Driftwood MMC - Year 1 - Winter - Annie in Jiaojing
Welcome to Jiaojang! A small town far, far to the south-east of Driftwood in the heart of the Wainao Empire. Jiaojang was once just a small farming village, but has seen tremendous growth over the past few decades as the The Crimson Sharks, a powerful confederation of pirates, began using the town as a base of operations.
I am really excited about this neighbourhood! Last year I played through the Shenmue series and ever since I have been lowkey wanting to make a Chinese-inspired neighbourhood. Of course I knew I shouldn’t start any new big projects, so I restrained myself! But I feel like a vacation-pilgrimage is the perfect way to scratch that itch without it being another huge long-term commitment :D I have not actually played with Bon Voyage vacations in forever, I barely even remember how they work, so I’m very hyped, it almost feels like getting a new expansion pack lol!
Also, the lovely hood deco is all by Yuxi <3
Annie arrives in Jiaojing port - she’s never seen so many buildings in one place before! Unfortunately, her lack of familiarity with bustling towns and the local culture makes her an easy target for pickpockets. It probably doesn’t help she was distracted by some of the pretty local girls!
When she spots a ninja, she rushes over to see if the stories she’s heard from travellers are true - can they really teleport? And could they teach her? But she’s flumouxed by their questions and left scrambling when the ninja dissapears into a cloud of smoke as quickly as they arrived.
A local boy, Mingyang Lei, is charmed by her misunderstanding of their local greeting. A bow Jiaojing is different to the bows in Driftwood, and they aren’t reserved for showing respect to nobles, either!
He claims to know the area well, and offers her a tour of the bamboo forest. Things take a turn for the dangerous when a gang called the Yellow Rose Clan appear, but the pair manage to escape with their lives.
Annie has the disciplined trait, and while I have been treating it more broadly than just being about physical prowess, I am quite excited that she’s got the oppotunity to actually learn some martial arts!
Her new friend, Mingyang, tells her all about one of the village elders, Xiuyu Yeh. She is blind, but a well-respected and dedicated tai chi practitioner. Ever since her son passed away at sea, she’s been known to take in the occasional traveller.
Xiuyu readily offers Annie a cup of tea, and listens to her story. The girl has travelled a long way! She’s welcome to stay at the house, provided she’s willing to cook, clean, and help out with the farm work. Not a bad deal!
Annie’s room in the loft in honestly quite luxurious compared to the cramped quarters at the Dowrick fishing hut! She’s not used to having quarters of her own - it’s almost a little lonely.
After a quick breakfast, Xiuyu takes Annie to the local bathhouse to enjoy the hot springs. There might be a small tub at the house, but this is much nicer. And you don’t have to lug all the water yourself.
Jiaojing public bathhouse.
After a refreshing bath, it’s time to get to work on the garden!
Jiaojing’s main temple. The religion practiced here is different to the goddess-worship in Driftwood, with worship being centered mainly around elemental forces.
Annie came here to learn more about the local religion, but the temple is a suprisingly social place. She’s making a few friends!
When she tries making an offering at the shrine, though, the spirits are not impressed.
Annie’s here to learn about herself and about the wider world, but she’s a romance sim and certainly not above worldly pleasures! She and Mingyang have been getting closer, lately…
Mingyang takes her to the town’s gambling den for some mahjong, drinks, and general revelry!
That evening, Xiuyu warns her about frequenting such places. It’s a quick way to lose all one’s money - and the people who run the gambling den are ruthless if you can’t pay up…
Annie’s doing her best to follow her mentor’s instructions, but she’s not got the hang of tai chi yet.
It seemed Annie’s spiritual quest was destined for failure. The local deities rejected her and she still could not manage the simplest tai chi moves, even under Xiuyu’s careful tutorage.
Then, one day, she stumbled across a new temple. One she somehow hadn’t noticed before…
Annie learns the local Dragon Legend! It’ll be quite the story to share when she gets home…
She still has another season to spend in Jaiojing, but for now I’m gonna return to our little settlement back in Dezruland. Hope this little detour was enjoyable! I had a lot of fun playing it, I almost never take sims on vacation and definitely need to do it more often.