Good thing Li Lianhua isn't looking for anyone to be loyal or soft to him, then. All that nonsense is more likely to get a teenager removed from his home than being bratty is. No, eating his food is good enough for him. So everyone may yet get what they want from this visit.

Especially since the wind and waves in this little teacup seem to have abated for now. The notion that his dishes might be considered fancy makes Li Lianhua laugh, a soft huff of amusement that ruins his woeful act. If the boy wants fancy, he should talk to either of the other occupants of this house, really. Compared to those, Li Lianhua is just a down-to-earth, simple... well, nothing in particular, here. At last, truly just some guy.

"I wasn't expecting anything," he lies, with an innocent little shrug. "I just know not everyone has easy access to a stove and a full pantry. It's rude to presume, isn't it?" Even if you end up being right. Speaking of pantries, he reaches up on a shelf, running his fingertips over several jars until he finds the right one, then tosses a decent helping of dried mushrooms into the soup. "Oh by the way, how do you feel about spicy food? I was thinking of adding some chili and seeing how it treats us, eh? Nice and bracing."