"Mm. I'll come back again."
Fang Qiu smiled.
With Tuantuan to keep her company, Qiqi would surely be a good deal happier.
She said her goodbyes to Qiqi, who had gone back to playing with the little finch, and made her way out of Bubu Pharmacy, heading toward the Mondstadt dessert shop.
By the time she arrived, evening had well and truly fallen.
The night was deep and dark. A thick layer of storm clouds blanketed the sky, dragging the darkness in earlier than usual.
Across Liyue Harbor, wisps of cooking smoke curled lazily into the air. Lanterns had already been lit along the streets, and the storytellers in the teahouses had begun their nightly recitations.
"When last we left our tale — the lady Pan and the great official Ximen faced each other on horseback beyond the city walls, trading blow for blow through a full three hundred exchanges. Then Ximen found an opening, and his gleaming silver spear shot forward like a dragon — but the lady Pan was no one to trifle with. Her great dao whirled like a tiger's roar, and she matched him stroke for stroke, fighting to a perfect draw..."
"What a peculiar story."
Fang Qiu paused to listen for a moment, murmured a word or two to herself, and then moved on.
She made her way to the Mondstadt dessert shop. This close to the water, the sea wind blew with some force.
The weather wasn't particularly pleasant, but the new drinks had apparently drawn a crowd — nearly every seat was taken.
She stepped up to the counter. Behind it today stood a girl about her own age.
"Hello! What can I get for you? We've just launched a new line of drinks." The girl offered a small smile and slid a menu across the counter.
Fang Qiu took it and had a look.
Beyond the familiar Wolfhook juice and orange juice, the menu had been expanded with a whole host of new names — Moonlit Alley, Birch Tree, Dusk, and more were all there.
And beyond those: Distant Reef Foam, Valley Sunset, Sweet Berry Lake, North Wind's Longing, Kiss of Frost-Cover...
In short: a collection of drinks with names that sounded lovely and meant absolutely nothing.
Fang Qiu had originally planned to order the Kiss of Frost-Cover, but after a moment's consideration, she went with the Gift of the Anemo Archon instead.
Mondstadt was a free city-state — what if the drinks had caught the spirit of that freedom a little too enthusiastically?
After all, her previous life had its share of drinks with beautiful names that tasted like medicinal broth — things like White Flower Snake Grass Water, Oriental Leaves, and Black Pine Sandy Soil.
So, the Gift of the Anemo Archon it was. The safer choice.
Because surely — however free-spirited the city might be — no one would have the nerve to make something named after the Anemo Archon taste bad.
No matter how she thought about it, it couldn't possibly be unpleasant.
She'd try the Kiss of Frost-Cover next time.
Along with the Gift of the Anemo Archon, she also ordered a slice of cake.
Order placed, Fang Qiu stepped back outside and took a little stroll. The moment a pair of girls got up from a seaside table, she moved in without hesitation and claimed the spot.
"Lucky me."
Fang Qiu smiled to herself and settled in to wait for her cake and drink.
With nothing else to do, she let herself drift into the conversations washing around her.
"Look at those winds — the way this weather's going, a downpour can't be far off."
"Once the rain clears, I'm thinking of heading down to the shore. See if any Jade Chamber treasures got washed up."
"I'll come with you — beachcombing for treasure sounds fun. Whatever we find, we could hand it over to Lady Tianquan in exchange for Mora."
"Speaking of Lady Tianquan — I heard she's been recruiting lately. Painters, musicians, people skilled with the Kamera. Especially anyone who's been to Fontaine. No idea what she's planning."
"Oh, I heard about that too. Apparently the pay is extraordinary — a friend of mine got selected, over thirty thousand Mora a month. And she's taking on a lot of people. Word from the inside is that once Lady Yuheng's tunnel is finished, they're planning to expand recruitment to Mondstadt and Inazuma as well. Quite the undertaking."
They chatted on.
"I didn't expect Miss Ningguang to move this quickly."
Fang Qiu blinked, mildly surprised.
Though, thinking about it — it made sense.
Miss Ningguang was Liyue's most formidable merchant, and the most illustrious of the Liyue Qixing — the Tianquan herself.
How many days had it been since their conversation? Several, at least.
Of course she had already set things in motion.
Hmm — though, to be fair, that "most illustrious" part came from the storytellers. She'd never heard any official ranking of the Qixing.
In all likelihood, the Qixing were equals — each responsible for their own domain.
As for why Miss Ningguang hadn't announced that she intended to produce films — that was almost certainly a deliberate business strategy.
Her previous life had plenty of game studios that played the same game: say nothing publicly, then string together a series of small, cryptic moves to stoke public curiosity and set everyone speculating.
Once the product was well underway, you made the grand announcement — detonating all that pent-up attention at once — then released quickly, riding the wave of hype for maximum impact.
Of course, this only worked if you were already the kind of name people paid attention to. For studios nobody cared about, even launching a finished product barely caused a ripple. They'd have to spend a fortune on advertising just to be noticed.
But for someone as celebrated across all of Liyue as Miss Ningguang — naturally, the strategy applied.
Fang Qiu was still turning over Ningguang's business calculus in her head when a steady, composed male voice broke through her thoughts.
"Excuse me — would it be alright if I sat here?"
Fang Qiu's brow furrowed slightly. She glanced up instinctively, and found a tall young man in black standing at her table, his posture straight and unhurried.
Him?
She had seen him before — downstairs at Heyu Tea House that day.
The one whose bearing alone announced that he was no ordinary person.
For all that he looked so young, there was a steadiness about him — a gravity in the way he spoke and moved — that spoke of experiences this age had no business having left behind.
"Please, go ahead."
Fang Qiu hesitated for just a beat, then glanced at the seats around her. Every last one was occupied. Only the chair across from her sat empty. She gestured to it politely.
"Many thanks."
The young man gave a small nod and took the seat across from her.
Before long, both their orders arrived.
The Gift of the Anemo Archon looked just like its picture on the menu — a rare thing, nothing like those instant noodle packages where the glossy photo and the soggy reality bore no resemblance whatsoever.
Fang Qiu lifted the glass and took a small sip. A clean, bright fragrance flooded her mouth at once — like a gentle breeze sweeping away the lingering warmth of the day.
Quite good, actually.
The drink the young man across from her had ordered, judging by its appearance, looked to be the Rosy Mist.
She watched him take a sip, and without quite thinking, she asked: "How is it?"
"The liquor is clear and bright, the color pleasing to the eye," the young man replied, not at all thrown off by her sudden question. His tone was unhurried. "Smooth and mellow on the palate, with a lingering note of floral fruit. Quite rare. Though it would be even better," he added, "if it were served with a proper pin xiang cup — the kind suited to drawing out and appreciating the full bouquet."
"Is that so."
Fang Qiu nodded.
A single sentence, and you could tell he knew his craft.
Sure enough — her guess had likely been right all along. This young man was in all probability one of the Liyue Qixing.
No ordinary merchant could carry themselves like that.
She would stake her transmigrator's dignity on it.
"You haven't touched yours?"
The young man glanced over. "From what I understand, a drink like the one you're holding is best enjoyed immediately after it's prepared. Leave it too long, and the balance is lost."
"My thanks for the reminder."
Fang Qiu nodded and lifted her glass, drinking steadily.
Time passed quietly. The young man finished his drink to the last drop.
"Thank you for letting me share your table. I'll take my leave."
He rose and spoke.
"Not at all."
Fang Qiu offered the polite reply.
"Best of luck with your new book. I look forward to reading it."
The young man said it simply, as if it were nothing — and then he turned and walked away.
He left behind a thoroughly bewildered Fang Qiu.
The silver fork she'd been using to eat her cake slipped from her fingers and landed on the porcelain plate with a sharp, clear clink.
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