Long ago in ancient China, it is said that ten suns once rose together in the sky on a single day, scorching the earth and ruining the crops until it seemed nothing could survive. Then a skilled archer named Hou Yi appeared, and with astonishing precision, he shot down nine of the suns, leaving just one to light and warm the earth as it should.

The Queen of Heaven rewarded him with a precious magical elixir — whoever drank it would live forever. Hou Yi brought the elixir home and gave it to his beautiful wife, Chang'e, to keep safe until the right moment for them to drink it together.

But one of Hou Yi's students, a greedy man named Feng Meng, tried one day, while Hou Yi was away, to steal the magical elixir from Chang'e by force. Fearing the precious elixir would fall into wicked hands, Chang'e made a swift decision to drink it herself, to keep it safe.

The instant Chang'e drank the elixir, she felt her body grow light, rising up from the ground little by little, until she soared into the sky and finally came to rest upon the glowing surface of the moon — alone, far from the husband she loved so dearly.

Hou Yi grieved deeply at losing his wife, and from then on, on every night of the full moon, he set out plates of fruit and sweets in her honor. This custom became the foundation of China's beloved Mid-Autumn Festival, where people still share mooncakes and gaze up at the moon, remembering the wondrous story of Chang'e.