Mr. Pantalone has no crazy plans today.

But for Pantalone, none of this mattered.

After finishing his busy work, Mr. Pan finally got a moment of leisure.

For everyone in Zhidongli, who works almost 24/7 like a giant machine, day and night, there is a job to do.

Such a country and political system means that very few people can have leisure time that is truly their own.

Even Pantalone, who was an executive officer, was no exception.

Executives have a lot of work to do, which is based on the areas they are responsible for and the resulting allocation of tasks. Depending on the specific tasks each executive is responsible for, their workload will naturally vary.

Although the main reason Pantalone was so busy was because of that constant reminder of 'what his real plan was'.

But this did not prevent him from experiencing the joyful and exhilarating feeling of relief after finally finishing off the pile of work.

Driven by this feeling, he couldn't help but have an idea and attempt to release his emotions that he had never had before.

For those who have been working under high pressure for a long time, this is a way to release stress.

Most people will try to do things they wouldn't normally do.

Pantalone was no exception. With his emotions released, he had some thoughts that he would never have thought about or considered before. These thoughts lingered in his mind and made him eager to try them out.

For example, standing on a street lamp and pretending to be a tax evader.

Of course, he was just thinking about it, since he and the streetlights really didn't match.

However, although standing on a street lamp to commit tax evasion is no longer an option, it doesn't mean that Pantalone has no other ideas to relieve the pressure.

After his invitation to Sandoni to join him at the dinner table for a talk failed.

Although he was unable to invite his chief engineering partner, it reminded Pantalone of something essential for dinner parties and drinking sessions.

That's right, it's alcohol.

For the people of the former Winter, before the things brought by Pantalone...

On countless cold nights, what is of utmost importance to most people in the depths of winter is alcohol.

For the cold winter months, spirits are an essential part of life.

High-purity spirits are not only important military supplies, but also provide warmth to people in the cold winter.

From any perspective, high-purity spirits are an extremely important and valuable commodity.

And since we're talking about alcohol, we can't forget about Huoshui, the most famous strong liquor for winter.

Besides the fact that high-proof liquor can warm a cold body, another reason is that alcohol can numb a person's nerves.

Wanting to relax, he went to the Zhidong Hotel alone and ordered a large table of dishes, along with a bottle of kerosene.

However, it is obvious that Pantalone, who once again challenged fire and water, overestimated his ability to withstand it.

Pantalone, whose throat was sore from the spiciness, unsurprisingly encountered another accident.

The intense heat from the hot water burning his throat made it hurt, and it took him a while to recover.

But thinking about it, it makes sense. You have to understand that even in the entire Winter Solstice, not everyone can get used to drinking fire water, let alone Pantarone, who is from Liyue.

This resulted in the entire table of food he ordered remaining untouched, leaving it only for the civil official from the Fools' faction beside him.

As for myself, I just wanted to take a break and come out to cool off by myself.

Standing on the connecting corridor of the towering city gate outside the Winter Palace, Pantalone, holding a bottle of kerosene, tried to soothe the torment caused by the kerosene while gazing up at the silver moon hanging high in the cold night sky.

He inhaled the frigid air, so cold it could freeze water, into his lungs.

Pantalone, who had initially felt as if there was fire burning inside her body, felt slightly better.

But the lingering spiciness in his throat still reminded him of the feeling that hadn't faded.

It can only be said that people always have to pay the price for their impulsive actions, and Pantalone has successfully taught himself a lesson. If nothing unexpected happens, he will dare to do it again next time.

"I really don't know how the Winter Solstice can get used to this stuff. I'd rather call it industrial alcohol than high-proof spirits. No wonder that Mondstadt Justice guy slept like a log for three days after drinking it."

Pantalone, who expressed his thoughts on the fire and water twice, gave the same assessment as a certain future Mondstadt righteous person.

At that moment, he happened to spot another familiar figure standing under the tower on the other side of the corridor.

The distinctive highlights and features undoubtedly told him who the owner of that shadow truly was.

That's...Arechino?

Pantalone's expression became somewhat strange after he saw the figure clearly.

He never expected that he would run into an acquaintance, Alegino, just by going out for a stroll.

This left Pantalone with a somewhat complicated feeling.

Should I say that I have some kind of strange fate with that person?

Otherwise, how could you say that you always manage to bump into the other person in various places?

Although he didn't know why Arecino was in this place, he thought it was probably a coincidence.

Based on Arecino's personality and her impressions of him, he didn't think that person would be the type to deliberately pretend to bump into him.

However, he still planned to go and see what his colleague was doing over there.