At Yujing Terrace, the matter of the ancient god battle had finally settled.
A huge crowd had gathered there, all waiting for Ryou to come speak. They all knew he was the one who had saved them, so naturally they wanted to see their savior with their own eyes.
But nearly an hour had already passed.
Why still no sign of him?
"Where's Ryou-sama?"
"Nothing happened to him, did it? I heard that after he killed the gods yesterday, he disappeared, and even Keqing-sama was frantic with worry."
"Nonsense. I saw Ryou-sama carrying Keqing-sama home last night."
"Then... why hasn't he arrived yet?"
...
Just as Ningguang was about to send someone to fetch him, people started filtering into Yujing Terrace from all directions.
Then she finally spotted Ryou walking over.
The resentful look in her eyes made his face heat up a little.
It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to come earlier.
It was just that once Keqing got like that, an hour was nowhere near enough. He had ended up arriving another half hour later than planned.
"Ryou-sama!"
"Ryou-sama!"
"Ryou-sama!"
...
Ryou looked at the crowd and said softly, "Please, quiet down."
The moment his voice fell, the entire plaza went silent.
Even Ningguang was stunned by that level of authority.
As she looked at the man standing before the crowd, her heart stirred again.
He was the kind of man who felt born to lead. He had a natural pull that made people trust him. One sentence from him was enough to steady the entire scene.
Even at her peak, she had never inspired this kind of immediate response.
It wasn't that she couldn't have done it.
It was that Ryou had only been in the Ministry of Civil Affairs for a short time, yet he had already built up this kind of influence. That was what made it unbelievable.
That dangerous little thought from before rose in Ningguang's mind again.
Maybe tonight she really should bring a few more bottles of wine.
If she got Ryou drunk enough, maybe she really could take this man down.
The thought made her smile.
Then she looked back at him.
Ryou, of course, noticed none of it. He was already addressing the people of Liyue.
"This battle against the ancient gods was fought on a massive scale, and we won.
"We killed nine gods in total.
"So yes, we were the victors.
"But we were also the ones who lost."
His voice dropped, heavy with grief.
"Because the Millelith lost twenty thousand men."
The mood in the crowd shifted instantly.
"What's done is done," Ryou continued. "But we cannot let them die in vain.
"I will have a memorial built near Yujing Terrace, and every one of those fallen heroes will have a gravestone there.
"They deserve to be remembered.
"They died for Liyue Harbor. They were heroes. And their names will not fade just because they are gone."
He paused, then continued.
"On top of that, the Ministry of Civil Affairs will erect stone monuments at Yujing Terrace. For the adepti. For those heroes. We will set their names in stone, so every person in Liyue, and every visitor who comes here, will know this—It is because of people like them that Liyue has peace, prosperity, and the life we enjoy today."
Thunderous applause erupted across the square.
Everyone clapped like mad, emotions running high.
"And next, we will introduce a new policy.
"All official Liyue personnel—those at Yujing Terrace, the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Millelith, and every other department—will be covered by medical insurance.
"With every salary payment, an additional portion will be set aside to provide treatment coverage for them.
"Their family members will also receive these benefits, and treatment costs will be reduced accordingly."
Ryou laid out the details one by one.
By the time he finished, nearly half an hour had passed.
As the crowd gradually dispersed, he finally let out a breath.
"I've already set the medical insurance matter in motion. It should be fully implemented soon enough," Ningguang said, turning to him. "As for the memorial cemetery, that will take more time. Still, for now, this whole matter can be considered temporarily settled."
Then she gave him a sidelong look.
"You're still hosting dinner tonight?"
"Mhm." Ryou nodded.
"I'll come a little early," Ningguang said. "Oh, and I have a few good bottles at my place. I'll bring them with me."
She gave him a wink before turning to leave.
Ryou froze for a moment.
What was that supposed to mean?
Bringing good wine to dinner, sure, that made sense.
But what was with that look?
Did this big sister type seriously want to eat him alive?
Watching Ningguang sway away with that full, mature figure of hers, Ryou felt a fresh wave of heat rise in him.
Then he turned and headed back to the Ministry of Civil Affairs.
The battle might have ended, but there was still a mountain of work waiting to be handled there.
And with Keqing absent, that burden naturally fell to him.
He was already thinking about using [Mouth] to release two streams of qi and buff the staff so they could work faster.
Later, he also wanted to head back and check on Keqing. He had gone to a lot of trouble to keep her from dragging herself straight back to work.
Just as he was about to speak with Zhongli, someone behind him said, "Ryou, I have something I'd like to discuss with you. May I have a moment?"
The second he heard that voice, his whole body stiffened.
Yanfei.
He was done for.
"Ah, Yanfei." He turned to her with practiced calm. "What is it?"
"Ahem. You two talk. I'll take my leave for now," Zhongli said, clearly seeing that Yanfei had business with Ryou.
That gave Ryou a headache on the spot.
Wasn't Zhongli supposed to have something to say to him too? Why was he just leaving?
Then again, Ryou really was curious whether Zhongli had gone to meet Signora after all.
Compared to the original course of events, Zhongli had already changed far too much. That old arrangement between them was probably long gone by now.
And if that was true, Signora was probably furious enough to explode.
Ryou pushed the thought aside and said, "Come with me to my office."
"Alright." Yanfei nodded and followed him.
The moment Ryou stepped inside, every staff member in the Ministry looked up at him.
Their eyes were blazing.
At this point, even without a buff, they probably still would have thrown themselves into work with full force.
[Qi! – Energy Recovery]
[Effect: Energy recovery speed within range increased by 65%.]
[Duration: 2 hours.]
[Effect: Work efficiency within range increased by 65%.]
[Duration: 2 hours.]
Ryou glanced over the buffs and gave a small nod.
[Ding! Mouth entering Darkened Mode!]
[Ding! Mouth Darkened Mode active.]
[You can now expel spiritual energy with special effects.]
[Current output range has increased to three directions!]
Ryou considered releasing another stream of qi, but quickly gave up on the idea.
Those buffs were useful, but even two already took a noticeable toll on him.
He was only willing to spend that much today because the Ministry had too much to deal with.
Under normal circumstances, he would never keep burning through his strength like this. Long-term exhaustion would do him no favors.
"There's a lot to handle at the Ministry today, and every department has something urgent on its plate," Ryou said to the staff. "Work hard and get it all sorted out. Once everything's dealt with, every one of you will be rewarded."
"Yes, Ryou-sama!"
"Yes, Ryou-sama!"
...
The staff practically looked like they had been injected with something.
They threw themselves into the paperwork at breakneck speed, handling official business faster than ever.
Yanfei stood behind Ryou and watched the whole thing in stunned silence.
She could see just how much influence he had inside the Ministry. One sentence from him, and everyone moved without hesitation.
That kind of authority was outrageous.
Yanfei had spent plenty of time around Ningguang and Keqing. She had seen leadership in both of them.
But this was different.
This was on another level entirely.
It was almost godlike.
She couldn't help admiring him for it.
Under his hand, the Ministry of Civil Affairs felt as though it had come back to life.
Yanfei had come here often in the past because of various cases, so she knew these people fairly well.
Her impression of them had always been that they were capable enough, but also a little loose and unremarkable. Compared with the staff at Yujing Terrace, they had always fallen a little short.
But now, she was genuinely shaken.
Their efficiency was absurdly high. They followed every instruction instantly. And every one of them seemed fanatically devoted to Ryou.
No wonder she had been hearing so many people praising the Ministry lately.
Some were even trying to transfer into it.
Yanfei had once held more than a few prejudices against Ryou.
But after the battle against the ancient gods, she had started to understand just how extraordinary he really was. That pull he had was undeniable.
And the moment she remembered that he had already seen every inch of her, her whole face flushed red again.
Following Ryou into his office, Yanfei quietly shut the door behind her.
Ryou immediately looked up.
"Y-You... why did you close the door?"
He froze as he looked at her.
Yanfei's entire face was red, embarrassingly red, and the sight of her like that was dangerously tempting.
That only fanned the heat already burning inside him.
Ningguang had a figure that was rich, curvy, and impossible to ignore.
Yanfei was built differently, but the second Ryou remembered what he had seen that night, the fire in him surged all over again.
Yanfei noticed the heat in his eyes, and her face burned even hotter.
Inside that closed office, the air itself seemed to change.
It was starting to feel... intimate.
She had come here to confront him about seeing her like that.
But how was she supposed to say something so embarrassingly indecent out loud?
And yet, strangely enough, what unsettled her most wasn't even that.
Clenching her teeth, Yanfei swore to herself that when the chance came, she was absolutely going to make Ryou pay for this properly.
He had seen everything.
This man... he had gone way too far.
How could he do something like that?
"You... do you need something?" Ryou asked.
As he watched her expression shift from shy embarrassment to something far more dangerous, a chill ran up his spine.
There was real killing intent in her eyes now.
For one terrifying moment, he honestly thought Yanfei might pull a knife on him.
"I... I have a little sister who's gone missing," Yanfei said at last. "I wanted to ask if you could help me find her."
So she wasn't bringing that up.
Ryou silently let out a breath of relief.
"Oh. One of your junior sisters."
Yanfei didn't seem to have many.
Off the top of his head, there were probably only Xiangling, Yaoyao, and... Kuki Shinobu?
Kuki Shinobu could be ruled out first.
Xiangling had shown up at the Jade Chamber before, so he could check Wanmin Restaurant later.
As for Yaoyao...
The chances of something happening to her felt much higher.
Could it be that Yaoyao was the one who had gone missing?
[End of chapter]
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