"Is that shop owner misunderstanding something?" Ganyu glanced at her and whispered to Ryou.
"Misunderstanding?" Ryou smiled. "You think so?"
"Isn't she?" Ganyu tilted her head at him. When she saw him grinning, she reached over and pinched his waist.
"Ow!" Ryou caught her hand and gave it a light squeeze. "Hey—don't copy Keqing."
"Ganyu, you're getting a bit bold lately."
"Nonsense! I'm not being bold!" Ganyu snapped—then immediately went red when she realised how he was holding her hand.
Noticing people looking over, she hurried closer to him and whispered, "Stop it. Everyone's staring. If Keqing sees, it'll be bad."
"Oh, now you're scared?" Ryou laughed at her.
"You—Keqing was right. You really are a bad man. All you do is bully people!" Ganyu puffed her cheeks and tried to yank her hand away.
"Ganyu, that's a baseless accusation," Ryou said, not only refusing to let go, but tugging her even closer.
"Mm… what are you doing?" Ganyu's face burned.
She was right up against him now.
Even her breathing turned heavier. When she met his mischievous smile, she seemed to understand what he was implying.
So she lifted her chin, pecked his lips, and instantly pulled back. "There. Happy now?"
Ryou: ???
Was that what I meant?
We're outside—how are you kissing me out here? Are you addicted now? And there are people everywhere!
"Stop kissing!" Ryou quickly let go of her. "We're in public!"
The shop owner might be from Inazuma, but plenty of customers here could recognize them. If rumors spread, it would be a problem.
Except… something felt off.
Because no one around them seemed to be reacting at all. Everyone was just minding their own business.
"Relax," Ganyu whispered. "I used adeptal power to cover this little area. They won't notice anything."
Ryou finally understood. No wonder nobody was looking at them strangely.
He glanced at Ganyu again.
She's kind of… wicked, isn't she? She almost scared him to death just now.
"Don't worry," Ganyu murmured, hugging him. "Until Keqing agrees, I won't let her discover anything between us."
"And I know Keqing. You can't rush her—you have to take it slow and ease her into it."
"Once we're even closer, I'll bring it up. And with how badly you've been bullying her… if I speak up, she'll definitely agree."
Ganyu's soft scent and warmth pressed against him, and Ryou's thoughts immediately started wandering.
But he forced himself to calm down.
He knew Keqing. Getting her to agree wouldn't be easy at all.
Sure, if Ganyu pulled it off, he'd be living the dream—left and right, making everyone jealous.
But if they failed and it got exposed… he'd lose everything at once.
So he kept his mouth shut.
Ryou turned his head toward Ganyu, remembering the first time he'd seen her in his home.
His gaze drifted—then settled on her lips.
His heart thumped hard.
What would it feel like, kissing those perfect lips properly?
"Stop staring. Keqing's coming out." Ganyu gave him a push.
She'd noticed him looking for a while, and it amused her.
They hadn't really been intimate before—she was always the one kissing him.
Now this guy clearly wanted to, but he was too timid to make a move.
If Keqing had taken longer, Ganyu might've actually let him taste it.
But they were outside, there were too many eyes, and Keqing was about to come out. No point taking the risk.
Ryou snapped back to his senses and walked over to Keqing. "How was it?"
"It fits… mostly." Keqing's face was burning. She could feel people glancing her way.
"This way, miss," the shop owner said, taking the outfit back. "I'll wrap it up for you. Come with me."
"Okay." Keqing nodded.
At the counter, Keqing noticed Ryou picking out more clothes while Ganyu stood nearby, looking at a light green dress with clear interest.
The shop owner hesitated, then leaned closer. "Miss… there's something I'm not sure I should say."
"What is it?" Keqing asked.
"Don't take this the wrong way, but… that man's character isn't good. You should divorce him sooner rather than later," the shop owner said, dead serious.
Keqing froze, staring at her in disbelief.
You're saying Ryou has bad character?
She'd tried to set Ryou and Ganyu up countless times.
They'd even been alone together more than once, and he still resisted the temptation and came straight home to her.
Since marrying him, Keqing had barely seen him interact with other women at all.
In Keqing's eyes, Ryou was practically a saint. Sure, he liked women—but all that interest was poured onto her.
"Boss, you don't understand my husband," Keqing said calmly. "He's a very good man. You probably misunderstood."
"Or… did you see something?"
The shop owner lowered her voice. "I saw him buy clothes for that lady…"
Keqing blinked, then looked at Ganyu, her mind racing.
Is he finally going to make a move?
But then she remembered the pattern—every time she assumed something happened, it turned out to be nothing.
And Keqing trusted Ryou's character more than anyone by now.
After thinking it through, she felt it was probably just another misunderstanding.
Maybe he bought Ganyu a dress and didn't tell Keqing because he didn't want her to overthink it.
"I understand," Keqing said, giving a small nod.
"I'm telling you, I've seen plenty of men like that," the shop owner insisted. "You're so beautiful—you can have anyone you want. A man like him—"
Keqing's eyes flicked up, and her tone turned casual. "You work for the Ministry of Civil Affairs?"
"Huh?" The shop owner stiffened.
A tall young woman walked over, smiling. "Keqing-sama! What a coincidence. I'm with the Ministry of Civil Affairs—today's my day off, so I came out to buy something. I didn't expect to run into you here."
"Keqing…?" The shop owner stared. "You're… someone important?"
"Ryou-sama!" the tall woman called out again, then noticed Ganyu and went wide-eyed. "Ganyu-sama is here too? Wait…"
"Aren't you and Ryou-sama supposed to be at Yujing Terrace handling work?"
Ryou glanced at her. "We're off today."
"And I remember you," he added. "You're the one who said you'd handle a hundred files in seven days."
"Zhongli registered it for you. You've been processing over ten documents a day. You're really capable."
Keqing looked impressed. "So the Ministry produced a talent like this."
"You flatter me, Ryou-sama," the tall woman said, embarrassed.
"Being capable is a good thing," Ryou said with a wave of his hand. "Since we ran into each other… I'll gift you an outfit today. Go pick one. I'll pay."
"Huh? Really?" Her face lit up.
"Go on." Ryou smiled.
"Thank you, Ryou-sama! Thank you, Keqing-sama!" She nearly bounced away as she rushed off to pick something.
The shop owner was completely stunned now.
But the moment she heard "Yujing Terrace" and "Ministry of Civil Affairs," she realized these people were absolutely not ordinary.
"I—I'm so sorry, my lady," the shop owner rushed out. "But what I said earlier… I meant every word!"
"Every word?" Ryou turned toward her.
"T-That…" The shop owner hesitated, not daring to continue.
"Say it," Ryou said calmly.
Keqing cut in before the poor woman could panic. "Alright, don't make it hard for her."
"She just saw you buy Ganyu a dress. I know you didn't tell me because you were afraid I'd overthink it."
"I trust your character. Don't take it to heart."
"Ah…" Ryou coughed. "So that's what this was."
He didn't explain further.
That dress was… admittedly provocative. If Keqing had seen it clearly, she definitely would've started imagining things.
Ganyu silently exhaled in relief.
Good thing she'd hidden their little corner earlier. If the owner had actually seen her kissing Ryou, this wouldn't have ended so neatly.
Yeah… being outside was dangerous. She needed to be more careful.
"I won't hide it next time," Ryou said, pulling Keqing closer. "I saw Ganyu looking jealous, so I picked out a dress for her."
"I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to overthink it."
"And besides, didn't you say before you wanted me and Ganyu to—"
"Stop." Keqing cut him off instantly.
Ganyu looked stunned, and Keqing's heart jumped.
If you keep talking, you'll ruin everything. She'll think I don't want you two around each other, and that wrecks my whole plan.
Keqing forced a smile and turned to Ganyu. "Don't listen to him. He's overthinking."
"I actually want you two to interact more."
"Yujing Terrace has a lot you need to handle, and he can help you sometimes."
"And we're close like sisters. What's wrong with seeing each other more? I trust him, and I trust you."
"So that's what you meant…" Ganyu finally relaxed.
Keqing's words had scared her for a second. She thought Keqing didn't want her near Ryou.
The shop owner listened to them and didn't dare say another word.
In her mind, that dress for Ganyu was far too suggestive. There was no way she believed the two of them were "just friends."
But now that she knew who they were, she definitely wasn't going to invite trouble by saying it aloud.
While they were talking, the tall woman came back holding an outfit. "Ryou-sama…"
"Boss," Ryou said to the shop owner, "just total everything up. Whatever it is, I'll pay."
"Alright." The shop owner gave him the amount.
Ryou paid, then led them out.
They'd only bought two outfits here, but it was enough.
The tall woman had good instincts—she thanked them again and hurried off.
After that, Ryou took Keqing and Ganyu to a few more shops, buying several more outfits—some for Keqing, and a few for Ganyu as well.
Once they were done, he brought them to Yujing Terrace Square.
The moment they arrived, Ryou spotted two people by the railing in the distance, talking.
One of them was Zhongli.
And the other…
Was Ryou's father.
[End of chapter]
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