"I didn't expect something like this to happen right after I got back."
"And my plan to watch opera tonight is completely ruined."
Qiu Nian lowered his hand and gave a faint, helpless smile.
The power required to alter the perception of someone who possessed a Vision was already on the level of a god.
Qinglan's situation had started three months ago.
Meanwhile, he himself had only returned to Teyvat half a month ago.
This clearly meant it had been planned in advance.
Whoever was behind it was obviously targeting him.
However, Qiu Nian didn't feel afraid at all.
Instead—
he found it rather interesting.
When he returned to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, he briefly told Hu Tao that he would be helping Qinglan with something the next day.
After that, he went upstairs to sleep.
He slept straight through the night—
until ten in the morning.
When Qiu Nian walked down from the loft—
he found Hu Tao, Zhongli, the young funeral attendant girl, Old Meng, and several younger attendants all staring at him at the same time.
Every one of them wore a different expression.
Qiu Nian felt confused.
"Oh? Our great Consultant Qiu Nian is finally awake?"
"You must've slept very well, sleeping in until this hour."
Hu Tao crossed her arms and smiled strangely as she looked up at him.
Qiu Nian walked down the stairs and glanced at Hu Tao.
Then he looked at everyone else in the room.
He felt completely baffled.
"Why is everyone looking at me like that?"
A young man wearing the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor uniform suddenly burst into tears.
"Miss Qinglan…"
He cried sorrowfully while looking at Qiu Nian.
"Alright, alright."
"Consultant Qiu Nian and Miss Qinglan are a perfect match."
"Look at you. Too cowardly to even talk to her."
Old Meng patted the young man on the shoulder.
"Waaah…"
"That's not comforting at all!"
The young man wiped his tears—only for them to start flowing again.
Meanwhile, the young female attendants were staring at Qiu Nian with extremely curious expressions.
It wasn't like they had never tried chatting with him before.
But whenever they spoke with Qiu Nian—
it felt like they were talking to an older senior.
Just like Mr. Zhongli.
His way of thinking seemed completely different from theirs.
They simply couldn't connect.
Still—
they never expected that Qiu Nian would like someone like Miss Qinglan.
Rumor had it they had only met at a dinner—
and immediately fallen for each other.
But honestly…
they really did look perfect together.
"I say, Qiu Nian."
"I asked you to help that young lady yesterday."
"But you ended up stealing her heart instead."
"She's the daughter of the owner of Xinyue Pavilion, you know."
"And you two got together just like that?"
Hu Tao looked at him suspiciously.
To be fair—
the two of them really did match.
At least in terms of appearance.
Even though Qiu Nian didn't give her the same ancient feeling as Zhongli—
he still carried a certain mature aura.
He was so steady and composed.
It was hard to imagine him actually falling in love.
"Oh right!"
"That lady even mentioned marriage when she came to Wangsheng Funeral Parlor yesterday."
"Qiu Nian…"
"You're not planning to marry her soon, are you?"
Hu Tao suddenly widened her eyes in disbelief.
Wasn't this development way too fast?
Did this mean Qiu Nian was becoming a live-in son-in-law?
If they really got married—
would he still work at the funeral parlor?
And how much wedding money would she have to give?
Besides—
as the director of Wangsheng Funeral Parlor, attending someone's wedding celebration…
felt strangely inappropriate.
Seeing Hu Tao like this, Qiu Nian wanted to explain.
But for a moment—
he didn't even know where to start.
"Haha…"
"My friend."
"When will the banquet be held?"
Zhongli chuckled and teased him calmly.
Of course—
he knew perfectly well that the rumor couldn't possibly be true.
Qiu Nian's lips twitched slightly.
"Exactly!"
"Mr. Qiu Nian, when are you getting married?"
"We'll all come help!"
The young attendant girl asked excitedly.
Soon, the other young female attendants joined in enthusiastically.
"Yeah, yeah!"
"I want to be a bridesmaid!"
"Mr. Qiu Nian, what will your bride price be?"
"Right! Once we know your bride price, we'll help Miss Qinglan prepare an equally valuable dowry!"
"Where will the wedding be held? At Xinyue Pavilion?"
"I've never attended a banquet there!"
"Of course it will be there!"
"It can't be at Wangsheng Funeral Parlor!"
"What about wedding clothes? I know a great tailor in the east district!"
Listening to the endless chatter—
Qiu Nian felt a headache coming on.
He had assumed Yueshu wouldn't be able to spread the rumor very far overnight.
Yet somehow—
everyone already knew.
"Alright, alright."
"Let me explain the situation properly."
Qiu Nian sighed.
He then explained the story to everyone.
Of course—
he concealed most of the truth.
He only said that Miss Qinglan had been haunted by a ghost.
That ghost insisted on marrying her.
So he had agreed to pretend to be her lover in order to help.
He even mentioned the ten million Mora reward.
After hearing this—
everyone gradually calmed down.
Even the young man who had been crying earlier suddenly smiled.
"So that's what happened…"
"But when it comes to ghosts, shouldn't the professional handle it?"
Hu Tao looked confused.
"Shouldn't I be the one solving this?"
"If even a Vision holder can be haunted by a ghost, this matter must be serious."
"And you don't even have a Vision."
"How are you planning to deal with it?"
"Don't risk your life just for ten million Mora."
Hu Tao began to grow slightly angry.
Clearly—
she felt Qiu Nian wasn't taking his own life seriously.
"You didn't actually fall for her, did you?"
Hu Tao suddenly asked with wide eyes.
"Director, please don't be angry."
"That's not the case."
Qiu Nian smiled and shook his head gently.
"You all know that I came from Jueyun Karst, correct?"
"Perhaps one of my ancestors once encountered an adeptus."
"In our old family house there were many ancient books passed down through generations."
"Among them were some adeptus techniques for dealing with spirits."
"I am not particularly talented, but after more than ten years of studying them, I have learned a little."
"So I should still be able to handle this matter."
"However, three years ago, an adeptus resembling a deer warned me that adeptal arts cannot be passed on to others."
"Not everyone can learn them without suffering negative consequences."
Qiu Nian explained calmly.
Then he raised his hand.
A teacup nearby suddenly trembled—
and slowly floated through the air.
Before long—
it hovered steadily above his palm.
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