Lu Bu, the Thunder General, is my adoptive father in Genshin Impact.

Xiao Yi, Gan Yu, Ling Hua, and Wendy exchanged glances secretly.

It's so obvious, they thought.

Because of her low spirits, Yura didn't notice the subtle actions of the others: "A few days ago, she went out to the snow mountain to take a cold bath. When she returned to the city, she heard that her family had secretly arranged for her to be given to a very high-ranking foreign nobleman as his concubine, and strangely enough..."

Xiao Yi and the others were aware of what had happened earlier, and it had caused Xiao Yi considerable trouble. However, when it came to the crucial point, Yura suddenly hesitated and fell silent.

"Indeed, it's best not to spread this kind of thing around." She sighed softly. "Pretend I didn't say anything. I don't want to trouble you."

Xiao Yi thought to himself: This behavior is just like suddenly stopping the update when the light novel is at its most exciting part. Don't whet people's appetite and then stop it!

(Miyajiro: This is an immoral act, except in unavoidable circumstances.)

(Video: I was thinking, if all light novel authors could keep creating forever and never stop writing, perhaps the world would become more peaceful.)

(Xiao Yi: Are you guys in charge of the吐槽 (tu cao, meaning to criticize or roast) comments? Don't read my thoughts without permission, give me some privacy... Also, the world won't be at peace because of this!)

To satisfy his curiosity, and more importantly, to obtain information, Xiao Yi had no choice but to use special methods to get Yura talking and encourage her to continue.

Xiao Yi took out a Mora.

Yura asked suspiciously, "What, are you trying to bribe me with money to get me to continue telling you about my friend?" Then her expression turned slightly serious, "Do you think I'm the kind of person who can be bought off with money? I'll remember this grudge!"

“No, no, no, I didn’t mean that. Using money to lure others is an insult to their character,” Xiao Yi explained with a smile. “I just felt that you seemed to be in a state of hesitation, wanting to ask others to help that friend, but your stubborn pride was suppressing that thought.”

"I'm sorry, you guessed wrong. I'm not that kind of awkward person," Yura said, turning her head to look out the window.

Xiao Yi flicked the coin with his thumb, then slapped it on the back of his hand, repeating this action several times. The sound attracted the attention of Yura, who had turned her head away, but she remained aloof and did not intend to turn around.

“Alright then, let’s leave the outcome to fate. If I land tails next, we’ll remain silent and not ask any further questions,” Xiao Yi said, toying with the coin. “If I land heads, you can continue. I assure you, I’m not the kind of person who hears secrets and then spreads them around. I’m a philanthropist who’s happy to help others solve their problems.”

“That’s right,” Linghua chimed in. “Everyone calls him Mr. Xiao, the man of great righteousness.”

Wendy quickly added, "Master Xiao is a top-notch philanthropist who has done many good deeds for Liyue. If your friend has any difficulties, Master Xiao will definitely do his best to help."

In reality, the distressed Yura had long hoped that someone could lend a hand to help her resolve this mess, but most Mondstadt residents did not want to get involved with the Lawrence family, and were also afraid that her personal affairs would implicate her friends and the Knights of Favonius, so she had not sought help from others and had been running away from the annoying Lawrence family on her own.

At this moment, a wealthy man from a neighboring country, who seemed to be rich and powerful, offered to help. Moreover, this guy had no connection with Mond or the Lawrence family, making him the perfect candidate.

Yura's strong-willed personality initially made her stubborn and unwilling to accept Xiao Yi's help. However, Xiao Yi's suggestion to flip a coin gave her a way out.

"Whatever," she said, shrugging as if to feign indifference.

Xiao Yi deftly launched Mora.

As the golden coin spun in mid-air, Yura couldn't help but pray that it would land heads, that these enthusiastic strangers would offer her help. Of course, deep down, she wouldn't admit that she was praying.

Snap! Xiao Yi slapped Mora on the back of his hand.

Slowly move your hand away, and the orientation of the coin is obvious: the patterned front side.

“Miss Lawrence, as you have seen, this is the guidance of fate, the will of the wind god.” Xiao Yi quickly stuffed the coin back into his pocket. “Continue, tell me about your friend and what has happened to her family recently.”

Yura pretended to be helpless and continued, "Upon hearing the news that she had been forced into marriage, Miss E immediately went to confront the unreasonable family members. Strange things happened, and the family members were also puzzled. They produced a signed and sealed contract."

"They asked Ms. E why she suddenly went back on her word when she had already agreed a few days ago and even signed and sealed the contract. Ms. E carefully examined the contract and found that it did indeed have her fingerprint and her own handwriting on it."

Gan Yu frowned slightly: "Could it be that they secretly forged the fingerprints and notes without your knowledge? This kind of behavior, which violates the rules of the contract, is completely unbecoming of a major family."

Xiao Yi, Ling Hua, and Wendy all looked at Gan Yu at the same time: Hey, hey, hey, you're chatting away!

Fortunately, Yura didn't notice. She was immersed in that dreamlike memory. When she came to her senses, Yura denied Gan Yu's guess: "At first, I—Miss E thought so too, but she checked the fingerprints and notes and there were no signs of forgery."

"Is it possible that it's because of the excellent forgery skills, making it indistinguishable from the real thing?" Wendy scratched the back of her head. "Actually, I wouldn't say I'm an expert in forging handwriting, but I do know quite a bit about it. I've seen cases where the imitations are so good that even the original person can't tell the difference."

Yura's expression became even more helpless, and she denied it again: "At first I thought so too, and I was preparing to search for evidence to expose the family's despicable behavior. But the family only used one move to completely kill me - they said there were witnesses present when the contract was signed."

"Perhaps the witnesses were also bribed?" Linghua guessed.

Yura gritted her teeth: "It's precisely because the witnesses are highly credible that I'm now in a dilemma. When the contract was signed, the Lawrence family invited Jean Gunnhild, the daughter of the current acting Grand Master of the Knights and the current bishop, to serve as a witness."

Ayaka, being Inatsume's wife, was unfamiliar with Koto's captain and therefore unaware of the situation. The other three, who knew the captain, exchanged bewildered glances.

Leader Qin is a breath of fresh air among the free-spirited Mondstadt people. Like Gan Yu, she holds the highest position in Mondstadt and regards rest as nothing. She works at a high intensity every day and personally handles all kinds of affairs, managing Mondstadt in an orderly manner.

In her daily life, Jean is also an impeccable kind person. She is honest and friendly and will help all Mondstadt residents in need, from cleaning up roadside billboards to climbing onto rooftops to find cats, she will do it all without complaint.

Normally, if a stranger saw her for the first time, how could they associate her with nobility, let alone the daughter of an archbishop and the current head of the Knights?

Qin has status, position, and money. More importantly, she has an upright heart and cannot be bought off by the Lawrence family.

Xiao Yi was filled with doubt: First of all, the Lawrence family would never dare to use any underhanded tactics against Director Qin. The fact that they dared to invite her as a witness shows that they were absolutely certain of their success...

“Later, I went to the commander’s office and found Gunnhild’s daughter. I asked her about what happened.” Yura bit her lower lip, surprised and angry. “Her answer shocked me. She actually told me that when the contract was signed, she, as a witness, saw me put my fingerprint on the paper and sign my name!”

"But at that time, I was taking a bath and resting alone in a snow-capped lake. How could I possibly be in two places at the same time!"

Yura took a deep breath to calm herself and quickly regained her composure.

"In short, I have no evidence to prove that the signature and fingerprint were not mine, and besides, the notes on the paper are so similar, and the size and texture of the fingerprints are exactly the same." Yura sighed softly with worry. "In fact, my so-called friend, Miss E, is myself, and the family I just mentioned is the Lawrence family."

"So that's how it is!" Ayaka feigned surprise.

"That's unbelievable!" Gan Yu blinked and said.

“They actually told us something like this…” Wendy said.

“Thank you for your trust, Miss Yura,” Xiao Yi said righteously. “I, Xiao, have always loved helping those in need. Since you have entrusted yourself to us without reservation and told us what happened, I must repay your trust!”

Yura didn't believe there were that many selfless people in the world who would help others, but she had seen what Commander Qin did in his daily life and had never noticed any lies in Xiao Yi's words. Besides, he had risked his life to pull her into the car not long ago, which was enough to prove that he was not a bad person.

She decided to trust this eccentric Liyue merchant.

“If you really want to help, please do what you can,” Yura demanded. “I think this matter is not just about the Lawrence family being opportunistic and currying favor with the Inazuma elite; there may be a bigger conspiracy behind it that you can’t handle.”

She suddenly remembered something and added, "Oh right, I almost forgot to explain to you that the guy the family is trying to curry favor with is none other than the recently famous Narukami adopted son."

As soon as Yura finished speaking, the whole car fell silent. The four of them exchanged a few glances and began their performance.

"It's Narukami's adopted son!" Ayaka exclaimed in disbelief.

"So that's how it is. He was just getting married in Liyue not long ago!" Venti, who had just finished the banquet, showed a look of disgust. "So, this trip to Mondstadt was because of you? Bringing his wife along to deal with this, disgusting, disgusting!"

Wendy's disgust resonated with Yura, who complained sullenly, "I don't know Narutoko, but I heard a long time ago that he married in Liyue. Since he already has a wife, how can he accept a second woman!"

“Even in the free Mondstadt of today, monogamy is upheld. Even if Narukami’s status as an adopted son cannot be measured by human standards, he should not have a harem built in the castle tower!”

“I agree with you.” Gan Yu surprisingly reached a consensus with Yura and gave her an approving look. “I also strongly oppose the despicable practice of polygamy.”

Xiao Yi wanted to say something, but he swallowed it back. He felt like this group of people were putting him on the hot seat.

(Miyajiro: You've missed your chance to build a harem.)

(Xiao Yi: I never thought of that in the first place...)

He then looked at Wendy, who had steered the conversation off-topic, and the young bard smiled apologetically in return.

Xiao Yi steered the conversation back on track: "Putting aside the discussion about Naruko, our most urgent task is to clear Miss Yura's name and find evidence that the contract was not signed by her. Only in this way can we prevent Miss Yura from being forced into marriage as a concubine."

In fact, Yura doesn't need to worry about getting married at all, because Narukamiko came here to investigate the truth. However, Xiao Yi can't reveal his identity to her for the time being. After all, she initially disliked Narukamiko, and if she directly revealed her identity, she might not even be able to gather any information. Now that she has finally gained her trust, speaking carelessly would only make all her previous efforts go to waste.

In short, to investigate the truth of this matter, it is very important to have Yura, the person involved, on our side. We must ensure that she stands by us and acts as a bridge to the Lawrence family.

"The main problem now is why Miss Yura appeared in two different places at the same time to sign that terrible agreement." Xiao Yi pondered the suspicious points of the matter. "Excluding the possibility that Commander Qin is lying, there is only one truth: someone is impersonating Miss Yura, and the disguise technique is very sophisticated, even imitating the handwriting and fingerprints."

“I don’t think it’s as simple as just pretending; things are far more exaggerated than you imagine.” Yura stroked the beautifully crafted greatsword. “Later, I asked other people and, through sorting out intelligence, I found that at least three ‘me’s’ were active in Mondstadt at the same time.”

Xiao Yi slapped his forehead: Two Yura are already troublesome enough, how come it's doubled... Don't end up giving me a five-part Yura.

The Stand tactic he devised was fake, enhanced with special effects. Yura's "Stand" was the real Stand, but it caused her a lot of trouble.

He thought about it again and the problem became simple.

“Having many counterfeiters isn’t necessarily a bad thing. As long as we can capture any one of them and expose them to the public, the trouble will naturally be resolved,” Xiao Yi planned. “No matter what the Lawrence family and the counterfeiters’ purpose is, we can completely dispose of that terrible contract and then slowly investigate and settle accounts with them.”

The idea was good, but I didn't expect Yura to expand her thinking and even come up with a backup plan.

“That makes sense. It seems that accepting your help was the right thing to do… Ahem, let’s not talk about that. If Narukami’s brother doesn’t accept it, we can give him the fakes we caught as collateral, as many as we can, until he is satisfied.”

Xiao Yi's expression was complicated: I didn't, I didn't want to, don't talk nonsense.

Chapter 158 Ayaka, let's do something naughty together!

Is it possible that all those who possess the Eye of the Ice Element are fair-skinned and beautiful girls?

Bored, Xiao Yi looked around the carriage and suddenly a strange idea popped into his mind.

Because the journey was too long, the carriage fell silent again shortly after the discussion with Yura. Gan Yu and Ling Hua had accumulated a lot of fatigue from the long journey, and Yura had just fought with the Hilichurls. Exhausted, they began to close their eyes and rest.

With her eyes closed, Gan Yu, who was sitting in the middle, fell asleep again due to her old habit of wanting to sleep. Before long, she was immersed in a dream and fell asleep leaning on Youla's shoulder.

Xiao Yi thought to himself: This isn't right, shouldn't she be leaning on my shoulder?

Aside from the driver, the only other people who are conscious are him and Wendy. They are passing the time by tossing Mora to each other, catching it, and tossing it back.

Xiao Yi had plenty of energy. While flipping a coin, he idly glanced around the carriage and came up with the idea he just had.

Whether it's Gan Yu, Ayaka Kamisato, or Yura, they all have something in common: first, they are all holders of the Ice-attribute Eye of God; second, they are all beautiful and intelligent girls.

Is there a connection between ice and fair skin and beauty?

Xiao Yi let his mind wander, thinking about the other Teyvat ice-type users he knew, trying to verify this illogical conjecture.

His first thought was Inazuma, but apart from Miss Kamisato, Xiao Yi didn't know any other ice element characters.

Looking across Liyue, in the Bubulu Medical Clinic, there is a zombie herb-gathering girl named Qiqi. Zombies are naturally pale, and she is also very cute, which fits the description.

Shen He, a goddess adopted by an immortal, possesses a pure beauty due to her naivety and inexperience in worldly affairs, which fits the description.

Looking at Mondstadt, where he was about to go, Diona, the bartender at the Cattail Tavern, was also a very cute little girl, which fit the bill.

Finally, let's turn our attention to the Church of the West Wind. Sister Rosalia, who is an ice elemental, looks a bit melancholy, but her skin is even paler than Qiqi's, and her appearance is also very dignified, which fits the description.

As expected, the girls with the Eye of the Ice God are all intelligent, fair-skinned, and beautiful!

Just as he was thinking this, the carriage arrived at the gates of Mondstadt. The knights on guard began their routine inspection. Because of the presence of the Prince of Narukami today, even the free-spirited Mondstadt had not relaxed its security measures—at least not at the city gates.

Wendy sniffed, savoring the hazy aroma of wine in the air, and smiled.

Sensing the lively atmosphere of the city, the sleeping girls awoke one after another. After several hours of rest, their fatigue had vanished.

Xiao Yi took out a cloak made of blue and white silk and helped the dazed Gan Yu put it on. He also helped her put on the hood to prevent her face and the horns on her head from being seen by acquaintances.

Although Yura thought Ganyu's horn was a hair ornament, it's possible that someone in the know noticed something amiss. Ultimately, it's always better to be cautious.

Seeing Gan Yu wearing the cloak, Xiao Yi couldn't help but find it a little funny. The fabric used in this cloak was more than three times the amount of fabric used in his wife's everyday clothes.