Moonlit Reunion

Chapter 59

On the Qixi Festival, Mei Zhuyu's residence welcomed over a dozen guests. Since he had moved into this house, there had never been so many visitors at once. Clearly, given Mei Zhuyu's social circle, these weren't his guests but rather belonged to the other lady of the house—Wu Zhen.

In previous years during Qixi, the ladies Wu Zhen knew would gather at a chosen location to chat and celebrate together. Having visited each other's homes already, this year they decided to meet at Mei Zhuyu's place, as Wu Zhen had been staying there more often and rarely returned to Duke Yu's residence. The ladies who were close to her had long been curious and seized this opportunity to see for themselves. Thus, carriages arrived in an unbroken stream early in the morning.

Those who were frail or had children rode in carriages, while the bolder ones simply came on horseback. They arrived far too early—Wu Zhen was still deep in sleep. Mei Zhuyu, surrounded by a crowd of giggling ladies, found himself overwhelmed and, for once, retreated in near defeat back to his room to dig his wife out from the pile of blankets.

Wu Zhen had completely forgotten about the gathering. Half-asleep as her husband pulled her up, she grabbed his hand, planted a couple of absent-minded kisses on it, and coaxed, "Let me sleep a little longer. Be good, don’t disturb me."

Mei Zhuyu was at a loss, but before he could say anything else, laughter erupted outside the door.

"Erniang, rising so late? We're all here, and you're still lazing about with your husband!"

"Zhen-jie has found herself a perfect husband—what more could she want? No wonder she's forgotten all about us!"

"It's Qixi today! We can't let her laze around like this. Come on, let's drag her out!"

These ladies had been friends with Wu Zhen for years and were completely at ease with each other. Without hesitation, two of them, dressed in men's attire, pushed the door open. One nudged Mei Zhuyu aside, saying, "Husband, step aside—let us sisters have our time together."

Meanwhile, two others cheerfully hauled the half-awake Wu Zhen to her feet. Outside the door stood several ladies holding children, their faces full of teasing smiles. One even asked Mei Zhuyu, "Husband, don’t you think my child is utterly adorable?"

When Mei Zhuyu nodded, the ladies burst into laughter. "If he's so adorable, why don’t you ask Erniang to give you one?"

Mei Zhuyu truly couldn’t handle these ladies. Then again, those who befriended Wu Zhen tended to be rather unrestrained themselves. Just as he was floundering under their relentless teasing, Wu Zhen's voice rang out from inside the room, full of amusement:

"What are you all doing? Don’t bully my husband, or I’ll go bully yours later!"

The ladies erupted in laughter, hastily pleading, "We wouldn’t dare! How could we ever bully Erniang’s beloved husband?"

Once Wu Zhen was properly dressed, the group of ladies, along with their attendants, set out in a grand procession. Mei Zhuyu’s residence was in Changle Ward, close to the East Market, so they abandoned their carriages and went on foot.

On the seventh day of the seventh month, markets of all sizes sprang up in every ward, selling fruits, flowers, colorful threads, silver needles, and other items for women’s Qixi customs. The temporary Qixi market in the East Market was far larger than those in ordinary wards, offering not only traditional Qixi goods but also hairpins, jewelry, cosmetics, and other items beloved by women.On this day, even the busiest ladies would take a break, going out with neighbors or close sisters to stroll through the Qiqiao markets set up everywhere. Thus, Chang'an was especially lively today, with smiling women visible everywhere, gathered in clusters, their sweet laughter and chatter unceasing. A single walk through the Qiqiao market would leave one's nose filled with the scent of rouge and powder.

Wu Zhen and her group blended seamlessly into the crowd, moving from one shop to another stall, almost thoroughly exploring the entire market. The servants following them were laden with purchases, yet the ladies still felt unsatisfied.

Mei Zhuyu had originally been by Wu Zhen's side, but as they walked, he was gradually pushed to the back. The ladies crowding around Wu Zhen, holding delicate hairpins and brocade samples to ask her opinion, had eyes only for the beautiful items before them. Even if their husbands were present, they would have been waved away with an annoyed "Don't get in the way!"

The Qiqiao market on the Double Seventh Festival was truly a battlefield for women. When Wu Zhen finally extricated herself to look for Mei Zhuyu, she found him at the very end of the group, his arms full of packages, nearly invisible if one wasn't paying attention. He gazed at the excited ladies around him with a hint of awe. In such an overwhelmingly crowded place, these women moved with the agility of fish, slipping effortlessly through the throng. Mei Zhuyu felt his own footwork was no match for theirs here.

The group returned to Mei Zhuyu's residence with abundant spoils. Immediately, they had long tables and benches brought out, mats spread on the ground, and curtains hung around with insect-repelling sachets. The various fruits and snacks they had bought were arranged on the tables, flowers placed in vases, and someone even dug out the fine wine Wu Zhen had hidden at home, setting out drinking games.

Among the ladies present, only three of gentler disposition sat chatting to the side. The rest were already standing on tables and stools, shouting boisterously. One particularly bold lady with slightly dark skin, dressed in a man's robe with a large lapel, had a jug of wine set beside her, drinking it like water. It was said she had once followed her husband to garrison the border and had even taken up a sword to kill when small groups of enemies raided.

Of these women, Mei Zhuyu only recognized one—the round-faced Lady Fu, whom Wu Zhen had taken to shelter from the rain and change clothes that one time.

After scrutinizing Mei Zhuyu thoroughly, the ladies promptly shooed him inside, declaring he wasn't allowed to intrude on their women's gathering. Mei Zhuyu obligingly retreated, leaving the space to them. However, his room was very close to where they had set up the tables, separated only by a wall, and he could hear their laughter drifting over.

Mei Zhuyu flipped through his book, pausing occasionally when he heard Wu Zhen's voice, listening carefully until she fell silent, then returning to his reading.

After a while, Mei Zhuyu suddenly sensed something flying toward him. Without even looking up, he reached out and caught a bright red peach the size of a palm. Raising his head, he saw a smiling woman perched on the wall.

She held a fruit plate in her hand and, seeing Mei Zhuyu look her way, grabbed another peach and tossed it over.

"This peach is very sweet, try it," Wu Zhen said, grinning as she leaned on the wall.Mei Zhuyu took a bite as instructed and found it indeed sweet and delicious. Just then, Wu Zhen let out a startled cry, her body swaying unsteadily as if someone on the other side was pulling her down. Seeing this, Mei Zhuyu leaned forward instinctively, about to stand and help, but Wu Zhen had already tumbled down, now cursing loudly beneath the opposite wall.

"You wretched Wang Aman! You nearly tore my skirt off! Just you wait—don’t you dare run away!"

Laughter and footsteps followed as someone teased, "Hey now, that’s not fair! We agreed today was just for us—how can you not bear to be apart from your husband for even a moment, climbing the wall just to talk? That won’t do!"

"Exactly! If Sister Zhen climbs the wall again, we’ll just pull her right back down!"

After a few more curses, Wu Zhen indeed gave up on scaling the wall. Mei Zhuyu slowly settled back into his seat and finished the two peaches she had tossed over.

The other side of the wall remained lively, growing even noisier when the napping children woke up. The toddlers, at that unruly age, soon erupted into squabbles. Cries rose one after another, mingling with the scolding voices of the women, but to no avail. One little boy in particular wailed at the top of his lungs, his shrieks growing louder, nearly piercing eardrums.

Before long, Mei Zhuyu saw a figure dart across the wall—Wu Zhen, carrying the still-struggling boy, leaped over.

She rushed to Mei Zhuyu’s side and plopped the boy, who had paused his crying to assess the situation, right in front of him. "This brat bullied two little girls, refuses to listen, and is unbearably noisy. You deal with him, husband." With that, she dashed off, utterly unbothered by the trouble she’d just dumped on him.

Freed from the little troublemaker, laughter and chatter resumed on the other side of the wall. Realizing he’d been abandoned by his mother and aunts, the boy froze for a moment before throwing himself onto the ground, rolling around in a full-blown tantrum, determined to raise hell.

Mei Zhuyu watched him coldly, then suddenly set down his book. When it came to unruly children—aside from the young Wu Zhen he’d encountered before—he’d yet to meet one he couldn’t handle.

On the other side, the women kept up their banter but strained their ears for sounds from Mei Zhuyu’s direction. Hearing the boy’s renewed wails, his mother frowned. Meeting the sympathetic looks around her, she rolled her eyes and muttered in exasperation, "He’s so naughty, I swear I could give him away."

Despite her words, worry flickered in her eyes as she whispered to Wu Zhen, "Maybe I should take him back. I don’t want to disturb your Mei Langjun."

Wu Zhen, legs casually crossed, took a sip of wine and shook her head. "Don’t worry. Just wait. My husband is the best at handling children. Trust me."

At that very moment, the crying stopped abruptly—and didn’t resume. The women exchanged glances. One asked, "What happened? That boy could cry loud enough to lift the roof and wouldn’t stop for ages. How’d he quiet down so fast? Did your husband knock him out?"After waiting for quite a while longer with no movement, several heads slowly peeked over the wall, stealing glances at the other side. What they saw left the ladies utterly astonished. The mischievous little boy was sitting in front of Mei Zhuyu, slumped over a small table as he clutched a brush to write, his shoulders shaking with sobs. His jade-white little face was scrunched up, his large, grape-like eyes brimming with tears—looking utterly pitiful and adorable. Yet Mei Zhuyu showed no mercy, his voice cool and indifferent as he commanded, "Sit up straight."

The child hiccuped through his tears and struggled to straighten his posture.

The ladies all turned to look at Wu Zhen, their faces filled with envy. "So you weren’t joking, Second Lady! Lord Mei really knows how to handle children. How on earth does he do it?"

Wu Zhen chuckled. "Perhaps it's because he works in the Ministry of Justice. His stern face is just too intimidating."

It wasn’t until the ladies had all enjoyed themselves to their heart's content and were ready to leave that the little boy was finally released by Mei Zhuyu. Acting as though he had suffered the greatest injustice, he rushed toward his mother and clung to her leg, about to burst into loud wails—but then, as if remembering something, he glanced back. Meeting Mei Zhuyu’s gaze, he seemed to see the King of Hell himself and immediately stifled his cries, obediently sticking close to his mother’s side.

Seeing him so well-behaved, his mother marveled inwardly, secretly delighted. She began plotting in her mind—the next time he acted up, she would just send him over to spend a day here.