At the Cat's Tail Tavern, Cao Zhong glared fiercely.
"Kaeya… Kaeya… you really did me dirty! You took my money and didn't help—are you even human?"
He was heartbroken.
He treated Kaeya like a brother, but Kaeya pushed him into a pit.
"What are you talking about?" Kaeya replied calmly.
"This is your own fault. Look at the situation you're in—can you really blame anyone else?"
The more Kaeya spoke, the more righteous he sounded, even rolling up his sleeves as if ready to fight.
Cao Zhong felt a little guilty but still argued, "Then what do we do? You can't just take money and do nothing! I could report you for corruption!"
"Go ahead," Kaeya said casually.
Right now, the Knights of Favonius wanted Cao Zhong gone anyway. Reporting him would just be walking into danger.
"Fine…" Cao Zhong grumbled.
Kaeya suddenly leaned closer, lowering his voice.
"Tell me honestly… what's really going on between you and Diona?"
He looked serious, clearly trying to dig out gossip.
"Nothing!" Cao Zhong said immediately. "Didn't you see the video? I'm the victim here."
"Oh?" Kaeya smirked. "So you're saying she approached you first?"
"Well… the video speaks for itself."
Behind them, Diona had quietly walked over, her ears perked up, listening.
Kaeya pressed on, "So what do you think about her?"
Cao Zhong paused for a moment. A hint of softness appeared in his eyes.
"She's… kind-hearted. Looks cold on the outside, but actually a good person."
Diona's expression softened slightly.
Kaeya frowned—this wasn't juicy enough.
"No flaws at all?"
Cao Zhong shrugged. "Of course there are flaws."
"Like what?" Kaeya leaned in.
Cao Zhong spoke casually, not realizing Diona was right behind him.
"She's a bit sharp-tongued sometimes… and stubborn too. When she argues, she won't stop, and when she's upset, she gets emotional…"
The moment he finished—
He froze.
A chilling presence appeared behind him.
He slowly turned around.
Diona stood there, face cold as ice.
"…Can we not hit the face?" Cao Zhong swallowed.
"Go die!"
Diona swung at him in anger.
"Kaeya, if I ever trust you again, I'm a dog!"
"Diona! Stop!"
Just in time, the tavern owner Margaret stepped in and stopped the chaos.
Diona snorted angrily but didn't continue.
Margaret walked between them, immediately understanding the situation.
She grabbed Cao Zhong's arm.
"You—come with me."
Cao Zhong didn't resist at all. In fact, he was relieved to get away from Diona.
Behind them, Kaeya sighed.
"What a shame… the show ended."
But when he saw how close Margaret and Cao Zhong seemed—
A bold thought formed in his mind.
In a quiet corner, Margaret looked at Cao Zhong seriously.
"Tell me clearly—what exactly is your relationship with Diona?"
"Uh… didn't you see the video?" Cao Zhong said awkwardly.
"Oh?" Margaret raised an eyebrow.
"You're calling me 'boss' now?"
Cao Zhong froze.
"Ah… sorry… Mrs. Margaret."
Margaret's expression changed instantly.
"Back then, when you stayed with me and talked under the stars, you called me 'sweetheart'… Now you've changed, haven't you?"
Cao Zhong felt a headache coming.
That was from earlier days, when he had just arrived and did whatever he could to survive.
He didn't expect she still remembered.
"Let's leave the past in the past…" he tried to smooth things over.
But Margaret suddenly pulled him closer.
"I don't care. Tonight, at midnight, meet me at Starsnatch Cliff. I have something to say to you."
She lightly patted his chest.
Behind a wall—
Kaeya was secretly listening, holding his breath.
This is insane…
I didn't even pay for this gossip!
Brother… I'm going to remember this forever. 😄