Yun Jin, meanwhile, turned to look at the Traveler and said: "Traveler, Paimon — would you mind doing me a favor?"
"What favor? Out with it."
Paimon said.
"Since we have to rehearse the new opera, I won't be able to go inform Miss Fang Qiu in person. Could I trouble you to do it on my behalf?"
Yun Jin asked.
"No problem — leave it to us."
Paimon patted her chest and said.
"Then I can put my mind at ease. I do hope tonight's performance goes off without a hitch — that way I can finally settle down and read Miss Fang Qiu's Sword and Fairy 2. Miss Fang Qiu told me that in the end Han Lingsha and Yun Tianhe got married. I'm so looking forward to it — I really do want to read it sooner!"
Yun Jin said with a face full of anticipation.
Hearing Yun Jin say this, the expressions on Paimon's and Lumine's faces both took on a slightly awkward cast.
"What's the matter with you two?"
Yun Jin asked, puzzled.
"Ah, that... Yun Jin..."
Paimon hesitated, just about to speak — and was cut off by Lumine.
"It's nothing. Paimon ate something that didn't sit well with her."
Lumine said: "Yun Jin, you'd best hurry off to your work."
"Ah, right, right, right — if we waste too much time, we won't get everything done."
Paimon, catching Lumine's meaning, quickly added.
"Really?"
Yun Jin looked doubtful.
Just as she was about to press the matter further, Baiwen emerged from the main gate.
"Traveler, Lady Ningguang requests your presence."
Baiwen said.
"Well then, Yun Jin, we'll see you tonight."
Lumine said.
"All right, see you tonight."
Though Yun Jin was curious, it wasn't really her place to ask any further. She turned and left.
"Why wouldn't you let me tell Yun Jin about Han Lingsha's death at the end?"
Once Yun Jin was out of sight, Paimon, trailing behind Baiwen, asked.
"No spoilers."
Lumine shook her head and said: "Besides, tonight's performance is incredibly important to Yun Jin. We can't let it affect her mood."
"Right, that's true too."
Paimon nodded and said: "As expected, you really do think these things through."
Just as they were chatting, Baiwen's footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
"Hm?"
Lumine froze.
"Miss Baiwen, what's wrong?"
Paimon asked.
"What? Lingsha dies at the end?"
Baiwen turned around, her face a picture of disbelief, and looked at Paimon and Lumine.
"Uh?"
It took Paimon and Lumine quite a moment before they caught up.
"So Baiwen, you read Fang Qiu's books too?"
Paimon asked.
"Mm. Since Lady Ningguang reads them, naturally we — as Lady Ningguang's secretaries — must read them as well."
Baiwen let out a sigh, then nodded and said: "What's more, I'm the one primarily in charge of Miss Ningguang's Mirage Projection team. When it comes to Miss Fang Qiu's works, I naturally have to study them carefully. But after reading, I was indeed drawn in by Miss Fang Qiu's books. Because I've been busy these past days handling Jade Chamber affairs, I've only made it as far as the Nüluo Rock portion of Sword and Fairy 2."
"So that's how it is. Apologies just now — we had no idea you were reading Sword and Fairy 2, Baiwen."
Paimon apologized: "Tell you what — later, the Traveler and I will treat you to a meal."
"No no, that's not necessary."
Baiwen waved a hand and said: "Let's head up first — Lady Ningguang and the others are still waiting for you."
"All right... uh, wait, the others?"
Paimon froze.
"Mm. Captain Beidou and Lady Ganyu are also here."
Baiwen nodded and said.
They made their way to Ningguang's office, and upon pushing the door open, found Beidou and Ningguang seated face to face, while Ganyu sat off to one side. The room was wreathed in curling purple incense smoke, fragrant and rich.
The three of them were in the middle of discussing business.
"Heh heh, we're here!"
Paimon said: "Beidou, Miss Ningguang, Ganyu — good morning!"
After they had all exchanged greetings —
"We didn't interrupt anything, did we?"
Lumine asked.
"With distinguished guests calling — how could that be called an interruption?"
Ningguang got right to the point, smiling faintly: "Is there something you needed?"
Paimon nodded and laid out their reason for coming to Ningguang in full.
"So you're saying that the editor-in-chief over at Inazuma's Yae Publishing House — that one called Yae Miko — wants you to speak with Liyue Publishing House about having you ship Fang Qiu's books separately to Yae Publishing House for sale, ahead of schedule?"
Ningguang said: "And you want me to act as the go-between?"
"As expected of Ningguang — you caught on right away."
Paimon nodded.
"This is a small matter. I'll have Baiwen accompany you to Liyue's publishing house in a little while."
Ningguang said: "However — would I be able to trouble you to do me a favor in return?"
"What favor? Out with it."
Paimon said.
"When the Jade Chamber plunged into the sea, many of the ornaments, books, and antiques I'd collected sank to the seabed along with it. Most of those items were destroyed in that great disaster, and the small portion that survived are scattered across the sea, exceedingly difficult to recover. Only someone skilled at working on the water could carry out such a task for me."
Ningguang said: "This is precisely what Beidou and I were discussing. If you'd be willing, could I impose on you to assist her once you've finished arranging the shipping of the books?"
"So you're saying you don't trust my abilities, hm?"
Beside her, Beidou took a sip of tea and said.
"Captain Beidou's abilities are, of course, beyond question."
Ningguang gave a faint smile, turned her head toward Beidou, and said: "Only — the other day, when I was talking business with Fang Qiu, she said something. A person's abilities have their limits. Even one as formidable as Captain Beidou cannot possibly retrieve every last scattered piece of my collection in the span of mere days. And if I had others fetch them and deliver them to the Jade Chamber, I'd have to pay additional fees on top — hardly cost-effective. A merchant simply must find a way to maximize her gains."
"Hmph. Quite the silver tongue, aren't you."
Beidou let out a cold snort.
"What say you, Traveler? Of course, I won't have you helping me for nothing — your due reward will be paid in full, not a coin less."
Ningguang said with a faint smile.
"No problem, no problem — so long as there's Mora to be had, it works!"
Paimon said excitedly.
"Mm, no problem."
Lumine nodded and said.
"Very well, then. Baiwen, take them to the publishing house."
Ningguang smiled and said.
"Miss Ningguang, why don't you let me accompany the Traveler and the others instead."
Ganyu said.
"That'll do as well."
Ningguang nodded and said: "Then I'll trouble you with it."
After a few more pleasantries, Lumine, Paimon, and Ganyu set off together under Baiwen's escort. The room was left with only Ningguang and Beidou.
"Traveler, the Yae Miko you spoke of — is she that Lady Guuji from the Grand Narukami Shrine?"
Ganyu asked softly.
"Eh? You know her too, Lady Ganyu?"
Paimon asked, puzzled.
"Mm. Before Inazuma's Sakoku, I was the one responsible for handling all dealings between Liyue and Inazuma with her. Whenever we used to meet, she would always bring me fresh Sea Ganoderma as a parting gift."
Ganyu nodded and said: "This time, the reason I came along with you is also because there's a favor I'd like to ask of you."
"What favor? Out with it."
Paimon said.
"A few days ago, after trade between Inazuma and Liyue was restored, she sent me a letter. I'd already drafted my reply and was about to mail it — but since you're going to Inazuma anyway, could I trouble you to deliver it for me?"
Ganyu said.
"Rest assured, no problem — leave it to us."
Paimon patted her chest and said.
"Mm."
Lumine nodded as well.
Chatting all the while, they made their way to the publishing house and quickly hammered out an arrangement with the chief editor.
On each issue's release day, whenever there was a Fang Qiu book due to come out, the Traveler would deliver an advance printing sample to Yae Publishing House in Inazuma, where Yae Publishing House would handle proofreading and printing.
To be on the safe side, Paimon also chimed in, saying that every so often they'd swing by Mondstadt to take a look — and if Fang Qiu's books were selling like hotcakes over there too, they could establish contact with Mondstadt as well.
The chief editor had no reason to refuse, of course; they simply needed to speak with Fang Qiu's editor, Bai Qing.
The arrival of the famous Traveler and Paimon, along with the Chief Secretary of the Liyue Qixing herself, at the editorial offices, immediately drew the attention of every editor present.
Quite a few editors even asked the Traveler for group photos and autographs.
However, when the editors heard them ask Bai Qing about shipping Fang Qiu's books to Inazuma ahead of schedule, they were stunned.
The famous Traveler — had actually come here for this?
And on top of that, every single release day with a Fang Qiu book in it, an advance copy would need to be shipped separately to Inazuma.
Though they knew Fang Qiu's reputation was great, none of them had imagined it would be great to this degree.
Bai Qing hadn't expected it either. She was still caught up in the shock of seeing the Traveler, Ganyu, and Paimon in person — when she heard what they were saying, her mind couldn't quite catch up for a moment.
It wasn't until after the Traveler and Ganyu had left that she finally snapped out of it.
Having settled the matter of the book shipping, they made their way back out of the publishing house's editorial offices, then accepted Ganyu's reply letter for Yae Miko.
As for the situation over in Mondstadt, they'd confirm that tomorrow.
For now, they had to help Yun Jin deliver the invitations for tonight to Fang Qiu and Shenhe.
"Speaking of which, Paimon wonders if Fang Qiu's books are popular over in Mondstadt."
Feeling the cool breeze brush across her face, Paimon said.
"They should be doing just fine."
Lumine, following the wind with her gaze, looked off into the distance.
The direction of the wind — was Mondstadt.
At this moment, Mondstadt City was utterly abuzz.
Despite the broad daylight, every major tavern in the city was doing extraordinary business.
Foremost among them were Angel's Share and Cat's Tail; both taverns were packed to the brim with patrons.
Only, the atmosphere inside the taverns wasn't the boisterous, fired-up energy of before. Instead, it was a touch heavy — most of the drinkers were drowning their sorrows in liquor.
Quite a few of them were drunk out of their minds.
"This Fang Qiu's 5 Centimeters Per Second really hits right where it hurts. Casey... if I'd just been a little braver back then, if I'd confessed to you before we parted, would we have had a different ending...?"
"The speed at which cherry blossoms fall is five centimeters per second — but how fast are you leaving me behind?"
"If we were fated to part in the end, I'd rather we had never met at all — at least then there'd be no sadness."
The crowd nursed their gloomy drinks.
Another place doing roaring business was every one of the major bookshops.
The queues were nearly endless.
"My word, this queue is far too long, isn't it? Just standing in line is going to drag on till nightfall, isn't it? Don't these people have jobs to go to?"
"I told you all this ages ago — I told you to just buy Fang Qiu's complete set in one go. You wouldn't listen. Now you see how much trouble it is, eh?"
"How were we supposed to know that even Miss Barbara would come buy Fang Qiu's books?!"
"All the same, I have to say — Fang Qiu's The Eternal really is brilliantly written. Whether it's the radiance of human nature or its darkness, every nuance is laid bare. And then there's the epic romance of Rose and Jack — moving to the very depths of the heart!"
"But — Rose was already engaged to a noble, and she went back on it. Isn't that a bit off?"
"You can't put it like that. Think about it — Rose was being forced together with someone she didn't love. That itself is aristocratic oppression. That's why Rose wanted to put an end to it all by dying. If Jack hadn't appeared, Rose would already have been dead."
"That is true, actually. It's all the fault of the old nobility!"
"Speaking of which, a few days back I even spotted that woman from the Lawrence Clan reading this book. I have no idea where she gets the nerve to read The Eternal."
"Really. Sharing a book with her — it puts me in a foul mood for the whole day."
"I saw her buying Fang Qiu's books and I lost all interest in buying them. That's why I have to come line up today."
"Now, you can't quite say it like that. At first I thought the same way you all do. But the other day, after I finished The Eternal and went to Cat's Tail for a drink — when I heard what Acting Grand Master Jean had to say, I gave it some careful thought. Perhaps Eula isn't really the kind of Lawrence Clan person we always took her for."
"What did Acting Grand Master Jean say?"
Everyone turned puzzled gazes toward him.
"She said that Eula is just like Rose in The Eternal. In the book, Rose was willing to leap from the ship and end her own life to defy her noble family. Eula, likewise, joined the Knights of Favonius. In the book, when Jack took Rose to the feast of the common folk, the oppressed people, just like us before, looked down on Rose — they took her for a haughty noble who in her bones scorned them. But later, once they all got to know one another properly, only then did they realize that Rose was just an ordinary girl, and they very naturally accepted her. The Knights of Favonius, the Hunters' Lodge — everyone there seems to think Eula's a pretty good sort. So I started wondering — have we been a bit too set in our stereotypes about Eula? Without even trying to understand a person, we blindly insist they're guilty. If we believe someone is born guilty, then how are we any different from those old nobles of Mondstadt?"
His words left many of the people around him — those who had just now been bad-mouthing Eula — falling silent.
Quite a few of them had read The Eternal, and they knew the plot moment the man had just described.
And indeed, it really was so.
Under Fang Qiu's pen, the moment Rose first arrived at the feast, the entire feast had fallen silent.
It wasn't until later, once they realized Rose wasn't some stubborn noble who looked down her nose at everyone, that they happily accepted Rose into their midst.
And as for them...
When Eula had first joined the Knights of Favonius, never mind the other shops — even the Hunters' Lodge wouldn't sell her any food...
Among them, more than a few had seen Eula out in the wild, hunting for her own food and cooking it herself.
"What you said does have a point. Forget it — next time I'll treat her a little better."
"Me too..."
"I need to see more of her character first. I still don't trust the old nobles. Not because of their blood, but because she grew up from childhood in that kind of environment — she's bound to have been influenced by it. As the Liyue saying goes, 'what the ears hear and the eyes see soak in,' or 'near vermillion, you turn red; near ink, you turn black.' Of course, if her character turns out to be decent, I can treat her a little better."
"Makes sense. No need to drop our guard blindly either — she is, after all, the descendant of sinners. But neither can we strike down everyone with a single blow. Let's try to get to know her. If she's truly like Rose, there's no need for us to keep up hostility toward her forever."
"I really love The Eternal. Rose is like a bird in a cage. Trapped inside, her heart yearning desperately for freedom — that's why she came to love Jack, who was as free as the wind."
"Aye. Pity that the ending was so tragic. Watching it — me, a grown man — I cried like that. I sincerely hope they can be happy."
"As for The Eternal, my evaluation is: it's a love epic of the wind. If it were a story that had happened in real life, it would be enough to make a bard write them a hymn of freedom."
The people in line carried on with their chatter — and every word of it was caught by two figures, one blue and one red, passing by.
"How wonderful — everyone's starting to reconsider their attitudes toward you, Eula."
Amber said with a beaming smile.
Her mood was very cheerful.
"Hmph. I'll be remembering this grudge."
Eula crossed her arms over her chest and turned her head aside.
"Still — to think that Acting Grand Master Jean had explained things for you before, and it didn't do much good at all. But this time the effect's been this big. Looks like Fang Qiu's books deserve no small part of the credit."
Amber stroked her chin, gave it some thought, and said.
"Hmph. This grudge — I'll remember that too."
Eula said, brow knitting slightly.
"Heh heh — to use the Traveler and Paimon's words, this is what they'd call 'tsundere.'"
Amber said with a beaming smile.
"It is not."
Eula waved her hand and said: "Enough. Let's get a move on — we still have to head to Dragonspine today to get in touch with Albedo."
"Fine, fine, fine."
Amber laughed and linked her arm through Eula's. After they'd walked a few steps, she added with a smile: "You're actually pretty happy too, aren't you, Eula?"
"Hmph. This grudge of yours, I'll remember too — no, no need to remember it, I'll pay it back today. Once we're done meeting Albedo, come with me to Frostbearing Lake for a swim. See if I don't drag you along to swim half an hour in the Frostbearing Lake today."
Eula let out a cold snort.
Amber stuck out her tongue and trailed after Eula, heading off toward the edge of the city.
Meanwhile, Venti stood watching the people lined up and chatting, full of envy.
These past two days, he'd put on special performances at Angel's Share just so he could read Fang Qiu's books — and he'd raked in quite a tidy sum.
Yet once he'd earned the money, he realized that not only could it buy him the complete set of Fang Qiu's books — it could also cover one good round of drinks.
And so he decided to consume up front: drink first, then read.
So, after he'd finished singing his poetry, he sat himself down at Angel's Share and got to drinking with that nun from the Cathedral of Favonius — the one who couldn't even remember his divine name, Barbatos.
Venti even went out of his way to introduce that freedom-loving nun to Fang Qiu's new book.
They drank and chatted all the while.
And so the drinking went on — for an entire night.
By the next morning, not only had all his performance earnings been blown — he'd also racked up a mountain of new debts...
Last time, he'd at least had enough left over for one book. This time, not a single Mora to his name...
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