History repeats itself (a Genshin Impact OC insert)

Chapter 21 - of kites and manpower

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After some time, Aether and Paimon arrive back at the rite of parting site. They then proceed to give Zhongli the cleansing bell. "Indeed, this is the cleansing bell. Hm... it's in good condition. Let's place the perfume we've prepared inside." While Zhongli did as he said, Aether asks him, "do you know Madame Ping?" – "of course. How would I know that the bell was with her, otherwise?"

"Paimon finds that suspicious! But if you don't want to talk about it, we won't pry. Oh, yes! That old granny asked us to tell you something: 'if you have the time, you can come over for tea. I don't have much to offer, but you can always count on an old lady for a pot of tea.'" – "ha, that tone does not suit you. Still, her teapot is indeed very good. There are none better for brewing tea. When a suitable time arrives, I'll bring a spot of fine tea and pay her a visit.", Zhongli chuckles.

"next step in our preparations, we need kites", Lyra interrupts. "Ooh! Paimon loves kites! Are you taking us kite flying? Is this our break time?" Lyra sighs as she shakes her head "Paimon, no. Kites are children's toys, yes, but they also play various symbolic roles in Liyue's rituals. We'll explain it to you. But first, we should purchase the kites first." – "alright... curiouser and curiouser..." the little group heads back to Chihu rock and go to the toy merchant, the old lady at the side.

Upon approaching, the merchant recognises Zhongli. "Ah, sir, you're here. The seven kites you asked for have been made to order. Would you like to take them now?" – "yes, thank you.", Zhongli thanks the woman. "it is rare to see customers who want to buy this type of kite nowadays. In the early days, we used to get orders from people of all walks of life...", the woman reminisces.

Paimon shrugs. "Well, this is mr. Zhongli from the Wangsheng funeral parlour, so he's probably well-versed in all these walks of life, and this is Lyra, a far too knowledgable traveller for her age, who probably also knows all walks of life. We've talked about a whole bunch of things while travelling with them..." – "tea, perfumes, flora and fauna...", Aether chimes in. "They seem to know Liyue's favourite topics, money and government really well, but mr. Zhongli likes talking about less useful topics instead.", Paimon grumbles.

"Well, that's because I prefer to share fun things with you.", Zhongli continues." Children's toys are very fun things, that's for sure. I enjoy watching children at play as much as anyone else. But there is more to it than that." Lyra nods. "Indeed. However, these are not for children, these are decorations used in the rite of parting. The seven kites represent the seven.", Lyra explains.

"I took the liberty of colouring outside the lines when doing the insignia of the anemo archon. As for the kite that honours the geo archon, one must follow the contract given right down to the last letter. These patterns are ancient, and you can also find them in the golden house." – "ah, Paimon's heard that name before-" – "Paimon, shush.", Lyra snaps before taking a deep breath and speaking up again, while looking at the different kites.

"The design of this kite displays a firm grasp on the cyclicality and eternity so dear to the electro archon. These marking of tree and leaf pay due honour to wisdom and the passage of time. All this, on a single kite – truly astonishing. Justice flows across the surface of the waters, war rages like a flame, as does that which the Cryo archon once..." she pauses. "Yes, these details are masterfully done." – "hehehe, the compliments of a learned lady truly are pleasant.", the old lady says.

Lyra simply smiles at this statement. "Well then, granny Shan, I shall take these back with me. As for the payment...", Zhongli trails off. Lyra sighs as she shakes her head. "Well, allow me.", says a voice behind them. "Childe...", Lyra mutters. "Did you arrange to meet here?", Aether asks.

"Haha, no, I was merely passing through. I see mr. Zhongli's the same as ever. When paying- well, when getting others to pay for him, he neither looks at the price tag, nor his wallet. He knows a great deal about money and about the trials of the common man. He just doesn't consider poverty to be something that could ever happen to him.", Childe explains.

Lyra snorts. "Or perhaps you could say that he cannot imagine himself lacking money~", she teases. Paimon looks at said man exasperated. "How has he not died of hunger yet?", the Pixie asks.

"... Lyra, you are as fond of jokes as ever. Well then, since we've purchased our kites without incident-" Lyra lets out a little snort once more. "- there's no need to take a break before moving to the next step in our preparations. The rite of parting requires helping hands as well as materials. We should be able to find some people near the harbour.", Zhongli says.

Childe then turns to Aether. "Oh, by the way, Aether, take this bag of money. You probably won't want to let Zhongli do the bargaining, if you know what I mean. Hmm... it seems I missed out on some interesting information." Lyra narrows her eyes at her. After all, she had no interests in the fatui's dealings nowadays. "... I suppose I'll just have to find a more opportune moment next time.", he says, feeling Lyra's gaze, as he quickly walks away. Lyra sighs once he is out of earshot. "Let us get our workers."

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After gathering their workers, the organising group heads back to the site of the rite of parting, where Childe is waiting for them. Zhongli continues to prepare things while Childe approaches the travelling trio. "All finished then? Splendid. Any leftover cash is yours to keep – a favour for the Fatui should never go unrewarded.", he says.

Lyra rolls her eyes. "You think you can buy us off with some loose change? No way! Paimon demands to know when the next payment is coming!" – "haha, well, how does this should: you give me the information I need, and maybe I'll leave the northland bank's vaults open and unattended for half an hour...."

Before any of the others could say anything, Lyra immediately chimes in. "No. I have already sworn to myself that I will not do business with the Fatui of any kind many years ago. While I am certain I have a very high chance of having the information you need, I will never. Ever. Give them to you.", she says with a stone-cold glare.

Childe visibly sweat drops at this. "You need to calm down... I don't know what has gotten into you, Lyra. Just what is this about? The atmosphere got so tense all of a sudden." Lyra continues to glare at Childe, that even Paimon and Aether start getting uncomfortable. Just in that instance, Zhongli walks up to them.

"Next, we need some Everlasting Incense. For this, we need to go to Bubu Pharmacy, the finest pharmacy in all of-" Zhongli blinks a few times as he takes in Lyra's glare and Childe's nervous and terrified face. "Is... everything okay?" Childe turns to him, ignoring the glare sent his way the best he can. "Everything is fine. I was just informing them that they need not return the surplus of mora. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must be going." Childe slowly inches away from them for a few moments, before breaking into a full on sprint.

After a while, they can hear Lyra grumble. "Stupid Fatui harbinger, thinking he can take advantage of us for information... what does he think? That he can bargain with money? Certainly not anything from me..." the others collectively sweat-drop.

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