"That makes a lot of sense!" Yip Tak said with feeling.
As they continued chatting, Gaming returned alone from the distance. Paimon immediately waved to him.
"Gaming! Over here!"
"Dad! Is everyone all right?" Gaming jogged over. When he noticed Zhongli sitting beside them, he looked genuinely surprised. "Mr. Zhongli from Wangsheng Funeral Parlor? What are you doing here?"
"We happened to meet by chance. Since fate brought us together, we sat down and talked for a while," Zhongli explained.
Still unaware that Zhongli had somehow become his father's peer over a cup of tea, Gaming nodded in confusion.
Yip Tak looked at him. "Did you take care of everything?"
At those words, Focalors and Lumine exchanged glances, both wondering exactly what Yip Tak meant by "take care of everything."
"Mm... more or less." After thinking for a moment, Gaming nodded. Then he turned to Lumine and Paimon. "Traveler, Paimon, there's something I want to talk to you about. Could you come with me for a moment?"
Lumine blinked and glanced at Focalors.
Focalors immediately adopted an expression that said none of this had anything to do with her. She was merely here to watch the show.
Left with no choice, Lumine stood and followed Gaming to another spot with Paimon.
"I'll get straight to the point. Those two robbers were with you, weren't they?" Gaming turned and looked at Lumine and Paimon.
"Huh? You're asking us that right away?" Paimon stared at him in disbelief.
Seeing her exaggerated reaction, Gaming laughed. "Looks like I guessed right."
Paimon scratched her head awkwardly and nodded. "All right... yes, we arranged for them to be there. But how did you figure it out?"
Gaming sighed helplessly and explained how he had seen through Jiehu and Houzhang's disguises.
Hidden nearby, Xianyun lowered her head and rubbed her temples in exasperation.
Lora clicked her tongue and shook her head. "Honestly, their acting is so terrible even Venti wouldn't take them."
"I think the Anemo Archon would still take them if they worked for free," Furina added.
She had clearly figured Venti out already.
Lora gave Furina a thumbs-up. As expected of her daughter, she had already grasped the personalities of The Seven remarkably well.
Meanwhile, Gaming continued speaking to Lumine and Paimon.
"I know you're trying to help fix things between my dad and me. But things between us haven't been bad for just a day or two. It won't be easy."
"I think it was going pretty well," Paimon replied. "Zhongli almost managed to talk Uncle Yip around just now!"
Gaming shook his head. "Impossible. I know my dad better than anyone. No matter who tries to persuade him, he'll never open up and say much to me that easily."
Lumine studied him for a moment before speaking.
"You and your dad are very alike. He refuses to say anything to you, and you refuse to say anything to him. Have you ever considered that your relationship became this distant precisely because neither of you communicates?"
"But... even if I talked to him, would it really change anything?" Gaming lowered his head.
"You won't know until you try!" Paimon shot back. "Nothing will change if you only think about it!"
"Well..." Gaming looked at Paimon, then at Lumine. Finally, he sighed. "All right. I'll try..."
While Gaming spoke privately with Lumine and Paimon, Zhongli and Yip Tak had already become close enough to chat like old friends.
Yip Tak admired Zhongli's vast knowledge, while Zhongli found their conversation both insightful and engaging.
Focalors, however, had already let her mind drift away.
She knew almost nothing about tea. In fact, her knowledge was practically nonexistent. As she listened to Zhongli and Yip Tak discuss the finer points of tea tasting and the culture behind Liyue's tea traditions, her thoughts gradually stopped functioning altogether.
When Gaming and the others returned, Zhongli rose from his seat.
"Brother Yip, I believe we should end our conversation here for today. It has been a pleasure speaking with you, but unfortunately, I still have work entrusted to me by Director Hu."
"Oh, why didn't you say so sooner?" Yip Tak quickly stood, sounding guilty. "This is my fault. I kept you here for far too long. Go take care of your work, Brother Zhongli. When you have some free time another day, I'll treat you to morning tea."
Zhongli smiled and nodded. "I will hold you to that."
Whenever Lora saw that smile, she could not help reading one sentence in it.
Another free meal, secured.
Surely that was only her imagination...
Lumine quickly signaled to Focalors with her eyes.
Focalors snapped back to reality, hurriedly stood, and followed after Zhongli.
"Take care, Mr. Zhongli! I'll walk you out!"
The three of them swiftly followed Zhongli away, leaving the area to Yip Tak and Gaming.
Xianyun turned to Shenhe. "Shenhe, it's our turn. Let's go!"
The moment Xianyun and Shenhe set off, Lora hurriedly called to Furina.
"Quick, quick! Get the Kamera out!"
Furina immediately pulled the Kamera from her bag and set it up.
Just then, Zhongli and the others approached from behind. Focalors stepped forward, tapped Lora on the shoulder, and called out, "Lady Egeria!"
"Who is it? I'm busy." Lora continued adjusting the Kamera without even turning around.
Focalors: "..."
Standing beside her, Zhongli said calmly, "Lady Egeria must be terribly busy. It appears she has no time to acknowledge us."
Lora froze.
Her back instantly straightened, and she slowly turned around.
The first thing she saw was Zhongli's perfectly serious smile.
After a moment of silence, she asked, "...Did someone already tell you what happened?"
Zhongli shook his head. "Your face told me enough."
"Oh, spare me!" Lora stood and stared at him. "What are you doing here?"
"I came to see how the next scene unfolds," Zhongli replied with complete seriousness.
"The next scene?" Lora gave him a strange look. "Don't you still have work from Hu Tao? How do you have this much free time?"
Zhongli chuckled softly. "Thanks to Lady Egeria, Director Hu assigned me even more work than usual after learning that I am an adeptus."
"Then when we came back that day and saw you drinking tea at Third-Round Knockout, you were just slacking off?" Lora frowned, her composure starting to crack.
"Tea savored in the midst of one's duties gains a richer character," Zhongli replied solemnly.
"And now?" Lora asked. "Are you slacking off again?"
Zhongli shook his head. "Of course not. I asked Xiao to handle today's work for me."
Lora gave him a thumbs-up. "Unbelievable."
"The feeling is mutual," Zhongli replied.