"You… do you really think this fits your position at the Ministry of Civil Affairs?"
Yanfei pointed at Ryou, furious. "You arrest people for no reason. If word gets out, do you understand what kind of damage that does to Liyue Harbor?"
She'd thought Ryou was a decent man—upright, reliable.
Now she realized he was just a lunatic.
If he wanted someone, he marched straight to their door and dragged them away. No evidence. No procedure. In his eyes, the law might as well not exist.
Yes, she and Ryou had personal friction. But once she saw what kind of man he really was, Yanfei made up her mind.
She had to put him in chains and throw him in a cell. A person like this staying in Liyue Harbor was a disaster waiting to happen.
Ryou swept his gaze across the hall. Outside, the Yujing Terrace staff were glaring at him like they wanted to see him hauled away on the spot.
Meanwhile, the Ministry staff stood firmly behind him. They were angry at Yanfei, but their attitude toward him didn't waver at all.
Ryou smiled.
He stepped closer. "Yanfei-san, I know you believe the law doesn't bend for personal feelings. But have you ever considered what's actually going on underneath all this?"
"The law doesn't bend—fine," Yanfei shot back, meeting his eyes. "No matter what excuse you give, what you did was wrong."
Her voice turned colder. "And you… maybe we had personal issues before. But now, after seeing what kind of person you are, I can't ignore it."
Ryou shook his head. "You've got it wrong."
He spoke evenly, so everyone could hear. "I arrested those Northland Bank staff for one simple reason."
"Tabibito and Ningguang uncovered something. The Fatui were planning to use the Sigil of Permission to release the gods sealed beneath Guyun Stone Forest."
Ryou's gaze sharpened. "We discovered it early, so I moved first. That's why I detained the bank's people before they could act."
"Yes, I didn't have hard evidence," he admitted. "But I don't believe I did anything wrong."
"I did it for Liyue Harbor. As long as Liyue stays safe, everything else is a small price to pay."
He turned to the crowd.
"There are plenty of people who know pieces of the truth. The outside world doesn't."
"Even the notices I posted barely said anything—because I didn't want Liyue Harbor spiraling into panic."
Then he looked back at Yanfei.
"Guyun Stone Forest has already had an incident. People have heard rumors."
"That place was torn up by the Sigil of Permission. The gods beneath the sea are stirring, and the Fatui Harbingers have already gone off the rails."
Ryou didn't blink. "I'm telling you again—I don't think I was wrong."
The hall fell quiet.
"I believe Ryou-sama!"
"So do I!"
"He did it for Liyue Harbor! We can't condemn him over baseless accusations!"
The Ministry staff backed him without hesitation. They were certain he hadn't done the wrong thing—and more than that, he'd been thinking from Liyue Harbor's perspective the whole time.
Yanfei's anger faltered. "So that's what was behind it…"
She had heard bits and pieces about the Sigil of Permission incident, but she'd never been able to dig up much. Now it made sense—of course the Ministry would suppress information like that.
And Guyun Stone Forest really did feel dangerous lately. Even from inside Liyue Harbor, she could sense something unsettled.
If that was the situation, then this case was an exception. Even if she'd wanted to make Ryou's life difficult, she couldn't honestly fault him on this.
Yanfei stared at him for a long moment. Then she lowered her head. "I misunderstood you. I apologize."
"It's fine," Ryou said with a small smile. "You were doing what you thought was right."
"And you helped us, too. You dragged out the rot hiding in our ranks. If anything, we should be thanking you."
"Eight of them had serious issues," Yanfei said, still visibly irritated at the memory. "I've already had them locked up."
She looked at Ryou. "Given the circumstances, I won't pursue this matter further. If there's nothing else, I'll be going."
"No problem," Ryou said, nodding.
After Yanfei left, Ryou drew his gaze back and spoke to his staff.
"We've got eight empty positions now. Put out recruitment notices."
"And if anyone wants to transfer into the Ministry, that works too—as long as they check out."
He paused, voice firm. "I won't let a mess like that slip through again."
"Yes, Ryou-sama!" the staff responded in unison.
Ryou nodded and returned to his office.
He stared at the empty teapot, sighed, and brewed himself another cup.
He didn't hold Yanfei's actions against her. She might have had prejudice toward him, but when it came to real work, she hadn't played dirty. She had a line she wouldn't cross.
Still… now that she'd set her sights on him, he had a feeling trouble wouldn't be scarce.
Knock, knock, knock.
The door opened, and Ganyu stepped in.
Ryou raised a brow. "What brings you here?"
"I heard Yanfei came to pick a fight with you," Ganyu said. "I wanted to check on you."
When she saw how relaxed he looked, she let out a quiet breath.
"It's fine," Ryou said. "She has her opinions about me, but she wasn't trying to sabotage anything."
He poured her a cup of tea.
Ganyu took a sip, then looked up. "This can't go on forever. Do you want me to help you—"
"No," Ryou cut in, shaking his head.
"I can tell Yanfei's a decent person. She's upright. As long as she doesn't start using underhanded tricks, it's not worth worrying about."
Ganyu hesitated, then narrowed her eyes. "You… don't tell me you're interested in her."
She leaned forward slightly. "I've heard people say you two are like one of those 'enemies-to-lovers' pairs. Is that your type?"
Ryou blinked. "And who exactly have you been listening to?"
"I just… happened to overhear it," Ganyu said.
"Then overhear less," Ryou said, amused. "Besides, I'm doing my job. If I really wanted to make her miserable, I could—official regulations alone would keep her busy for days."
"Don't do anything stupid," Ganyu said quickly.
"What do you mean, stupid?" Ryou smiled at her.
But then his mind flickered back to yesterday. The memory made his expression turn a little strange—half concern, half something he didn't say out loud.
If Keqing hadn't shown up…
He could've gone further.
And that flushed, watery look on Ganyu's face—he couldn't get it out of his head.
Ganyu caught the heat in his eyes and went stiff at once. She knew exactly what he was thinking.
Yesterday, she'd been naive. He'd dragged her into that little pocket world and bullied her until she was flustered and helpless. He hadn't crossed the final line, but it had still been humiliating enough to make her ears burn.
This man was horrible.
"What—what are you thinking?!" Ganyu snapped, backing off a step.
"I didn't do anything to you," Ryou said, laughing. "Why are you so scared?"
"Because you're obviously not thinking anything good," Ganyu shot back, glaring at him.
"You've misunderstood," Ryou said smoothly. Then he changed the subject. "By the way—has Ningguang been calling you in a lot lately?"
"Yeah," Ganyu said. "But I've already handled my workload. It's nothing urgent."
She paused. "Do you need to see Ningguang?"
"Yanfei already came to the Ministry to cause a scene," Ryou said, standing. "Of course I need to report it."
He walked up to Ganyu. "Relax. I'm not going to go after Yanfei. I'll just give her something to do."
Then he leaned down and kissed her lightly on the cheek.
"I'm heading out."
"You…" Ganyu rolled her eyes, but she still followed him outside.
Out in the main offices, she glanced around and saw the Ministry staff hard at work—focused, diligent, heads down.
It reminded her of the stack of transfer requests back at her desk.
"A lot of people want to transfer in," Ganyu said. "Now that we've got eight open spots, do you want me to arrange transfers?"
Ryou considered it for a moment. "Yeah. Do it."
"Alright," Ganyu said, relieved. "I'll handle it."
There were so many requests she'd been drowning in them. Before, she couldn't approve transfers. Now she finally had room to move.
Ryou looked at her. "Make sure their character and background are clean before you send anyone over. If something happens, it's a headache for everyone."
"Don't worry. I know," Ganyu said with a nod.
Once everything was set, Ryou headed to the Jade Chamber.
The moment he arrived, he saw his father standing inside Ningguang's office.
His father looked surprised when he spotted him. Then his eyes narrowed slightly, like something clicked.
"Why are you here?" his father asked. "Yanfei went after you today, didn't she?"
"Yeah," Ryou said.
"Yanfei's very capable," his father said slowly. "There are things I can't really say out loud, but… be careful around her."
He looked like he wanted to add something more. After a brief hesitation, he swallowed it down.
Ryou nodded. "Don't worry, Father. I'm not a child. I know how to handle it."
"Good." His father patted Ryou on the shoulder and left.
After he was gone, Ningguang lifted her head and looked at Ryou. "So? You finally have time to visit."
She smiled faintly. "What is it—found a way to 'deal with' Yanfei?"
"It's not 'dealing with' anyone," Ryou said, walking over and sitting across from her. "I just want to adjust a few certification and evaluation requirements."
"They're small changes. Nothing major. You can handle that, right?"
Ningguang rested her chin on her hands and studied him. "Mm. That's a minor issue."
Then her smile sharpened. "So tell me—how are you going to thank me?"
[End of chapter]
[200 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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