[The man took you to see a baby still in swaddling clothes and told you that the baby's name was Xiangling and that she would be your little sister from now on.]
[Age 4: Though you no longer had a mother, your new father treated you very well. He would cook delicious food for you and teach you how to identify ingredients. You were satisfied with your current life, though the only downside was that Xiangling cried a lot, giving you headaches.]
[Age 5: Xiangling had started walking, and now you had a little shadow following you everywhere, constantly calling out "Brother, brother!"]
[Age 6: You reached the age for schooling, and your father sent you to academy. On the first day of school, Xiangling clung to your leg, crying so hard that she even wiped her snot on your pants.]
[Age 7: You found the things taught in school utterly boring and preferred helping your father with ingredients at home. However, after you once skipped school and were caught by your father, he gave you a beating, and you didn't dare skip again.]
[Age 8: You became more and more adept at handling ingredients, and your father looked on with pride. "As expected of my brother's..." he trailed off, but you guessed he was reminiscing about your birth father again.]
[Age 9: Thanks to your father's exceptional culinary skills, Wanmin Restaurant's business flourished, and the shop expanded in Chihu Rock. However, during school, you began being bullied by children from Liuli Pavilion and Xinyue Kiosk, often returning home with injuries. Faced with Xiangling's tears and your father's questions, you stubbornly kept your lips sealed and refused to say anything.]
[You gradually found ways to avoid those bullies, and the number of times you returned home injured decreased. Your father thought you had resolved the issue and didn't press further.]
[Age 10: Xiangling also reached school age, and you accompanied her to and from school every day. After returning home, the two of you would help your father with ingredients and serving customers. One day after school, when you went to pick up Xiangling from her class, her classmates told you that she had already been taken by other students.]
[A sense of foreboding washed over you. You ran through the academy and eventually found a group of students surrounding Xiangling on the hill behind the school. They were the same group that had been bullying you!]
[Little Xiangling sat on the ground, hugging herself tightly, crying and dodging the punches and kicks from the bullies.]
[You saw that the new clothes she had begged your father to buy for school were now covered in dirt, and her face was streaked with tears.]
[At this moment, you chose...]
[1. Endure it and wait until they finish bullying Xiangling before stepping in. Xinyue Kiosk and Liuli Pavilion represent the two major culinary traditions of Liyue, holding an unshakable position in the local dining scene. Retaliating might harm Wanmin Restaurant's business.]
[2. Charge in and give these bullies a fierce counterattack. It was because of your constant retreat that they became bolder. You wouldn't tolerate them bullying your sister any longer!]
"Damn it, of course I'm choosing 2!"
How could these little brats lay a hand on such an adorable Xiangling?
[You rushed forward, grabbed one of the kids by the collar, and with all your strength, punched him hard in the face.]
[The other kids saw you fighting back and surrounded you.]
["The softie from Wanmin Restaurant dares to fight back? Let's get him!"]
[Countless fists rained down on your body and face, but you felt no pain as you kept fighting back.]
[Unlike these pampered children, you had been helping your father with ingredients since you were 4 years old. Years of work had given you strength far beyond your peers.]
[Soon, the kids fell one by one.]
[Though you were bruised and battered, the kids on the ground were in worse shape.]
[They all looked at you with fear in their eyes.]
[You looked down at them and declared firmly, "I will become the best chef in Liyue. I will elevate Wanmin Restaurant to a level that even Xinyue Kiosk and Liuli Pavilion can't match!"]
[Suddenly, a glowing red sphere, resembling a ball of fire, appeared beside you. As if hearing a call, you reached out and caught the sphere.]
[The moment it touched you, the burning flames were absorbed into the sphere, leaving intricate patterns engraved on its surface.]
[It was a Pyro Vision!]
[Congratulations, Host, for obtaining the item: Pyro Vision. Elemental Affinity +100. Current Elemental Affinity: 200.]
Who knew you'd get a Vision so quickly in this life simulation!
[When you returned home, your father was both shocked and heartbroken to see the state you and Xiangling were in.]
[You told him the truth and shared your longstanding worries.]
[Your father patted your shoulder and said that while your actions to protect Xiangling were commendable, he had to scold you for keeping it a secret all this time.]
["You and Xiangling are both my children. To me, you are more important than Wanmin Restaurant. Even if we can't keep the restaurant in Liyue, I'm confident that with my skills, I can make Wanmin Restaurant famous anywhere we go."]
["Besides, things haven't reached that point yet. Leave these matters to the adults. You're just a child—you don't need to worry about such things."]
[You hadn't shed a tear when you were being bullied, but hearing your father's words, you broke down and cried uncontrollably.]
[You had understood early on that you were adopted.]
[You were always afraid of causing trouble for the family, afraid that you'd be abandoned again.]
[But now, hearing from your father that you were just as important as Xiangling, the heaviest burden in your heart finally lifted.]
[The next day, when you returned to school, the kids you had beaten up glared at you, but none of them dared to do anything.]
[Not only were they terrified by your ferocity from yesterday, but they were also intimidated by the Vision hanging at your waist.]
[Vision wielders far surpass ordinary people in combat—this is common knowledge across Teyvat.]
[Even adults were no match for you now.]
[They didn't dare lay a hand on you or Xiangling anymore.]
[Age 11: Wanmin Restaurant's business had declined significantly recently. It wasn't that people didn't want to eat there, but because Xinyue Kiosk and Liuli Pavilion had teamed up to cut off Wanmin's ingredient supply.]
[They had always seen Wanmin as a thorn in their side, seeking ways to eliminate it.]
[Your attack on their children gave them the perfect excuse.]
[They no longer needed to care about their reputation and could now openly target Wanmin Restaurant.]
[Suppliers, as if colluding, raised the prices of all ingredients for Wanmin Restaurant.]
[At first, your father gritted his teeth and bought the overpriced ingredients.]
[But then, the price hikes became increasingly outrageous, and the costs were staggering. Wanmin Restaurant was now operating at a loss.]
[Wanmin had always been a humble, affordable eatery, and your father refused to raise prices, staying true to the restaurant's roots.]
[Your father tried sourcing ingredients from other nations. While they were also more expensive than local Liyue ingredients, it was a workable solution.]
[However, shipping times were unpredictable, and the ingredients often didn't arrive at Liyue Harbor on time.]
[Now, Wanmin often had to close for days at a time, waiting for the next batch of ingredients to arrive before reopening.]
[Even with your father's exceptional skills, it was impossible to cook without fresh, quality ingredients, forcing the restaurant to shut down frequently.]
[This erratic operation caused Wanmin to lose many loyal customers.]
[If Xinyue Kiosk and Liuli Pavilion were willing to let Wanmin off the hook, you'd have no qualms about kneeling and begging for forgiveness.]
[But you knew that wasn't what they wanted.]
[They simply wanted Wanmin Restaurant—a threat to their dominance—gone from Liyue forever.]
[Today, as soon as school ended, you rushed home with Xiangling as fast as you could.]
[A new batch of ingredients had arrived at Liyue Harbor, and Wanmin was set to reopen today. You needed to hurry back and help.]
[As soon as you entered Wanmin, you heard your father arguing with someone.]
["We agreed to purchase premium mint and fresh fish, but the ingredients you've brought don't meet the requirements!"]
[A young merchant dressed in Mondstadt attire sneered at your father's complaint. "This is all I have. Take it or leave it."]
["Fine, I won't take any of it!"]
["Suit yourself," the Mondstadt merchant rolled his eyes and had his underlings carry the ingredients away.]
["Who doesn't know that no supplier in Liyue will sell to you anymore? And you dare complain about our ingredients? A restaurant without ingredients—just wait for it to go bankrupt."]
[Your father sighed in exhaustion and addressed the few remaining customers in the shop. "I apologize for the disturbance. As you know, the restaurant's situation is dire. We won't be able to operate today."]
[The customers, all long-time patrons of Wanmin, expressed their understanding and left.]
[Only a white-haired girl remained seated at her table, unmoved.]
[Your father, thinking she hadn't heard, spoke up. "Miss..."]
[The white-haired girl set down her teacup, her crimson eyes meeting your father's.]
["Chef Mao, what kind of ingredients do you need? Perhaps I can help."]