Mu Yang left the Pearl Galley, and as Ningguang had predicted,
he crossed it off his list.
He only wanted to find a place to set up a teahouse for an event and collaboration.
The Pearl Galley was far too inappropriate for a 12+ event—it couldn't possibly host something like that!
Having seen the ship's other side,
Mu Yang made up his mind to have nothing more to do with it.
He had no interest in a life of debauchery, nor did he need Luoxia's hidden services…
The next day,
Mu Yang continued his preparations.
After ruling out another option the previous night,
only three places remained:
the Three Bowls Inn, the Heyu Teahouse, and the Stone Gate Teahouse.
Since the event was to be tea-related, restaurants like Xinyue Kiosk and Liuli Pavilion were naturally excluded.
The Three Bowls Inn was a tavern, but it could barely work.
Just like how Master Lu at Angel's Share served juice to Venti,
selling milk tea wouldn't be out of place, right?
Though there were three options, Mu Yang knew the Stone Gate Teahouse could also be ruled out.
After all, there was no way Yelan would hand it over.
She had been running that underground intelligence hub for a long time—how could she just let it go?
Still, Mu Yang decided to take a look.
Yelan had been working overtime these past few days, finding all sorts of ways to approach him.
Mu Yang really wanted to say that he didn't rely on appearances to identify people anymore…
Not to mention his overpowered system, Mu Yang's own innate abilities were enough.
No matter how intricate Yelan's disguises were, they couldn't fool him.
However, Mu Yang didn't call her out.
Otherwise, Liyue might end up with yet another person whose confidence was shattered.
Why "yet another"?
Mu Yang shook his head, thinking, I really am a walking sin…
He stepped out his front door and walked to the entrance of the Stone Gate Teahouse.
The Stone Gate Teahouse was quite unique, with a male and female bouncer stationed at the door.
Both gave people a sidelong glance.
The first time Mu Yang came, the bouncers had tried to stop him.
This time, they didn't.
Mu Yang entered the teahouse and ordered a pot of tea from the receptionist, Miss Chuyi.
Chuyi and Luoxia were completely different in style, though this referred to their outward appearances.
Compared to Luoxia's lavish attire, Chuyi's clothing was far more refined and understated.
Perhaps it was due to the differing vibes of the two establishments.
But their other identities were quite similar.
Luoxia was the trusted assistant of the Pearl Galley's boss, and Chuyi was Yelan's capable right-hand woman.
The teahouse was a bustling mix of all sorts of people.
Chuyi's job was to gather information from the guests' conversations,
filter out the most useful bits, and pass them to Yelan.
Of course, they never directly mentioned "Yelan" by name.
Instead, they uniformly referred to her as the new owner.
As a result, many rumors about the Stone Gate Teahouse's new owner began to circulate.
Some said the current boss was a young merchant who struck it rich overnight.
Others claimed the boss was a frail, high-ranking employee of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, living in seclusion outside the city.
There were even whispers that prying too much into the boss's affairs would get you haunted by a blue ghost…
In short, no one connected the boss to "Yelan."
Mu Yang chose a seat on the second floor.
He knew Yelan was here today, so he came straight over.
Or rather, it was more like wherever Mu Yang went, Yelan would follow.
Sure enough, as soon as Mu Yang poured his first cup of tea, Yelan appeared.
This time, it wasn't a disguise—it was Yelan herself.
But Yelan herself, in the context of the Stone Gate Teahouse, wasn't that just another kind of disguise?
She walked up to the second floor and approached Mu Yang directly.
Mu Yang didn't look up but pulled out a chair for her. "Have a seat, Miss Yelan."
He poured her a cup of tea. "What do you want to talk about today? Ministry of Civil Affairs business?"
This confirmed for Yelan that Mu Yang had always known her identity.
Fabricating identities was Yelan's go-to tactic, and "a thousand faces in one" was a compliment to her.
Multiple identities made her work easier.
For instance, when investigating Mu Yang, she didn't just focus on him alone.
That approach risked being blinded by the subject and drawing dangerous conclusions.
She had also questioned people who interacted with Mu Yang frequently: Liyue's younger crowd, Baizhu from Bubu Pharmacy, Keqing the Yuheng, and Secretary Ganyu…
But she didn't approach them as Yelan, the Ministry of Civil Affairs employee.
For each target, she crafted a different persona.
With Xiangling, she posed as a spice-loving foodie, chatting casually at first.
The conversation naturally drifted to the white-haired young man who often dined at Wanmin Hall.
This method had always worked flawlessly, but with Mu Yang, she had met her match.
Yelan took a sip from her teacup, and her expression shifted slightly.
Uncertain, she took another sip…
She set the cup down, savoring the tea's delicate fragrance.
It was baffling.
She drank this tea regularly, so why did it taste different when brewed by someone else?
Mu Yang refilled her cup. "What's wrong? Hard to bring up Ministry business?"
"If that's the case, I'll start the conversation today."
Mu Yang mentioned that while passing the bulletin board at Chihu Rock, he saw a notice.
"It said not to play dice at the Stone Gate Teahouse, especially not with a strange woman who invites you. Does Miss Yelan know about this?"
"There seems to be such a saying," Yelan nodded in response.
"If you really want to play, it's better to do so with someone familiar. It's more relaxing, and you won't get hung up on winning or losing."
Mu Yang asked, "So, would you consider me and you, Miss Yelan, familiar?"
Yelan didn't answer directly, instead saying respectfully, "If the Adeptus wishes to play, Yelan will naturally keep you company."
"Then let's play a couple of rounds to unwind."
Yelan had the attendant bring up some dice.
Mu Yang had never actually played dice, nor did he know how Liyue's dice games worked.
He only knew of a gambling game from his original world.
It involved betting on big or small, or a "leopard."
With three dice, if the total points were less than 11, it was small.
If the sum was 11 or greater, it was big.
If all three dice showed the same number, it was a leopard.
He wasn't sure if Liyue had a similar game.
But after Mu Yang explained, Yelan agreed.
The rules weren't hard to grasp.
And Yelan was very confident…