Because the sun was at its strongest point of the day,
Qiqi was a zombie and needed to live in a cold, dim environment.
When sunlight fell on her, it made her feel awful.
"Qiqi... feels bad..."
Fang Xun had noticed that something was wrong with Qiqi, so he immediately said, "Qiqi, your constitution is special. You can't be out in direct sunlight. You need to rest somewhere shady."
As he spoke, Fang Xun turned to Ningguang. "Ningguang, take Qiqi to rest under a shady tree. You two should both take a break."
"Little Ningguang has been climbing mountains with me all day, so you've worked hard too. You should rest as well."
Ningguang shook her head. "Ningguang can take Qiqi to rest, but Ningguang can't rest."
"Because Ningguang isn't tired. Ningguang can keep working."
Little Ningguang's thinking was simple.
As Fang Xun's secretary,
if Fang Xun wasn't taking a break, how could she?
That would be far too irresponsible.
"Ningguang will take Qiqi to rest under the tree first, then come back and keep everyone on track."
"Since Brother Fang Xun entrusted Ningguang with building the new house, Ningguang doesn't want to disappoint him."
That was right—
building a new house.
Since the village was going to rebuild its homes,
Fang Xun thought he might as well build a house here too.
After all, buying property was a long-term investment for a businessman.
Besides, looking ahead,
Fang Xun would be visiting several nations in the future, including Mondstadt, Inazuma, and Sumeru,
so it would naturally be good to acquire more properties.
The task of building the new house had fallen to Ningguang.
The workers would handle the construction, while Ningguang would offer suggestions along the way.
This was also a way to help Ningguang grow.
Fang Xun hadn't been in any rush to build a new house,
but he hadn't expected Little Ningguang to take it so seriously.
It touched him a little.
He hadn't doted on the little girl for nothing.
Just then, Qiqi's weak voice came from beside them.
"The sun... makes Qiqi feel bad,"
"But... Qiqi can endure it..."
"Qiqi wants to help too..."
Little Qiqi looked miserable, cold sweat beading on her forehead.
But even in that state, Qiqi still chose not to rest.
The only reason was that she'd learned Fang Xun was going to build a new house,
and she wanted to help him.
Looking at the two little girls before him,
Fang Xun felt deeply moved.
He knew Ningguang was stubborn and always strived for perfection.
Since Ningguang had made up her mind, she must have a plan,
and Fang Xun couldn't very well keep trying to talk her out of it. He couldn't hold back Ningguang's growth.
As for Qiqi, she was kindhearted,
always putting other people's feelings first.
She didn't mind even if she was the one who suffered.
She was such a silly little darling.
She'd rather endure the discomfort than miss the chance to help Fang Xun.
Fang Xun couldn't bring himself to refuse Qiqi's kindness either.
In the end,
he could only agree to the two girls' request.
"Ningguang, make sure you talk with the villagers,"
"and be bold about putting your ideas into practice. Just don't push yourself too hard. Your health comes first. If you feel unwell, go rest. Understand?"
Ningguang had been worried that Fang Xun wouldn't agree.
When he nodded, Little Ningguang was overjoyed.
"Got it, Brother Fang Xun! I'll go over there now!"
Little Ningguang waved goodbye to Fang Xun, then started discussing the details of the construction with the villagers.
Ningguang really did look like a little grown-up now.
She was able to share her ideas,
and what was more, they were so good that everyone was convinced.
Her extraordinary talent for command, the very thing that had earned her the title of Tianquan Star, was on full display.
Next, Fang Xun turned to Qiqi.
Little Qiqi lifted her pretty face, her big, watery eyes full of anticipation.
She was waiting for Fang Xun to assign her a task.
"As for Qiqi, your constitution is special, so I'm not going to give you any specific job."
"Just make sure you don't work under the sun."
"In short, only work as long as you're feeling all right. Understand?"
Fang Xun was still a little worried about Qiqi. Given her zombie constitution, he decided to start her off with some simple tasks.
"Qiqi... understands..."
Little Qiqi obediently nodded, then looked around to see where she could work.
Before long, Qiqi's gaze settled on the tree-cutting.
That spot was out of the sunlight, and cutting trees was an important part of building the new house.
Once she had a clear goal, Qiqi hurried off on her short little legs.
At that moment,
the villager cutting down trees was the village blacksmith.
Chopping trees was hard work that most people couldn't handle, so it had naturally fallen to the blacksmith.
When he saw Qiqi approach, the blacksmith was curious. "Little Qiqi, what are you doing here?"
Qiqi looked up and answered honestly,
"Qiqi... wants to help Fang Xun..."
"Qiqi... can chop trees..."
Since Qiqi was a zombie, she was stronger than ordinary people.
Even when facing a group of Treasure Hoarders, she could easily take them on by herself.
Chopping trees was an easy task for her.
However, the blacksmith didn't know that.
When he heard Qiqi's answer, he couldn't help laughing.
"Little Qiqi, I understand that you want to help."
"But you're so tiny and skinny. You don't have much strength."
"Chopping trees takes a lot of muscle. Take this big tree, for example. Even I have to use all my strength and chop for ages."
"Little girl, if you were to try, I reckon..."
The blacksmith was about to say that Qiqi probably wouldn't manage to chop through it even after three days.
But Qiqi felled the tree with a single swing of her axe.
"Is this how you do it?"
Qiqi looked up at the blacksmith.
The blacksmith: "???"
So many question marks. Did you have any friends?
Qiqi looked so tiny and skinny, so why was she so strong?
Did this make him, a blacksmith, look kind of dim?
Before the blacksmith could react, Qiqi had already grabbed her axe and dashed into the woods.
Before you continue