NOW that obscures me

[Mary Bright]

These are the sentences from The Cinderella story, and though I've looked through all the meanings of the word in a dictionary, I don't quite catch in what sense NOW is used in here:

[...] "Now it happened that the king of the land held a feast which was to last three days, and out of those who came to it his son was to choose a bride for himself; and Cinderella's two sisters were asked to come. So they called Cinderella, and said, "Now, comb our hair, brush our shoes, and tie our sashes for us, for we are going to dance at the king's feast."

And one more:

[...] "Now when all were gone, and nobody left at home, Cinderella went sorrowfully and sat down under the hazel-tree, and cried out-- "Shake, shake, hazel-tree, gold and silver over me!" [...]"

Thanks

[Raymott]

These are the sentences from The Cinderella story, and though I've looked through all the meanings of the word in a dictionary, I don't quite catch in what sense NOW is used in here:

[...] "Now it happened that the king of the land held a feast which was to last three days, and out of those who came to it his son was to choose a bride for himself; and Cinderella's two sisters were asked to come. So they called Cinderella, and said, "Now, comb our hair, brush our shoes, and tie our sashes for us, for we are going to dance at the king's feast."

And one more:

[...] "Now when all were gone, and nobody left at home, Cinderella went sorrowfully and sat down under the hazel-tree, and cried out-- "Shake, shake, hazel-tree, gold and silver over me!" [...]"

Thanks

Here, it functions merely as a non-specific interjection, like "Well, ...; Ok then, so ...; Anyhow, ..."