The heavy, tense silence in the Jade Chamber stretched on, thick with the weight of Ningguang's final, ominous pronouncement. Beidou, however, did not look worried. She simply put down her teacup with a soft, deliberate click, and a slow, wide, and utterly fearless, smirk spread across her face.
"Heh," she let out a low, rumbling chuckle. "What a dramatic way of telling me off, Tianquan. I'll give you a 9.5 out of 10. You nearly broke character when you were talking to the little one over here, though. Almost showed a bit of heart."
Ningguang, the great, unshakable Tianquan of the Liyue Qixing, actually let out a small, weary sigh, the stern, disappointed mask cracking for a fraction of a second, revealing the tired, pragmatic ruler beneath.
"This is not a matter for jests, Beidou," she said, though the steel in her voice had lessened. "But… you are correct in one regard. It is a good thing that it was you, someone we can, for the most part, trust, who found this loophole, and not someone… less scrupulous."
She leaned back in her chair, her strategic mind already moving past the problem and onto the solution. "I have already begun drafting the new protocols. More thorough worker screenings, background checks for everyone with access to the production line. Binding, non-disclosure contracts with severe penalties for any breach." She then gave a small, almost imperceptible, glance towards the ceiling. "And I will be… consulting with a certain adeptus about the possibility of some… enhanced monitoring tools."
The message was clear. The loophole was being closed, with all the formidable, and slightly terrifying, resources the Qixing, and their adeptal allies, could bring to bear.
"And as for your… punishment," Ningguang continued, her gaze once more fixing on the pirate captain. "I cannot be seen to be lenient. A breach of this magnitude requires a consequence." She paused, a glint of cunning, strategic brilliance in her amber eyes. "Therefore, you and your fleet, the Crux, are to remain on standby. There are… certain off-the-books operations on the horizon. Operations that require someone of your… unique expertise, and a very fast, very deniable, ship."
Beidou let out a loud, hearty laugh. "Fine by me! So, the usual, then?"
"Yes," Ningguang replied, a slow, predatory smile now on her own lips. "The usual. Except, this time… you will be working as a free service. There will be no payment for your troubles. Consider your debt to Liyue… paid in full through your service."
It was a perfect, Ningguang-esque solution. It was a punishment that was not a punishment, a way to hold Beidou accountable while simultaneously securing the services of the most powerful private naval force in Teyvat for her own, clandestine purposes, all for free.
Ren, who had been watching the entire, high-stakes negotiation with a fascinated, wide-eyed wonder, suddenly burst into a fit of happy, relieved laughter. He looked at the grinning pirate captain and the smiling, cunning Tianquan. "I knew you were a good person, Captain Beidou!" he chirped. "And don't worry! I'll definitely see if Master Xianyun and I can make some kind of… monitoring tool for the factory! Something really clever!"
He was already thinking of new inventions, his mind sparking with a dozen new, brilliant ideas.
And then, in the middle of his excited, inventive rambling, he froze.
A look of pure, unadulterated, and slightly panicked, horror dawned on his face.
He slowly, dramatically, turned to look at Ganyu.
"The hovercar," he whispered, his voice a squeak of pure, sudden, and utterly, completely, forgotten, dread.
Ganyu blinked, confused for a moment, and then her own eyes widened in a look of dawning, shared realization. In the chaos of Inazuma, in the battles with gods and Harbingers, in the whirlwind of their return, they had completely, and utterly, forgotten about the next, great, and half-promised, project.
Ganyu just smiled, a soft, gentle, and deeply amused, expression on her face. She reached out and gently patted his head. "Don't worry, Ren," she said, her voice a soothing, calming balm. "We can visit her tomorrow."