Madam Xiao repeated what she had just told the old woman to the old man and Father Xiao.
This included what happened afterward, when the old woman pushed the girl out of the courtyard, only for her to appear in the teahouse.
"What do you think?"
The old woman asked.
"Do you think she did it on purpose?"
"Or was it just a coincidence?"
The old man and Father Xiao exchanged glances.
"...Hard to say."
"But whether it was intentional or a coincidence..."
The old man looked thoughtful. "We have no way to drive her away."
"Why?"
The old woman blurted out.
If they knew the girl had done it intentionally, why couldn't they drive away someone with ulterior motives?
"What reason would you have for doing that?"
The old man looked at the old woman.
"Earlier, in the courtyard, it was perfectly justified for you to drive her away."
"She trespassed on private property."
"But in the teahouse, she's a customer."
"Before she does anything discourteous..."
"If you drive her away, you'll be the one in the wrong."
"People will say you're bullying customers because your business is big."
The old woman fell silent.
Indeed.
What the old man said... made a lot of sense.
"...What if she makes a fuss over this?"
The old man shook his head slightly. "How will you explain to others why you want her to leave?"
"Because she smelled the fragrance of plum blossoms?"
"Wouldn't that just make even more people find out about this?"
"...Then we'll just have to let her drink her tea," the old woman muttered.
Fine.
"She's a customer."
The old man said solemnly, "As long as she acts like a proper customer, all we can do is give her