Villa Courtyard: Ink Study 4 (Tianxing)
Overview
- Stage Cost: None
- First Clear Rewards: Holly Stationery x800, S-Chip x10
Guide
- Hover to view spoiler content.
Map
File:Villa Courtyard- Ink Study 4 (Wuxuan) Tianxing.png
Easter Egg note
The "Ex" mark on the map is an easter egg referencing Vyn "Burning Embrace"; bring Vyn as your exploration partner for extra dialogue.
Door code guide
Clues
This puzzle focuses on finding corresponding values between numbers, flowers, months, the animals of the Chinese Zodiac, the "earthly branches," and the "heavenly stems."
Male lead's half (left):
- Clue 1: A scroll painting hints at the connection between the months, earthly branches, and heavenly stems.
- Clue 2: Lists the heavenly stems in order: Jia, Yi, Bing, Ding, Wu, Ji, Geng, Xin, Ren, Gui. It also says these correspond to the numbers 1-10 in order.
- Clue 3: The two bookshelves, together, correspond the earthly branches to the animals of the Chinese Zodiac:
- Zi - Rat
- Chou - Ox
- Yin - Tiger
- Mao - Rabbit
- Chen - Dragon
- Si - Snake
- Wu - Horse
- Wei - Sheep
- Shen - Monkey
- You - Rooster
- Xu - Dog
- Hai - Pig
MC's half (right):
- Clue 4: On each of the six desks are two teacups apiece. The cups and the heavenly stems on them are listed in pairs per desk.
- Pig and Dog: Xin and Geng
- Rooster and Monkey: Ji and Wu
- Sheep and Horse: Ding and Bing
- Dragon and Snake: Jia and Yi
- Tiger and Rabbit: Ren and Gui
- Rat and Ox: Geng and Xin
- Clue 5: A conversation about the guqin reveals associations between flowers and months:
- Apricot: February
- Peach Blossom: March
- Rose: April
- Lotus: June
- Chrysanthemum: September
- Wintersweet: December
- Clue 6: The wall scroll further hints at the connection between the months, earthly branches, and heavenly stems, and it displays associations between earthly branches and months:
- Yin: January
- Mao: February
- Chen: March
- Si: April
- Wu: May
- Wei: June
- Shen: July
- You: August
- Xu: September
- Hai: October
- Zi: November
- Chou: December
- Clue 7: Both corner tables must be examined to allow the room's artifact to be appraised. These give the clues "Dragon-shaped," "Scales and Feathers," and "Striking Similarity."
- Clue 8: The final clue points out the most important entries in the puzzle: Wintersweet, Lotus, Chrysanthemum, and Rose.
Code entry
Hint 1:
Hint 2:
Complete chart:
Hint 1:
Flower | Month | Earthly Branch | Zodiac | Heavenly Stem | Number |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
January | Yin | Tiger | Ren | 9 | |
Apricot | February | Mao | Rabbit | Gui | 10 |
Peach Blossom | March | Chen | Dragon | Jia | 1 |
Rose | April | Si | Snake | Yi | 2 |
May | Wu | Horse | Bing | 3 | |
Lotus | June | Wei | Sheep | Ding | 4 |
July | Shen | Monkey | Wu | 5 | |
August | You | Rooster | Ji | 6 | |
Chrysanthemum | September | Xu | Dog | Geng | 7 |
October | Hai | Pig | Xin | 8 | |
November | Zi | Rat | Geng | 7 | |
Wintersweet | December | Chou | Ox | Xin | 8 |
Final code:
Mechanical Lock
The goal in this puzzle is to draw two paths through the grid such that every square is drawn through, the Red "Start" is connected to the Red "End," and the Black "Start" is connected to the Black "End." There are many ways to solve this puzzle; one solution is available above in case of difficulty.
Artifact Appraisal
The clues at the "7" markers on the map must be checked before obtaining the marked artifact (Dragon-pattern Jade). These reveal the true artifact has "Scales and feathers" (dotted body and "mane" patterns around its heads) and "Striking similarity" (symmetrical). The correct artifact is above.