Bai Youwei walked into the luminous square. Inside was a vast blankness of white — no different from every other maze she’d entered before.
She continued forward.
Gradually the white mist dissolved. She felt the smooth asphalt road beneath her feet. The air entering her lungs turned damp and heavy. A few more steps, and before her stood a towering European-style iron gate.
The gate was grand and imposing. The iron bars rose perfectly straight, entwined with lacework carvings of rose vines — lavish and elegant.
On either side of the gate stretched high walls.
Beyond that, nothing but trees.
Poplar trees, elm trees, birch trees, cherry trees… and many others Bai Youwei couldn’t name.
She noticed a display panel mounted to one of the pillars beside the gate and walked over to press the call button.
After a brief wait, two security guards came out. One of them spoke to her through the gate, asking who she was.
Bai Youwei passed the Friend Invitation Card through for him to see.
At first, the security guard’s expression was blank — and then, as though the settings of his mind had been overwritten, his face underwent a swift change. He smiled and said:
“Ah, you must be a friend of the young miss. Miss Bai, please come in.”
He opened the iron gate and welcomed Bai Youwei inside, then added respectfully: “Miss Bai, please wait just a moment.”
He raised his walkie-talkie and said into it: “…Send a car over. The young miss’s friend has arrived… Yes, right here at the main gate.”
Bai Youwei was quietly astonished: this place really was enormous — coming through the main gate still required a car to collect you.
After a short wait, sure enough, a white four-seater vehicle pulled up — similar to the electric carts used on golf courses, but with a far more elegant design.
The cart glided to a stop in front of Bai Youwei. The servant driving it gave her a nod of greeting.
Bai Youwei climbed in, and the cart turned and started back the way it came.
After a stretch of lane dappled with sunlight filtering through the tree canopy, the view suddenly opened up — a vast, level expanse of grass stretched all the way to the distant manor, and the sight was nothing short of breathtaking.
And yet…
It was beautiful here, but living in a place like this would give you the feeling of being completely cut off from the world — an eerie, hollow stillness.
Considering Fu Miaoxue’s spirited, unpredictable nature, Bai Youwei found it difficult to picture her living in a place with so little in the way of human presence.
A few minutes later, Bai Youwei arrived at the front entrance.
Maids in identical uniforms stood waiting at the door to receive her. As they ushered her inside, one of them said:
“The young miss is in class. Please make yourself comfortable — she won’t be long.”
Bai Youwei followed them inside and looked around with curious eyes.
How to describe it… the word “resplendent” wouldn’t be far off. But it was a resplendence of an old-fashioned sort — one that brought to mind the word “decadent.”
Heavy dark-red velvet drapes hung in elaborate layers. A full set of silver dining pieces gleamed brilliantly. Candlesticks, a fireplace, wingback chairs, and a cashmere rug of extraordinary quality and detail spread like thick oil paint across the stone floor —
The servants all around moved in hushed, held-breath silence, which added a suffocating weight to the solemn stillness of the vast building.
Bai Youwei sat in the parlor tea room, cradling a lovely enamel porcelain cup. She thought to herself: as expected, this is a dream — this tea, going down her throat, had absolutely no taste.
So this building and all its security guards and servants were false people simulated by the maze.
She needed to think this through — when she came face to face with Fu Miaoxue, what exactly should she say? She couldn’t be too blunt, but couldn’t be too roundabout either… The goal was to make Fu Miaoxue willing to leave of her own accord.
Tap tap tap tap —
The crisp sound of footsteps approached.
Bai Youwei looked up. A polished young woman in an elegant socialite’s dress came walking toward her.
There was, after all, some difference between a puppet and a real person — Bai Youwei stared for a moment before recognizing Fu Miaoxue.
She seemed to be holding back a fire, and her high heels struck the thick carpet with enough force to ring out clearly.
“Young miss, please mind your composure.”
Behind Fu Miaoxue, a tall, middle-aged woman called after her.
Fu Miaoxue bit her lip, barely concealing her resentment, but she did ease the weight of her footsteps a fraction — and she came all the way forward, cold-faced, until she was standing directly in front of Bai Youwei.
—