MeiLin lingered a little longer, just taking in the sight of the lotus. Eventually the voices from the other room roused her from her thoughts and she followed Lien Si out, taking a seat beside a still pouting Ce. The boy looked much happier when she came in, but made sure she knew he wasn’t pleased about her absence.

Having caught the last bit of the conversation, MeiLin giggled. “You shouldn’t tease him so Muoh Li.” She reached for her bowl of tangyuan, her stomach giving a small growl. “How many have you had Ce?”

“Two... nearly three...”

“Oh my! I’ll have to catch up. Then we can both be starved ghosts and gobble everything up.”