"Just remember to go. Your uncle thinks highly of you, and he's been hoping you'll help your cousin out more."
As he spoke, Ryou's father glanced at him, unhurriedly sipping his tea.
"And one more thing. Treat Keqing better. I could tell the moment she arrived. Even if it's… that, you still need to rein yourself in a little, got it?"
With his father putting it that way, Ryou didn't argue. This one really was on him.
Who was he supposed to blame when his own kidneys had gone straight to the finish line and boosted him fourfold? With that kind of firepower, Keqing genuinely couldn't handle it—holding back to forty percent still wasn't enough. He'd just been too excited yesterday and went a bit overboard.
He needed to be more careful. She was his wife, after all. If she ended up uncomfortable anywhere, that was on him.
"Understood, Father. I'll come back next time to visit," Ryou said.
"Yeah, yeah, go on. The sight of you annoys me," his father snapped. "Our family's seat among the Liyue Qixing is going to die with you. If you don't want to take it, then hurry up and leave an heir. I'll work a few more years, and when the time comes, I'll hand it straight to my grandson."
Thinking of how Ryou still hadn't agreed to become one of the Liyue Qixing, his father shot him a glare.
Ryou didn't say anything. He just turned and left.
His father watched him go, set down his teacup, and stared in that direction. In the end, he sighed.
"This kid… he really did surpass his old man. But he doesn't have a shred of ambition. Hopefully Keqing can talk some sense into him."
…
A few minutes later, Ryou stepped out with an arm around Keqing.
She looked a lot better—her mood was lighter, and she'd recovered quite a bit. She didn't need him to carry her anymore.
Ryou glanced at her and grinned. "My mother's a good person, right? I told you she wouldn't make things hard for you. Believe me now?"
"Yeah. Mother was really kind," Keqing said, smiling as she thought of her.
Then she stared at Ryou for a long moment, smiled again… and said nothing.
"Why are you looking at me like that? You're making me nervous," Ryou muttered. "What did my mom tell you?"
"Nothing. Let's just go home," Keqing said, shaking her head.
"You…" Ryou sighed, then remembered something. "Oh, right—my dad said my cousin's treating me to dinner tonight. Come with me."
Keqing heard that and remembered what Ryou's mother had said earlier. She had a pretty good guess who this "cousin" was—most likely Xingqiu, the second young master of the Feiyun Commerce Guild.
She'd dealt with Xingqiu before, here and there. She just hadn't expected that one day, she'd end up as his cousin-in-law.
"Sure. I'll go with you tonight," she said, nodding.
"Mm." Ryou nodded back, kept his arm around her, and took her home.
That afternoon, Ryou didn't go to the Ministry of Civil Affairs. He spent the whole time with Keqing instead—teasing her, talking with her, calming her down—until her mood finally eased, little by little.
Her body also recovered gradually.
Watching her in pain had been hard on him, too.
Ryou:Hand, you're off tonight!
Hand:Roger!
Eyes:Boss, I want leave too. I'm going with Hand to Bubu Pharmacy to learn a thing or two.
Ryou:Learn my ass. No.
Head:Boss, you're better off reading more yourself than relying on them!
Heart:Yeah, yeah.
Kidney:You don't get it. Hand's going to learn skills. If you can pull that off too, you can ask for leave.
Hand:Kidney speaks the truth!
…
Ryou skimmed the chat and, in the end, just shook his head.
Getting a Physical Conditioning +50% and a "Stronger as the Fight Goes On" trait today was already pretty good.
He looked away and went right back to keeping Keqing company.
Meanwhile, at the Jade Chamber…
"Today's paperwork was handled well. Quick, clean—someone who understands things the moment they're explained. It's obviously Ryou's work," Ningguang said, setting the documents down.
"Baiwen. Go bring Keqing and Ryou here."
Baiwen hesitated.
"What is it?" Ningguang asked, noticing her expression.
"Ningguang-sama… did you forget?" Baiwen explained. "Keqing didn't come to the Ministry of Civil Affairs today, and she didn't go out to handle any matters either. Ryou did come by, but he left after finishing the paperwork. He was only there for half an hour, and he hasn't returned since."
Ningguang's expression hardened.
In her mind, Keqing was diligent to the point of stubbornness. Even when she was sick, she'd still show up at the Ministry to deal with work.
And now? It had only been a few days since the wedding, and she wasn't even coming in?
[End of chapter]
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