In the early morning, Sean opened his eyes in the sun-lit bedroom. As he began to get up, his body ached all over - his throat was raw, his forehead burned, and he was drenched in sweat.

Upon returning home after sending Jason to school, his wife, Sharon, opened the wooden door and saw him looking flushed and pale. So she immediately scanned his forehead with a thermometer and realised he was down with a high fever. She panicked and helped him into the wheelchair before wheeling him to the clinic near their house.

Before they reached the clinic, they saw a long queue of people wearing masks, sneezing and coughing, before reaching the registration counter. This forced them to wait miserably. It was cold outside after the rain, and Sean folded his arms to seek warmth and comfort. Sharon noticed it, so she took off a thick blanket from her bag and wrapped it around him. She then rubbed her hands before holding his hand and said, “Don’t worry, you’ll be fine.”

As they waited for their turn, Sean asked her, “Darling, am I useless?”

His wife replied, “What made you say that?”

He then recalled what happened the day before, when his boss brought his nephew and said, “From tomorrow onwards, you don’t have to come anymore. He will come and replace you.” He even remembered the times he was dragged into the elevator, taken down to the reception lobby, and then kicked out of the building. He described how these events have torn him despite spending several hours running across different sites, diagnosing and repairing machines with little rest for higher pay. In the end, he felt ashamed of his inability to feed the entire family.

After hearing that, Sharon said, “Don’t worry, dear, you’ve got me. Remember the vows we made during our wedding: no matter what happens, we will support each other. This time, let me feed the family.”

At first, Sean was unconvinced. “Really? But we used to share the burden. We have parents and children to take care of. Being a sole breadwinner is hard on you. I promised to make you happy.”

Sharon assured him, “Yes, but only if you’re happy. I don’t mind being the sole breadwinner. This is temporary. We can get through the dark times together.”

These words comforted him, and Sean gave her a nod.

It was finally their turn after queuing for a long time. The clerk at the counter scanned his identity card before escorting them to the consultation room.

The moment they opened the door, the room warmed them with cosiness. Dr Vincent stood up and directed the couple to the area beside his desk.

He began by getting Sean to place his hand on the cushion to take his pulse. Dr Vincent gently moved his fingers left and right before noting how rapidly it was beating.

Before taking the temperature, the doctor said, “Sir, it is going to be painful; just bear with it for a while.”

The probe was then inserted into Sean’s ear, so painful that he immediately closed his eyes until it was removed. This was where Dr Vincent confirmed that he was having a high fever.

Lastly, Dr Vincent got him to stick his tongue out before pressing it lightly with an ice cream stick and shining the torchlight, where he discovered the redness in his throat.

At the end of the diagnosis, Dr Vincent concluded that he had little rest time due to overwork, which led to the flu he was suffering from.

Upon hearing that, Sean murmured, “It’s not worth working for so long, only to be removed,” before repeating his story.

After Dr Vincent listened to it, he suggested, “Sir, you are not alone. Longer work doesn’t improve our lives. You need ample time to recuperate and recharge. Now, it’s time for you to take a rest and find a job that suits you well.”

Dr Vincent ended the session by prescribing Paracetamol and Lozenges to help him battle the infection.

Both of them moved on to collect the medicines from the dispensary counter before roaming the uphill street market, where they met the same baker at the bakery shop who had been selling red bean buns for over a decade.

She bought one and gave it to Sean. He asked, “Do you remember how we first met?”

They reminisced about the time when there was only one bun left on the display shelf, but there were two customers who had just entered the workforce as fresh graduates.

But both the young lady and the handsome lad wanted it badly. So he bought one and split it in half. Each time it entered their mouth, the red bean paste filled them with a simple joy amidst the challenges they faced. Since then, they continued to meet and date here, exploring the wonders of the street market. This was where love blossomed for the pair. Even for their wedding day, Sean and Sharon returned to the same spot to take their wedding photos, dressed in matching outfits.

When Sharon conceived their child, they returned to the market and shared the same bun that brought simple joy and a happy family.

Having been married for so many years, they were back here again. This time, for a new set of challenges to get through.

Sean once again took the bun from the wrapper, pulled it apart, and handed it to his wife.

Just before the couple ate it, they took a glance at the crust’s crunchy texture with the nostalgic red bean paste at the core.

Sharon smiled at him and said, “You once told me: this bread represents our soul. We share half of it, and our love will get stronger. We shall get through this together.” And both of them began to munch on the bread.

The moment they ate it, the sweetness of the paste and the tenderness of the crust brought them lots of precious memories. This taste reminded them that no matter how high the mountains were, love gave them the strength to reach the summit.

Later, Sean smiled at her and said, “Yes, only by supporting each other can we get through this together. It is now my turn to make up for my lost time with Jason, papa and mama.”

While Sharon continued working, he spent his time with his son, chatting and helping him with his school homework. Besides playing chess with his father, he helped his mother prepare meals for the entire family.

Other than restarting his job hunt, he started taking classes, learning how to use a software tool to build dashboards and perform data analysis. He even practised it by downloading similar programs and replicating what was taught with similar datasets.

He even signed up for a seminar and ran through difficult interview questions with his career coach. For every interview he sat for, Sean demonstrated how he applied the skills he had learned in practical applications and answered their questions confidently. Even rejection stung, but he refused to let it define him, and he kept practising until a manufacturing company contacted him.

As he opened the door of a meeting room, he was invited to sit in the middle chair facing directly at the group of interviewers, with each of them asking about his background and experiences. Just like other interviews, he answered their questions and explained how his skills would add value to their businesses. They were amazed by his replies and were excited to know him more.

At the end of the panel discussion, the Vice President from the factory automation business unit asked, “So what are your aspirations?”

He repeated uncertainly, “Aspirations…?”

“Yes,” said the VP.

This question left him blank, and Sean did not know how to answer. Even as all eyes in the room fixed on him, he took a deep breath for a few seconds, and the answer slowly took shape in his mind. He did not know whether this was acceptable, but it was the only answer he had.

So he took a gamble and responded, “Well…I aspire to build dashboards to analyse the machine’s behaviour and fix issues before they occur. If this becomes a success, I hope to apply this approach to factories across the globe.”

Taken aback by the depth of the response, the panel fell silent for a moment. This left Sean more nervous, wondering what would come next. Would this help him or oust him?

In the end, they were touched by his futuristic vision and offered him the position of operational data analyst. Sean could hardly believe it. He leapt up in joy and shouted, “YESS! YESS!! YESS!!” He quickly ran forward and shook their hands, thanking them for this opportunity. The chief replied, “Looking forward to working together with you.”

As soon as he returned home, the entire family welcomed him back with cheers and great celebration. They gathered at the table and chatted happily while enjoying their sumptuous dinner with Sean’s favourite food and dessert. Such a delicious meal gave him a taste of victory after a long search for a suitable job.

The next day, he returned to the workforce to help the firm build dashboards to monitor the equipment health on the shop floor. This saved money and time for maintenance, which enabled the factory to meet its production target. Ever since, Sean has found his new career fulfilment and continued his journey there.

Writing stories on Substack is a major step in sharing your perspectives with readers looking for solutions to improve themselves. It also opens the door to the world of shared human experience, including the victories, the struggles and the events in between. However, not all stories land the same way. Different techniques adopted by the writer shape how deeply the reader feels, thinks, and remembers at the end. So before writing the next one, let’s revisit the foundations of writing, the structure that transforms a good story into something that leaves a lasting mark on the hearts and minds of the audiences you’re trying to help.

The Writing Structure

This structure is divided into three stages: Introduction, Development, and Ending. These will ensure that the flow is smoother and easier for readers to follow. This engages your audience continuously and leads them to the end of the story, proving your value and worth in the community.

So here’s what to write in different stages:

1. Introduction

Begin by describing the common problems people are facing, including how disruptive it has been to their lives and how they feel about it. This serves as a hook to show how closely it relates to readers’ everyday lives. The struggles in learning new skills, once a romantic relationship turned into a battlefield, and being humiliated by a powerful colleague at work are the issues faced by many people. By relating these to your audience, you will keep them reading in search of solutions; this is where the development stage comes into play.

2. Development

This stage is a very important part of the story. Seize this opportunity to unleash your creativity and immerse your readers in your imaginative world. From there, walk the journey with your characters as they meet their mentor, who will guide them in seeking solutions that will lead to success.

In Part I of Colours of the Night, I did not say Samuel went into the food court to eat dinner. I began by describing the atmosphere of the food court and how he felt as I brought him in. Later, I guided him to meet his mentor, an old granny who founded a Peranakan Stall, mirroring her past experiences to the current problems he was facing. This will bring readers to the same dining table as Samuel, get the same advice from his mentor, and they will feel part of the story.

Remember, whatever the ending is, the process that you have written determines your worth, and this comes down to your writing technique.

Whichever techniques you adopt, ensure that the flow is clear and easy for readers to follow. Otherwise, your subscribers will stop reading halfway. They won’t find it useful, and you’ll lose them. If this were to happen, all the time and effort you have invested will be in vain. If you are keen on the writing techniques that keep readers reading, do keep a lookout for the next part of my writing recipe.

In serialised fiction, the journey typically unfolds across different chapters. It is not advisable to end your chapter with just the process. Instead, complete the chapter with a sub-ending that hooks them into the next one. This includes what the next event will be like, the major progress made that keeps readers motivated, or the poor ending that leaves the audience wondering whether the protagonist will overcome it. Wrapping it up this way keeps readers engaged and draws them into the next part, which will bring them to the end of the story.

3. Ending

This stage is what every reader looks forward to. Whether it is the consequences of careless actions or the success reaped from their hard work, describe what the ending is like for the main character, including their emotions. This will let the audience see how different paths have greatly impacted them, influencing them to decide their next course of action, which affects where they will end up. So if you want your stories to end well and successfully guide your audience toward their dream goal, describe the ending in a way that lets readers feel the weight of different approaches.

Conclusion

To summarise, following this writing structure makes reading easier for both the writer and the audience. It also helps deliver the message to your readers clearly and effectively. By describing the problem, the journey towards the solution, and the result of the character’s actions, you will immerse your readers in the world you want them to be in. Only then will your story bring emotions to the audience and prompt them to reflect on their actions. This will help readers connect with your story on the same wavelength and ultimately earn your story high ratings. Being able to apply the structure is the foundation of storytelling. In the next part, I will uncover the writing techniques that make the story memorable to your readers.

As the sun settled down, Joseph opened the glass door and walked out of the office building. He was laid off after 15 years at a software engineering company. He applied for and was interviewed for multiple roles, only to be rejected by all the companies, including the most recent one at a renowned semiconductor firm. These events hurt him badly, with no clear direction in his career prospects, which led to self-doubt. Without knowing what would happen next, Joseph felt sad and a bit lost, as if he were waiting in the fog for something to show him the way.

He walked along a row of companies that had rejected him, across the pavement, before entering the station’s gigantic hall, where he boarded an orange high-speed train, followed by a silver metro beneath the city, into a world of bustling colours.

The moment he stepped out of the station, he was amazed by the sights of his childhood memories. He ran into the streets of a night market, where brightly lit signboards in various colours attracted shoppers into the vibrant haven. Joseph strolled through the booths, where he saw people negotiating prices for fruits, buddies shooting darts at balloons, teenagers matching themselves with trendy shirts, and food sellers preparing a variety of snacks at affordable prices.

He then came across a fried chicken cutlet stall run by a young couple. Though they were university graduates expected to work in a corporate setting, they took a less-travelled path and chose to fry a cutlet. While he saw the husband coating the meat in the tray of corn and potato starches, the wife dipped them into the wok of hot oil. A sizzling sound erupted as the aroma filled the air.

Being intrigued by its fragrance, Joseph decided to try it. After he purchased it, he took a bite of the chicken cutlet, where the crispy coating, enhanced by pepper flavours, brought him into a time machine. It reminded him of the childhood times when he pointed to the cutlet at the night market and asked his parents to buy it. This moved him to tears as he rediscovered the joy he had been searching for.

While he was munching on the cutlet, Joseph commented, “It’s rare to find a chicken cutlet this good. I am impressed that both of you can make something like this at such a young age. How did you get started?”

The guy preparing the chicken began narrating a heartwarming story where they frequently spent their time dating here after lessons. His wife expressed how much this place had brought them so much happiness that they could hardly leave. So after completing their studies, they invested their entire savings into setting up a stall to fry it.

Joseph continued asking, “Shouldn’t y’all be looking for a full-time job?”

The husband replied that since they enjoyed doing what they liked, they had called this place a second home, and these moments had touched Joseph’s heart and given him a new source of inspiration.

Upon finishing a bag of it, he praised the couple, “I have never tasted such a flavourful cutlet like this. It brings back memories. Thank you so much.”

Joseph took a long stroll along a row of shops, lined with toys and accessories, before taking a train back home. Once he returned, he stared at a beautiful artwork which he had painted when he was just a little child.

So what was inside the canvas? During an art lesson at an elementary school, he dipped his brush into a palette before colouring the majestic mountain behind his family of three. The painting itself was so spectacular that even his mentor showed it to the entire class. In the end, they crowded around and praised him for his remarkable talent. They even suggested that Joseph would study art in the future, but life’s realities led him to a different path.

Now that he had no other commitments, Joseph had finally decided to pursue his artistic dream.

The next morning, he woke up, freshened up, and ate his minced meat porridge seasoned with sesame oil and parsley before making a trip to a famous art store where he met a long-time shopkeeper.

Once he stepped into the shop, an elderly man recognised him and asked, “Hey, young man, do you recognise me? I have seen you walking around my store when you were little.”

Joseph was stunned at first. But as he looked closer at the shopkeeper, he exclaimed, “Yes! Uncle Ma, I remembered you! You showed me around the store, and you looked as youthful as before!”

The shopkeeper asked, “So now you have decided to paint? There are so many things to choose from.”

He replied, “Since I have nothing to do, why not pursue something that I like?”

Uncle Ma commented, “Young man, I said before, you are very talented. You should have been an artist a long time ago. Come, let me show you.”

So Joseph followed him to different corners of the shelves, where he saw some old paint brushes and a box of paint tubes that had been standing there for decades. Among the tools displayed on the shelves, the canvas drew him in the most. Despite its small size, the texture of the canvas allowed smooth brushwork, which enabled him to produce such an amazing piece while in school.

It brought back nostalgic memories of when he longed for these tools but was too poor to afford them.

As he slid his hand across the canvas texture, the shopkeeper further explained, “Boy, this canvas is a treasure! Not only is it made stitch by stitch, but it also blends perfectly with our brushes and acrylic paints. They may seem old, but they are of premium quality. These items are not easily found.”

Joseph murmured, “No wonder…”

Uncle Ma further suggested that, as a form of encouragement, these tools be taken for free. He smiled brightly at the shopkeeper as he collected these items and said, “Thanks for providing me with the materials I need, Uncle Ma. I will not disappoint you.”

As soon as he returned home, he quickly set up the stand with a blank canvas on it, squeezed out different colours of the acrylic paint into the palette, transforming his study room into his very own art studio.

But what to paint?

He had no idea. He turned on his laptop to look at various paintings by renowned artists. From the panoramic view of a train passing by an iconic snowcap volcano, to pioneers living in ancient times, to even children gazing at magical northern lights shining over the winter wonderland, Joseph was amazed by how imaginative it was to document such memories into an artistic form.

So he set his creative mind to revive the whimsical night market he had visited the previous night.

As he took a pencil, he began drawing different angles of the paradise, which included the game booths, apparel, toy and accessory shops, and the couple frying pepper cutlets. It slid across the canvas with a dry, raspy sound, just like sandpaper brushing against the grain. He even filled a walkway with a sea of people.

After he completed his pencil outline, he took a paintbrush given by Uncle Ma and dipped it into the yellow paint to colour the signboard of the fried pepper cutlet. Afterwards, he used other colours to render the rest of this beautiful wonderland. To complete this painting, Joseph mixed blue with black acrylic before showering the top with the night sky. At last, he sparkled the sky with stars by flickering a fan brush with white pigments. This left the canvas documented with the story of a bustling haven.

With the completed artwork, Joseph carried it to the same market at night, looking around for his first customer. Despite searching every corner, he found no one buying it. But when he came across the same couple frying the cutlet, he showed them the canvas with the pair inside.

Captivated by its imaginative scenery, they bought the painting for $1000. This motivated him to pursue art in his new career. From then on, he continued to paint more works, but very few people bought them. Even if there were customers, they were sold at lower prices. This was not enough to make a living.

After a year, a middle-aged lady paused to admire his latest painting, “The Wish City,” where thousands of people released various colours of sky lanterns, penned with their wishes.

Immersed in their aspirations, she invited him to join the media company, where he became the animator to design and move characters in the scenery, which made their stories come alive.

Not long after, Joseph and his team were awarded the Golden Horse Awards for the best animated feature. Since then, he found joy in his work and spent his fulfilling years bringing stories to life through animation.

Illustrations directed by Terry in collaboration with Gemini

As the evening light faded over the office towers, Samuel, a fresh graduate, struggled to optimise the number of neurons in a neural network. No matter how many neurons he had tried, he was met with low prediction accuracy. What had frustrated him even more was that he had to present his work by next week. These events worried him. If he were unable to complete it by then, it would raise concerns with his boss, and he might risk failing his probation. So he continued working on it.

The company’s entrance door was about to be locked, and the security guard told him to leave. Samuel had no choice but to pack up his laptop before walking out with his head drooped. Upon exiting the grand lobby, he walked past the office blocks towards an open food court, where office workers flocked in to chat over dinner.

Unlike other food courts, this was a round-shaped building, open to diners from every direction. Once a century-old wet market, it was turned into a food heaven for city dreamers. At the stroke of 7, the bell chimed from the clock tower at the centre of the pavilion. The chefs began preparing their favourite meals, with sizzling fumes drifting into the air. He went into the majestic hall, squeezing through the crowd before finding his seat.

As he placed his bag onto a chair, he caught a fragrant aroma rising from a frying pan. Samuel then looked around the food stall, following the aroma to the one with the longest queue.

It turned out to be the one and only Peranakan Food Paradise in the republic. He joined the queue, where he saw a celebrity chef frying ingredients with a burst of colourful spices dancing in a wok while waiting for his turn. After a long time, a young lady approached him at the counter.

She asked, “Hey, handsome, what do you want to eat?”

From cubes of beef coated with curry paste, all the way to the fried spicy eggplant, Samuel stared at the menu display and was spoiled for choice.

Not knowing what to eat, he asked, “So what do you recommend?”

She replied, “Well, we have our signature dish, Ayam Tempra, where chickens are fried in dark and soy sauces. Do you want some?”

Samuel said, “Sure.”

He then made his payment by tapping his credit card before going back to his seat.

Illustrations directed by Terry in collaboration with Gemini

A few moments later, an old granny, dressed in her beautiful Sarong Kebaya decorated with Chinese motifs, came to his table, serving him a plate of dark sauce chicken and a bowl of blue rice in a plastic tray. After setting it down, she saw him frowning.

Being concerned about him, she asked, “You look troubled, sayang. What happened?”

He shook his head and described, “Well, I spent four years in a university studying so many modules, but I can’t even do a simple task. Am I a useless guy?”

She replied, “Sayang, you’re not. It’s another mountain you’ve got to climb.”

She then started singing, “

Once upon a time, I came here from the East,

A stranger in a new land, taken in as a cook.

No matter how I tried each day,

The dishes never turned out the way,

I hoped they would—I felt dismay,

And didn’t know what I had to change.”

Samuel curiously asked, “So….how did you end up here?”

She continued singing as choirs swirled around the dining tables, “

So I watched the hands that moved with grace,

Learned each step, each time, each place.

I tasted theirs, compared with mine,

Adjusted little things, one step at a time.

It wasn’t perfect, not at the start,

But slowly, I refined my art. ”

Then the choirs joined in to sing the chorus, “

So we tune and tune, again and again,

Let time and patience do their blend.

Trust the process, let it grow,

More than you may ever know.

And when it’s ready, you will see,

Their eyes will light up brilliantly.”

This song moved him so deeply that he was sure the Peranakans’ Ayam Tempra must be flavourful. So he picked up his fork and spoon before tearing the chicken meat and scooping it onto the rice.

Each bite burst with rich, homely flavours, as chicken, onions, and chillies harmonised in a savoury soy glaze steeped in history and devotion.

As he munched on the food, Samuel smiled at the elderly Nonya, as the flavours had carried him back to the bustling streets of the colonial era.

After eating, he commented, “Grandma, thanks a lot! I know what to do.” This put her at ease.

While he packed up, the grandmother handed him a handmade batik handkerchief with wing patterns and said, “Sayang, Good luck in whatever you do. Do come back here often.”

Samuel thanked her before returning the tray to the collection zone and taking the subway back home. While he sat on his bed, he took the handkerchief from his pocket and held it close. He had since enjoyed a good night’s sleep.

The next morning, Samuel returned to his office desk. He immediately turned on his laptop and started researching how others developed their models. Although he tried using the recommended number of neurons and increasing the layers, the results were still the same. He then adopted a block of code to compare neuron counts against the prediction accuracy before selecting the one that performed best. After making his choice, he allowed the neural network to learn from the data through iterative runs.

At last, his persistence bore fruit, yielding remarkably precise results. Samuel jumped so excitedly that it startled his colleagues at the table. Someone shouted across, “Could you stop jumping around?! Can’t you see we are very busy?!” He sat down awkwardly and contacted his boss to reschedule presentation appointments.

After Samuel presented his work, his supervisor was impressed by his model and subsequently handed him the confirmation letter to sign. He then handed Samuel more important tasks and raised his salary. Since then, he found fulfilment in his work and remained with the company for several years before being sought after by other companies.

Illustrations directed by Terry in collaboration with Gemini

At the end of a biology lecture, Hazel, an aspiring doctor, left the hall before making her way home. Since the subway station she usually used was out of service, she had to find another one nearby. This disrupted the strict schedule she relied on.

After searching for a long time, Hazel reached the station hidden in the jungle, where metallic gates were right in front of her. She placed her palm onto the scanner, which opened the doors. She passed through the faregate and entered the nature habitat. With no signboards to direct her, Hazel had to figure this out on her own.

The moment she ventured into the world of trees, she followed the concrete path. It split into two along the way; she chose the right one, thinking that it would lead her to the train platform. Little did she expect that it would bring her to a wall of blossoming, singing flowers.

They asked Hazel, “Do you want to sing with us?”

She replied, “No, thank you.”

She darted back to the split path and chose the other one, but ran into a mischievous red monkey, Toby. He threw his peeled banana onto the floor, causing her to slip and fall. With her back aching in pain, Toby climbed down the tree and snatched her bag, which made her furious. Hence, she got herself up before chasing him. As she closed the distance, the monkey panicked. So he climbed up the tree with her bag, only to meet a keeper, Amos, sitting at a branch while attending to the owls. This shocked the playful creature; he suddenly lost his grip and slammed down onto the ground.

Hazel put her anger aside and checked on the monkey. Amos stepped down the ladder before rushing towards Toby to examine his injury. Despite having fallen onto the hard stones, he twisted his body left and right with funny faces. Since the future doctor concluded that he was merely suffering from bruises, the keeper took out a magical ointment and applied the paste to it.

Toby healed his bruises instantly and swung around the trees with joy.

Amos then turned to Hazel and asked, “Hey, why are you here?”

She said, “I am on my way to the train platform. Any idea where it is?”

The animal keeper replied, “Train platform? I don’t know either.”

This left her head drooping with eyes on the ground.

Amos later added, “Maybe we can find it together?”

Finally, Hazel glanced at him with a bright smile. Later, the monkey waved at them, asking to join them on the mysterious trail, and they agreed.

The trio continued their journey and gazed at the waterfall roaring from a majestic mountain. It poured down the cliff and flowed freely in a river. The parallel passage then gave Hazel and her group their choices. She suggested that they split and see if it leads them to the platform.

She picked the one that guided her to a marble pavilion, where otters and swans were dancing in a huge pond. The moment they saw her, they curiously jumped onto the grass and crowded around her. Hazel became embarrassed. So she shied away from the cuddling cuties and dashed back to join the duo.

Amos and Toby went on another pavement where large water spiders soaked themselves in spring water. This had blocked their way, which creeped them out. As the student bolted towards the pair, the animal fans followed her like a celebrity. In the end, Hazel sprinted so fast that she collided with the pair and fell to the ground. The spiders felt the water vibrating, so they climbed up and joined the swans and otters in helping them up.

The moment they got up, an otter stared at Hazel and murmured, “Why is this lady here?” Amos responded that she was looking for a train back home. Upon hearing that, a swan asked the spider whether there was a way to get there.

The spiders sensed her rush and unfamiliarity, so they invited the group to enjoy their silk onsen before carrying on, which Amos accepted. Once they stepped into a gigantic tub, the gentle water warmed them up. While taking a hot bath, the attendants massaged their backs with hairy legs. The trio chatted happily with the arthropods as they relaxed in the jungle spa.

After they spent their time inside a pool, Hazel got back up along with Amos and Toby. The servants showed them the way to resume searching in rocky terrain. The team thanked the spiders for their service as they continued their journey. Unlike the slabs, the rough surface they hiked on was a roller coaster, and the three of them had to be wary of the steps, which slowed their paces.

This time, the road brought them to a small cave. Being drawn by curiosity, the monkey hopped off Amos’s arms and ran inside. Upon its dark entrance, several eyes were lit up, staring at Toby. He became terrified and fled back to the keeper’s arms. So Amos brushed his hand on the monkey’s fur while walking in together with Hazel.

Once inside the ancient rocks, Amos made a woof sound. It drew a family of mysterious creatures toward the adventurers and licked them with their tongues. To find out who they were, Hazel used her phone’s infrared camera, only to discover that they were stray puppies. This set her into combing their furs at ease.

When the monkey saw it, he climbed down the keeper’s arms and joined her in brushing the little ones. Amos then took out containers of food and laid them on the floor. As a result, these dogs went towards the food for a feast. With their mouths filled with sumptuous delights, they wagged their tails showing gratitude to the three of them. Without being asked, one of the puppies took charge of dispersing them to different corners of this garden.

The trio then split up from the cave to follow the dogs in looking for a railway. After a long time, the rest returned with grumpy faces, but one barked loudly after detecting something unusual with his sense of smell, gathering the crowd to a place of hope.

They had reached the final point, where the guided path ended. Hazel thought that she had found a train, but was shocked by a colony of pineapple ferns. She clarified with the puppies again, yet they shook their head with the same woof. This frustrated her.

Amos tapped on Hazel’s shoulder and encouraged her, “Hazel, I know how you feel now, but we have come this far. From the river passage to the rocky terrain, and now we are here. We just need one more step toward the goal. Let’s keep going.”

Upon hearing the transition from concrete paths to rocky terrain, she realised that a clear route itself was not enough to get there. Therefore, she had no other option but to barge into the ferns, and the rest followed suit.

They flipped the ferns one by one and plucked sweet pineapples to eat along the way, which kept them going after feeling refreshed. After a long search, Hazel found a huge burrow behind the leaf curtains. This intrigued her into entering the hole, where she crawled through tight spaces to the end of the tunnel.

At last, Hazel widened her eyes to the grand hall where black trains with red and grey stripes rolled into the platform. She ran towards it and shouted in excitement, and they joined in. The rabbits here rang celebratory bells to congratulate her on achieving success. In return, she thanked the rest for helping her navigate this place. She then scattered her favourite candies towards the masses and took a selfie to show her appreciation. They gave her rounds of cheers before opening the wrapper and melting in their mouths.

The subway slowly came to a stop and opened its sliding doors. Hazel boarded the cabin and settled herself onto the cushioned seat. After the carriage was sealed, she turned to the window and bid goodbye to Amos, Toby and the rest, filling her memories with warmth. The train set off from the station and rode into the tunnel, where she swiped through her phone galleries before opening the photo, remembering how she got here.

A few moments later, it left the dark tube, and the city skyline came into view. After the subway arrived at a station, she alighted before pedalling her bicycle home, where she finally reunited with her family.

Upon the whistle from Poppy’s barking sound, it signalled them to hide inside it while marching out a sea of generals’ troops with cannons assembled. The imperial guards activated by the Yellow Emperor rushed from Rhaegor’s opposite, joining Tyberious in a fight, ready for a final battle.

With both their troops met at the mansion’s gate, the main tiger slowly crawled out of the grand entrance and faced head-on against Rhaegor.

The moment they met outside, Tyberious began asking, “Rhaegor, what brings you here?”

Rhaegor replied with a black face, “So you arranged everything?”

Tiger said, “If you had honoured the deal, things wouldn’t have turned out like this.”

“The world belongs to me in the first place! Why did you take away everything from me?!” exclaimed the monster.

Tyberious roared, “What did you use the power for?! Shaking the land to disrupt our lives?! Looting our properties?! To protect our citizens, we had to defend them against anyone coming in our way!”

Rhaegor ranted, “I had everything once! I could get everything I want! Why must I share with everybody?!”

He shot back, “Since we are unhappy with each other, let’s lash it out!”

The monster barked, “Let’s see who gets the last laugh! Crocodiles, charge!”

As clashes between the troops began, the thundering drums and cheering gongs ruled the kingdom. While the armoured imperial guards attacked the crocodiles with stabbing spears, the crocodiles returned them with swinging dagger axes. As the enemy’s troops began chopping their blades towards the tiger’s head, the tigers swept them out with silver spears. They kept exchanging sword moves, with sparks igniting upon metal contact. The lions also blocked the opponents’ arms before twisting them onto the ground. This leaves their bones shattering beneath them.

As the sky became darker, all the crocodiles were crushed down, leaving the general troops heavily injured. The battle did not end as they faced a formidable opponent. The masses aimed their spearhead towards Rhaegor, forcing him to step back. He then grabbed all the spears with his claws before throwing them down the mountain. He also blew the troops away with a strong wind, circling them out like hurricanes. This threw the general off balance, leaving him with no choice but to go head-to-head.

“You are despicable!” Tiger remarked.

Rhaegor responded with vanity, “Hahahahahaha…they are just a piece of cake.”

Tyberious responded, “The winner gets the last laugh. Let’s see who wins.” And the real battle continued.

Behind the scenes, Volkris blew fiery flames across the row of cannons to light up the fuse, waiting to trigger the primer.

They stared eye to eye, and they crab-walked along the rocks. Tyberious took out a legendary sword while Rhaegor showed off his shining blue sword. They began exchanging swords, with flashes along the blade. They continued exchanging like a never-ending game. After clashing their blades for a long time, Tyberious made the first move by slashing his chest and abdomen. This made the monster scream in pain. In response, he charged towards the tiger and lunged forward before stabbing his neck. This left the general with a sharp pain. The blood flew out from his neck, and he fell onto the ground. Rhaegor then leaned down towards him, making his final move.

As he was about to stab his chest, a roaring sound stormed the sky with “BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!” Shots were fired from iron barrels, and golden shells soared into the dark sky. It went downward and aimed towards the monster. Finally, upon hitting the ground, it detonates with cores erupting into fiery flames in front of Rhaegor’s eyes. This gave the beast a great shock. Being frightened by the flames of the explosion, he quickly turned back and ran down the mountain towards the ancient city.

Behind the cannons, Jasmine, donned in full golden armour, commanded, “FIREEEE!” The little boy and the yellow ox, together with the row of generals’ troops, kept triggering the pin, sending shells flying towards the monster. Rhaegor ran as fast as he could, but he could not surpass the shells. Even as he ran down the slope, he felt an inner stab in his stomach, and blood flew out from his mouth from repetitive coughing. The monster suddenly felt strange, and he realised that he had been poisoned. By the time he realised, it was too late. He collapsed and rolled down to the streets. With shells exploding into flames, it ripped him alive. The dragon swam down from the sky and roared his flames towards him. At last, Rhaegor was defeated, and he trembled.

The Shape of a dragon blew down with flakes of gold and transformed back to a yellow emperor. He summoned his bodyguards to tie Rhaegor up and had the demon confined in his castle for life. His stomach was burned by herbs, which made his life a living hell.

He then got his imperial physician to treat Tyberious by injecting acupuncture needles around his neck and chest. Upon the twisting of a needle, the general finally woke up. This brought joy and laughter to the citizens across the kingdom. In the end, the land has finally regained everlasting peace. Josh, Hillary and Lewis finally stepped out of the generals’ mansion before reuniting with the quad. When Josh and Jasmine met again, they hugged each other tightly with tears flowing down their faces.

To celebrate this moment, the emperor brought the masses to the ancient city, decorated with bright red lanterns and tables laid out for the reunion banquet. Later, Lewis and his chef apprentice presented Colours of Harmony to the emperor. This got his eyes popped out with saliva flowing out of his mouth, and he invited the couple and the rest to join him for a reunion dinner.

Before the dinner, the yellow emperor began delivering his speech, “

My Loyal Subjects!

Tonight, we have all gathered here to usher in the Chinese New Year. We would like to commend Tyberious, our loyal tiger general, who fought bravely against every monster. With soldiers defending our land, we can attain an everlasting peace that is hard fought.

Regardless of creature and colour, this land belongs to all of us! In tumultuous times, we need to work hand-in-hand to overcome crises and disasters that may have come upon us. If we split amongst ourselves, demons will overrule us. But if we stay united as one, not only will we emerge stronger, but we will get our abundant share of wealth. This is what Colours of Harmony brings about. Only when we are harmonious will our lives be even more colourful.

Once again, this is the toast from me to all of you in this city. I wish you a Happy Chinese New Year!”

After his speech, everyone at the dining table raised a shining cup high towards the emperor and wished him, “We wish your majesty a smooth gallop towards success, a year full of spirit, and may our land flourish with prosperity. Long live your majesty!”

He returned a toast to them with a bright smile and said, “Great! Let’s drink to our fullness!”

After toasting, the mass of diners poured in abalones with plum sauces, peppers, peanuts, and crackers, joining the rest on a plate before finalising the dish with olive oil. They picked a pair of red chopsticks before lifting them, with colours of food jumping up into the sky before crunching them. They consumed it bunch by bunch, filling their mouth with cheerful rainbows.

Once they wiped out the plate, Volkris joined his majesty in presenting Buddha jumping over the wall to Josh and Jasmine. They opened the cover and saw braised meat, prawns, fish maws, abalone, scallops and other premium herbs brewing inside a century-old ceramic pot. They became joyous with tongues waiting to greet them. The couple held the hotpot together, and they were magically transformed back to their ancestral home in modern times.

They presented this magical pot to their siblings, parents, grandparents and family relatives. The lid was opened up, and the entire family became overjoyed. At a stroke of midnight, the sounds of gunpowder cheered across the village with vibrant flowers blooming at night. After going through the struggles, they finally sat together at the round table and enjoyed their sumptuous feasts beneath the sky flowers.

After the celebration, the horse baby couple returned to their office as city dreamers. Josh began reevaluating the investment project on the airport relocation in a global city. He saw through the cracks and redesigned the investment plan for the state investment firm. He then introduced a stage-based progressive investment plan requiring the executors’ preliminary budget to the management team. This plan minimised the loss should any unforeseen event happen. It assured them and eventually approved the investment.

After half a year, investments returned in a huge sum. Subsequently, Josh was offered an important assignment as an Assistant Chief Investment Officer. He accepted the new task, making him the youngest in the management team. All his colleagues congratulated him with firecracker sounds spread across the office tower.

When Jasmine returned as a legal adviser, she instructed her assistant to investigate the leader of that empire. After investigating, she gathered the photos showing the leader involved in extramarital affairs. She revealed them in the company’s media press, and the empire ended up in bankruptcy. The empire lost its intellectual property rights, and Jasmine’s consulting firm successfully defended their work. In the end, products were smoothly rolled out, and the firm gained another batch of clients.

In 6 months, the company expanded, and Jasmine became the Vice President and was assigned to lead the legal division. Given her legal tricks, nobody dared to challenge the consultancy by duplicating their blueprints.

After work, Josh and Jasmine booked an exclusive restaurant to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. Once they entered the dining hall, they took their seat by the window, where candles were set up with cosy lights on. As the restaurant was preparing a meal, the couple reminisced about their first meeting in high school, sharing the same bench at a university, adjusting to the corporate world together and their beachside marriage proposal before they officially wed.

A few moments later, they were served a marble beef steak with a glass of red wine. They sliced a piece of meat and bit it with a sip of red wine, filling their hearts with romance.

After dinner, they took a glance at a quiet riverside, watching glowing ferries passing through the waters. They also recalled times when they struggled at work, which took them on the journey with the fiery mandarin horse. From then on, they promised to take care of each other regardless of their current state. Since then, they had a blissful marriage and have borne a pair of children, building a family blessed with happiness.

Unexpectedly, on their way to see the emperor, Vera brought in formidable eagles to fight with Hillary and her clique. However, Josh’s impulsive moves caught her attention, so she defeated him with a diffused purplish scent. She captured the rattlesnake with a fishing net and got her eagles to arrest the chef master. The trio were then sent back to the castle to see the monster. This gave Volkris a devastating blow.

He drooped his head, wondering what got them into this. Behind the tree, Jasmine screamed Josh’s name twice. Bob immediately covered her mouth from behind, so as not to alarm Vera. Volkris dragged his horseshoe towards that tree and sighed with hopelessness. With Josh, Lewis and Hillary taken away, the quad could only depend on themselves to protect their treasured food. Bob spent a long time consoling them before taking them to see his close buddy.

Compared to the wasp battle, Vera brought nothing but the brains back to the castle. This gave Rhaegor a reason for a loud cackle. When Josh opened his eyes, he saw a gigantic beast staring at him. He was frightened by it, wondering what the beast could do against them.

The beast stomped his feet towards the mouse and asked creepily, “So……you are behind the Colours of Harmony?”

Lewis replied with anger, “So what?!”

Rhaegor queried, “Can you prepare it for me?”

Josh exclaimed, “That’s none of your business. You beast!”

This angered him, and he ordered the crocodiles to place them in the mercury-boiling pot.

Once they got into the boiling pot, fierce fire started tearing beneath them. Since they refused to grant the dish to the villains, he threatened to burn them alive. As more woods were placed on the fire, mercury boiled turbulently, which would explode at any time. Hillary furiously blamed Josh for his impulsive attack, allowing the cat to respond and got them into this state. He shouldered the blame heavily, at last realising the consequences for not considering the loopholes in the ideas and decisions he made. As time went by, heat blistered their skin, and their lungs screamed in pain from inhaling invisible demons. This forced Lewis into agreeing to the monster’s obsession.

At the same time, Bob brought them up the heavenly mountain to the lonely mansion, where resided his close buddy, Tyberious, the seasoned tiger general. In this mystical kingdom, he was renowned for winning key battles and was bestowed a legendary sword by the yellow emperor as his allied general. Those who came across him greeted him with the highest honour.

Upon reaching the mansion, the lion guards immediately opened the bronze door. As they entered the residence, they saw tigers and lions practising martial arts in a flowery garden. The German Shepherd, named Poppy, jumped out of his room and ran towards them with his wriggling tail. He hopped towards the yellow Ox and licked his face with his tongue, which gave them joy amidst struggles.

Poppy brought them to a pavilion surrounded by peaceful mountains, where Tyberious lifted a teacup and drank it, with his mouth filled with flavours of cultivation. Once he saw them, he invited them to join in for mediation. Before the boy chef opened his mouth, the general got them to drink the tea first. As they slowly drink it, he explained that at times of stress and despair, they should calm down and relax their mind.

After having a cup of hot tea, they slowly closed their eyes. They folded their legs with their hands holding them, and took a deep breath. Upon completing meditation, Jasmine explained their plight to him.

The tiger replied with a sigh, “Rhaegor is too powerful; even our soldiers cannot beat him. If a deal hadn’t made with his majesty, he would have roused the city and killed thousands of people. The only way to defeat him is to find his weaknesses.”

Volkris then asked, “So, do you know what his weaknesses are?”

Tyberious murmured, “I don’t know either.”

Jasmine recalled her elementary school days, learning from the folklore that a treacherous monster attacked occupants in the city, only to be frightened and run away from the sounds of firecrackers with thundering drums and loud gongs.

Thus, she suggested working with his soldiers to build cannons of fire and drumming the kingdom with silver gongs. This kept the tiger’s eye open. Tyberious approved Jasmine’s idea and mobilised his soldiers to build them together.

In the castle, when Hillary and Josh learnt that Lewis agreed to prepare a meal for him, they doubted his clear mindset. He confirmed with a wink, implying a hidden plan. Rhaegor finally rasped and released them from the boiling pot. While Josh and Hillary were sent to the dungeon, Lewis was brought to the kitchen to prepare his meals. Instead of Colours of Harmony, he secretly swapped the real abalone with the one made with flour. Even if Rhaegor got the dish, he would never get any wish. Additionally, all other ingredients were mixed with identical herbs, which unknowingly would burn his stomach.

While Josh was with a rattlesnake, they were wondering how the chef master was doing. He circled the shady cell, making Hillary dizzy.

She asked, “Why are you walking around?”

Josh said, “I am worried about how Lewis is doing. If Rhaegor found out something amiss, would we be boiled alive? I was also wondering how my darling and the rest are doing?”

After hearing this, she said, “Same here, I was also wondering how Volkris is doing? I don’t know whether they can handle this alone?”

While the crocodile guarded the dungeon, they became very busy shedding their skin. Once Josh learnt about it, he came up with an escape plan. He got Hillary to slither through the narrow slot out of the cell and bite all the crocodiles. She stole the guard’s shedded skin and a golden key before dressing in disguise. The duo unlocked the cell gate with a key and escaped the dungeon before making their way to the kitchen hall to find Lewis.

After spending hours preparing meals in the kitchen, the swapped Colours of Harmony dish was about to be served. Suddenly, two crocodiles barged in and covered Lewis’s mouth. They brought him outside, and Hillary and Josh revealed themselves. Lewis camouflaged himself as a crocodile, and the trio went to chat with the guards. The crocodiles chatted about their lives so happily that they could not find anything amiss. They opened the gate, and the trio escaped at last. They ran from the forest to the mountain with no idea where they would bring them.

Back in the castle, Rhaegor was served with the dish Lewis prepared in the kitchen. He took a pair of wooden chopsticks and mixed the ingredients laid on a plate, with herbs beneath them waiting to ruin him. He crunched them one by one without knowing what the food would do to him.

After Jasmine, Volkris, the little chef, Bob and Tyberious’s army assembled drums, gongs and cannons loaded with gunpowder, Tyberious sent Poppy to report Rhaegor’s move to the yellow emperor at the grand palace. The dragon then activated his lion imperial guards to stand by the general’s mansion.

When Rhaegor finished the entire plate, he closed his eyes with his hands closed, making a wish to overpower the dragon with a magical weapon. Despite multiple attempts, it did not appear. That made him feel something amiss. Before changing the dungeon guards, a crocodile saw dozens of them collapsed with the cell door open, hinting at Josh and Hillary’s escape. He rushed to the dining room, where the monster was informed that the trio had escaped the castle. This infuriated him, so he assembled his crocodiles with dagger axes ready before marching out to chase after them.

In the general’s mansion, Poppy smelt something unpleasant. He went out through the side door of the mansion’s entrance. He saw Rhaegor and his mass of crocodiles chasing Josh, Hillary and Lewis. The German Shepherd woofed loudly. The trio went into the mansion to hide while the tiger and his troops marched out of the grand entrance. The imperial guards later joined Tyberious, waiting to battle against Rhaegor. This was not a typical fight. It became a war between the kings. Who would win this battle? Only fate would tell.

Unexpectedly, Vera got in their way, forcing them to hand over the scroll. They refused to give, and she gathered a mass of wasps to attack. Josh tried to shield bullets of stings, but failed. In defence, Volkris blew off his flames from his mouth, burning her wings, and Hillary bit her back as Vera jumped up to bite Josh. This left her in humiliating defeat and limped her way back to the castle, where she got beaten up by Rhaegor and his crocodiles.

As Hillary was worried about their safety, she accompanied them on their journey to find ingredients. Above the tree branches, Vera watched them quietly, preparing for a vicious strike.

The group galloped through rows of trees in the jungle, and they saw a plain of land where farmers of animals sat, frowning over the drought caused by a dry spell. Josh and his gang went over and asked what happened.

A pinky red pig named Jones came out and explained that, for a long time, no rain had fallen, and their crops had withered and could not be eaten. From then on, they had been starving and were now waiting for rain to fill the land.

Upon hearing their struggles, Josh suggested finding the well to get water, only to learn from a rabbit named Celeste that the wells had been used up. Volkris suggested fetching water from the magical yellow river that always flows, but cast doubt that it was too far. Jasmine stepped in and recommended connecting them through the water canal. Hillary praised her idea and started mobilising the team

To ease the workload, the snake began forming a chain. It started from Celeste the rabbit, Hillary herself, Volkris, Herris the goat, Jolly the jumping monkey, Erwis the flying chicken, Jones the pig, Lewis the gigantic mouse and his chef apprentice, the young couple, and Bob the yellow ox, ending at the river. The chain worked together hand in hand with iron shovels to dig the canal, and water flows towards the plainfield successfully. This magically softens the clay soil and removes the drought.

After that, Bob harvested dozens of abalones from the holy river, and the couple brought them back in a fishing net. While Erwis and Volkris fertilised the soil, Hillary got Celeste to grow carrots, cucumbers and white radish before harvesting them. Jolly and Herris followed suit by planting a seed, growing a gigantic tree mixed with peanuts, pamelos, olives, plums and peppers. Jones grew wheat while the couple turned it into flour using a stone mill.

Back in the kitchen, the child chef crushed olives into oil and peppers into powder, while Lewis lathered the flour with water and secret yeast before frying. This popped up the crackers before lifting them up for a dish. He then squeezed the juices of plums into a pan, mixed with water and century-old vinegar, before adding spices to it and stirring for a couple of minutes. He poured the plum sauce into a ceramic jar, only to be served upon having an audience with his majesty.

When a rabbit struggled to harvest a gigantic white radish, everyone joined in and managed to pull it out together. Lewis chopped the white radish before laying them out on a dish.

Above the plant territory, Vera used her hand signal and gathered a sea of black eagles in position. When being asked whether to invade, Vera held them back to see what the dish was.

With everyone joining forces growing crop in their farmland, ingredients were retrieved instantly, and Colours of Harmony was presented. The team tried a sample of it and was very proud of the mouse chef. Hillary thanked them for helping and accompanied the chef with Volkris, riding with the couple on their journey to the palace.

Suddenly, before they leave the forested jungle, armies of eagles stormed in and flew around them. They were wondering what happened, and the butterfly cat thunderously landed with a new pair of butterfly wings.

Hillary humourously laughed at her, “Hey, you can’t win me, so you get eagles to scare us?”

Vera replied, “Don’t smug too early, you rattlesnake. They may look plain, but they can capture you in no time.”

Volkris angrily responded, “I dare you to touch us!”

The cat shouted, “Come! Let’s see what you have! Eagles, go get the Colours of Harmony!” and the real battle began.

As the eagles swarmed towards the boy with the food in a carriage, Hillary spat her venom towards their yellow eyes, and they fell from complete blindness. This left the cat in a great shock. Jasmine and Josh quickly brought the apprentice away and hid behind a gigantic tree. Josh recalled his days watching online dramas at home, realising that armies retreat upon the fall of a general. He took this opportunity to creep forward, thinking of bringing Vera down with a fishing net. Little did he expect that the sneakiness reached her ear, so she turned back and hissed at him. She then flipped her wings so strongly that they spread mists of purplish scent towards him. It blurred him; he sneezed and coughed violently before collapsing onto the ground.

This took Hillary, Volkris and Lewis by surprise. The trio lined up together, turning against Vera. However, upon the fall of Josh, she got the fishing net and enlarged it out of nowhere. They looked around and saw circles of eagles getting back on their feet; the battle for food resumed.

The cat flew up as Volkris blew his flames at the eagles, but their wings were unbeatable. She swiftly swept the net and captured the snake; she wriggled around but found no escape. The Eagles went to grab Josh and arrest the mouse chef. This gave them a devastating blow.

This time, the horse remarked, “I didn’t expect you to be this scheming! Let’s see who gets the last laugh!”

Vera arrogantly laughed, “Hahahahahahaha, I lost it once, and now I got it back. I’ll see what else you have. Hahahahahahaha.”

Her laughter echoed across the forest as the castle gates groaned open far away. Josh and Lewis hung dangling from the claws of the eagles, and Hillary’s struggles grew weaker inside the net. Behind the towers, a pair of purple eyes widened with greed. Rhaegor was waiting.

After work, Josh and Jasmine met at a riverside. From there, they boarded the magical bullet train to a distant grassland crowned by a mandarin tree. Josh plucked the largest mandarin orange and peeled the skin. The flesh blew off like the gentle wind and magically transformed into a horse with flames around it. The newlyweds whispered their wishes, and the flaming horse surged forward toward its ancient trials.

After Volkris galloped up the mountain with the couple, they had finally reached a massive gate built using ancient bricks with an observation deck above. The ones who stood by the gigantic bronze door were the guards donned in silver armour with shiny spears beside them. As they recognised the flaming horse, the guards opened the door without asking, and they went in with rows of fire lighting up the tunnel.

Meanwhile, Vera, a dark purple cat with pink butterfly wings, observed the couple’s entrance from the rooftop before flying back to its purplish grey castle to report their latest move to a gigantic black purple monster, Rhaegor. It brought him a cunning smile, hoping to trace a mysterious reunion dish rumoured to grant any wishes they wanted. He then instructed the flying cat to continue watching them and see if there was any trace of it. He even told her that if there was a significant trace with them, execute them. Vera hid his command and flew out of the castle along with the wasps.

Beyond the tunnel, they expected a lively city with a sea of people strolling through the traditional shophouses. Instead, it was an enchanted forest covered with tall trees and a path to nowhere. Josh frowned, “Shouldn’t this be a town?”

Volkris replied, “You are too narrowminded young man. The forest is our shield. Invaders bleed before they ever see the town. The town is way ahead of us, and it takes a long journey to reach there.” Josh nodded. While galloping along the pathway, the couple heard a loud crying sound, wondering where it came from. Jasmine looked around and turned out to be from a wooden house hidden behind the trunks.

Being attracted by a crying sound, they disembarked from Volkris, squeezed through the gaps between the woods, and entered the house through the wooden door. Inside the house, they saw a huge mouse sitting by the side.

The enlarged size of a mouse caught them by surprise. They bolted from the house, shouting, and scrambled back to the fiery horse. The boy chef apprentice ran out, approaching the couple for help. Volkris pushed them back into the house and convinced them that he was the mystical mouse master chef, Lewis, preparing the Colours of Harmony dish for the yellow emperor during a reunion dinner. However, the little boy chef was pessimistic, explaining that they had little time to prepare, but they could not find the ingredients on time. He further elaborated that if the dish was not delivered by then, it would leave his majesty in anger, and they would get their heads chopped off.

After Josh and Jasmine heard their problems, they decided to help them retrieve the necessary ingredients. Lewis jumped up and shook their hands as he thanked them. He then handed them a list of ingredients needed to prepare this colourful reunion dish. The duo held a piece of handmade paper with glowing lights warming their palms. As the ancient characters written in brushes were artistically complex, they were unable to read them. Despite their attempt to use a phone translator, they found no internet signals to translate. Volkris glanced through the list of ingredients, reading the scrolls from top to bottom and right to left, and it said:

Ingredients for Colours of Harmony:

• Carrots

• Cucumber

• White radish

• Abalone

• Pomelo

• Peanuts

• Crackers

• Plum

• Pepper

• Olive Oil

Without hesitation, Volkris rolled it up, and they immediately left the house. This marked the beginning of their hunt, unaware of the danger ahead.

As soon as they left, Vera waited among the branches, spread her wings and flew down to stop them.

She tried to negotiate with them that, as long as the ingredient list was handed over, she would offer to escort them back to their modern land for a reunion dinner. Otherwise, she would not let them walk out alive. Jasmine pressed her hands against Josh’s abdomen, feeling frightened and intending to agree, but Josh and Volkris stood angrily to defend the scroll.

This move angered the cat, and she gathered a mass of wasps to fire their bullet stings at them. Josh ripped off his blazer and swung it to block stingers, but one pierced through the fabric and struck his knee. In response, the horse blew his fiery flames from his mouth to burn down the wasps and Vera’s butterfly wings.

Even wingless, the cat refused to fall. Hence, she jumped over to bite the knee-injured Josh with her venomous jaw. Yet, Hillary, a rattlesnake, used its fangs and bit her on the back. She collapsed with a scream, defeated and humiliated.

She furiously shouted back, “I will remember what you did to me! I will make you pay double!” and limped out of the jungle.

As soon as Vera returned to the castle with nothing, Rhaegor thunderously slammed her down. And his crocodile guards struck her down with their dagger axes. The cat pitifully cried, “I am sorry for these mishaps. They have overpowered me. I can’t do anything.”

Rhaegor exclaimed, “Decades of grooming. Power gifted. And you return empty-handed. Useless! ”

Vera asked, “But what can I do?”

Rhaegor said, “Negotiation is a waste of time! It gives them space to think.”

He then looked into her eyes and suggested, “Perhaps, if you had wiped them off, you could have retrieved it immediately.”

Her claws dug into the stone floor. Softness had cost her. She said, “That horse ruined my wing, and the rattlesnake bit my back. I am not backing down! I will hunt every single one!”

Rhaegor replied, “Great, now you have come to your senses. You should know what to do.” He then got his Woodpecker doctor to escort her somewhere for treatment.

At the same time, Josh’s knee was seriously injured. Hillary immediately used her mouth to remove the stings from his knee and healed him with a bite of medicine, preventing inflammation from happening. She then warned him against acting without thinking. As she was worried about the couple’s safety, she suggested joining them for their scavenger food hunt. Josh’s knee throbbed. The smell of burnt wings clung to the air. No one argued when Hillary offered to join them. With the snake around, they move on to collect the ingredients at ease.

Meanwhile, hidden behind the branches, Vera watched them without a sound. She did not rush forward, nor summon the wasps. The forest would fight for her this time. Her tail flicked once before she vanished into the shadows, already preparing something they would never see coming.

Illustrations directed by Terry and generated in collaboration with Gemini

As evening fell over a futuristic city full of shining skyscrapers, a sea of city dreamers poured out of the glass tower, returning to their ancestral hometown for the Lunar New Year. This was no exception for Josh and Jasmine. They were young newlyweds born in the year of the horse heading back to the village together for the first time.

Josh worked as an Investment Analyst for a state investment firm at the Iron Bell Tower, where he analysed the financial returns for government infrastructure projects.

One day, inside a meeting room, he delivered a presentation on the prospects of a high-speed railway extension project for the Chief Investment Officer. As Josh did not address the concerns clearly, he angrily slammed the folder without comment. Josh knew, before a word was spoken, that he had failed. Therefore, he reassigned Josh’s project to his senior colleague and warned him that he would jeopardise his promotion prospects if he continued. He slowly walked back to his desk, with his head drooped down, not knowing what to do.

Jasmine, on the other hand, worked as a lawyer for a futuristic tech consulting firm at the Gold Tael tower, where she successfully defended copyright-related lawsuits, allowing their products to roll out smoothly. After winning several cases, her boss smiled and handed her the most challenging lawsuit against a powerful empire, where devastating consequences would follow if she failed. The mission tested her limits. Secretly, she wished for a power beyond her own.

After work, they rushed off to meet each other at a landmark river, where ferries glided through the water. Josh reached there first, clutching his elbows against the cold while waiting for her. Jasmine later waved happily as she hurried towards him, with heels clicking against the pavement. They hugged tightly and kissed each other’s lips by the peaceful river before walking together with their hands held.

After strolling several miles, the young couple finally reached the only train station in the city. Being amazed by the decorative infrastructure, they opened the grand entrance door. The hall was full of passengers eager to return to their ancient home. Josh tried to book their return train slot but found only one slot left. They booked it without hesitation, not knowing where it would take them.

With the bullet train arriving shortly, they ran through the concourse before reaching the platform where the shining gold and red carriage had arrived.

With a magical sliding door open, the cabin attendants stepped out to welcome them. They boarded elatedly and saw a cabin decorated with fanciful seats like their personal living space. They moved towards them and settled comfortably in their chairs. The pair enjoyed exploring the hidden marvels within their thrones while being served hot tea by an angelic attendant. With cloudy mists floating up to the ceiling, they drank it, filling their mouth with dancing flowers. They had since been treated like the Emperor and Empress in their private cabin.

A few moments later, with only the two of them on board, the train had finally set off. As it departed the station, an automated announcement voiced across the cabin.

It said, “Ladies and gentlemen, welcome on board the Mandarin Superexpress. In this train, you will enjoy the best of our heavenly service while we bring you anywhere for this mystical adventure. Now, we would like you to sit back and relax. We will tell you once we have arrived. Thank you.”

It travelled at the speed of light, leaving the high school sweethearts glancing through a large window, watching trees and mountains dash past them. They enjoyed feasting on their sumptuous snacks while holding their hands, complaining about their work as it sprinted towards an unknown destination.

After hours of travelling, the train arrived at a mysterious station, and the adventurous couple had alighted. They saw an ancient wishing tree filled with red packets and mandarin oranges waiting for them. According to an auspicious belief, as soon as they peeled its skin, this tree would grant any wishes they wanted. Being moved by a gentle intrigue, Josh plucked the largest one and peeled it off.

Unexpectedly, the flesh inside the mandarin blew off like a gentle wind and magically transformed into a fiery horse full of flames. His name was Volkris. “You carry burdens and look very tired. Speak your wish,” the horse said, with flames flickering along his mane.

While Josh dreamed of being a team leader, Jasmine aspired to be a heroic lawyer, helping weaker ones against stronger opponents. Volkris understood them and invited them to hop on him before bolting off the station together. As Volkris galloped with fiery flames, the sky ahead split open, and something far darker than flame awaited them.

Illustrations directed by Terry and generated in collaboration with Gemini

After Alyssa lost her motivation in her career due to office rivals, she went to a street with a sea of rainbow lights to pen her wish to be a tree on her lantern before releasing it, joining the rest in the sky. She then followed the path of her sky lantern in the direction it led her.

It brought her far away from a bustling city into an enchanted mountainous forest, where no trace of her light was found. Nearby, she saw an elderly man coughing outside a brightly lit old village. His grandson, a tall young man who just returned from an orchard with harvested glowing peaches, hurried back and asked him, “Are you alright? Is it too cold? Come inside.”

As Alyssa realised that the forest was shivering cold, she quickly approached them and asked, “Hi, may I know where this place is?”

An elderly man replied, “This is a house beneath a peaceful forest where no one comes to disturb us.”

His grandson followed up her query, “Young lady, may I know who you are? How did you end up here?”

She began introducing herself and asked for a trace of a lantern in the sky. The young man looked up at the sky and shook his head when he saw none. He explained that perhaps the leafy trees have blocked the view. He soon invited her into his place to seek warmth in the shelter.

As Alyssa stepped into the shelter, she saw the house filled with warm air in simple furniture with wooden finishes. She then saw an elderly man pouring tea from a boiling kettle into a teacup while his grandson handed her a thick, furry blanket to cover herself. She thanked them as she picked up a hot teacup, with cloudy mists evaporating into the air, and drank from it. The tea filled her mouth with lush greenery, which she needed at the moment.

Being curious about a lonely house, Alyssa asked them a question about the origin of this place. The elderly man began narrating his young adult life, living at the bottom of Plainfield, with large vegetable plots that ensured he had food to eat.

His tears began dripping from his eyes as he unfolded a ferocious encounter, fighting to defend his plot of land against his selfish neighbours, only for it to be snatched away, leaving no place for him there. He was forced to leave that place with all his living tools, walking tirelessly along uneven roads. He finally reached the mountainous green forest filled with magically growing fruits. He then recounted his love at first sight upon seeing a beautiful lady smiling at him while picking up a fruit from an orchard.

His grandson excitedly asked, “So is that beautiful lady my grandma?”

He replied with a smile, “Yeah, she was the kindest lady I have ever met.” He continued recalling his tender bond with her in his youth, building a house together and settling down for multiple generations. Alyssa was amazed by how this old place was not just a house but a legacy built to shelter the family peacefully, like a tree.

Since the time heading towards past midnight, both men suggested she stay with them for the night. Although Alyssa was still wondering where the lantern was heading, both of them were worried about her safety. Hence, the grandson promised to find the lantern if she agreed to stay overnight, and she ultimately gave her nod. He gave her his room to rest while he went on to sleep with his grandfather.

In the blue early morning, the guy woke up, prepared breakfast, and left the house to find a lantern that led Alyssa here. He began searching through all areas of the covered forests, climbing every tall tree, and saw the one anchored on a tree branch. He climbed over to the branch and fetched her lantern. Unexpectedly, the branch was brittle enough to break, and he fell onto the ground.

Despite being hurt by the impact, he shouted elatedly as he finally found her lantern. It woke her up, and she rushed out to see her lantern. After Alyssa saw it, she hugged and thanked him for finding her a precious lantern to fulfil her wish. He then hugged her back to show gratitude for accompanying them in the village. The two of them went back to the house and saw his grandfather waking up from his bed. They helped him up to the dining table, filled with a handful of peaches and cups of tea, and they enjoyed their simple but sumptuous breakfast together.

After filling their stomach, they brought Alyssa up to the mountain’s summit before the young chap lit up her lantern filled with her long-awaited wish. They held the lantern with both their hands and lifted it together. The elderly man was touched when seeing them working together towards a wish that awaited her. She thanked both of them for their company, and they encouraged her to return whenever she was free. She ran down the forested mountain chasing after a sky lantern, continuing her journey to become a tree.

It guided her to a shining, massive glass building with a banner reading “Career Fair.” She went in and saw a market of companies opening their doors for job hunters. She explored them one by one in every corner of the majestic hall, before hearing sounds of cheers from a mass of choirs attracting flying angels. She went over and turned out to be a logistical company seeking an executive partner. Without hesitation, she went to have a chat with them. Given the passion and experience she brought to the table, they immediately gave her a position offer.

Alyssa gladly accepted it, rushed back to the office to tender her resignation, and opened a new chapter at a new firm where angels were willing to work with her for a shared common goal. Instead of beasts fighting against her, they patiently mentored her with the knowledge she needed to familiarise herself with logistical operations, enabling her to deliver her role effectively.

After a year, the logistical empire recognised her efforts in coordinating both suppliers and customers towards an efficient operation, leading to on-time delivery and earning them a box of golden treasures. Consequently, she was promoted to a Partnering Manager. All her colleagues congratulated her with celebratory bells ringing and ultimately lent their support for the next adventure.

With a successful elevation in her career, she managed her clients and entrusted her team with a list of premium contracts, effectively becoming a tree herself to shelter them, thus freeing her from internal drift in the former. After work, she went to a car shop and bought herself a sporty red car, and drove back to the same mountain through the forested path.

Upon returning to an old house, the same old man and his grandson welcomed her with open arms. She hugged them tightly as she remembered them for giving her warmth and comfort in times of struggle. She moved on to accompany them to harvest their cute little fruits for a big feast.

While collecting their fruits, she reconnected with the time she spent together with a young lad. They chatted about their lives happily and developed into a romantic relationship. As fate allowed, their love blossomed into a marriage, and they began calling him grandpa together. The couple expanded their wooden house to infinite rooms and raised many children, building a family blessed with joy and prosperity.

Illustrations directed by Terry and generated in collaboration with Gemini

On a shady night, in an area of infinitely tall office towers, there was a young lady, Alyssa, who dressed in a long-sleeved collar shirt, with a pair of sneakers beneath her long blue pants, stepped out of a glass door, looking tired after a long day. She walked through tower buildings, shop by shop, crossing the road, and she reached a street full of colourful lights. She saw so many little children spending time with their parents, lighting up their lanterns and releasing them into the sky.

She then asked dozens of little children, “Where can I get this lantern?”

The children pointed her to the right, and she saw a snake of people in a long queue.

She continued asking, “What did y’all write?”

A little boy stepped out and replied, “You can pen down your wish. Your wish will come true.”

She asked, “So… what did you write?”

He replied, “I wish to have my own car.”

She replied, “I hope that your wish will come true.”

He exclaimed joyfully, “Thank you!” and he ran back to his parents.

She then joined the queue with blank lanterns waiting for her to pen down her wish. After standing for a long duration, it was finally her turn. She was given a blank slate of a sky lantern with a pen to write her wish. So what is her wish?

Her mind was blank with no idea what to write. She looked at other wishes written by others, from getting a majestic mansion to getting their favourite toy, to even wishing for a new companion, in different bright colours of the lanterns.

She suddenly remembered the recent times in the office, facing rivalry with a very toxic colleague, competing to stay in the job. Although she put in tons of effort for her team, her credit always went to her rival, putting her behind the curtains. As a result, her boss accused her of not contributing, putting her at risk of being laid off. She had since lost her motivation to fulfil her career aspirations at the company, and now she hoped for a peaceful time without competition.

Thus, unlike others, Alyssa finally wrote down a weird wish: “I wish to be a tree one day.” She then lit a lantern with both hands and lifted it into the sky. Being moved by a gentle intrigue, she followed the path of the brightest sky lantern to where it went. This was the beginning of a journey to grant her wish.

Illustrations directed by Terry and generated in collaboration with Gemini