Still in the house in the alley, Yu Jin took off his arm armor—he was scraping the dust off his armor.
The dust on him smelled strongly of smoke and was highly flammable. Ningguang would definitely like it if she smoked it.
"Screech—"
The sound of a dagger scraping against steel was jarring. Fortunately, there was enough dust on Yu Jin's armor that after just a few scrapes, the newly bought wooden box was filled with black ash.
"Hiss—" An unsettling sound echoed in Yu Jin's small room, followed by wisps of black smoke.
"Oh no, oh no, oh no! It's going to catch fire!"
Yu Jin quickly patted the wooden box, which was about to ignite, putting out the flames within the black ash.
Looking at the wooden box with charred marks, Yu Jin was a bit worried. This didn't seem to quite fit the identity of Ningguang, the Tianquan Star.
But soon, this worry disappeared, because he felt that his gift was powerful enough to compensate for the simple packaging.
"It's almost time. I should go for the interview!" Yu Jin looked at the bright light outside the window, knowing it was almost time.
So he stood up and ran towards Yujing Terrace.
Before the Jade Chamber was built, Yujing Terrace was the tallest complex of buildings in all of Liyue.
Standing before the carved railings of Yujing Terrace, one could overlook the entire prosperous Liyue.
Below Yujing Terrace, in the lotus pond, was a completely different scene. Bubu Pharmacy was still incredibly busy, with a constant stream of people coming and going.
But Yujing Terrace, directly opposite, was deserted.
After all, the Ministry of Civil Affairs could handle most matters, making it unnecessary to go to such a high-level place as Yujing Terrace.
However, Yu Jin didn't care about such things. Too many people? He simply walked across the water! This scene drew the attention of pedestrians on the lotus platform pathway and the Millelith on the stairs.
"Is this what you meant by 'very individual'?" A woman with purple hair and double coiled buns at the carved railing above Yujing Terrace twitched her lips and said.
"Heh heh, I thought he would be right up Keqing's alley!" Ningguang looked at Keqing and chuckled softly.
This Yuheng Star before her was a well-known radical reformer in Liyue, whose various actions often drew opposition from the staunch supporters of Lord Rex Lapis.
"I am only radical regarding the relationship between Liyue and the Lord. Do not bring that prejudice into my personal character." Keqing rolled her eyes at Ningguang.
To be honest, if Yu Jin's absurd request had been directed at her, she would have refused it on the spot. She wouldn't have been like Ningguang, who even specifically organized some kind of "assessment."
Of course, if Ningguang knew this, she would definitely think Keqing was a bit presumptuous. At that time, Yu Jin's long halberd had almost split her head.
Just for this, Ningguang had to be careful when speaking to Yu Jin.
"How much of his strength can you discern?" Ningguang asked curiously, watching Yu Jin dart across the lotus pond like a dragonfly touching water.
As the Yuheng in charge of land planning and infrastructure, Keqing was different from Ningguang, who often stayed deep within the Jade Chamber. She constantly traveled across the land of Liyue and had likely experienced the most dangers among the Qixing.
Naturally, her strength was also paramount, especially in close-quarters combat.
"I can't tell. His footwork has no discernible pattern, not like someone from a renowned school, but rather a self-taught style." Keqing narrowed her eyes, specifically observing Yu Jin's footwork.
His footwork was like ordinary running, just faster. Keqing couldn't see any trace of a master's technique.
Of course, it was also possible that her eyes were not sharp enough to see anything.
"Alright, Tianquan, Yuheng. Mr. Yu Jin is about to come up. Let's get ready."
Just as Keqing and Ningguang were chatting animatedly, a Damselette with two horns on his head and wearing a light blue qipao walked over.
"Understood, Ganyu, we're coming." The two looked at Yu Jin, who was shaking water off his feet, then walked towards the back of Yujing Terrace.
"How about it, little brother, am I handsome?" Below Yujing Terrace, after shaking off water for a while, Yu Jin said to the dumbfounded Millelith soldier nearby.
"Handsome! So handsome!" The soldier immediately nodded. Walking on water was a scene only found in wuxia novels.
But he quickly reacted, shook his head, and said with feigned seriousness, "Yujing Terrace is an important place. Do not converse with guards unless it is urgent!"
"I'll listen to you! Bye-bye!" Yu Jin nodded, then ran directly to the higher ground.
The stairs leading to Yujing Terrace were winding, but what puzzled Yu Jin was that despite being very tall stairs, there was not a single person.
Could it be that Yujing Terrace was closed today?
When Yu Jin stepped onto Yujing Terrace, he knew his idea was wrong.
Yu Jin looked at the three people sitting at the Altar of Heaven on Yujing Terrace, then touched the wooden box behind him.
They didn't say there would be three people? This gift is a bit hard to give.
"Mr. Yu Jin, welcome to the Golden House Guard assessment. These two are Tianquan Star Ningguang and Yuheng Star Keqing."
Ganyu, sitting next to Ningguang, stood up, nodded to Yu Jin, and said with a stern face.
She really wanted to complain about this "Golden House Guard assessment." Is this how Golden House guards are recruited?
Ganyu had never heard of such a thing in her thousands of years of working at Yujing Terrace!
However, considering it was Ningguang's idea, and Keqing was also involved, Ganyu had no choice but to play along with Ningguang.
"Pleased to meet you, pleased to meet you." Yu Jin clasped his hands and bowed, imitating Zhongli's manner.
Keqing watched Yu Jin's bow and nodded almost imperceptibly. This kind of etiquette was very common in ancient Liyue, but now, not many people knew it.
It seemed that although this fellow in front of him had peculiar clothing, he was quite knowledgeable about etiquette.
Then Yu Jin's next actions made Keqing retract her thoughts.
Yu Jin saw Ganyu sit down again and immediately said, "Hey, hey, hey~, young lady, where's your self-introduction?"
"Ah? Me?" The somewhat sleepy Ganyu pointed to himself upon hearing Yu Jin's words.
"Hmm, otherwise?" Yu Jin nodded as if it were obvious, completely forgetting that he was an interviewee.
He was very curious about Ganyu, a beast-human, and not a dragon, which was quite rare.
He had left Inazuma's fox in a hurry and hadn't studied him much. Now that he encountered another, shouldn't he take a good look?
"My name is Ganyu, and I am the Qixing's secretary." Ganyu, seeing Yu Jin's burning gaze, could only nod and briefly introduce himself.
"Since Yu Jin, you have met all the interviewers, shouldn't you introduce yourself?" Ningguang looked at the thoughtful Yu Jin and said slowly.
"Me? Didn't you already know a few days ago? Do I have to do it again?" Yu Jin scratched his head. Could it be that the census from a few days ago needed to be conducted again?
Feeling the sharp gazes suddenly coming from both sides, Ningguang quickly coughed a few times and said, "Ahem, not the basic kind, but something more advanced, like your specialties and hobbies."
"Specialties? Hobbies?" Yu Jin stroked his chin. It seemed this was the first time anyone had asked him this question. He needed to think carefully.
"As for specialties..." Yu Jin recalled his experiences, then nodded and said decisively, "I'm exceptionally good at fighting. Does that count as a specialty?"
"Of course it does. No matter when, being powerful is never a bad thing," Keqing said with a look of appreciation.
Although this person had almost no manners, his strength was definitely not bad, which could be seen from his ability to walk on water just now.
"What about hobbies?" Ningguang also nodded, his eyes a little curious. Yu Jin, such a unique person, surely had very different hobbies.
"Hobbies?"
Yu Jin fell into deep thought again. What hobbies could he have? Inadvertently, he glanced at Ningguang, Keqing, and Ganyu in front of him.
Then Yu Jin slapped his head, and as if enlightened, said, "I know! My hobby is you three!"
"?????" x 3
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