"Ugh, so annoying!"
Inside the modest tiled house, Yu Jin impatiently closed his copy of "Liyue Millennium Chess Game, Thirty-Second Edition, Revised Rules."
Books surrounded him; to prepare for the interview, Yu Jin had bought almost every book available in Liyue.
He felt a pang of heartache thinking about his shrunken coffers.
Glancing at the thick book in his hand, Yu Jin tossed it behind him. He had read enough and wanted to go for a walk.
Although Yu Jin usually just skimmed through books, his excellent memory made up for it! He could memorize any book just by glancing at it.
So, Yu Jin felt his current knowledge base in Liyue was definitely top-notch.
However, the formal preparations were complete; next, it was time to start on the informal ones.
As for what informal method? Naturally, it was to cater to her preferences. Thinking of this, Yu Jin slapped his thigh.
The past few days, he had been so focused on answering Ningguang's questions that he forgot to ask her what she liked. What a careless oversight!
But self-pity was not Yu Jin's style. Soon, he thought of a good place... The sun was high in the sky, and Chu Yi was smiling foolishly.
Because Chu Yi found her new job to be much better than before. She didn't have to deal with temperamental Gamblers all day, and there wasn't much to do.
She just had to confirm a password, lead people to a room, plug her ears, and everything was fine.
This kind of leisurely life was exactly what she had always dreamed of.
Unfortunately, her smile soon faded as the figure she least wanted to see appeared in her line of sight.
"Don't come over! Don't come over!" Chu Yi's smile stiffened, and she frantically prayed in her heart that the person opposite wouldn't approach.
Then Yu Jin walked over. He had specifically come to Yanshang Teahouse this time, so why wouldn't he come?
"Ha... haha, Brother Yu Jin, here for tea?" Chu Yi let out a dry laugh, speaking somewhat fawningly.
She was now afraid that Yu Jin was here to cause trouble.
"This place of yours... does it sell information?" Yu Jin glanced around for a moment, then leaned close to Chu Yi and whispered.
"Absolutely not!" Chu Yi instinctively shook her head. For someone in intelligence work, confidentiality was a basic requirement!
Then she felt a sharp gaze, like a knife.
"Stare—" Yu Jin didn't speak. He crossed his arms and quietly watched Chu Yi.
"Don't... don't look at me like that. This... this place just sells tea!" Chu Yi wiped the sweat from her forehead, struggling to speak.
"Stare—"
"Alright! Stop looking at me like that, come in!"
"Coming!"
After her final struggle failed, Chu Yi decisively abandoned her principles. She didn't want to be hung outside the door like cured meat.
"Wuwuwu~, Boss, I'm so sorry." Chu Yi led Yu Jin inside, falling into deep self-reproach.
"By the way, what kind of information do you have here?" Yu Jin looked around. Within the seemingly normal cabinets, hidden doors and secret passages were countless.
One could only say they were worthy of intelligence work!
"It depends on what you want, but don't expect too much. I can't access high-level information at all," Chu Yi answered Yu Jin's question truthfully and decisively.
It wasn't that she wasn't trying hard, but the enemy was simply too formidable!
"What if I want to know Ningguang's preferences?" Yu Jin casually posed his question.
Chu Yi stopped in her tracks. She turned her head, revealing an awkward but polite smile, "Mr. Yu Jin, what did you say? I can't hear you?"
"I said—Tianquan Star's preferences, do you know them?" Yu Jin cupped his hands to his mouth like a megaphone and said loudly.
"What did you say—?" Chu Yi dug at her ears, responding just as loudly.
Their voices were so loud that if the soundproofing in Yanshang Teahouse hadn't been good enough, they would probably have been reported for noise pollution.
"I get it, you really don't want to talk about this topic, do you?" Yu Jin looked at Chu Yi's expression, pulled up a chair, and sat down.
"Hehe, thanks for understanding." Now Chu Yi's ears were fine again. She chuckled at Yu Jin a few times, then poured him a cup of tea.
It wasn't that she was uncooperative, but Yu Jin's question was too alarming. As one of the Seven Stars, and the most powerful and influential "Tianquan Star" among them, all information about Ningguang was Liyue's top secret.
Not only did Chu Yi not know, but even if she did, she wouldn't reveal a single word, even if Yu Jin hung her outside the door.
This was her unwavering principle as a Liyue intelligence agent! Although she had only been in the business for a few months.
Yu Jin took the tea, drank it in one gulp, and then said, "Since information is non-negotiable..."
"It's not non-negotiable, it's that besides knowing Tianquan's name, I don't know anything else," Chu Yi emphasized.
"Alright, alright, then let's just chat as friends, okay?"
"Don't tell me even that's not allowed," Yu Jin said, pointing at the conflicted Chu Yi.
Chu Yi sighed after hearing Yu Jin's words, "Fine, have it your way."
She genuinely didn't know any information about Ningguang. As Yu Jin said, a casual chat between friends was acceptable.
"Ah~, that's better. Quick, tell me, what does Ningguang like?" Seeing Chu Yi also sit down, Yu Jin immediately asked impatiently.
Xiangling knew nothing, but surely Chu Yi, who worked in intelligence, knew more than Xiangling.
"About that..." Chu Yi pondered. In truth, she hadn't met Ningguang many times. The few times she had were all at public events.
"I think Tianquan might, perhaps, probably... likes playing chess and smoking?"
Chu Yi thought of Ningguang's pipe and the famous Liyue collectible "Liyue Millennium," speaking uncertainly.
"Smoke?" Yu Jin stroked his chin, deep in thought. As for the chess Chu Yi mentioned, Yu Jin didn't even consider it; he usually considered brain-intensive tasks last.
Yu Jin hadn't expected Ningguang, a woman, to smoke. A few days ago, he had seen Ningguang with a rod hanging from her waist and wondered why she carried a back-scratcher. It turned out to be a pipe.
It was truly an eye-opener; he never knew pipes could be made of jade.
"Got it, thanks!" Yu Jin clapped his hands. He now knew what to do.
Yu Jin stood up, tossed a small pouch to Chu Yi, and prepared to leave.
"What's this?" Chu Yi weighed it. It was Mora, and quite a lot of it, it seemed.
"Tea money." Yu Jin picked up the teapot and drank it all in one gulp. He couldn't waste something he paid for.
"Goodbye. If it works out, I'll treat you to a meal." After casually saying this, Yu Jin ran out of Yanshang Teahouse... At noon, Chihu Rock was bustling.
Countless vendors stood on both sides of the street, loudly hawking their wares. Among them were some rare items; it just depended on whether passersby had the discerning eye.
But none of this concerned Yu Jin. He was standing in front of a sundry stall, holding a rather beautiful wooden box.
Of course, whether the wooden box was truly beautiful was debatable. In Yu Jin's opinion, it was quite pretty.
"Hehe, esteemed customer, you have good taste. This is from a famous Liyue master..." Although the stall owner was curious about Yu Jin's peculiar attire, who would turn down Mora?
Yu Jin ignored the stall owner's incessant chatter. He spun the wooden box in his hands a few times, then asked:
"Can this wooden box hold ash... ah, no! Tobacco?"
"Huh?" The enthusiastic stall owner's expression froze, then he said somewhat uncertainly, "It should... be able to."
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