Xia Zhi spent the entire afternoon in his inn room, focusing on writing.
He had no writer's block; he only needed to localize some of the original story's settings to Liyue, making it easier for local people to understand and accept.
This was largely thanks to "The Teyvat Travel Guide," whose Liyue chapter gave him a basic understanding of Liyue's culture and history.
Like the adepti, Visions, archons...
Xia Zhi admired the book's author, who managed to travel across the entire continent despite the presence of monsters. She must possess considerable strength.
Perhaps she was an exceptional adventurer.
He really wished to meet her someday.
Xia Zhi put down the quill pen, massaging his slightly stiff wrist as he exhaled.
He wasn't yet accustomed to using a quill pen – it needed frequent ink dipping, and he would occasionally drip ink onto the paper. If the ink spread, he had to start over with a new sheet, greatly reducing his efficiency.
Looking out the window, it was already evening.
Xia Zhi got up, took a bath, changed clothes, grabbed the wine he bought in the morning, and headed to Wanmin Restaurant.
He arrived earlier than yesterday; there were still two empty tables at Wanmin Restaurant.
Xia Zhi sat down, occupying a table, and told Xiangling he'd order later.
Xiangling nodded with a smile and continued her work.
Xia Zhi placed the wine bottle on the table and used his God's Eye view to watch Chef Mao cooking in the kitchen. Since he was sitting inside today, closer to the kitchen, his detection could see behind the stove.
He suddenly discovered there was actually a red panda breathing fire.
It looked quite silly and cute.
But that wasn't the most important thing.
What was important was that this red panda actually had a golden progress bar above it.
Progress: [0%]
What was going on?
How did a golden-level spiritual beast end up stoking fires for humans?
But from its expression, it didn't seem unwilling at all, rather appearing to enjoy it...
Xia Zhi fell into deep thought.
Wanmin Restaurant's customers increased, quickly filling the outdoor space just like last night.
At this time, Brother Liu also arrived carrying a bag of crabs.
"Young Brother Xia!"
"Brother Liu."
"Wait a moment, let me deliver these crabs to the kitchen first."
"Alright."
Brother Liu entered the kitchen, handed the crabs to Chef Mao, and they chatted briefly like old friends.
Xia Zhi sat quietly, waiting for Brother Liu to return and sit down before asking with a smile, "Was Brother Liu busy today?"
"It was normal, about the same as usual. Have you ordered?"
"Not yet. You're familiar here, why don't you order?"
"Haha, do you have any dietary restrictions?"
"None."
"Good! Xiangling! Come! Take our order!"
"Coming!"
Xiangling pattered over to the table.
"Crystal shrimp, boiled black-back bass, tender Jueyun chili chicken, and we have our own crabs."
"Alright, Uncle Liu."
Xiangling nodded and ran back to the kitchen.
Only then did Brother Liu notice the wine on the table: "Did you bring this wine?"
"I bought it while shopping today."
"Why did you buy wine!"
"Brother Liu treated me to crab, so I'm treating Brother Liu to wine. It's only right."
"You..."
Though his tone seemed reproachful, Brother Liu's gaze toward Xia Zhi became even friendlier.
He was a wine enthusiast; one glance at the label told him what wine it was. He knew its price too – about the same as the crabs he brought.
This made him feel that the young man before him was mature and knew how to handle friendships well.
Such a person would indeed be pleasant to associate with.
Xia Zhi smiled, opened the wine, and poured a cup: "The shopkeeper said this wine is from Mondstadt. I'm not sure if that's true. Brother Liu, you're knowledgeable about wine, please try it?"
Brother Liu took a sip, smacked his lips, and said, "Indeed, it's from Mondstadt. Not bad."
"Brother Liu frequently travels at sea, you must have experienced many interesting stories?"
"Indeed!"
After drinking, Brother Liu became much more talkative.
Xia Zhi listened patiently, occasionally asking questions.
Soon, their ordered dishes arrived.
Brother Liu had several more cups of wine, his face turning slightly red.
"Come, eat the crab! I specially saved the biggest ones!"
"Delicious."
"If you want to eat more in the future, just come to my shop."
"That's too much. Just give me a discount price, Brother Liu."
"Haha, deal!"
Seeing Brother Liu was quite tipsy, Xia Zhi began subtly steering the conversation toward topics he was interested in.
"Brother Liu, as a local, could you tell me about Liyue's famous people?"
"Famous people in Liyue? The most famous would definitely be Lady Ningguang."
"Lady Ningguang?"
"The Tianquan of the Liyue Qixing. She's the richest person not just in Liyue, but the entire continent!..."
Brother Liu spoke of Ningguang with admiration.
Powerful, wealthy, intelligent, and beautiful.
She was truly the ultimate privileged beauty.
"Originally, there was the Jade Chamber floating above Liyue, a masterpiece that Lady Ningguang built bit by bit. Unfortunately, it was sacrificed by Lady Ningguang to suppress the sea god Osial a while ago, sinking into the sea."
Willing to sacrifice her life's work to protect the people – she was indeed a qualified leader.
Brother Liu then spoke of Ningguang's three secretaries: Baishi, Baixiao, and Baiwen; the Qixing's general secretary Ganyu; and Keqing of the Qixing.
"Lady Keqing sometimes comes to eat at Wanmin Restaurant. I've seen her several times..."
Xia Zhi silently noted this information while continuing to pour wine for Brother Liu.
"I heard people talking about the Yun-Han Opera Troupe today. Does Brother Liu know about it?"
"Of course! Master Yun of the Yun-Han Opera Troupe is a famous performer! Her opera singing is wonderful! You must go to Heyu Tea House to hear it..."
"I heard there's a doctor at a medical pavilion in Liyue with exceptional medical skills."
"That's Dr. Baizhu of Bubu Pharmacy. His medical skills are indeed amazing. Last time when I had a headache, I went to see him. He prescribed two doses of medicine, and I was better after taking them! You could go see him about your eyes, maybe he can cure them!..."
"Does Brother Liu enjoy reading?"
"Well, I don't have much time for that, and I can't really get into it..."
"With so many laws in Liyue, wouldn't it be easy to be taken advantage of in business without reading them?"
"Haha, I usually consult Miss Yanfei for that."
"Miss Yanfei is?"
"She's Liyue's most excellent legal consultant. She knows every law by heart. No matter what problem you encounter, if you go to her office, you'll always get a satisfactory answer. Just that her fees are a bit expensive."
"I see."
Xia Zhi nodded thoughtfully and smiled as he poured another cup of wine for Brother Liu.
"Brother Liu, have another cup."
In his "eyes," the iron-colored progress bar above Brother Liu was almost full.
Progress: [90%].