Mid-Autumn Rendezvous

Fu Nanzhi bent over to dump the kitchen scraps into the trash bin and handed the empty plate to her mother.

There weren’t many dishes, so Ji Shulan couldn’t be bothered to use the dishwasher and simply washed them by hand instead.

"Mom, what do you think?"

Fu Nanzhi leaned in and asked.

"Think about what?"

"About him—Shen Yi. What do you think?"

"Nothing much, just so-so."

Faced with the probing question, Ji Shulan turned away, avoiding a direct answer.

"Heh heh heh..."

Avoidance was the best answer. Fu Nanzhi grinned but wasn’t about to let her off the hook.

She circled around to face her mother and pressed further:

"What do you mean ‘so-so’? You’re satisfied with him, right?"

Ji Shulan kept her head down, scrubbing the dishes and refusing to meet her daughter’s gaze. She muttered under her breath,

"It was just a meal. How can I be satisfied or unsatisfied over that?"

"Then tell me what he did wrong."

Fu Nanzhi propped her elbows on the counter, craning her neck to peer at Ji Shulan’s face.

"Tell me, and I’ll make him fix it."

Ji Shulan snorted through her nose.

"You think he’ll change just because you say so?"

"I’ve been telling your dad to quit smoking for twenty years, and he still hasn’t."

Fu Nanzhi argued back,

"That’s different..."

"How is it different?"

"Mom, you’re twisting the argument."

Fu Nanzhi grew impatient.

"Just because Dad can’t quit doesn’t mean Shen Yi won’t change. By your logic, Shen Yi doesn’t even smoke—so that doesn’t count. You have to tell me what you’re actually unhappy about."

Ji Shulan’s lips twitched. After a long pause, she finally managed,

"He only brought two fruit baskets when he came… stingy."

Fu Nanzhi had anticipated this. She rolled her eyes.

"Mom, you’re just nitpicking now."

"I know you—if he’d bought something expensive, you’d say he was trying too hard. If it’s cheap, you call him stingy. The reasoning always falls in your favor."

Then she delivered the final blow:

"I knew you’d say that, so I told him to buy the fruit."

Ji Shulan’s chest tightened at the sight of her daughter so fiercely defending someone else. She didn’t even want to speak, just scrubbed the already spotless porcelain plate in the sink with unnecessary force.

Fu Nanzhi desperately wanted a single word of approval from her mother, but Ji Shulan stubbornly refused to give it.

So she kept pressing:

"If you can’t give a reason, then you must be satisfied, right?"

Ji Shulan stayed silent, scrubbing the plate so hard it was a wonder it didn’t wear through. The air grew heavy with tension.

"Mom, say something!"

Fu Nanzhi, still oblivious, kept pushing.

Thud!

Ji Shulan, driven to her limit, hurled the sponge into the sink, splashing water everywhere.

Then she snapped,

"Fine! Satisfied, satisfied! Happy now?"

Fu Nanzhi narrowly avoided getting splashed and finally realized the mood had soured. She awkwardly chuckled and backed away.

"Glad you’re satisfied, glad you’re satisfied."

"I won’t bother you anymore. I’ll go now."

But before she could take more than a few steps, Ji Shulan called out,

"Stop right there!"

Fu Nanzhi immediately froze, standing at attention before turning around with her head bowed, awaiting further instruction.

Ji Shulan picked up the sponge again and resumed washing, her tone softening.

"I’m not trying to stand in your way, but marriage is a lifelong commitment. You can never be too careful."

"At the end of the day, I just want you to be happy."

Fu Nanzhi lowered her head as well.

"I understand what you’re saying. But I am happy right now."

Ji Shulan knew her daughter’s stubbornness was unshakable. With a sigh, she relented:

"Fine. I won’t oppose your relationship with Shen Yi anymore."

Fu Nanzhi’s eyes instantly lit up.

"Really?!"

"Not really."

Ji Shulan’s expression hardened again as she warned,

"Not opposing doesn’t mean I approve. Consider this a preliminary pass—I’ll be watching closely."

"You two can keep dating for now."

For the time being, Ji Shulan had no other recourse. She could only stretch out the timeline, leaving room to intervene if things went south.

Fu Nanzhi was too overjoyed to care about the conditions. She readily agreed:

"Watch all you want!"

"And one more thing!"

Ji Shulan added a final point.

"You’re not a child anymore. You understand how things work—so take care of yourself."

"Just remember: be safe."

"Oh..."

The joy on Fu Nanzhi’s face dimmed slightly, though she still nodded with a smile.

Ji Shulan assumed she was just embarrassed and waved her off.

"Go on."

As Fu Nanzhi retreated, Ji Shulan shook her head and let out a long sigh.

She knew how young people were these days—once passion took hold, there was no stopping it. The more she resisted, the more they’d find ways to sneak off together.

All she could do was prevent a "shotgun wedding" scenario.

Otherwise, if a child became leverage, would they marry or not? A rushed marriage would be irresponsible for her daughter’s future, but an abortion would harm her body.

Life couldn’t be lived on love alone. As parents, they had to be practical and think ahead for their children.

Meanwhile, Fu Nanzhi had already brightened up again, skipping lightly into the courtyard.

"Hubby, I’m here~"

It was the same small table where Cheng Jun had sat last time.

"Hey."

Shen Yi was already seated there, his gaze drifting toward the pool with a hint of nostalgia.

Fu Nanzhi was about to speak when she followed his line of sight and immediately understood.

This was where their love had begun. The memory made her skin tingle, as if she were submerged in water again.

Shaking off the feeling, she cheerfully announced:

"Good news! Mom’s actually pretty satisfied with you."

Shen Yi looked up at the sky and chuckled.

"It’s not that simple. She’s only met me a few times."

"Even if she has reservations, she’s probably just holding back for your sake."

He was clear-headed—in his simulations, it had taken over half a year for Ji Shulan to warm up to him. With such a rocky start now, approval wouldn’t come easily.

But Fu Nanzhi didn’t care. In her mind, as long as there was no outright objection, it meant consent.

Nothing could dampen her mood.

Seeing Shen Yi gazing at the night sky, she leaned back in her chair and joined him.

The Mid-Autumn Festival was just around the corner, and the moon hung especially round in the sky, though layers of clouds obscured its full glow.

Watching it, Fu Nanzhi suddenly had an idea.

"Mid-Autumn’s in a couple of days. The company’s giving us time off."

"Hubby, why don’t we go somewhere to admire the moon together?"

Shen Yi, still lounging as he digested his meal, reflexively agreed.

"Sure. Where to?"

"Uh… let me check."

It was a spur-of-the-moment thought, so she had no concrete plans. She pulled out her phone to search on the spot.

Meanwhile, Shen Yi blinked, the words stirring a strange sense of déjà vu.