Hu Tao/Storyline

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Hu Tao is the 77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.

Profile

Personality

The 77th Director of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. She took over the business at a rather young age.

—In-game character attributes and profile page text

At first glance, Hu Tao appears to be a quirky and cheerful girl. She enjoys pranking people and despises sitting around and doing nothing. She wishes to live her life to the fullest. Her eccentric and off-the-wall personality often leaves people with a negative impression of her, especially Qiqi, who states that she has a "punchable face" and should be stored in the fridge.^[7] In contrast, Xiao enjoys her sense of humor, finding it irritating but interesting.^[8]

On the other hand, when handling funerals and last rites, she becomes more solemn and constantly reminds her employees to never deviate from the client's requests. Due to the importance and traditions of the parlor's duties, she expresses a distaste towards people treating her or her employees with suspicion whenever they go to work at night.^[9]

Despite her negative impressions, Hu Tao is knowedgeable about the adepti and Liyue's past, having suspected Zhongli to be an adeptus.^[10] However, she usually keeps this a secret from those who are unaware for their own safety. Hu Tao accepts death as a natural part of life and tells others to enjoy their short lives. However, she tends to be too excited about death for the means of increasing business.^[11] She also loathes those who try to prolong their natural lifespan, such as Baizhu^[12], though she did not initially know his intentions at first. She also appears to show a lack of interest in her Pyro Vision.

Appearance

Hu Tao uses the medium female model. She has a fair complexion; bright scarlet eyes with white, blossom-shaped pupils; faded red makeup painted at the corners of her eyes; and long dark brown hair fading to crimson at the tips.

History

Past

Hu Tao's family, the Hu Family, have been active for thousands of years. They founded the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor sometime during or after the Archon War. The Yaksha, appointed by Morax to maintain order, would succumb to their karmic debt, some of which would spread as a deadly plague across the nation. The populace believed it to be a curse from the gods, but a few realized that the plague spread through corpses, so they burned them. Thus, the parlor was formed and maintained the balance between life and death, though at first, it was more of a doctor's office. Sometime after the war, when the Lone Butterfly of the Crimson Flame sacrificed herself to perform the Seven-and-Eight-Gates Method to purify Tao Dou, another member of the Eight Adepts, the Wuwang Kid, took up her mantle and taught the arts to the Hu Family. The family is also in possession of the Staff of Homa, which was passed down the family; she is the current owner of the polearm.

Ten years prior to the Traveler's arrival, Hu Tao's Father and her grandfather, Old Hu, were handling a growth of fetor at Wuwang Hill. However, he was wracked with an inability to let go and live without regrets, causing him to slip at the most critical moment, killing him on the spot. Old Hu contained his son's mistake, but he too would eventually die from the accumulation. At the time, Hu Tao was too young to understand what happened, but when she learned the truth, she held him in contempt for his failure to let go. Nonetheless, the criticism served as a way to honor his wishes, knowing that he wouldn't have wanted her to change. When she was eight, she mastered all the Wangsheng arts, and at thirteen, she oversaw her grandfather's funeral. Wondering if her grandfather died without regrets, Hu Tao embarked on a journey to the border, only to be relieved that he had passed on. When she returned home, she found a Pyro Vision in her belongings.^[13]

Hu Tao would become acquainted with Xingqiu, Chongyun and Xiangling. She particularly enjoys messing with the latter, giving her rare ingredients as compensation for the laughs.^[14] She also holds a grudge against Baizhu because of his desire to become immortal, something which went against her beliefs. She would soon discover the zombie Qiqi in his care and would try to put her soul to rest, despite her refusal and would always be stopped by Baizhu at the last moment. Eventually, she gave up on trying to bury the zombie, though because of her consistent attempts, Qiqi holds a grudge towards her.^[15]

Zhongli and Meng would later find employment with her at the funeral parlor for their own reasons; Zhongli had taken an interest in her, while Meng wished to find closure for his friend.

Present

As the Fatui were working with the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, Hu Tao was suspected by the Millelith of being a collaborator. Fortunately, she was able to keep things under control and the case was dropped.^[16]

Meng would later ask Hu Tao to help him find closure for his friend, Big G, arriving at Wuwang Hill with her to perform some rites. At the same time, they ran into the Traveler and Paimon, who were exploring the area. Believing they were part of the Adventurers' Guild, she took them to the Liyue branch to negotiate a deal with Lan, only to fail due to her enthusiasm for death. Later, they investigated Meng's friends; Little Wu, Mumu and Congzi, though she did not sense any traces of Big G on them. Later, Luocheng asked for an exorcism, believing to be cursed, so Hu Tao and the Traveler went to the outskirts and activated a Ley Line Monolith. Once the monsters were cleared, Hu Tao revealed it had been a prank and told Luocheng that he likely suffered a common cold. Meng was relieved that Big G had not cursed him, but wondered where he was. Just then, Big G appeared, having been drawn to the monolith. Hu Tao brought the group to the border with some keepsakes, allowing Big G to peacefully pass on. She also asked the spirits if they had seen the Traveler's sibling, though they did not; nonetheless, she promised to keep looking for them. Returning to the parlor, Hu Tao gave Meng unpaid time off to process his thoughts.^[17]

During the Moonchase Festival, Xiangling was one of the participants and was looking for "outside-the-box" thinking. Paimon suggested going to Hu Tao, and Xiangling asked for her input. She suggested poached fish and shrimp dumplings, believing the spiciness of the fish would be a good contrast to plain dumplings.^[18]

The Traveler attended their first Lantern Rite and learned of a situation from Keqing. They opted to go to Zhongli for guidance, finding him and Hu Tao sampling some of Xiangling's food at Third-Round Knockout. Both enjoyed the dish, while Hu Tao had come with Zhongli to promote her business, since life continued as usual even during the festivities.^[19] When the fireworks were launched, she was with Zhongli, observing the show.

In the next Lantern Rite, Hu Tao collaborated with Xinyan for a performance during the Iridescent Tour. She asked the Traveler to give a message to Zhongli, wanting him to return to the city, though when told, he declined to watch her performance, as he had planned to spend time with his adepti colleagues. Nonetheless, he agreed to come for the banquet.^[20] The banquet was held in Xinyue Kiosk, where she had invited Xiangling, Xingqiu, Chongyun and the Traveler to dine with Xiao, since their elemental powers would be more than enough to resist his karmic debt for the meal's duration. Venti later arrived as an unexpected guest, but the meal continued without issue. The following day, she and her friends pressured Xingqiu into asking about his relationship with Venti.^[21]

Hu Tao would eventually discover that one of Baizhu's patients, a man named Jialiang, was close to death and insisted to bring him to the funeral parlor to perform last rites. While Baizhu treated him, he had everyone else wait outside, during which Hu Tao explained her antagonistic relationship with him. Baizhu and the Traveler eventually discover that Jialiang's husband, Jiangli, had been treating him with god remains and had gone missing. They discover her, but in order to save her, it would mean destroying the god remains, spelling Jialiang's death. Instead, Baizhu had anticipated this and sent Qiqi to gather ingredients for an Elixir of Immortality and later revealed she had been the one to have Jialiang guide them. Slightly exasperated that Baizhu had prevented her from sending another person off, Ayu told her to stay away from him, stating that he would cure his condition. She told him that he would have a lot of work cut out if he was serious in doing so before bidding the group farewell.^[22]

When Genius Invokation TCG was released across Teyvat, Hu Tao took a liking to the game, becoming well-known in Liyue as a top player. She also commissioned Komaniya Express to bring an item for her, which Kirara delivered for her. She then asked the youkai if the company could handle moving people in various states, spooking her. She also met Kazuha and took a liking to him, seeing that he was well cultured and asked him to play a round of Genius Invokation TCG to help prepare for her opponent. He agreed, and Paimon told him the rules. Hu Tao easily won the match, remarking on his impressive skill despite being a beginner. In the ensuing final, Hu Tao soundly defeated her opponent, Brother Qian, after rolling six Pyro dies in a single round.^[23]

After the Lantern Rite was over, Hu Tao and Zhongli went to Qiaoying Village, where they met Furina and Neuvillette. Furina hired her to make some props for an upcoming film after reading some horror stories from Liyue. She gave Neuvillette directions back to Fontaine, noting that his attire wasn't proper for taking a vacation. Learning of his duties from the Traveler, she remarked that he still had a lot of growing to do as a leader. Navia and Clorinde later caught up to them, the latter offering to escort her back to Fontaine. Furina insisted she go by herself, but Hu Tao spooked her into taking the offer before bidding them farewell.^[24]

In another Lantern Rite, a large amount of fetor began accumulating at the border, causing various illness to affect some of the people, such as Xingqiu's great-grandfather and Timaeus. Hu Tao was also given a new outfit by Xiangling, though she was a bit hesitant to wear it given that she preferred her normal outfit. Worried that the Feiyun patriarch was at the end of his life, Xingqiu's brother sent An Su to her to prepare for his funeral. The Ferrylady later reminded her of her meeting with Ningguang, so Hu Tao asked her to continue the planning in her stead.^[25] Because of the growing situation at the border, Hu Tao went with Lan Yan to investigate, discovering that Qiqi had also gone missing from Baizhu, finding that she too had also entered the border.

The two failed to return, prompting Ningguang to send Yelan to track her whereabouts. She informed the Traveler of this, and they too set out to Wuwang Hill to find them. With Xiao's aid, the Traveler rescued the three and they returned to Ningguang. Hu Tao informed them that the situation was dire and that she would have to perform the Seven-and-Eight-Gates Method in order to restore the border. She would handle the highest cost, causing Lan Yan to become concerned despite her insistence that no one would die. The Traveler later met with her and asked about her family, and she told them what had happened.^[26]

Two days later, Lan Yan prepared some rattan dolls to help absorb some of the fetor and gave them to the others who would be manning the gates. Since she would not be able to attend the festival, Hu Tao had some fortune coins passed down to the participants before she set out for the Gate of Death. As the Art of Homa was performed, Hu Tao was overwhelmed by the amount of fetor, though she had already expected to die. Realizing that the art utilized the Ley Lines and would not affect them, the Traveler made their way to Wuwang Hill. Believing she had died, she met her father and grandfather. They were relieved to see her, and Hu Tao believed that her time had come, only for the two to reveal they were not here to pick her up. As she came to, she saw the Traveler, who had taken the cost in her place and told her that everyone was waiting for her. With some hesitation, Hu Tao took their hand, exiting the border. The Traveler fell unconscious afterwards, and Hu Tao carried them all the way back to the harbor. When they came to, she thanked them for their assistance.^[27]

The next year, Hu Tao met with her friends at Third-Round Knockout to talk about a mysterious eclipse that had appeared on the moon. The Traveler went there to find Zhongli, but found them instead. Aware of their travels in Nod-Krai, she asked them if they knew, though they did not. Nonetheless, the phenomena caught their attention and they learned what had happened from Xiangling. Hu Tao speculated that something might've possessed her. The four then went to Chiwang Terrace to verify the photo themselves, but they left after waiting for some time, missing the phenomenon.^[28]

Trivia

• Zhongli first mentions her during the Archon Quest Solitary Fragrance in Chapter I: Act III - A New Star Approaches and hopes that she has been able to keep the authorities at bay after the Qixing turned their suspicions on the Fatui — which the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is associated with.
  • She is also mentioned on an anonymous message left on the Wangshu Inn Bulletin Board, which is likely Zhongli's.
• Hu Tao writes a response to Baizhu's message on the Feiyun Slope Bulletin Board, in which she says he should hand Qiqi over to be buried by the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.
• She is the current owner of the Staff of Homa, a ceremonial tool passed down through the Hu family.
• Hu Tao is the first playable character starting from global release who goes by her full name in official media and in the game's interface; Kamisato Ayaka was the very first, introduced in the First Closed Beta Test but afterwards unavailable until Version 2.0. While other characters before them have known surnames, such as Jean (Jean Gunnhildr), Kaeya (Kaeya Alberich), and Diluc (Diluc Ragnvindr), they go by their given names in official material.
• Hu Tao is associated with butterflies because Chinese traditions commonly associate them with life and death, and the dead.
• She wears plum blossoms on her hat, which are associated with late winter. This fits her title, Fragrance in Thaw, which also refers to winter transitioning into spring.
• On April 1, 2021, HoYoverse made Hu Tao their official mascot for April Fools' Day, replacing Paimon. Their social media accounts changed their profile pictures to images of her, and the official Discord server for Genshin Impact had a Hu Tao theme.
  • This is most likely to reference Hu Tao's reputation as a prankster within Liyue, which suits the theme of April Fools' Day.
• Hu Tao is the last character whose Character Introduction Illustration completely differs from their Wish Artwork.
• Hu Tao is known by these aliases or titles:
  • Director Hu
• Hu Tao is the first and only limited 5 star character to not be revealed during a version trailer, most likely due to her relations with death, which was a taboo during Lunar New Year, the time before her release.
• Hu Tao's "Hilitune" featured in her More About Hu Tao: I and idle voice-overs is also sung by Dusky Ming in Wangshu, the Traveler when talking to Shinozuka, and referenced in the Wonders of the World achievement Silly-Billy Churlish Ghoul.
  • In the Chinese, Japanese and Korean versions, the song is a reference to a Chinese nursery rhyme called Ten Rabbits (Chinese: 十只兔子 shí zhī tùzi).
• Hu Tao is mentioned in the descriptions of the following 5 Furnishings:
  • Stone Lion Statue: The Warding
  • Wood-Carved Hat: Fareweller
  • Companion Gift - "Playful and Lively"
  • Auspicious Mora: "Flowing Fortune"
  • Plum Branch Arrangement: "Boundless Spring"

Etymology

• When read together, Hu Tao's name (胡桃) refers to the walnut tree, and is itself a regional term for walnuts in certain parts of China. In the game, both characters are parsed separately: as her surname (Chinese: 胡 Hú) is distinct from her given name (Chinese: 桃 Táo, "Peach"). The English version reflects this by separating the two characters with a space, unlike most other Liyue characters whose names are commonly written as one word, without any spaces.
  • In Chinese official media, however, the name is often spelled as simply "Hutao," without the space as utilized in the English localization.
• The "walnut" interpretation of Hu Tao's name may be a reference to an old Chinese folk song about walnuts granting long life. A variant of the song goes: "[When] walnuts do not leave the hand, [one] can live up to eighty-nine, surpassing even the Qianlong Emperor; the King of Hell will not be able to call [them] away!" (Chinese: 核桃不离手，能活八十九，超过乾隆爷，阎王叫不走！ Hétáo bù líshǒu, néng huó bāshíjiǔ, chāoguò Qiánlóng-yé, Yánwáng jiào bù zóu!).
  • The Qianlong Emperor is one of the longest-reigning and longest-lived monarchs in world history. He lived to eighty-seven, which is two years less than the stated year in the song.
  • The name of the King of Hell mentioned in the song, Yánwáng (Chinese: 阎王) is a homophone for half of Zhongli's title, Yánwáng Dìjūn (Chinese: 岩王帝君 "Rex Lapis"). It is possible that Zhongli's role as a consultant in the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is also a nod to the song.
• Her constellation, Papilio Charontis, is Latin for "the butterfly of Charon."
• Her name "Hu Tao" sounds similar to the word "butterfly" in Chinese (蝴蝶 húdié). In the Chinese and Korean character teasers, Hu Tao jokingly refers to her and the butterflies as having the same surname.

Notes

References