Didn't you go to Teyvat to earn money to support me?

Ye Lan felt a faint pressure, and she was somewhat alarmed.

Gan Yu, the secretary of Yuehai Pavilion, has always presented herself as gentle. Although she is often aloof and eccentric, she is by no means arrogant. She is considered by everyone in the General Affairs Department to be the easiest boss to get along with, even though she seems to be a workaholic, which makes people not so willing to be assigned to work at Yuehai Pavilion.

That ever-present gentle aloofness is the true portrait of Gan Yu, but today Ye Lan sensed another side of this half-immortal beast.

Having held a high position for over two thousand years and cultivated for over three thousand years, Gan Yu's aura, once no longer suppressed, is like a cool breeze blowing in the face in winter. At first, it feels refreshing and enjoyable, but by the time you realize it, you're already frozen numb.

"I heard you work for Ningguang?" Gan Yu asked softly.

Ye Lan's heart sank.

Gan Yu usually addresses Qi Xing with great politeness, and calls Ning Guang "Miss Ning Guang," "Lord Ning Guang," or "Tianquan Star," because her status is strictly speaking below Qi Xing's. But this time, Gan Yu called her "Ning Guang."

"Not really. I'm absent 70% of the time. I'm an employee of the General Affairs Department, not just Ningguang's." Yelan tried to change the subject.

"So you were instructed by Ningguang to steal Liangjun's secret?"

“Miss Gan Yu, this is no longer within Yue Haiting’s scope of work.”

"Answer me," Gan Yu said softly.

But the undeniable authority behind that gentle tone even stirred a desire in Ye Lan to escape… but she knew she couldn't escape. To flee in front of an immortal like Gan Yu, who had cultivated for over three thousand years, was utterly delusional. If Shen Liang sensed it, she would be alright, but the relationship between Shen Liang and Ning Guang would be much more complicated.

The spy cannot be caught, otherwise Ningguang's side will be in a very passive position. Gathering intelligence is something that almost every country's leader has to do, but it is ultimately not something that can be done openly. However, Gan Yu should also know this, and won't make things too difficult for her... right?

“...Yes.” Ye Lan was finally forced to admit it.

It wasn't that she was forced to confess; essentially, she was still an employee of the General Affairs Department. And Yue Haiting, who worked under Gan Yu, was Gan Yu's superior in the General Affairs Department, so she was, to some extent, Gan Yu's subordinate.

This is a matter concerning the Seven Stars of Liyue and the secretary of Yuehaiting. What can a mere agent like her do?

"Is Ryo-kun leaving Teyvat?"

Ye Lan was startled and suddenly looked up. "How did you know?"

"As expected." Gan Yu smiled gently at her expression. "As expected, it will only take a few days. Is there anything else?"

"He wants to build a new 'Qunyu Pavilion'."

This outrageous idea didn't surprise Gan Yu much. Ye Lan stared at her and noticed that she only frowned slightly, so she continued to ask, "His Jade Pavilion? Is it called... Hyperion?"

Ye Lan was somewhat puzzled and could only reply, "It hasn't been named yet."

"Oh...yes, it hasn't been named yet. I was too hasty," Gan Yu said, shaking her head, somewhat confused.

She then walked to Ye Lan's side, looked at the bustling dock outside, and felt the slight saltiness of the sea in the air. She whispered, "Miss Ye Lan, tell me, if a boy makes a vow to be with you day and night, but when you see him again, he has already forgotten you and is surrounded by other women, is such a boy a bad person?"

“He’s scum.” Ye Lan didn’t understand what she meant, but she felt uneasy, so she answered decisively.

"But for him, he has no idea that you exist in this world waiting for him, so does he still count as one?"

Ye Lan thought to herself, "Sister, are all your problems a bit serious? Did you read some romance novel? Why are you suddenly being so dramatic? But I don't understand your drama at all! Can you just tell me what happened? I really don't understand!"

"You can't understand?" Gan Yu laughed.

Ye Lan nodded.

“Five hundred years isn’t a long time for me, but for humanity, it’s enough to recall the unknown past for generations. I shouldn’t have asked for anything, but… I can’t help it,” Gan Yu said softly. “Even if the time isn’t right yet, I… I want to see him, I want to love him, I want to hold his hand, I want to touch his forehead, I want to hold him in my arms, I want… to be kissed by him. I’ve already lost so many years. I’m filled with envy when I see the girls around him. All I have is the past, but I want more than just the past. The past has no meaning; it doesn’t even leave any memories.”

Ye Lan vaguely realized who she was talking about, and her face immediately turned pale.

Damn it, how could you say something like that to me? You're not planning to kill me after you say it, are you?! Knowing the childhood secrets of one of Liyue Harbor's leaders, the Secretary-General of Moonsea Pavilion, is no fun, especially when he tells you it himself!

"He once told me that his impression of Liyue was the Lantern Festival. People wore thick coats and braved the cold wind to watch fireworks and lanterns, and children waved fireworks with their playmates. I didn't have many playmates growing up, so I couldn't understand the joy of the Lantern Festival, but I think he did. After dinner, we went to the street to play with fireworks together, the kind that sizzles and burns brightly when lit. We ran around in circles, and his coat and my stockings would get little holes burned in them. But it didn't hurt; we were both very skilled. I only remember him smiling and saying to me, 'See my lantern? The higher it is, the more I like you.'"

"Later he disappeared, he was gone. I knew he would disappear, and I would grow up. Until many years later, until now, I found him again in this noisy and chaotic Liyue Harbor, in a world full of people."

Gan Yu tilted her head and looked Ye Lan up and down.

Ye Lan saw a smile in her eyes.

"The crowds at the port are still as numerous as the sea-blue clouds, but they no longer release lanterns in the summer. I still don't have any friends, just like before, but he has so many girls like me with him, and he's still so popular."

"Your envy has turned into...jealousy?" Ye Lan whispered.

Gan Yu looked at her with a smile.

Ye Lan became even more certain of her guess. What was this...? Was she acting like a yandere? Had the secretary of Yue Haiting really gone mad from over five hundred years of unrequited love? And that Shen Liang, who had lived for over five hundred years, had still let her down?

This is huge news! I wonder if I'll even survive to report it to Ningguang...

"No," Gan Yu said gently, "I just thought that people don't change. The wishes that he and I hid in the lanterns on New Year's Day have all come true. It's just that if I say what I didn't say back then, I'd feel a little embarrassed now."

"What do you want to say?"

Gan Yu smiled slyly, "I think... well, I can't tell you."

Ye Lan was too exhausted to ask any more questions.

"So, you understand now, right?" Gan Yu stood beside her, chuckling meaningfully.

"I just can't say," Ye Lan sighed.

“Ningguang has more than one spy, but you are different. Your abilities are too outstanding, so we cannot let you reveal too much,” Gan Yu said. “Liang Jun’s matter is not only about the Seven Stars of Liyue. It involves more of the actions of the immortals. You can say what you should say, and please keep what you shouldn’t say a secret.”

How do I define what I should and shouldn't say?

"Miss Yelan is a smart person."

Ye Lan suddenly realized, but she still hesitated, "Then Miss Gan Yu, you revealed so much information about Mr. Shen Liang to me today...aren't you worried that I'd rather die than not report it?"

"Am I a dangerous person?" Gan Yu asked instead of answering.

"of course not."

"Where is Liang Jun?"

"The risk is high at the moment, but it is not dangerous for Liyue."

"Does Miss Yelan's heart ultimately serve Ningguang or Liyue?" Gan Yu asked one last question.

Ye Lan understood her meaning, gave a gesture of understanding, and then her figure disappeared into the water, quickly leaving.

Gan Yu gazed at her retreating figure, finally letting out a soft sigh. She looked down at the rooftop floor and said, "This is all I can do for you, Liang Jun. If you interfere any further, it might disrupt the course of time."

She suppressed the urge to tell everything, stood there for a long time, and then took out an old lantern from the eye of God, the red paper of which had faded to yellow.

Many years ago, when that boy with long black hair released the lanterns, she secretly transformed into a Qilin at midnight and ventured into the night, finding that one lantern among countless others.

She took out a note from the lantern. It was written in Chinese, crooked and illegible. No one in Teyvat could understand it. Shen Liang thought so too, but Gan Yu was an exception.

Over the past five hundred years, Gan Yu has already figured it out; she knows what is written on it.

"Sister Gan Yu is my wife!"

Gan Yu laughed silently.

She held the lantern to her chest, closed her eyes, and listened to the night breeze of Liyue Harbor, separated from Shen Liang by a thin floorboard.

"See? I like you just as much."

P.S.: Gan Yu! My forever wife! I used an entire chapter to smear you! Even the chapter title is about you!

Chapter Twenty-Two: Sister Xilin, you'll break sitting here!

"She's gone. She's a woman," Torachiyo whispered.

"How can you determine her gender? What if she's a man?" Shen Liang asked. "Didn't they say there was optical camouflage?"

[She was indeed very well hidden; she even used a potion to remove her natural scent, leaving no trace. But I am, after all, a demon. I can pinpoint her location by hearing her heartbeat, and once I know her location, things will be much easier.]

What should we do?

"I went straight for it, and how should I put it? It felt great." Torachiyo clicked her tongue, recalling the lurking agent. "Becoming a Heroic Spirit is so convenient. She couldn't even detect what I was doing, and even if it hurt, she just thought it was her own fault. Hmm, this is really interesting. I've thought of a lot of fun things."

Shen Liang hesitated for a second. He didn't want to continue thinking about what Hu Qiandai had done to the interloper outside the door, nor did he want to think about what kind of gameplay Hu Qiandai had suddenly mastered.

The previous infiltrators couldn't hide from him at all—or rather, they couldn't hide from Torachiyo's eyes. No matter how skilled Yelan was at concealment, she ultimately underestimated Shen Liang. When she thought no one was around, her concealment relaxed considerably, and she even made some relaxed movements behind the optical camouflage.

These actions were of course no problem for Shen Liang inside the house, but there was no one outside. Hu Qiandai didn't like the crowded house, so she stayed outside to enjoy the cool breeze. She easily spotted that "optical camouflage".

"We're going to build a new Qunyu Pavilion!" The first girl to cheer immediately ignited the emotions of the others, and then cheers erupted from all sides.

"A base floating in the sky? Then I want a separate bedroom! The kind with a bathroom!"

"Lady Ryoko, you're a genius!"

"Of course I would like to learn from Tianquan Star and cleverly build such a magnificent building," Shen Liang said with a smile. "But it won't be easy, everyone."

“It’s all of you sisters.” Someone immediately began to express their dissatisfaction.

Shen Liang took a breath, restraining his subordinates from their rambling, and then spoke eloquently: "Actually, if everyone thinks about it for a little while, they'll know that it's not that no one has thought of levitation stones, nor that no one has considered building floating structures. After all, land prices in Liyue Harbor are the highest among the Seven Kingdoms, and such a far-fetched plan should have been implemented long ago. But why is it that only Ningguang is doing it?"

Ayaka Kamisato remained silent for a long time. Among these young ladies, she had the most contact with family affairs and was also Shen Liang's girlfriend, whom he had personally taught. Therefore, she reacted the fastest: "It's power."

“Yes, it’s power. It’s not that she has the ingenuity to build the Jade Pavilion, but that she is a Tianquan Star and therefore can build the Jade Pavilion.” Shen Liang nodded. “In Liyue, making such a commotion would require countless approvals, and the official documents would even have to go directly to the Seven Stars. Not many people can handle such a thing. Even the Seven Stars themselves would find it difficult. Only those who have reached the Ningguang level can have such power and influence and act arbitrarily.”

"So does that mean we definitely can't approve this project?"

"As outsiders, building a second floating structure is, at best, extremely unconventional, and at worst, a challenge to the prestige of Tianquan Star and even the commercial order of Liyue Harbor. Without considering the means involved, this matter will never be approved. It won't even get through to the General Affairs Department, let alone the Seven Stars. They could easily reject it with any excuse like preventing objects from falling from a height."

"That's so unfair!"

"After all, every inch of land in Liyue Harbor belongs to the Liyue Seven Stars. Even if we wanted to build, we wouldn't have a base to build a floating city."

"Then how about we use some tricks?" Hiiragi Senri asked, unconvinced.