The sun slowly rose from the east, gradually dispelling the darkness of the long night, bringing brilliant light and comforting warmth to the world.
Yide stood up from his seat, intending to wash up and welcome the new day with a refreshed spirit. Just at that moment, Aether and Paimon, looking slightly weary, walked into the shop. Their arrival was like a gust of wind, bringing with them the dust and air from outside.
Aether saw Yide at a glance. He walked over quickly and said with certainty, "You're actually the Director of the West Factory, Yide, aren't you!"
Yide wasn't surprised that Aether had figured out his identity. The names Deyi and Yide were naturally easy to connect. With a little more information about Yide, it was simple to deduce that Deyi, the owner of the Dove Café, was Yide.
Yide nodded and admitted frankly, "You know, due to some of my past actions, I'm not a very popular person, so I need to hide my identity."
Aether expressed his understanding. After all, in this world, who would want to have too much contact with a butcher whose hands were stained with blood?
Then, Aether asked impatiently, "Director Yide, can you tell me why Lumine became the Princess of the Abyss? And what really happened in Khaenri'ah five hundred years ago?"
Yide was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke, "Aether, there are many things that I am still searching for answers to. But I do know that at the end of your journey, you will know everything, witness everything, and change everything."
Paimon, listening from the side, put her hands on her hips and said huffily, "That's the same as saying nothing at all! Paimon hates you riddle-speakers the most. You clearly know the answers but deliberately act mysterious, making people's hearts itch."
Yide showed a helpless smile. "Paimon, I'm not intentionally hiding anything. I truly don't know the exact answers to these questions." He paused for a moment, then suggested, "How about I treat you to breakfast today?"
As soon as she heard about a free breakfast, Paimon's little face lit up, her smile blooming like a flower. "Yide, since you're being so generous, Paimon won't give you a nickname."
"Thank you, Emergency Food," Yide said with a smile.
"Paimon is not Emergency Food!" Paimon stomped her foot in anger. "Paimon will definitely think of a very nasty nickname for you."
Yide shrugged nonchalantly. "Alright, I'll be waiting for your 'masterpiece.' But for now, let's go enjoy breakfast."
He then led Aether and Paimon to a teahouse and, in a quiet corner, found Zhongli sitting alone at a table, leisurely enjoying his morning tea.
Seeing them approach, Zhongli gently put down his teacup and nodded in greeting. "Long time no see, Traveler, Paimon, and Shopkeeper Deyi."
Yide immediately sat down opposite him and said in a slightly complaining tone, "Consultant Zhongli, the Liyue-Fontaine joint venture is facing great difficulties. Can't you just issue a divine oracle to make those profit-hungry merchants cooperate with our work?"
Zhongli replied with a calm expression, "Such problems should be no challenge for you."
Indeed, for Yide, such problems were not difficult to solve. He had many ways to deal with those tricky merchants, but he didn't want to waste too much energy on such trivial matters.
At this moment, his gaze turned to the newly seated Aether, and an idea flashed in his mind. He cleared his throat and said to Aether, "Aether, I have a tricky matter I'd like your help with."
Without even asking what the trouble was, Aether directly asked, "What's the payment?"
Yide immediately took out a stack of unopened card packs from his system space and placed them on the table. "Is this enough as payment?"
"More than enough." Aether's eyes instantly lit up, and he took the card packs with great enthusiasm. "Go on, what's the trouble?"
Yide smiled and gestured for him to be patient. "Don't be hasty. We'll talk while we eat breakfast." He then called over a server and ordered a lavish breakfast.
While they enjoyed their meal, he explained in detail the situation with some factory owners demanding exorbitant prices for the Liyue-Fontaine joint venture.
After hearing this, Zhongli commented objectively, "Speaking in terms of universal rationality, this is indeed a very thorny issue. If their high prices are accepted, it would be clearly unfair to the factory owners who have already cooperated with the joint venture."
Aether felt a headache coming on. He was good at fighting, but this was the first time he had to deal with such a problem. He was starting to regret taking on this task.
Fortunately, Zhongli promptly offered a suggestion. "Traveler, you can go find Yanfei. She is very skilled at handling such issues and should be able to provide you with a lot of help."
"Yanfei?" Aether asked in confusion. "Who is she?"
Zhongli slowly explained, "A well-known legal consultant in Liyue. No one understands how to use the rules of contracts and law better than her."
"Thank you!" Aether said gratefully.
Afterward, Aether eagerly opened the card packs he had just received. This action immediately attracted the attention of many other customers, who gathered around to watch.
Aether's luck was clearly far better than his sister Lumine's. Not only did he pull several precious rare cards, but even more astonishingly, he managed to pull an extremely rare Demon God card—Azhdaha.
The surrounding customers all showed envious expressions, as the value of this Demon God card was enough to purchase a house in Port Fudé.
After opening the packs, Aether's mood became even more cheerful. He and Paimon left the teahouse to find Yanfei.
After Aether left, Zhongli turned to Yide and invited, "How about a few rounds of Genius Invokation TCG?"
Yide refused without hesitation. "No way. I don't want to be tortured by you again."
Zhongli promised solemnly, "Don't worry, this time I won't use the all-defense strategy from before. I'll actively attack."
Hearing this promise, Yide relaxed a little and took out his deck, preparing to duel with Zhongli. However, he soon regretted it. Zhongli had adopted an even trickier, upgraded version of a shield-and-heal strategy. And Zhongli's so-called "active attack" turned out to be the "Adept of Salvation" using a small sword for a feeble attack after healing the entire team.
After four hours of dueling, the health of Yide's character cards on the field was finally depleted. When he walked out of the teahouse, he felt completely numb.
Yide secretly swore to himself that he would never play Genius Invokation TCG with Zhongli again.