Chapter 61: Chapter 61: Yangu
At that moment, the awkward atmosphere was broken by the arrival of a certain individual.
"Excuse me... are you looking for Glaze Lilies?"
Paimon took a look at the newcomer—blue hair, horns on her head.
"Ah! It's you! Uh, uh... Oh no, I can't remember the name..."
A strange name suddenly popped into Lumine's mind.
She blurted out, "Hello there, Yangu."
——————
Guinaifen immediately selected the second option.
"Though I don't know why it's Yangu, I feel like picking this will be more entertaining."
[The streamer's reflexes are insane]
[She didn't hesitate at all before clicking the second option]
[It's the half-adeptal beast! A wild Cocogoat has appeared!]
[Attention, this Cocogoat is named Yangu]
'Thanks to Half-Sugar Speech·Ordinary Person's super chat': Cocogoat-brand coconut milk—I've been drinking it since I was little (100 yuan).
"Hold on, what are you saying, fam? Are you setting up some spicy content? Don't let me catch you!"
"This is a civilized stream!"
[This comment isn't just half-sugar—it's full-sugar, sugar overload]
——————
Ganyu protested softly, "Yangu? Who... who is that?"
"You didn't remember a single word of 'Ganyu' or 'Yangu,' did you..."
She glanced around and noticed someone seemed to be missing.
"Speaking of which... is Mu Yang not with you?"
Paimon told her, "He went to find the Great Immortal Bird."
"G-Great Immortal Bird?"
"That's Cloud Retainer."
[Ganyu's CPU is about to short-circuit]
[Stop tormenting her]
Ganyu seemed lost in thought. "I see..."
Lumine asked, "Are you and Mu Yang close?"
Ganyu fidgeted slightly. "I suppose... you could say we are. He taught me many things, like tea ceremony, swordsmanship, and such."
"However, after I started traveling between Liyue Harbor and the Guili Assembly, we rarely saw each other."
Ganyu recalled something.
"After the Archon War, there was a very, very long period where we didn't see him. At the time, we even thought..."
"...Never mind, let's not talk about that. I came here to see the flowers to lift my spirits."
[Nooo, Yangu, keep going!]
[I'm not in a hurry, please continue!]
[Why is it so hard to hear stories about my husband?!]
Lumine once again heard the key term "Archon War."
Just what had Mu Yang experienced during the Archon War...
Noticing that Lumine and Zhongli were both deep in thought, Paimon tactfully took over the conversation.
"Looking at flowers? Why come all the way out here instead of staying in the city?"
Ganyu sighed, her expression melancholic. This was another sad matter.
"Yujing Terrace is where Rex Lapis passed away. Seeing flowers there... is too lonely."
"Lately, whenever I work near Yujing Terrace, I close the windows to avoid seeing the scenery outside..."
It was clear that Ganyu's emotions were very low at the moment.
As a half-adeptus who once fought alongside Rex Lapis, her feelings naturally ran deeper than those of Liyue's ordinary citizens.
Paimon apologized for saying the wrong thing.
Ganyu didn't mind, only saying she hadn't sorted out her feelings yet.
Then, the conversation turned to over two thousand years ago.
After the Archon War ended, the original Seven Archons once gathered in Liyue to share a drink with Rex Lapis.
Now, with the shifting of divine seats and Rex Lapis's passing, only Mondstadt's Anemo Archon remains among the original Seven.
[Venti, oh Venti... my poor baby]
[Is this the fate of the Anemo characters...?]
Liyue, with its 3,700 years of history, had been under Rex Lapis's rule since its founding and had never experienced the departure of a god.
Hearing this, Zhongli—uncharacteristically—spoke up and asked Ganyu for her thoughts on this "departure."
Ganyu hesitated.
As a half-adeptus, she was torn.
As a "human," she couldn't imagine what Liyue would become without Rex Lapis...
But as an "adeptus," she had to accept this reality.
With Rex Lapis gone, the era of contracts between the adepti and Liyue had, in truth, come to an end.
After the Archon War, Ganyu had made a contract with Rex Lapis.
She came to Liyue Harbor to serve as a secretary. Now, faced with such a monumental change, she still needed time to sort through her emotions.
Finally, Ganyu took out a freshly picked wild Glaze Lily and handed it to Zhongli.
Paimon asked if she had sung while picking it.
Ganyu replied, "Yes, of course. I'm well aware of this tradition. Don't worry—I sang a Liyue folk song."
Paimon praised, "Wow, you're really an expert too. Thank you, Ganyu."
Lumine crossed her arms and side-eyed Paimon.
"What do you mean by that, Paimon? Are you saying I, an amateur, sang a Mondstadt song?"
[Hahaha, case closed!]
[Liyue! Liyue!]
[Glaze Lily ultra-nationalist]
[This is Liyue's wild Glaze Lily—please play a local song!]
[If you don't know how to sing, learn from the locals—just follow their lead!]
[You were supposed to pick the flower, not control it]
[Hard crowd control for 3 minutes]
The two began bickering.
Watching their playful argument, Ganyu's mood improved somewhat.
She said she felt fortunate to have been able to contribute a small gesture to Rex Lapis's send-off.
With that, she bid the three farewell and left first.
Now, all preparations for the Rite of Parting were complete.
Lumine and the others left Dihua Marsh and returned to Liyue Harbor.
As soon as they reached the city gates, they saw the Millelith facing off against the Fatui.
The atmosphere here was extremely tense.
Zhongli approached a Fatui member to ask about the situation.
The Fatui agent, named Felix, warned him that these were extraordinary times.
Given Zhongli's funding and cooperative relationship with the Fatui, he advised him not to act recklessly.
"Extraordinary times?"
It turned out the adepti of Jueyun Karst had finally sat down at the negotiating table with the Qixing.
The cards were on the table now.
"Tianquan Ningguang of the Qixing suddenly ordered the docks of Liyue Harbor to be blockaded. No one knows what she's planning."
"Anyway, both the adepti and the Qixing are taking a hardline stance, and things have reached a deadlock for now."
Zhongli countered—if the conflict between the Qixing and the adepti was about to erupt, why were the Fatui the ones facing off against the Millelith here?
Felix sneered. "Hah... all because of that Ningguang..."
"She said something like, 'In these storm-laden times, the Millelith must fully control the Fatui's movements.'"
Felix scoffed. "Tch! Only now do they think to restrict us? The Qixing aren't so impressive after all."
Finally, he reiterated to Zhongli:
Since the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor is cooperating with Lord Tartaglia, its people are now also clashing with the authorities.
They shouldn't give anyone an excuse to cause trouble.
Zhongli turned to Lumine. "I must take my leave and check on the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor. I hope Director Hu can handle things for now and that no major chaos breaks out."
Before leaving, he added one more thing.
"If you want to stop an explosion that's about to erupt, perhaps you should first consider where the 'fuse' is."
Lumine and Paimon exchanged glances.
"If there's anyone who wants the city to descend into chaos, it's definitely him."
"Tartaglia—he must be trying to get close to the Exuvia right now."
The two immediately rushed to the Golden House at top speed.