The twenty-second day of the twelfth lunar month, sunny day.
Today was the day to go to school and collect their report cards.
Xue Yuantong didn't sleep in. As soon as Jiang Ning entered the kitchen, he saw her sitting astride a little stool, her eyes fixed on the pot atop the stove.
Aunt Gu lifted the lid, and steam billowed out along with the aroma of flour. Xue Yuantong wanted to reach out, but she was afraid of getting burned.
"Jiang Ning, you're here." Aunt Gu greeted him.
Jiang Ning nodded. For nearly every one of his three daily meals that semester, he had eaten at Xue Yuantong's home. He wasn't freeloading, though. He often bought groceries, while Aunt Gu or Xue Yuantong cooked, and he was responsible for doing the dishes.
He asked, "Aunt Gu, you're not working today?"
"I'm going in later today," Aunt Gu said, continuing to cook.
Breakfast was fairly simple: Shui Lao Mo, pickled vegetable shredded pork fried edamame, and Honey Date Rice Soup.
The three of them sat around the small table in the kitchen. Bowls sat on the table, their heat drifting upward and floating before Xue Yuantong's face.
Amid the steam, she held a hot, soft Shui Lao Mo in one hand. With a flick of her other hand, she folded the round flatbread in half.
Using her chopsticks, she picked up some pickled vegetables, shredded pork, and edamame, laying them in an even strip over the flatbread before carefully rolling it up.
That way, every bite included both the filling and the flatbread. It was especially satisfying.
Xue Yuantong looked to her left. Her mother had already rolled one up. She looked to her right. Jiang Ning was eating a honey date.
"Jiang Ning, I'll give you this Shui Lao