"Did you bring any Mora?"
As the three gods looked at each other, Raiden Makoto, Raiden Ei, and Zhongli were left speechless.
"Zhongli... didn't we agree it was your treat?" Raiden Ei remembered that Zhongli had promised to treat them to a cup of tea.
Crucially, as the creator of Mora, he actually couldn't produce a single coin; Raiden Ei found it somewhat hard to believe.
"In terms of general rationality, it is indeed my treat, but generally speaking, I never bring Mora with me."
"..."
"Mr. Zhong certainly has quite the interest, sipping tea and chatting with two girls. My, how rare, how rare." As a familiar voice came from nearby, Tartaglia could be seen standing there with a teasing look on his face.
"Oh? Childe..." Zhongli and Childe were old acquaintances, but in his memory, hadn't Childe disappeared? One must know that in Liyue, Tartaglia was considered a wanted criminal.
Tartaglia glanced at Raiden Makoto and Raiden Ei sitting opposite Zhongli. These two girls were strangers to him, but based on their clothing, they appeared to be from Inazuma.
He knew that Zhongli was Rex Lapis; Liyue's Rex Lapis was actually chatting and drinking tea with two Inazuman girls.
He was somewhat surprised.
Tartaglia's face was a bit pale; his injuries had not yet fully healed, and he had suffered the torture of lightning in Inazuma City to cooperate with Raiden Makoto's acting. Now, he was weak once more.
He needed to hurry back to Snezhnaya to deliver the Gnosis to Her Majesty the Tsaritsa. Who would have thought that when he returned to Liyue to pack up, he would run into Zhongli with two Inazuman girls?
So, he simply came over to take a look.
"I heard from Lumine and Paimon that you are Rex Lapis's personal wallet?" Raiden Makoto, having already punished Tartaglia, no longer cared about his previous actions and looked at him with a smile.
As he looked at the gentle smile of the unfamiliar Inazuman girl before him, her image began to slowly overlap with that of the Raiden Shogun of Inazuma.
"You... you're the Raiden Shogun?!" Tartaglia finally realized that the twin sisters drinking tea with Zhongli were the Raiden Shogun sisters of Inazuma.
"Yes."
"Regarding everything that happened before Tenshukaku, I hope you can keep it a secret," Raiden Makoto nodded. "Some things..."
"Understood, understood!" Tartaglia wasn't stupid; if he were, how could he have become a Fatui Harbinger? If he leaked what happened at Tenshukaku, wouldn't the Raiden Shogun kill him outright?
He knew the Tsaritsa would absolutely not move against the Raiden Shogun for the sake of a mere Harbinger; he had that much self-awareness.
Zhongli watched the conversation between Raiden Makoto and Tartaglia with interest. From their words, he managed to glean quite a bit of information.
Raiden had also chosen to give her Gnosis to the Cryo Archon? But that was normal; the Seven almost all belonged to the same front.
How they chose to express it was their own business.
"My whole body still hurts right now, I'll definitely keep my mouth shut!" Tartaglia said with a serious face; he didn't want to die.
"Good."
"I hope so."
"Speaking of which, did you bring any Mora?" Raiden Makoto then asked with a bit of embarrassment. As the Raiden Shogun and ruler of Inazuma, to be penniless—she and her sister were currently broke as can be. Who would believe it if it were told?
Three gods unable to pull a single Mora from their pockets—who would believe it?
"..."
Tartaglia finally understood; he had become someone's wallet again. He knew why the three gods had been staring at him.
"My treat, my treat."
"Consider it an apology to the Grand Narukami and Mr. Zhong, alright?" Tartaglia said somewhat helplessly.
Did those two Travelers actually give him such a nickname? Rex Lapis's personal wallet? He was the famous Fatui Harbinger, Childe!
He had been a bit foolish then, but who would believe that Rex Lapis would hold his own funeral? If it hadn't been for the very end, he would never have believed that the Wang Sheng Funeral Parlor consultant, Mr. Zhong, was Rex Lapis Morax.
"How is the Oolong Tea?" Raiden Makoto looked at Raiden Ei, but Raiden Ei showed a somewhat unbearable expression. "It's not good, it's too bitter..."
"It's not even as good as Dango Milk." Raiden Ei really disliked the taste of tea; she still preferred to drink something sweeter.
She didn't know why her sister and Morax could drink tea with such relish. Such bitter tea... she really didn't like it at all.
"Tea is meant to be savored properly."
"Tea is like life: sweetness comes after the bitterness. It must be savored slowly. If you take large gulps like that, you can only taste the bitterness." Raiden Makoto's words caused Raiden Ei to fall into deep thought; she felt as if her sister was talking about her stubborn understanding of eternity, how she had drastically cut off Inazuma's development.
But at this moment, she could only sit there quietly, not daring to say anything.
In Inazuma, there was only Green Tea, and only a few tea-making processes existed, most of which were Matcha.
A Blue Tea like Oolong Tea simply did not exist there. She hadn't had a pot of good tea in a long time.
Zhongli watched Raiden Makoto quietly. He found that Raiden Makoto seemed to have changed, becoming somewhat different from before.
She had become a bit like 'her.'
"Makoto, I remember that during the previous meetings of the Seven, you didn't use to savor tea, nor did you drink wine. Why now..."
"People change, let alone gods," Raiden Makoto smiled. "Everything in the mortal world is constantly undergoing change."
"Indeed."
"Haven't you changed as well, Mr. Zhong?"
The current Zhongli, compared to the time of the Seven's banquets, had become much more steady. At that time, Morax still felt a bit like a 'human,' but now he seemed more like a 'god' instead.
"Yes, we have all changed."
He originally thought that among the Seven who had once shared a pot at the wine table, only he and that Anemo Archon from Mondstadt remained, but now he found there was one more. He was very pleased.
The seats of the Seven had changed again and again; five of the seven people at that banquet had passed away. The ancient duty of 'guiding humanity' held by the original Seven had finally begun to be treated as nothing by some of the new gods.
His old friends were also passing away one after another.
Moreover, as he chatted with Raiden Makoto, he found that he and Raiden Makoto got along even better; on many matters, their views were identical.
"I heard that Liyue has Folk Tunes to listen to. Will Mr. Zhong take us to hear some?" Raiden Makoto had a gentle smile. She found that whether in terms of culinary arts or tea, Liyue was very similar to Huaxia.
She was now a bit curious about what the opera she was most skilled at in her past life looked like in Liyue.
"Alright."
...The Theater.
"Honored guests, please take your seats."
Zhongli was a regular at the Theater. As a Waiter there, he recognized Zhongli.
Whenever Zhongli came, he would order the Theater's most Famous Performer, and usually, someone would later pay the bill for him. He was the Theater's most distinguished guest.
Raiden Makoto was extremely familiar with Theaters, but it was Raiden Ei's first time. As for Tartaglia, he had disappeared on his own as soon as they left the tea stall.
Raiden Ei looked over everything in the Theater. she just didn't quite understand how her sister could be interested in listening to tunes and drinking tea with Morax.
Those things were entirely not to her liking, but since her sister wanted to come, she had no choice. After all, her sister was the eldest; she had to follow her sister obediently.
When the Theater's Famous Performer went on stage to sing, Raiden Makoto couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. She really shouldn't have had too many expectations.
Setting aside the skill, Raiden Makoto simply didn't like the repertoire. But Liyue was Liyue, and Huaxia was Huaxia; how could they be overlapped?
She remembered that in her past life, her master would often sing Folk Tunes alone on stage, and she was her master's only audience.
"What is it? Makoto, you seem a bit disappointed." Zhongli noticed the disappointed expression on Raiden Makoto's face. He thought Raiden Makoto didn't quite like Liyue's opera, but he liked it quite a bit.
"I also don't think it sounds very good... I can't understand it at all." Raiden Ei thought her sister didn't like listening to the opera, so she added her agreement.
"How about I perform a song for you? Consider it a return gift."
Zhongli intended to help them, but Raiden Makoto was currently unable to repay him and didn't know how to give a return gift.
But seeing how seriously Zhongli had just listened to the performer on stage, she knew that what Zhongli liked was Liyue's ancient arts.
Moreover, she had been transmigrated for so long and hadn't sung in a long time; her heart was itching for it.
This was a very appropriate time, so why not?
"???"
Raiden Ei's eyes widened. She looked at Raiden Makoto in a daze and said in disbelief, "Sister... you even know how to sing Liyue opera?"
"No way, how come I didn't know?"
After Raiden Makoto went on stage, the performer was slightly stunned. When Raiden Makoto explained her intention to the performer, the performer also slowly stepped aside.
The performer was a bit curious about how an Inazuman like Raiden Makoto knew Liyue's opera; she began to look forward to Raiden Makoto's performance.
She naturally didn't mind Raiden Makoto interrupting her.
The others who were originally sitting below the stage were also stunned. After a while, they began to heckle.
"An Inazuman?"
"What are you doing? As if an Inazuman understands how to sing opera!"
"Get down quickly!"
"Get down here right now, stop causing trouble! Inazuma really should have kept the Sakoku Decree; now there are so many Inazumans, it's really annoying."
"An Inazuman knows how to sing opera? What a joke!"
The people below the stage began to shout and curse at Raiden Makoto wildly; after all, Raiden Makoto had interrupted the Famous Performer's singing.
Zhongli, on the other hand, watched Raiden Makoto with interest. He himself was somewhat surprised; Raiden Makoto was the god of Inazuma, yet she actually knew the arts of Liyue.
However, after Raiden Makoto opened her mouth, the originally noisy audience below the stage fell completely silent.
"???"
Raiden Ei's eyes widened as she watched Raiden Makoto performing passionately on stage; she was staring blankly now.
Was that still the sister she knew?
Had she never truly known her sister? Her sister actually possessed so many skills.
"It's not traditional Liyue opera..."
"Interesting." Zhongli watched Raiden Makoto's performance with great interest. He became increasingly curious about what kind of transformation had occurred in Raiden Makoto.
From the meeting of the Seven until now, such a huge change had actually occurred, and she even knew how to sing tunes.
And understood tea arts.
When Raiden Makoto finished her song, after a moment, the originally quiet Theater erupted in intense applause.
That song was the Monodrama her master had liked to sing most on stage in her past life. She wanted the people of this other world to also hear her master's opera.
"Sister? How could you..." Raiden Ei couldn't quite believe it, but she was even more excited because her sister's appearance just now was truly too beautiful.
"I know many things," Raiden Makoto smiled. "In the future, you will discover even more."
"How was it?" Raiden Makoto looked at Zhongli. Morax, as the Geo Archon, should have the highest taste in Liyue. To be able to receive Morax's affirmation, her master would also be happy.
"Good."
Zhongli roughly understood. All he could give was a single 'Good.' He couldn't give a higher evaluation; Raiden Makoto's operatic attainment was likely the best he had seen in all these years.
He had the same doubt as Raiden Ei: was Raiden Makoto... truly Inazuma's Raiden Shogun, the once gentle and steady Raiden?
Raiden Makoto now actually seemed more like a deity of Liyue; in some ways, she was more like a Liyue existence than even those Adepti.
"land reclamation... I can try to help you with that..." Zhongli said thoughtfully. "But it may not necessarily succeed. Your suggestion is truly incredible."
"With my power alone, it might not succeed... If she were here, it would likely be easier to complete."
"She?" Raiden Makoto gave Zhongli a puzzled look. When Zhongli spoke, he was almost entirely emotionless, but Raiden Makoto could hear the importance of 'her' in Zhongli's heart.
Zhongli only returned a smile to Raiden Makoto and said no more.
"I shall return to work first. As a mortal, I also have work to do now." Zhongli stood up, bid farewell to Raiden Makoto and Raiden Ei, and then disappeared from their sight.
"Morax's erosion... is quite severe," Raiden Makoto sighed slightly. "But that is also normal, as he is the oldest existence among the Seven..."
"Sister, just when did you learn those things? How could I not know at all?" Raiden Ei looked at Raiden Makoto curiously, but her gaze was now filled even more with admiration.
Her elder sister was truly amazing.
She used the opera that Liyue people were so proud of to completely shut the mouths of those people who had originally made her a bit angry.
"In the past, you only knew how to fight... what could you possibly know?" Raiden Makoto rolled her eyes. However, that was only because her past life memories only awakened after her resurrection. Actually, she had transmigrated from her past life long ago; from the moment she and her sister were born, she had already transmigrated.
But at that time, her past life memories had not awakened.
She even had some suspicions: was her resurrection related to her past life? Did it have something to do with that so-called system?
But the national style master system could truly be said to be optional; besides giving her profound attainment in various national style inheritances, it had no other use.
"Alright." Raiden Ei could only agree with Raiden Makoto's statement. In the past, she did indeed spend most of her time fighting; if she wasn't currently fighting, she was on the way to a fight.
Even when she wasn't fighting, she was eating, eating, and eating.
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