After a little while, Yucheng finally got used to their group and stopped dwelling on Zhongli holding his own funeral. Zhongli had just threatened him with a look, forbidding him from revealing his identity ahead of time.
Lumine briefly explained how she and Zhongli were organizing the Rite of Parting. When Yucheng heard that Tartaglia was covering all the expenses, he suddenly smiled. "In that case, I happen to have nothing to do. Could I join you for a while?"
"No problem. We're just about to visit Jade Mystery to find the finest Noctilucous Jade. Come take a look with us."
When they arrived at Jade Mystery, its owner noticed that most of them were outlanders and immediately came over to pitch his jade-gambling business.
But when Zhongli said he wanted Illuminated Beast-tier Noctilucous Jade, the owner immediately took three crates of already-cut Noctilucous Jade from the shelves. They all looked excellent, but they had no idea how to tell which ones met the Illuminated Beast-tier standard.
"Zhongli, which kind do you think we should choose?"
"If you ask me, the answer is quite simple. Shopkeeper, I'll take them all."
The owner of Jade Mystery grinned so widely his mouth almost split. He hurriedly replied, "Certainly! Sir, I could tell from the start that you were a man of distinction. You truly are generous."
"Huh? Wait a moment, shopkeeper. What he just said doesn't count. Let us discuss it first. If the ceremony only needs one kind, wouldn't buying them all mean wasting three times the Mora?"
"Mora? Ah, indeed. That aspect slipped my mind just now. I failed to consider it thoroughly. However, if one must consider Mora before doing anything, that is tantamount to letting Mora tie one's hands and feet in everything."
"Uh, I don't get it. Yucheng, what do you suggest?"
"Me? My suggestion is actually the same as Mr. Zhongli's, because we aren't the ones paying. Didn't you just say that Childe is covering all the expenses this time? Paimon, don't you have quite a prejudice against the Fatui? Why save them money?"
"Uh, that makes a lot of sense, but wasting Mora like this still feels so wrong."
"I heard that Northland Bank belongs to Pantalone, the Ninth of the Fatui Harbingers. He could be called one of the three richest people in Teyvat. If you try to save him money, he might even complain that you're wasting his time."
"Huh! Now I suddenly feel so annoyed. Shopkeeper, I'll take all this Noctilucous Jade."
"Certainly! This young patron is very generous too."
Since they bought three whole crates of top-quality Noctilucous Jade at once, the price exceeded even the funds Tartaglia had advanced them. With no other choice, they could only write up a bill and send it to Northland Bank.
They handled the subsequent Silk Flowers, perfumes, kite-making, and hired help in exactly the same way. It had to be said that although shopping like this was terribly extravagant, it really was satisfying. Most importantly, the money they spent wasn't their own.
Using someone else's money to shop for your own affairs could be summed up in just one word: great, great, great, great, great!
When Childe, Tartaglia, later heard about this, he was extremely displeased, but he ultimately put up with it. It was only a little money, a trivial matter. Most importantly, it wasn't his money either. It was Pantalone's.
"Next, we need Ethereal Fragrance. We'll have to visit Bubu Pharmacy."
"Oh? Bubu Pharmacy? That happens to be my turf. Let me lead the way."
"Your turf? Come to think of it, we still don't know what you do, Yucheng. You don't look like you have much money, but your job seems pretty leisurely."
"Me? My current role in Liyue is Bubu Pharmacy's exclusive herb gatherer."
"An herb gatherer? An exclusive one? What does that mean?"
"It means I can only sell the herbs I gather to Bubu Pharmacy, not to other pharmacies. Bubu Pharmacy also pays twenty or thirty percent below market price, but in exchange, they pay me an additional stipend for my efforts. It's paid monthly, regardless of whether I gather any herbs that month."
"I see. Then why have you been staying in the city instead of gathering herbs?"
"Because herbs need time to grow too. I already made a full circuit of Liyue before, and now there are basically no valuable, hard-to-gather herbs left. Making a gathering trip takes time and effort without earning much, so I've entered my downtime."
"Oh, so that's how it is. With your connections, do you think Bubu Pharmacy could give us a discount?"
"Even if they could, I wouldn't ask for one. How about we have my boss quote a high price and split the difference?"
"Uh, Yucheng, isn't that pretty underhanded?"
"Is it? I was thinking of treating you to a feast once it was done!"
"I'm in! I'm in! Let's hurry over."
They arrived at Bubu Pharmacy together, but at that moment, there was no one in sight.
"Excuse me-is the owner here?"
"Welcome." A voice rang out unexpectedly, but none of them could see its owner.
"It seems to have come from the counter."
Yucheng stepped forward with a smile. "Hello, Qiqi. Do you still remember me?"
A little head popped up from behind the counter. Only then did the others realize that there was a little girl behind it. She was simply shorter than the counter, and the clothes she wore were rather strange.
"You're... Yucheng. That's wonderful. I still remember you."
"Let me introduce her. This is Qiqi, Bubu Pharmacy's young herb gatherer, and also my herb-gathering guide. She was the one who took me out to gather herbs when I first started."
"Welcome to Bubu Pharmacy. I'm Qiqi. Qiqi has already... died once. Later... an adeptus saved me. So I'm... a zombie."
"As expected of a land with a god. She said something unbelievable so matter-of-factly."
"Young... lady, may I ask whether this shop sells Ethereal Fragrance?"
"May I ask... a prescription. Did you... bring a prescription?"
"Well... surely buying Ethereal Fragrance doesn't require a prescription? It has nothing to do with treating an illness. We don't have a prescription, but we'd like you to help us find Ethereal Fragrance."
"That's fine. But... you also have to... help Qiqi. That's only fair."
"What do you need us to help you with, then?"
"Then please... go to Mt. Tianheng... and use the Guizhong Ballista... to hunt the Cocogoat."
Now it was Zhongli's turn to be dumbfounded. He knew about the Guizhong Ballista, a kind of ballista Cloud Retainer had made back then. It could automatically engage enormous monsters and was immensely powerful. But what in the world was a Cocogoat? How had he lived for over six thousand years without ever hearing of it?
But this little girl, Qiqi, had provided the Cocogoat's location, the hunting equipment, and the method. She didn't seem to be lying. Could it be another name for some kind of goat on Mt. Tianheng? Yes, that was probably it. They would go to Mt. Tianheng and look first.
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