"To help people with a sorrowful past move beyond that past?"
Diona murmured.
"That's right. To put it in Iron Tongue Tian's words—if you don't even dare to face your own sorrowful past, then how can you move beyond it, how can you embrace the future?"
Paimon said.
"I actually find what he says to make a lot of sense."
Lumine's eyes widened slightly.
"So that's how it is? Have I wronged that Miss Fang Qiu?"
Diona murmured.
"That's right. Iron Tongue Tian also said that there are several reasons Fang Qiu writes tragedies—for instance, to make people develop a stronger sense of empathy toward those who suffer hardship, and something about tempering people's hearts, giving readers a stronger mindset to face the storms of the future, and so on."
Paimon said.
"Now that you mention it, it reminds me—Fang Qiu once said that when she writes her books, she cries too."
Lumine said.
"Yes, Miss Ningguang also once said that after waking from a dream, a person must learn to say their farewells."
Paimon said.
After all this was said in one breath, Diona was thoroughly convinced.
"So that's how it is… I really did wrong her. She truly is a gentle big sister."
Diona, eyes red, wiped away her tears and spoke with a look of sudden realization on her face.
Just then, a voice rang out.
"So there's a way to pull off something like this—I've learned something new."
Lumine and Paimon turned around in unison, only to see a youth dressed all in green standing behind them, his eyes brimming with delight as he spoke.
"It's the street busker."
Paimon said in confusion.
"Venti."
Lumine said.
"Long time no see! How's the journey been along the way? Did you gain anything from it?"
Venti asked with a beaming smile.
"Of course we gained quite a lot."
Paimon said smugly, then asked with a hint of puzzlement, "By the way, street busker, what was it you just said you learned?"
"Heh, I'm going to go make money with a storytelling segment at the Angel's Share too."
Venti tossed a wink and said, "It's a great idea—but now it's mine."
"Good grief! What a thick skin! In that case, shouldn't you give us some Mora as a thank-you fee?"
Paimon said.
"Put it on my tab for now—next time, next time for sure."
Venti chuckled and said, "Then I won't chat with you two any longer. I'm off to the Angel's Share right now to have a good talk with Grandpa Lu about this. I'm going to apply for a patent on the idea, so that no one at the Angel's Share will be able to compete with me. Maybe I can ride on the back of Fang Qiu's books to shake off poverty—a life of earning over ten thousand a month is waiting for me!"
With that, he clutched a few books and went jogging off all the way toward the Angel's Share.
Halfway there, Venti even called back, "Oh right, next time you go to Liyue, remember to pass a message along to that Miss Fang Qiu of yours: the finest bard in all of Teyvat extends his most sincere thanks to her. And if she's ever in trouble, I'll provide her with every kind of help—aside from actual help."
"If you need help aside from actual help, then doesn't that just leave cheering her on? This street busker is hopeless."
Paimon sighed, shook her head, and said.
"Alright, let's get going too."
Lumine said.
Having bidden farewell to Diona, they made their way toward the Hunters' Lodge.
It was time for dinner.
Along the way, they passed by a bookstore, and in the line of people queuing up, they spotted a familiar figure.
The magic hat atop her head was especially conspicuous.
It was Mona.
When they learned that Mona was queuing up to buy Fang Qiu's books, both Paimon and Lumine were stunned.
Mona, poor as she was, would actually spend Mora to buy a novel to read?
Fang Qiu's novels were just too captivating, weren't they?
Mona clearly often couldn't even afford to eat.
Only after asking carefully did they learn that Mona was actually queuing on others' behalf, earning a fee for it.
Twenty Mora per person.
She had taken on the jobs of twenty people all at once.
A single round of queuing could net her a full four hundred-some Mora!
Though one round of queuing did take a while…
But it was quite lucrative, so it was worth it.
Regarding this, Mona said the same thing Venti had—she hoped the Traveler could thank Fang Qiu on her behalf for giving her one more channel to earn some extra money to supplement her living.
That way, she could spend her entire manuscript fee on purchasing astrology equipment.
For a moment, Lumine and Paimon were at a loss for words.
After running into Mona and Venti, they couldn't shake the feeling that Mondstadt's whole vibe had taken a strange turn.
"Impoverished Me Can Do Anything" had become the theme.
One after another, they all wanted to rely on Fang Qiu's books to shake off poverty.
Still, this could be counted as boosting employment in Mondstadt too, couldn't it.
They made their way all the way to the Hunters' Lodge, and there at the Hunters' Lodge they saw two figures—one in blue and one in red.
They were sitting at an open-air table, sipping drinks and chatting.
It was Eula and Amber.
Seeing Lumine and Paimon, Amber immediately waved them over.
"Eula, Amber, long time no see."
Paimon waved her hand.
After exchanging greetings and chatting a bit about recent happenings, Amber asked, "By the way, Traveler, I heard from Kaeya earlier that you're helping transport Fang Qiu's books between the three nations of Liyue, Inazuma, and Mondstadt?"
"That's right."
Paimon took a sip of iced Wolfhook juice, then nodded and said, "And what's more, on this trip we've already delivered one of Fang Qiu's books."
"Wonderful—that way we'll be able to read Fang Qiu's books the moment they come out."
Amber said, "By the way, Traveler, Paimon, have you ever met Fang Qiu in person in Liyue? What sort of person is he?"
"Uh, she's a gentle, delicate beauty, I'd say. The feeling I get is that, without using a Vision, her combat strength wouldn't even match Paimon's."
Paimon said with her hands on her hips.
"She does indeed look weaker than Paimon, who's worth one-tenth of a wild boar."
Lumine nodded.
"Hey! Paimon's combat strength is worth one-fifth of a wild boar!"
Paimon stamped her foot angrily and said.
"A delicate beauty? Then it sounds like it'd be quite fun to strip her naked and toss her into Frostbearing Lake when the time comes."
Eula gave a snort and said, "If I don't make that woman suffer a little, there's no way to dispel the gloom in my heart after reading her books!"
"Uh, even though I know you wouldn't really toss Fang Qiu into the lake, Eula, I still have to give a word of warning—her body looks really frail. If you threw her into Frostbearing Lake, she might just die."
Paimon said.
Lumine nodded too.
"She's that weak? Then all the more reason for her to come to the snowy mountains with me and train properly."
Eula hesitated for a moment, then waved her hand and said, "Forget it, I'll switch to a different form of punishment then."
"That's a relief."
Paimon let out a sigh of relief.
After they enjoyed a pleasant dinner together and agreed to hold a reading gathering together the next day, Eula and Amber parted ways with them.
They still had more of Fang Qiu's books to read.
Paimon and Lumine, for their part, made their way toward the inn.
Mondstadt City was a scene of quiet and peace.
A melodious breeze blew.
Jean, Klee, and Lisa had just finished dinner and were sitting on the sofa, drinking tea and chatting.
Kaeya, holding one of Fang Qiu's books, was introducing it with a mischievous grin to Ellin, who was busy pondering how to destroy a training dummy.
Eula and Amber walked along Mondstadt's streets beneath the setting sun.
Venti was at the Angel's Share, explaining in detail to Diluc the benefits of storytelling.
Mona, having finished queuing, took her earnings to the Hunters' Lodge and ate a hearty meal.
Only after returning to the Cat's Tail did Diona discover that her own father was drinking himself into a stupor in the shop along with a few friends, with one of Fang Qiu's books set beside him.
Diona clenched her fists, looked out the window, and murmured, "Fang Qiu really is a Demon King!"
Outside the window, a gust of wind blew past.
The melodious wind of the high heavens blew toward Liyue.
Following the wind, Paimon and Lumine cast their gazes in the direction of Liyue.
"Speaking of which, I wonder how Miss Fang Qiu's new book is coming along."
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