"I never expected a chef from an inn not known for its food to have such skill. Quite rare."
Keqing sniffed the aroma of the dishes on the table and let out a sigh of admiration. She had passed by Wangshu Inn many times during her work, but she had never known that this chef, Yanxiao, was so talented.
"By the way, Paimon, how's your tooth? I didn't expect to run into you here."
Xiangling noticed Paimon's face was still swollen on one side and asked with concern. The moment she mentioned it, Paimon looked like she was about to burst into tears. Lumine gave an awkward laugh.
"Lumine, you jerk! Albedo said he could fix it with alchemy without pulling the tooth, but you chose the extraction anyway! Boohoo~"
"Cough, Paimon, I did it for your own good. Extracting the tooth first means the treatment takes much less time than repairing it. By the way, Keqing, Xiangling, what brings you two to Wangshu Inn?"
After swatting away Paimon, who was tugging at her hair, Lumine quickly changed the subject. Keqing didn't hide the purpose of her visit.
"We came to look for clues about the legendary Stove God. According to legend, the Stove God once appeared in what is now Guili Plains. Xiangling and I decided to search for clues here."
"I see. The boss was wondering why Lady Keqing would visit Wangshu Inn."
Yanxiao set down a plate of Golden Shrimp Balls. The golden, crispy balls immediately caught Keqing's attention. She swallowed discreetly. First, she needed to ask Yanxiao if there were any legends about the Stove God at Wangshu Inn before she could eat. Her sense of duty made it difficult to tear her gaze away from the shrimp balls and look at Yanxiao.
"Wangshu Inn is the oldest intact building in this area. If there are any ancient texts nearby, they should have been sent here. Yanxiao, do you know if there's a library at Wangshu Inn with records about the Stove God?"
"There's no library, but we do have quite a few old books. I even found a cookbook in there once. Though those books are a bit messy..."
Yanxiao scratched his head awkwardly. To be honest, he hadn't looked at that pile of books in a long time. He wasn't sure if they had been eaten by insects.
"Chef Yanxiao, you don't need to bother. I've already read through all those old texts. I only found one book related to the Stove God."
"Albedo, you're out? I thought Albedo Junior tied you up after you ate his alchemical creation?"
Paimon stared at Albedo in shock. Last night, those two had fought outside Wangshu Inn for a long time because of that incident. She didn't expect Albedo to have been forgiven so quickly.
"Yesterday was just an accident. At least, I didn't think that small Whopperflower that sprayed nectar as an attack was a successful experiment. I thought it was some kind of automatic nectar-spraying household item Albedo Junior had invented."
"How could that possibly be a household item?"
Paimon muttered. Albedo waved his hand dismissively. To be fair, that Whopperflower had tasted quite good. He had genuinely mistaken it for a snack.
"Anyway, I came across a passage in an old text: 'Two hundred li to the northwest lies Guili Plains. The land is dotted with settlements, where the people hunt, farm, weave, and till the soil.'"
"'When the Stove God descends, they take on many forms, as small as children, scattering like stars across the land, entering every household to help kindle their fires. With this fire, the people learn to cook hot meals, sip soups, and roast meats.'"
"That's the record of the Stove God. But I'm not well-versed in Liyue's history, so I can't really picture what the Stove God might have looked like."
Albedo's recitation sent Keqing into deep thought. She didn't doubt the authenticity of his words—after all, alchemists were known for their good memory, which was one of the prerequisites of the craft.
But why did this account differ so much from the one in Supplementary Myths of Liyue? There were even many contradictions between the two.
"It seems Lady Keqing still has some doubts. But I believe the person who can resolve them will arrive soon."
Albedo looked toward the road from Liyue Harbor to Wangshu Inn. He could sense Su Bai heading this way with Shenhe. That adeptus should be able to answer the Yuheng's questions.
"Enjoy your meal, everyone. I still have some experiments to finish, so I won't disturb you."
"Albedo, you're not going to blow up my kitchen again, are you? I know you paid for the damages, but if it happens again, the boss might put you on the blacklist."
"Cough, that explosion was an accident. I'll be heading back now."
Not wanting Yanxiao to bring it up again, Albedo quickly left the table. Yanxiao immediately chased after him—he had to protect his turf. If the kitchen blew up again, Verr Goldet would definitely chew him out.
"What did Albedo mean by that?"
"Well, well, if it isn't the busy Lady Keqing. What brings you here to eat?"
"Ah, Su Bai, Shenhe! What are you two doing here?"
Paimon spotted Su Bai and Shenhe approaching and waved excitedly. Keqing's eyes lit up at the sight of Su Bai, an adeptus, and Shenhe, an adeptus's disciple. Why hadn't she thought of that? Instead of investigating the Stove God with no leads, why not just ask Su Bai?
"Su Bai, your timing is perfect. Listen to this."
Keqing repeated both Albedo's account of the Stove God and the version from Supplementary Myths of Liyue. Xiangling also chimed in with what Madame Ping had told her about the Stove God.
"That's about it. Su Bai, do you know which version is correct?"
"Well... to be honest, I don't know much about the other adepti. As you know, I'm only eighteen. By the time I was born, the Stove God had already disappeared. I really can't say which of these accounts is right."
"What I can confirm, though, is that the 'one becoming many' part sounds familiar. I think Cloud Retainer mentioned it once. The Stove God must have been a very approachable deity."
Keqing nodded thoughtfully. If Cloud Retainer had mentioned the Stove God taking many forms, then Albedo's version was likely the correct one.
"Keqing, instead of agonizing over this, why not eat while the food's hot? I think if the Stove God were still alive today, he'd probably enjoy eating everything as much as Guoba does."
Su Bai's words made Xiangling glance at Guoba, whose mouth was stuffed full. Looking at the now-empty plate of Golden Shrimp Balls, she let out a cry.
"Guoba! You ate all the Golden Shrimp Balls?!"
"Hey?! My Golden Shrimp Balls!"
"Lulu lulu~"