"Hello!?"
Xu Zheng's voice was full of confusion.
When the hell did Wanmin Hall turn into a daycare center?
And Xiangling didn't even tell him?
"Xu Zheng gege?"
Several little girls inside the hall stared at him with wide eyes, curiously sizing him up.
Last night, their parents wouldn't shut up about how amazing Xu Zheng was, and now they'd dragged them over here in person.
If the milk tea here wasn't so damn good, and the food wasn't to die for, they wouldn't have bothered sticking around.
But now that they saw him in person—this Xu Zheng guy was... adorable.
Cuter than most girls, honestly.
Maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing to be friends.
Meanwhile, a few older girls seated nearby had clearly come for a different reason.
They'd heard the rumors: Wanmin Hall had a new "little hottie" hanging around.
They'd been camped out for ages, already on their third round of milk tea.
But damn, the tea was worth it. And the little guy?
Even better.
They were practically itching to pull him into their arms and squish those cheeks like mochi.
"Oops, sorry, wrong place," Xu Zheng said, quickly backpedaling.
"S-Stay! Don't go!!"
The older girls were visibly panicking—they weren't done feasting their eyes yet!
But Xu Zheng had already turned and bolted for the door, fleeing the estrogen-soaked battlefield.
Wham!
He ran straight into someone and knocked them over.
A girl in a cropped outfit and bright red cap was now sprawled on the ground.
Yanfei.
Xu Zheng rubbed his head and silently judged: someone really needs to get her on a meal plan.
That was zero damage absorption. Seriously? Where was the meat cushion? Where was the bounce?
"Xu Zheng, what the heck?!"
Yanfei huffed, pouting as she pushed herself up.
She'd only come because Xu Zheng asked her to help start a newspaper. She'd shown up out of the goodness of her heart, and this was the thanks she got?
No milk tea. No snacks. And now he'd flattened her like a pancake.
And worst of all—he even looked disgusted after landing on her?
She was cute, okay!? Other people would pay to fall into her arms!
Hmph!
"I'm so sorry, Yanfei-jiejie. I didn't see you there."
Xu Zheng bowed slightly in apology. He had been the one not looking where he was going, after all.
Yanfei's face lit up like a lantern festival.
He… he called her jiejie!
She tried to stay mad. She really did. But how was she supposed to stay mad when he was this cute?
Eula, who had arrived with her, covered her mouth, fighting the urge to burst into laughter.
Yanfei was so easy to manipulate.
Still, this was funny enough to warrant revenge.
"Xu Zheng, are those your friends?" Eula gestured toward the crowd of tiny girls still peeking from behind the tables.
"Uh, no. Not at all," he quickly denied.
Eula chuckled. "Speaking of little kids, the Spark Knight Klee in the Knights of Favonius is about your age. You two might actually get along."
Klee…
That little hand grenade with legs.
If she ever came to Liyue, she'd be followed by a trail of glowing explosions and frantic Qianyan soldiers.
Honestly, Xu Zheng wouldn't mind meeting her… just not inside Wanmin Hall.
The last thing he needed was for this place to get "Klee'd."
"What do you want to eat, Eula-jiejie? I'll cook for you myself."
His relationship with Eula was complicated.
Back when he first started playing Genshin, she was his featured banner—he saved up everything for her.
Seventy pulls later, what did he get?
Diluc.
Talk about trauma.
"I'll take a blueberry milkshake and a bubble tea," Eula said after scanning the menu.
"Got it."
Yanfei, still standing there, practically glowed with anticipation.
Then watched in stunned silence as Xu Zheng turned and walked off—without asking what she wanted.
"Hmph! I'm not hungry! Forget it!" she huffed, arms crossed.
"Alright, go have a seat," Eula said kindly, her smile tinged with amusement.
Yanfei acted like such a kid around Xu Zheng.
In the back, Xu Zheng finally remembered: oh crap, he forgot to ask Yanfei what she wanted to eat.
He'd been too busy thinking about Klee.
But… she didn't say anything either, so maybe she really wasn't hungry?
Could be she was on a diet. Best not to press.
When the drinks were ready, Xu Zheng chose the prettiest containers and brought them out.
"Here you go."
He placed the order in front of Eula.
Eula blinked at him and gave a few deliberate winks.
Xu Zheng paused. Wait… was that a signal?
Did she mean she wanted more?
Was that her way of saying, "This isn't enough, but I'm too proud to admit it"?
With newfound understanding, Xu Zheng turned back to the kitchen to make a second serving.
Yanfei's eyes widened, watching him leave.
Eula facepalmed, inwardly sighing, I tried to help you, girl, but this man is dense beyond salvation.
"I'll take you somewhere really beautiful after we eat," Yanfei said, still glaring daggers at the kitchen.
"…Weren't you supposed to talk to him about starting that newspaper?" Eula muttered.
Yanfei, however, was too grumpy to care.
Moments later, Xu Zheng returned with a second tray of food.
Yanfei's eyes lit up—finally!
Then he placed the dish down and said, "Made a little extra. You can have it, Eula-jiejie."
Yanfei and Eula were seated side by side.
Naturally, Yanfei assumed he was speaking to her.
"I said I'm not hungry. I'm not eating. No thanks."
Too late. You missed your window. I'm not playing this game anymore.
Grrrrrrrgle.
Her stomach betrayed her with a loud rumble.
Eula kept her smile, but internally she was dying of secondhand embarrassment.
Xu Zheng raised an eyebrow.
"Yanfei… auntie? Want some?"
Yanfei's face flushed bright red.
Kill me now.
She wanted to crawl under the table and recite the Liyue Legal Codex backward just to recover her dignity.
"Put it down. Go do your thing," Eula said smoothly, stepping in to change the subject.
Yanfei looked at her with stars in her eyes.
Good friend. Solid wingwoman.
But that damn Xu Zheng…
Called her auntie again.
She swore one day she'd find a clause in the Liyue Codex to legally punish this brat.