In Teyvat, it all begins with rescuing the grass god.

That's why people in the desert have been using grass slimes to grow crops.

Having these completely controllable mushroom subjects like Apep is a great thing.

As for why she would be so kind as to release her own people to help green the desert.

That's all Rhodes could say.

"What a hypocrite!"

With these complaints in mind, Rhodes arrived at the place he had agreed to meet with Zhongli.

This time, the two did not meet at the Hall of Rebirth.

Instead, it was at the city gate of Liyue.

"Mr. Zhongli, I apologize for being late."

Luo De, who had spotted Zhong Li from a distance, quickly stepped forward and offered his apologies.

"It's alright, I just arrived too."

After saying that, Zhongli put his hands behind his back and walked with Luo De toward the wilderness.

along the way.

Zhongli didn't say much; he just led the way.

Rhodes was curious, but he didn't ask anything and patiently followed behind him.

Both of them were traveling at a normal pace, along the official roads of Liyue, which were flat and wide, with a constant stream of carriages and pedestrians.

gradually.

Rhodes noticed something unusual.

There was nothing particularly special about the people who came to the city.

The problem lies with those who leave the city.

There were too many people carrying building materials and tools, as well as a lot of mobile vendors pushing carts.

Think for a while.

Rhodes then realized the reason for these anomalies: "Return to the Origin?"

"Ah."

Zhongli nodded: "Yuheng Star has always been very efficient. After receiving the plan from you, they only took one day to make a ten-year development plan. After joint consultation and revision by the Seven Stars and Eight Gates, the action to govern Guili Plain officially began three days ago."

"It's so fast."

Rod couldn't help but sigh.

Keqing is known as an efficiency fanatic in Liyue. What takes others one or two months to complete, she can finish in just one or two days.

Furthermore, her work efficiency is not just about speed, but about being both efficient and perfect.

Under her personal supervision.

The development progress of this plan to govern Guiliyuan can be described as epic.

"Mr. Zhongli, would you like me to visit the development site of Guili Plain?"

Rhodes roughly guessed Zhongli's purpose in asking him to leave the city.

"Yuheng Star hired me as an advisor to offer suggestions when they govern Guili Plain."

Zhongli said matter-of-factly, "I have seen the governance plan that Keqing used. Most of them were proposed by you, so I took the liberty of inviting you to go with me."

"Uh"

"Ok."

The reason was quite convincing, so Rod didn't suspect anything and, led by Zhongli, found Keqing, who was dressed as a worker and covered in mud and dust.

Rhodes doesn't know many people in Liyue.

But Keqing is definitely the one he admires the most.

Putting aside her unparalleled efficiency, just for her practice of always leading by example and rushing to the front line at the first opportunity, no matter what, Rod had to give her a thumbs up.

As the star of Liyue, Yuheng is also from a prestigious family.

Ke Qing never cared about her status; she did just as much heavy and tiring work as anyone else.

From the perspective of ordinary people.

It's truly a blessing to have such a down-to-earth and pragmatic senior leader.

“Mr. Zhongli, oh, Mr. Luo De is here too.”

Keqing was delighted to see Zhongli and Luo De arrive together. She casually wiped her hands on her clothes and led them to the construction site, introducing each part one by one.

Keqing was in high spirits and kept talking the whole way around.

the end.

She looked at Zhongli and Luo De with anticipation and said, "Mr. Zhongli, Mr. Luo De, do you think there's anything I've overlooked?"

In this regard.

Zhongli gave her advice very seriously, completely placing herself in the position of an advisor.

He was speaking, and Ke Qing was taking notes.

Rod couldn't get a word in edgewise.

no way.

Compared to Zhongli's six thousand years of experience, he was at most a bit more unconventional in his methods and a bit more contrary to common sense in his thinking.

Regarding practical operation.

Ultimately, Zhongli, with his rich experience and comprehensive knowledge, is more authoritative.

This is not.

Everything that Rhodes could think of, Zhongli could think of as well.

Zhongli told him everything that Luo De hadn't expected.

Many of the things were novelties that had never been seen or heard of on the continent of Teyvat. This level of advanced thinking left Rhodes speechless with amazement.

This is not finished.

The governance of Guili Plains was just one topic between the two. They then focused on the problem of the Bishui River being blocked and causing backflow, as well as the matter of reopening the Bishui trade route connecting it to Mondstadt.

Besides.

They also discussed how to mobilize Liyue people to relocate there with the redevelopment of the Biyue Trade Route and Guili Plains, and what kind of benefits should be offered to attract them.

Rhodes was left standing there for a long time.

By the time the two of them finished discussing these topics, it was almost dark.

There was nowhere to receive people at the construction site, so Ke Qing didn't try to keep them. After saying goodbye, she ran back to her dormitory with a smile, carrying the many suggestions Zhong Li had given her.

"You have so much energy!"

Looking at Ke Qing's retreating figure, Rhodes sighed once again.

"It is because of people like these that I can entrust Liyue to them with peace of mind."

Zhongli laughed along, then gestured towards Liyue Harbor and said, "Young friend, would you like to walk with me for a bit longer?"

"no problem."

Rhodes nodded.

After returning to the original place.

Zhongli took Rod to the docks of Liyue Harbor.

The docks at night were not deserted at all. Although not as lively as during the day, they were still bustling with people.

In these crowds.

The most conspicuous.

It was a fleet armed to the teeth.

usually.

Most of the ships that dock at Liyue Harbor are merchant ships and passenger ships. Liyue's own official warships dock at other piers and do not stop at the commercial pier.

But this fleet is different.

They were not only fully equipped with cannons and arrows, but the crew members on board were also fully armed. In terms of equipment and armament, they were in no way inferior to the equipment of the Liyue government.

Such an armed fleet occupying a commercial dock is undeniably an eye-catching sight.

When Rhodes and Zhongli arrived.

The fleet's crew members were carrying large and small boxes of goods onto the dock under the direction of a black-haired woman wearing an eye patch.

Many merchant carriages and managers arrived at the dock.

They were dealing with a middle-aged man with a thick beard.

Get a little closer.

You could hear him loudly haggling with the merchants, implying that his brothers had faced countless dangers and exerted tremendous effort to bring back these rare goods, and that there was no way they could lower the price!

"Southern Cross Fleet".

"Young friend, you've probably heard of it, haven't you?"

"They are quite famous in Liyue."

As Zhongli walked toward the bearded man, he introduced the fleet in front of him to Luo De.

Rhodes certainly knew about the Southern Cross fleet.

The armed fleet of Liyue.

Their captain, Hokuto, known as the Uncrowned Dragon King, was even more famous.

Even if it's far away in Liyue.