To be honest, when Gu Sanqiu saw that special note, he admitted that his fists clenched involuntarily, and he felt a burning desire to squash whoever wrote it.
He even entertained the wild idea of bribing Zhongli with Mora, luring Venti with apple cider, and then employing various methods to rally the other gods to help him.
His goal? To tear through every obstacle in his path, not for any grand reason, but simply to find out which kind of dark genius crafted his Golden Finger ability.
If the mastermind was a god in the heavens, then Gu Sanqiu was determined to hammer that deity into the earth!
"Never mind, it's just a fantasy. Having dreams is important for everyone, right?"
Gu Sanqiu wore a grim expression as he sprinkled seasonings over the food. Just by using some common sense, he realized that even if he found whoever wrote those annotations, they'd probably be so powerful that he would be nothing more than a fancy dish for them.
No, scratch that—being a "fancy dish" would at least mean he could exchange a few blows. In reality, Gu Sanqiu likely wouldn't even meet the bare minimum for a proper confrontation.
"Hey, you two girls, food's ready! Come and eat."
"I'm coming~!"
∠(°ω°)／
Hu Tao came running over with her bowl, "Granny Ping, please give me a huge bowl! Definitely more than Sanqiu's!"
"Why don't you just pick up the whole pot and go compete in an eating contest?"
Gu Sanqiu rolled his eyes as he set the small dishes and tea cups on the dining table.
"Aww, it's been so long since anyone's called me a young girl, hahaha."
Beidou, holding her bowl in one hand and scratching her head with the other, burst into hearty laughter at the thought of being called a "young girl." As the captain of the Crux Fleet, admired and trusted by her crew, and renowned as a fearless woman in Liyue, it was indeed novel to be addressed that way.
"Granny, why don't you take a seat and rest? I can take care of this," Beidou said, flinging a small spoon at Gu Sanqiu's head. "This brat doesn't know how to show care for elders, making you do all this."
Gu Sanqiu, as if he had eyes on the back of his head, caught the spoon midair and placed it neatly on the table.
"Hey, wasn't I the one inviting you all to dinner? Why is everything being blamed on me? This isn't fair."
"Mm, it's not fair, but who says fairness is required in this situation?" Beidou laughed, while Granny Ping cheerfully ladled a big bowl of stew for her.
"Haha, don't worry about it, dear. I offered to cook. It's nice to enjoy the feeling of making a meal again once in a while."
"Liyue is a land where food reigns supreme."
Everyone gathered around the table, and Gu Sanqiu used his Geo abilities to pull the large pot and its makeshift stove closer, ensuring the stew stayed warm for anyone wanting seconds.
"Dig in!"
Beidou, who had been salivating since the stew started cooking, finally let her excitement show. Had she been more familiar with Granny Ping, she would have already snatched a bowl to sneak a taste.
Or, if Gu Sanqiu had been cooking, she would've had no hesitation in pushing him aside and helping herself.
"Mmm, this is delicious!"
Beidou's eyes lit up as she bit into the meat. The tender yet springy texture instantly wrapped her taste buds in a blanket of savory goodness.
The meat had been simmered to perfection, not melting in the mouth, but with just the right amount of chewiness.
"This piece... this must be the leg."
She took another bite, and the tenderness of the leg meat nearly made her sigh. As she bit down, she could hear the satisfying snap of the tendons, and with a gentle press of her tongue, the muscle fibers unraveled, releasing an explosion of flavor.
"Ahhh—"
Beidou took a deep breath and downed a large gulp of the special wine Gu Sanqiu had prepared for her. It was a pairing meant to complement the fish-tailed sheep, and it was as much a rare treat as the meat itself.
As the wine mingled with the rich flavors of the meat, the aromas intertwined, battling and blending within her mouth. Sometimes the meat's taste was dominant, and sometimes the wine, but together they created an irresistible symphony that made her want to indulge even more.
"This is amazing!"
Beidou slammed her chopsticks onto the table with a loud "thunk." "Hahaha, Sanqiu, how about joining the Crux Fleet as our cook? I'll give you the highest salary!"
Just then, Beidou's eyebrows twitched slightly. "Hmm? There's another flavor in this stew. Now I'm even more curious about the secrets behind this dish."
A sharp, briny bitterness.
Beidou paused. This taste was all too familiar to her—it was the taste of the sea.
Splash!
Suddenly, Beidou found herself submerged in the ocean, riding on the back of the fish-tailed sheep, gliding through the depths.
Unlike the dark, ominous seafloor she was used to, this underwater world was bright and full of life. Schools of colorful fish darted around, and strange, vibrant creatures clung to coral formations.
"Wait, are those... scallions and star anise?"
Beidou blinked. These were key ingredients used aboard her ships. There was no mistaking them.
But since when could those grow at the bottom of the sea?
"This is... the broth! It's the soup!"
ヾ(≧∇≦*)ヾ
Hu Tao, her face flushed red, tossed her hat onto Gu Sanqiu's head and began chugging the broth from her bowl.
"The soup?"
Beidou snapped back to reality. So, the strange flavor was the soup all along?
Taking a big gulp of the broth herself, Beidou's eyes widened in amazement. Once again, her vision changed. Now, the fish-tailed sheep beneath her surged forward, racing toward the ocean's surface with incredible speed.
Splash!
Beidou gazed, dumbfounded, as a vast, colorful ocean unfolded before her eyes, teeming with fantastical creatures she had never seen before.
In and out of the water, she traveled, sipping the soup as her mind wandered through this vivid underwater world, exploring uncharted waters.
"Does such a place really exist? So many seas, so many marvelous creatures I've never encountered, and they've never encountered me either! That ocean..."
"If this place is real, someday, I'll make sure that every creature in those waters knows the name Beidou!"
"The Crux Fleet will sail across all the seas in this world!"
"This soup... it holds the essence of entire oceans."
Granny Ping sighed softly, concealing her own surprise.
She had watched Gu Sanqiu prepare this massive pot of stew, and now she realized that the warmth in her body and the extraordinary visions were all a result of the ingredients and Gu's culinary skill.
"It even benefits an old body like mine."
The wrinkles on Granny Ping's face softened with her smile.
"Liyue truly is a land brimming with vitality."
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