The plan Eula and Xia Zhi had come up with didn't actually require Barbatos to show up in person, but it did rely on the Anemo Archon's immense prestige in Mondstadt to turn the tide.
After all, that Anemo Vision wasn't truly granted by the Archon. It was a "fake" Xia Zhi had prepared.
That was why he'd messaged Venti in advance—to give him a heads-up.
The price? Ten bottles of Rainbow Wine, in exchange for Venti pretending not to notice anything tomorrow.
Though honestly, knowing Venti's nosy personality, he'd probably show up at the trial just to watch the spectacle anyway.
With that thought, Xia Zhi put his phone away, swept the counterfeit Visions off the table, and stepped outside.
Inside the tavern.
Venti set his phone down, a strange grin spreading across his face.
Beside him, Azhdaha tilted his head. "What is it? Who messaged you?"
"My dear friend," Venti said with a chuckle.
"Mr. Xia? Or Morax?" Azhdaha asked curiously.
"Morax? Don't start rumors. My only dear friend right now is Mr. Xia."
"…I'm not?" Azhdaha blinked.
Venti gave him a baffled look. "You can't even brew wine."
Azhdaha fell silent for a moment. "…Fair enough. So, does Mr. Xia need something from you?"
Venti swirled his cup with a sly smile. "Of course. Something important."
Azhdaha frowned, doubtful. "But aren't they busy with the pet shop today? And you can't touch cats. What could he possibly need from you?"
"Not about cats."
"Then what?"
"Remember Eula? That Cryo noble girl we saw when we were running the stall in town?" Venti asked in a low voice.
Azhdaha nodded. "I remember."
Mountain Shaper and Moon Carver, sitting at the table too, both nodded as well. "The Cryo noblewoman, right?"
Only Xiao looked confused. He'd joined them later in Mondstadt and hadn't been there for the street stall incident. After a moment's thought, he recalled spotting Eula briefly a couple of days ago while mooching food in the Serenitea Pot.
Venti quickly recapped Eula's family troubles.
"I see," Azhdaha mused. "So Mr. Xia plans to help her with this."
"Not solve it directly," Venti corrected. "Tomorrow, he intends to stage something big in the courtroom."
"Oh?"
Venti shared the message Xia Zhi had just sent.
Azhdaha's eyes lit up. "Using a Vision to turn the tables—that's clever. But since it involves your reputation, Mr. Xia just wanted to check with you first."
"Exactly."
Azhdaha eyed him. "But knowing you, you wouldn't agree so easily."
Venti smirked. "He offered ten bottles of wine."
Azhdaha slammed the table, eyes shining. "My dear friend! Well done!"
Mountain Shaper and Moon Carver exchanged looks. Their expressions were… complicated, to say the least.
Mountain Shaper looked like he wanted to say something.
Azhdaha noticed and turned. "What is it?"
Glancing around, Mountain Shaper noted the tavern was quiet—it was daytime, and few patrons were drinking. He leaned closer and whispered, "Do you remember what happened when we first arrived in Mondstadt?"
"What exactly?" Azhdaha asked.
"That morning in front of the Church of Favonius," Mountain Shaper said softly. "Mr. Xia and his companions went for breakfast. We were sitting nearby drinking. A striking blue-haired noble girl walked past…"
Recognition dawned on Azhdaha, and his expression grew amused.
"What about it?" Venti asked curiously, leaning in.
Xiao stayed quiet, listening closely.
"That girl was Eula," Mountain Shaper continued. "None of us knew her back then. But when I saw her, I had a feeling…"
"What kind of feeling?" Venti pressed.
Mountain Shaper hesitated, embarrassed.
Moon Carver cut in for him. "He said he sensed she and Mr. Xia would have an unusual connection."
"Oh?" Venti's grin widened. "And then?"
"Then we argued over it," Mountain Shaper muttered. "So Azhdaha had Moon Carver cast a divination."
"And the result?" Venti asked eagerly.
Moon Carver cleared his throat. "The omen suggested Miss Eula and Mr. Xia indeed shared… an uncommon bond."
"What does that mean exactly?"
"…If you know, you know. Let's just say it hinted at something more, but I'd rather not spell it out," Moon Carver said carefully.
"I see." Venti leaned back, looking far too entertained. "So that's why Mr. Xia's helping her. Makes sense now."
Xiao, silently listening, nodded to himself. He, too, felt like he'd just been handed some juicy gossip.
But Azhdaha wasn't finished. "That wasn't the only time."
"Oh?" Venti raised a brow.
"After that reading, we weren't fully convinced. So we asked to try again."
Venti's eyes flicked toward Mountain Shaper, who gave a strained smile.
"And?"
Azhdaha downed a drink. "This time, he pointed to another girl in the square. Said she and Mr. Xia would also have an unusual connection. Moon Carver divined again—and the result agreed."
Venti leaned forward eagerly. "And who was this other girl?"
Azhdaha gave him a sly look. "Barbara."
Venti froze, his expression turning grave. "That's my devoted, precious little follower. She's worked tirelessly to spread my faith. I value her deeply!"
Xiao's eyes widened slightly. More gossip. Even better.
"So?" Azhdaha prompted.
Venti straightened, voice solemn. "That calls for more wine."
Azhdaha almost choked. "Cough—! You truly are my dearest friend!"
Venti sighed into his cup, looking uncharacteristically wistful.
Moon Carver's reading had shown possibilities. But possibilities weren't certainties.
Nothing had actually happened yet.
So he couldn't use this as an excuse to beg Mr. Xia for more alcohol. And of course, he wasn't the kind of god who'd trade his believers away for wine.
Barbara was… a special case.
And Xia Zhi wasn't the type to scheme about luring her away. If anything, Venti suspected Barbara would be the one chasing him—and with Jean quietly helping from behind the scenes.
If the sky wants to rain, and believers want to fall in love… what could he do?
At most, stockpile more wine to soften the blow.
Azhdaha clapped him on the shoulder in sympathy.
After all, hadn't he watched Cloud Retainer and Madame Ping grow up? And Ganyu wasn't much different either.
Mountain Shaper and Moon Carver exchanged glances, the same thought flashing through their eyes.
Yaoyao, so sweet and earnest… Xiangling too… even Yanfei… sigh.
Venti raised his cup. "Let's all go watch the trial tomorrow."
They clinked glasses, sighing together. "Agreed."
Xiao hesitated, confused by the collective gloom. But he drank along anyway.
Xia Zhi, of course, knew nothing of the tavern talk.
That morning, after finalizing plans with Eula, he joined in on recruitment.
Because the wages he'd set were so generous for Mondstadt, plenty of young women had come to apply.
They needed three positions:
First, tavern servers—cleaning, carrying drinks, handling payments. Easy work.
Second, cat caretakers—feeding, bathing, overseeing adoptions. More demanding, requiring some animal experience.
Third, bartenders—the toughest and highest-paid role, mixing quality drinks for patrons.
Rosaria, as manager, handled the first two.
Diona, co-owner of the Pet Tavern, oversaw the bartenders.
Seeing Rosaria had family helping, but Diona was swamped alone, Xia Zhi went over to lend a hand.
"Boss!" she called.
"Find anyone?"
"Only one so far."
"Just one? That bad?"
"Well, Mondstadt's full of taverns. Most skilled bartenders are already hired. Our pay is good, sure, but bartenders usually earn through commission, so other taverns offer decent income too. Plus, we're only hiring young women, which makes it even tougher."
"Got it. Leave it to me. We'll find the right people. After all, we'll provide recipes here, so they don't need special skills—just good character."
"Exactly!" Diona nodded.
By the end of the day, they'd filled every spot.
That evening, Xia Zhi treated the new staff to a celebratory dinner, then had uniforms custom-made. Training tomorrow, grand opening the day after.
Later that night, Xia Zhi called Jean.
She was still in her office, working late. Though her tone brightened when she heard his voice, fatigue seeped through.
"Mr. Xia, what's the matter?"
"It's about Miss Eula."
"Oh. She already told me this afternoon—she'll testify against her uncle tomorrow."
"She also plans to sever ties with her clan in court."
"What?!"
"She didn't mention that?"
"No… she only said she'd testify. Cutting ties entirely… I know she's at odds with her family, but isn't that too…" Jean's voice was lined with concern.
"Don't worry, Captain Jean. She's not reckless. If she's chosen this path, it's because she's thought it through."
"You sound like you know more than you're saying."
"…A little."
"And you won't tell me?"
"I wanted to. But it seems Miss Eula prefers you not know. All I can say is there's no need to worry. If you really want answers, ask her directly."
"…I understand."
When the call ended, Jean sat back in her chair, thoughtful.
When had Eula grown so close to Mr. Xia?
It was better Jean knew.
Setting the phone aside, Xia Zhi pulled out pen and paper. He reviewed the Lawrence clan's history and Schubert Lawrence's record, then began writing.
When he finished, he read it over. Stirring, bold—good enough.
A knock came. His cousins, Xia Ci and Xia Zhen, stepped in.
"I saw Eula earlier looking relieved," Xia Ci said. "So you worked things out?"
Xia Zhi hadn't hidden the matter from them, so naturally they were eager to join the fun.
He nodded. "We're set."
"Which plan?" Xia Zhen asked.
"The Vision plan."
"Pity," she said. "I still think the divine punishment plan was better. One thunderbolt from the sky, fry that traitor on the spot. No trial needed."
Xia Zhi sighed. "This is Mondstadt, not Inazuma."
"Well, when we get to Inazuma," Xia Ci teased, "you can try divine punishment there. The Tri-Commission is full of pests anyway. But seriously—you weren't this bloodthirsty before. Why the sudden urge to smite everyone?"
Xia Zhen shrugged. "Lightning, rain—it's all the gods' blessing. I've already died once. A little shift in personality is normal."
Xia Zhi gave her a long, thoughtful look.
Meanwhile, Xia Ci had picked up the paper on the table. "This is the script you wrote for Eula?"
"Yeah. Thoughts?"
"Feels… a bit flat."
"Let me see." Xia Zhen leaned in too.
Pressed on both sides, Xia Zhi caught the faint scents of grass and cherry blossoms mingling together. Pleasant, distracting.
Xia Ci's eyes glinted. "Cousin, let me rewrite it."
"Go ahead," Xia Zhi said casually.
Wisdom goddess, after all—editing speeches should be child's play.
"I'm done!"
He scanned her changes, his expression turning odd.
"…You really rewrote it like this?"
"Well?"
"…It'll do."