Although everyone praised Tian Tian’s beauty, the hairpin sent by Dad made her even happier.

She was so delighted.

In the afternoon, the children played with the things Dad sent, especially the pair of bunny figures.

They were similar to their wooden tigers, made from clay and brightly colored, very pretty.

Tian Tian began to make up stories for Pan Pan, saying the boy bunny was Dad, the girl bunny was Mom, and the wooden tigers were Tian Bao’er and Pan Zai’er.

“Dad kisses Mom, Dad kisses Tian Bao’er, Dad kisses Pan Zai’er…”

“Mom kisses…”

The children played happily, and Lin Shu listened with joy.

Originally, she didn’t care much about whether Lu Shaotang came back or not, but after seeing him and witnessing how much the children missed him, Lin Shu felt that it mattered.

It’s good that he’s back.

Having a tall and handsome man around all the time is quite pleasing, isn’t it?

“Mom, why are you blushing?” Pan Pan suddenly asked Lin Shu.

Lin Shu: “Oh, nothing.”

Lin Shu was busy making chopped chili.

The peppers in the yard were ripening, turning red and looking quite beautiful.

Besides making fresh chopped chili, she also strung up some peppers with needle and thread to dry them by the door.

It’s a common sight to see garlic and chili hanging on farmhouse door frames for easy access.

She sharpened her knife and chopped off the fish heads to make a chopped chili fish head dish.

She also made tofu and clam soup with fresh leeks, which was exceptionally delicious.

She sliced fish fillets, marinated them with egg whites, and prepared a large bowl of her own creation—sour fish with homemade pickles.

Without authentic pickled cabbage, she used her own sour pickles, including pickled radish, pickled cabbage, pickled green beans, pickled ginger, and pickled mustard greens.

Regardless of the ingredients, the dish always turned out appetizing and tasty.

She cut up some dried chili peppers and lavishly poured hot oil over them, instantly releasing the unique aroma of the hot oil and chili peppers.

The aroma wafted through the autumn breeze, swirling up into the sky, making the neighbors’ mouths water.

The fish soup with chili oil wouldn’t go to waste; it would be used to make more dishes the next day, and nothing would be left.

She sliced some of her own salted duck eggs and made a pumpkin with egg yolk for the kids.

For this dish, Lu An now sweetly called her “Third Aunt.”

The evening meal was sumptuous, with fish and meat, and the whole family enjoyed it greatly.

Today, Lu Dage’s eldest daughter, Lu Xiuxiu, also returned for the festival.

Lu Dage kept telling his daughter, “Xiuxiu, learn to be a seamstress soon and earn money to buy meat for your father.”

Fang Dihua almost hit him with her chopsticks.

Sister Lu Da stuffed a piece of fish into his mouth to prevent him from causing trouble.

Old Lu was also happy that his third son could come home for the New Year.

He generously invited his sons and daughters-in-law to have a few drinks.

As a result, the dishes from Lin Shu and Lu Da ended up in Lu Dage’s stomach.

After the meal, Fang Dihua distributed mooncakes, pomegranates, and apples to the children, making sure they enjoyed themselves.

But when she turned around, Tian Tian and Pan Pan were missing.

Lin Shu said, “They must be at the front gate. I’ll go check.”

Lin Shu tiptoed over and saw the two children sitting on the doorstep, resting their chins on their hands, gazing up at the big, round moon.

Tian Tian said, “I really wish Dad could come back for the Mid-Autumn Festival tonight.”

Pan Pan asked, “Maybe if we go to sleep, we’ll see Dad when we wake up?”

Tian Tian said, “Do you think he misses us?”

Pan Pan replied, “Of course he does. Otherwise, why would I dream about him every day?”

Tian Tian hesitated, “Do you think Dad might have married a princess and had a little brother or sister for us?”

Pan Pan was shocked, “Impossible! Where would he find a princess now?”

Tian Tian said, “What about Xue Pinggui…”

Pan Pan interjected, “Xue Pinggui is nothing. Dad is much better than him. Mom didn’t even dig wild vegetables!”

Lin Shu thought, “………”

Where did you two learn this? From Jin Ping Mei?

The children’s hopes for a Mid-Autumn Festival surprise from Dad didn’t materialize—Dad didn’t come home after all.

The next morning, the children unexpectedly stayed in bed, refusing to get up as if by keeping their eyes shut, the day wouldn’t come, and Dad might still come home.

Pan Pan’s face turned pale from holding in her urine.

After breakfast, the family went out to work, and Lu Xiuxiu also rode her bike to visit her mother Lu Da.

Lin Shu went into the room to wake the children for breakfast.

Tian Tian was acting sorrowful, mimicking the great poet’s style as described by Grandpa, holding the bunny in her left arm and waving her right hand, “Grandpa said the moon is especially bright during the Mid-Autumn Festival, and people miss each other even more. Oh, I must be lovesick.”

Lin Shu laughed, but when she saw Pan Pan’s pained expression, she quickly reminded, “If you hold it in any longer, you’ll hurt your little cow, and Bunny will laugh at you.”

Pan Pan mumbled, “Mom, did Dad come back last night?”

Lin Shu, reluctant to see her children disappointed, made up a story, “He did come back, but he left in the middle of the night without even drinking any water.”

Tian Tian and Pan Pan immediately jumped up, each holding a bunny, “Really?”

Their eyes sparkled with surprise.

Lin Shu thought, “……” Lying to children makes her feel so guilty, one lie leading to another.

To keep the lie contained and less likely to be exposed, she whispered, “Yes, he came back quietly and climbed over the wall. Only Grandma and I knew. Your grandfather and uncles were all drunk and asleep, so they didn’t hear anything.”

If too many people knew, the children would be asking questions and it would be easier to slip up.

Mother-in-law had experience in this.

The children were anxious, “What did Dad say? What did he do?”

“Did Grandpa also fall asleep? Oh, what a pity, we were asleep too.”

Although they expressed regret, it seemed like hearing that Grandpa was also asleep gave them great comfort.

Lin Shu said, “He only had time to kiss Tian Tian’s little hand and Pan Pan’s little feet.

As for why he kissed the feet, it’s because the child sleeps like a clock hand, with her feet sticking out in the middle of the night.

Tian Tian immediately kissed her own little hand and then looked disdainfully at Pan Pan’s feet, “Yuck~”

Pan Pan, surprised and affectionately looking at her white and tender feet, wiggled her toes and giggled, “Then I shouldn’t wash my feet.”

Tian Tian: “–”

Pan Pan looked up at Lin Shu, “Mom, where did Dad kiss you?”

Lin Shu’s face turned red, and she quickly cleared her throat, “There wasn’t enough time, so he didn’t kiss anywhere!”

The children didn’t believe her and immediately started asking Lin Shu where Dad had kissed her.

Lin Shu quickly sent them off, “Hurry and go to the bathroom, or you’ll wet the bed.”

After using the bathroom, the children washed their hands and came to eat.

Tian Tian held up her “kissed” left hand, putting her right hand in the basin for Pan Pan to help wash.

After washing, they didn’t rush to eat and continued to pester Lin Shu, asking where Dad had kissed her.

What could Lin Shu do?

She had just told a little white lie to amuse the children; she didn’t expect to be hounded by them!

It wasn’t just the lying; the previous night, after being nagged by the children, she had trouble sleeping and ended up dreaming that Lu Shaotang came back and kissed her almost to the point of suffocation!

It must be the lingering effect of being pressed against the door and kissed last time!

Seeing the children’s low spirits in the morning, she used the dream to distract them, but they wouldn’t let go.

Finally, she had to say that Dad had also kissed her left hand.

She had a noticeable red mark on the back of her hand from the fish she prepared yesterday, and it was still visible because of her fair skin.

The children helped kiss the red mark on her hand and continued to ask if Dad had kissed her forehead, nose, or mouth.

“Tiantian said her dad…”

Lin Shu quickly stopped them, “Stop listening to nonsense from the street.”

Lin Shu made pancakes with eggs for the children and took them to the accounting office.

On the way, the children kept looking at Tian Tian’s “kissed” left hand and giggling foolishly.

Lin Shu: “…”

When they arrived at the accounting office, Lin Shu did the accounts while Tian Tian and Pan Pan played with other kids.

During these Mid-Autumn Festival days, Tiantian, Panpan, Huzhi, and other children also had time off and came over to play.

When they saw Tian Tian holding her left hand up with a mysterious look, everyone started asking why.

“What’s going on?”

Tian Tian said with a grin, “Hehe. This is my fairy hand.”

Huzhi asked, “Like a fairy?”

Pan Pan nodded, “Yes, so you should stay away, or you might get ‘swooshed’.”

Huzhi however, was excited, “Give me a swoosh! I want a swoosh!”

Huahua and the others also wanted a swoosh.

The children laughed and played together, with Tian Tian trying hard to protect the “purity” of her hand from being touched and losing her father’s kiss.

Chang Xiaogang stood aside, feeling uncomfortable, as if a hundred autumn tigers were crawling inside him.

He was feeling very uneasy.

He thought that Tian Tian and Pan Pan’s smiles were really annoying, very annoying.

Grandma had said that if he had gone to play with Tian Tian and Pan Pan that day, the tinker would have caught them and not him.

Then he wouldn’t have to limp.