She hears the whisper, the regret in his voice and slows to a stop as well, watching him carefully. Ah, so he is from further along. Over a year later and he seems to have turned an entirely new leaf. She listens patiently as he tries to explain and instead, invites her to ask questions.

Yanli takes a step closer toward him, closer than what is proper for two unmarried people. She hesitates for just a moment before reaching up slowly to scratch behind one fuzzy ear.

"May I?"

They obviously did not have any dogs since a-Xian's arrival. But that didn't mean she didn't dote on a-Cheng's dogs when he still had them.