In Liyue, tradition is held in the highest esteem, its essence distilled into the rituals that punctuate daily life.
And among these, the most sacred is the funeral rite—the ceremony that proclaims a life's end.
To manage death with dignity is the final respect paid to a mortal.
It is the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor of Liyue that grants this respect, serving as the hand that lays the final, graceful stroke upon the scroll of one's life.
...
As for the young director who presides over the Parlor, there is scarcely a soul in all of Liyue who does not know of her.
That one so young could shoulder the weighty legacy of the 77th Director surprised many, a feat that commands respect in its own right.
Yet, on the other hand...
Whenever Director Hu Tao becomes the subject of conversation, the expressions of neighbors often turn complicated.
Her personality is simply too whimsical, too unpredictable, making her a force difficult to reckon with.
Whenever she accosts the very-much-alive with enthusiastic promotions for the Parlor's services, even cheerfully declaring offers like "second one half-price," people are often left utterly speechless.
Lately, however, the ever-present Director Hu Tao, usually so vibrant and active in her solicitations across Liyue Harbor, has grown uncharacteristically quiet.
This shift has left not only the neighbors, so often the targets of her fervor perplexed, but even the seasoned attendants of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor are at a loss.
What in the world could be the matter with Director Hu Tao?
Rumors whisper of a late-night drinker, returning home, who glimpsed the Director seated alone upon a rooftop, her chin cradled in her hands as she gazed thoughtfully at the stars.
Another tale tells of Old Huang, long listed among the Director's "priority clients," who once would have fled at the sight of her. When they chanced upon each other in the street, he braced for the usual sales pitch.
"Well, Old Huang! You're looking quite well today!" Yet, to his astonishment, Director Hu Tao merely offered a glance, a genial greeting, and continued on her way.
Old Huang: ???
Something was profoundly not right.
There must be something wrong with Director Hu Tao!
She didn't even try to sell me a coffin!?
...
The morning sun was warm and gentle, its light spilling over the harbor and banishing the last remnants of the recent, strange climate phenomena.
At the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor,
Director Hu Tao was, once again, leaning lazily against a balcony railing, her distant gaze following the ducks gliding on the water below.
An attendant Zhang emerged from within. After a moment's hesitation, he approached.
"Director."
Hu Tao turned her head, a familiar smile playing on her lips. "Oh, old man Zhang! Is there something you need?"
It's not me who has something going on; it's you!
Attendant Zhang shook his head with a wry smile. "Director... have you run into some trouble lately?"
"Me? Nothing special." Her expression was one of genuine puzzlement. "Why do you ask?"
"Well... it's like this." He chose his words with care. "Lately, Director, your enthusiasm for promoting the Parlor's services seems to have... diminished. May I ask the reason?"
"Huh?" She blinked. "But when it comes to funeral services, isn't it better to wait until the need arises and clients come to us themselves?"
"At~tendant Zhang." Her tone shifted to one of mock sternness. "If you put it that way, this Director must criticize you! Promoting our services to those who have no present need for them is a surefire way to earn their dislike, you know!"
???
Zhang nearly choked on his own breath.
You are the absolute last person who should be saying that!!
"Alright, alright, just kidding! Hehe!" The sly smile returned in an instant, and she stuck out her tongue.
Zhang wiped a bead of cold sweat from his temple. "Then, Director... what exactly is going on with you?"
"Hmm~~~~" She turned away, resting her chin back on her hand. A profound listlessness settled over her features. "It's nothing, really. I just... suddenly feel unmotivated."
"Unmotivated?" The word startled him. This was serious! "How could such a thing happen?"
What did she mean? Had she lost interest in the Parlor? Did she wish to step down as Director??
"Hey, don't be nervous! That's not what I meant." Hu Tao waved a dismissive hand. Once he had calmed, she continued, her voice softer. "Old Zhang... have you ever experienced it? You persist in something for a long, long time, only to wake up one day and realize... you yourself no longer know why you are persisting?"
"This..." He frowned, his expression pained. "I am a bit dull, Director. I'm afraid I don't quite follow."
"Ah, I get it. I get it." A shadow of confusion crossed her own face. "Truthfully... I don't really understand it myself, either. I just feel... as if I've forgotten something important."
"Think of it," she continued, her gaze drifting away again. "Our Wangsheng Funeral Parlor takes money from the living to send the dead on their way. We treat every client's final journey with the utmost respect. It is precisely because of this that our neighbors trust us to handle their most sacred of duties."
"Since that is the case, why should I go out and pester people? Sooner or later, when the time comes, every household in Liyue will come to us. Why court their displeasure by approaching them beforehand?"
"The Director is right about that," Attendant Zhang conceded with a nod.
He and the other attendants had never truly understood her previous insistence on that very practice, which had so unsettled the community.
"So, you see? Isn't it a good thing that I've finally had a change of heart?" She looked back at him, her smile not quite reaching her eyes. "What are you so worried about, Old Zhang?"
"This... The Director is correct." He wanted to press further, but the words died in his throat. He simply bowed his head in agreement.
Both of them knew, with perfect clarity, that the heart of the matter lay not in business philosophy, but in the sudden, dramatic shift in the Director's very temperament.
"Alright, Old Zhang, you may return to your duties." A yawn overtook her. "The weather is so nice today... This Director is going to catch a little sleep."
She retreated to her room, fell onto the soft expanse of her bed, and soon slipped into slumber.
She did not know how long she slept.
Then, abruptly, her eyes flew open.
She pushed herself up slowly, the haze of sleep gone, replaced by a devastating clarity.
"I remember now."
Her whisper was a fracture in the silence. "I remember... everything..."
Her plum-blossom eyes widened, glistening with tears that had gathered without her notice.
Her lips quivered, then parted.
A raw, guttural sob tore from her throat. "Liar!" she wailed, the word bursting forth with the force of long-suppressed grief. "You idiot! You big, stupid liar!"
"You promised me! You said you would wait for me at 'the Border'! You said you'd wait for me to bring you back!"
"Wahhhh...!"
"I was so afraid they wouldn't recognize you...! Every time, I reminded the uncles and aunts, the elders... I made them remember your face...!"
"But all these years...! Not a single trace...! Not one...! Wahhhh...!"
...
The "Border," nestled within the mists of Wuwang Hill, is the fragile line that divides the living from the dead, a threshold guarded for generations by the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
There, the souls of the newly departed retain a fleeting moment of clarity.
If a messenger is ever needed to bridge the realms of light and shadow, one who has just crossed that threshold is the perfect candidate.
And so, for years, whenever Hu Tao learned of a life nearing its end, she would go to them. She would endure their annoyance, their discomfort, and offer the services of the Wangsheng Parlor.
Her proposal was simple: upon reaching the Border, they would search for a boy, a cherished face from her past. In return, she would personally oversee their funeral, offering the most generous terms, a final journey of unparalleled dignity.
It began with hope, a bright and fervent flame.
But year after year, that hope was met only with disappointment.
Until, finally, the flame guttered and died, leaving behind the cold ashes of despair.
Hu Tao no longer believed her childhood friend was waiting at the Border.
Yet, the human heart must cling to something, some shred of purpose to endure.
Perhaps her own mind, in a desperate act of self-preservation, had let the true, painful reason fade, leaving behind only the hollow, relentless compulsion to promote, to solicit, to perform the motions of a duty that had lost its soul.
"Where did you go...?"
Alone on her bed, the formidable Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, the vibrant, trickster girl known to all Liyue, wept without restraint, her small frame shaking with the weight of a sorrow held for far too long.
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A/n: Hey over on my patreon there are currently two for the time being exclusive books which are
Zenless Zone Zero: Loving Daily Life Starting in New Eridu
Honkai Impact 3rd, I Can Transform into a Valkyrie!
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