Chapter 272: Ch 272 : The statue of the Geo Archon
"My Lord Geo Archon… you see, I'm working honestly and diligently, so why is it that I just can't seem to make any money…"
At the roadside stall of Jiecui Market, the vendor named Shitou was respectfully bowing to a wooden carving of the Geo Archon…
"Lord Geo Archon, please tell me—is it because I'm not working hard enough? Or because I lack conscience? Why can't my luck ever turn around?"
"That foreigner who came today, he's truly an expert at stone gambling!"
"In just a few short minutes, he won so many precious jade stones…"
"My heart is bleeding… all my efforts of the past few months have been for nothing…"
"Shitou."
Just then, Shitou suddenly heard someone calling his name from behind.
He immediately snapped out of his sorrowful state and responded with a smile:
"Haha, dear customers, are you here to try your luck at stone gambling? Don't miss out—our shop always honors the bet and plays fair with everyone, young and old alike!"
But soon, Shitou realized that the group in front of him was none other than Guest Consultant Zhongli, who had just visited his stall, along with several people following him.
"Shitou, after investigations by the Administration Division and the Millelith Army, the foreigner who gambled stones at your stall was confirmed to have used high-tech methods to peer through the stones and spot the hidden jade…" Ganyu said as she handed Shitou a bag filled with jade.
"This behavior severely violates the market's rules and ethics. Therefore, the Liyue Administration Division has decided to deport him back to his country and confiscate his illegal gains to return them to their rightful owners…"
Shitou looked at the bag in his hand, at the jade inside, and tears suddenly streamed down his face as he said emotionally:
"Wuwuwu… There really are still many good people in this world…"
Shitou's earlier behavior instantly gave Su Yuan a completely new idea…
"Shitou, could you lend me that wooden statue of your Geo Archon to take a look?" Su Yuan asked.
"Of course!" Shitou immediately handed the wooden statue to Su Yuan, speaking excitedly, "Don't just borrow it, I'd be fine with giving it to you!"
"This wooden statue isn't any precious craftwork; I just bought it as a little toy from Granny Shan's toy stall. It's not worth much Mora at all…"
"Well then, we'll gladly accept it, and consider it our reward for helping you recover your losses!" Su Yuan said with a smile.
"How can that be? You helped me recover so many losses, and just a toy wooden statue isn't nearly enough to repay your kindness,"
Shitou said sincerely.
"At least let me treat you all to a meal, and it has to be at a high-end restaurant like Liyue Pavilion or Xinyue Kiosk…"
"Shitou, we're not helping you for the reward!" Beidou laughed heartily.
"Honestly, if you insisted on that, wouldn't you be sullying our noble spirits?"
Everyone thought Shitou was truly a kind and honest person…
After leaving Jiecui Market, Su Yuan held the wooden statue of the Geo Archon in his hand and said to the group:
"Everyone, I have a brand new idea now…"
"Remember the rules say that in front of Morax, one must always keep their contracts…"
"So now I'm thinking… in front of these wooden statues of the Geo Archon, or even toys and paintings of him—wouldn't that also count as being in the presence of Morax?"
"After all… the rules never specified which Morax, right?"
Hearing Su Yuan's explanation, everyone showed shocked expressions—and then, a look of realization.
"Su Yuan, what you said makes a lot of sense…" Zhongli spoke up.
"That would explain why, even when no one clearly broke a contract in front of me, I still ended up falling into a eerie state…"
"I'll have the people from the Ministry of Civil Affairs and the Millelith investigate what exactly happened with that patient at Bubu Pharmacy this morning," Ganyu said.
Not long after, someone from the Ministry of Civil Affairs came to report:
"Indeed, Lady Ganyu. That patient is a devout follower of the Geo Archon. When he went to Bubu Pharmacy today, he happened to be wearing a small portrait of the Geo Archon around his neck…"
"Well then, looking at it now… the situation is quite clear…"
Su Yuan spoke up:
"The rule about honoring contracts in front of Morax doesn't just mean contracts must be upheld in Zhongli's presence…"
"Any object related to Morax—be it a statue, a painting, or even a toy—could potentially trigger Zhongli's eerie condition."
"That's going to be a problem. Then how can we prevent Mr. Zhongli from falling into eerie state?" Beidou asked.
"It's simple. Either we eliminate the problem at its root and make sure everyone stops lying, avoids conflict, and strictly adheres to all contracts…"
Su Yuan continued:
"But just thinking about it makes it obvious—because of human nature, that's basically impossible."
"So the only remaining option is to collect and centralize all Morax-related toys, statues, and portraits."
Ganyu picked up where Su Yuan left off and said:
"Though that's also going to be a difficult task, we have no choice but to proceed with it!"
"It seems that, for now, it's the only viable option…" Zhongli said, sounding somewhat resigned.
"I'll contact Ningguang immediately and inform her of this," Ganyu said.
"Then, with the full strength of Liyue, we'll begin centralized management of all items related to the Geo Archon."
..........
The Liyue Qixing's Ministry of Civil Affairs suddenly issued a notice that left all the people of Liyue completely baffled…
Rather than a notice, it was more like a decree—
No one was allowed to privately keep any statues, toys, paintings, or any items depicting the Geo Archon.
It was as if they were trying to erase the image of the Geo Archon from among the people…
"Ningguang, are you sure it's wise to take such a hardline approach on this?"
High above on the Jade Chamber, Keqing looked down at Yujing Terrace below, where Yuehai Pavilion and the Ministry of Civil Affairs were completely surrounded by throngs of protesting citizens, and turned to Ningguang with concern.
"These people are cursing your name quite fiercely right now…"
"They're all saying that after the death of the Geo Archon, you're trying to seize power for yourself—trying to erase his presence from Liyue's history…"
"That's something that couldn't be helped."
Ningguang's expression remained calm and unmoved as she replied:
"To resist the Eerie and prevent more people from getting hurt, someone has to play the villain and bear the blame…"
"It just so happens that the one bearing it right now is me."
"We can't possibly reveal the existence of the Eerie to the public, can we? That would only cause even greater panic…"
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