Heir of Haishan

A Rainy Rebellion

A typhoon had hit the edges of Guyun Stone Forest, the residual storm hitting Liyue Harbour with a torrential downpour.

Even the remnants of the tropical cyclone were enough to form a violent descent of rain, which pelted pellets of water against the spires of the port angrily, soaking the streets and bridges with puddles and streams. The shops were shut and the denizens of the harbour had fled back into their homes. Only one young lady was outside, her lightning stiletto sending her body zooming from point to point in the form of a jumping electrical charge. The crackling stiletto zigzagged from rooftop to rooftop, until Lady Keqing's lithe form landed in a delicate crouch just beyond the doorstep of Yanshang Teahouse.

Her sharp, intelligent eyes narrowed as they fell on the unconscious bodies of The Halberd and The Fang, the two intimidating strongarms that usually stood guard at the door. Speaking of the door, it had been smashed open, as if a mighty greatsword had been used to cleave the wood in two. The once-hanging lamps beside it were torn down. Keqing could hear tables being overturned, heads being bashed against the walls, and the angry clanging of steel weapons inside the business.

"Fucking stop Beidou!" came the muffled cry, before a heavy thud silenced the utterer.

"Piss off, we're trying! She's unstoppable!" came a retort. Its source let out a sharp-pitched scream, before seemingly crashing into the wall. He sounded like he'd been thrown.

The Halberd stirred slightly and groaned. "What in Rex Lapis' name is going on?" demanded Keqing, glaring down at him. Her high heel brushed contemptuously against his shoulder. "Oi. Answer me. What shady things have your masters been up to?"

She knew that Yanshang Teahouse wasn't really a teahouse, but more a gathering place for all of Liyue's ne'er-do-wells, from deft pickpockets operating alone to gang leaders financed by shadowy interests. Rumours abounded on the street and in The Steambird newspaper about just how high up the racketeering and extortion planned at the teahouse went.

To the gentry of Yujing Terrace?

To the Feiyun Commerce Guild?

Or perhaps... all the way up to the Qixing, or even foreign interests like the Northland Bank of Snezhnaya?

And now, it seemed as if a certain, one-eyed swashbuckling buccaneer had just thrown this hub of criminality into chaos.

"She's gone insane," muttered The Halberd, "that marauding pirate welp." He rubbed his bleeding head and glared up at Keqing. "Ask the intruder yourself, Yuheng. Just an hour ago, she stomped over from the docks, all by herself, and went feral on us. She didn't even have the courtesy to tell Hostess Chuyi what the hell she wanted, and now Chuyi's fled. Beidou's in deep shit now, along with all her crew of the Alcor and the whole Crux Fleet."

The Halberd began to laugh bitterly. "They've just painted a target on themselves for the whole fucking harbour's rich and strong."

"What do you mean?" whispered Keqing.

"Fuck you, don't play dumb. You're the damn Yuheng. You know how much black Mora passes through this place? How many rich assholes have their grubby fingers in our honeypot?"

Keqing gritted her teeth. The Mondstadt-born thug wasn't lying, as much as she hated to admit it. Being a member of the Qixing was the most prestigious post that a Liyue citizen could aspire to. Yet it also meant accepting and balancing the many political and economic factions that jostled against each other for dominance over this prosperous port. Few factions, especially when they had reached a level of wealth and influence, could resist the temptation of unfair leverage, which came in the form of smuggling, tax evasion, and other financial criminality. More seriously, it could involve racketeering, intimidation, bribery, and civic crimes. But rarely had open violence exploded in public like this, and for the instigator to be... Beidou?