OFTLHFRO C161

Chapter 161 – Another Mid-Autumn Festival

Another Mid-Autumn Festival had come. Luo Mingchen wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination, but he always felt that the moon in Cold City looked larger than the one back in Taohua Town.

Watching the group gathered together, laughing and chatting in merriment, Luo Mingchen turned to Huo Yan and said, “Today I saw General Hu’s wife and child. There’s a little girl a few years older than our Yueyue—she should be around seven.”

Here in Cold City, there were very few children the same age as Huo Xinyue, and most of them lived far away. Letting her go out to play always carried a risk, and even with Ziyan and the others watching over her, the two of them were never quite at ease.

If she were to visit General Hu’s camp instead, at least it would be safer than playing outside.

Besides, Hu Zhongyi would never allow his own daughter to be in danger.

If Huo Xinyue and that girl got along, wouldn’t that mean Yueyue would finally have a playmate?

Children of similar ages were always easier to bond with.

Huo Yan caught the meaning behind Luo Mingchen’s words and said, “Tomorrow, we’ll take Yueyue over to visit.”

“Alright.”

“Hey, can the two of you be a little more reliable?”

Xiao Lin walked over helplessly. “We’re talking about what game to play, and you two are over here whispering sweet nothings like you can’t stop yourselves.”

“Huh?”

Luo Mingchen blinked in confusion. Seeing that everyone was staring at them, he gave a guilty smile. “Then what do you all want to play?”

Huo Xinyue raised her tiny hand. “Daddy! Yueyue wants to hear a story!”

At that, Huo Xiang’s face changed dramatically, his expression mournful. “Can we not do anything too scary this time?”

“Ahem…”

At the mention of Huo Yan’s ghost stories, Luo Mingchen instantly recalled the lingering dread they had left behind.

For several nights, he’d practically wanted to fuse himself to Huo Yan, just to make sure not a single gap existed for a ghost to slip through.

He’d been terrified of turning around in the middle of the night and seeing a ghostly face staring back at him.

“Yueyue, darling, on such a lovely night, why don’t we pick something a little more cheerful to do?”

Huo Xinyue didn’t insist. “Okay then!”

Sitting quietly in the corner, Hua Yaoyue watched Luo Mingchen curiously. That reaction was exactly the same as Huo Xiang’s.

Could it be that Luo Mingchen was afraid of ghosts?

After some discussion, the group finally settled on playing Pai Gow.

It wasn’t that they were particularly fond of it, but playing drinking games was out of the question—Luo Mingchen and Huo Xinyue didn’t know how, and only Huo Yan, Hua Yaoyue, Xiao Lin, and Xiao Chen enjoyed alcohol. The rest preferred juice or yogurt.

So Pai Gow it was—a dependable choice that four could play, while the rest could watch for fun.

“Mingchen, why don’t you take my place?” Xiao Lin suggested. “If Brother Huo plays, we’ll end up losing the shirts off our backs before the night’s over.”

No one really knew how Huo Yan managed it, but somehow, he never lost.

Luo Mingchen blinked. “Alright.”

Pai Gow was somewhat similar to Mahjong—simple once you got the hang of the rules. After listening to a quick explanation, Luo Mingchen, Xiao Lin, Hua Yaoyue, and Xiao Chen took their seats at the table while the others gathered around.

When Bai Xue brought the tiles over, the game began.

As they drew their tiles, Xiao Lin chuckled, “Don’t worry, Mingchen. Let’s just play a practice round first. Once you get the hang of it, we’ll bet real money.”

Luo Mingchen smiled. “Sure.”

But Xiao Lin could never have predicted that this so-called beginner would have ridiculously good luck. Despite it being his first time playing, Luo Mingchen quickly grasped the rules and played with uncanny skill.

By the time he won, even Hua Yaoyue was dumbfounded.

Luo Mingchen grinned brightly. “Pure luck.”

The corner of Hua Yaoyue’s mouth twitched. “Since you’ve ‘warmed up,’ let’s play for real this time.”

“Alright.”

They didn’t play for much—losing for an entire night wouldn’t even amount to a couple of silver taels, and they only used copper coins anyway.

None of the four players cared about such small sums, so they dove right in.

Huo Yan sat beside Luo Mingchen, peeling five-spice sunflower seeds for him—the flavor he loved most.

Watching just one round was enough for Huo Yuhui to realize that his little stepfather definitely knew how to count cards.

Not that the others couldn’t—but they certainly didn’t have his kind of luck.

With both skill and fortune on his side, it was almost impossible for him to lose.

After losing five rounds in a row, Xiao Lin slumped in defeat, staring hollowly at the table. “In your household, who’s the worst at cards?”

Everyone silently turned to look at Huo Xinyue, who was happily counting her copper coins.

“…That’s a child who can barely string a full sentence together.”

At that, Huo Xiang asked eagerly, “Uncle Xiao, can I play a couple of rounds?”

It did look fun, after all…

Luo Mingchen smiled, gave Huo Xiang’s back a pat, and stood up. “Go ahead, give it a try.”

It might’ve looked like bullying a kid, but after witnessing Luo Mingchen’s example, none of the others dared underestimate Huo Xiang.

Fortunately, Huo Xiang wasn’t as terrifying.

However, after losing two rounds, that little brain started working fast—and from then on, he didn’t lose a single hand.

It wasn’t surprising at all.

After all, Huo Xiang was the best at arithmetic in the family, with lightning-fast mental calculation.

“Pay up, pay up,” Huo Xiang said cheerfully, holding out his hand.

Both Hua Yaoyue and Xiao Lin handed over their money with reluctant hearts.

Xiao Chen didn’t mind—he hadn’t lost much anyway, and when their hosts were in good spirits, the tips he got far exceeded tonight’s losses.

Besides, as a shadow guard, such trifles meant little to him.

When he’d joined, he’d been planning to feed them the winning tiles—but now, he didn’t even have to bother.

After an hour or so, when everyone had nearly gone numb from losing and Huo Xiang had grown tired, Luo Mingchen suggested, “Why don’t we go to the courtyard and have a barbecue?”

The moment he said it, everyone perked up. “Yes!”

Luo Mingchen and Huo Yan headed to the kitchen to prepare the ingredients, while the others went to the courtyard to set up.

They still had some octopus left from their last sea trip—perfect for grilling.

There was also pork belly, chicken, mutton, leeks, corn, eggplants…

Tray after tray of ingredients was brought out. As the charcoal fire crackled to life, Xiao Lin looked up with a grin and asked, “Lady Hua, what would you like to eat?”

Glancing over the spread, Hua Niang remembered the chili seasoning Luo Mingchen had mixed earlier and said, “Can I have some octopus?”

“Of course.”

Xiao Lin placed a few skewers on the grill.

The grill was large enough that three or four people could cook at once without crowding.

Luo Mingchen had already experienced Huo Yan’s “culinary skills”—his grilled meat was only marginally better than his cooking: edible, but hardly delicious.

Xiao Lin’s, however, was truly good. His stir-frying skills were average, but when it came to grilling, he was unmatched—apparently honed during his escort missions.

“Back in the day,” Xiao Lin said fondly, “when Brother Huo and I traveled together, I was always the one roasting meat—chicken, rabbit, even little birds. And him? He’d just eat, then scold me afterward.”

Though he spoke with nostalgia, none of them longed to return to those wandering days.

Huo Xiang blinked. “Uncle Xiao, why did Daddy scold you?”

Huo Yan replied coolly, “Because he can’t keep his hands to himself. If he wasn’t stealing from bandits, he was pilfering from mountain thieves.”

Everyone: “…”

Well… that did deserve a scolding.

Xiao Lin didn’t take offense. He smiled, sprinkled an extra layer of chili powder over the grilled meat, and handed the skewer to Hua Niang.

Lately, Hua Niang had taken a liking to heavy flavors—either extremely sour or very spicy—quite unlike before.

Just as she reached for the skewer, another hand moved faster and took it from her.

“Hey!”

Seeing Hua Yaoyue snatch the skewer, Xiao Lin rolled up his sleeves. “Kid, are you looking for a fight?”

He could tolerate losing his own food—but taking his wife’s? That was too much!

Hua Yaoyue broke the skewer in half, handed two pieces back to Hua Niang, and said lazily, “She’s already had enough cold foods today. That ice yogurt was more than enough.”

Hua Niang froze, realization dawning. Her face turned slightly pink as she said awkwardly, “Then I’ll just eat a little less.”

Xiao Lin knew Hua Yaoyue was responsible for taking care of his wife’s health and immediately tried to coax her. “I’ll make you some grilled pork belly instead—it tastes just as good.”

Before Hua Niang could respond, Hua Yaoyue said calmly, “She can’t have that either.”

Xiao Lin frowned, puzzled. “Why not?”

Hua Yaoyue’s tone remained even. “Pregnant women shouldn’t eat too many spicy foods.”

The words weren’t loud, but clear enough for everyone in the courtyard to hear.

At once, all eyes turned sharply toward Hua Niang.