Klee was busy eating, completely unaware of Jiang Chen's thoughts. Right now, her eyes were only on the delicious food in front of her.
Big Brother Jiang Chen was right—that sister's cooking is really tasty!
Seeing her like this, Jiang Chen chuckled to himself.
I just hope Klee won't be too shocked later.
Meanwhile, Chongyun, after hearing Jiang Chen say he'd take him somewhere later, readily agreed.
"I'll come along too!"
"I'm really curious about the adepti!"
Hearing where Jiang Chen was planning to go, Hu Tao immediately perked up with interest. If possible, she wanted to tag along. After all, she was genuinely curious about the adepti—and she had a suspicion that her family's consultant was one of them.
There was no helping it—she had been raised by Zhongli since childhood. Yet, Zhongli's appearance had never changed. Many people his age had slowly grown old, but Zhongli?
Did Hu Tao think I was blind?
But since Zhongli never brought it up, she never asked. So, Hu Tao suspected that Zhongli was an adeptus—he just hadn't told her.
Now that there was a chance to meet an adeptus, of course Hu Tao wanted to see for herself.
"Alright, you can all come."
"I'll take you on a little tour while we're at it."
"In a while, the place will be relocated to the Guili Plains."
If they didn't visit now, they might not get another chance.
Hearing this, Xingqiu's eyes lit up.
"Is it the place that manufactures those engineering vehicles?"
"My father said that if those vehicles become widespread, doing business in the future will be much more convenient."
"They're far more efficient than horse-drawn carriages."
Xingqiu was quite interested in these developments, so he couldn't help but ask.
"Exactly."
"Those vehicles will definitely become commonplace in the future."
"Right now, the workshop is just temporary."
"Eventually, it'll move to the Guili Plains."
"Liyue Harbor is too small."
"Almost every available plot for construction has already been built on—except… the area near Wangsheng Funeral Parlor."
As he said this, Jiang Chen glanced at Hu Tao.
This girl was practically a landlady. Her family owned a huge amount of land in Liyue Harbor.
But no one would dare build houses near that place.
The street where Wangsheng Funeral Parlor was located had almost no residents.
In fact, the entire block belonged to Hu Tao's family—even the neighboring streets.
Wangsheng Funeral Parlor had been around since the Archon War and operated with semi-official status.
It had a complete monopoly on Liyue's funeral industry.
There was no helping it—it was a legitimate, centuries-old establishment.
No one else could compete, even if they wanted to.
Over the years, the wealth accumulated by Wangsheng Funeral Parlor was beyond estimation.
In other words, Hu Tao, as the sole heir, was a true tycoon.
If the full extent of Wangsheng's wealth were made public, it would be absolutely staggering.
They were just that rich.
"My family bought up that whole area."
"Too bad no one wants to take it off our hands."
"Totally stuck with it!"
Hearing Jiang Chen bring this up, Hu Tao raised her head and grumbled.
In the eyes of Liyue's citizens, Wangsheng Funeral Parlor wasn't exactly a pleasant place.
After all, they dealt with the dead every day.
At its peak, they even had coffins displayed outside.
Many people would be terrified just looking at it.
Who would want to live nearby?
Because of this, the area around Wangsheng Funeral Parlor was eerily quiet.
Aside from the fact that no one could afford to buy the land, there was also the nature of the business itself.
On top of that, the Liyue authorities didn't allow just anyone to purchase property there.
That's why so much of the area remained vacant.
"Stuck with it?"
"I wouldn't be so sure."
"There are always people who'd be interested."
Hearing Hu Tao's complaint, Jiang Chen couldn't help but feel exasperated.
They just hadn't found the right buyers yet.
If Hu Tao were to announce that Wangsheng Funeral Parlor would relocate to a more remote area and free up the land, people would definitely come.
Without a doubt.
After all, if the funeral parlor moved away, what would there be to fear?
The group chatted as they ate, and Xiangling soon brought out two more dishes.
Once everyone had eaten their fill, they left together—including Xiangling, who was curious about where Jiang Chen and the others were going.
After all, her master, Madame Ping, was also there.
So, she wanted to check it out.
Hu Tao and Xiangling playfully stuck close to Klee, the three Pyro Vision holders getting along famously.
Their lively group attracted quite a few glances along the way.
Klee adored Hu Tao and Xiangling—so much so that she even tried to gift them some Jumpy Dumpty bombs.
Seeing this, Jiang Chen quickly intervened.
"Klee, you can't just give bombs to people!"
Hearing this, Hu Tao and Xiangling froze.
Staring at the doll-like object in Klee's hands, they were utterly baffled.
"Huh?!"
"This is a bomb?!"
"Holy—!"
"Little Klee, are you trying to kill me?!"
Hu Tao was shook.
This kid was handing out bombs as gifts?!
"Mmm… no!!"
"Klee already took out the fuse! It won't explode!"
"As long as you don't add Pyro energy!"
Klee pouted in protest.
She wasn't being reckless!
It was totally safe!
Without the fuse and as long as no Pyro was added, it wouldn't blow up.
That's how she carried them around!
Xiangling and Hu Tao exchanged glances, then looked at their own Visions.
"Thanks for the thought, but…"
"I'll pass on this gift!"
Xiangling laughed awkwardly.
It was better not to carry something that dangerous around.
Hu Tao nodded vigorously in agreement.
She didn't want it either.
Way too risky.
They were Pyro Vision holders—how could they guarantee they'd never use their element?
If they accepted Klee's bombs, they might just vanish one day.
"Oh… okay."
Klee looked a little dejected as she put the bomb away.
"Next time, Klee can make some plushies instead!"
"No gunpowder inside—just cotton stuffing!"
"If you give those as gifts, everyone will love them!"
"After all, Dodoco is super cute~!"
Seeing Klee's disappointment, Jiang Chen quickly comforted her.
Klee's eyes immediately sparkled.
"Yeah, yeah!"
"Then, Sister Hu Tao, I'll give you a gift tomorrow!"
Jiang Chen's suggestion made Klee realize—she could make a Dodoco plushie really fast.
Instead of gunpowder, she'd just stuff it with cotton.
Yay!!
From now on, she'd do exactly as Big Brother Jiang Chen said!
Hearing this, Xiangling and Hu Tao couldn't help but smile.
What an adorable kid.
"If that's the case, then I'll look forward to it~!"
"Hmm… I'll prepare a gift for Klee tomorrow too."
Xiangling absolutely adored this little ball of sunshine.
She really wanted to take Klee home with her!!
"Mhm!!"
"Yay!"
Hearing that she'd get a gift too, Klee was overjoyed.
This was the best!
As the group walked, they soon arrived at the mechanical workshop.
The moment they got there, Jiang Chen spotted Shenhe sitting quietly nearby.