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one of the most importantevents in Chinese culture, also known as the mid-Autumn festival. It marks the time of the year when the moon shines the brightest, a time of great celebration when friends and family gather together to pray, feast and give thanks to the gods. The festival takes place in three days’ time, when the moon is full.’
    Feng sat up straighter in his chair, seemingly cheered by the mention of the Moon Festival. ‘Moon cakes are always eaten around the time of the Moon Festival,’ he explained. ‘This is why I bought some. You must try one.’
    The small round cakes were decorated with Chinese characters. Sienna bit into one. The sweet pastry tasted wonderful, but she was shocked to discover a salty egg yolk in the middle of the cake. Yuck!
    â€˜Ah yes, a hard-boiled duck-egg yolk,’ said Zou, beaming. ‘It symbolizes the full moon.’
    Feng passed her another cake. ‘Take this one instead,’ he said. ‘It’s got lotus paste in it.’ Sure enough, it was much sweeter. Feng smiled sadly as he saw Sienna enjoying the cake. ‘Gege and I were planning on making moon cakes to sell at the temple,’ he said softly. ‘Many people willflock to the temple for the Moon Festival, to burn incense and light lanterns and celebrate the full moon.’
    Sienna nodded, studying the picture of the pagoda on his T-shirt as Feng had just taken off his jumper. She could imagine how lovely it would be all lit up.
    Suddenly Xiaolong, who had been sitting quietly on a shelf, shot at Feng like a rocket and started to spit fire at him, making him drop his moon cake. The dragon then looked intently at the cake and let out a strange cry.
    â€˜He’s trying to tell us something,’ Zou cried. ‘What is it, Xiaolong?’ The dragon, seeming much stronger than he had been on the train, lifted a trembling wing and pointed to the boy’s T-shirt.
    â€˜What is it? What’s happening?’ cried Feng. He was rubbing his arms where the sparks had landed. Even though he still didn’t seem able to see the dragon, he could feel the flames, Sienna realized.
    â€˜Is it the T-shirt?’ asked Zou. ‘It shows the temple, doesn’t it?’
    The little dragon nodded, but then flutteredto stand on top of one of the moon cakes and uttered another strange cry.
    Zou frowned. ‘We already know we need to go to the temple, little one. But why are you so interested in the moon cakes?’
    Something suddenly occurred to Sienna. ‘The Moon Festival,’ she cried. ‘I think the little dragon is trying to make a connection between the festival and the temple!’
    Xiaolong immediately fluttered up to Sienna and nestled close to her, as if to confirm she was right. She felt pleased but also confused. What did the Moon Festival have to do with the temple, and how was this connected to the disappearance of her mum … ?

9 Simiao – Temple
    T he next morning, after a restless night’s sleep, Sienna woke up determined to go to the temple right away. After Xiaolong’s strange actions yesterday, and now knowing that the Moon Festival was only two days away, she was burning to find out if there really was a connection between the festival, the temple and the disappearance of her mum.
    Zou had headed out at first light, saying he had urgent business to attend to. But, annoyingly,Feng had woken in a strange mood and seemed reluctant to help Sienna get ready for their journey. The little dragon had disappeared.
    â€˜Feng, we need to go to the temple,’ Sienna insisted, for the third time. ‘We’ve come all this way!’
    â€˜I’m NOT going,’ he snapped, sitting on the floor with his head in his hands.
    â€˜What do you mean “not going”?’ asked Sienna. ‘That’s why we’re here! We need to find my mother and your brother. It’s simple!’ She missed Rufus hugely. With Feng in