"Ryou, that won't work," Zhongli said, leaning out from beside Hu Tao.
He continued, "The Ministry of Civil Affairs still has a lot to handle every day. Someone always needs to be there watching over things."
"If it were just an ordinary day in Liyue Harbor, that would be one thing. But what if something happens while everyone's away?"
"Relax, I'll make arrangements." Ryou sliced the meat into thin pieces and laid them neatly on a plate. "We only need to leave a few people behind. Everyone at the Ministry is far more capable than before now. A handful of them will be more than enough."
"That's true." Zhongli thought back to the Ministry's recent performance and could not deny it.
"You're all going to Mondstadt? Then take me too." Hu Tao looked at Ryou. "Business has been pretty slow lately anyway, so I might as well tag along and enjoy the fun."
"I want to go too!" Xiangling said, putting down the vegetables in her hands.
Ryou looked at them and smiled. "Then come along. The more people there are on the road, the more everyone can look after each other."
He paused, then added lightly, "Let's call everything from before water under the bridge. We'll start fresh."
...
Meanwhile, quite a few people had already gathered in the main hall.
Ryou's father and mother arrived almost immediately.
"Father, Mother, you're here!" Keqing went up at once to greet them.
"Mhm. Where's that brat?" Ryou's mother glanced at Ganyu, but considering the occasion, she chose not to say anything and simply looked back at Keqing.
"He's in the kitchen cooking," Keqing said quietly.
"Cooking?" Ryou's father froze. "Isn't that just asking for trouble? That boy's never cooked a day in his life."
Then he looked at Keqing and said, "You don't need to stay here with us. Go help him. Don't let the guests arrive before the food is even ready."
Keqing smiled and said, "He really did learn. He's been picking things up quickly lately, both at work and at home."
"He actually learned to cook?" Ryou's father looked surprised, then gave a small nod. "Seems that boy really does care about you."
Just then, Ningguang walked in carrying several bottles of wine.
"Looks like I'm not late," she said with a smile. "Keqing, I've brought a little gift."
"What gift?" Keqing asked.
Ningguang said, "Now that the matter with the gods has finally come to an end, I've been thinking about how Ryou ought to be rewarded, considering how much he contributed."
She lifted the bottles slightly.
"Before that, I brought some good wine. It seemed fitting for a small gathering like this."
The moment Keqing heard the words "good wine," something about it immediately felt wrong.
Her relationship with Ningguang had never been close, and lately she had caught far too many suspicious looks from this woman whenever Ryou was around.
The words themselves sounded harmless enough.
But bringing wine?
That was suspicious.
Was this woman planning to use the chance to get her husband drunk and try something?
The more Keqing thought about it, the angrier she got.
Sure enough, Ningguang had not come with pure intentions at all.
Then suddenly, Keqing noticed Ryou's mother giving her a meaningful look.
She understood instantly.
Yes, Ningguang wanting to get her husband drunk was infuriating.
But...
she could also use this chance to get Ganyu drunk.
The thought hit Keqing immediately. She stepped forward, took the wine, and said, "Then thank you. This will be perfect for dinner."
"As long as it's useful, that's enough." Ningguang nodded.
Before long, Beidou and the others arrived one after another.
Ryou came in as well, carrying dishes with Xingqiu and the others.
"Father. Mother," Ryou greeted them.
Then he looked around and asked, "Captain Beidou, where are Kazuha and the others?"
Beidou replied, "Kazuha and Venti went to Wangshu Inn. No idea what they went there for, and they still haven't come back. They probably ran into something."
"I see. Then let's sit first," Ryou said. He did not press the matter and instead had everyone take their seats.
Then he noticed several bottles of wine already on the table and gave a small cough.
"Do we really need the wine?"
"You saved Liyue," someone said at once. "You're the hero of the day. Of course there has to be wine."
"That's right. You have to drink a little tonight. It's a celebration."
Sitting beside Ryou, Keqing caught the way Ningguang was looking at him and felt her temper rise all over again.
You shameless woman.
Flirting with my husband right in front of me?
If I weren't planning to use this chance to get Ganyu drunk tonight, I'd deal with you myself.
"Ryou! Ryou!" Hu Tao called from beside Zhongli.
"What is it?" Ryou turned to her.
"On a happy day like this, you should bring out some juice too." Hu Tao held out a hand toward him. "Xiangling and I can't really keep up with the drinking. You can't just make us sit here and watch."
"That's true."
Ryou thought for a moment, then took out two large bottles of juice.
"Don't be shy tonight. If it runs out, just ask me for more."
"Great!"
Hu Tao happily grabbed one of the bottles.
Ryou picked up the other bottle, intending to pour himself some. There were plenty of girls at the table, and his alcohol tolerance was terrible. If he got drunk and did something stupid, that would be a disaster.
Juice was clearly the safer choice.
But the moment he raised the bottle, Keqing snatched it away.
"Keqing, you..." Ryou started, only to catch the look on her face.
He narrowed his eyes.
Oh, so that's your game?
Trying to get me drunk and escape tonight, are you?
Dream on.
You just wait and see how I deal with you later.
Keqing caught the heated look in his eyes and understood exactly what he meant.
Normally, that would have made her nervous.
But tonight, Ganyu was here.
And Ganyu was in much better shape than she was. She would definitely be able to handle whatever fire Ryou ended up with.
So Keqing felt no fear at all.
She calmly poured him a huge cup.
Ryou stared at the full cup and felt his scalp go numb.
At his level, a few cups would be enough to flatten him.
That was exactly why he had not wanted to drink in the first place.
Especially with Ningguang here.
There was no way this woman had brought high-quality wine by accident.
This had clearly been planned in advance.
Keqing, are you really trying to get me killed here?
"Oh? Ryou, I didn't take you for someone who could drink like this." Beidou looked genuinely surprised. She uncorked a bottle and filled her own cup. "I've always wanted a real chance to try the good stuff from Ningguang's collection."
She raised her cup.
"Come on, then. Let's drink properly!"
"That's right." Ningguang smiled brightly at Ryou. "A toast to Liyue's great hero."
Xingqiu stood up too.
"Cousin, you're Liyue's hero. Let me toast you as well!"
"Cousin, me too!" Chongyun stood up with him.
Looking at all of them trying to get him to drink, Ryou felt like they were all demons in human skin.
I don't even want to drink.
So why are all of you so determined to get me drunk?
Do you really want to see me collapse that badly?
He quietly let out two breaths.
[Qi! – Sobriety]
[Effect: Reduces the chance of getting drunk by 50%.]
[Duration: 1 hour.]
[Qi! – Alcohol Resistance]
[Effect: Grants resistance while drinking, reducing the chance of getting drunk by 45%.]
[Duration: 1 hour.]
Ryou looked at the two effects and immediately smiled.
Together, they cut the chance of getting drunk by ninety-five percent.
At that point, even if he drank himself half to death, he probably still would not go down.
If he actually managed to get drunk with only a five percent chance left, then he deserved to lose.
Ryou laughed and said, "Forget cups. What kind of drinking is that? Tonight, we drink straight from the bottle. Bottoms up!"
Then he grabbed a bottle and chugged it on the spot.
Everyone at the table froze.
Ningguang's eyes lit up.
She had picked these bottles carefully. They were all strong spirits, the kind that could knock someone flat after one bottle if they were not a serious drinker.
Keqing was stunned too.
She had wanted to get him drunk, yes, but wasn't this a little too wild?
She had just started reaching for his sleeve to stop him when Beidou suddenly burst into loud laughter. She slapped her bowl aside, grabbed a bottle, and grinned.
"Good! Ryou, now that's what I call a man!"
She raised the bottle at him.
"I like a man who drinks like this. Come on, I'll match you!"
Then she tipped her head back and started drinking as well.
Watching the two of them go bottle to bottle like that, Ryou's mother looked worried and wanted to say something.
But Ryou's father waved it off.
"They're young. Let them make some noise. It's good to enjoy themselves once in a while."
Then he picked up a dish and said, "Come on, try this first. I want to see how our son's cooking turned out."
He fed a bite to his wife.
Her eyes immediately lit up.
"Oh! This is actually really good."
Then she turned to Xingqiu and asked, "Xingqiu, did Xiangling teach him this?"
Xingqiu shook his head. "No. Cousin made it himself."
"As expected of my son. It's delicious—way better than what we usually make at home." Ryou's mother laughed.
Ryou's father took a bite too, then gave her another piece, even feeding it straight to her mouth. The two of them smiled at each other after tasting it.
Hu Tao leaned closer to Xingqiu and whispered, "Does your cousin's family always act this lovey-dovey?"
"Yes." Xingqiu lowered his voice too. "Every time I went over to my cousin's house, I saw scenes like this. Their relationship has always been great."
Xiangling glanced at the two of them and took a bite herself, her brows drawing together slightly.
For a first attempt, Ryou's cooking was already more than decent.
That meant he had real talent.
And the more she thought about it, the more moved she felt. She had always wanted to find someone who could cook too, someone she could truly connect with.
In that sense, Ryou really did fit everything she wanted.
And she genuinely liked him.
There was just one problem.
He was already married.
Sigh.
The thought gave Xiangling a headache. She turned to look at Ryou and Beidou, who were still drinking against each other, and said worriedly, "Will they really be okay? That much alcohol can't be good for them."
"Look at Captain Beidou and Cousin going at it," Chongyun said quietly. "Even Ningguang and Sister-in-law couldn't stop them."
"Wait, Chongyun, you figured that out already?" Hu Tao looked over in surprise.
"I've already acknowledged Ryou as my cousin, so..." Chongyun explained awkwardly.
"Oh, so that's it." Hu Tao nodded in understanding, then turned back and stared. "Wow... they really finished a whole bottle already. They can drink way too much."
She lowered her voice.
"Normally when I see our consultant drink, he does it in tiny sips from a little cup. If you ask me, this is what a real man looks like!"
"Ahem." Zhongli coughed from the side.
Bang!
Ryou slammed the empty bottle onto the table and laughed loudly.
He could not feel even the slightest trace of drunkenness.
Without hesitation, he grabbed another bottle and uncorked it.
"Captain Beidou, I like your style. Come on, drink!"
"Ryou, don't drink anymore..." Keqing grabbed onto his arm from the side.
"It's fine. It's only one bottle."
"Good! Good! Good!" Beidou laughed loudly, already reeking of alcohol. She opened another bottle and took a long pull from it.
Then she turned to Ningguang and frowned.
"This is good stuff, but why don't I feel even a little drunk? Ningguang, did you bring fake wine or what?"
Ningguang stared at the two of them.
They had just crushed bottle after bottle, yet neither of them looked dizzy, flushed, or even slightly unsteady.
It was like they had just been drinking water.
She was completely baffled.
What the hell is going on here?
[End of chapter]
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