He changed Tiwat

"For this plan to regain control of Mondstadt, our Lawrence family even went so far as to exchange the secrets left by our ancestors with them, and we finally managed to get their help! The Fools had already believed in my sincerity in cooperating, and our plan was almost successful! It's all because of you, my unfilial niece, that my plan, which I've been preparing for so long, has been ruined!"

Yura raised an eyebrow, her face full of disdain: "Oh, I know Uncle went to great lengths, but you also know this is something that shouldn't be done. As a Knight of Favonius, I have no reason to turn a blind eye."

Unable to break free with his arms held down by Guy and the others, Schubert could only stomp his feet in frustration.

"Wonderful Knights? Get this straight! I'm your uncle! You still have a chance to be forgiven. Kill all the Knights of Favonius here and come with me! That way, I'll plead for you back home and give you a chance to reform!"

Yura turned her face away. "I didn't understand. You want the Knight of Favonius to kill the Knight of Favonius? I don't need your forgiveness, and I won't go back to that house."

Schubert's face turned bright red; to onlookers, the old nobleman looked like he was about to have a heart attack from angering his niece.

"You, you...! You utterly rebellious bastard!"

Yura, however, seemed unsatisfied and continued her attack: "If anyone's going to get angry, it should be me. You know you're a member of the Lawrence family, yet you're still doing things that threaten Mondstadt's safety. Have you thought about how many people you've caused trouble for? Have you considered how many enemies I'll have to make to quell this?"

Schubert seemed to have been punched, and he fell backward. Joyce quickly caught him.

The old nobleman, panting heavily, seemed incredulous: "You're lecturing me? How dare you lecture me?"

“Yes, I am teaching you a lesson. Uncle, in the name of the Lawrence family, which you value most.” Yura’s voice was not loud, but it was incredibly firm, like an unyielding block of ice. “I did not experience your ‘glorious era’, nor do I understand the family’s fervent pursuit of it. But I am capable of judging right from wrong, and I know the meaning of ‘freedom’ to the people of Mondstadt.”

"The Lawrence family will not, and should not, become what you envision."

"Ugh, ugh...!" Schubert seemed to have a breath stuck in his throat, unable to get it out, and bent over coughing violently.

The two knights quickly patted his back, but he took the opportunity to break free from the knights holding him and picked up the royal mask that represented Lawrence's glory from the ground.

"Disgrace to our family! Disgrace to our family! How could such a rebellious monster like you have come from our home! Yura, in the name of the Lawrence family, I hereby expel you from this family!"

The old nobleman held up that magnificent mask as if he were holding some kind of imperial edict or divine decree.

In response, Yura merely gave a cold glance: "Since you remain obstinate and even intend to continue to poison Mondstadt, then you and the Lawrence family name should be wiped out by my own hands... This is probably the only 'family responsibility' I want to fulfill."

She publicly displayed the map that Schubert had drawn for the Fools to Kaia and the other knights.

"This is evidence of Schubert Lawrence's collusion with the Fools. He attempted to gain their support to overthrow the Knights of Favonius and restore their foolish noble rule. The evidence is irrefutable, and there is no leniency under the law. In the name of the 'Wave Knight,' I hereby arrest this criminal on the spot!"

Chapter 222 Would you believe me if I said she was the one who pursued me?

The day after the opening of the "Badminton Festival," June 17th, was an unforgettable day for many.

For Vagin, Mikhail, and other members of the Fools, it was a tragic day. Their secret stronghold in Mondstadt was suddenly uprooted in a single day, the regional commander Illock was killed, and the middle-level manager Sergei and his elite subordinates were all captured. Not a single person was able to escape and seek help... After hearing the news, they were stunned for a long time before they could believe it was real.

Even more outrageous is that the destruction of the Mondstadt stronghold seems to be solely due to the fact that they somehow offended Han Fulai, the "plague god" of Liyue—wherever he goes, the Fatui seem to suffer misfortune.

For the Knights of Favonius under Kaeya's command, this was undoubtedly a day of great joy. They had only come out to search for an old nobleman suspected of being kidnapped by the Fatui, but they ended up destroying a Fatui stronghold that had been lying in ambush in Mondstadt for a long time, and even capturing more than a dozen prisoners in one go—all of this was living intelligence and merit!

Only a young man like Guy would be dissatisfied with this. In his view, they hadn't even drawn their swords; they were just picking up scraps, and there was no merit to speak of... However, veteran knights like Joyce wished they could pick up such scraps every day, and they had thanked Lord Barbatos for his blessing countless times.

As the team leader, Kaeya had mixed feelings about this.

The good news is that he has basically achieved all the goals he planned to achieve.

From the moment Schubert entered Mondstadt, Kaeya's men had been keeping an eye on him, and Kaeya had already prepared a plan to use Schubert to lure out the Fools' secret stronghold. This operation to wipe out the Fools' stronghold was bound to happen sooner or later.

Although the Fools' sudden kidnapping of Schubert was unexpected by Kaia, it only made their secret hideout exposed faster—in this respect, Kaia had to thank the old nobleman's bad temper for doing him a great favor.

Although the sudden appearance of Han Fulai and Yura disrupted Kaiya's original plans, things generally continued to develop in a positive direction.

The Fatui stronghold was destroyed, and Diluc's enemy Yrok also got his comeuppance. It can be said that for a long time, the Knights of Fatui will not have to worry about the Fatui causing any more trouble in Mondstadt.

This wasn't the first time Han Fulai had opposed the Fools; his infamy was widespread. The Knights could have confidently used these prisoners as bargaining chips to extort money from the Fools in diplomatic arenas. Had they not arrived in time, these elite Fools might have been wiped out by Vice Minister Han. The prisoners would probably be grateful to the Knights for saving their lives…

Even more perfect, Yura was publicly expelled from the Lawrence family by Schubert, and Yura, in a show of loyalty to Schubert, completely chose to stand on the side of the Knights.

In the end, she produced Schubert's incriminating evidence under the name of "Wave Knight" and personally escorted Schubert back to the Knights for trial. In every respect, she was the most respectable Knight of the West.

Kaiya's long-standing worries about Yura and the Lawrence family can finally be put to rest. After this incident, no one can say that Yura is a "mole" planted in the Knights by the Lawrence family.

—Although according to his plan, he should have instigated conflict between the Fools and the Lawrence family, and even massacred the Lawrence family who betrayed the Fools, leaving Yura with no choice.

However, things can never be as perfect as expected, and Kaiya is not a perfectionist, so he can accept this result.

But this is also what he is worried about.

He quietly turned his head and glanced at Han Fulai sitting in the carriage.

The Knights' Mobile Squad's convoy, carrying the Fools' prisoners and Schubert, returned to the city first. Yura followed in the convoy ahead, preparing to report the day's events to Jean in person.

As a hero who destroyed the Fools' stronghold and personally killed Ilock to rid the people of a scourge, Han Fulai naturally deserved to be treated as an "old friend of the Mondstadt people." Cavalry Captain Kaeya personally drove him back to the city. Of course, escorting such a distinguished guest back to the city couldn't be done at too high a speed, causing a sore bottom, so they lagged behind the group.

At this moment, Han Fulai was sitting calmly in the carriage, holding a bright red apple in his hand, looking just like someone who had just returned from a pleasant outing.

Kaiya thought for a moment and asked, "Deputy Minister Han, I suddenly have an idea, but I'm not sure if I should say it?"

Han Fulai toyed with the apple in his hand and slowly replied, "Generally speaking, if you don't know whether you should say it or not, then you shouldn't say it."

"Ha." Kaiya chuckled. "Then it's best not to say it."

Just as Han Fulai could see through Kaiya's scheme by tricking Yura into going to the snow mountain, Kaiya could also see a clue from Schubert's behavior—although the old nobleman acted like a hysterical patient who had been stimulated, shouting and yelling all the way, Kaiya, who had actually interrogated the prisoner to the point of mental breakdown, knew that this guy was actually very clear-headed.

There must be a reason why a clear-headed member of the old Lawrence family would be so eager to send himself to the Knights' prison.

This reason probably falls on Vice Minister Han.

Kaia didn't know what Han Fulai had said to Schubert that made such a stubborn old nobleman happily go to jail, but he knew who benefited the most from Schubert's imprisonment.

—Yura.

—Through this incident, Yura's image as an upright and incorruptible knight has been firmly established. If the Knights had a propaganda department, Yura would definitely be their model.

—If Yura truly rises to a high position in the Knights Order and enters the core of the order's leadership, then today's act of "sacrificing family for the greater good" will inevitably be the beginning of her promotion.

For the sake of Mondstadt's spirit of freedom and the loyalty of knights, Yola resolutely severed ties with her sinful family, even declaring that she would personally erase the Lawrence name—if Jean knew this, she would probably be so moved that she would award Yola a grand medal.

If Schubert acted as a "stepping stone" for his niece, willingly becoming Yura's "pledge of allegiance" for the benefit of the Lawrence family; if all of this stemmed from someone's behind-the-scenes scheme...

Kaia certainly believed that Yura was not a "traitor," or rather, he believed that the fools in the Schubert and Lawrence families were incapable of making such a plan.

But as a "Kanria spy," Kaeya understood all too well that blood ties couldn't be severed by mere words. On the day his adoptive father, Kripps, died, he realized with a profound understanding that he was ultimately a Kanria, and that the blood of the Albury family flowed through his veins.

On a balance scale, one side will always be heavier.

He now only hopes that the day he has to choose will never come.

That's why he would coldly orchestrate the plan to strike at the Lawrence family.

He didn't want Yura to have to choose between the two sides of the scale one day, so he eliminated one side for her in advance—this could be considered Kaeya's "gentleness".

If that day ever comes, and Yura has to choose between Lawrence and Mond, just like I did that day, will she be able to make the same choice as she did today?

...Or perhaps, her choice stems from the will of this Deputy Minister Han?

“Well… I have another question, and you absolutely have to answer it…” Kaiya turned around and gave Han Fulai his usual mischievous grin, “How did you manage to melt that ‘ice’ in just a few days? Do you have any secrets you can share? It’ll be good for us brothers when we’re chasing girls!”

"Would you believe me if I said she was the one who pursued me?" Han Fulai smirked and used the apple in his hand to shut Kaiya up.

Chapter 223 Help Me Get the Sky Harp

"Tch, if you don't want to talk, then don't. How stingy..."

Yura pursuing a man? That's as ridiculous as saying Diluc can drink a thousand cups without getting drunk.

Kaiya mumbled a bite of the apple that Han Fulai had used to shut him up.

Surprisingly, it's quite sweet.

When Han Fulai saw that Kaiya had turned his head back, he quickly opened the note he was holding in his hand.

He wasn't like Lao Luo, the coachman of Keqing, nor did he have a Mrs. Luo at home who loved apples, so naturally he wouldn't carry apples with him. This apple... was delivered to him by the wind.

Just a minute ago, the curtain in the car window was suddenly blown open by the wind, and then an apple hit him on the head.

The carriage wasn't even under an apple tree, so the law of universal gravitation shouldn't be applying at this time. This fake knight is nothing like the real Duke Bull; an apple falling on his head would only make him stupid…

Moreover, a note was tied to the stem of the apple.

The note had a line of rather ornate handwriting on it—

"Get me the 'Sky Harp'."

The signature is a capital V.

The only person who could have slipped the apple into the carriage without either him or Kaia noticing was, of course, the apple-loving bard Venti.

He had heard of the name "Sky Harp," which was the lyre that Barbatos once used. To put it simply, it was the artifact of the wind god and had always been regarded by the Mondstadt people as a sacred relic left by the gods and kept in the sacristy of the church.

In the game's main storyline, Venti, in order to cure Dvalin who was being poisoned by the venomous blood, asked Scarlet to help him retrieve the "Sky Harp" from the Great Cathedral of Favonius. In order to get the harp out of the cathedral, Scarlet had to infiltrate Favonius Cathedral to steal the "Sky Harp," which resulted in her being placed on the Knights of Favonius's wanted list. The Knights were on a city-wide manhunt for the blond thief who stole the precious cultural heritage.

Uh, Wendy wouldn't want him to do that too, would she? No, no, his being wanted by the Knights is a diplomatic issue.

As the esteemed successor of the Liyue Emperor, it would be a disgrace to Zhongli if word got out that he went to Mondstadt to steal things...

Wait, why did I suddenly think of "stealing"... Han Fulai shook his head. Now that he's a VIP of the Knights, it's not unreasonable for him to ask the Knights to borrow the "Sky Harp," is it? How about asking the Harp for a note?

"...Captain Kaeya, I'd like to ask you something. What procedures are required if I wish to view the Church of the West's sacred relic, the 'Lyre of the Sky'?"

"Why did you suddenly want to see that thing? It's supposed to be a precious cultural heritage, but it's really just an old zither, not as nice as our ensemble leader's..."

Kaiya chewed on the apple, a precious cultural heritage that the wind god had touched, and made all sorts of slips of the tongue.

"I don't have any other hobbies, I just love poetry. The 'Sky Harp' is, after all, a divine instrument that the wind god once played. As the saying goes, seeing an object reminds one of a person, and I can use it to imagine the glory of the god of poetry in his prime." Han Fulai casually made up a reason.

"I see..." Kaeya's eyes darted around.

Kaiya knew that Han Fulai had been searching for a certain drunken poet for the first few days after he entered the city. His sudden interest in the Wind God's "Sky Harp" might also be related to that drunken poet.

"It's really unfortunate, because this harp was stolen during the 'Dragon Plague,' which is why the Church has hidden it even more carefully and it's not on display at all now. If you want to see it... well, let me think, the procedures require the consent of the Grand Master or Acting Grand Master, the Cardinal of the Church of Westwind, and representatives of the people."

"Specifically, it requires a document jointly signed by the Grand Master of the Pine, Cardinal Calvin, and the Executive Chairman of the Wine Association, Eze."

Well, the Grand Master of the Knights, the church representative, and the Legnfender family representative all have to sign, which means the entire Mondstadt ruling class has to approve it? Han Fulai silently rolled his eyes, thinking to himself, "Wendy, look at the mess you've left behind." In Han Fulai's experience, running through all these procedures would probably take until the end of the year.

"However..." Kaiya changed the subject, "You said you like poetry, I wonder how accomplished you are in poetry?"

"Ha, though I dare not compare myself to the Fang family, I can be considered to have entered their inner circle, right?" Han Fulai's eyes lit up, knowing that there was hope.

Kaeya nodded. “Why don’t you try participating in the ‘Poetry Recitation’ event at the ‘Badminton Festival’? The ‘Sky Harp’ is not usually on public display, but as is customary, it is awarded as a prize at the ‘Badminton Festival’ to the ‘Best Bard of Mondstadt’ for one day. If you can win the ‘Poetry Recitation’ competition, you will not only be able to see the ‘Sky Harp’ up close, but you can also play it.”

"Oh, then it seems I'll have to pull myself together and prepare properly," Han Fulai said with a smile.

He had realized that Wendy actually wanted him to participate in the competition and win the "Sky Harp" prize.

As for why Wendy herself didn't participate—if the god of poetry participated, Wendy would win the championship every year, which would be so boring... Besides, it would be fine if she won, but what if she lost?

Kaiya smiled and said, "Then I look forward to seeing Vice Minister Han's heroic performance on the field."

Late that night, the Knights' caravan finally returned to Mondstadt.

Because it was during the festival, the lights of Mondstadt were still on, and the city was even more lively than during the day—after all, most bars only opened in the evening.

The knights' caravan turned north, preparing to enter the city through a side gate.

The main gate is too crowded with tourists, and convoys entering can easily cause traffic jams and unnecessary disruptions. If the quiet north gate has any advantage, it's probably that it's closer to the Knights' headquarters.

As the convoy changed course, it passed the main gate, where several drunkards were arguing and fighting with the guards—a rather unusual sight in Mondstadt.

Coming to Mondstadt and never seeing a drunkard causing a ruckus is like going to Liyue Harbor and never witnessing the "Invocation Ritual".

The knights were already used to it and didn't even bother to look at it.

But then, unexpectedly, someone jumped off the carriage in front.

It's Yura.

She walked straight toward the drunken rioters.

Because she was dressed differently than usual, neither the drunkards causing trouble nor the gatekeeper recognized her—until the greatsword of sea blue suddenly slashed down in the middle of the crowd.

Of course, she was chopping floor tiles.

With a loud "boom," the drunkards were half-sobered up, and the guards at the gate were so frightened that they broke out in a sweat.

"Captain Yura!" The knight Swann guarding the gate quickly saluted her.

Yura's eyes, gleaming with a cold light, passed over Swan and landed on the drunkards who were tugging and pulling at another guard.

"He's not a member of the Lawrence family. If he wants to cause trouble for the Lawrence family, why doesn't he come at me?"

Chapter 224 Having a worthless father is really miserable.

Upon hearing Yura's voice, the drunkards were like mice before a cat; they dared not utter a word and scattered like birds and beasts in an instant.

Yura cast a disdainful glance at the fleeing drunkards and sheathed her greatsword.

"Thank you so much, Captain Yura, for your help."

The guard who had been pulled and tugged by the drunkards was finally freed and hurriedly thanked Yura.