Chi Niannian looked down at Xiyan gripping her small hand, her eyes filled with complexity.
She looked up, "No, it wouldn't be good to fill your home with the smell of smoke."
Only then did Xiyan notice that Chi Niannian was smoking again.
She was smoking those very thin ladies' cigarettes, but... they still were harmful to her health.
Xiyan clasped her hands behind her back and leaned against the wall, "Can you promise me something?"
Chi Niannian looked at Xiyan, "I can."
She didn't ask what it was.
Just one word, can.
"You should smoke less of those things in the future," Xiyan said, bending slightly to take the cigarette from Chi Niannian's hand, squatting down to pinch it out carefully, and then throwing it into the nearby trash can.
Watching this series of natural movements, Chi Niannian felt as if something gently nudged her heart.
She reached out to smooth her hair, her indifferent facade masking the storm within.
