Genshin Impact: This light novel author doesn't cross the line.

Upon hearing this, Yingmei's previously low spirits vanished instantly. Her face lit up, her eyes sparkled, she straightened her back, put her hands on her hips, and a confident and proud smile appeared on her lips.

"Hehe." She chuckled softly, her laughter clear and cheerful.

Seeing Yingmei's expression, Columbia thought to herself, "Code name: Ueno Chiki, this is all I can do for you."

But for some reason, she began to envy Yingmei.

Chapter 100 New Year's Festival Part 2

Ayaka Kamisato's appearance at the festival venue attracted widespread attention.

As a noble egret princess, her elegance and poise have always been a model in people's hearts.

However, at this moment, she was walking intimately with a seemingly ordinary man, which shocked many people.

Although this man was quite handsome, he was clearly inferior to Ayaka Kamisato in terms of elegance and nobility.

Although the public was shocked, they did not disturb them.

"Big Brother Qian Shu!"

At a stall selling fox masks, a cute little girl called out to Ueno Chiki. Her voice was sweet and clear, like a little silver bell.

Chiki Ueno was stunned. He looked at the little girl with some confusion, quickly recalling whether he had seen her before.

The little girl seemed to sense his confusion and smiled as she said, "Brother Qianshu, you may not remember me. Half a year ago, during the famine, you saved me by giving me porridge. Without your help, I probably wouldn't have survived."

Upon hearing the little girl's words, Ueno Chiki gradually recalled the scene from that time.

At that time, the officials in charge of the Heavenly Order and the Imperial Order levied exorbitant taxes, causing grain prices to skyrocket. Unable to bear seeing those poor people starve to death, he did his best to help those who were in distress because of the famine.

He looked at the little girl, a hint of tenderness and emotion in his eyes.

The little girl continued, "I will always remember your kindness, and seeing you here today, I want to express my gratitude to you."

After saying this, she bowed to Chiki Ueno to express her gratitude.

She turned back to the stall selling fox masks, said a few words to the middle-aged owner, and under his kind gaze, picked up two exquisite fox masks and walked back.

"Big Brother Chishu, Sister Ayaka, if you don't mind, please accept these two fox masks," the little girl said sweetly to the two of them.

Chiki Ueno and Ayaka Kamisato looked at the fox mask in the little girl's hand and were deeply moved. They knew it was a token of the little girl's affection.

Chiki Ueno accepted the fox mask and said with a smile, "Thank you. We will cherish these two fox masks forever."

Seeing Ueno Chiki and Kamisato Ayaka's smiles, the little girl smiled happily too, "By the way, big brother Chiki, big sister Ayaka, are you two lovers now?"

When Ayaka Kamisato heard the little girl's question, she looked at Chiki Ueno with a mixture of nervousness and anticipation.

Chiki Ueno smiled and nodded. "Yes, we are lovers. But we need to get to know each other better."

Upon hearing Chiki Ueno's reply, Ayaka Kamisato's tension and doubts vanished instantly, replaced by a feeling of immense happiness and joy.

She felt as if she were in a beautiful dream, and her feelings had finally been reciprocated.

"Then I wish you happiness," the little girl said sincerely.

"Chiki, may I wear this fox mask?" Ayako Kamisato asked gently.

Ueno Chiki picked up the fox mask, brought it close to her face, and then gently placed it on her head at an angle. His movements were gentle and meticulous, and Ayaka Kamisato felt his fingers lightly touching her skin, sending a warm feeling through her.

Her face was slightly flushed, and under the lamplight, she resembled a peach blossom bud, delicate and beautiful.

The two of them stood under the light, gazing at each other, as if time had stood still.

The surrounding people and noise disappeared, leaving only their presence and the exchange of emotions.

A short while later, the two said goodbye to the little girl and walked on ahead.

“Ayaka, there’s something I need to tell you,” Ueno Chiki said, taking the initiative to speak.

After some time of reflection, he decided to stop running away from his feelings and express his true inner desires.

Some things must be made clear beforehand, otherwise it will bring unbearable pain to both of us.

Ayaka Kamisato had a bad feeling; the happiness and joy she had just felt slowly faded away. "I don't want to hear it."

She didn't want this beautiful dream to suddenly end.

"At least spend this New Year's festival with me." There was a hint of pleading in her voice.

These words sent a slight shiver down Ueno Chiki's spine.

He sighed softly, "Alright, Ayaka."

Behind a bottle and jar stall not far from them, three figures were lurking suspiciously.

"Why does Chiki seem a bit of a downer?" Yingmei muttered somewhat discontentedly, having observed Chiki's reaction.

Columbia didn't speak, but just stared blankly at the bottles and jars on the stall, as if pondering which bottle or jar would be best to hide.

"Travelers, isn't it a bit inappropriate for us to spy on them like this?"

Paimon felt a little embarrassed. Although she and the travelers had done a lot of petty thievery, spying on their relatives and friends like this felt immoral to her.

Yingmei wasn't embarrassed at all; instead, she said matter-of-factly, "Paimon, I'm just concerned about them. Look at Qianshu, he looks so dazed, he doesn't seem like someone who knows how to be in love at all. Maybe I should step in and help them out."

Just as she continued to spy on Ueno Chiki and Kamisato Ayaka, a languid yet alluring voice came from behind her.

"Traveler, who are you spying on? Let me see too."

Yingmei turned around and found Yae no Miko behind her, who looked like she wanted to watch a good show. Beside her was the indifferent Lei Yingdian. In order to avoid causing a commotion, the two of them were wearing ordinary people's yukatas and their faces were covered with a light veil.

"Of course it's that idiot who was spying on Chiki. He's on a date with Ayaka right now."

"Is that so? That's very interesting. I want to see it too." As she spoke, Yae nods slightly to the somewhat surprised Columbia.

“Shin-ko, this isn’t quite right. Ueno Chiki is our good friend,” Lei Yingdian said hesitantly.

“Ying, it’s precisely because he’s our good friend that we need to spy on him and care about him. If he has relationship problems, he might stop writing novels or cooking.”

Lei Yingdian thought for a moment, then said, "Okay."

Thus, the spy trio became a five-person group.

Chapter 101 New Year's Festival III

The New Year Festival venue was bustling with people, and all kinds of stalls were available, including goldfish scooping, water balloon scooping, ring toss, ball throwing, and various small commodities for sale.

"Chiki, this year's New Year's Festival is much more lively than ever before," Ayaka Kamisato remarked with some emotion.

After Inazuma implemented reforms, people's living standards improved significantly.

All of this is inextricably linked to Chiki Ueno.

Once upon a time, the nobles of Inazuma enjoyed various privileges, while the majority of the people lived in poverty. His policies successfully changed this situation, freeing the people from the oppression and injustice of the noble class, while also improving the efficiency of the shogunate.

Now, Inazuma has gradually broken free from the shackles of the old system and is regaining its vitality.

After his elder brother was elected as the first Prime Minister, he finally had the opportunity to display his talents and ambitions.

"Yes, everything is getting better." Ueno Chiki also felt the same way.

Neither of them were fond of crowds, so they didn't linger at any of the bustling stalls. Instead, they strolled slowly, quietly enjoying the happiness and warmth of the moment.

Yingmei, who was standing not far behind them, noticed that they weren't interacting much and was a little exasperated. "Qianshu, can't you be a little more proactive? This doesn't look like a date at all."

Yae no Miko also wholeheartedly agreed, "The little guy really isn't very good, what can we do? Perhaps, I can go and teach him." As she spoke, a sly smile appeared on her beautiful face.

Upon hearing this, Yingmei quickly waved her hand, "No, Master Bazhong, there's no need to trouble you. I'm a master when it comes to love. Teaching him is more than enough."

"Is that so? Then may I witness your level of romance?" Yae no Miko raised her eyebrows slightly, speaking with great interest.

"Of course." Yingmei looked at Yae no Miko's dignified yet alluring face and agreed without hesitation.

Just as the two were about to have a further conversation, they noticed that Ueno Chiki and Kamisato Ayaka were walking towards a deserted stall.

The stall owner was an old man with gray hair, sitting alone next to a wooden frame with small pentagonal wooden boards hanging on it.

"Miss Ayaka Kamisato, it really is you!" The old man stepped forward to greet her. "Is this your lover?"

Ayaka Kamisato nodded, her face slightly flushed.

Seeing her like this, the old man's face showed a look of reminiscence. "I still remember the scene of your parents visiting the New Year festival back then. So many years have passed in the blink of an eye."

He picked up two ema (votive plaques) and said, "If you two don't mind, draw your wishes on these. The gods will see them and grant them."

Ueno Chiki finally understood why the stall was so deserted. Although the Inatsume people believed in gods, they rarely believed that gods would grant their wishes. Most commoners were terrified when they saw the Thunder General, fearing they might have done something wrong and violated her eternal principles.

Ayaka Kamisato took the two ema (votive plaques) and handed one to Chiki Ueno. "Chiki, write down your wish. If the gods see it, they will understand our beautiful hopes."

“Okay, but I can’t draw, so I can only write some sentences,” Ueno Chiki said somewhat embarrassedly.

"Chiki, it's alright. You just need to express your wish."

Next, Ayaka Kamisato and Chiki Ueno wrote their wishes on their respective ema (votive plaques).

A moment later, Ueno Chiki finished writing her ema (votive plaque), hung it on the ema rack, and then looked back at Kamisato Ayaka.

She was focused on drawing with her pen.

The soft light shone on her face, making her icy blue eyes sparkle with a captivating light. Her slender hands danced nimbly on the drawing board, revealing her intelligence and elegance.

Ueno Chiki sighed repeatedly in her heart, wondering what she had done to deserve the favor of such a celestial being. This was something she had never dared to dream of in her previous life, yet she was still not satisfied.

Soon after, Ayaka Kamisato finished drawing her own ema (votive plaque) and carefully hung it on the ema stand.

As Ueno Chiki approached, she saw two adults and two children happily holding hands under the castle tower.

Her wish was self-evident.

"Chiki, is this your ema?" she asked shyly, her face slightly flushed.

Ueno Chiki pointed to one of the ema (votive plaques) with writing on it.

Following his direction, Ayaka Kamisato saw an exquisite ema (votive plaque) with eight characters written on it: "May we win your heart and stay together until our hair turns white."

These eight words were like a beautiful incantation, and in an instant, an indescribable happiness and joy surged in her heart.

It is the warmth of being deeply loved, the romance of holding hands and growing old together.

She seemed to see herself and Chiki Ueno going through thick and thin together, growing old together, just like her parents, deeply loving each other.

At that moment, she believed she had found the most important person in her life.