Hua Erniang was speaking while she tossed the wooden basin onto the ground and hurried forward, grasping Hua Xiaomai to look her over from head to toe.
"Just now I was muttering with your brother-in-law. You've been gone to the Provincial City for so long without any news, we had no idea how you were faring, whether you were eating well and sleeping peacefully. Your brother-in-law said, he reckoned you would be back in a couple of days, but how did it end up being so late? Ah, even if you were eager to return home, you didn't need to travel at night! What would you do if you encountered danger on the way, being a girl alone..." she rattled on without stopping once she started.
The incessant prattle was, to Hua Xiaomai's ears, immeasurably warm and dear. She stepped forward, hooked her arm around Erniang's, and coquettishly swayed a little.