Good Night, Elizabeth

The motorcade swept down the broad road, arriving punctually at the entrance to Taoyuan Residence at 6:30 p.m.

Taoyuan Residence was built against the mountains and beside the water, located in the outskirts of the Coastal New District. With a floor area of roughly 30,000 square meters, it was a Chinese-style garden estate that best suited the aesthetic tastes of Dragon Kingdom people.

Gray tiles and white walls enclosed an elegant realm, while moon gates concealed the serene charm of Su Family Garden. Pebbled paths wound through layered rockeries, their stone peaks lean, rugged, and jagged. The pond water was clear as a mirror, reflecting the weeping willows along its banks and the pink walls and dark-tiled roofs. Koi flicked their tails, breaking the reflections and sending ripples spreading across the surface.

Winding corridors curled through the grounds, bamboo blinds hanging beneath their eaves and rustling softly in the breeze. Delicately carved flower windows lined both sides, their hexagonal, fan-shaped, and begonia-patterned lattices framing the scenery of all four seasons. Every step revealed a new painting. Pavilions stood beside the pond, their upturned eaves seeming to lift the drifting clouds. Stone tables and bamboo chairs sat within them, with celadon tea sets laid upon the tables. The fragrance of tea mingled with the breeze off the lotus pond and the scent of osmanthus, filling the air.

Sparse clusters of bamboo stood by the walls, banana leaves glistening green, while the occasional sparrow perched among the branches and chirped.

The entire place was elegant and ethereal, free of elaborate ornamentation. Yet amid the harmony of mountains, water, architecture, and flowers, it concealed the Chinese Zen sentiment of "though made by human hands, it seemed born of nature itself."

Upon entering the garden, Elizabeth looped her arm through Jiang Che's. As they