[ Are they stealing? Maybe. He gives the reticent ghosts a grateful nod for their silence, feeling a little awkward at rooting around in their cupboards (but not by much given their imprisonment of Wen Kexing to do their morbid cooking). ]

It's a lot like Yunmeng back where I came from, a lake-city. Yancai has been going back in time [ yes, he really said that, look at his wry expression, ] since I arrived. At first it was dilapidated, then slowly became more prosperous. The dead were attacking on the night I found myself on a pier, waters overrun with bodies that needed to be ... dealt with.

Usually, it's very quiet. The entire realm has shifted formation many times, my brother tells me. Locations are not permanent. [ Musing on his spices, he adds, ] I will miss the bath-house when we move on. Hopefully this house will not become the new normal.