"Why not ask the omniscient and omnipotent Mr. Zhong?" While Keqing was worrying about the stone, Raiden Makoto added from the side. Currently, she only knew that the stone had something to do with Guoba.
But she didn't know what kind of God Guoba used to be.
"Yeah, why not go ask Zhongli? Zhongli is..." Paimon quickly corrected himself after almost letting a secret slip: "When Zhongli was completing the Rite of Parting with us, he was also well-versed in both ancient and modern times. He has the history of Liyue at his fingertips; he surely knows the origin of that big stone, right?"
If it weren't for Raiden Makoto's reminder, he really would have forgotten about that. Zhongli was once Rex Lapis, after all. How could there be anything in Liyue that he didn't know?
At that time, they might have had to follow Keqing's request and help her investigate the issue with the rock.
"Are you talking about that consultant from the Wang Sheng Funeral Parlor?" Keqing looked at Raiden Makoto and Lumine thoughtfully as she realized who they meant.
"That's right."
If they could ask Zhongli, who would ask anyone else? If that failed, they could also go ask Grandma Ping.
She had almost taken a long detour.
"Then let's hurry to the Wang Sheng Funeral Parlor and ask Zhongli?" Keqing was a bit excited. In fact, she already had some investigation results, but she wasn't very sure about them.
"I already have some investigation results, but I'm not quite sure if they're true."
"I suspect that big stone is related to the God of Stove."
"God of Stove?" Not only were Lumine and Paimon a bit confused, but even Ningguang and Beidou looked at Keqing with slight doubt.
"Yes."
"You should know the general origin of the Moonchase Festival, right? However, I personally have other views on this festival." After a moment of thought, Keqing continued: "My grandfather was a scholar who studied Liyue's traditional culture. He wrote in his notes that in ancient Liyue, there was a God of Stove, and people seemed to commemorate this deity during specific seasons."
"Ancient texts related to the God of Stove are rare, and the content is very disorganized. Some scholars believe the God of Stove is Rex Lapis, but others believe the God of Stove is someone else."
"There's even a piece of folklore claiming that someone once found a shrine to the God of Stove, but there was no statue inside, only a large stone with a smooth surface."
"The boulder was lost during subsequent transport and its whereabouts remain unknown. That stone matches the characteristics of that boulder, so I suspect this boulder is exactly the one from the legend."
"After years of research, my grandfather reached a conclusion: the Stove God Festival, which commemorates the God of Stove, might be the prototype of the current Moonchase Festival."
"To verify this, we must clarify the true identity of the God of Stove. Now that Rex Lapis has passed away and Liyue has entered the era of humanity, we, as descendants, should value traditional culture just as Rex Lapis did." Everyone listened very seriously to Keqing's words.
Only Raiden Makoto turned her gaze toward Guoba. Was Guoba that legendary God of Stove?
At this moment, she felt a bit envious. If only Inazuma had talents like Keqing, she would be much more at ease.
In a sense, Kujou Sara and Keqing were somewhat similar; they were both likely fanatical followers of the Gods they believed in.
But Keqing was also completely different from Kujou Sara. Keqing had her own opinions, whereas Kujou Sara had none at all.
Of course, that was also related to the cultural atmosphere of Inazuma.
If Inazuma also had a group of talents like the Qixing, why would she worry about Inazuma's development after her retirement?
Raiden Makoto couldn't help but look at Raiden Ei again. She noticed that Raiden Ei was also listening very seriously to Keqing's story, almost like a Little Child.
Fortunately, Raiden Makoto didn't blame Raiden Ei anymore. As for Inazuma's talents, she could only search for and cultivate them slowly in the time to come.
"In that case, let's hurry to the Wang Sheng Funeral Parlor to find Zhongli. Zhongli might know about these things." Paimon was quite curious; he had been drawn in by Keqing's story.
"Alright."
"I also happen to want to ask that old stick-in-the-mud Hu Tao talks about what he likes to eat." Xiangling nodded. She should have asked Zhongli when he was talking to her master, but she missed that opportunity.
"Let's go then."
...Wang Sheng Funeral Parlor.
"Ah? You're here to see that old stick-in-the-mud Zhongli? He's not here." Hu Tao was stunned for a moment. "Didn't he go out with your master? He hasn't come back yet."
"I don't even know if he finished the work I assigned him." Hu Tao said somewhat angrily, "If he forgot to finish it, I'm docking his salary!"
"Is Zhongli not here?"
Keqing was a bit disappointed. In her impression, Zhongli was indeed an old stick-in-the-mud; in some ways, he was a bit like Rex Lapis.
She had thought she would get an answer today. After all, it was her grandfather's life's work, and she wanted to know the answer too.
"Yeah."
"He hasn't come back since he went out... What's wrong? Do you have business with him? If it's a funeral matter, I can handle it too."
"Pui, pui, pui..."
"Hu Tao, what nonsense are you talking?" Xiangling rolled her eyes. "We just came to ask him about the God of Stove and incidentally ask what he likes."
"That's not auspicious at all, okay?"
Only then did Hu Tao notice that Keqing had come along. She was slightly surprised. "Keqing... why did you come to the Wang Sheng Funeral Parlor too?"
"Just came to ask Zhongli a few questions."
"It's a pity the Adepti aren't in Liyue Harbor right now, otherwise we could ask them; they should know." Keqing was a bit disappointed, but it wasn't completely impossible to investigate the God of Stove now. "I remember there are ancient texts in Qingce Village too."
"How about we go to Qingce Village to look for the texts?" Keqing then regained her composure and looked at them.
"It's so late... how about we set out tomorrow?" It was already late, and Xiangling was still thinking about Raiden Makoto cooking. Raiden Makoto had said she would cook for her tonight, so she had to have a good meal.
"Master also said she'd cook for us today. Investigating those things tomorrow won't be too late, right?" Xiangling said with a serious face.
"Sister Makoto is going to cook again? Yay!" Paimon was a bit excited. Didn't that mean he could eat lots and lots of delicious food again?
Like Paimon, Raiden Ei was also a bit excited. she could taste her sister's cooking again.
"Can you take me along?" Keqing had a smile on her face. She certainly knew of Xiangling's culinary skills. For Raiden Makoto to be Xiangling's master, how good must she be?
Furthermore, Raiden Makoto had been able to tell in one word that she liked golden shrimp balls, and she felt such a strong sense of familiarity with Raiden Makoto.
She was also a bit curious.
"Of course."
"Master probably won't mind an extra person, right?"
"Of course not." Raiden Makoto didn't mind at all. Cooking was more of an enjoyment for her now. Besides, compared to Inazuma, Liyue was rich in resources, and there were more dishes she could make.
"Will there be golden shrimp balls?" Keqing looked at Raiden Makoto expectantly. Seeing Keqing's "cute look" from anticipation, Raiden Makoto smiled. "Of course, as long as there are enough ingredients."
"As expected, Keqing loves golden shrimp balls." Xiangling had observed Keqing's subtle expressions since then. When Raiden Makoto mentioned golden shrimp balls earlier, Keqing's eyes lit up.
"Mm..."
"Then Hu Tao, we'll head back to the Wanmin Restaurant first."
"Okay."
Wanmin Restaurant.
"Xiangling, your kitchen... why did the kitchen collapse?"
When they returned to the Wanmin Restaurant, Keqing saw the kitchen, which had become a pile of ruins. She usually walked around Inazuma, so she knew what most shops in Liyue looked like.
The Wanmin Restaurant was the most successful restaurant in Liyue Harbor; she had come here to eat before.
"Speaking of which, there was a loud explosion in Liyue Harbor during the day... It couldn't be that your kitchen exploded, right?" Keqing looked at Xiangling blankly.
"..." Xiangling only then remembered that Raiden Ei had borrowed her kitchen, and her kitchen had exploded.
"Yeah, Sister Ei cooked... and then the kitchen exploded." Paimon recalled that scene. "At that time..."
He even added some embellishments while describing it to Keqing.
As for the culprit, Raiden Ei, she was standing aside looking somewhat dazed, her expression and gaze very innocent.
She really didn't want it to be like that.
"Speaking of which, Sister Ei is also participating in the Culinary King Competition." Paimon added.
"Really?" On the way, Keqing had already gotten to know Raiden Ei and Raiden Makoto. She knew who the "Sister Ei" Paimon mentioned was.
"Really."
Then when they served as judges, would they have to take safety measures? If another explosion happened... Keqing couldn't imagine how cooking could blow up a kitchen. She couldn't imagine it at all.
"Little Paimon, how can you look down on me? What's wrong with me participating in the Culinary King Competition? I'll definitely win the championship!" Raiden Ei's pretty face turned slightly red, but she strongly retorted against Paimon.
"Sister, do you believe me?"
"I will definitely win the Culinary King Competition." Raiden Ei's fighting spirit was completely ignited by Paimon. She had originally stopped thinking about winning and just wanted to cook a good meal for her sister at the competition, but now she felt she had to win.
She had to win. She wanted everyone to know that she, Raiden Ei, was by no means a simple-minded warrior who only knew how to fight.
She, Raiden Ei, the Electro Archon of Inazuma, could also cook!
Looking at Raiden Ei's expectant gaze, Raiden Makoto found it hard to expose her and could only nod.
"I believe you, I believe you."
"The kitchen has collapsed... does that mean we can't cook?" Keqing was a bit disappointed. She had thought she would be able to eat delicious golden shrimp balls.
"There are several other kitchens, and the ingredients are enough." Xiangling said very seriously, "Master, since you're cooking, shall I assist you?"
"Okay."
As Raiden Makoto and Xiangling headed toward the other kitchens together, the others also found a place to sit down in the Wanmin Restaurant.
"Sister Ei... are you serious?" Paimon looked at Raiden Ei cautiously, while Raiden Ei said very seriously: "Of course I'm serious."
"The Culinary King Competition is a piece of cake!"
Seeing Raiden Ei's very serious and guaranteed look, why didn't Paimon believe her at all? They hadn't heard that explosion just once; they heard it once in Inazuma and once in Liyue.
"The Culinary King will be none other than me." Raiden Ei said confidently. She was the Electro Archon of Inazuma, after all. Was there anything she couldn't do if she put her mind to it?
She was just... just not very serious before.
She was very serious about martial arts, and didn't she become invincible in Inazuma?
"Um..." Paimon still had a disbelieving expression, while Keqing was now somewhat curious. "Ei and Makoto are twin sisters..."
"You're both Inazumans, so why does Makoto know so many Liyue recipes? Is it because Inazuma's culture is similar to Liyue's?" Keqing asked curiously.
"Inazuma and Liyue are completely different; they're not alike at all." Paimon said quite seriously.
"Yes." Lumine also agreed with Paimon's words. "Inazuma and Liyue are indeed quite different."
"So many things in Inazuma are really completely different from Liyue. The dishes are much lighter in taste than Liyue's, and the clothes are also completely different." Paimon shook his head. "I don't know why Sister Makoto knows so much either..."
What Keqing was actually curious about was Raiden Makoto's identity. She didn't know why she felt a sense of familiarity.
Actually, she also felt some familiarity with Raiden Ei, but because Raiden Ei was speaking ill of Rex Lapis at the time, and Raiden Ei looked more cold and aloof while Raiden Makoto was very gentle, her impression of Raiden Ei wasn't as good as her impression of Raiden Makoto.
She also observed Raiden Makoto and Raiden Ei and found no trace of a Vision, indicating that the sisters should both be ordinary people.
After all, not everyone could be like Lumine, able to use elemental power even without using a Vision.
"However, Sister Makoto's culinary skills are really excellent. Keqing, you're in for a treat." Paimon said especially seriously, and he swallowed a mouthful of saliva. "I wonder what good dishes Sister Makoto will make for us?"
"I only need golden shrimp balls." Keqing was made to look forward to the taste of the dishes by Paimon, plus she was indeed a bit hungry now. She then looked at Raiden Ei, who was almost identical in appearance to Raiden Makoto, and felt that the kitchen explosion caused by her cooking must have been an accident, right?
Otherwise, it made no sense at all.
If Raiden Makoto, the elder sister, had such good culinary skills, then Raiden Ei, the twin younger sister, shouldn't be too bad in her culinary attainments either, right?
As for why the kitchen exploded, she guessed it must have been an accident? Otherwise, Keqing couldn't understand at all how a normal person cooking could lead to a massive kitchen explosion.
Raiden Ei was an ordinary person and couldn't use elemental power, so the kitchen shouldn't have exploded even more so.
"It seems Keqing really likes golden shrimp balls. But I think you can try other dishes made by Sister Makoto; they're really delicious." Paimon said with a smile.
"Mm-hmm."
"I will." She just liked golden shrimp balls the most; it wasn't that she didn't like other dishes. If they were all very delicious, then she would eat more.
"Mm-hmm."
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