Chapter 25: The Zhen Tea Room
The Zhen Tea Room was old - exquisitely maintained, like a beauty preserved by a meticulous taxidermist centuries ago. It was a curious blend of cultures, although it leaned more toward Eastern Asian style than European. The velvet walls of dark jade-green had embroideries of lotus flowers. The chandelier was adorned with faint red rice papers. The subtly flowery scent in the air had undertones of burning incense sticks.
As I walked in, escorted by the two messengers that came to ’invite’ me over here earlier, Councilor Zhen came and greeted me with a perfectly angled polite bow. It was a bow that showed great respect, but not deep enough to signal submission.
"Thank you very much for coming, Miss Roen," the lady had a gentle, whispering voice that carried cryptic wisdom.
"Thank you for the invitation, Councilor,"
"It is an honor to receive you here. I do apologize that I did not reach out sooner"
"It-, it is fine."
After the suitable pleasantries were exchanged, she gestured for the two messengers to leave the room and led me to the table at the center.
The wooden table was simple yet expertly polished. Its surface was natural and smooth, just like the chairs and other items around the room. It was as if they had a tree that grows to become furniture.
The Councilor lifted a porcelain teapot and poured me a cup. It had no handles, but the thickness of it meant it didn’t feel too hot to touch.
"Please try the tea. This is a proud product of my family."
I took a sip. It had a kind of bitterness that made you want to drink more. At least as good as the tea I had in the Garden that Luc took me for a break before.