note on their forehead. After another round, Xu Lai took a tissue, moistened it with water, and stuck it on his forehead.

Xia Ning reluctantly pressed the finger to her forehead. Xu Shen had won again, and she had only won two hands.

Later on, Zhao Qingyun figured out the strategy and kept winning. Xu Shen couldn't help but say, "Are you cheating?"

Xia Ning spoke up for him: "Don't be hypocritical, okay? We didn't say anything when you were lying."

Xu Lai was both amused and exasperated. She hadn't won much, and her head was covered in slips of paper, making it almost impossible to see the cards.

Around 11 p.m., Xu Shen lost again. He stood up and said, "I'm not playing anymore. I've used up all my luck for today. I'll play again next time."

Xia Ning yawned. "I'm going back too."

Xu Lai brushed the note off her head, tore it off, and looked at the note on Zhao Qingyun's face, laughing uncontrollably.

He tore the paper off. "Is it that funny?"

As he spoke, he couldn't help but laugh. The two put away the mahjong tiles and their belongings, and went back to their rooms to wash up. Zhao Qingyun still moved to the next room to sleep. He especially regretted arranging for someone to build the wall. Now he wished he could tear down the wall in the middle.

Days passed quickly, and it was soon the end of September. Xu Lai received a call from Xu Yan, who had bought a train ticket for September 30th and was going home for the National Day holiday.

Xu Lai went with him, and would buy some of his favorite dishes to prepare.

She had already estimated the time and was preparing to go to the county to pick him up. She had already picked up the car she had bought, so she could leave anytime and no longer needed to borrow a car.

Just as she was about to leave, she saw Zhao Qingyun's car pull up. After parking, Xu Lai leaned to the window and asked, "Don't you have to go to work today?"

Zhao Qingyun said with a smile, "National Day is just around the corner, can't I take a couple of days off to celebrate the birthday of our motherland?"

Xu Lai pinched his arm. "Are you getting this sarcastic now?"

Zhao Qingyun dodged and laughed. At this moment, Xu Yan jumped out of the back seat, stuck his head between the driver and passenger seats, and said, "What's going on between you two?"

Xu Lai asked in surprise, "Xiao Yan, how come you got home without saying a word? You didn't even ask me to pick you up."

Xu Yan scratched his head: "I posted something on my WeChat Moments, and then Qingyun saw it and said he would come pick me up. I thought it was on the way."

He hadn't forgotten the question from earlier and continued, "So, sister, what's the current situation between you and Qingyun?"

Xu Lai turned around, leaving behind the words, "From now on, you can call me brother-in-law."

Zhao Qingyun turned to Xu Yan and said, "Did you hear that? Call him brother-in-law and let me hear it."