Liyue Harbor.
Chunxiang Kiln.
This was the most famous ceramics shop in all of Liyue Harbor! Situated close to the port, the shop's wares traveled along trade routes to countless nations far and wide.
Among its staff was a young woman named Ying'er, who tended the shop day to day. For miles around, everyone knew that Miss Ying'er had a side occupation: the brewing of perfumed balm. The balm she produced was beloved by no small number of wealthy young ladies in the harbor, who came by often to purchase it.
The Miss Ying'er Keqing had mentioned — this was her.
Dehya and Lumine led Eula, Collei, and the others to the shop and found Miss Ying'er, stating their purpose without preamble.
"...My, my, my. You're actually bringing this many beautiful women in at once to buy perfumed balm?"
"Traveler, you really are quite the sinful creature, aren't you."
Hearing Ying'er's exclamation, Lumine crossed her arms and struck a smug, triumphant pose.
She had visited Ying'er once before to order balm — back when they were arranging the Rite of Descension for Zhongli — so the two of them were already well acquainted.
Ying'er smiled and asked, "So then, how much perfumed balm are you looking to buy? My stock isn't exactly plentiful~"
"Ahh~ If you'd come one by one, I could just about manage. But now that you've all shown up together, the supply I've spent a whole week carefully building up is going to be completely drained dry~"
Eula: ???
Collei: ...
Amber: .....
Dehya couldn't help herself. "Y-Ying'er? We are talking about the perfumed balm, right!?"
"Dehya!"
Dunyarzad's face flushed a light pink. She grabbed Dehya by the sleeve, her eyes swimming with mortification.
Honestly, she had already understood exactly what Ying'er meant. And that realization made it so much worse.
Before, she definitely wouldn't have caught on. Growing up, she had always stayed alone in her room — she had been a genuinely innocent girl. But ever since she started following Ye Xi, night after night had gradually loosened something inside her. Add to that Dehya constantly whispering things in her ear day in and day out, and she was beginning to feel like that innocent girl was a distant memory.
Paimon tilted her head in total bewilderment. "What are you all talking about? I can't understand any of it!"
Ying'er kept a perfectly guileless smile on her face and nodded pleasantly. "Why, dear guest, whatever do you mean? I was of course talking about the perfumed balm~"
"Oh, oh... okay."
Dehya scratched her head. Something felt off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what.
Recalling that Ying'er had just asked about the quantity they wanted to buy, Dehya spoke up. "I heard from the Traveler that you carry three excellent varieties of perfumed balm here."
"Indeed~"
"There's the [Golden House Beauty], popular with young girls; the [Mountain Shade Splendor], favored by the daughters of distinguished families; and the [Ethereal Immortal Fate], preferred by mature women."
"Which varieties would our guests like, and how many~? I'll do my very best to satisfy you all~"
The coy, honeyed quality of Ying'er's tone sent a pleasant tingle down Dehya's spine.
"We'll take one hundred of each!" Dehya announced.
"Eh!?"
Ying'er's expression sharpened into something considerably more serious in an instant. Clearly, the number Dehya had named had startled her right out of her playful act.
"One hundred — of each!?"
It wasn't just Ying'er who was taken aback; even Eula and the others standing nearby were surprised. Even if you bought generously, surely you couldn't use that many!
Dehya nodded firmly. "That's right, one hundred each!"
"We're from Sumeru, and given that we might not always be able to come back to buy, we decided to stock up all at once!"
She had originally intended to take a headcount. But Dunyarzad had pointed out that they couldn't think only of those present — they needed to account for Ayexia and Setaria as well. Who was to say those two wouldn't like it? And in the future, there might be even more family members joining them! Even as gifts, it was a perfectly sensible choice.
Dehya had found that entirely reasonable and agreed wholeheartedly.
Ying'er recovered from her initial surprise, then couldn't help voicing her concern. "Even for stockpiling, that quantity is staggering!"
"And the thing is — if balm is stored for too long, the scent changes!"
"One tin of balm, even used every single day, will last a month. Three hundred tins would keep you all going for over a decade!"
Who in their right mind applied perfumed balm every single day anyway?
Dehya laughed heartily. "Don't worry, don't worry — our Master has a storage method. Nothing will spoil."
Inside Ye Xi's portable space, the balm could be kept perfectly preserved. The flow of time within the portable space was completely frozen. You could put in a steaming bowl of freshly made noodles and take it out later to find it still piping hot, exactly as it had been when you placed it in. A bit of perfumed balm was nothing to worry about.
"Master?"
Ying'er blinked, and something clicked.
She had been puzzling over it — how was it that the Traveler, a lone girl, came surrounded by so many stunning women? The moment she heard Dehya say "Master," it all made sense.
These beautiful girls must all be the wives of some wealthy young nobleman!
The thought immediately filled her with curiosity. What sort of wealthy young man could possibly have this many breathtakingly beautiful little wives? And every single one of them wore an Eye of God! What did that even mean!? An Eye of God was one in ten thousand — and yet here was a whole crowd of them! Even the Traveler herself was among them!
Could it be that this nobleman had literally saved the world? Or was he simply so rich he rivaled entire nations?
Curious as she was, she agreed to the order all the same.
"My, my — I never expected you'd want quite so much perfumed balm."
"It seems my stock simply cannot withstand what you ladies have in store for it."
"And if I'm making it all by myself, goodness knows how long it would take to finish~"
"At this rate, I might be toiling away day and night for the next half year just for your sake~"
"This poor body of mine really can't endure such... relentless effort~"
"Half a year——!?"
Hearing that, Dehya looked genuinely troubled. Half a year aside, they were supposed to be heading home today! What were they supposed to do about that?
Seeing Dehya's distress, Ying'er gave a soft laugh. "I'm exaggerating, of course~ Normally when I make balm, I do it at home after work."
"Finding the raw materials, then doing the brewing — I can only manage about an hour a day, so progress is slow."
"But if everyone pitches in together, we'll get through it in no time~"
Dehya's expression brightened with understanding. If it was usually just Ying'er working alone, of course it would be slow. But they had already gathered the raw materials. No time needed for sourcing. With this many girls on the job, they could knock it out quickly!
With that thought settled, Dehya nodded decisively. "Right then — everyone lend a hand!"
Eula had not anticipated that she would be personally making the balm herself, and found herself at a momentary loss.
Amber linked arms with Eula cheerfully. "Come on, Eula, it definitely won't be hard!"
"Mmm... these Silk Flowers are really exceptional quality! Where did you get them?"
Ying'er looked at the flowers Lumine had brought and seemed genuinely surprised.
Paimon planted her hands on her hips. "We picked them from Yujing Terrace."
"Eh!? Yujing Terrace!?"
Ying'er paused.
The Silk Flowers at Yujing Terrace were ornamental-grade specimens — the finest quality flowers imaginable. They were certainly not permitted to be picked by any outsider who wandered through!
Unless...
Ying'er arrived at the only conclusion that made sense. The nobleman behind these beautiful girls must be someone of immense rank and influence — powerful enough that the Liyue Qixing would grant his every request without question.
Her desire to meet this mysterious Master was growing stronger by the minute.
Suppressing the astonishment and curiosity churning inside her, Ying'er got to work with the preparations.
"We'll need a lot of clean water, and a cooking stove!"
At Ying'er's instruction, the girls all rolled up their sleeves and got busy.
A group of beautiful young women gathered outside the entrance of Chunxiang Kiln, drawing the stares of every passerby. Before long, the whole street was buzzing with whispers.
"Hey, why are there so many gorgeous women over by Chunxiang Kiln all of a sudden!"
"Don't tell me... has that girl Ying'er finally gone down a bad path?"
"I knew it! That girl is dangerous! A hundred times more dangerous than she looks!"
"I'll say this much — where on earth are these young ladies from? Every last one of them is drop-dead gorgeous!"
"They don't look local. Could they be young misses from foreign nations?"
"If they really are... hehe, I'd pay any price to..."
"Have you lost your mind? Look — they all have Eyes of God! One slap from any of them and your head would fly right off!"
"Hss... now that you mention it, I noticed! Are Eyes of God just handing themselves out for free these days!?"
"..."
The crowd murmured and gossiped among themselves. But the moment anyone noticed the Eyes of God hanging at Dehya's and Eula's sides, they tucked their tails and quietly slipped away. If you stared too long and got beaten up for it, you'd have no one to complain to. The Millelith would definitely take the side of anyone with an Eye of God!
At this moment, Ye Xi had just arrived at Three Bowls Drunk, only to find that the storyteller had apparently closed up early today, and Zhongli was nowhere to be seen.
As it happened, Iron Tongue Tian had been thoroughly frightened and had gone to see a physician. Zhongli, finding himself with nothing to do, had wandered off to Yunhan Theater to watch an opera.
Ye Xi was unaware of any of this and simply continued flying forward. From a distance, he spotted Dehya and the others clustered around a cooking stove on the street below, and so he descended.
His arrival from the sky gave the girls quite the start.
"Master! You're here!"
Dehya's face was streaked with Silk Flower juice — clearly, she had not been sparing in the chaos.
Ye Xi reached into his portable space and produced a white silk handkerchief, gently wiping the stains from Dehya's pretty face. "Why are you all doing it yourselves? How is it going?"
Ying'er stood rooted to the spot.
Her gaze traveled over Ye Xi from head to toe. She was still replaying the way he had just appeared in her mind.
Good heavens!
Who in the world descended from the sky like that!? And without even using Wind Gliders! Could this person actually fly? Was he some kind of immortal?
And she was quite certain she had heard Dehya call him [Master]!
Before laying eyes on him, she had always imagined this "Master" to be some elderly, wealthy magnate. She had never, in her wildest expectations, anticipated someone this young — and this handsome.
This was far, far too compelling for words.
No wonder these gorgeous girls with their Eyes of God were all willing to marry the same man! Of course they were!
"...Miss Ying'er?"
"Eh!?"
Snapping back to the present at the sound of someone calling her name, Ying'er blinked. "Wh-what is it?"
"Miss Ying'er, isn't it about time you taught us how to make the perfumed balm?"
Amber had already made her preparations and was practically vibrating with eagerness.
"Uh... right."
Ying'er nodded quickly, all while making up her mind about something in her heart.
She wanted to attract Ye Xi's attention.
It wasn't really love at first sight, strictly speaking. It was more that she had simply taken a one-sided liking to him. Who could possibly refuse a wealthy, handsome nobleman with a body to match? And watching how naturally at ease he was with Dehya and Alusha and the others, it was obvious that Ye Xi had no objection to one more addition or two.
If she was actually noticed and chosen, that would truly be a meteoric rise in the world.
Just think — what kind of household was this? Every single girl had an Eye of God, every one of them one in ten thousand. If she could slip into that circle, even without an Eye of God of her own, she would be someone under their protection. A life of wealth without worry, free from any danger, refined and comfortable in every way. Just imagining it was enough to make her heart race!
With that thought warming her from the inside, Ying'er smiled and began to instruct.
"Everyone pay attention now."
"The technique for making perfumed balm goes like this~"
"Gently... tenderly... grasp the pestle..."
"Make sure your palm stays flush against it — that way it won't slip~"
"Then work it in whatever rhythm feels most natural to you..."
"Until all the juice from the Silk Flowers..."
As Ying'er demonstrated, every last girl in the group went scarlet.
???
What in the world was that description!?
"Y-Ying'er?"
Ye Xi's brow twitched. He couldn't help himself. "What exactly are you teaching these girls!?"
"Hmm?"
Ying'er looked up with an expression of total innocence. "Master, I'm teaching them how to extract the essential oil from Silk Flowers."
"Is something the matter?"
"Uh..."
Ye Xi found himself with absolutely nothing to say to that. In a situation like this, whoever spoke up first was the most embarrassed of all.
He cleared his throat and waved a hand. "N-No. Never mind."
Ying'er's smile grew all the wider as she went right back to guiding Eula and the others step by step.
"Yes, exactly!"
"Miss Dehya, you really do know what you're doing~"
Watching Dehya's practiced, effortless technique — squeezing the essential oil from the Silk Flowers with smooth, fluid motions — Ying'er nodded approvingly again and again.
Dehya laughed and scratched the back of her head. "I manage, I guess. I keep in practice."
Ye Xi: ???
"Dehya——!"
Dunyarzad jabbed Dehya in the ribs with her elbow, her face burning with equal parts shame and exasperation. Dehya was always like this — completely shameless, blurting out whatever popped into her head without a second thought!
"Oh~ Is that so~"
Ying'er turned her gaze toward Ye Xi, a look of deeply loaded meaning in her eyes.
The weight of that glance made Ye Xi's composure crack just a little.
Under Ying'er's guidance, the girls worked quickly, and before long, the beautiful Silk Flowers had been refined into essential oil.
At last, once the oil was ready, came the most critical step of all.
The brewing.
"Wonderful, wonderful!"
"Now, place the essential oil into the water and simmer it over a low flame."
"Keep going until the water has almost completely evaporated!"
Ying'er explained patiently. "The heat here requires careful attention — if the flame is too high, the fragrance will be affected."
"Everyone must control the fire carefully~"
"And make absolutely sure that every last drop of the Silk Flower juice is used — not a single drop to waste~"
As she spoke, Ying'er looked over at Ye Xi again, her gaze carrying an expression that could only be described as layered with meaning.
Ye Xi's skin began to crawl.
He had the distinct feeling that he was being watched by a hunter who had already decided on her prey.
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