The six of them stayed in the private dining room from the afternoon until past nine.
The dishes were cleared twice, the tea was replaced three times, and the conversation never stopped.
Only the six of them knew what they had talked about.
When they broke up for the night, Nuomi held his hand and refused to let go.
"Here, feel it."
Wang Xiaoliang let her pull his hand toward her belly. "You're not even showing yet. What am I supposed to feel?"
"The good fortune." Nuomi pressed his palm against her lower abdomen with perfect confidence. "Feel it?"
"I feel that you ate too much at dinner."
Nuomi smacked him.
Xiao Mo laughed behind them, his eyes full of affection for both Nuomi and Wang Xiaoliang.
By the time they left Suiyun Residence, it was completely dark.
Huang Xueli drove him home. Neither of them said much along the way, and the radio was off. There was only the hum of the air conditioning and the sound of tires against the road.
When they reached his building, Huang Xueli parked and turned to look at him.
"Xiaoliang, want to go to Old Sichuan tomorrow?"
"No, go take care of your work. I'm going to rest for a few days."
Wang Xiaoliang patted his shoulder and got out.
The elevator reached his floor. He entered the code to unlock the door and called inside as he changed his shoes:
"Sis, I'm home."
Zhao Nan came out of the bathroom clutching a cleaning rag, her hair casually clipped up and her sleeves rolled to the middle of her forearms.
Wang Xiaoliang glanced around.
The floor shone, the ornaments on the coffee table were back in place, and even the balcony windows sparkled. She had been cleaning all day.
Zhao Nan tossed