Everyone took their seats in the private room at Old Sichuan.
Zhou Qiang moved quickly. Before the server could come in, he picked up the teapot, took out the good tea he had brought specially, and brewed it. Li Lanxiang stood up and poured everyone a cup.
Meanwhile, Wang Xiaoliang and Wei Zijin opened the pile of snacks they had prepared, tipped several kinds-especially the bags of fruit and dried tofu-onto clean plates, and pushed them to the center of the table.
Their movements were natural, their teamwork seamless.
Once Liu Xinyu saw that everyone was seated, he began the formal introductions.
First, he pointed at Zhou Qiang. "Big Brother, Big Sister-in-law, Third Brother, Third Sister-in-law, this is Zhou Qiang, one of my best buddies."
Then he pointed at Li Lanxiang. "This is his wife, our younger sister-in-law, Li Lanxiang. She was my classmate too."
"Hello, Big Brother, Big Sister-in-law, Third Brother, Third Sister-in-law." Zhou Qiang and Li Lanxiang hurriedly stood up and greeted them politely.
"This is Wang Xiaoliang's wife, Wei Zijin. We were all classmates."
"This is Big Sister-in-law, Li Liting, and Big Brother, An Peiwen."
"Third Sister-in-law, Shangguan Rui, and this is Third Brother, Hu Yang."
"Big Sister-in-law, Big Brother, Third Sister-in-law, Third Brother, I'm Wei Zijin."
Yang Qingyu's gaze fell on the plate of kraft-paper-wrapped dried tofu in the center of the table. Smiling, she said to Wang Xiaoliang, "You're really thoughtful, Xiaoliang. Out of all the snacks in the supermarket, you picked out this dried tofu in particular."
Liu Xinyu immediately chimed in, sounding a little boastful. "Of course he did. Go on, try it. This is an exclusive secret recipe my mom and my wife created together. You can't buy it anywhere else."
Hearing that, Zhou Qiang grabbed a bag, tore it open, and