Xu Zheng quickly gave up pondering life's deeper mysteries.
Because in the world of investment, there was one woman above all.
Ningguang.
The queen of Liyue's economy. The tycoon who could casually throw a flying jade fortress at your face. The rich lady who probably used Mora as toilet paper.
But getting her to invest? Hah. You'd have an easier time selling ice to Eula.
Meanwhile, on the Jade Chamber.
Ningguang stood at the edge of the floating palace, decked out in elegance, holding a cup of iced milk tea like it was a wine glass.
"Oh? You're saying this milk tea was a gift from Xu Zheng?" she asked, one eyebrow raised. "As thanks for my contributions to Liyue?"
"Yes," Baibin said, bowing slightly. "Those were his exact words."
Ningguang took a sip.
Expression? Unreadable.
Then, she laughed lightly.
"He wants something."
She turned, amused. "Baibin, didn't you say he asked you earlier how to get someone to invest in him?"
"Yes, Lady Ningguang."
"Tell him—funding is not a problem. If he wants to do something, let him do it. I'm curious what that little rascal will pull off next."
"…Understood."
Baibin walked off in silence.
And then immediately felt jealous.
Why was Ningguang so interested in Little Xu Zheng?!
Was she… grooming him to be her next secretary?
No, wait—he's still a baby! That's weird!
...Unless this was her plan to train a successor?
"Heavenly Envoy Xu Zheng"… actually, that sounds kinda cool.
Anyway, time to tell the tiny tycoon he just bagged his first investor.
[System Notification: Daily Task Complete. +10 Primogems Issued.]
Hearing that, Xu Zheng grinned. Mission: Fund the Milk Tea Empire [Complete].
He'd gotten his rich investor. Now he needed to deliver actual returns.
Step one: brand identity.
He needed a name that screamed partnership. Affection. Power move.
So he combined "Ganyu" and "Ningguang" into one legendary name:
Yuning Milk Tea.
Perfect.
Next step: advertising.
Xu Zheng had a dream. A massive LED billboard hanging right below the Jade Chamber.
The signboard lit up in golden letters: Yuning Milk Tea.
Would Ningguang allow it? Probably not.
"Drops the elegance level of my floating fortress," she'd say.
Fine. Plan B—start small. Get some Liyue restaurants to sell the drink. Build buzz. Go viral.
And then, the masterstroke: get Yanfei to be the brand's spokesperson.
She had a face people trusted. A voice that sounded smart. And best of all—she worked cheap.
(She didn't know she worked cheap yet, but he'd fix that.)
Next stop: Mondstadt, Inazuma, Sumeru...
Xu Zheng would take milk tea across all seven nations of Teyvat.
But first...
"Guess what Ningguang said?" Baibin asked, practically bouncing.
"Obviously, she said yes," Xu Zheng replied.
"…How'd you know?"
"I can feel the positive vibes radiating from Baibin-jie."
"…Damn, you're good."
Ten Days Later.
The brand exploded.
Thanks to endorsements from Yanfei and Xiangling, Yuning Milk Tea went from curiosity to cultural phenomenon.
Yanfei, Liyue's #1 legal mind, was already known for her memory and quick wit.
So naturally, rumors began:
"Drinking Yuning Milk Tea boosts brainpower!"
"Yanfei's a genius because of this drink!"
Yanfei tried denying it, of course.
Nobody listened.
Xiangling backed it too—declaring Yuning Milk Tea a culinary masterpiece. If the Pyro chef loved it, then it had to be good, right?
Xu Zheng watched this chaos unfold like a proud dad watching his kid win the lottery.
He had underestimated their influence.
If Yanfei and Xiangling ever debuted as a girl group, they'd make Mora rain.
With Ningguang's money backing logistics, they spread the drink fast. Restaurants, stalls, mobile carts—everywhere you looked: Yuning Milk Tea.
And the first theater to carry it?
The one owned by middle-aged businessman Huai Tiancheng.
Profits skyrocketed. The man was considering franchising already.
Meanwhile, in another theater across town…
Things were going badly for a certain blonde-haired competitor.
Yes, him again.
Sales were tanking. Crowds vanished. The rival milk tea? Rumored to be a cheap knockoff riding the Yuning wave.
He'd even bribed a chef to steal the recipe.
It didn't matter.
Xu Zheng, that maniac, had somehow made hundreds of flavors overnight.
Every single one delicious.
Did the guy not sleep? Was he a god?
Then came the real humiliation:
Now people were saying his product was garbage knockoff tea.
Some "concerned citizens" tried defending him:
"It's not a knockoff! It's totally legit! He PAID for the recipe!"
Not helping.
Reputation: plummeting.
Business: dying.
There were more performers on stage than audience members. His side hustle—a scammer crew—was getting arrested left and right.
Desperate, the blonde guy turned to his brother. A fat, scheming businessman named—
Chayevich.
From Snezhnaya. Of course.
"What now, bro?" Blondie asked.
Chayevich rubbed his chin like a knockoff Bond villain.
"We deny everything."
"Huh?"
"We say they stole our recipe. That milk tea is a traditional Snezhnayan delicacy. Yuning stole it and now they're bullying us."
"But no one in Liyue's been to Snezhnaya!"
"Exactly."
He grinned.
"We fund a smear campaign. Make Xu Zheng bleed Mora. When they're weak, we swoop in and buy the whole thing for cheap. Half the company, maybe more."
Blondie's eyes sparkled with hope.
"Bro… you're a genius."