Moonlit Reunion

In the dead of night, Mei Zhuyu stood barefoot on the floor, staring blankly at the little girl on the bed.

"Hey! Where did you come from, you little thief? Why did you kidnap me here?" The girl, about seven years old, stood on the bed with her hands on her hips, wrapped in a brocade quilt, revealing two tender, fair arms. Though young, her overbearing aura was unmistakable, towering like a giant.

Mei Zhuyu had no idea what was happening. Earlier that day, he had brought Wu Zhen back from Liu Taizhen's place after she had turned into a kitten. He had spent the afternoon carefully tending to her and even cradled her in his arms to sleep at night. Wu Zhen had been drowsy all day, occasionally twitching her paws. But in the middle of the night, Mei Zhuyu suddenly felt movement in his arms—the kitten had transformed into a little girl.

The girl had an adorable, snow-white face, a miniature version of Wu Zhen. Rubbing her eyes sleepily, she crawled out from under the quilt, startling Mei Zhuyu. Before he could figure out what was going on, the little girl frowned, glared at him, and called him a thief.

Mei Zhuyu was kicked off the bed by the girl and stood there enduring her disdain, as if he were some perverted rogue.

He felt as wronged as snow falling in June. He realized that his wife, who was older than him, strong-willed, and capable, had not only turned from a kitten into a little girl but seemed to have regressed mentally and in memory to the age of seven.

She didn’t remember who he was, nor even that she was the esteemed Cat Official of the Demon Market. She simply thought she was an ordinary little girl.

Mei Zhuyu tried to communicate with his shrunken wife, but the girl was fierce, her little mouth chattering nonstop, refusing to believe him.

"Do you think I'm a three-year-old? I'm seven! How could I be married? Are you one of those bad guys who kidnap children? I've heard about you—you love targeting pretty little girls like me!"

Mei Zhuyu: "I'm not—"

The girl glanced at him, tugging at the brocade quilt wrapped around her. "You must have some weird fetish—you didn’t even give me clothes! And you held me while sleeping! You creep!"

Mei Zhuyu: "I didn’t—"

The girl’s round, rosy cheeks and big, sparkling eyes gleamed with mischief. As she spoke to Mei Zhuyu, she carefully surveyed the room, gradually relaxing. After all, this place didn’t look like a kidnapper’s den, and the man standing there like a fool didn’t seem capable of being a villain.

Though little Wu Zhen couldn’t remember what had happened—her memories only went as far as the day her mother fell ill—she strangely felt a strong fondness for the disheveled man before her and wasn’t afraid of him at all. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have spoken to him so boldly.

Hugging the brocade quilt, she jumped off the bed and began exploring the room. Pointing toward the table, she commanded Mei Zhuyu, "Light the lamp—I can’t see properly."

Mei Zhuyu obeyed and lit the lamp. His eyes followed the little girl as she wandered around the room, dragging the quilt behind her. It trailed along the floor as she moved, sweeping across the entire space.Mei Zhuyu stared at her for a long while before finally accepting reality, rubbing his reddened arm where she had pinched him. Seeing that the little girl didn't seem particularly frightened, he cautiously moved closer and said, "The floor is cold. You should go back to bed."

Little Wu Zhen suddenly stopped. She pattered over to Mei Zhuyu and looked up at him.

For some inexplicable reason, Mei Zhuyu grew nervous. Holding his breath, he looked down at the solemn-faced little girl. "...What's wrong?"

The girl tilted her head, then suddenly giggled and beckoned to him with a finger. "Bend down a bit. Squat."

Mei Zhuyu silently complied. Even when squatting, his height allowed him to meet her at eye level. With a serious expression, the little girl suddenly cupped his face in both hands and turned his head left and right.

On her face, Mei Zhuyu seemed to see a look of disdain that said, "This snack doesn't look tasty at all," and fell silent.

"You really don't remember?"

The girl bounced back onto the bed, propping her chin on her hands and swinging her legs. "I don't know what you're talking about, but you'd better send me home quickly. My mother is sick, and I need to see her. And my father—if you don't take me back, he'll bring people to arrest you."

After a moment's thought, she added, "And my sister! Don't let her pretty face fool you—she's really fierce. You'd definitely be scared of her too!"

"So, take me home now!"

At the mention of her mother, Mei Zhuyu was at a loss. He had heard that Wu Zhen's mother had passed away from illness when she was young—likely around this age. Seeing his silence, the girl pouted, glanced at the dark night outside, and compromised. "It's too late now. Fine, you can take me home tomorrow."

Mei Zhuyu shook his head. "No. Duke Yu can't see you like this."

The moment he finished speaking, the previously cheerful little girl suddenly burst into loud, exaggerated sobs—no tears, just ear-splitting wails. Mei Zhuyu, who had never witnessed such a dramatic change in expression before, was stunned speechless. But the commotion had already woken the servants, who hurried over with lamps to ask what was wrong.

"Master, why is there a child crying in your room?"

What else could Mei Zhuyu do? He could only say, "It's nothing. You may leave."

The master clearly didn't want to explain, so the servants had no choice but to withdraw, though their faces were full of confusion.

Meanwhile, the little girl in the room peeked at Mei Zhuyu with one eye open, her crying stopping instantly. "If you don't agree, I'll keep crying."

Mei Zhuyu sighed, worried she might strain her voice, and reluctantly gave in. "Fine. Tomorrow, I'll take you to see Duke Yu."

The girl immediately brightened, rolling to the inner side of the bed. "Okay! Since you're being so obedient, I won't bother you anymore. Come sleep—I'll share half the bed with you."

Mei Zhuyu found this odd and tentatively asked, "Weren't you just convinced I was a bad person?"

Grinning adorably, the girl replied, "I never said you were bad! Since you agreed to take me home, you're a very good person~"

Mei Zhuyu looked at her big, mischievous eyes, which were clearly plotting something, and found himself torn between laughter and exasperation. Sitting at the edge of the bed, he said, "You sleep. I'll stay here and keep watch." Just in case anything else unexpected happened.The little girl was bundled up in the blankets, kicking her legs against the bed with a rhythmic pattering sound. She showed no intention of sleeping and suddenly sat up, pushing her pillow onto the floor.

"It's too hard. I don't want this pillow."

Mei Zhuyu picked up the pillow and set it aside. Wu Zhen grumbled for a while before scrambling around the bed, searching for something.

Mei Zhuyu asked, "What's wrong?"

The little girl pouted and sniffled. "My little sister is missing."

Mei Zhuyu: "Little sister?"

She gave him a look that said, Are you really this stupid that I have to explain? "It's the doll my mother made for me. My older sister had a little sister, so I wanted one too. That's why my mother sewed a little sister for me."

Mei Zhuyu had never seen this so-called "little sister" doll before and could only say, "I haven't seen it."

The little girl's gaze wandered to the cabinet in the room, and she pointed at the door. "Maybe it's inside the cabinet. Go check if you don't believe me."

Mei Zhuyu thought that since Wu Zhen had moved many of her belongings here, it was possible she had brought childhood keepsakes along. Under the little girl's hopeful gaze, he stood up and began searching through Wu Zhen's two cabinets.

He usually never touched Wu Zhen's cabinets, except when she lazily asked him to fetch clothes for her. Now that he was looking for something, he carefully opened each compartment, searched thoroughly, and neatly returned everything to its place.

As he rummaged, the little girl hopped off the bed and peeked into the cabinets. Inside, she saw all sorts of women's clothing, skirts, jewelry, and other small trinkets. Squinting her eyes, she suddenly declared magnanimously, "Never mind if you can't find it. I don't want my little sister anymore."

In truth, there had never been any "little sister" doll.

She climbed back onto the bed but didn't stay still for long before starting to fuss again. Hearing her wriggling and grumbling, Mei Zhuyu asked once more, "What's wrong now?"

The little girl sat up again. "I'm thirsty."

Mei Zhuyu stood to fetch her water, but she loudly protested, "I don't want water! I want Sanbao tea!"

Sanbao tea was a summer beverage popular among the people of Chang'an, made by boiling dried tangerine peel, osmanthus flowers, and hawthorn, then sweetened with sugar and garnished with mint leaves.

Without a word, Mei Zhuyu obliged her request and went out to brew the tea. A short while later, he returned with a bowl and set it before her. The little girl sat on the edge of the bed, sniffed the tea, and noticed the absence of mint leaves.

Her eyes gleamed mischievously as she grinned at Mei Zhuyu. "You didn't add mint leaves."

Mei Zhuyu paused. "But you don't like the taste of mint. You never have mint in your Sanbao tea."

The little girl gulped down the tea in a few loud slurps, wiped her mouth, and said, "You're right." Then she rolled back onto the bed.

It suddenly dawned on Mei Zhuyu—she had been testing him, seeing if he knew her preferences. At such a young age, she already had such cunning?

After a moment's thought, Mei Zhuyu gently patted her head. "Don't be afraid. I'm really not a bad person, and I won't hurt you. I've already promised to take you to see your father tomorrow. It's late now—rest easy."Using such little tricks to test him showed the young girl's unease. This was natural. Although Mei Zhuyu knew her true identity, from the little girl's current perspective, she was in an unfamiliar place with a stranger.

Thinking this, Mei Zhuyu found his shrunken wife both pitiable and adorable, wishing he could immediately do something to reassure her. Yet he didn't know what to do, his heart tangled in distress like knotted hemp. The only thing he could do was stroke her head with increasing tenderness.

The girl studied his expression, then suddenly grabbed his hand. With an obedient look, she said, "I can't sleep. Brother, take me outside to look around, okay?"

That soft "Brother" nearly made Mei Zhuyu's soul leave his body. With great effort, he steadied himself. "Outside... outside to look at what?"

The girl behaved perfectly, gazing at him with shining eyes. "Mom and Dad and sister never let me go out at night. I just want to see what it's like outside when it's dark. Brother, I'll be good—just one look, okay?"

She held up one finger in promise and gently shook Mei Zhuyu's hand.

The notoriously merciless "Ruthless Little Martial Uncle" Mei, who never showed leniency toward mischievous children, found all his bones melting under this gentle shake from his little wife. The overwhelming cuteness nearly knocked him off his feet.