'Where am I?' Squinting her eyes open, Zhu Na Ran shielded her eyes as she scanned the blank white area around her. There was no perception of up nor down. She felt like she was moving in place, as there was nothing to give her any frame of reference.
'Damn, this is looking pretty weird, if I do say so myself.
Well, at least that plum blossom smell faded away.' ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
If she had to continue inhaling that nauseating smell any longer, she was sure that she would throw up.
"What am I even supposed to do here, anyway? And where is Senior Sister? !?(･_･;?
I don't see her anywhere." She technically didn't see anything beyond herself.
"Hellooo?
Is anyone else there?
Hello? What am I supposed to do here?!" (๑•̀A•́๑)
Suddenly, the 'ground' below her feet began to rubble as something started to arise from the light in the form of a giant cloud.
'Eh? What the hell is this!?' Σ(゜゜)
Stretching her arms out, Zhu Na Ran tried to stabilize herself as the ground rumbled and shook as the clouds rose higher and higher the clouds suddenly disappeared.
"Hah? Why is there a teahouse here?" Σ(ﾟДﾟ;)
Looming over the white space, a bright red building with green titled roofing stood awkwardly alone with its delicate decorum and stark lack of surroundings and guests.
"Hmm, Mei Hua Teahouse," Zhu Na Ran muttered as she read the large golden plaque hanging over the teahouse's entrance. "Am I supposed to go in here?" 「(°ヘ°)
"Creak!" As if answering her question, the large red lacquer doors swung open; however, what laid beyond the doors was unclear.
"Whelp, I suppose I must head into the light." Although such actions were against her better judgment, she didn't have much of a choice.
Stepping over the threshold, she once again blinded by the mysterious light as she walked into the tea house.
"Welcome, patron! How many?"
'Hah?' Opening her eyes, she was met with the sight of a lively looking teahouse, as patrons and customers milled around drinking tea and munching on snacks. 'How the heck…'
"Dear patron?" The waiter in front of her called out once more.
"A-ah, a table for one, please," she managed to squeeze out as she looked around this mysterious place that popped out of nowhere. However, the weirdest part was perhaps the fact that those around her were a blurred image. It was as if she were in a dream, and everyone around her was just an illusion.
Yet, somehow, some items had a sense of clarity. Such as the decorations and environment as they radiated life and energy. It was as if she were inside one of those teahouses she frequented before.
"This way, dear patron," the faceless waiter beckoned as he slithered between the crowded tables.
"Uhh, thank you," Zhu Na Ran thanked as the waiter steered her to a small table that sat in the center of the room and with prime viewing of a stage. 'Hmm, is there going to be a play? Maybe a storyteller?
How exciting!' (≧∇≦)/
"What kind of tea will our patron be having?"
"Chrysanthemum, please. Oh, and a plate of tea cakes too!" （*＾＾*)
"Right away, dear patron!" The waiter quickly bowed before disappearing into the crowd.
The waiter returned with a piping hot pot of tea and a small snack plate as quickly as he left. "Your order, dear patron!"
"Thank you!"
Nodding their head, the waiter once again disappeared.
'Weird place, but their food is pretty good!' Biting into one of the tea cakes, she savored the mellow sweetness of roasted chestnuts, walnuts, and jujubes. 'How is it that I can taste the food here, yet I can't even see the faces of those around me? (๑꧆◡꧆๑)
Oh well! I'll figure it out soon enough!'╮(╯▽╰)╭
Polishing off the small cake, she took a sip of warm tea before looking at the other delightful snacks on her plate. Picking out a snow skin mooncake, it instantly reminded her of the upcoming holiday.
'Aiyah! That's right! Σ(゜゜)
New Year is almost here! How long has it been, two? Three weeks since we've left?'
Time seemed to fly and became blurred after this whole chaotic journey of hers.
'In any case, New Year is around the corner, and I still haven't gotten to eat any dumplings yet! (#｀ε´)
I don't even know if we'll even make it back in time for New Year at this rate, ah.'
Guzzling down her tea, Zhu Na Ran wallowed in her tiny misery. However, it quickly evaporated as the fragrant scent of plum blossoms flooded the room.
"Ughh, not this smell again… I think I'm gonna puke," she gagged as she attempted to block out the pungent smell of the sweet flowers. (*>_<*)
Drinking some more tea, she was able to hold back the food that was threatening to come back up from whence it came.
Luckily for her, the smell faded away and only lingered in the air, making it barely manageable for her to breathe.
"I never want to smell plum blossom scented anything ever again!" If someone were to wear it and try to come close to her, she wasn't sure if she'd be able to hold herself back like today. (ｏ＿ ＿)ｏ
Suddenly the lights dimmed in the room and focused around the closed curtains of the stage.
"Ohh, it's starting!"
"Ahh, I wonder which play they will show us this time?"
"Hmm, last time it was the tale of two brothers uniting the nation, perhaps this time it will be another heroic tale…"
"No, no, no. If that was the case, then Mei Hua Teahouse has really run out of ideas! A place like this should keep their plays fresh and unique!"
"Yes, yes, I agree! It would be rather stale if it were another hero's tale."
'Eh? So they do plays here too? (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o)))
Wow! Good food and entertainment?! This is great!' (*°∀°)=3
Although Zhu Na Ran knew that she should exercise some caution, she believed that she deserved a small break after all that she's been through.
'Though, it would be nice if Senior Sister were here…' ( ´･ω･)
After all, happiness is only real when shared.
The crowd murmured with excitement as the curtains slowly pulled themselves open to reveal two actors dressed in decorative attire with their painted faces and finely embroidered clothes.
Once again, the plum blossom scent came back, however, not the full force fury from before.
'Ugh, they're wearing too much perfume!' (III _ _)o
Thankfully, her reaction to the smell was far more mellow.
"Dear Patrons," a person dressed in simple attire and an ornate fox mask came out from the side of the stage with another smaller person with a bunny mask. "We, of Mei Hua Teahouse would like to present to you our newest addition to our theater, 'The Story of Lovebirds!'"
The crowd oohed and awed at the idea of a first-time production. This was clearly something that they hadn't expected before, a love story.
"Now," the masked bunny announcer spoke up. "Let the show begin!"
---
"Right this way, Miss Ye," the faceless eunuch gestured towards the small banquet table in the banquet hall full of faceless people. However, despite not being able to make out most figures in the room, Ye Lian Hua knew she was in the imperial palace.
At least, the illusion of it.
"Thank you," nodding slightly at the eunuch; Ye Lian Hua sat down at her seat as the rest of the faceless guests milled around.
Picking up the cup of tea, she checked to see if there was anything malicious hidden underneath its mundane disguise. However, she found nothing.
Despite this, she didn't drink from the daint cup or touch the table's food. She didn't want to take the risk of there being a trap hidden away in this elaborate scheme.
'I wonder where Junior Sister was whisked off to.'
After that bright white light flooded the crypt, along with the intoxicating smell of plum blossoms, she found herself in a white space, devoid of any life.
However, like an array had been set off, clouds suddenly appeared and formed the imperial palace's grand entry gates.
As if expecting her to enter, the heavy gates opened themselves to reveal the ornate palace interior. And so, Ye Lian Hua found herself amongst the line of faceless nobles awaiting to be announced and enter the hall.
Now that whole ordeal was over, all she could really do is wait and see what else this mystical array wanted to show her or make her do.
The palace musicians suddenly halted their song as two figures walked down the banquet aisle, head straight to the faceless emperor.
"Greetings, Your Highness," the masked fox figure bowed alongside their companion, who wore a rabbit one.
"Rise, my subjects," the emperor laughed jovially. "What do my dear subjects come to present us with.[1]"
"Your Majesty," the bunny masked figure bowed in greeting. "We of Mei Hua Theater and Teahouse come to present to you our latest production, The Story of Lovebirds."
[1] Royal We - In Imperial China, the majestic imperial pronoun was expressed by the character zhen4. In fact, this was the former Chinese first-person singular pronoun (that is, 'I'). However, following his unification of China, the emperor Shi Huangdi abrogated it entirely for personal use. Previously, the use of the first-person pronoun in formal courtly language was already uncommon, with the nobility using the self-deprecating term gua3ren2 ('lonely one') for self-reference, while their subjects referred to themselves as chen2 ('subject,' original meaning 'servant' or 'slave'), with an indirect deferential reference like zu2xia4 ('below [your] foot'), or by employing a deferential epithet (such as the adjective yu2, 'foolish').