With the door and windows shut, the soundproofing in the office was excellent. Not a single noise from the outside world made it through.
In such a quiet and warm environment, it was indeed the perfect time to… unwind.
Xia Zhi quietly massaged Jean's temples as she lay there with her eyes closed.
The golden progress bar floating above her steadily climbed, filling up until it reached 100%.
A system notification sounded in Xia Zhi's mind:
[Progress bar complete. Golden Treasure Chest reward obtained.]
He didn't react to it, continuing to gently knead Jean's head.
Compared to the rest of the body, head massages were much more effective at calming the mind.
Physical fatigue could be relieved through massage, but mental exhaustion was a different beast entirely.
As Jean's tense mind relaxed, the exhaustion she'd been suppressing for days rushed in all at once, making her eyelids heavy with sleep.
That, too, was a kind of biological self-preservation.
It was like a stamina bar in a game running empty—you had to rest to refill it before you could play properly again.
And for a free-to-play player, the best way to recover was simply to sleep.
By the time Xia Zhi finished the full massage routine and lifted his hands from her head, Jean had already drifted off without realizing it.
She was truly exhausted.
From his god's-eye, Xia Zhi glanced at her peaceful sleeping face, then looked at the floor beside the desk.
Piles of paperwork were stacked there, along with an empty cup—it must've been Jean's.
He bent down and picked up the cup, pausing for a moment before picking up a piece of paper from the floor as well.
It was a meticulously detailed daily schedule, broken down to the minute.
From morning runs with Amber and grabbing breakfast for Lisa along the way, to hand-washing clothes late at night and folding them neatly—every little task was listed in order. Her time was scheduled to the second.
Each completed task had a checkmark, and anything delayed due to outside factors had notes explaining the reason.
For the Mondstadt Public Facilities Assessment Report, which she hadn't finished on time due to feeling unwell, she'd added: [Completed at 3 AM, cancel this month's book-purchase reward.]
Xia Zhi put the paper back in its place.
This had to be Jean's personal daily planner.
To be honest, it was a bit… too much.
He glanced at the empty cup again.
There was a tiny spoon inside and a smear of black residue at the bottom.
Xia Zhi recognized it instantly—coffee.
And not just any coffee, but pure, sugarless black coffee, the bitter high-concentration kind.
Jean had mentioned staying up late, and considering the planner's note about [3 AM…], she'd probably relied on this to forcibly keep herself awake.
With the way she was now, if no one disturbed her, she could probably sleep soundly until the next morning.
Xia Zhi shook his head as he watched her.
Letting her recover energy through sleep alone was way too slow.
Given that she'd just handed over a golden treasure chest, he figured he'd give her a little taste of "premium service."
Moving quietly, he walked over to the tea table on the other side of the office, placing the empty cup back down.
Then, from his inventory, he took out a stone. With a thought, the stone transformed into a incense burner.
He pulled out a stick of [Calming Incense] and lit it inside.
A strange, soothing aroma began to waft through the air, filling the room.
Lying on the desk, Jean inhaled the scent in her sleep, and her breathing grew even steadier, her expression more peaceful.
If he could see her stamina recovery bar right now, it'd probably be shooting up at lightning speed.
Xia Zhi lifted his head.
Next to the tea table were two large bookshelves against the wall, packed with books and documents.
He skimmed past the files related to Mondstadt's governance systems, casually scanning the shelves—until he spotted something interesting tucked away in a corner.
It was a novel.
The title read Vera's Melancholy.
Xia Zhi walked over and picked it up.
Though it was shelved inconspicuously, when he brushed his fingers along the cover, he found there was barely any dust.
Clearly, someone had read it recently.
Most likely, that someone was the owner of this office—Jean.
With some curiosity, Xia Zhi flipped through the book and soon realized it was a romance novel about a young girl.
He hadn't expected someone as strict and disciplined as Captain Jean to have this kind of secret hobby.
He closed the book and returned it to its original place on the shelf.
Jean was still asleep.
Amber, Xia Ci, and the others were probably still taking their gliding exam too.
Xia Zhi didn't know where the exam site was, and there likely wasn't much excitement going on there anyway. He figured he might as well stay here and wait for them to come back.
Sitting by the tea table, he pulled out a tea set and teapot from his inventory.
It was a gadget crafted by Cloud Retainer—a mechanism that could boil water automatically and keep it warm.
He'd used it back at the Dragon-Queller Tree to brew tea for the Dragon King. Since it worked well, he'd kept it around.
Xia Zhi extended a hand, gathering Hydro energy from the air. A stream of clear water flowed into the pot.
Moments later, white steam rose from the spout.
He brewed himself a cup of [Silver Dew Tea], set out a plate of pastries, switched his phone to silent mode, and leaned back in his chair, nibbling on snacks while chatting with Furina over text.
Furina said she was spacing out in the Grand Theater, bored out of her mind. She wished she could come to Mondstadt to eat and wander around with everyone.
Later, she even complained to him about how bad Barbatos was at gaming last night.
Xia Zhi chuckled as he typed a reply, telling her to be careful not to let the water boil over…
Until he suddenly heard Jean let out a soft, sleepy sigh from where she lay on the desk.
Looked like Captain Jean was fully recharged.
Xia Zhi put his phone away.
The next moment, Jean opened her eyes, staring dazedly at the office ceiling.
"…What happened…"
She pushed herself up, glanced around at the familiar surroundings, and spotted Xia Zhi quietly sipping tea nearby.
"You're awake."
Her hazy memories snapped back into focus.
Right! Amber had asked Mr. Xia to give her a massage. But then she'd been so exhausted she'd just… fallen asleep right there on the desk.
Jean looked at Xia Zhi, a little embarrassed. "Mr. Xia…"
"It's alright. Falling asleep during a massage is perfectly normal," Xia Zhi said with a smile. "How do you feel now?"
Jean hopped lightly down from the desk. Her toes touched the floor, and she immediately felt a weightlessness in her body, her mind crystal clear.
With surprise, she said, "I feel amazing! Not tired at all. It's like I just came back from the best vacation ever…"
Xia Zhi nodded. "Good."
The aroma of the incense still lingered in the air.
Jean sniffed, following the wisps of smoke with her eyes—then paused.
She was pretty sure her office didn't normally have this tea set, teapot, or incense burner.
"Mr. Xia, this incense is…?"
"Oh, it's something I made myself. It has calming properties. I thought it might help you, so I lit it. Sorry, if you don't like the smell…"
"No, no! I love it. It smells wonderful—really soothing…"
"Is that so?"
"Yes! I've never smelled incense that relaxing before."
"Thank you for the compliment, Captain Jean. Actually, this incense is something I use during my massages."
"Mr. Xia massages people often?"
"Mhm. I run a little shop in Liyue. Besides selling drinks, I also offer massage services sometimes."
"I see…"
Jean hadn't seen anything about massages in Mr. Xia's file.
"And this tea set?" she asked.
"Oh, that's mine too. I got thirsty, so I took it out. Sorry about that…"
"No need to apologize! I should've been the one to serve you tea as the host…"
"Don't worry about it. I'm actually a bit picky—I only like drinking my own tea."
"…I see."
Xia Zhi smiled. "If you don't mind, Captain Jean, would you like to have a cup with me?"
Jean hesitated, then smiled back. "Alright, I'd love to try the tea Mr. Xia prefers."
She walked over and sat on the other side of the tea table.
Xia Zhi brewed her a cup of [Silver Dew Tea]. "Please enjoy."
"Thank you."
Jean took a sip.
The fresh, clear tea was completely different from the black tea she usually drank.
At the same time, she felt an indescribable shift in her mind—her thoughts became sharper, more vivid.
Staring at the cup in her hands, she murmured, "This tea…"
Xia Zhi spoke softly. "This tea is called Silver Dew. It has special properties—refreshes the mind, enhances thinking, sharpens intuition. It lets you recall any memory in detail, even re-experience past moments, and simulate future scenarios in your mind."
Just as he said, Jean felt her memories becoming clearer than ever. She could even remember exactly what Barbara looked like as a newborn.
As for "simulation"—she closed her eyes and tried it, and when she opened them again, her gaze was filled with shock.
Xia Zhi pushed the plate of pastries toward her. "Drinking tea alone won't do. You've been up all night, Captain Jean—your stomach must be empty. Have a snack."
Jean quietly picked up a pastry and took a bite.
"…It's delicious."
"If you like it, have a few more."
"…Okay."
After one cup of tea and four or five pastries, Jean felt a rare sense of total contentment.
Leaning back in her chair, she sighed, "If only life could be this easy every day…"
"Why not?"
"…Huh?"
"Captain Jean, if I may be blunt—you're putting too much pressure on yourself."
"…Pressure."
"No matter how capable you are, there's no need to take every single matter of Mondstadt onto your own shoulders. Chasing perfection like that will only wear you out—like earlier, when you collapsed from exhaustion."
"…You have a point, but… I carry the trust of the Knights of Favonius and the hopes of Mondstadt's people. I can't slack off…"
"There's a difference between not slacking and never relaxing."
"As Acting Grand Master…"
"If you keep going like this, maybe you'll stay an acting grand master forever."
Jean lowered her head. "I…"
"Captain Jean, would you like to hear a story?"
"…Yes."
Xia Zhi spoke softly. "In Liyue, there was once a girl who walked barefoot, selling goods along the way…"
When he finished, Jean quietly asked, "That girl you mentioned… is that the current Tianquan Star, Lady Ningguang?"
Xia Zhi nodded. "That's right. In my eyes, you two are quite alike—both exceptional women, standing at the top, both meticulously planning for your nations' futures, with every second of your day scheduled…"
Jean thought for a moment. "So you're saying I should do what Lady Ningguang does—cultivate a team of secretaries to share the workload?"
Xia Zhi shook his head. "No. What I mean is—if something can be solved with money, don't overthink it. And ninety percent of problems can be solved with money. If you do that, your workload instantly shrinks to ten percent. Life becomes much easier."
"…Haha."
Jean chuckled despite herself.
"You're right, Mr. Xia. Most of the time, it really does come down to money. Liyue is much richer than Mondstadt—especially Lady Ningguang, who's said to be the wealthiest woman in all of Teyvat. Mondstadt relies mainly on its wine industry, so for a lot of expenses, I have to scrimp and save. That's my biggest headache. After the dragon disaster last year, Dvalin's winds destroyed many public buildings, and we still haven't finished repairs. At the end of the day, we just don't have enough Mora…"
Xia Zhi tapped his chin. "Then… does Captain Jean want to make money?"
"Of course!"
"I see."
"Wait—Mr. Xia, do you have an idea?"
"…No, not at the moment."
"…I see. Well, either way, thank you for helping me today. If you hadn't stepped in, I probably would've been sent straight to the Church of Favonius."
Jean stood up and gave Xia Zhi a formal knight's salute.
"No need for that. I'm a healer—this is just part of my duty."
"Even if you don't count the healing, there's still the incense, the tea, the pastries…"
"Consider it a fair exchange. After all, you arranged lodging for us."
"Mr. Xia…"
Jean looked at him, then suddenly laughed.
"In that case, I won't thank you anymore."
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