So, we will always meet on the moon.

Gu Yun turned around.

The little boy and the little girl stood facing each other.

“Hi there!”

Gu Yun grinned broadly, hopping down from the stump and walking over to greet her.

“…”

The short-haired girl bit her lip, then turned and ran.

“???”

Gu Yun was taken aback for a moment, then immediately chased after her, shouting as he ran:

“Wait… hold on! Don’t go!”

“My name is Gu Yun, what’s yours?”

The girl stopped in her tracks and looked up at the starry sky.

It was the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the moon was fullest and most beautiful. She seemed reluctant to leave.

After a long pause, she spoke, her voice tinged with grievance:

“… The spot you just sat in—it was mine.”

She didn’t answer Gu Yun’s question or give her name.

But Zhong Yi and Qin Li’en recognized her at once. This little girl was none other than the one who would become the love of Gu Yun’s life—

Lin Xi.

“I’m sorry! I didn’t know someone was already there…”

Gu Yun was straightforward enough and promptly apologized with a cheerful grin.

“You really picked a great spot! From there, you can see so many stars!!”

The child’s voice was loud and clear, his eyes bright as if they shone like a little sun in the night.

At the word “stars,” Little Lin Xi’s expression softened. She turned around timidly.

“… You… you came to see the stars too?”

She studied Gu Yun carefully before finally asking.

“So did you?”

Little Gu Yun caught on cleverly and replied with delight.

Lin Xi bit her lip but said nothing, silently confirming his guess.

Little Gu Yun smiled happily, revealing his missing front tooth, only half of it still there.

He stretched out his hand to Lin Xi:

“Then… can I watch the stars with you?”

…

Zhong Yi and Qin Li’en exchanged stunned glances.

“So… they had already met before!”

Qin Li’en shook her head in disbelief.

“But that still doesn’t explain the origami rabbit and the platypus plushy, does it?”

Zhong Yi stroked his chin, looking at the two children with eager anticipation.

“Let’s keep watching…”

He had a feeling.

All the answers lay in this very meeting!

…

Lin Xi and Gu Yun sat on that half-log stump, gazing up at the countless stars together.

“You still haven’t told me your name.”

“… I don’t want to say.”

“Why not?”

“People always make fun of my name… They say saying it makes them need to pee.”

“That sounds rough… But, it can’t be worse than ‘Yun,’ can it?”

Gu Yun pouted and complained with a sigh.

“Because there are people named ‘Yun’ everywhere—Zhang Yun, Li Yun, Wang Yun, Zhao Yun… Sure, ‘Feng’ is just as common, but at least no girl would be named ‘Feng.’ But I’ve met girls called ‘Yun,’ and that really annoys me.”

“… So what does it matter?”

Lin Xi stared at the night sky and spoke softly.

“What’s the good of having a name that everyone else shares?”

“It’s… kind of boring, isn’t it? Not special at all! I want to be the one who’s different.”

Gu Yun thought for a moment and answered.

“If everyone has it, then what’s the point?”

“I wouldn’t mind.”

Lin Xi shook her head, a hint of longing spreading in her eyes.

“If I could have a name just like everyone else… that would be nice. Like the stars in the sky.”

As she spoke, she looked up.

The brilliant stars reflected in her eyes, adding a touch of luster to them.

“They all look pretty much the same from here… yet each one is beautiful.”

As Lin Xi said this, Gu Yun couldn’t help turning to look at her.

Starlight and moonlight shimmered in the girl’s eyes, and Gu Yun was momentarily mesmerized.

“Um… I guess that makes sense.”

Gu Yun nodded and followed Lin Xi’s gaze toward the stars.

“So, what do you think those stars really are?”

“My dad says they’re our departed ancestors.”

“I bet your dad’s lying to you.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Because my grandpa passed away last year—I stared at the sky all night and didn’t see any extra star appear.”

Gu Yun pursed his lips, acting as if he had already grown up.

“Adults are always making things up. Like scaring off the Nian beast at New Year, Chang’e and the Moon Rabbit on the Moon, the Cowherd and Weaver Girl meeting on Qixi… I think they just want an excuse to take time off.”

At the mention of “Moon Rabbit,” Lin Xi’s eyes lit up a little more.

“Actually… there really is a rabbit in the sky, you know?”

“Where?”

“Up there, made of connected stars… like this.”

Lin Xi pointed at the sky with her finger, tracing a shape.

“I get it… connect-the-dots stars, right?”

Gu Yun smiled innocently.

“You know how to do it too?”

“Of course! I’ve looked for other things in the stars before, but I’ve never tried the rabbit.”

“… Want to give it a try?”

“Sure! Let’s see who finds it first!”

Little Gu Yun was full of competitive spirit, and a rare glimmer of joy tugged at the corners of Lin Xi’s mouth.

“I’ll count three, two, one, then we start!”

“Three!”

“Two!”

“One!”

As soon as Little Gu Yun finished counting, Lin Xi traced a few points in the sky and said softly,

“I found it.”

“Huh? Where?”

“In the sky.”

“The sky… where exactly?”

“You have to find the biggest one.”

“Huh?”

“It’s bigger than all the others.”

“I can’t find it…”

Little Gu Yun’s finger hovered in the air for a long time before he shook his head in frustration.

“Wait… wait a second!!”

When his gaze passed over the bright moon in the night sky, he suddenly became excited.

“I, I see it!!”

“Tell me, what do you see?”

Lin Xi asked with a smile.

That moment struck Zhong Yi’s heart with a sharp pang.

Because…

Those words felt strangely familiar—like he’d heard them somewhere before, more than once.

Little Gu Yun pointed at the night sky, unable to hide the joy in his eyes:

“It’s right there, isn’t it? Those are its two ears and head!”

“And then?”

“That… those are its two feet!!”

“That’s right, what else?”

“And…”

Little Gu Yun grinned and aimed his finger straight at the moon.

“And the moon! The moon is its round, full belly!!”

Qin Li’en fell silent.

She followed the path of Gu Yun’s finger as it traced through the air.

Star by star, connected to the moon, they formed the outline of a rabbit.

“So that’s it… so that’s how it is…”

Zhong Yi rubbed his tired eyes—the many questions that had puzzled him before had now all been cleared up in this one moment.

Meanwhile, the boy and girl were still talking.

“So, what do you think those stars really are?”

Gu Yun looked longingly at the sky.

“I…”

Lin Xi hesitated.

“I’ve never told anyone, but… I’ve always thought they were beacons.”

Gu Yun looked at her curiously, as if pondering her words.

For a rare moment, Lin Xi opened her heart, the starlight and moonlight intertwining in her eyes.

“Thousands upon thousands of beacons, set high in the distant heavens.”

“Wow! That must be so lively up there!”

Gu Yun didn’t quite understand, but he felt that “thousands upon thousands” must be something very impressive.

Lin Xi shook her head.

“Unfortunately, it’s not like that…”

“They can see other lighthouses, and they want to communicate with each other… but they can’t. Because they’re too far apart, they can’t hear one another’s voices.”

“All they can do is try their best to shine their light, until they die…”

“They let that light shine on the other lighthouses, and on me too.”

Gu Yun listened attentively, though he didn’t fully grasp her words. He looked at Lin Xi and asked, “Why… does it include you?”

Lin Xi’s gaze turned deep again. “Because one day… I’ll become friends with one of them.”

The starlight was soft, the night was quiet.

A gentle breeze passed between them, and Gu Yun unconsciously moved a little closer to Lin Xi.

“What’s in that bag?”

Lin Xi pointed at the burlap sack at Gu Yun’s feet, curious.

“This? It’s a prize I won from the ring-toss game… Here!”

Gu Yun generously handed the burlap sack to Lin Xi.

The girl carefully opened it. Inside was a plush toy.

A platypus plush toy.

“It looks kinda ugly,” Lin Xi said, blinking, but a hint of delight appeared in her eyes.

“But it’s special!” Gu Yun emphasized.

Just then, his mother’s voice called from down the hill.

“Gu Yun——”

“Gu Yun——!!”

“We need to go home!!!”

Gu Yun looked reluctantly at the starry sky, then at Lin Xi.

“I have to go.”

“Here, take this back.”

“No, it’s yours… I’ll go win another one. I’m the best ring-toss player around!”

Gu Yun pushed the toy back toward her.

“…”

The girl hesitated for a long time, then held her chest and spoke.

“Will you come back here next year?”

“Of course. What about you?”

“I… will come too.”

“Then, same Mid-Autumn Festival, same spot?”

“Mm.”

His mother’s urging came from the foot of the hill again. Gu Yun waved to Lin Xi and started walking down.

Halfway down,

Lin Xi mustered her courage and called out,

“Then… what if you forget, or get lost?”

Gu Yun turned back and smiled with innocent joy.

“Then…”

“We’ll always meet on the moon, silly!”