He changed Tiwat

Whether on or off stage, Lynette always habitually hides herself in the small shadow behind Linnie, where neither the lights nor the praise can reach.

The cheers weren't for her, nor were the applause. As an assistant, she would only divert the audience's attention when necessary, then give the spotlight back to the main character.

For a magician's assistant, keeping a low profile is a professional quality.

For the children in the "House of Hearths"... hiding in the shadows is a way of survival.

People unconsciously reveal themselves: clothing, eyes, body language, even the silence in their tone of voice... Ordinary people cannot read anything from these things because information is often buried in a sea of ​​details, but Lynette is able to capture the key points from them with her extraordinary observation skills.

By connecting countless seemingly trivial details, useful information can be extracted.

Marquis Carrande had no idea that back when he was still in Fontaine, Lynette's eyes had been fixed on him like this many times before.

One in the light, the other in the shadows—Linnie and Linette's "eyes" have stolen countless secrets from Fontainebleau's elite. The victims remain oblivious, as if caught in a magic trick.

"...What will it take for you to return my things?"

Even though no one was around, the Marquis of Carandé kept his voice down, as if afraid that his voice would be heard.

Linni picked up her black tea, took a sip, and brought up something that seemed completely unrelated—

“I have heard that officials from the Court of Justice are currently investigating the financial flows of the ‘Bufati Mansion’ in recent months.”

This seemingly random question immediately alerted the Marquis of Carandé: "How did you know?"

In fact, the investigation by the Court of Justice into the "Bufati Mansion" has only just begun; the draft investigation report was only delivered to his desk by his subordinates two weeks ago.

Yes, this is just a draft, and he hasn't even had time to approve it yet—according to the complicated procedures of the Enforcement Tribunal, the time from draft to formal implementation is usually calculated in months.

“How I know this is not important. The key is that I don’t want the people from the Executive Court to interfere with the operation of ‘Bufati Mansion’.”

Through a makeup mirror, Linni wore an enigmatic smile.

Magicians are always very good at hiding the secrets of magic.

Marquis Carandé knew that this was the exchange condition Linni had proposed.

This matter falls within his jurisdiction; if he simply halts the investigation, the matter can be dropped. There could be many reasons for halting it, such as having many more important tasks for the law enforcement court to handle—a simple matter for him—but…

“I cannot do it. I swear in the name of the Queen of the waters, the lands, the peoples and the laws, that for the sake of fairness and justice in Fontaine, I will pay the price of utter disgrace.”

As the leader of the Carendé Salon and a key figure in promoting legal progress in Fontainebleau, the Marquis of Carendé had his own bottom line. Perhaps his private morality was not as perfect as he presented to the public, but in matters related to the law, he dared to swear to God that he was worthy of the Order of the Garter and the saying "Those who harbor evil intentions shall be ashamed."

Linni paused for a moment, then slowly said, “‘Bufati Mansion’ may be just an orphanage of unknown origin in your eyes, but in my eyes, it is my only home. It is simply a place for those children with no relatives to rely on, a haven for those children who have been forced to ruin their families by unscrupulous nobles, and a way to survive for those children who are being chased by usurers.”

"Its funding comes from donations from kind-hearted people, as well as the contributions from the children who have gone there—including my performance fees and donations from the circus's ticket revenue. Yes, I can admit to you that we have had some donations that did not go through the proper channels and therefore did not pay taxes to the Lendrat Court… but that was because we wanted to save every penny to give the children a better education and a better life."

"Our Fontaine, with its proud city of waters, magnificent buildings and landscapes, amazing music and works of art, and the most sophisticated machinery and laws... has no shelter for our poor children from the wind and rain."

“Your eyes hold the laws of Fontainebleau, the waterline of Fontainebleau, the animals and plants of Fontainebleau, your eyes can hold so much… So could you please turn your gaze to the ground, to the neglected ‘Grey River,’ and to the children living in the sewers? Rather than the ‘end of the world’ that may come at any time, I would much rather that every helpless child have dinner tonight.”

The Marquis of Carandé saw his silent face in the mirror.

"Actually, I took your things just to have the opportunity to say these words to you."

Linni pushed the handkerchief in front of him through the vanity mirror.

“Linette and I will keep your secret about that Lady Mondstadt well, and please keep the things she gave you safe so you don’t lose them again. It would be bad if her husband or your wife found out. If you can help the children of the ‘Bufati Mansion,’ I assure you that the photos we took last night of you meeting that lady will be a secret forever.”

Marquis Carandé silently put the handkerchief away.

He may indeed risk his life for the sake of justice, but what if doing so only leaves a group of poor children homeless again? Would that still be just?

He stood up and left the dressing room.

As he reached the door, he turned around, lowered the brim of his hat, and bowed slightly to Linni.

Linni placed his hand on his chest and gave him the gesture a magician would make when taking his final bow.

He knew that his and Lynette's mission in Mondstadt was complete.

Chapter 192 A Good Beginning

After the Marquis of Carandé left, Lynette, who had been hiding, emerged from the shadows.

This is one of the special abilities she gained after obtaining the Eye of God, called "Shadow Concealment." Its principle is quite similar to the "sleight of hand" in magic, both being methods of blending into the environment without being detected. However, magic relies on stage lighting and props, while Lynette now relies on the protection of the wind element.

This stealth technique not only added countless surprises to her magic performances, but also protected her from countless dangerous intelligence gathering missions.

Lynette picked up the teacup left by the Marquis of Carandé, her face full of displeasure.

"Is it because the tea I brewed doesn't taste good?"

The Marquis de Carandé didn't even touch the teacup.

Of course, meeting someone who knows his secrets in an unfamiliar environment, and under such great mental pressure, how could the Marquis of Carandé be in the mood to enjoy tea?

Seeing this, Linnie knew things were going badly and quickly comforted her sister: "No, Linette's tea-making skills are the best in Fontaine... Teyvat! It's that person who has no taste!"

If you were to ask what hobbies his usually expressionless and taciturn sister has, there are only two: first, petting cats; second, making tea.

Making tea was a habit Lynette developed to avoid talking.

Whenever distinguished guests arrived, Linnie would usually be the one to conduct the conversation, while Linnie would serve tea. When tea parties were held at home, she would also be in charge of brewing the tea, while the other family members would engage in conversation. The person brewing the tea had the privilege of not participating in the conversation while others were engaged in lively discussions or casual chatter, and it was perfectly acceptable for them to "accidentally" overhear some gossip while brewing tea for the guests.

As Lynette brewed tea more and more, she unknowingly became an expert in tea brewing, and tea art naturally became a rare personal pursuit for her.

She now not only masters the brewing techniques for various types of tea, but also speaks eloquently about the range of water temperature, the concentration of tea, the selection of teaware, and even the timing of tea tasting. Every cup of tea brewed by Lynette is in no way inferior to that of a professional tea master in a high-end restaurant.

Despite her casual invitation to the Marquis of Carandé for tea, she was actually quite hoping that the deliciousness of the tea would thoroughly impress the arrogant nobleman. But...

She put so much effort into making the tea, but no one even touched it, which really hurt her...

Poor Marquis Carandé has no idea that he's been blacklisted by Lynette for not drinking tea.

Lynette sulked for a moment, then decided to steer the conversation back on track: "Brother, shouldn't the activities at 'Bufati Mansion' be put on hold for a while?"

Although the Marquis of Carrande's attitude just now suggests that the Court of Justice's investigation into the "Boufatti Mansion" will likely be dropped, the fact that the mansion has come into the Court of Justice's sights is itself a dangerous sign.

Linni pondered for a moment, then nodded.

"When we get back this time, we'll have everyone in the mansion temporarily 'hibernate' until things calm down. The key is... to protect our forces within the Mo Mang Palace."

What Linni said to the Marquis of Carandé was indeed from the heart and was entirely true, but it was not the whole truth.

For example, "Bufati Mansion" is not only an orphanage, but also a base established in Fontaine by the "Servants" of the Winter Fools' Executives, and one of the "Houses of Hearths" for training future Fools' spies.

He and Lynette were also members of the Fatui. The children in the mansion were actually low-level intelligence agents under the Fatui, and had completed countless intelligence gathering missions for them to date.

The financial problems of the "Bufati Mansion" were not as simple as evading a little tax. They included expenses for intelligence gathering and cultivating relationships with important people... to put it bluntly, it was bribery of officials.

The "Bufati Mansion" operates in Fontainebleau with legitimate aims, but its methods are often quite radical. For years, it has relied on the influence of its "father" and his control over the internal affairs of Fontainebleau to ensure that nothing goes wrong.

This so-called "internal control" is, in layman's terms, a "protective umbrella." Within the Executive Court, there were several officials funded by Lin Ni who provided intelligence on the mansion's operations and mitigated the impact of some transgressions.

—Linnie was able to learn that the Marquis of Carandé had seen the draft of the investigation plan because he had been tipped off from inside.

These officials weren't all after the Mora given by Linni; a significant portion of them believed that Fontaine currently lacked the power to bypass cumbersome rules and take direct action.

—And Linnie also hoped that the Marquis of Carrande could become a "friend" of the mansion within the court of law.

Tonight's conversation should be a good start.

On the first night of the "Badminton Festival", Yura once again had trouble falling asleep.

She still held the "Sun" card that Linni had given her in her hand.

For her, today was her first "date" with a man.

It would be one thing if it were just a "date," since it was essentially just "noble etiquette instruction," and Yura herself didn't take it too seriously—but being "dated" under the watchful eyes of thousands of people, and even receiving some kind of "flower spirit blessing," was a different matter altogether.

Even though it was fake, announcing her "engagement" in front of so many people... Yura didn't dare to imagine how the rumors would spread in a few days, or how the Knights would view her...

...Honestly, the fact that she was able to remain calm and allow Han Fu to escort her back to the Knights was already a testament to her strong will.

Back in her dormitory where she was all alone, shame overwhelmed the girl once again.

She was thinking that if Amber returned from the snowy mountains and heard the news—well, she was almost certain that Amber would set up a stage in the fountain square to broadcast this "good news" throughout the city…

Yura bit her pillow and made up her mind: Tomorrow! Tomorrow she would send an invitation to her uncle Schubert, inviting him to come to town as soon as possible to meet her "fiancé." The faster the matter was resolved, the faster the impact would dissipate.

As for magic tricks and fables... of course they're all fake!

Yura stuffed the magic card under her pillow, trying to convince herself to stop thinking about those messy things... She had already gone this far in her pretense, her uncle should believe that she really had a fiancé, right?

While Yura was lost in thought, Han Fulai was thinking that he absolutely had to meet another girl tomorrow—he hadn't forgotten about Mona. It had been almost ten days; the investigation into Mona should have yielded results by now.

To get an audience with Schubert Lawrence, he certainly had to do more than just “aristocratic etiquette” in his preparations.

As the saying goes, "Know yourself and know your enemy, and you will never be defeated." The more he learned about the hidden history of the Lawrence family, the more he would be able to take the initiative in his subsequent actions.

In addition, he felt that he had already announced the so-called "engagement" to Schubert in public today, and the disguise was done to the extreme. Therefore, there was no need to force himself to accept Yura's "aristocratic etiquette training" - even if we don't talk about personal likes and dislikes, we should at least feel sorry for the Mora in our pockets.

So that night, the newly "officially announced" couple decided at the same time: no dates tomorrow.

Chapter 193 Mond is Erasing History

On the second day of the "Badminton Festival" celebration, Yura went out of town early in the morning to find Schubert, while Han Fulai went to the Knights' library after breakfast.

The library is still closed—there are indeed no students in Mondstadt who would go to the library to study like crazy on National Day, and in this country, the physical test score for civil service exams (referring to joining the Knights of Favonius) is far more important than the written test score.

So Han Fulai went to Mona's rented apartment again.

Although it's called a rental, it's actually a detached villa, much more spacious than the cramped bungalows you might imagine.

It was originally the Goethe family property, which was rented to a magician from out of town fifty years ago and converted into a magical laboratory. The magician had a sleight of hand in occultism with an old friend in Mondstadt, handed him a box, and then left, leaving only this property sealed by a strange magic circle.

The seal couldn't be broken, so the house couldn't be rented out, and it remained vacant until fifty years later when the seal was broken by the magician's direct disciple.

Of course, neither the landlord, Mr. Goethe, nor the tenant, Mona, knew that this was a "fate" that had been decided fifty years ago.

One was delighted that the idle property had finally come into its proper use, while the other was delighted that she could rent a renovated magic laboratory for such a low rent, and that there was even a lot of experimental equipment that she could use inside. Both of them felt as lucky as if they had found money on the street.

Han Fulai was equally fortunate; he happened to run into Mona, who was all dressed up and ready to go out. Had he arrived any later, he probably would have been searching for a needle in a haystack in the holiday crowds.

Mona welcomed him into her home with a strange smile on her face, making Han Fulai feel somewhat uncomfortable.

He soon understood the source of Mona's smile.

—After the two sat down, Mona's first question was, "What brings you here today? I thought you were going on a date with your fiancée, Miss Yura."

Han Fulai confirmed that even astrologers who claim to be able to see through fate are not immune to the human tendency to gossip.

Although Mona missed witnessing him officially announce his engagement to the audience during his magic show yesterday because she was busy submitting her article, she still had her own sources of information.

Among the thousands of audience members who watched the circus performance yesterday, there was actually a blonde girl with pigtails, who wasn't wearing an eye mask or colored contact lenses, and who was dressed very innocently and plainly.

The girl was not the great Princess Fischl, but little Amy who was participating in the festival celebration with her parents.

So last night, a crow very considerately carried this gossip from outside Mondstadt to Lord Megistus's ears.

Hearing this news, the genius astrologer naturally thought, "My 'love divination' is indeed the best in the world! Payment is due!"

After much persuasion, Han Fulai finally clarified his relationship with Yura to Mona... but whether Mona believed him or not was another matter entirely.

After discussing his trip to the snow-capped mountains, the two eventually turned their conversation to the history of the Lawrence family.

Mona finally put away her gossipy attitude and put on a serious expression.

"After hearing your story about Abedo and the Lawrence family's 'Ice Seal,' I am now certain of one thing—Mond has been constantly erasing history throughout history."

The statement “Mond has been constantly destroying history throughout history” is undoubtedly quite difficult to understand. Han Fulai had to listen to it carefully twice before he could understand it.

"Are you saying the Lawrence family is hiding a history that is detrimental to them?"

He was somewhat puzzled; wasn't this something that everyone knew about?

While he was in the deep abyss, he heard the bard Talesin talk about the origin of the so-called "bard epic".

At that time, Talezin told him: "Simply put, it's about adding muscle and skin to the solid framework of history, based on the genealogy of heroes. It's about using long narrative poems to sing the praises of history and awaken people's awareness of it. You see, that's the value of epics. And the function of awakening historical consciousness is precisely why the great nobles of Mondstadt banned poetry thousands of years ago. Because they were afraid that we would remember the freedom we once had, the past struggles we once had."

The nobles of Mondstadt forbid poetry, fearing it would incite resistance and that their sordid image would be recorded in history—nothing much different from what happens on Earth, just basic procedures.

In Chinese history, there was a King Li of Zhou who, in addition to his perverse and tyrannical rule, forbade the people from "slandering" the royal family, thus leaving behind two famous idioms: "to communicate with one's eyes on the road" and "to prevent the people from speaking is more difficult than to prevent a river from overflowing."

Mona shook her head slightly and said in a deep voice, "No, not just the Lawrence family. The Lawrence family, the Gunnhildr family, the Imonloka family... the entire royal and noble class that has access to the historical collection, including the Knights of Favonius that were later established, and the Wind God we know... they are constantly destroying Mondstadt's historical records."

“This is a secret that Lisa didn’t tell me, but I discovered through my own observation.”

She pulled a beautifully bound white book from her bosom; the cover of the book was inlaid with a sparkling gem.

Mona opened the white paper, and on the title page were two proverbs: "Songs fade with the wind, and wine is fleeting. Only stories and knowledge shine eternally."

The book gave Han Fulai a very familiar feeling. He paused for a moment and suddenly remembered where he had seen the book before.

"The West Wind Codex?"

As a player, he had certainly seen the Zephyr Codex in the game. If players didn't want Mona to become a "half-dragon-slaying hero," the Zephyr Codex would be a very suitable weapon for a powerful Mona build.