He walked so quickly that he returned to the courtyard moments later. The meal had already been served, and the table, originally occupied by the four of us, now had a family of three.
The man and child were the two people I had just met in the courtyard, and the woman was the man's wife.
Seeing me, the man smiled and said to his wife, "Go to the kitchen and bring Mrs. Fu some stewed cuttlefish an














