In ancient times, there were ten suns in the sky, scorching the earth and nearly turning people to ashes, causing the land to crack open.
To save humanity, a great hero named Hou Yi took up his bow and arrows, shooting down nine of the suns, leaving only one.
From then on, the weather returned to normal, and people could live in peace.
As a reward for Hou Yi’s great deed, the Queen Mother of the West gave him an elixir that would allow him to ascend to the heavens and become immortal.
However, Hou Yi couldn’t bear to leave his beloved wife, Chang’e, so he hid the elixir instead of eating it.
Chang’e, Hou Yi’s wife, was not only beautiful but also kind-hearted. She often helped those in need, and everyone liked her.
Hou Yi had a disciple named Feng Meng, who, upon learning about the elixir, thought, “Becoming immortal and ascending to the heavens has always been my dream.”
One day, while Hou Yi was away, Feng Meng broke into his home and threatened Chang’e with a sword, demanding she hand over the elixir.
With no other choice, Chang’e pretended to retrieve it. However, when she opened the box, she quickly swallowed the elixir herself.
Immediately, Chang’e felt her body grow light, and she began to float, soaring higher and higher until she reached the sky.
She realized she had become immortal and, passing by the moon, eventually settled there.
When Hou Yi returned home and learned what had happened, he was heartbroken.
He looked up at the sky and saw a bright, golden full moon, with Chang’e smiling at him from within.
By coincidence, it was the fifteenth day of the eighth lunar month, and later, people began celebrating this day as the Mid-Autumn Festival to commemorate Chang’e’s ascent to the moon.
Legend has it that Chang’e resides in the Moon Palace, also known as Guanghan Palace.
There, she is accompanied by a jade rabbit pounding medicine, and outside the palace, Wu Gang is eternally chopping down a tree.
Like Chang’e, they each have their own mythical stories about how they ended up on the moon.
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