"Ah, let's not dwell on such unpleasant matters. As a wandering hero, how can one spend all day brooding about the world's injustices? Let's talk about something cheerful instead."
"Wouldn't bringing down Gentry Maocai count as cheerful?"
"And also—this book, Legend of the Shattered Halberd, which greatly influenced me and even changed my own writing style, I finally got to see it reach completion… oh, right, have you ever written a martial arts novel?!"
"Martial arts novel? If we're talking about a proper one, I do have some ideas. But compared to Legend of the Shattered Halberd or A Legend of Sword, the only thing I could put forth is probably Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword."
"Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword?" Xingqiu brightened, pleasantly surprised that Victor Wang truly had thoughts of writing a martial arts novel.
"It's a story about Mount Taixu, about an adeptus named Chi Yuan, and her seven disciples."
"Can you tell me the outline first?"
Victor Wang gathered his thoughts and began slowly:
"In the boundless darkness, an adeptus long dead awakened consciousness.
"At first, this new awareness was like the birth of the world itself—merely a speck of light within the void.
…
"The seven people closest to her, the seven swords that had accompanied her the longest, conspired together. They lured her into a trap, cast a net with seven blades, and slew her.
"She seeks to find those seven people, and to ask them why they killed her."
"Chen, Xingqiu, you're both here!"
Just as Victor Wang finished the prologue of Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword, Paimon and Lumine arrived. Victor spread his hands. "Gentry Maocai and his men on horseback are faster than me. By now, they should be arriving soon. We'll have to leave the story for next time."
Xingqiu could only nod helplessly.
"And I'd better hide."
"Why?"
"At the docks, he tried to rob me of my Cor Lapis. I gave him a little scare… I'm afraid he won't dare make a move otherwise."
Victor Wang slipped behind the warehouse, only to suddenly discover someone was already hiding there.
"Hello."
"Qi Xiuming? What are you doing here?"
Qi Xiuming raised a Kamera in his palm as a signal. "I'm here to gather evidence of Gentry Maocai's crimes—shh, hide quickly, they're here."
The sound of galloping hooves echoed from afar.
Gentry Maocai arrived with a large group of servants and thugs, accompanied by a Debt Collector and four Fatui Skirmishers.
Recognizing faces, Changhu immediately tattled, "Master, these are the ones who protected Lord Chang in Qingce Village!"
"The young master of the Feiyun Commerce Guild… so it really is all of you. Seems the Guild is dead set on crossing me!"
"Lord Chang once lent me books. Aside from that, when wandering around, is it not natural to draw one's blade at injustice?"
"Hmph, such insolence. I'll waste no more words." Gentry Maocai respectfully clasped his fists toward the Debt Collector. "Sir, please—seize all the Cor Lapis here!"
Behind the warehouse, Qi Xiuming clicked the Kamera, capturing the moment, followed by shots of the Fatui Skirmishers charging toward the Feiyun Commerce Guild's warehouse.
Battle broke out. But naturally, the five Fatui Skirmishers were no match for Xingqiu and Lumine, so Victor Wang remained hidden, not lifting a hand.
"These people have some skill—they aren't ordinary. If we keep fighting like this, the losses will be too great."
"Sir, they're about to collapse! Press the attack!"
"You fool. The Fatui have only a business arrangement with you, not an obligation to stir up trouble on your behalf. Why should we bear this burden?"
"W-what are you saying, sir? I-I'm just trying to fulfill the order!"
"Handle the order yourself."
The Debt Collector and the Skirmishers left in defeat.
"Wait—wait, sir!"
With his lifeline severed and his muscle beaten back, Gentry Maocai deflated like a wilted eggplant, his arrogance gone. He looked pitifully to Xingqiu. "I admit defeat this time. What does the Feiyun Commerce Guild want—what will it take for you to hand over the Cor Lapis?"
"Simple. Since you gave Chang the Lord Chang a thirty percent price, we'll return it in kind. Triple the market price—buy it back."
"Robbery! Outrageous! You—you—!"
"Shouting so loudly—so, will you buy or not? After all, no one's forcing you."
"I… fine, fine, fine, I'll pay it…"
And so, publicly at least, the affair ended with Gentry Maocai's compromise. After he left, Qi Xiuming grinned slyly at the images in his Kamera.
"Well? Did you capture the crucial scene?" Xingqiu and Lumine leaned closer, clearly aware of Qi Xiuming's presence.
"I did. Striking deals with the Fatui at such a time—no matter who's backing him, Gentry Maocai won't be saved now."
Victor Wang, the outsider, asked, "So you planned this all along?"
Xingqiu shook his head.
"More like a fortuitous convergence.
"I've long been investigating Gentry Maocai's weaknesses. His behavior at the premiere of The Butterfly Lovers was far too excessive, drawing the attention of important figures. But only today did I cross paths with Mr. Qi by chance.
Helping Lord Chang was sincere. But even a loss of ten million Mora would be but a drop in the bucket to Gentry Maocai. Only by striking at the root can we truly bring him pain."
Qi Xiuming added, "After the Overlord of the Vortex incident, the higher-ups intend to launch the 'Liyue Bank' to rival the Northland Bank. Gentry De'an's moneylending house was the industry leader a decade ago, holding many resources. Now, he's bedridden thanks to Gentry Maocai's provocations."
"…"
Victor Wang almost spoke up, but held back.
Maybe, just maybe, it wasn't Maocai who struck him down—maybe The Butterfly Lovers broke his heart?
"Well then, gentlemen, I'll take my leave and report back."
Qi Xiuming departed.
"Lumine, Paimon—thank you both for your help in this matter. Also, would you return this copy of Legend of the Shattered Halberd to Lord Chang on my behalf?"
Lumine froze. "Again, you're making us run errands?"
"Since I didn't actually do anything, I shouldn't receive the thanks. You two, on the other hand, weren't obligated to help yet stood by us until the end."
"You make it sound so noble, but really, you just don't want to go yourself…"
"Haha, after such help, surely Lord Chang will have some token of gratitude. And besides, the thing you wanted should already be back in his hands."
"A reward!" Paimon's eyes sparkled, utterly charmed. "Well… that's acceptable, Lumine, let's go!"
Once the two left, Xingqiu rubbed his hands together with a sly grin. "Victor, can you continue Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword now?"
"If you want to hear it, I'll tell you another fold."
"A fold?"
"'Fold' means 'volume.' The title is Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword—I thought I'd match the theme."
Victor Wang had once considered using Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword to break into the Inazuma market. After all, Legend of the Shattered Halberd and A Legend of Sword were top sellers there. If he could entice Yae Miko, perhaps it would lead to contact with the Raiden Shogun herself.
But with Inazuma's isolationist policy, not even people could enter—how could books?
So, the dream of conquering Inazuma through literature had to be abandoned.
Still, he loved sharing the story of Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword. Unlike Tales from the Box, it wasn't for profit, nor like The Butterfly Lovers, which he had written as a gift. He simply enjoyed it.
Much like Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
That sweeping history, those vivid characters—no matter the place, no matter the time, recalling it always stirred his heart, compelling him to recommend it to others. A pity it was too long to tell all at once.
He steadied himself, then continued the tale of Chronicles of Shenzhou's Broken Sword:
"Let us shift our gaze to a small waystation in the desert.
Fourteen hundred years ago, the wandering Tuik people discovered an oasis here. Thanking the gods for their blessing, they drank deeply, but did not linger.
Three hundred years later, a caravan from Yan State stopped here, laden with jewels, silk, and an envoy worth more than all the goods combined. They left the next day, but never made it out of the northern desert—lost to the sands forever.
Seven hundred forty years ago, the nomadic Banyu people built a camp beside this oasis, ending their endless wandering. Yet a century later, they were swept away by northern raiders, slaughtered and enslaved…
Time flows on, clouds shift and fade. Now the land belongs to the 'Golden Sands Gang.'
And here enters the heroine of this fold: Li Susha, daughter of Qin Suyi—'Scented Sword' of the Yijian Manor in Chuan, seventh disciple of Adeptus Chi Yuan. To fulfill her dream of becoming the greatest under heaven, she came here to challenge the ruthless bandits."
…
"'If Master comes to settle old debts, the first one she'll seek is you, Su Mei,' said Lin Chaoyu, head of the Taixu Sword Sect.
"'Wrong, wrong,' Su Mei replied lightly. 'Master doesn't know who the ringleader was. But it doesn't matter… she has already killed one.'"
Victor Wang clapped his hands, pulling Xingqiu out of his immersion. "And that's the end of the first fold."
"Is there more? Tell me two more folds at least!"
"…I'll write it down for you to read instead. Telling it all would take hours, and writing it isn't much faster."
Seeing how much Xingqiu enjoyed it gave Victor Wang confidence in the work. After all, back on Earth it hadn't been considered a classic.
"That's great then. When it's published, let me know right away—I'll give you plenty of support!"
"Do you know if Chongyun is free tomorrow?"
"Him? Their line of work is pretty quiet—only one job every ten days or so. Today was one of those days, so tomorrow he should be free. Why, you need him?"
"I need drops from the Geo Hypostasis to treat my illness. I hear it's easier with a claymore. Looking around, my only friend in Liyue who uses one seems to be Chongyun."
"I'll pass the message along to him."