The off-white exterior walls shimmered with a pearly luster in the twilight. Columns stretched out to support the house's clean, simple dome; the wrought-iron railings of the terrace caught the faint light, and several clusters of unknown climbing vines wound upward, adding a touch of green to the building itself.
"Is this your house?"
Xia Nan drew his gaze back from the exquisite three-story Western-style townhouse before him, turned his head, and looked at Jeff beside him in surprise.
In his impression, this honest, frugal caravan captain had always worn coarse linen clothes washed and worn nearly white, and whenever he ate or lodged outside, he saved wherever he could.
He looked as thrifty as a person could be.
Because of that, Xia Nan had never associated words like "wealthy" or "luxurious" with him.
He had only assumed Jeff's life was difficult, and that the money he earned working away from home was just barely enough to fill his family's stomachs.
It had been hard to refuse such warm hospitality. Though Jeff said he had prepared an empty room for him, before coming, Xia Nan had already readied himself to sleep in the living room.
He had even drafted the words in his mind, thinking about how he should tactfully refuse without hurting the couple's pride if Jeff and his wife tried to force him to take their bedroom.
But he had not expected this.
After closing the door of the Tailor Shop, he had followed Jeff all the way home.
The distance between the buildings on both sides gradually widened. The passersby were dressed more and more neatly and cleanly, and even the frequency of patrolling guards increased by quite a bit.
The meat stalls that had reeked of blood and swarmed with flies, and the brothels with suggestive