Thank you Raizin for the coffee treat! 
A chapter will be released early for each coffee treated as a thank you gift. Thank you everyone for the support and comments!
The appointment under the moonlight, accompanied by a beautiful woman—it sounds like a story straight out of a tale.
Mo Yi gazed at Bai Ren’s departing figure for a long time, feeling a sense of loss until her silhouette disappeared completely.
It wasn’t until he returned home and was reminded by a servant that Mo Yi remembered there was a family banquet at the palace today. Essentially, it was just a gathering where the family got together to have a meal on the fifteenth day of each lunar month.
It was a rule that came later, as he hadn’t heard of it when he first adopted..
He asked the servant who would be attending the banquet. The servant replied respectfully, “Usually, it’s just the Lord, Madam, and Young Master. Sometimes, high-ranking officials from the court might also come for a visit.”
Mo Yi then inquired if Madam Mo would attend. The servant shook his head and explained that Madam Mo had never attended the family banquet.
Mo Yi nodded in understanding. It was typical of his foster mother’s temperament—she wouldn’t do anything she wasn’t willing to do. However, he couldn’t skip the banquet himself.
Yet, he was conflicted, as he had plans with Bai Ren in the evening and preferred to keep their interactions private. It wouldn’t be wise to send someone to convey the message, and he didn’t have enough time to personally inform Bai Ren before the banquet. He would only have to make her wait a bit longer.
He declined the servant’s offer to change into formal attire. Mo Yi silently rummaged through his wardrobe and chose a new outfit he had never worn before, all while thinking of Bai Ren.
When Mo Yi arrived, Madam Cen and Huang Fuhao were already seated. As soon as Huang Fuhao spotted Mo Yi, he turned his nose up, pretending not to see him.
The seat to the left of the main position was empty, indicating that Mo Yi’s foster mother indeed hadn’t come, but the utensils were already set.
Shortly after, the Lord also arrived, signaling the start of the banquet without waiting for anyone.
Seemingly accustomed to Madam Mo’s absence from the family banquet, there was no delay on account of her absence.
At the dinner table, Madam Cen and Huang Fuhao took turns flattering Huang Fuxiao.
Huang Fuxiao remained composed, occasionally responding, while Mo Yi silently ate his food without uttering a word.
Despite the extravagant delicacies on the table, he couldn’t taste anything, feeling less satisfied than he did earlier when he had a simple meal of dumplings and porridge in his room.
Mo Yi had hoped to quietly blend into the background and get through the banquet unnoticed. However, Madam Cen had other plans.
She glanced at Mo Yi and suddenly spoke to Huang Fuxiao, “My Lord, speaking of which, Yi’er is not young anymore and should consider marriage. I heard that there is a well-educated, well-mannered, and suitable young lady in the Yu family. What do you think, My Lord?”
Huang Fuxiao, still expressionless, listened to Madam Cen’s words.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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Relieved, Mo Yi’s tension eased.
Huang Fuxiao, however, had kept his gaze on Madam Mo since her arrival and softly remarked, “You’re here.”
Madam Mo responded with a brilliant smile, “Yes, my son is back, which puts me in a good mood. I thought I’d come out for a stroll. Since there’s good food here, I won’t be polite!”
With that, she helped herself to some of her favorite dishes and ate with relish.
Huang Fuxiao, who usually had no expression, finally had a hint of a smile on his lips, he looked at Madam Mo with tenderness in his eyes.
Madam Cen, seeing Madam Mo, who had never attended a family banquet before, suddenly appeared for some reason, and had even immediately seized the attention of the Lord, she couldn’t help but to feel jealous.
Her expression darkened for a moment, then she quickly changed to a look of grievance and said, “It was my fault for not investigating thoroughly beforehand, sister scolded me justly!
It’s all because of Mrs. Liu, spreading rumors about Miss Yu being a good match. Sister, please don’t blame me, I did it all with good intentions, for Yi’er’s sake. After all, I’m just worried about his future. Yi’er is not young anymore, so I have to care more about him!”
Towards the end, Madam Ceneven took out a handkerchief, wiped away two tears squeezed from her eyes, looking as if Madam Mo had misunderstood her good intentions.
On the side, Huang Fuhao also chimed in, “Mother, don’t be upset, I believe Madam Mo and Mo Yi will understand your intentions!”
Madam Mo, however, was not buying it. She sneered and said, “Is that so? You sure do love to meddle. I seem to recall my son’s last name is Mo, not Cen. And all for his good? That sounds nice, but then why don’t you find a suitable match for your son? After all, he doesn’t have a legitimate wife either, does he?”
Ignoring Huang Fuhao’s unpleasant gaze, Madam Mo directly picked out the ginger slices from the fish stew on the table with her chopsticks and put them in Madam Cen’s plate.
With a tug at her lips, she said, “Here, ginger slices are good for warming the body. Eat up, it’s all for your own good!”
Madam Cen was furious at her words, turning to look at the regent, hoping he would intervene for her.
But to her surprise, Huang Fuxiao didn’t even glance at her. Instead, he picked out two chicken legs from his plate and put them in Madam Mo’s bowl, saying, “I remember you like these.”
“Yes, indeed.”
Madam Mo nodded, then looked at the dishes on the table and sighed, “What a waste, such good food, and no wine?”
“Sister, the Lord doesn’t like the smell of alcohol, you should know that,” Madam Cen quickly interjected, her tone carrying a hint of reproach, as if Madam Mo were somehow at fault for not knowing this.
The next moment, Huang Fuxiao instructed a servant, “Go, fetch a pot of Peach Blossom wine.”
“Just one pot?” Madam Mo touched her round chin, her round eyes showing a hint of dissatisfaction.
Huang Fuxiao looked at those eyes, just as clear as they were twenty years ago, his tone softer. “Drinking too much will make you drunk. It’s also not good for your stomach.”
“My Lord!”
Faced with obvious favoritism, Madam Cen couldn’t sit still anymore, her voice sharpening.
“What is it?” Huang Fuxiao finally turned to Madam Cen, his eyes showing clear impatience, making Madam Cen feel particularly hurt.
But obviously, Huang Fuxiao didn’t care about Madam Cen’s feelings, and directly said, “Mo Yi’s marriage is naturally up to Madam Mo to decide, you shouldn’t interfere in the future.”
Upon hearing this, Madam Cen couldn’t hold back her tears, quietly sobbing.
On the side, Huang Fuhao was also very indignant, saying, “Father, how can you be so biased, you…”
Before he could finish speaking, he was silenced by Huang Fuxiao’s icy gaze, losing the courage to continue.
He could only turn his resentful gaze towards Madam Mo and Mo Yi across the table.
Mo Yi looked at the tense atmosphere on the table, feeling particularly uncomfortable. He really wanted to find an excuse to leave, but nothing seemed appropriate.
Instead, Madam Mo simply threw down her chopsticks and stood up impatiently, saying, “Enough, can’t even have a peaceful meal, I’m not eating anymore. Yi’er, let’s go!”
After speaking, Madam Mo, with a stern face, ignored everyone and Huang Fuxiao’s pleading gaze, and directly pulled Mo Yi away.
And when Madam Mo and Mo Yi left, Huang Fuxiao also put down his chopsticks.
Glancing at the still sobbing Madam Cen, he pointed to the ginger slices on her plate, speaking in a cold tone, “Madam Mo is also thinking of your health. Finish these ginger slices before you leave, don’t waste her goodwill.”
After saying that, Huang Fuxiao left without looking back.
Along the way, Mo Yi felt a bit uneasy. He knew that his foster mother had come to the family banquet for him and had stood up for him.
It was all because of him that things had become so unpleasant, and he felt guilty.
But once they left the main courtyard, Madam Mo immediately changed her demeanor, putting on a relaxed expression and smiling at Mo Yi. “They definitely can’t see us from here. Really, who wants to eat with those people? So annoying. Mother is going back to rest. There’s a lantern festival tonight, you should go and enjoy yourself with the girl you like!”
With just one sentence from Madam Mo, Mo Yi’s face turned red with embarrassment at the mention of the girl he liked.
“Mother!” He called out helplessly, unable to deny the knowing look in Madam Mo’s eyes.
After Mo Yi left, Grandma Wang couldn’t help but speak up to Madam Mo, “Madam, the Lord does have feelings for you. It’s been so many years, why don’t you forgive him? The Lord’s status is noble, but he has never been arrogant towards you, always gentle. It’s that woman surnamed Cen who’s at fault. You see, the Lord didn’t even defend her. Whenever something happens, the Lord always stands by your side!”
But Madam Mo waved her hand and said, “There’s no hatred, so there’s nothing to forgive. He may be of noble status, but am I not a heroic woman too? Even if I were an ordinary woman, why should I compromise for others?
It’s just a pity that I’m not from an ordinary family, there are some entanglements of interests that I can’t escape. I can only seek peace of mind in my heart. As for Cen Yue’er, I’ve never blamed her, she’s just a pitiful person…”
On the other side, Mo Yi went to the vicinity of Bai Ren’s courtyard as agreed before, and soon saw a tall figure waving to him from the corner.
“Young General,” Bai Ren greeted.
“Miss Bai!”
Mo Yi approached, seeing the beautiful woman and blushing. Thinking about the lantern festival mentioned by his foster mother, he felt a flutter in his heart and asked, “I heard there’s a lantern festival today. Would Miss Bai like to go with me?”
“Of course!” Bai Ren immediately replied.
Wasn’t this a date? How could he miss it!
Upon hearing Bai Ren’s agreement, Mo Yi’s heart leaped with joy, but he couldn’t help but think that Bai Ren’s beauty would surely attract too much attention if they went out together.
Feeling possessive, Mo Yi hesitated.
Seeing his hesitation, Bai Ren couldn’t help but ask, “Young General, is there something bothering you?”
“Well, I just feel that Miss Bai’s beauty is too outstanding. If we go out, I’m afraid people on the street will stare at you…”
Mo Yi scratched his head awkwardly, and Bai Ren felt pleased to hear his companion complimenting his appearance.
He said, “Wait a moment,” and went back to his courtyard to fetch a silk veil, which he put on his face.
“Is this better?”
“Perfect!”
Mo Yi nodded happily, then remembered to remind her, “Miss Bai, don’t call me Young General when we’re outside. I, I actually see you as a friend!”
Bai Ren raised an eyebrow at this, thinking that if they were friends, wouldn’t they be even closer to being a couple?
So he agreed immediately, “Of course, being a friend of the general is my honor. But if not Young General, what should I call you?”
Bai Ren pretended to look troubled for a moment, then leaned close to Mo Yi’s ear and whispered softly, “Then I’ll call you Brother Mo Yi, how about that?”
Thank you for the chapter!
Thank you so very much for the update!!~♥️