"I knew it," Paimon said with her arms crossed.
Venti scratched his head. "Aren't you pretty close with Xiangling? Help me out, will you?
"The old man got completely wasted yesterday. He told me that wine was rich, fragrant, and smooth—top-tier stuff.
"I'm still mad I arrived late. If I'd gotten here earlier, I would've downed another bottle or two myself."
Tabibito glanced at Xiangling.
Xiangling puffed up, clearly annoyed. "None left. That bottle was bought by Ryou, and it's already gone.
"Yeah, we sell alcohol here, but nothing we've got can compete with Dandelion Wine.
"See that place across the street? That shop lives off Dandelion Wine. If you want to drink, go drink over there."
"You mean Degui?" Ryou said as he walked up at an unhurried pace, flicking his eyes toward the restaurant.
"I've heard Degui's been using Dandelion Wine to lure customers, but nearly seventy percent of it is just water. Some of those drunks spent over a hundred thousand Mora and still couldn't get drunk."
He stepped inside. "I'm here to settle the bill. How much did we run up yesterday?"
"Ryou-san, you're here!" Xiangling straightened up at once. "I already prepared the invoice."
Her nerves were obvious. Chef Mao had told her that feeling in her chest had a name—being smitten.
The thought scared her. She was falling for a married man.
She handed the bill over.
Keqing leaned in to take a look—and paused, surprised.
Not because it was expensive.
Because it was cheap.
"Xiangling, this—" Keqing started.
"Keqing-san, you don't need to be shocked," Xiangling said earnestly. "You've done so much for Liyue. How could I charge you full price?
"My dad and I talked it over. Not charging anything wouldn't feel right… but we also couldn't charge too much. So we settled on this number."
"That's her way of showing gratitude," Ryou said, and handed over the Mora. "Here."
"T-thank you," Xiangling murmured, her heart racing as she bit her lip.
Then she spun on Venti. "Venti, stop pestering my dad. He's trying to run a business!"
"Come on—really? Not even a little?" Venti pleaded.
"No!" Xiangling snapped.
"…Fine," Venti sighed, then turned to Ryou and Keqing with a bright smile. "I'm a traveling bard from Mondstadt. Pleasure to meet you!"
"I'm Ryou. This is my wife, Keqing. Welcome to Liyue," Ryou said with a polite nod.
"Venti, did you happen to see Albedo on your way here?"
"Albedo? He should be arriving in Liyue soon," Venti said, looking a little surprised. "So you're the one who invited him."
"Yeah. I've got something important to ask of him," Ryou said. "But we've got other business first. We'll be going."
Keqing moved to leave.
Ganyu gave Venti a brief look, then nodded once without saying anything—like she'd decided it wasn't the right place for a conversation.
Tabibito narrowed her eyes at them. "Why were you and Ganyu… trading looks just now? You two connected or something?"
"'Trading looks'? We just know each other," Venti said, rolling his eyes as he pulled up a chair and sat down.
Paimon floated closer. "Hey, bard—why are you glued to Liyue lately?"
Venti drained his water in one go. "I heard Albedo was coming, so I followed the trail—and while I was at it, I came to check on the old man.
"Only thing I regret is wasting time at Wangshu Inn yesterday. If I hadn't, I would've gotten a taste of that wine too."
…
"Ganyu, do you like that bard?" Keqing whispered, looping an arm around Ganyu's and leaning in close.
On the way over, she'd noticed Ganyu's look. It didn't sit right with her.
She couldn't let Ganyu catch feelings for someone else. Ganyu was her best friend—and Keqing was counting on her to help share the load at home.
Keqing nudged Ryou with her elbow and shot him a meaningful look.
Ryou cleared his throat. "Ganyu… that bard isn't it. You two don't match."
Ganyu glared at him. Seriously?
After everything that happened between us, how could he even think that?
And besides—Venti was practically an elder to her.
Was he misunderstanding on purpose?
She hurried to explain to Keqing, "Don't be ridiculous. He's… an old friend. I met him a few times a long time ago, but we haven't kept in touch much.
"Yujing Terrace keeps me busy. When would I even have time to think about romance?"
"Oh! So that's all it was," Keqing said, visibly relieved.
Then she gave Ryou another look—like she wanted him to keep talking.
Ryou didn't get it at all.
But he figured Keqing was just being a woman about it—curious, overthinking, chasing gossip.
So he smiled at Ganyu, half-teasing. "Come on. You're Keqing's best friend—we're friends too. We're not strangers."
Keqing blinked, baffled.
Ganyu's expression went flat.
This man is doing it on purpose. He's definitely doing it on purpose.
"And that bard's identity isn't simple," she added pointedly.
"He's just a bard, isn't he?" Keqing asked.
"Yeah," Ryou said with a lazy smile. "Unless you're telling me he's a god."
"A god? No way," Keqing scoffed. "What kind of god acts that shameless?"
Then she looked at Ganyu again—and caught the strange stiffness in her face.
Ganyu had lived for thousands of years. If she called someone an "old friend," they were almost certainly centuries old at minimum.
And Mondstadt didn't have adepti.
Keqing's eyes widened. "He's the Anemo Archon!"
Ryou froze.
Ganyu's eyes went wide.
She didn't say a word and Keqing still nailed it?
"So he really is the Anemo Archon," Keqing muttered. "Honestly, he's worse than Zhongli. Are all gods like this?"
Ryou and Ganyu just stared at each other, speechless.
"You… keep that to yourself," Ganyu said in a low voice. "Don't let it spread."
"You're the one who gave it away with your face," Keqing said, still amazed. "But seriously… are gods all this down-to-earth?"
Ryou just shrugged.
"Come on," he said. "Let's head to the Jade Chamber first."
"Okay," the two of them answered, following along.
At the Jade Chamber, Ningguang was still buried in paperwork. Ganyu went to help, while Ryou wandered around inside with Keqing.
"Ningguang really knows how to live," Ryou said, eyeing the antiques and calligraphy. "Keqing, look at this stuff. I swear one piece could probably buy our whole house."
Keqing rolled her eyes. "I don't like her either, but she's been rich enough to rival a nation since she was young. So what if she splurges?
"Besides, she poured billions of Mora into building the Jade Chamber. Most people don't have that kind of nerve."
Ryou smacked his lips, dropped into a chair, and pulled Keqing into his arms from behind.
"My Keqing's better," he said. "A little clueless, but—ow—hey, you're going to crush me!"
He caught both her hands before she could jab him again.
"Clueless?" Keqing snapped, twisting to glare at him. "I was the one who figured out that bard was the Anemo Archon!"
"I meant you don't waste money," Ryou said quickly, leaning in close. "A wife should keep the household thrifty. We've got Mora, sure—but we shouldn't burn it for no reason."
"Hmph. Says you," Keqing shot back, struggling out of his hold.
He let her go with a laugh.
"You're the one talking about thrift?" Keqing pinched his waist hard. "Do you know how much Mora you've spent lately? Those weird outfits alone cost almost a million! No more. Next time, you're not buying anything."
"Alright, alright—no more," Ryou said, surrendering immediately.
"Once I meet Albedo today, though, we'll have enough to get you some new clothes."
Keqing's curiosity lit up. "You thought of a way to make money?"
"Let me put it like this," Ryou said, smiling. "Say I have ten slips of paper. You pay to pick one. If you pick the right one, you win a hundred thousand Mora.
"But each slip costs ten thousand Mora. Would you buy?"
Keqing thought it over and shook her head. "No. Ten thousand isn't pocket change, and one-in-ten odds still aren't worth gambling that much."
"What if each slip cost only a hundred Mora?" Ryou asked.
"A hundred Mora?" Keqing hesitated, then nodded. "Then I probably would."
"And what if it wasn't ten slips anymore," Ryou continued, "but a thousand—and one of them wins a hundred thousand Mora?"
Keqing leaned back into him. "I'd still buy. One in a thousand isn't great, but it's not insane."
Her eyes widened as the idea clicked. "I get it. You're selling the chance—price it low, move volume.
"If we print a million tickets and set the grand prize at a million Mora, the sales alone would be massive!"
Ryou stared at her like she'd turned into a different person. "Keqing… since when were you this sharp?"
"Hmph. I've always been sharp," she said smugly.
"That's a solid idea," Ningguang said as she approached. "Mind if I join in?"
"No," Keqing said flatly. "If we do it, we'll do it with the Feiyun Commerce Guild. We're family. You don't get a slice."
Ningguang narrowed her eyes. "Keqing, why be like that? Besides, Ryou decides—doesn't he?"
Keqing grabbed Ryou's arm. "Ryou. You tell her."
"Enough," Ryou said, cutting between them. "I need to talk to Albedo first before I can decide anything."
He looked between them. "You two finished with the paperwork?"
"Mm," Ningguang said, then headed out in front. "The food's ready downstairs. Let's eat first, then we'll talk.
"But your idea is excellent. I'd suggest selling each ticket for one thousand Mora and using a million-Mora prize to draw people in. If we print a million tickets…"
Ryou nearly choked.
A million tickets at a thousand Mora each—almost two billion Mora in sales.
And she wanted to put up only one million as the prize.
Ningguang… Ningguang…
A capitalist like you is the type people fantasize about stringing up from a lamppost.
[End of chapter]
[200 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/BellAshelia]
[Thanks for your support!]