Lan Wangji accepts the straw with trepidation. He has come to realize that plastic dominates the earth at some point a thousand years after his own life, but he still does not like its unnatural, tacky-smooth texture. He attempts to stab one of the lids, carefully; nothing happens. He attempts it again, with more force. Nothing happens. Upon the third attempt, he is arguably successful. The plastic is pierced, and the force with which it is pierced sends a significant volume of tea flying up around it.