They headed straight for Yujing Terrace.
"Ryou-san, why hasn't Keqing shown up at the Ministry of Civil Affairs lately?" Yanfei asked as she walked beside him.
She'd heard plenty of gossip, so she had a rough idea of what people were implying. But if anything, wouldn't the man be the one looking exhausted?
Ryou looked composed, brisk, and full of energy—if anything, he seemed stronger than usual.
So Yanfei figured the rumors were probably nonsense. Maybe Keqing just had something going on and couldn't come in.
Ryou didn't answer.
What was he supposed to say—Keqing's been working him so hard he can barely drag himself to the office?
Did his wife not deserve a little privacy?
Even if Yanfei could keep her mouth shut, telling a girl something like that would still be shameless.
If he didn't know how to respond, then he simply wouldn't.
"Ryou-san?" Yanfei pressed, genuinely curious. "I'm asking because I talk with Keqing a lot. If there's trouble, you can tell me—if it's something I can handle, I'll help. If not, I can find someone who can."
But Ryou kept walking as if he hadn't heard a word. That only made her more curious.
What's his deal? Why is he ignoring me?
"Ryou-san?" she tried again.
Ryou glanced at her and still said nothing.
She really is nosy, he thought. Keqing not coming in—what else could it be? The whole harbor was already talking about it.
"Ryou-san?" Yanfei asked again.
Ryou didn't even turn his head. He picked up speed, striding ahead like each step counted for three.
Yanfei followed, completely lost. And the more she watched, the stranger it felt—he really was moving faster than a normal person, but she couldn't see any obvious change at all.
It was bizarre.
Since he clearly didn't want to talk, Yanfei stopped pushing and followed him to Gentry Maocai's residence on Yujing Terrace, where they happened to spot Maocai outside taking a stroll.
"Gentry Maocai!" Yanfei called out as she hurried up.
"Oh, Yanfei-san. If you're here about the Northland Bank again, go home," Maocai said, waving her off. "Come back when the bank is back to normal."
He was clearly fed up, and he couldn't be bothered to hide it—after all, she'd come to him several times already.
"I'll handle it." Ryou gripped Yanfei's arm lightly and pulled her back a step, then walked up. "I'm Ryou from the Ministry of Civil Affairs. Hand over the deed to the residence."
[Ding! Facial Recognition activated. Remaining uses: 1.]
"Of course. I'll fetch it right away!" Maocai nodded and went inside.
Yanfei just stood there, stunned.
They'd exchanged exactly one sentence each.
Ryou asked.
Maocai agreed—instantly.
Since when was Maocai this easy to deal with?
She'd asked him again and again. Even throwing the Ministry's name around hadn't worked. He'd refused her without blinking.
But the moment Ryou spoke, Maocai folded immediately.
A moment later, Maocai returned and placed the document into Ryou's hands. "Here. The deed."
Ryou checked it once, then handed it to Yanfei. "You take it. I'm heading home."
"Hey—wait!" Yanfei rushed after him.
When they reached the area around Bubu Pharmacy, she finally stepped in front of him and blocked his path.
"What was that just now?" she demanded. "Why did he hand it over the second you asked? I've been there so many times—even using the Ministry's name—and it never worked!"
Ryou shrugged. "No idea."
"That's not possible." Yanfei frowned. "You must've done something. He agreed without even hesitating. That's not normal."
"I asked one question. I didn't do anything else," Ryou said, stepping around her. "I need to get home. See you around."
"Ryou…" Yanfei called after him, but she still couldn't make sense of what she'd just seen.
…
Meanwhile, over in Jueyun Karst.
Keqing and Ganyu had made it to the mountainside. They hadn't gone much farther when they spotted a small pavilion up ahead, where several people were loudly arguing.
Among them were Tabibito, Paimon, and a young woman Keqing didn't recognize—presumably Ganyu's "little" sister.
Several men were sprawled on the ground nearby, all tied up with rope. Fatui, most likely.
"It's Shenhe and Tabibito!" Ganyu said quickly. "Let's go see what's happening."
"Okay." Keqing followed behind her.
As they drew closer, Shenhe's voice cut through the air like a blade.
"You're being unreasonable," she said coldly, her gaze sharp enough to freeze blood. "You asked for Qingxin. I gave you Qingxin. And now you want Tabibito to climb the mountain and pick more for you? Do you think I'm someone you can push around? Want to test my spear?"
The pair—an older disciple and a younger one—had asked Tabibito for help out of nowhere. It was only for Qingxin, and Shenhe happened to have some on her, so she gave it to them.
And yet they still insisted Tabibito go up the mountain to harvest more.
That wasn't a request. It was bullying.
"What's your problem?" the sharp-tongued woman snapped. "We didn't ask you for anything. And Tabibito already agreed. We want the Qingxin up there—those few plants on the mountain!"
"Ugh, you two are the worst!" Paimon puffed up, furious. "We're helping you, and you're still making demands like that?!"
"What's going on here?" Keqing asked as she and Ganyu stepped in.
"Keqing! Ganyu!" Paimon blurted out, startled.
"What's going on?" Ganyu asked, getting straight to the point.
"Hmph, it's ridiculous!" Paimon complained, speaking for Tabibito. "They asked Tabibito to help pick Qingxin. Shenhe already had some and gave it to them, but they still refused and kept demanding Tabibito go up the mountain to collect it!"
"That's exactly it," Tabibito agreed, nodding.
Shenhe nodded as well.
"And what's wrong with that?" the sharp-tongued woman sneered. "Tabibito already agreed to help. Are we not allowed to ask for the Qingxin on the mountain?"
"Shimei!" the man beside her tried to interrupt.
Keqing's patience snapped.
"So someone offers help in good faith, and this is how you repay it?" she said, voice rising. "I'm Keqing, the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing. You two are coming with me to the Ministry of Civil Affairs!"
"You—" The woman's face changed immediately. "I… I don't want the Qingxin anymore! I'm not going with you!"
Keqing gave a cold laugh. "Try walking away. Tomorrow I'll have my husband bring people to your door and haul you in."
The woman went pale and tried to back off.
"Shimei… just go with her," the man said with a bitter smile. He knew if they refused, they'd never be able to stay in Liyue Harbor after this. And all of this over a few flowers? It wasn't worth it.
"Shixiong!" the woman protested.
"Enough." Keqing stepped forward and bound them both with rope.
Ganyu didn't comment on Keqing arresting them. Instead, she turned to Tabibito and the others. "These are the Fatui, right? Then let's hurry and bring them back to the Ministry."
"Alright," Tabibito said. "Everyone, get on. We'll use my boat."
The group headed for Liyue Harbor and soon arrived at the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
"Keqing-sama!"
"Keqing-sama!"
Several staff members stared in surprise. They hadn't seen her in five days.
Keqing noticed the looks immediately. Her cheeks reddened, and she snapped, "What are you staring at? Lock those two up for now."
Then she added, "Where's my husband? Tell him to handle the interrogation."
"Understood. I'll arrange it right away," one staffer said, hurrying off.
Another hesitated, then said, "Keqing-sama… Ryou-sama left not long ago."
"Of course he did." Keqing clicked her tongue. "Bad timing."
Then she asked, "How did things go while I was away?"
"Zhongli-san helped handle the workload," the staffer replied. "Nothing went wrong."
"Zhongli-san is talented, so that—wait." Keqing stopped mid-sentence, eyes widening. "Zhongli-san? What do you mean Zhongli-san?!"
Since Keqing hadn't been around for five days, the staffer stepped closer and explained, "Keqing-sama, Ryou-sama invited Zhongli-san to work here. He's been helping at the Ministry."
"That's… unbelievable," Keqing muttered.
She'd tried to invite Zhongli herself for ages and never succeeded.
And Ryou had managed it just like that.
"Ryou didn't tell you?" Ganyu asked quietly. "You've been away for five days, but surely you still checked in?"
Keqing's face turned even redder. "I didn't know. He didn't tell me."
She cleared her throat and lowered her voice when she noticed more staff watching. "Let's talk in my office."
"Okay," everyone agreed, following her inside.
Tabibito and Paimon reported what they'd discovered so far.
"The Fatui are insane," Keqing said, frowning. "Sigils of Permission are terrifyingly powerful, and they're trying to destroy the Rite of Descension. Even if we delay the Rite… they still haven't dared make a move against Liyue—yet."
She looked at Tabibito. "Tabibito, I'll need to trouble you again. Keep an eye on the Fatui for me. This will be a personal commission—payment is three hundred thousand Mora."
"Three hundred thousand Mora!" Paimon lit up.
"I'll take it," Tabibito said, just as delighted. That amount would keep her going for a long time without needing to take random commissions.
"Good. Then it's settled," Keqing said.
Ganyu didn't add anything to their agreement. "Everyone, I need to get my sister settled. I'll be leaving first."
With that, she took Shenhe and left.
Outside the Ministry, Shenhe stared at the bustling streets of Liyue Harbor for a long moment before speaking.
"Ganyu-senpai… did you succeed?"
"What?" Ganyu blinked, caught completely off guard.
"Last time you came back, you said you'd fallen for a married man," Shenhe said seriously. "I'm asking if you've stolen him yet."
Then she continued, even more earnestly, "Cloud Retainer told me to come to Liyue Harbor and adapt to life here. Perfect—then I can help you steal a man. Tell me who he is, and I'll grab my spear and go snatch him!"
Ganyu froze.
Cloud Retainer told you to come fit into Liyue Harbor… and you show up ready to help me steal someone's husband?
[End of chapter]
[200 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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