Looking Up, I Miss My Hometown; Bowing My Head, I Gaze at the Bright Moon

The evening breeze was gentle, and the summer dusk stretched everything long and languid, making time seem to slow within the Qiu Shui Pavilion.

Qinghe County had once known countless such summer nights.

Gu Xueqin served everyone rice while glancing at Li Mo and Ying Bing not far away.

Her son’s brows still carried traces of childhood mischief and liveliness as he listened to Old Li recount the story of how he and his wife had married. Occasionally, playfulness would get the better of him, and he’d sneak a poke at the person beside him.

Ying Bing, with her natural, makeup-free face, still looked as dignified and noble as ever—though she secretly stepped on Li Mo’s foot under the table.

The two had grown up, yet in some ways, it seemed they hadn’t.

“How many years has it been since I first brought Dalong home to meet my parents? Feels like just yesterday.”

Gu Xueqin was lost in thought for a moment.

Then she suddenly heard Li Dalong, cheeks flushed from wine, holding a cup and saying:

“The first time I met my father-in-law was also during a meal. Back then, I’d shaved my head because of a head injury.”

“Didn’t look very respectable, did you?” The Southern Suppressing King clicked his tongue.

Li Dalong nodded. “Exactly. So I had no choice but to grab some yellow mane from a roan horse and glue it to my head.”

“......”

Li Mo leaned back slightly, as if grateful for his grandfather’s mercy.

“What happened next?”

Ying Bing rested her chin on her hand—this was the first time she’d heard her parents’ love story.

“Your grandpa took one look at me and slammed his rice bowl onto the table in anger.”

“Huh?”

“Relax, kid—you’re standing here safe and sound, aren’t you? I told him I was a disciple of the Qingyuan Sect, and the old man just scooped his rice back up.” Li Dalong chuckled at the memory of his father-in-law’s dramatic rice-bowl-slamming.

“Wait, Dad, didn’t you leave the Qingyuan Sect because of your injury?”

Li Mo suddenly noticed the inconsistency.

“Right. So when your grandpa heard that, he slammed the bowl down again.”

Li Dalong sighed. “The old man was always impatient—never let me finish my sentences. Only when I told him I was returning home to take over as county captain did he scoop his rice back up. In the end, I was the one who ate that slammed-down rice.”

Then he lowered his voice with a grin. “Truth is, I hadn’t actually gotten the position yet. That was your mom’s idea—I just acted like it was a done deal. After a few drinks with your grandpa, the old man even tried to swear brotherhood with me.”

Southern Suppressing King: “......”

Now he knew where Li Mo’s genius-level scheming and performative personality came from.

Turns out he inherited the best traits from both parents!

“You’ve got some nerve mocking my dad. He saw right through you.”

Gu Xueqin shot her husband a look. “We’re getting off track—weren’t we talking about the wedding?”

“The wedding... where were we?”

Li Dalong scratched his head.

Li Mo reminded him: “The bow to heaven and earth. You were about to explain the ceremony.”

“Ah, right! This is better shown than explained—there’s a lot of nuance to it.”

With that, Li Dalong took Gu Xueqin’s hand.

“First bow to heaven and earth!” The Southern Suppressing King blurted out without thinking.

Well, now he was stuck playing the officiant.

Might as well commit to it.

“Second bow to parents!”

Li Dalong held his wife’s hand, caught up in the moment. It felt like reliving his youth, that surge of joy when marrying the love of his life.

Guess I really am growing younger at heart...

Chuckling at the thought, he pulled his wife into the bow.

“I approve this marriage!”

Little Li, playing the role of the parents, declared with utmost seriousness.

Li Dalong: “?”

Silently, he unbuckled his belt. As long as his son remained unmarried, he was still a child. While Li Mo hadn’t mastered proper conduct yet, Li Dalong knew a father’s duty was to teach him.

Li Mo sensed danger and bolted.

“Get back here, you brat!”

“I’m just making up for our mutual regrets!”

Though agility wasn’t his strong suit, Li Mo could still outpace his peak-internal-energy father with ease. Not that he was really trying to escape—otherwise, Old Li wouldn’t even catch a whiff of his dust.

“What ‘mutual regrets’?!” Old Li brandished the belt.

“You missed your father-in-law’s approval, I missed my parents’ wedding—this way, we both win!”

“Oh, so I should thank you, is that it?”

Father and son chased each other around the courtyard’s great banyan tree.

He fled, he pursued!

In the end, Li Mo “accidentally” got caught and endured a hearty session of “bamboo shoots fried with pork.”

Despite having a body tempered like mystic steel and mastery over the first volume of the Law Manifestation technique, he still hammed up the sound effects—otherwise, Old Li’s furious whipping wouldn’t have satisfied anyone.

“I’ll take my leave now. Once you’ve filled out the imperial decree, send someone to fetch me. I’ll escort your family to the capital...”

Feeling like a third wheel, the Southern Suppressing King cleared his throat and stood.

Watching the chase, Gu Xueqin—long accustomed to such scenes—glanced beside her and sighed.

“Bing’er, as women, sometimes we must be wives... and other times, mothers.”

“I know, Aunt Gu. He’s just a big child.” Ying Bing nodded.

Gu Xueqin served her another helping of food, smiling. “Don’t let your Uncle Li’s usual sternness fool you—he secretly loves it when I call him ‘Bing’er’ or ‘Precious Dragon.’”

“Li Mo never had a childhood nickname, but he likes it when I call him ‘little brother.’”

Ying Bing took a bite of the baby bok choy Gu Xueqin had picked for her and spoke softly.

As dusk faded, the stars and moon had unknowingly climbed above the treetops.

Li Mo took it upon himself to clean the kitchen and wash the dishes, a task that kept him busy until late.

He peeked out from the kitchen, waiting until he saw the lights in his parents' room go out, then chuckled to himself.

"I promised to take an onsen bath with the ice block. She’s probably changed into her yukata by now."

"If she happens to be changing... ahem—I’m a gentleman, so it’d just be a coincidence."

Young Li cleared his throat and made his way to the ice block’s door.

Just as he raised his hand to push, the door creaked open on its own.

Ying Bing tilted her head and smiled in surprise.

"You’re here?"

"I came to get you for the bath. I was about to knock and ask if you were ready, but you opened the door first."

Li Mo wore the expression of a righteous gentleman, dignified and unwavering.

But under the ice block’s scrutinizing, slightly narrowed gaze, his eyes couldn’t help but drift elsewhere.

"What a coincidence, then. Let’s go."

Ying Bing seemed to genuinely believe it was a coincidence, letting him take her hand as they headed to the Mistbloom Eternal Spring.

On the way down, she glanced at his parents’ room—still dark—and sighed in relief.

"Ice block, did you change into your yukata?"

Li Mo asked, feigning ignorance.

Ying Bing nodded. "I did. I even wore an underlayer inside it, so nothing shows in the water. Can’t be too careful with troublemakers around."

"Really? What troublemakers could there be in Autumn Water Pavilion...?"

Young Li was a little disappointed.

Who was she guarding against? Even gentlemen?

Back when they used to share a room, she never wore an underlayer under her yukata for baths.

He knew exactly what kind of underlayer she meant—waterproof, impenetrable, the kind that left nothing to the imagination. Or rather, nothing for the imagination.

"Better safe than sorry. Want me to show you?"

Ying Bing tugged lightly at her collar, peeking inside.

"Ahem, a gentleman does not look where he shouldn’t. No need for that."

Li Mo stared fixedly at the steaming, rippling onsen water, the heat sapping away his curiosity as he maintained the posture of a true paragon of virtue.

Then, the ice block’s voice, laced with feigned surprise, reached his ears:

"Oh no, I think I forgot to wear the underlayer after all."

"Wait, really?!"

Gentleman Li turned his head in zero frames.

But there, bathed in the hazy moonlight and mist, Ying Bing’s eyes curved like crescents, glimmering with mischief.

Young Li cursed inwardly—he’d fallen for the ice block’s trick again. He lowered his gaze, feigning nonchalance.

"My neck was just stiff. Had to turn it. Definitely not because I—"

Ying Bing leaned in, her whisper brushing against his ear, sending a shiver straight to his core:

"But... I really didn’t wear it."

"!"

Young Li’s head snapped up.

Damn it.

He’d dodged the ice block’s first trap—only to walk right into the second one.