"Whew..." Zeng Mu drew a deep breath, held it for a moment, then slowly exhaled. His mind felt exceptionally clear and focused, as though every trace of discomfort within him had been cleansed away.
"This really is paradise..." he murmured. Who could have imagined a place like this? Calling it a blessed haven would be no exaggeration.
Zeng Mu had come to meet Lady Viana, of course. That morning, she had whispered these words to him:
"Eight tonight. The Starry Night Flower House."
He glanced again at the moon dial on the wall. Its hands pointed to half past seven. Good, he was not late. He was relieved he had not overslept.
At the front desk stood a very young woman with short hair. After Zeng Mu greeted her, she set down the ledger in her hands and addressed him respectfully. "Good evening, sir. How may I help you?"
"You certainly have a lot of flowers here. How long has this place been open?" Rather than answering, Zeng Mu voiced his curiosity.
She smiled sweetly and answered with a touch of pride. "Yes, we have ninety-seven different kinds of flowers here, with more than forty-six distinct fragrances. No matter how bitterly cold it gets outside, the flowers inside this house keep blooming as though spring has been frozen in time."
"My grandmother opened this flower house when she was young. It's been fifty years now. At first, it was only five or six square meters, but now the first floor alone covers more than a hundred. Counting the six floors above, the total area is four hundred and twenty-one square meters."
Zeng Mu was generous with his praise. "Whew... That's incredible. In all these years, I've never seen a flower house like this. Even the Technology Garden in what used