[Gorou: As expected of Her Excellency, Sangonomiya!]
[Yae Miko: Tell us, does your reasoning match mine?]
[Lisa: Actually, I've noticed the pattern as well.]
[Amber: Stop being so mysterious! Even turning a three-choice question into a two-choice one would help.]
[Sangonomiya Kokomi: Option 2 (five times) can be ruled out. Based on Young Master Xingqiu's style and his phrase 'an eye for an eye,' the answer must relate to the beginning of the story where Master Maocai tried to buy the stones at a 70% discount (three-tenths of the price).]
[Yae Miko: Seven times and three times are both plausible answers that fit that logic.]
[Lisa: The wrong answer is gone. It's a 50/50 now. Everyone, make your choice.]
「Ding—Everyone has selected an answer.」
The broadcast continued. No one wanted to face the punishment.
Xingqiu: "How about three times the market price!"
Master Maocai: "This is highway robbery! You're going too far!"
[Arataki Itto: Argh! Why only three times? Seven times is what he deserves!]
[Paimon: Exactly! I chose seven times too!]
[Amber: You guys are way too greedy.]
[Xingqiu: Actually, seven times would have been better.]
[Chongyun: Three times is more reasonable. The way of the hero is to show mercy when possible. It's enough to give Master Maocai a lesson he won't forget.]
Xingqiu: "So, are you buying or not?"
Master Maocai looked defeated, like a deflated balloon. "Sigh... fine, fine! I'll go raise the money! I'll go raise the money!"
Xingqiu: "Thank you for your patronage of the Feiyun Commerce Guild. We look forward to your future business."
Master Maocai slunk away, looking exactly like the people who had guessed the answer incorrectly.
[Kuki Shinobu: Boss, I told you to pick three times. You chose seven. You deserve it.]
[Kamisato Ayato: Actually, I also chose seven times.]
[Lisa: Good thing I restrained myself.]
[Yae Miko: The answer was bound to lean toward three times. You guys are quite wicked, aren't you?]
[Kujou Sara: I... I also chose seven times. Dammit!]
[Ei: @Yae Miko, what happens if one chose seven times? I chose seven.]
[Kujou Sara: Wonderful! I also chose seven times!]
[Thoma: Even the Shogun got it wrong!]
[Yae Miko: Hahahaha! Ei actually got it wrong! This is too funny. You're going to be punished!]
"It's starting! So many people are beginning their punishment! Look at them run!"
"If we're comparing the number of punishments, Liyue definitely wins!"
"Mondstadt has plenty too! There are at least a thousand—no, two thousand people running!"
"Hmph, only two thousand? Liyue has at least three thousand!"
"Hey, you guys, do you have to compete over even this?"
In the Ordinary Live Room, the randomly selected ten thousand people began their punishment. Seven out of ten had guessed incorrectly. This included...
A-San: "Hahaha, this old lady is so unlucky. She has to run ten laps!"
A-Er: "Old lady, can you handle ten laps? At your pace, you'll probably finish sometime next month!"
Madame Ping: "Young people these days really have no manners."
A-San and A-Er were running their punishment laps. When they saw Madame Ping running as well, they mocked her, especially seeing her hunched over her cane. Running ten laps around Liyue Harbor was no small feat.
A-San and A-Er accelerated. As port workers, they were strong enough to finish ten laps in about three hours. But as they rounded a corner...
Madame Ping was already ahead of them, walking slowly with her cane.
A-San: "What's going on? How did this old lady get ahead of us?"
Madame Ping simply gave a faint smile. The two men pushed themselves to run even faster. They reached the next corner, turned it, and looked.
Madame Ping was again ten meters ahead of them.
A-Er: "What is this? Is this old lady a set of triplets?"
Madame Ping: "Young men, you still need to work harder."
A-San and A-Er sprinted with everything they had, panting heavily. They rounded another corner—this time, it was impossible...
They saw Madame Ping standing up from a chair ten meters ahead. "I rested for two minutes, time to start running again. A mistake must be met with a price; that is the contract."
A-San and A-Er collapsed on the ground like exhausted dogs. "How... how is this happening?"
The broadcast continued. Xingqiu asked Lumine and Paimon to return the book.
Xingqiu: "To leave when the deed is done, hiding both one's name and fame—that is the mark of a true hero."
「Ding—The final question of this session: How are the sales of Xingqiu's novel in Liyue?」
[Xingqiu: Pffft—!!!!]
Xingqiu, who thought it was finally over, nearly coughed up blood.
1: A massive hit in Liyue2: Good sales with a loyal reader base3: Quite dismal4: Completely ignored5: The book was never released in Liyue
「Ordinary Live Room: 50 people snatch. Correct: 50,000 Mora. Incorrect: No food for five days, only water.」
「Elite Live Room: Two people snatch. Xingqiu cannot snatch or be chosen.」
[Amber: Isn't this a freebie? Didn't Lady Miko already reveal the answer earlier?]