Outside Mondstadt, Dvalin resumed his dragon form, circling high in the sky with Venti on his back.
"Barbatos, have you also decided to bet your future on that young man?" Dvalin said to Venti on his back.
At this moment, Venti was nowhere near drunk. He sat cross-legged on Dvalin's back, contemplating something with his head bowed.
"Future? Dvalin, your topic is too serious. The future is not something we can control, not even that person..." Venti shook his head with a smile. Even the true god who controlled time, Istaroth, could not fully grasp the future. In the face of infinite possible futures, all they could do was take risks. After days of drinking and observing, Venti was prepared to place a portion of his funds on Feng Yi, because he saw some 'seeds of hope' in this young man. Moreover, before him, his old friend Morax had already placed his bet.
"Is that so? I understand..." Dvalin said, as if enlightened, upon hearing Venti mention the god of 'time and thousand winds'. Having followed Venti for so many years, he knew that Venti's rise from an emerging wind spirit to the Archon of Winds who defeated the god of storms was inseparable from the help of that god of time. In Venti's words, the god of time was also investing, but her investment was more precise because she could glimpse the future.
Venti: ??? Venti wondered what Dvalin understood. He had merely made a casual remark.
Dvalin: I get it, I get it!
"To be honest, the wine at Feng Yi's 'Cat's Tail Tavern' is excellent, it really suits my taste. Go to the Stormterror's Lair and mine for more ore, and remember to redeem me next time. I'm leaving!" Venti stood up, adjusted his hat, and then transformed into a wisp of breeze, drifting away.
"..." Dvalin felt it was truly troublesome to have such a god who didn't do proper business. Venti was either drinking and sleeping, or on his way to drink and sleep. He dumped all the dirty and tiring work of mining onto himself, not treating him like a dragon at all. He was a great dragon, after all! A wind dragon that could unleash roaring tornados! Wasn't it a waste of talent to use him for mining?
Despite his grumbling, Dvalin flew back to Stormterror's Lair. With a single claw, he could excavate a large chunk of crystal ore, his efficiency astonishingly high.
Feng Yi, after a busy afternoon at the tavern, arrived at Jean's office in the evening with freshly made ice cream. He gently closed the door and sat beside Jean, placing the ice cream on the desk in front of her.
"Have some dessert first, and I'll give you a massage later..." Feng Yi said with a smile.
"Hmm? It's cold! I'd better not eat it. Feng Yi, you eat it for me." Jean, remembering that it was that time of the month and she couldn't eat anything cold, swallowed and politely refused.
"What a shame..." Feng Yi didn't react at first. When Jean blushed and pointed to her stomach, he suddenly understood. The book he had written on menstruation had reached Mondstadt; he had seen it in Lisa's library before. So, Jean naturally knew that she shouldn't eat anything cold when she had her period. Feng Yi would have to make her another one in a few days.
"Without further ado, let's start as soon as possible!" After finishing the ice cream, Feng Yi took Jean's small hand and led her to the sofa to lie down. The last time Jean had secretly kissed him on the cheek, Feng Yi planned to take the initiative this time. Holding Jean's hand was the first step in testing the waters. As expected, Jean didn't resist, so he seemed to have a chance to progress further.
While massaging her dark circles, Feng Yi casually suggested he offered other massage services and asked if Jean wanted to try them.
"Waist and back massage? Hmm... Indeed, sitting for long periods dealing with official duties often leaves my waist and back feeling sore and strained. If the massage can relieve the soreness, it's definitely worth trying!" After the eye massage, Jean decided to try the waist and back massage service Feng Yi mentioned. These past few days, she had been busy dealing with the Grand Master's expedition, often sitting for the entire day. The lumbar muscle strain caused by prolonged sitting had been unbearable, but with official duties taking precedence, she could only endure the soreness and finish her work before resting.
"For a waist and back massage, wearing clothes would affect the massage's effectiveness, but considering this is a place of work, you only need to take off your outer jacket..." Feng Yi said to Jean, who was lying on the sofa.
"Just taking off my jacket is enough?" Jean was initially shocked and shy when Feng Yi mentioned taking off clothes, but she was quietly relieved to learn it was only her outer jacket.
"Yes, if you feel the soreness has lessened after the experience, we can consider deeper massages..." Feng Yi stated that he had come in a hurry this time, so a simple experience would suffice, and he would prepare more professional massage tools next time.
"Okay, then I'll trouble you!" Jean unbuttoned her clothes and took off her fitted jacket. The two white globes, constrained for a long time, had no time to breathe fresh air before Jean pressed them onto the sofa.
"Then I'll begin!" Feng Yi rubbed his palms to generate heat. Once the temperature was suitable, he began massaging Jean's waist through a thin shirt. Up and down, left and right. Jean felt Feng Yi's warm hands gently pushing and kneading, and she couldn't help but let out comfortable groans. Perhaps it was psychological, but the sore spots in her waist truly felt relieved. It seemed that the next time she felt sore, she would have to trouble Feng Yi again.
Feng Yi: This is my brilliant plan! Cast a long line to catch a big fish!
*Pat, pat, pat~* As Feng Yi's rhythmic patting continued, the massage was nearing its end.
*Creak~*
"Sister, I've made you a bowl of brown sugar water..." Just then, Barbara pushed open the office door and saw Feng Yi doing something strange to her sister. Her sister was disheveled, making comfortable humming sounds. The immense amount of information instantly stunned Barbara. 'Sister and Feng Yi have already...?' With this thought, Barbara felt her future with Feng Yi was plunged into darkness.
*Clang~* Suddenly, Barbara felt her hands and feet weaken, and the bowl of brown sugar water fell to the ground with a crisp shattering sound.
"Wuwu~" The next moment, Barbara ran away crying. Sister had snatched Feng Yi first, and she wasn't as capable as her sister... The immense sense of loss overwhelmed her, and she broke down instantly, bursting into tears.
"Feng Yi, I can't leave right now. Can I ask you to look after Barbara? I don't know what's wrong with that child, she suddenly ran out crying, and I'm very worried..." Jean got up from the sofa and clasped Feng Yi's hand, pleading. The only person she could trust right now was Feng Yi.
"Don't worry, I'll go right away!" Seeing that it was getting dark, Feng Yi didn't refuse. Worried that something might happen to Barbara, he hurried out after her.