They celebrated the festival by admiring the moon that evening, though not for very long. The moon was so bright that it all but blotted out the other Xingxing. Everyone could help themselves to the food on the table, but Li Juan and Li Qiang only ate a couple of slices of watermelon and showed little interest in the apples or mooncakes.
"When we don't have any, you're all clamoring for them. Now you can eat as much as you like, and you don't want them. You're so hard to please!" Liang Yuemei complained.
She was not really complaining; she just did not want the food to go to waste. In fact, she had been very happy with her visit to her parents that day. They were still in fairly good health, and her second younger brother's wife was no longer making a fuss. Her own family was doing well, and she brought plenty of things for her parents. Her younger sister's husband could offer only a few sour remarks, and even when speaking to Li Jianguo, he no longer sounded as forceful as before.
With solid means of their own, they had confidence, and she could hold her head high when visiting her parents.
In those days, men and women alike really did place great importance on face.
"One mooncake is enough. Two gets sickening," Li Qiang said loudly. "Can I take mooncakes to school tomorrow?"
"Go on, take some." Liang Yuemei waved a hand. "Not too many. Wrap them in paper so you don't get grease on your textbooks and exercise books."
"Got it, Mom."
When Li Long returned to Old Ma's Place, Lao Luo had company too. The production team's three Five-Guarantee Households were sitting together outside the yard at Old Ma's Place. There were two bottles