Genshin Impact: I, the Winter Prince, reign supreme.

“Your Highness, I saw you chatting happily with Miss Amber and Miss Barbara, so I waited outside the church. You won’t blame us, will you? According to our intelligence analysis, Amber and Barbara do not pose a direct threat to you.”

As soon as I stepped down the steps of the West Wind Church, Lady Zangjing respectfully came forward to greet me.

The moment Su Yu returned to Mondstadt, she received a message from her scouts, so she led her men to the Church of Favonius in time.

In particular, the scouts reported that His Highness the Prince was suspected of being injured, which made her even more anxious.

However, she breathed a sigh of relief when she heard that it was Barbara, the priestess of the Knights of Favonius, who personally treated His Highness's wounds.

This priestess Barbara is an idol of the new generation in Mondstadt. Her medical skills are in no way inferior to those of the Fatui physicians, and she is the perfect person to heal His Highness.

The few Fools who were stationed in Mondstadt behind her immediately knelt and kowtowed to Su Yu upon seeing him.

"Your Highness!"

Their voices were generous, unable to conceal their excitement and joy.

They were merely the lowest-ranking members of the Fatui, and if Su Yu hadn't visited Mondstadt this time, he would never have seen His Highness the Prince's true face in his lifetime.

Su Yu's status in the hearts of the people during the winter is self-evident.

He is a household hero, the primary contributor to the success of the Winter Reforms, Her Majesty the Queen's most trusted advisor, and the spiritual leader of the rebellion against the laws of nature.

"Get up. It's not the end of winter here. There's no need for such formality."

Many people think that His Highness the Prince doesn't like to put on airs and is very kind to others. That's only because Su Yu was once an ordinary person and can empathize with people at the bottom of society.

"Your Highness, Constable Anastasia is on your orders to receive that batch of supplies and is expected to return to Mondstadt tomorrow afternoon."

The lady with the hidden mirror reported.

Are there any other situations?

"This morning, when our delegation entered the city, Grand Master Jean of the Knights of Favonius presented us with an exorbitant compensation agreement. Your Highness, most of the contents of this agreement are nonsense and unreasonable demands. She is extorting us until winter. Mondstadt's 'freedom' truly impresses me."

The female breathing passage of the Hidden Mirror Lady.

Su Yu casually flipped through a few pages and suddenly asked, "Did you bring a pen?"

"Your Highness... what's wrong?"

The lady with the mirror in her eyes handed over the feather pen with a look of surprise and uncertainty.

Then, Su Yu quickly signed the compensation agreement.

"These self-proclaimed 'civilized' people are making unreasonable demands; they just want to bargain with me."

“Ignoring them will inevitably put us at a moral disadvantage; but if we take the initiative to negotiate with them, we will fall into their carefully laid trap. Because no matter how the negotiations end or how much the compensation is reduced, they will always profit.”

"Qin thinks she's invincible, but let me see if her ambition is big enough to support her challenge to the limits of winter."

"Some people will never understand until they suffer a major setback that unreasonable demands are a privilege reserved for ambitious people like us."

……

In the summer evenings of Mondstadt, the warm sunlight always feels incredibly comforting.

The evening breeze blowing from Guojiu Lake was slightly intoxicating.

The Deer Hunter Restaurant was packed with customers.

The cheerful laughter of Margaret, the proprietress, as she mixed drinks could be heard coming from the Cat's Tail Tavern.

The waters of Xingluo Lake reflect the starlight.

Groups of lovers whispered secrets on the Star-Picking Cliff.

Jean stood with her arms crossed in front of the window of the Knights of Favonius headquarters building, gazing at the peaceful and serene atmosphere of Mondstadt. At that moment, her heart was filled with immense contentment.

This sense of fulfillment was enough to take away the fatigue of her busy day and gave her the confidence to overcome all difficulties.

She gazed at the portrait of Vanessa, known as the "Lion of the South Wind," on the wall, a faint smile playing on her lips.

"Jin, if Lady Vanessa were still here, she would surely praise you for your handling of the Winter Solstice Mission today. I'd like to see how the Prince of Winter Solstice will respond to the compensation agreement you drafted."

Lisa Mintz, dressed in a long purple dress, adjusted her magic hat and spoke.

“Lisa, since Zhi Dong refuses to pay compensation, we have the moral high ground. If Zhi Dong agrees to negotiate, we can take the opportunity to fleece them. Even if we can’t achieve these two goals, Prince Zhi Dong has taken the initiative to come to my office, so we can at least overpower him in terms of momentum.”

Qin laid out her considerations to Lisa.

As the two were talking, there was a knock on the office door.

Then, Kaiya walked in.

"What's wrong, Kaya? You don't look well."

"The Fools just delivered something; it's that compensation agreement."

Jean and Lisa exchanged a glance and said, "It seems they've refused to pay compensation. Good. Kaeya, go and issue a public announcement immediately, making this known to the world. I will utterly disgrace the Fools and ensure that Prince Winter will never be able to hold his head high in Mondstadt."

Kaiya gave a wry smile: "Prince Zhidong...he signed it."

"What did you say?"

Qin snatched the compensation agreement from Kaiya's hand, staring at the words "Su Yu" at the end, unsure of what to say.

Why did Prince Zhidong dare to sign the document? Why did he dare to be such a sucker?

Are you betting I won't dare accept this huge sum of money?

Or is this a scheme they've devised to turn the tables on?

Various concerns lingered in my mind.

"Lisa, what do you think?"

This librarian of the Knights of Favonius was hailed as a genius who appeared only once every 200 years in the Order of the Sacred Heart.

When faced with complex situations, Qin needs her wisdom to help her make the right decision.

Chapter 29 All Things Have Spirits

In fact, Lisa was no less confused than her. She lowered her head and pondered for a long time before saying, "Although Prince Zhidong has signed, we may not be able to get this compensation. The whole thing has gone too smoothly. Be careful, there might be a trap."

Kaeya said decisively, "Tomorrow I'll take the compensation agreement directly to the Mondstadt branch of the Northern Bank to withdraw the money. It has Prince Winter's signature on it; they won't renege on their debt, will they?"

Lisa said, “You and I both know the nature of the Fools very well. They never suffer losses. Even if they do, they will find other ways to get their revenge. To this end, the Fools have set up an elite combat force called the ‘Debt Settlers.’ Their motto is ‘An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.’ Whoever harms the interests of the Fools will be retaliated tenfold.”

"Oh, right. This Prince of Winter is also a member of this organization. He is known as the 'Fire Debt Settler' and is also the organization's nominal leader."

Lisa added.

"What should we do? This compensation agreement signed by Prince Winter has become a hot potato! But if we don't go after them for the money, what will become of Mondstadt's prestige and reputation? We'll probably be laughed at as cowards by the Fools when we walk down the street."

"Kaya said indignantly."

“You two both make sense. It seems I have no choice but to go see him in person. Kaya, come with me to find him now,” Jean said thoughtfully.

Lisa said, "Qin, no need. The envoy sent by the Fools to deliver the compensation agreement specifically instructed us before leaving that if we want to see Prince Winter, we must wait until tomorrow afternoon."

“We’ve been completely seen through, Lisa. This Prince of Winter is a tough nut to crack…”

Qin sighed softly, feeling a little disappointed.

They thought they had the upper hand in the first round, but ended up losing instead.

She suddenly recalled that trip two years ago, which lasted until winter.

She first met Prince Zhidong at a banquet held at the embassy.

Not only did he have striking eyebrows and bright eyes, but he was also knowledgeable and eloquent, truly an outstanding man. Apart from that, I didn't feel any danger from Su Yu.

After today's exchange, she realized that she had underestimated Su Yu's abilities since two years ago.

This man's methods and level of threat far surpass those of the eleven executive officers of the Fools.

"The first mission Prince Zhidong made was to Inazuma. Have our spies there sent back any news?" Qin asked, rubbing her forehead as she looked at Kaiya.

She entrusted matters such as intelligence gathering to Kaya, the cavalry captain of the Knights of Favonius.

"According to intelligence, the Shifu delegation stayed in Inazuma for less than a week, and the two sides signed cooperation agreements in the fields of culture and trade. Prince Shifu himself attended a banquet hosted by the Kamisato family, the magistrate of the shrine, and humiliated Kujo Takayuki, the head of the Tenryo magistrate's family."

“Generally speaking, among the three commissioners, the one you can’t afford to offend the one in charge of the Heavenly Territory is the one in charge of the Heavenly Territory. It’s really strange that Prince Zhidong doesn’t play by the rules. Anything else?” Qin continued to ask.

"He seemed to have a particular fondness for Yoomiya, the owner of the Naganohara fireworks shop, and granted her the exclusive agency rights for black powder from the Shifu Kingdom. But strangely, after our repeated investigations, Yoomiya had no prior contact or interaction with Prince Shifu."

"Exclusive distribution rights for black powder?" Lisa looked surprised. "Shōmiya is his concubine, isn't she? That's a huge fortune. Not to mention Inazuma, even the major conglomerates and families in Mondstadt fought tooth and nail for a single distribution right. They even brought the matter to our Knights of Favonius to reason with us multiple times. This stuff is incredibly profitable."

At this point, Lisa teased, "Jin, if you had agreed to marry her two years ago, you might be the richest woman in Mondstadt by now. That powerful gunpowder is the patent of Prince Winter."

Qin rolled her eyes at her and said, "From now on, keep an eye on Xiaogong's communication with Zhidong, and be sure to find out her secret relationship with Prince Zhidong. Once we have something on him, it will be easier to deal with him."

"Oh, right, there's one more piece of information. Actually, it can't really be called information, but rather news from Inazuma, about General Raiden. Half a day after the winter mission left, General Raiden ordered the relaxation of the 'Eye Hunting Order' and the 'Isolation Order.' Although they haven't been completely suspended or abolished, the people of Inazuma have already begun to celebrate with gongs and drums."

Qin analyzed meticulously: "Inazuma's determination and will to pursue eternity is almost obsessive, and now that these two laws have been suddenly loosened, it must be that General Raiden's stance has wavered. Furthermore, considering the timing, it is during the Winter Mission's visit. Lisa, do you think it was Prince Winter who changed General Raiden's mind?"

"Don't you already have the answer in your heart?"

Lisa smiled and asked in return, while walking to the window in her high heels.

"It's getting windy outside, Qin. Look at those thick dark clouds over there, it's going to rain heavily soon."

Qin turned and gazed at the deep night outside the window.

"Yes, a storm is coming."

……

A torrential rainstorm struck.

The pedestrians and tourists on the streets of Mondstadt quickly dispersed.

Even the stray cats hurried back to their dens to avoid the wind and rain.

However, there was a group of people on the street, holding dark umbrellas, walking slowly and unhurriedly.

The person in the lead was none other than Su Yu.

The woman holding the umbrella for her was Zang Jing.

Suddenly, Su Yu stopped and stretched out his palm in front of him.

The members of the Winter Mission responsible for security behind them thought they had encountered some kind of emergency, so they quickly drew their longswords and swords and formed a defensive formation.

"Your Highness, what is this...?"