The border town wasn't large.
Led by the Qianyan Army squad leader,
The flow of people around them gradually decreased.
Jack directly arrived at the official Liyue office here, which was also the location of the military camp.
"Lady Ningguang awaits ahead; I will not proceed further."
In front of an antique residence, the Qianyan Army squad leader bowed out.
Following the stone path and opening the gate, Jack entered this detached courtyard.
Splash, splash.
Inside the courtyard, there was another peculiar sight.
Streams, rockeries, lotus ponds... Rather than saying this was deep within a military camp, it was more like a holiday sanctuary for Liyue's high officials.
In the center of the lotus pond, there was a pavilion, where a curvaceous beauty in a silver qipao with silver hair sat quietly, like a perfect sculpture.
Walking across the winding stone bridge, Jack arrived before Ningguang.
Ningguang smiled, pointing to the chair beside her: "Please."
Just a single word.
Her breath was like orchids, gentle and refined.
It seemed all words related to maturity and gentleness could be used to describe the beautiful woman before him.
But Jack knew.
Such a demeanor alone was not enough to become the Tianquan who held sway over Liyue. This thorny rose would probably only bloom for one person in this lifetime.
"I didn't expect that instead of our Liyue's Keqing, we would wait for you, the long-lost Traveler. Indeed, fate is wonderfully inexplicable."
Ningguang extended her fair hand and poured a cup of tea for Jack.
Jack set down the Ice Dragon from his shoulder and picked up the clear tea on the table.
"Soft on the palate, rich in aroma, it's excellent green tea. You've put thought into this."
"Just some coarse tea, not worth much mora."
Ningguang didn't say how she knew of Jack's whereabouts.
Jack didn't ask either.
The two of them began conversing normally.
"Recently... how have you been?"
Jack asked casually.
"So deep is my longing, even the finest delicacies taste bland."
Ningguang propped her chin, looking at Jack without concealment, her eyes full of tenderness.
"I thought someone with such lofty ambitions as you wouldn't fall for the opposite sex."
"Yes, I thought so too before I met you."
She was still looking at him.
As if just by looking, she could cast aside all worldly worries and live a peaceful, ordinary life.
"Are you planning to retire to the mountains? That's not like you."
"Oh, in my husband's eyes, what should I be like?"
"..."
Did he just get on the train without even buying a ticket?
Facing Ningguang's straightforwardness, Jack was a little overwhelmed.
"Call me whatever you want, I meant to say that the Ningguang in my memory was a great businesswoman with incredible influence, who wanted the shadow of the Jade Chamber to cover the Seven Nations. The current you is like a young girl in love, with less of the domineering aura of a superior, and more of a charming allure that makes hearts flutter."
"Hehe, so my husband prefers this kind of mood?"
Ningguang drew her arms in, her pair of fair, rounded legs intertwined beneath her cheongsam, her expression changing only slightly.
From the gentle and lovely young lady she was just now, she transformed into a commercial empress who looked down on the world.
As her condescending gaze came, Jack subconsciously straightened his back, raising his eyes to meet hers.
A few minutes later.
Ningguang averted her gaze.
A blush crept up her fair neck, and she said wistfully, "You really defeat me. To think that I, Ningguang, with my unparalleled schemes over all these years, would actually lose in a staring contest for the first time."
"Do you have to be so competitive? It was just a staring contest, it's fine."
Jack closed his eyes and took another sip of green tea.
The image of the beauty's shy expression was stored in his mind.
It was indeed very pleasing to the eye.
One could only say that the favorability system did a good job.
This method of getting married first and then making up for it saved a lot of trouble, allowing someone like Jack, who was not used to making choices, to avoid the dilemma of who to choose.
As long as both parties were willing, he would embrace them all.
He stood up and walked over to Ningguang.
He bent down, placing his hands on the armrests of Ningguang's chair.
"Since you call me husband, shouldn't I do something befitting a husband and wife, my dear?"
Ningguang leaned her neck back.
She bit her lower lip lightly, her pair of moist eyes looking at him affectionately.
A woman who was usually unparalleled in her domineering aura, occasionally showing a shy demeanor.
This contrast gave Jack a pleasure that surpassed conquering ordinary girls.
"Mm~"
Ningguang felt her breathing tighten, and then she was entangled by someone.
She wrapped her arms around Jack's neck, hanging onto him like a koala bear.
Jack was somewhat surprised by Ningguang's boldness; even someone as noble as her still had the same human desire to merge with her beloved.
So, he placed one hand on Ningguang's shoulder and the other around her, holding her securely in front of him.
He stood up, transferring her from the chair to the table.
Clang!
Ningguang lay on the tabletop, and the expensive teacups beneath her fell to the ground with a crash.
But neither of them, caught in the throes of passion, was short on money.
No one cared about the shattered expensive porcelain scattered on the floor.
Ice Dragon Sevia was startled.
She felt that her father must be in battle and dared not intervene rashly.
So she took a few steps back and stood on the steps, her pair of ice-blue vertical pupils earnestly watching the two intertwined figures, wondering how this battle would be decided.
Gradually.
Ningguang displayed her powerful learning ability.
From being inexperienced to skilled, and then gradually launching a counterattack.
Even Jack, an experienced hand, had to admit that she was truly talented.
The two went back and forth.
They wrestled for more than ten minutes.
Jack raised his head, gazing at the beautiful face only ten centimeters away from him.
"Phew~ As expected of Ningguang. If I hadn't personally experienced you going from unfamiliar to skilled, I might have been jealous."
"It's a pity I didn't see you when you were unfamiliar. Compared to Keqing, I'm confident I could teach better."
"You even investigated that Keqing was my first experience. It seems that before I came to Liyue, you already knew all about my whereabouts, didn't you?"
Ningguang smiled, pressing his large hand that was on her face and rubbing it a few times.
"Actually, I didn't think about you before, but last time Keqing rushed back to Liyue, her behavior was a bit strange. So I sent people to investigate, and by following the clues, I found traces of your activities in Mondstadt."
Keqing?
Was it that time when Cloud Retainer brought her?
Jack recalled the adeptus who had brought her two disciples and then disappeared, feeling that this person was very interesting.
"I haven't appeared in Mondstadt many times, mostly in those places. Let me guess, you haven't planted an informant within the Knights of Favonius, have you?"
Ningguang intertwined her fingers with Jack's, pulling him closer, and whispered softly into his ear, "Why… are you worried that I'll be unfavorable to your Jean?"
"Why would you think that?"
Their positions were relative, so Jack also whispered softly into Ningguang's ear.
"Because… even an emperor's harem, don't they also scheme against each other out of jealousy for favor?"
"Mere mortal emperors, how can they compare to the Creator?"
Jack sighed.
Ningguang was good in every way, but she was too arrogant.
Because she lost the chance to be the first lady, she took other means to leave a deep impression in his heart.
She was well aware of her public persona, and therefore, she didn't mind playing the role of a concubine obsessed with power struggles, to gain more attention.
Then, one day in the future, by overturning this inherent impression of a power-hungry person, she would firmly engrave herself in Jack's heart as a deeply devoted lover, making him never forget her.
Such complex psychological activity, even with Jack's Anemo Element Power, took him a long time to analyze.
Jack stroked Ningguang's hair and chuckled, "Even someone as intelligent as Ningguang lacks a sense of security when it comes to emotions. Don't worry, as someone destined to ascend to the divine throne, I will not give up on any of you!"
His firm words gently struck Ningguang's heart.
For a moment, she was lost in thought.
And after being lost in thought.
The surging emotions, unable to be released, she grabbed Jack's neck and said in a voice that could melt bones, "I don't want to wait until night. Right here! Take me!"
"As you wish!"
Under the setting sun.
The two ascended the stairs to heaven.
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