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

“I will make you willingly hand over the Heart of God, Morax.”

Su Yu stood up and left in a huff.

To deal with a tough nut like Zhongli, we need to use an even tougher approach.

……

Half a day had passed by the time Su Yu finished attending the auction.

Back at the mission's base, the core members of the Liyue Fatui were already waiting for them.

"Your Highness."

Everyone knelt down in worship.

Su Yu asked, "How's the investigation going?"

While negotiating in the tea room, he sent a telepathic message to investigate Wanwenji House.

"Your Highness, the major shareholder behind Wanwen Collection is Ningguang of Tianquan Star, and those Qianyan Army soldiers were sent by Ningguang," the lady of the Hidden Mirror reported.

"Your Highness."

At this moment, a person came out of the house and greeted Su Yu respectfully.

He had long hair, wore glasses, and had a soft, feminine voice.

"Pantalone, you've come."

The visitor was none other than Pantarone, the Fatui Enforcer, who rushed to Liyue immediately after receiving Su Yu's orders and arrived in Liyue yesterday afternoon.

Why are you all alone?

Su Yu's order was to bring [Rich Man] Pantarone and [Puppet] Sandone to Liyue.

“Sandonie said that Your Highness, the first thing you did upon arriving in Liyue was not to see us, but to take the beautiful Captain Beidou to the small fishing village, and then to attend the Wanwenjishe auction. So she’s been sulking. She’s probably off exploring some ancient ruins right now.”

Su Yu smiled and said, "I wonder when she'll be able to change her bad temper."

The wealthy Pantalone immediately said, "Your Highness, I will go and bring her back now."

"No need. You should prepare yourself and come with me to the banquet at Qunyu Pavilion tonight."

“I felt really guilty eating at the banquet hosted by the Star of Heavenly Power.” Pantalone frowned at first, then said, “Your Highness, please don’t mind. I’ve been tricked by that woman several times, and I have a psychological trauma from her.”

"Oh? Such a thing actually happened?"

It's quite interesting that someone as shrewd as Pantalone suffered a loss at Ningguang's hands.

"Your Highness, please return to your room first, and I will report to you in detail. Please—"

As he spoke, he bowed to Su Yu again.

Pantalone, the "rich man," held Prince Winter in the highest esteem. Like Her Majesty the Queen, they received daily intelligence about the Prince's missions during Winter Solstice.

In Inazuma, His Highness the Prince discussed the Dao with General Raiden, earning praise from millions of Inazuma citizens. He then persuaded the Great Priestess Yae no Miko to successfully obtain the Heart of the Thunder God.

Shortly after leaving, Inazuma relaxed the "Eye-hunting Edict" and the "National Isolation Edict".

In Mondstadt, His Highness the Prince, under the pretext of supporting the restoration of the Lawrence family, turned Mondstadt upside down. In the end, the Fatui defeated their old rivals, the Knights of Favonius, with little effort, and even forced Barbatos, the god of wind, to show himself and hand over the Heart of the Wind God.

With His Highness personally in charge, the hearts of the gods from both countries were obtained with effortless ease, bringing smiles to the Ice Queen's face multiple times at the Winter Palace.

Over the years, the civil and military officials of the Winter Kingdom, who had grown accustomed to the Ice Queen's coldness, had almost forgotten her smile.

That day, the courtiers were silent as if trembling with fear, but their hearts were filled with mixed emotions.

Throughout the entire nation, the only person who can bring a smile to Her Majesty the Empress's face is Prince Zhidong!

Upon entering the house, the wealthy Pantalone stood respectfully to the side and recounted in detail his several failed encounters with Ningguang.

One of them caught Su Yu's attention.

Pantarone once sent his trusted confidant, Zhiyi, to seize the position of Dublin, one of the "Liyue Seven Stars," thereby infiltrating the core of Liyue's power.

As a result, his trusted confidant was outmaneuvered by Zhiyi, leading to the complete annihilation of his subordinates by Yelan, and the Yuren Clan suffered heavy losses.

“Pantarone, your plan is brilliant, but you underestimated Zhiyi. While you were trying to use him, he was also using you.”

"Your Highness is right. But this time my plan is foolproof, and I'm sure we'll win!"

[The Rich] Pantalone expressed his attitude and determination to Su Yu.

……

As night falls and the city lights come on, the streets of Liyue are bustling with people.

Su Yu, carrying Pantalone, ascended to the heavens in one step, flying directly to the Jade Pavilion.

Almost all the key figures from the Seven Stars and Eight Gates were present.

Under the astonished gaze of the wealthy Pantarone, the people of Liyue saluted in unison: "Welcome, Regent!"

Pantalone was stunned.

How did his own prince become the regent of Liyue?

Tianquan Star Ningguang smiled broadly and said, "The Emperor sent us a message this afternoon, appointing Prince Zhidong as Regent, whose power and status are equal to the Emperor's, and who will lead the Seven Stars and Eight Gates of Liyue."

Su Yu stood by the railing of Qunyu Pavilion, gazing at the teahouse of Wanwenji in the distance. The figure in the window was vaguely recognizable as Zhong Li.

Morax, do you think you can appease me by doing this?

Chapter 69 Seven Stars and Eight Gates

[Rich Man] Pantarone took off his glasses and looked at the Seven Stars and Eight Gates of Liyue bowing to His Highness the Prince. For a moment, his brain seemed to short-circuit.

If His Highness the Prince is on equal footing with the Rock King Emperor and also commands the Seven Stars and Eight Gates, then wouldn't his mortal enemies Ningguang and Yelan become his colleagues?

To think even more boldly, wouldn't the entire Liyue become Winter's backyard? All resources and wealth would flow to Winter!

However, what followed was a cold reply from His Highness the Prince.

"Compared to the uninteresting position of regent, I would much rather savor the fine wine that Miss Ningguang has prepared tonight."

Ningguang and Keqing exchanged a glance, both seeing a hint of surprise in each other's eyes.

This Prince Zhidong clearly had no interest in the position of regent and cared nothing for it.

It's important to know that the position of Regent of Liyue is no less prestigious than the title of Prince of Winter!

Ningguang's mind raced, and she quickly realized a possibility: the Emperor and the Prince of Winter had not reached an agreement, and the title of Regent might just be wishful thinking on Liyue's part, with the Prince of Winter not appreciating it.

In this way, their Seven Stars and Eight Gates are in a rather passive position.

Since the Emperor has approved of Prince Zhidong, they must also approve of him, and all previous plans to deal with Prince Zhidong are now null and void.

Fortunately, this prince who is in winter has a relatively mild attitude, so it should be easier to communicate with him. However, such people are often the most difficult to understand.

"The food at Wanmintang is quite delicious."

At the table, Su Yu savored the dishes on his own, occasionally offering a comment.

Secretary Bai Shi, standing behind Ning Guang, was even more astonished. It turned out that the strange man next to Zhong Li when she settled her accounts backstage at the auction today was Prince Zhi Dong.

No wonder she found that this person's aura was in no way inferior to Zhongli's.

Seeing that Su Yu's wine glass was still empty, Bai Shi prepared to go forward and pour him some wine, but Ning Guang personally filled Su Yu's wine glass.

Not only were Bai Shi's three secretaries stunned, but Ke Qing and the others were also taken aback.

Whether it's an internal gathering or hosting foreign dignitaries, Ningguang, as Liyue's de facto representative, never condescends to pour drinks for others, yet now she's taking on the role of a waitress.

However, they soon figured it out.

Although Prince Zhidong has not yet explicitly stated that he will assume the position of regent, given that the Emperor has already agreed, he may agree to assume the position of regent at any time and become the leader of all of them.

Even if he hasn't agreed yet, he is still a candidate personally selected by the Emperor, so how could we dare to be negligent?

This also proves from another angle that Lady Ningguang is capable of taking things on and letting them go, and is flexible and adaptable.

"Pantalone, start eating."

"Yes, Your Highness."

[Rich Man] Pantarone felt like he was dreaming. Ningguang, Liyue's greatest rival, was actually personally pouring wine for the Prince. Only the Geo Archon was entitled to such treatment.

If this scene gets back to the Winter Kingdom, it will probably cause a huge uproar.

This is Ningguang from Tianquan Star. In terms of wisdom, she is no less than the executor of their Fools. Such a proud woman, yet she lowered her proud head before the prince.

"Miss Ningguang, tell everyone to start eating. What, aren't you hungry?"

Ningguang nodded quite sensibly and instructed, "You heard what Your Highness said, right?"

Ningguang took the lead, and everyone picked up their chopsticks to eat.

"Your Highness, since you have personally come to Liyue as an envoy, this welcome dinner tonight is nothing but a token of my respect."

Ningguang led all the senior members of Liyue in toasting Su Yu.

"The baijiu that is said to be 'three bowls and you can't cross the hill' may not have the same aroma as the wine from Mengde, but its mellowness and strength are far superior to those of wineries in Mengde."

After finishing his drink, Su Yu made a comment.

Confusion was evident in Ningguang's and Keqing's eyes.

This prince of winter, after taking a bite of the dish, knew it came from Wanmin Hall; after tasting a sip of the wine, he knew it was the flavor of "three bowls and you can't pass the hill". He had never been to Liyue, so why did he know so much about Liyue?

The two women immediately deduced that the intelligence network of the Winter Kingdom had probably infiltrated every aspect of Liyue.

However, the fact that the Fatui's many previous actions in Liyue were successfully thwarted by the Thousand Rock Army shows that the Winterlands' intelligence capabilities are not omniscient.

Could it be that the Prince of Winter once visited Liyue incognito?

Just as the two were indulging in their daydreams, they heard Su Yu speak up again.

“Miss Ningguang, I see that you people from the Seven Stars and Eight Gates are burdened with worries. In that case, you can ask, say, or know anything you want to know in person... However, please wait a moment and let my people start for you.”

Su Yu's gaze suddenly turned cold as he turned to the "rich man" Pantalone.

Sensing the pressure in Su Yu's eyes, "Rich Man" Pantalone had a premonition of something bad. He instinctively stood up and left his seat, his gaze falling to the ground.

"Your Highness, what would you like to know?"

"Before we came here, you told me you had prepared a foolproof plan to deal with the Liyue Seven Stars."