Ningguang
The Rite of Descension.
All those who reside in Liyue, and even some who don't, knew the significance of this event. It was the day the Geo Archon, Rex Lapis, descended upon Liyue to give his prophecies and guide the nation.
For some, it was an opportunity to see their god in the flesh, and pray for what they desire most. But as it is in Liyue, the city where money flows, there are those who find another kind of opportunity.
"As always, things get so hectic this time of year." Ningguang, the Tianquan of the Liyue Qixing, sighed as she put away a stack of papers and stared disdainfully at the next.
One would think that with the Rite approaching rapidly, local businesses of Liyue would flock for an opportunity to help with the preparation for their archon's descent.
But humans being what they are, greed always ruptures forth.
People flocked in the hundreds to offer their services, yet with prices twice or even three times more expensive.
Of course, money was never an issue for the Tianquan.
"But even so, the thought of being swindled for more money leaves a bad taste in my mouth," she muttered.
"Wow, completely swamped again this year, huh?" A voice called out with a light tone.
Ningguang raised her gaze to Yelan, who was sitting calmly in the chair across her desk.
"You know how it is. People try to get as much profit as they can, even in an event for their god's Descension,"
Yelan tilted her head, "That sounds awfully a lot like you, doesn't it?"
"Don't patronise me," she gave the spy a sharp stare, "But you are correct."
Yelan laughed out loud and leaned back on the chair. "So, what's the issue this year?"
Without turning her gaze away from her papers, Ningguang answered, "Our usual logistic contractors had a bad year and are trying to make up the profit using the Rite of Descension. While I could appreciate the effort, the price is beyond reasonable."
She pointed to a stack of papers to her right that was nearly as tall as her head, "But it seems like other contractors aren't any better. So I'm trying to find the right pick with a reasonable price."
"Hmmm," Yelan pondered, putting a hand under her chin. Before a wry smile slowly appeared on her face, "I think I may have someone in mind."
This got Ningguang's attention, and she put her papers down to hear her out.
"There is a certain business that has been gaining traction as of late," She said, drawing out her words for drama's sake, "A business not even a year old, and would froth for an opportunity like the Rite of Descension. You could get a good deal with a young company like this."
"And that company is?"
"Oh my, you must be really tired." Yelan laughed, "Usually, you'd have already guessed it by now."
"Stop with the dramatics and spill it out."
"Alright alright. The company I'm talking about, is a young, thriving, courier business by the name of—"
"The Shadow Courier," Ningguang put a hand on her head in exasperation, "I must be out of my game to not guess that at all."
It wasn't the first time she had heard of the small business. Well, she'd heard about it multiple times actually,
Starting out as a one man operation, the Shadow Courier grew up to be quite the competitor in the delivery and logistics industry, especially with adventurers.
But what got the business on her radar wasn't the business itself, but the man behind it.
'Ren Roman,'
Yelan's intelligence reports gave her an image of what the man was like. His abilities were a cause for suspicion for a while, especially his close connection with Ganyu.
But if even Cloud Retainer and Xiao vouch for his innocence, then who is she to judge?
She had planned to find a suitable reason to see the man for herself, but she never thought the opportunity would arise here of all places.
"That's not a bad idea," She mused, "The Shadow Courier has grown quite popular, and their records have been nearly clean. Along with Roman's… Shikigami, it would make transportation a breeze."
"But there is the possibility that he might not even accept our invitation," Ningguang pointed out, earning a confused glance from Yelan, "A person of his nature is adverse to high-risk situations unless they can be close to certain of success. He might not accept out of fear of what would happen should he make a mistake. In his mind, his young company might not survive any big lawsuits that may come from an event like the Rite."
"That is true… But I have a way to convince him."
"Seriously, Yelan? I never thought you would resort to such methods for something as trivial as this."
"Don't put words in my mouth," Yelan rolled her eyes, "I think a good motivator for him would be to have a certain secretary be the overseer of the operation."
Ningguang's eyes widened just a fraction, "I like how you think."
From what she heard and read of Roman, his main goal was always to get home. Wherever his home was, she couldn't care less. But what she did care about was what he brought for Liyue.
He, unintentionally or not, made Cloud Retainer view Liyue in a better light once her other disciple decided to work under Roman. Not only that, he seemed to have a cordial relationship with Xiao, and a closeness with Ganyu.
'To not fight to have him stay would be an immense waste,' she could think of many opportunities that would arise for her should Roman become closer with the Adeptus.
"I'm convinced, let me write up an invitation." Ningguang pulled a blank piece of paper and began writing, "I'm sure Ganyu won't mind working with her 'friend.'"
/ — /
Ren
"Good job today everyone!" Ren shouted out at his tired employees.
With the Rite of Descension just around the corner, people had begun shipping things everywhere, which made for good business. But unfortunately it meant an absurd amount of commissions across the entirety of Liyue.
His employees looked completely swamped.
Xiaosi and Daquan were just sitting down with lifeless eyes on a chair in the corner, while Meifen had started sleeping on one of the tables.
'Even Shenhe looks tired,' This was what surprised Ren the most, as someone as physically gifted as Shenhe being tired was an absurd idea in his head.
With the amount of deliveries she had to do the past few days, she was bound to come across a few… unruly customers.
Safe to say, she found out what it was like to work a delivery job. People always blamed you for things that were usually out of your control.
Yesterday was the first time he'd seen Shenhe outright ranting with everyone else.
'With the amount of deliveries and the distance they're going, a lot of them are going to get the bonuses.' Honestly, it was something they rightfully deserved for all the shit they had to put up with.
He sat down at his desk in a corner of the warehouse, going through the week's accounts.
'We're up fifteen percent from last month,' he noted with a pleased expression. 'If this keeps up, we can look at expanding the warehouse.'
The Shadow Bands had done wonders for his delivery amounts, and he could look at expanding the Shadow Courier further. But he'd have to look for and train new employees to account for the expansion.
'Maybe I could assign Shenhe to train the newcomers—'
KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK.
Someone knocked at the warehouse door.
'It's probably Hengyi.'
"It's open!" He called out without looking up.
The door opened up and he suddenly felt something was wrong. Hengyi always greeted everyone when visiting, this silence wasn't like him.
Ren looked up.
'Oh SHIT!'
A Millelith guard was standing in the doorway, scanning the entire warehouse and giving an odd look at the exhausted employees.
At the guard's arrival, Shenhe narrowed her eyes at him. Already thinking that he must have done something wrong.
But Ren's brain was in overdrive to acknowledge her stare.
'Why the hell is a Millelith guard here?!' He shouted in his mind, 'I didn't do anything did I? Did I pay my taxes? Yeah, I did! I haven't done anything to warrant a visit from a guard…'
Then his eyes widened, 'Could they have found out about the mansion raid?! Are they here to arrest me?!'
Taking a deep breath he quickly walked up to the guard.
"Can I help you?"
"Are you Ren Roman?" the guard asked. His voice sounded casual and a little tired, so maybe Ren didn't need to worry about anything.
"That's me."
The guard pulled out an envelope and held it out to him, "You have a correspondence from the Qixing."
Ren's heart just gave out right there, and he lifelessly took the envelope.
Oblivious to his current state, the guard merely gave him a respectful nod and left the warehouse.
The door closed with a loud 'THUD,' and Ren was still standing in the same spot.
His employees had all woken up from the sudden visit, and were now looking at their boss with intrigued and worried glances.
Ren finally got enough bearings to actually look at the envelope. He flipped it over to check if this could be a fake like last time.
Nope, it had the official Qixing seal.
He shakily let out a breath and walked to his desk. Slowly he pulled the letter out of the envelope, and his employees were quietly watching in anticipation.
[Ren Roman,
Given the Shadow Courier's immense growth the past months, it is my honour to invite you to become the main contractor for the preparation of the upcoming Rite of Descension. Let us meet tomorrow in the Jade Chamber to discuss further details. Merely show this envelope to those at Yuehai Pavilion and they will grant you passage.
I eagerly await your arrival.
Best regards,
Ningguang,
Tianquan of the Liyue Qixing.]
'—from WHO?!' Ren's eyes bulged from his eye sockets as he read the person who had wrote the letter.
His heart was already beating fast just from the guard's visit, but reading the letter made it beat so much faster that he was worried he might get a heart attack.
'THE TIANQUAN SENT ME A LETTER!' It seemed so hard to believe that he remained frozen for the next couple of minutes.
"...Boss?" Xiaosi said.
Snapping out of his spiral, Ren reassured his employee, "Everything's fine. Sorry about that."
His voice was slightly higher than usual, which made Meifen narrow her eyes, and Shenhe tilted her head.
"It's nothing serious, just… carry on with whatever you were doing." He folded the letter and tucked it away in his Shadow Storage.
Nobody carried on as they watched him shakily pick up his account book and try to look busy.
"I wouldn't call a letter from the Qixing 'nothing serious.' Especially if it warranted a visit from a Millelith Guard." Meifen pointed out.
Ren winced and looked at her and the rest of his employees gazed. It looked like they weren't going to relent until they had any kind of answer.
"It's a… business opportunity," He finally said, "I'll know more tomorrow, but nothing is confirmed yet."
That seemed to be enough for most of them as they went back to resting. Shenhe didn't stop watching him for a good while.
He stayed at the desk until everyone else was gone and got very little done.
/ — /
It was night, and Ren couldn't sleep at all.
He just laid on his bed and stared at his ceiling with mixed feelings of dread and excitement.
"Oughhh, I'm gonna shit myself."
A personal invite to help with the preparation of arguably the biggest event in Liyue was an immense honor, but it also came with a lot of pressure and risk.
Not only that, but Ningguang, the Tianquan herself wrote that letter to him.
That small fact just made him all the more nauseous.
He's heard many things about Ningguang, mostly in adoration or jealousy. But it was clear that she was the top of the top in Liyue.
If he somehow offended her in any way, shape or form, he could say bye to his business and life in Liyue.
'If this goes badly, I'm gonna need a lawyer.'
He made a mental note to contact Yanfei in the morning.
'Dammit Roman, you have to lock the fuck in.' He shook his head, 'This is a massive opportunity for me. If this goes well, I would not only have Ningguang's favor but also have the Shadow Courier's name exposed to more people. I CANNOT mess this up'
Tomorrow, he'd meet the Tianquan as the Shadow Courier's boss, and he'd act like it.
But for now, he could let himself panic just a little more.
/ — /
'Wow, this looks actually classy.'
Ren stood in front of the small mirror in his apartment and adjusted the collar for the third time.
Xingqiu had insisted, months ago, that a business owner needed at least one proper formal outfit for occasions that required it.
Ren initially wanted to buy a cheaper one as it did the job well, but Xingqiu persisted and eventually he caved in. Now, he was standing here in a dark navy suit that made him look much more professional than his usual courier wear.
'I have to thank Xingqiu later.'
He picked up the envelope from his desk, checked that it was in good condition, and headed for the door.
He'd already prepared himself mentally to meet the Tianquan, and he was confident to make a good first impression.
'A good first impression…' His eyes widened, as he remembered an important detail, 'Fuck.'
In Liyue's culture of commerce and contracts, bringing a 'greeting gift' to someone of high status at their workplace is standard etiquette to show respect.
If he showed up to the freaking Jade Chamber without a gift, it would make him look like a thoughtless and inconsiderate foot without etiquette. Ningguang could think that he was treating a visit to her palace in the sky like any other appointment.
That would not be a good look.
'I can't show up empty-handed,' he thought, sitting on the edge of his bed as he tried to come up with something.
He had about two hours before he needed to be at Yuehai Pavillion so there wasn't much time.
'I could buy something for her,' He thought, but rejected the idea almost instantly.
Ningguang was the most powerful person in Liyue. She had access to everything Liyue produced, at better quality and lower cost than anything he could find in two hours.
Showing up with a box of premium Qingxin flowers or a bolt of silk would be like bringing sand to a beach. It was just generic and thoughtless.
'Maybe I could make something?'
The idea sounded better as it would be more unique and show thoughtfulness. But there was one striking issue.
He had no craft skills in the slightest.
Sure he could infuse CE into objects and make Geo constructs, but he couldn't make anything that would be appropriate to present to the Tianquan of the Liyue Qixing.
And there was absolutely no circumstance under which he was giving Ningguang a Shadow Band.
He put his head in his hands.
'Think, Ren. What would be a good gift to someone like Ningguang—'
Then Hengyi appeared in his mind.
'That's it!'
Hengyi was a master blacksmith that had spent most of his time improving his craft. Not only that, he'd heard that he'd been asking Shenhe for tips to improve his quality.
Shenhe herself had given the man his praise, so that had to count for something. She was the student of Cloud Retainer, who was known for her own creations. If she said Hengyi made good stuff then it had to be true.
He checked in his Shadow Storage and felt the leftover Cor Lapis he still had from his last excursion with Zhongli.
Though, only using Cor Lapis would be quite lazy, so he could use another ore that's often used in jewelry: Nocticulous Jade. It would act as a good accent color.
Finally, something else to contrast the color of the Cor Lapis. 'Maybe that Amethyst Lump Crystal,' It was purple that complemented gold, and gold was Ningguang's whole aesthetic.
'Alright, that should do it. I'll give it to Hengyi and hope to Rex Lapis that he could come up with something,' With the time he had left, he bolted out his apartment to get to searching.
/ — /
"Y-You need my highest quality Nocticulous Jade?" A merchant asked a panting Ren, "I know I owe you a favor, but I can't just give you it for free. This is worth so much."
"Can I get a discount, at least?"
"Hmmm, I can do that." The man extended his hand towards Ren, and the courier grabbed it in kind.
/ — /
The Amethyst took longer than he wanted it to. The merchant he knew wasn't around so he had to scour the markets to find any.
It didn't help that it was the early morning and barely any actual mineral shop was open. But he eventually found a seller that was willing to give him priority on a purchase.
Though it did come with the condition of half-off deliveries from the Shadow Courier for a month, Ren thought it was a fair trade off.
With the materials gathered and in his Shadow Storage, he made a sprint towards Hengyi's residence outside of the Harbour, immediately summoning Nue the moment he left the city gates.
/ — /
"Hengyi! Are you up?!" Ren knocked repeatedly on the blacksmith's door.
Sounds of footsteps approached the door, and not a second later, a disheveled and irritated Hengyi opened the door.
"Who dares disturb my—! Oh, Master?" Hengyi's tone became lighter the moment he saw that it was Ren, "Why are you here? And so early?"
Ren brought out the Cor Lapis, Amethyst Lump, and Nocticulous Jade out of his Shadow Storage and placed it in a box made of Geo he created.
"I need your help to use this to make something suitable for Ningguang," he said quickly, adrenaline still pumping his veins, "Some kind of Jewelry that would work best with these and fit her. I need it in under an hour."
…
…
Hengyi looked baffled at the request, and even more so once he heard who it was for.
"You want me to make something… For the Tianquan?"
"Yes." Ren nodded, "Can you do it?"
"Can I?!" Hengyi seemed to instantly lose all the sleepiness he had before and materialised a hammer in his hand. "This is but a trivial task for someone such as I! Come inside, Master. I shall get to work at once!"
Then, he left out towards his backyard and his smithing area.
Ren stepped back and watched Hengyi get to work.
The furnace burned hot as he burned some high quality metal, while slowly chipping away at the Nocticulous Jade and the Cor Lapis.
The ores gradually took shape under Hengyi's hands, and he poured the molten metal into a mold he made from his Geo Vision.
"Master, I require your assistance to cool the metal."
"Got it."
Ren got up close, 'Extension Technique: Rabbit Escape.'
A ball of Anemo encased the mold, and Ren purposefully controlled the flow to release the hot air away to cool it down as fast as he could.
As he did that, Hengyi started on the finishing touches, the Amethyst crystal. He shaped it into several oblong spheres and polished them furiously, using his Geo Vision to assist in the process in a way that Ren didn't understand at all.
"Hengyi, It's done." Ren said and gave the cooled metal to the blacksmith.
The man was too focused to respond and merely took out the metal and slowly put the Cor Lapis as an outer layer above it. Giving it a solid and three dimensional look.
Then with the Jade, he used it to fill the gaps in the Cor Lapis, making the piece look high quality and shiny.
Finally, he used the Amethyst crystal sparingly as an accent color to the Cor Lapis's gold.
In just a few minutes, he had finished.
"Behold! An ornament fitting for one such as the Tianquan!" Hengyi shouted and held up what he made.
It was an elegant brooch that shined under the morning sun. The Cor Lapis looked more beautiful than ever and the Amethyst only added to its beauty. It really did look like something that could cost a million Mora.
Hengyi used his Vision to create a small box for the brooch, and used some high quality cloth to set the piece inside.
"Take it, Master."
"Thank you, Hengyi. You're a lifesaver." Ren complimented, which made the man beam in a wide smile, "I'll be sure to pay you extra for this."
"Oh no, you don't need—"
"Nope, I'm doing it." Ren cut him off and ran outside, "See you!"
And he was gone.
…
…
"Master is such an honorable man."
/ — /
"I… Made it…" Ren put his hands on his knees as he panted.
He had used Nue to fly all the way back to the harbor and sprinted straight to Yuehai Pavillion. The sun was out now so there were a lot of people around which made it harder to move through, but he made it.
Using an Anemo extension, he cooled down his body to remove sweat. Making sure to use the perfume with the extension to remove any smell.
Straightening his collar, he walked up and presented his envelope to a man in front of the pavilion.
The man took it and gave Ren a look before nodding with a smile.
"We're glad you could make it, Mr. Roman. Please come with me, Lady Ningguang is waiting."
Ren exhaled.
'Okay, let's do this.'