It was nearing evening, and a cold wind had risen outside the window, carrying frost and snow. Though it was not strong, it still made people uncomfortable.
"Auntie, your cooking smells wonderful."
The lights were on over the dining table inside. Zhao Xiaozhi and Yan Tao sat around it, looking at the lavish spread and smelling the fragrance drifting through the air, unable to stop praising it.
The two young women had only just arrived in Xijing and knew neither the place nor anyone there. After some thought, Zhao Lanxiang decided to let them make do at her home for the night. There was a spare room with a bed anyway, kept for relatives like Third Aunt who came into town to deliver goods and needed somewhere to stay.
Lian Shuang, Lian Lei, and Third Aunt sat nearby too, looking Zhao Xiaozhi and Yan Tao over from every angle and peppering them with questions, constantly asking how Lian Youming had saved Yan Tao on the train.
Lian Youming listened with his heart in his mouth, terrified that the two of them would reveal his secrets.
Hearing others praise her cooking, Zhao Lanxiang beamed with delight. Then, while Lian Youming was fetching the bowls and chopsticks, she pulled her son aside and said sternly, "Son, you mustn't go playing around with women. Your Aunt Shen called me and said you started seeing a girl from Guangxi while you were in the Northeast, and she's even written to you. I don't need you to amount to anything great, but you can't go switching your affections every other day. If you dare pull anything, I'll have your father beat you to death."
The more Lian Youming listened, the less right it sounded. "Mom, I only just got back. I haven't even had a