Women are not to smoke in public, with or without an escort:

While this particular social more is neither here nor there considering that the air quality itself causes me to hack like a chain smoker, I find it quite the double standard that men can puff away anywhere their lungs desire but women cannot even though, statistically, equal numbers of men and women in China smoke. Again, in order to set a good example for my students, I do not light up anywhere on or in the vicinity of campus, even though Chinese custom dictates that, upon meeting someone for the first time, you offer them a cigarette whether they are male or female. Thus I have been offered cigarettes, but was not allowed to smoke them. Right now, I don't think my lungs could stand it, anyway!