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

Wendy, acting as the tour guide, stood silently behind him. He didn't need to say much, because this atmosphere could be clearly felt as soon as one stood on the statue of the wind god, without needing any explanation.

Not long ago, after having breakfast, the two, led by Wendy, visited the Cider Lake surrounding the city and the Windrise, a symbol of heroism. It was noon, and they decided to have lunch in Mondstadt, so they didn't go too far and returned the way they came.

Before dinner, Wendy said she would take them to overlook the city, so they went to the foot of the Anemo statue.

For this bard who didn't do anything productive, climbing the statue was already a piece of cake. He created a wind field to help Xiao Yi and Gan Yu rise up and reach the palm of the statue, which led to the scene just now.

“Isn’t it beautiful? I think the best thing about this statue is its view of Mondstadt.” Wendy said with a smile. “It’s a pity that the Knights don’t like citizens doing this. If anyone climbs the Statue of the Wind without permission, they will be warned or even fined. They’re really strict.”

However, this is also for the safety of the citizens. After all, the statue of the wind god has no railings, and not everyone has a pilot's license and carries wings of wind. If someone accidentally falls, things will become troublesome.

Only during the badminton festival, after the church has registered and taken protective measures, will designated personnel climb the statue of the deity and throw down a shuttlecock symbolizing good fortune for Mond.

But Xiao Yi and Gan Yu are safe now and don't need to worry about fines for the time being, because most of the knights have been transferred to guard the Narutoshi, and the rest are investigating the Fools' clandestine activities. There are no extra people to guard the statue.

Besides, the statues of gods don't need special guarding.

Even though the people of Mondstadt are incredibly free, no one is idle enough to climb statues. For most citizens, if they accidentally fall and break their leg while climbing to a high place, they will be unable to go to the tavern for a long time to party all night, which is a huge loss.

"How beautiful!" Gan Yu smiled as she caught the drifting dandelion. "I used to stand on Mount Tianheng overlooking the night view of Liyue Harbor and felt its brilliance and prosperity, while Mondstadt is all about romance and freedom."

Compared to Gan Yu's focus on the whole, Xiao Yi pays more attention to the individual, such as people working leisurely, citizens taking a walk, and scattered guards...

Suddenly, Xiao Yi spotted familiar faces—two people who shouldn't be in Mondstadt.

……

During the time of the wedding, Haigi Island was undergoing land reclamation for cultivation.

This was a major event concerning people's livelihood, and Coral Palace's Xin Hai personally oversaw it, so much so that she didn't have time to go to Liyue to participate in the seven-day celebration.

However, Xiao Yi knew about this matter beforehand. He wrote a letter to the Coral Palace, asking Xin Hai to focus on people's livelihood issues and not to be distracted by this matter.

More than ten days ago, the farmland expansion project on Haiji Island was finally completed. To make up for his absence, Xin Hai planned to personally find Narutoko and deliver a belated congratulatory gift.

Upon arriving in Liyue, they heard that Xiao Yi and Gan Yu had gone to Mondstadt for their honeymoon. Xin Hai, along with several elite soldiers from Coral Palace and General Goro, set off for Mondstadt.

Before leaving Inazuma, the fox priest of Narukami Shrine suggested that it be done secretly to give the newlyweds a big surprise, and Kokoro agreed with Yae's idea.

So on the way here, she didn't make a big fuss or use the name of the Coral Palace on Umijima Island. Instead, everyone disguised themselves as Inazuma merchants and worked quietly.

Around noon, Haiji Island and his group arrived in the city.

Upon hearing that at this very moment, Naruto was visiting one of Mondstadt's iconic landmarks, the Cathedral of Favonius, led by the Knights of Favonius and the Church, Xin Hai decided not to go directly to the newlyweds, but instead suggested that everyone rest for a while at the Deer Hunter's Restaurant.

To the Knights of Favonius would be extremely disrespectful and presumptuous to directly reveal their identity and barge into the church looking for someone, as such behavior would be seen as usurping their position.

Anyway, Narutoko isn't going to run away, so we might as well wait a little while.

"Lord Coral Palace, what should we do now?" asked General Goro with Inu-eared ears.

This was also Xin Hai's first time traveling so far away to a foreign land so far from Haiqi Island. She was looking around, admiring the street layout and cultural landscape of Mondstadt.

The pink-haired girl thought for a moment and said, "Goro, why don't you take someone to the tavern?"

"A tavern?" Goro asked, puzzled.

“That’s right, pubs are great places to gather information,” Shinkai explained to his subordinate. “People from any country or culture will become very talkative when stimulated by alcohol and atmosphere—Inazuma’s pub is no exception.”

Goro twitched his ears in confusion, somewhat puzzled. They hadn't come to Mondstadt to fight, so why were they deliberately gathering information at the tavern like spies?

Xin Hai continued, "When you arrive in a foreign country, the most important thing is to understand the local customs and the recent big news. We will be staying here for a while, and only by fully understanding these things can we integrate with the locals."

Recently, Inazuma lifted the isolation order, and the target of signing commercial agreements is not necessarily only Liyue. Coral Palace wants to focus on Mondstadt, selling regional specialties such as pearls and sea fish to the Free City, but this matter will have to wait until after meeting the adopted son.

"I see. As expected of Lord Coral Palace," Goro said respectfully.

"Go quickly and come back soon. I'll wait for your news here," Xin Hai said with a smile.

Goro, accompanied by a follower, wagged his fluffy tail and headed toward the Angel's Gift. Just as Lord Coral had predicted, the atmosphere in the tavern was unusually cheerful.

He went to the bar. Since this was work-related and he had other things to do, he and his entourage only ordered two glasses of juice. Goro was surprised to find that the "appetizers" on the menu included cake. He looked at the sergeant next to him and hesitated.

"Hahaha, Lord Goro, look at this!" the soldier said with a laugh. "The Mondstadt people are really strange. They sell cakes in izakayas. Only children eat this, right? But how can a brat come to an izakaya?"

"Ahaha...I see." The dog-eared general chuckled dryly a few times, then walked towards the empty table in the most crowded area, intending to drink juice while listening to their conversation.

Goro wasn't primarily interested in Mondstadt's culture and customs. On the way here, they had already done their homework, and their current focus was on what had happened in Mondstadt recently. Gathering this information would also help them avoid accidentally stepping on a landmine.

He pricked up his canine ears and listened for information in the bustling tavern. Using the information gathering skills he had learned while leading troops into battle, he filtered out useless information such as "so-and-so's wife is really beautiful" and searched for the big news that Lord Coral Palace wanted.

He quickly found the information he was looking for, but the more he listened, the more something seemed off.

Several drunkards were chatting.

Drunkard A mumbled, "Have you heard about what happened on Haiqi Island recently?"

Haigi Island?!

Goro was very puzzled. Why were these Mondstadt people suddenly talking about Inazuma, which was far away, and why was the topic not Narukami Island where Raijin was located, but Umigi Island, which was operating in a low-key manner?

He continued listening.

Drunkard B immediately said, "Of course I've heard of it. That's a huge deal! I never expected that Umijima would openly rebel against the shogunate again, and this time the reasons are far more radical than last time. They're practically disregarding the gods."

Drunkard C glanced at the empty bottom of his glass and continued, "Oh, I've heard a bit about it too. During the Eye Hunt, the Coral Palace used the pretext of 'purging the court of corrupt officials' to not directly question the authority of the gods. But this time, it's outrageous! They actually want to remove the Thunder God from power and support Naruto no Kamiko as the new Thunder God!"

Regarding the series of rumors, the doctor only provided the general direction, while the specific implementation was handled by his subordinates. They felt that since they wanted to ensure that Narutoko was brought back, the news had to be sensational and related to Narutoko in order to achieve the best results.

So, as it was passed down, it turned out like this.

Goro, who was standing next to him, was completely dumbfounded, and his mind started to wander.

Could it be that when Lord Coral Palace left Umijima Island, some villain interfered, seized control of Umijima Island, and declared war on Narukami Island at the same time?!

However, this conjecture has many flaws. If such a thing really happened, the news should have reached me immediately, rather than bypassing me and coming to Mondstadt.

It might be a rumor.

He glanced at the Coral Palace sergeant beside him. The subordinate's expression was also not good; he was in a state of doubt, and the hand holding the cup began to tremble slightly.

Goro gestured to his subordinates to calm down and continue listening.

Then, Drunken Man D made the final statement, convincing the two from Coral Palace that these were all rumors. Drunken Man D said, "I heard that this whole thing was orchestrated by Coral Palace's Xin Hai. She even incited bandits like Hai Luan Gui to join her, and afterwards she bestowed official titles and ranks upon them..."

As the saying goes, rumors stop with the wise. Clearly, Goro's subordinate was a wise man, and he immediately exposed the drunkards' nonsense.

*Thud!* The juice glass slammed heavily against the table.

The gazes of several drunkards simultaneously fell upon the standing sergeant of the Coral Palace, who kindly corrected their discussion: "Bullshit! Colluding with bandits and criminals to overthrow the Shogunate and Narukami? You'd be more convincing if the Knights of Favonius had done it..."

He learned this swear word from Liyue, and it's very useful when he's angry.

The sudden intervention of outsiders, coupled with a barrage of insults, left the drunkards, who had been drinking and rambling incoherently, stunned in place.

In contrast, Goro was much calmer. He immediately grabbed the enraged Coral Palace soldier and dragged him out of the tavern. At the same time, he said to the drunkards, "I'm sorry, my friend here has had too much to drink. Please forgive him if he has offended anyone."

The most important quality of a soldier is obedience. The professionally trained soldiers of Haiji Island, even when they were burning with anger, still obeyed their superiors' orders, did not clash with the drunkard of Mondstadt, and followed Goro to the entrance of the Angel's Gift.

"You wait here, I'll go and find out more." To avoid his subordinate losing control of his emotions, Goro decided to gather information on his own.

Later, he heard all sorts of different things, but they all boiled down to the same thing: how urgent the battle was at the front, and that the Kamisato family had colluded with the Coral Palace to send a large number of soldiers to Umijima Island, and that they were now almost at the gates of the castle tower...

When he had heard enough, Goro walked toward the tavern entrance.

The two returned to the Deer Hunter's Tavern and sat down in front of Xin Hai. The High Priestess and Strategist of Haiqi Island quickly noticed that her two subordinates were acting strangely.

Coral Palace Heart Sea asked curiously, "You seem a little displeased. Have you heard some bad news? Or did something happen at the tavern?"

Goro and the soldiers looked at each other in bewilderment, and the task of reporting ultimately fell to the dog-eared general, who was their superior.

He replied helplessly, "'Coral Palace is plotting a rebellion,' that's what the people in the tavern said. They also said the situation at the front is urgent and the Kamisato family is supporting Umijima Island."

"What? I've rebelled?!" Coral Palace Xin Hai repeated, slightly surprised. Then she muttered to herself, "Could it be that the meaning of the brocade pouch I left behind before I left was misunderstood, leading to this unexpected incident?"

Goro added, "According to the rumors circulating in the tavern, you are currently in Inazuma, personally commanding your soldiers to attack Narukami Island."

This news helped Xin Hai sort out her thoughts. She instantly realized that someone wanted to frame her... The problem was that her itinerary was almost entirely secret, and not many people knew that she had arrived in Mondstadt. Why would they choose to spread rumors in Mondstadt, and what practical effect would such an action have?

After pondering for a long time, Xin Hai finally understood. She explained to the soldiers around her, "Their target is not me, but Narukamiko in Mondstadt. Although we don't know what they want, their goal should be to lure Narukamiko back to Inazuma."

"It's such a surprise to see you, Kokomi." A familiar voice came from the side.

Xin Hai and the soldiers turned around and found that Narukami Ichiko was walking towards them slowly with a dignified and beautiful blue-haired woman and a green-haired poet.

"You seem to have heard some incredible news just now, and I'd like to hear it too." Xiao Yi stopped in front of Xin Hai.

Chapter 179 All I see before my eyes is Yura

"This must be the famous priestess of Haiji Island, Coral Palace Kokoro? I've heard so much about you." Wendy sat down at Kokoro's table without any ceremony, pretending not to know anything and asking, "How did you, Boss Xiao, get to know such a distinguished person from Haiji Island? Have you already expanded your business to Inazuma? You've moved really fast!"

The young bard's words directly stopped her from uttering the words "Narukamiko" from her mind, and indirectly told her that the current situation was rather special.

"Boss Xiao?" Xin Hai asked, puzzled.

"It's been a long time, High Priestess of the Sea Isle." Xiao Yi pretended to say this, then lowered his voice, "Be careful of eavesdroppers. Whenever I am in Mondstadt, there are Fatui spies around listening to me."

He had sensed something was wrong when he returned to Mondstadt after rescuing the fake lady yesterday, and he guessed that the Fatui were already watching him.

Currently, the key to uncovering the mastermind behind the Fools' Executive Doctor lies in the fact that Xiao Yi's identity has not been exposed.

Xiao Yi already roughly knew that the Fools regarded him as a chosen one of the gods and wanted to capture him to study in order to analyze the power and weaknesses of Naruto.

As long as his true identity remains unrevealed, he can continuously attract the Fatui to cause trouble and constantly thwart them. Eventually, the Doctor, hiding behind the scenes, will be unable to resist making his appearance, at which point he can be taken down directly without needing to play dumb.

If Xin Hai had shouted "Narukami-shi" just now, and the eavesdropping fools had noticed, the severity of the situation would have been self-evident, and all the previous pretense would have been in vain.

However, Xiao Yi initially used this substitute tactic to avoid the Knights' arrangements and enjoy a more carefree life. Unexpectedly, he was targeted by the Fools and became less free because of it.

For the real Yura, as well as Number 47 and countless other fake Yura, it's a good thing that the Doctor's target has shifted to Xiao Yi.

Originally, the Doctor wanted to infiltrate Narutoko's side by sending a fake Yura to investigate his power, but now that a more obvious chosen one has appeared, the Doctor will no longer create deceptive flowers and will devote himself to the operation to capture Xiao Yi.

Although he had brought trouble upon himself, with his current strength, the mere executors of the Fatui were no obstacle at all. In addition, with the wind god Barbatos by his side, the Fatui's actions would at most add a little excitement to this trip.

However, Xiao Yi was still complaining in his heart: Instead of going to the heart of the God of Grass in Sumeru, the Fools are tormenting me, an incomplete god. They are really idle!

Just as Xiao Yi finished his internal monologue, Xin Hai had a general understanding of the situation. Although she didn't know the details, she was prepared to continue acting as Wendy had suggested.

Coral Palace Heart Sea calmly said, "I didn't expect to meet Boss Xiao here. Our business should have officially started. I hope everything goes smoothly. As for why I am in Mondstadt, as you can see, I am here to expand our business scope."

The Fools, disguised as civilians nearby, frowned, intending to leave and report the situation to the Doctor. Compared to that, the task of monitoring Boss Xiao was nothing, since the High Priestess had arrived in Mondstadt, proving that the plan to spread rumors had failed.

Realizing the eavesdropper had moved away, Xiao Yi stopped acting and faced Xin Hai seriously, explaining all the information he knew to her.

……