The next morning.
Ryou gently patted Keqing's shoulder. "Keqing, up. We've got real business today."
"Mmm… let me sleep a little longer. It's all your fault—what 'moon viewing'?" Keqing shot him a look and pulled the blanket higher, trying to roll back over.
But the moment she felt his hand catch hers, the sleepiness vanished in an instant.
Keqing lifted her head, glaring at him. "You're unbelievable. You wouldn't even 'watch the moon' with me, and now you won't let me sleep either? If you want to go, go by yourself—mmph!"
Her eyes flew wide as she shoved at his chest.
After a quick, teasing kiss, she grabbed his hand and hissed, "Try that again and I'll chop it off."
"You'd really do it?" Ryou let her hold his hand, then leaned down and kissed her lips again. "I can tell you wouldn't. And besides—"
"Stop talking." Keqing covered his mouth, snatched up her clothes, and started getting dressed. "Get changed. We're going to the Ministry of Civil Affairs."
By the time they arrived, the place was already packed. Almost everyone was there, and the whole office practically glowed with excitement.
"The list is here," Zhongli said, placing it into Ryou's hands.
Ryou scanned it once—and his brows shot up.
First place had processed one hundred and five files in seven days. With the base thirty added on, that was one hundred and forty files in a week—an average of twenty a day.
The Ministry had plenty of work, sure, but with seventy staff members, grabbing that many files wasn't easy.
One hundred and five files meant one hundred and five thousand Mora in rewards.
Ryou kept reading.
Second place: seventy-nine. Third: sixty-eight…
Seventh place had forty-two—and that happened to be Huixin.
Ryou set the records down. "I've reviewed everything. Next, I'm handing out rewards."
He looked around the room. "These rewards are coming out of my own pocket. They're not part of your Ministry salary. Understood?"
"Understood," everyone replied in unison.
"Keqing," Ryou called.
Keqing stepped forward and raised her voice. "I'll call your name. When you hear it, come up and collect your Mora."
One by one, the staff came forward.
But as Keqing began handing out Mora, a crowd rushed in from outside.
Yanfei was at the front.
She pointed straight at Ryou, eyes sharp as blades. "Ryou-san, what you're doing is illegal!"
Then she turned and barked, "Instructor—arrest Ryou!"
The Instructor froze, caught completely off guard. He exchanged looks with his men, clearly hesitant.
"Yanfei-san…" he said after a pause. "Is there some kind of misunderstanding here?"
"The law is clear," Yanfei snapped. "A Ministry of Civil Affairs worker's income is set at three hundred thousand Mora a month, and it cannot exceed that amount."
She lifted her chin, voice rising. "Ryou is handing out Mora every seven days. I heard that female staff member just received one hundred and five thousand Mora in a single payout. Multiply that across four weeks and it's four hundred and twenty thousand Mora."
She stabbed a finger toward Ryou. "And he just said these Mora 'don't count as income.' That means salary plus rewards."
Her eyes narrowed. "Which means… her monthly income is seven hundred and twenty thousand Mora!"
Yanfei swung her gaze toward the Millelith. "Seven hundred and twenty thousand. That's more than double what you Millelith make."
She turned back to Instructor, voice hardening. "So tell me—do you have a problem with me ordering you to arrest him?"
He looked stunned.
One Ministry clerk making seven hundred and twenty thousand Mora a month?
He stepped forward, staring at Ryou. "Ryou-sama… is that true?"
"True," Ryou said calmly.
He didn't flinch. "Yanfei's numbers are correct. But this Mora is a personal reward from me. It isn't part of their salary."
He spread his hands. "Rewards and income aren't the same thing. So no, this isn't illegal."
"And besides," Ryou added, eyes steady, "the new law is still being revised. None of it has been fully implemented yet. You don't have grounds to arrest anyone."
The Instructor hesitated and looked back at Yanfei.
Yanfei's expression tightened. She could feel the argument slipping.
"There's no clause that says 'rewards don't count,'" she said quickly. "But why are you personally paying out that much Mora?"
She raised her voice, refusing to retreat. "It's unfair to every other department in Liyue. You need to stop doing this!"
Her anger flashed—hot and personal. Yesterday, in front of everyone, he'd ordered her dragged into custody. Just thinking about it made her want to claw his eyes out.
"It's unfair to the Millelith. It's unfair to Yujing Terrace. It's unfair to everyone!"
"That's right!" someone from Yujing Terrace shouted.
"Exactly—if they get Mora, we want it too!"
"Why do they get rewards while we get nothing?"
"If you ask me, Ryou is building a clique. That's dangerous!"
"I support Yanfei!"
The noise surged.
Inside the Ministry, faces darkened across the staff.
One of the women snapped back, "Bullshit! You're just jealous. Our rewards have nothing to do with you!"
"Yeah!"
"Ryou-sama is willing to reward us—go ask the Qixing why you don't get the same!"
Ryou lifted one hand.
The room fell quiet instantly.
He looked at everyone—calm, unhurried. "I work at the Ministry of Civil Affairs. I'm not an administrator."
He nodded toward Keqing. "My wife, Keqing, is. She wasn't well for a while, so I temporarily handled her duties."
Ryou's voice stayed firm. "If I take over my wife's responsibilities, then I'm responsible for the people under that office. Improving their welfare is nothing to be ashamed of."
He tapped the table once. "I already said it. This Mora comes from me."
His gaze swept across the outsiders. "And even if it did bother you—why can't a Ministry worker reward people? Why am I obligated to reward other departments?"
"I agree," Keqing said, stepping up beside him without hesitation.
She turned to Yanfei. "This isn't outside the current law. And as far as I know, the new law is still being refined."
Keqing's tone sharpened. "Using an unfinished law to charge people is premature. Yanfei, stop here."
Keqing had been present during those law discussions. She'd even argued with Ningguang over monogamy and polygamy.
She knew exactly what was settled—and what wasn't.
Yanfei's face stiffened.
She glared at Ryou, unwilling to accept that he'd slipped out of her grasp again.
"Fine," she spat. "This time."
She jabbed a finger at him. "But don't let me catch you again. Next time, I will send you in."
Yanfei stormed out, fuming.
Ryou watched her go, expression unreadable.
Then he turned back to Keqing. "Keep handing out the Mora."
…
Back in the office, Ryou exhaled two slow breaths. Wisps of energy drifted out and spread across the Ministry's work area like a thin veil, and only then did he close his eyes to rest.
After a while, Keqing returned.
She walked straight over, climbed into his lap, and lowered her voice. "About Yanfei…"
"I'm not blaming her," Ryou said. "I already apologized. She didn't accept it."
He sighed once. "This is going to go better coming from you. If I go, I'll only make it worse."
Ryou set several bottles on the desk. "Take these juices with you. Give them to her."
"Alright. I'll go now," Keqing said, remembering Yanfei's face and feeling a headache coming on.
Once she left, Ryou finally relaxed.
He didn't want this turning into an all-out grudge. Liyue Harbor was small—sooner or later, you ran into the same faces again. Picking a fight that never ends wouldn't do anyone any good.
With nothing pressing at the moment, Ryou stood up and stepped into the small world.
He went straight to the orchard.
Fed by spiritual energy, the Bulle Fruit trees were growing at a ridiculous pace. In just a few days, they'd already fruited—round, glossy, and downright tempting.
Ryou walked up to the nearest tree and brushed his fingers over its trunk.
[Bulle Fruit Tree]
[Quality: Superior]
[Description: Nourished by spiritual energy. Growth speed +200%. Fruit yield +200%!]
Ryou harvested the Bulle Fruit one by one, then gathered a few other fruits from nearby trees as well.
These fruits had been infused with spiritual energy. Eating them could support long-term health and longevity.
He figured he'd bring some to his uncle—and to his parents—when he had time. A small gesture, at least.
After packing everything up, he returned to his office.
He peeled a Bulle Fruit and took a bite.
Sweet, refreshing, barely any sourness at all.
As he ate, he found himself thinking of Ganyu.
Last night, after dinner, she'd gone straight home. He hadn't gotten a chance to talk properly.
Perfect. He could bring her some fruit—and also remind her to be careful. Keqing was clearly on guard now. If she started watching too closely, things would get messy fast.
Ryou headed to Ganyu's office.
When she saw him, Ganyu looked pleased—right up until she remembered what he'd done to her last night, and the irritation surged back.
"Why are you here?" she asked.
Ryou coughed lightly. "I'm bringing you some fruit."
He stepped inside and casually closed the door behind him.
Ganyu's face heated instantly.
Closing the door?
If he was just delivering fruit, why was he closing the door?
And the way he said it—so casual—made it feel even worse.
"What are you doing?" Ganyu snapped, glaring at him. She set her pen down, closed her documents, and pushed them aside. "Why are you closing the door?"
"I grew some Bulle Fruits," Ryou said, walking up beside her.
With a flick of his hand, several Bulle Fruits appeared in his palm.
Ganyu stared.
Then she looked up at him slowly, eyes narrowing. "You… don't have a Vision, do you?"
"No," Ryou said, shaking his head.
"You don't?" Ganyu stood up at once, leaning in to examine him like she expected to find something hidden. "Then how did you just produce that much fruit out of nowhere?"
"You really want to know?" Ryou said, his tone turning meaningful.
Ganyu instantly felt danger.
"W-why are you looking at me like that? I… I don't need to know." She shrank back a little. "I'm not asking."
"No," Ryou said, amused. "You're coming with me. If you see it for yourself, you'll understand."
"Do I have to?" Ganyu blinked, trying to look innocent.
"You don't," Ryou said sweetly. "But you will."
Before she could react, he leaned down and kissed her.
"Mm—hn…?" Ganyu froze at the kiss—then her eyes widened.
The world around them shifted.
In the blink of an eye, Yujing Terrace was gone. Her office was gone.
They were standing in a strange, secluded space wrapped in drifting mist. The air felt clean and otherworldly, like a hidden realm.
At the center stood a tall building.
To one side, a hot spring area was tucked among trees, steam curling upward in soft, lazy ribbons.
And nearby—rows of fruit trees, with Bulle Fruits hanging bright and obvious on the branches.
Ganyu stared, stunned.
Then she turned sharply toward Ryou, a thousand questions on her lips—
And realized he'd just kissed her right before all of this happened.
Of course.
She never should've let him into her office.
Now that she was here…
Could she even leave in one piece?
[End of chapter]
[200 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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