"Attention! Stand at attention!"
Outside Liyue Harbor, a troop of Millelith soldiers, their expressions serious, stood in formation as a striking middle-aged man called them to order.
"Remember this: today's mission is critical. You've all been chosen as elites, and I have only one command—don't shame Liyue or the Millelith!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Strong as Millelith, steadfast as a fortress; weapons raised high, to quell the evil and idle spirits!"
"Strong as Millelith, steadfast as a fortress; weapons raised high, to quell the evil and idle spirits!"
With a cheer from the soldiers, the middle-aged officer walked over to the convoy nearby, where a young man was dozing, eyes half-closed. The officer tapped him on the head with his weapon.
"Wake up, kid. Time to head out."
"Hah—ouch, that hurts."
Gu Sanqiu squinted at him. "Uncle Fengyan, why not just give the command? What's it got to do with me? I stayed up all night prepping for this trip—let me get some sleep."
"Oh, you can sleep."
Fengyan turned around, gave the convoy coordinator a few quick instructions, and ordered the Millelith to lead the way along the main road to Mondstadt.
That's right. Gu Sanqiu had spent the entire night awake.
After sorting through his gear until the early hours, he'd dashed over to Yuhai Pavilion, kicked open Keqing's office door, and dragged her along to find his sister.
Soon after, Tian Shu showed up reeking faintly of fish bait, and with a sigh, Gu Sanqiu begrudgingly handed over a silver bill to cover fines and promised to submit a "10-page self-reflection essay."
The intel he'd gleaned from Tartaglia had been immediately flagged as serious, and Ningguang handled adjustments to Fengyan's team, authorizing the release of equipment from the Qixing's secured vaults.
Gu Sanqiu's job was to inspect the gear for its condition and assess whether it was safe to use—an assignment that took half the night.
After one last personnel shuffle, Fengyan's updated team arrived, along with a secretary from a prominent tailoring family. Though uninterested in inheriting the family business, this newly conscripted aide was hastily drafted to help Gu Sanqiu.
And by "hastily," they meant pulling him out of bed, letting him wash his face, then having him sign a confidentiality agreement and join the overnight shift.
Fortunately, the Yuhai Pavilion staff were all too busy, and the poor secretary was single, or it would've been rude to burst into his bedroom like that.
Recording stats, reinforcing armor, enhancing weaponry—Gu Sanqiu was buried in prepping supply pouches, recovery elixirs, antidotes, and backup equipment. Back at home, he funneled as much geothermal energy as he could into refining everything to perfection.
Thanks to a thousand-year-old family legacy, continual improvements in alchemy, and two unbreakable kidneys, Gu Sanqiu managed to deliver the supplies on time before departure.
As for any upcoming crop issues around Liyue due to reduced geothermal energy? Gu Sanqiu slapped down a hefty silver bill to cover losses, advising them to say the funds came from a personal donation by Ningguang.
After all, she was his big sister, and what's family for if not to keep each other in check, boost morale, and earn goodwill from the people?
Then, of course, Fengyan had set his sights on him.
Since the weapons weren't sealed before departure, their cold gleam in the sun was enough to send even the convoy's loudmouths into a low murmur.
Thus, Fengyan suggested to Ningguang that Gu Sanqiu should be the one to enhance all the Millelith's equipment—or at least share his techniques.
Just as Gu Sanqiu was about to doze off, he'd snapped awake at Fengyan's suggestion, jumped up, and scribbled a cost sheet for him.
When Fengyan saw the word "estimated expenses" followed by a staggering figure, he admitted it might need rethinking—but maybe they could split the payments…
After all, given Gu Sanqiu's wealthy status as a member of the Gu family, could he not offer a bit of a discount? Perhaps some military support?
Looking at the normally serious middle-aged man pulling this routine, Gu Sanqiu had no choice but to reluctantly agree, giving a weary promise of "next time, for sure."
Sure, "next time" often meant something that would never actually happen, but with a dutiful and conscientious man like Fengyan… well, Gu Sanqiu was already planning to wear a disguise and maybe jump the city wall the next time he tried to eat out.
"Why does everyone around here seem to have some ingrained fear of 'insufficient firepower'?" he muttered, thinking of the Geo Archon himself, busily working to outfit the Millelith with sniper-grade artillery. Then there was Fengyan, hoping to arm his men even further. Giants, all of them.
Nothing but giants.
Unlike the Emperor, Gu Sanqiu couldn't rely on his connections with Hu Tao to argue his case against Fengyan, a man who had personally trained him in martial arts and was practically a teacher. He couldn't just ignore him. Otherwise, he'd be reported to a certain Tianquan and end up strung up on the Jade Chamber for a few days, maybe even left out in a thunderstorm.
The convoy was large, too, thanks to Ningguang bringing along a select group of reputable and obedient business partners. She'd termed it "commercial exchange."
This business cover allowed spies to blend in while also earning Ningguang goodwill with these merchants.
See, I let you join an official delegation. So when you return with your newfound wealth, I don't need to spell out what you should do next, do I?
Official merchants brought only the best quality goods and character, and with the Qixing's banner flying high, success was all but assured.
Gu Sanqiu suspected that this was also his sister's way of offsetting the expenses of the trip.
The convoy traveled at a steady pace; since there was no specified date in the letter, they had no need to rush as if they were on a forced march.
Any monsters they encountered along the way were met with Fengyan's rallying cry, "Leave it to us!" as the Millelith mowed them down, treating each skirmish as training for the new weapons and tactical formations.
Even elite soldiers need time to adjust to new gear and tactics.
Any distant creatures were promptly sniped by Gu Sanqiu, his arrows flying straight to their mark. The merchants in the convoy grew more convinced than ever that following the Tianquan's arrangements was the best decision they'd ever made.
To enjoy their wealth, first, they had to ensure they survived to spend it.
And watching Gu Sanqiu work—his precise long-range shots, the way he stamped down hillsides into flat campsites, and the ease with which he'd carry four or five wild boars back for stew—reminded these merchants that they'd lost touch with many of Liyue's old ways.
One particularly established family in the convoy could trace their lineage back five or six generations, yet this was their first time truly working with a member of the Gu family.
Seeing Gu Sanqiu's stoic expression as he took down monsters from afar, flattened land for camp in an instant, and quickly hunted for fresh meat, they couldn't shake the feeling they'd underestimated just how much they'd forgotten about Liyue.
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