Now that Qiqi no longer worried about being blown away by the wind, she let go of Fang Xun and Ganyu's hands and ran ahead by herself.
At that moment, little Qiqi's attention had been caught by the crystalflies beside a tree.
Even at night, the crystalflies gave off a gentle glow.
Little Qiqi thought the glowing butterflies were beautiful, so she took off on her short little legs, trying to catch one.
Though Qiqi focused all her attention on catching the crystalflies, her little legs couldn't jump very high, and she missed again and again.
A short distance behind Qiqi,
Fang Xun and Ganyu walked side by side at an unhurried pace.
Both wore faint smiles, finding the little girl sweet and adorable.
From a distance, they really looked like a family of three out for a walk. There was certainly a sense of happiness and contentment about them.
But if you watched them for long enough, something seemed a little strange.
The atmosphere was simply too quiet.
Not a single person spoke the whole time; the only sound was the faint chirping of cicadas in the woods.
Qiqi was completely focused on catching crystalflies, so naturally she had no time to talk.
And Ganyu was even less likely to speak.
She had never been good at conversation, like a shy little girl.
After a brief silence, Fang Xun was finally the one to break it.
He glanced at Ganyu beside him and asked curiously, "Miss Ganyu, what made you decide to come help out at the Guili Plains tonight?"
As far as Fang Xun could tell,
Ganyu was secretary to all of Liyue, and had an extremely busy workload to deal with every day.
Building a village in the Guili Plains was just a small matter, and the Millelith were more than enough to handle it.
So why had Ganyu come all the way out here herself?
Fang Xun couldn't figure it out, so he voiced his confusion.
"Actually... I came to the Guili Plains because my master, Cloud Retainer, told me repeatedly to come help out more during this time."
Ganyu was an honest, straightforward girl who couldn't tell a lie.
When Fang Xun asked, she answered him plainly and truthfully.
Soon,
Ganyu told Fang Xun everything Cloud Retainer had said that night.
Hearing it all, Fang Xun couldn't help but remark, "I didn't realize Cloud Retainer knew so much about what happened that night."
"She really is an adeptus. She notices every little change in Liyue right away."
That night, Fang Xun had been focused on Little Ningguang.
He honestly had no idea when Cloud Retainer had arrived or when she had left.
Was that what Liyue's adepti were like?
Coming and going without a sound.
As Fang Xun mused over it, something else struck him as odd.
"Even if Cloud Retainer wanted the village finished sooner, she didn't need to specifically assign Miss Ganyu to come, did she? Someone else could have done the job just as well."
"Did Cloud Retainer have some other plan in mind?"
At Fang Xun's question, a faint blush rose across Ganyu's delicate face.
She replied nervously and bashfully, "Because... because Cloud Retainer... hopes that Mister Fang Xun and I can be together."
Ganyu's voice grew softer and softer, until it was barely audible.
Her face grew redder by the moment, and even her fair neck flushed.
After all, Ganyu and Fang Xun had only met recently.
They didn't know each other very well yet; they were only new friends.
And yet Cloud Retainer wanted to bring them together. It was only natural that Ganyu felt embarrassed.
Fang Xun was completely stunned.
Cloud Retainer hoped he and Ganyu would get together?
What was that about?
He barely even knew Cloud Retainer.
And yet, despite that, she was already setting them up?
Fang Xun had no idea why Cloud Retainer was doing this.
But he had to say, Cloud Retainer was someone he could count on.
When it came to matchmaking, she really did pitch in.
Fang Xun suddenly felt as if happiness had fallen into his lap out of nowhere.
He'd been wondering how to raise Ganyu's affection for him.
After all, Ganyu was an introverted girl who took time to warm up to people.
But now that Cloud Retainer was acting as his wingwoman,
things had suddenly become much easier.
Of course, Fang Xun wasn't going to use Cloud Retainer's matchmaking to pressure Ganyu.
That would only make her uncomfortable.
He and Ganyu had only known each other a short while, and at most, they were friends.
If they really wanted to be together, they first had to build a connection.
Looking at Ganyu, who seemed flustered and unsure what to do, Fang Xun smiled gently and said, "Miss Ganyu, you don't need to put so much pressure on yourself. Just follow your heart."
"Whether we end up together or not isn't what matters."
"What matters is that you're happy, right?"
"We can take our time and start as friends. Once we've spent more time together, I think you'll know how you feel."
Fang Xun took a step back to move forward.
He wasn't going to force Ganyu to make a choice right now.
There was plenty of time for them to get to know each other.
For someone like Ganyu, who took a while to warm up, it was the best way to handle things.
Ganyu's beautiful eyes shimmered as she carefully considered what Fang Xun had said.
After a moment, she said gratefully, "Thank you, Mister Fang Xun. This question had been bothering me for a while, and I couldn't find a way to resolve it."
"But after hearing what you said, I feel like I've found the answer."
"I don't need to force myself to make a choice. I can just leave everything to time."
Ganyu hadn't known how to face Fang Xun.
But his easygoing and gentle nature had touched her heart.
"Ding! Ganyu's affection has increased from Level 1 to Level 2!"
"Obtained one Intertwined Fate and, as a bonus, two bottles of 'Warm Coconut Milk.'"
Just then, the system's notification sounded in Fang Xun's mind.
Clearly, what Fang Xun had said had eased Ganyu's anxiety and earned her approval.
That was why her affection had increased.
Soon, Fang Xun opened his inventory and looked at the coconut milk.
Hadn't Qiqi been wanting to drink coconut milk all along?
Now he could finally grant her wish.
It wasn't fresh coconut milk, but it was better than nothing.
He'd have to let the child make do for now; she could drink fresh coconut milk next time.
While Ganyu and Qiqi weren't paying attention, Fang Xun took a bottle of coconut milk out of his pocket dimension.
Fang Xun handed the still-warm coconut milk to Qiqi.
Qiqi had been busy catching crystalflies,
but the moment the little girl saw the coconut milk in Fang Xun's hand, she stopped moving.
Her pink eyes fixed on the coconut milk, filled with delight.
"This is... coconut milk..."
Fang Xun crouched down and handed the bottle to Qiqi.
"Qiqi, here's the coconut milk I promised you."
Qiqi hugged the bottle to her chest as if she had received a precious treasure.
She looked up at Fang Xun and said earnestly, "Qiqi likes... coconut milk..."
"And likes... Fang Xun..."
Just then, the system sounded in Fang Xun's mind once more.
"Ding! Qiqi's affection has increased from Level 1 to Level 2. Obtained one Intertwined Fate and, as a bonus, one 'Return Saint Talisman'!"
In a short time, Fang Xun had increased the affection of two female characters.
He'd obtained two Intertwined Fates in total.
On top of that, he'd also gotten a 'Return Saint Talisman,'
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