Zhou Li glanced at his phone and replied to a few messages.
But Hong Ran still hadn't replied to him.
In the evening, he received two calls: one from his uncle and the other from his mother.
He didn't talk to his uncle for long. After exchanging blessings, they just asked each other about the pandemic situation. A few days ago, Zhou Li had sent them several boxes of masks, and according to his uncle, they hadn't run out yet. Then his aunt took over the phone. Women always seemed to have more to say about the trivialities of daily life than men did. Soon, Zhou Li learned from his aunt how his cousin was now being disdained at home for her slothfulness—sleeping in late, not washing her face after getting up, hardly leaving her room except for meals and using the bathroom, and even locking her bedroom door... In short, she was quite different from the somewhat aloof and sophisticated girl she appeared to be at school.
