"Cough… they'll be fine, right?" Venti leaned in beside Ryou, lowering her voice. Keqing grabbed Tabibito, and the look she gave her was sharp—like she was itching for a fight.
Keqing was one of the Liyue Qixing, and she was on home turf. Venti honestly worried Tabibito might get bullied.
"Relax," Ryou said, clearing his throat as he looked away. "Keqing knows what she's doing. Maybe you're overthinking it."
He stood. "I need to head to Bubu Pharmacy. Albedo, let's go."
"Alright." Albedo glanced at Venti. "Venti, next time you can just bring Klee over. I'll keep an eye on her."
"No problem!" Venti blinked at him with a grin, then took Klee by the hand and headed toward the kitchen.
Ryou watched them go and got a full-body shiver. He coughed and leaned closer to Albedo. "For your own sake, keep a little distance from Venti."
"Oh?" Albedo looked at him. "Why?"
"Because if a man winks at me like that, I'll punch him on instinct. One swing and he's done."
Albedo: "…"
He studied Ryou for a moment, then shook his head. "You've already guessed who Venti is, haven't you? But just so you know—our Anemo Archon isn't a man."
"A woman?" Ryou blinked, surprised, and glanced back inside.
Honestly… with how delicate Venti looked, it wasn't that hard to believe. Still—
No. Absolutely not. I am not falling into another pit.
He shoved the thought out of his head and took Albedo out the door.
They arrived at Bubu Pharmacy.
Baizhu saw Ryou and greeted him with a smile and a nod. He casually accepted the thank-you gifts Ryou brought—then the moment he noticed the Mora, he hurriedly pushed back.
"I can take the gifts," Baimu said, "but you don't need to pay me."
"No," Ryou said firmly, shaking his head. "That's a separate matter. Take it."
"Well…" Baizhu didn't know what to say. Cloud Retainer had explained the fruit in front of him, so he knew exactly how rare it was. Accepting the fruit already felt like too much. Taking Mora on top of that felt wrong.
"Just accept it," Changsheng said suddenly. "It's his sincerity."
Changsheng's gaze slid to Albedo. "You're not even surprised, are you?"
"The world is full of strange things," Albedo said with a calm nod. "A talking snake isn't that strange."
Ryou shot him a look, thinking, You're really good at saying nonsense with a straight face. A talking snake is definitely not normal—Changsheng is just Changsheng.
"Steady mind," Changsheng said, sounding almost impressed.
"Thanks." Albedo turned back to Ryou. "Um… can I go in and see Zhenyu-sensei now?"
"Of course." Ryou nodded, then pressed the gifts into Baizhu's hands. "Just take them. Thanks for looking after Xingqiu. And besides… I'll probably be bothering you again later."
He led Albedo into the back room.
Baizhu watched them go, then looked down at the fruit—just in time to see Changsheng bite into one without hesitation.
"Ryou's fruit is priceless," Baizhu said, still conflicted. "I really shouldn't be taking this Mora."
"He's offering it out of kindness," Changsheng replied. "Take it. And Ryou himself—his character, his ability—everything about him is solid. He's worth knowing."
"Mm… true." Baizhu picked up a piece of fruit and tasted it. "He really is a good man. I used to have plenty of dealings with his father too, so we go back."
The flavor hit, and his voice softened. "This fruit really is incredible. I already feel my body recovering."
"This is basically adeptus fruit," Changsheng said. "Eat it regularly and it can extend your life. Your body's been worn down for years—eat more, and you'll buy yourself time."
Changsheng hesitated, then said softly, 'If you can… I want you to live a little longer."
"Changsheng…" Baizhu fell silent, staring at her.
…
Inside, Xingqiu and Chongyun looked much better. They were sitting up in bed, chatting, when they saw Ryou and Albedo walk in. Xingqiu's face flickered with surprise.
"Cousin," Xingqiu said, then looked at Albedo again. "And this… friend of yours… he feels familiar. He reminds me of someone."
Ryou stood off to the side with his arms folded, saying nothing.
Xingqiu rubbed his chin, thinking hard. "Kreideprinz.?"
"Zhenyu-sensei," Albedo said with a smile, "this is actually our first time meeting in person."
Xingqiu's eyes widened. "So it really is Kreideprinz-sensei.!"
He sat up straighter, voice rushing out. "Yae Publishing House recommended you to me before. I've read your works—honestly, I was stunned. Meeting you in person is an absolute honor."
He glanced at Ryou and Chongyun, both of whom were staring at him now, and quickly cleared his throat. "Ahem… you can just call me Xingqiu."
"Xingqiu, what are you even talking about?" Chongyun asked, baffled.
"Ahem—nothing," Xingqiu said, coughing again a little too loudly.
"Then you can call me Albedo," Albedo said smoothly. "Ryou invited me to Liyue, and I heard you were here, so I wanted to pay a visit. When I found out you were injured, I came straight over."
He set a bag of fruit beside the bed. "I brought some fruit. Please accept it."
"You didn't need to bring anything," Xingqiu said with a smile, though he still kept the fruit close.
Then he looked at Ryou, earnest. "Cousin, why did you invite Albedo to Liyue? If you need help with anything, tell me. I'll do whatever I can."
Ryou always said they were family and there was no need to be formal, but Xingqiu still felt bad. He hadn't been able to do much for Ryou lately, and it sat wrong with him.
Ryou pulled a chair over and sat down, placing a few pieces of fruit on the table. "Honestly? I invited him because I want to make money."
"Make money?" Xingqiu stared, completely thrown.
They were relatives. The Feiyun Commerce Guild wasn't exactly short on Mora. If Ryou needed money, he could just say so. Why go through all this—
"Just tell the family and—" Xingqiu started.
"No," Ryou cut in, shaking his head. "This time, I'll handle it myself. I'll still need my uncle's help, though."
He smiled. "I'll probably head back tomorrow. You'll understand once you see it."
Then he pushed the fruit toward Chongyun.
"I…" Chongyun looked at it and didn't dare bite.
He'd heard his aunt and his mother mention how valuable the fruit was—practically something only the adepti would have. He'd already eaten some earlier. Eating more just made him feel worse.
"Eat," Xingqiu said, nudging him. "We're brothers, aren't we? If I call him cousin, you can call him cousin too."
"That…" Chongyun still hesitated.
Ryou put the fruit in his hand and patted his shoulder. "What are you freezing up for? Say it—cousin."
"I… Cousin!" Chongyun blurted out.
"That's more like it," Ryou said, satisfied. "You two are close, so we're all family. Don't be polite with me."
He pointed at them both, tone turning serious. "Eat, rest, and recover. That's what matters right now. Understood?"
"Understood," Xingqiu said, nodding.
"Understood," Chongyun echoed.
"Good." Ryou smiled, took a bite of fruit himself, and stayed a while to chat with them.
After some time, he and Albedo left Bubu Pharmacy.
On the way back, Ryou took Albedo straight home. To be honest, he'd been worried Keqing and Tabibito might actually clash. Ganyu and Venti were there, sure, but even quiet, subtle sparring was exhausting to deal with.
The moment he walked into the living room, he saw a full spread of dishes already set out. An instant later, he spotted Paimon floating out with a plate cradled in her arms.
"Looks like I worried for nothing," Ryou said.
"You thought they'd fight?" Albedo shook his head. "Tabibito has traveled everywhere. She knows how to act. You don't need to stress."
"Fair," Ryou admitted, nodding.
Soon, more dishes arrived, and everyone took their seats.
"Ryou," Venti said, holding out her hands expectantly, "we're welcoming Albedo today. Don't you think you should bring out some alcohol?"
Ryou blinked. They didn't keep alcohol at home—he and Keqing didn't drink. Yesterday, he'd bought a bottle from Chef Mao, and he hadn't even tasted it himself.
Keqing's eyes lit up.
Alcohol was perfect.
If she could get Ganyu drunk, wouldn't that solve everything? She'd been wanting Ganyu to help share the load for ages. This was her chance.
Keqing turned to Venti. "We don't keep alcohol at home. Did you bring any? If you did, I can have Ryou give it his special touch."
"Sure… but can he do all of it?" Venti scratched her head and looked at Ryou hopefully.
Ryou stared at her for a beat, then sighed. "Fine."
"Great! Then… thanks!" Venti grinned, then flicked her hand.
In the next instant, the table was covered in bottles—so many it had to be close to a hundred.
Everyone froze.
"Bard, you—you didn't rob Diluc, did you?" Paimon's eyes went huge. There were just too many bottles.
"That's insane," Tabibito said, staring at the mountain of alcohol. "Where did you even get the Mora for this? Talk now—leniency if you confess, punishment if you resist!"
Venti rested a hand under her chin and coughed. "Ahem. Don't say it like that… I just borrowed a tiny little bit from Master Diluc."
She waved it off. "And I told him why."
"Did you go back to Mondstadt just now?" Klee asked innocently. "I saw you disappear for a moment. And when you came back, you smelled more like wine."
"Ehe." Venti rubbed the back of her head and laughed.
"What do you mean, 'ehe'?" Paimon snapped.
Keqing covered her face.
She'd agreed to help Venti and get Ryou to do it, but this bard really used the cooking break to sprint back to Mondstadt and haul back over a hundred bottles?
The Anemo Archon was unbelievable.
For a moment, Keqing even felt Zhongli was far more dependable. At least he wasn't running around causing chaos anymore. He just rotated between the Ministry of Civil Affairs and Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, and with two steady sources of income he was already making five hundred thousand Mora.
He'd even mentioned he could earn another hundred thousand in seven days, which meant nearly three hundred fifty thousand extra a month. Add it up and that was around eight hundred fifty thousand Mora monthly—high income by Liyue standards.
Compared to Venti, a wandering freeloader, Zhongli looked like a model citizen.
"Ahem… we'll talk about this after we eat," Ryou said, glaring at Venti. "I'll do five bottles first."
He grabbed five, took them in hand, and gave them a quick shake. When he uncorked one, a rich fragrance exploded into the room and instantly filled the entire hall.
Venti swallowed hard. He'd always loved Dandelion Wine and knew it inside out—but this aroma was on another level, like something straight out of the adepti's cellars.
Ryou poured everyone a cup.
"Hey! Why doesn't Paimon get any?" Paimon stomped her foot in outrage.
"Klee wants some too!" Klee tugged on Ryou's sleeve before he could step away. "Ryou—Ryou-nii—Klee wants to try it…"
"No," Ryou said gently, patting her head. "You're still little. Later I'll take you out for snacks and we'll go have some fun, alright?"
…
"Mmm… okay," Klee said, and didn't push.
Ryou returned to his seat and lifted his cup. "Alright. Cheers."
"Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
They clinked cups and took a sip.
"Wah—wah—wah!" Venti yelped after a single sip.
Everyone stared at him, baffled. He'd only had a mouthful—why was he making that noise?
"It's so good!" Venti exclaimed, eyes shining. "This Dandelion Wine is unreal. I'll toast everyone!"
He raised the entire bottle and drank it straight down.
A moment later, his vision clearly started swimming. He slumped sideways against the table, barely holding himself up.
He squinted at Tabibito and mumbled, "Tab… Tabibito… did you find your brother yet? You two really do look the same… it's freaky."
Then he giggled, voice turning strange. "Mmm… so good… ehe… hehehehehe…"
Ryou got goosebumps and rubbed his arms. "I thought he could really drink. One bottle and he's out. And that laugh—what is that? It's creepy."
"Y-Yeah," Keqing agreed, sounding equally unsettled.
"Alright, you eat," Ryou said, sighing. "I'll get him into a guest room."
He hauled Venti away, settled him down, and came back to the table.
"Eat more," Keqing said, putting food in Ryou's bowl.
"Keqing," Ryou said, giving her a quick wink, "you should build yourself up too."
"Hmph. Mind your own business," Keqing shot back.
Then she turned and poured a full cup for Ganyu. "Ganyu, this tastes really good. Try some."
"I'd rather not," Ganyu said, hesitating. "I still need to go back to the Ministry of Civil Affairs later to handle work."
"It's fine—just a little," Keqing insisted, sliding the cup right in front of her. "It'll warm you up. Come on. Drink."
"Keqing, don't overdo it," Ryou warned from the side.
"I'm fine," Keqing said, thumping her chest. "I can handle my liquor."
Ganyu coughed lightly and gave in, drinking with Keqing.
After a while, the room started to sway for her.
Ganyu felt it immediately. Too much. If I drink more, I'll mess everything up. I have to go to Yujing Terrace tonight, or Ningguang—
Her thoughts cut off mid-sentence.
Ganyu's head dipped, and she slumped over.
Keqing looked at her, delighted. "Yes! It worked. Ryou, hurry—"
Thud.
Keqing collapsed too.
[End of chapter]
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