Yes, Lady Funina!

“That’s right! Ying, let’s go find Richard now!” Paimon said eagerly.

"But the problem is, where are we going to find him?" Ying asked hesitantly.

“Since Richard is here in Inatsuma as Fontaine’s special envoy, shouldn’t we just go to the Fontaine’s embassy to find him? However, the Fontaine’s embassy is not on the island, but in Inatsuma Castle, so we have to go to Inatsuma Castle first.” Paimon’s thinking was unusually clear.

Paimon said with some emotion, "But then again, it feels like I run into Richard everywhere. Mondstadt, Liyue, it's like his presence is everywhere."

Ying nodded in agreement, echoing, "Indeed."

It feels like living in someone's shadow.

"By the way, Ying, do you think the lifting of the lockdown order this time might also be related to Richard?" Paimon suddenly thought of this.

She looked at Thomas and asked, "Thoma, do you have any clues?"

Volume 1: Chapter 143 That's all you've got.

"I'm not entirely sure about that either, but there are some rumors that the lockdown order was lifted because Mr. Richard won the duel before the Emperor."

“But how could that be? You have to understand that he was facing the General. So I think Mr. Richard must have explained the dangers of the isolation order and the eye-hunting order to the General, and exposed the crimes of Kujo Takayuki, which finally convinced the General to lift the eye-hunting order.” Thomas thought for a moment and gave what he thought was the most likely version of the rumor.

Faced with Thomas's speculation, Paimon nudged Ying's arm and whispered in her ear, "I think the version that Richard won the duel in front of the king is more believable."

After all, Richard's strength was undeniable. That terrifying female executive of the Fools couldn't even get close to Richard. She simply moved her finger, and he was completely unable to resist.

It's worth noting that the Lady is the eighth seat of the Fatui, while the Prince, who fought Ying in Liyue and couldn't determine a winner, is only the eleventh seat.

Given that the positions of the Fools' Enforcers are ranked according to strength, it doesn't seem too far-fetched that someone like Richard, who can solo [Lady] without taking any damage, would win a duel in front of the Emperor.

Moreover, as far as Paimon knows, Richard's achievements are not limited to "Lady". Back in Dvalin in Mondstadt, Paimon later learned from Luminous that it was most likely Richard's doing, not the water goddess Frynn.

And when the Jade Pavilion in Liyue crashed into the Whirlpool Demon Lord Oser, Ningguang said that the reason the Jade Pavilion was able to preserve its most important foundation was actually because of Richard's intervention...

In short, because Richard's record was so impressive, Paimon unconsciously developed a strange trust in him. This trust made Paimon feel that even if Richard defeated General Thunder in a duel in front of the king, it wasn't that far-fetched and was still possible.

Ying actually thinks so too. After all, when you don't have enough strength, who will reason with you?

“Since you two know Mr. Richard, why don’t you go directly to Mr. Richard’s place to meet the General? This is the location of the Fontaine embassy…” Thomas gave Ying a map of Inazuma and marked the location of the Fontaine embassy for her.

The service was exceptionally attentive.

Thomas (the True Lord who introduces in the flesh) – the best guide for travelers in Inazuma.

——————

Richard was unaware of Ying's arrival; he had been helping Ying adjust the Thunder General these past few days.

Of course, Richard didn't have the skill of creating puppets. His so-called help to adjust the Thunder General was more about helping the Shadow improve the Thunder General's political knowledge system from the perspective of a ruler.

To ensure that similar situations, such as the Nine Acts of Filial Piety and the Absolutely Deceptive Acts, will not occur again in the future, where the Holy One can be easily deceived.

Frankly speaking, given Inazuma's power structure, no matter how meticulously Richard builds the Thunder General's knowledge system, situations like deceiving the Emperor will still occur, to varying degrees.

People tend to only report good news and not bad news.

The same applies to officialdom, regardless of region.

This situation can be basically divided into four stages.

In the first phase, it was declared that nothing would happen.

The second stage indicates what might happen.

In the third phase, they said that we might need to take some measures, but we were powerless to do so.

The fourth and final stage states that we should have taken action, but it was too late...

However, Richard still felt that it was a bit outrageous for someone like Kujo Takayuki to play so crudely. He was even unwilling to leave himself a way out. In order not to arouse the suspicion of General Raiden, he did not mention a single word about the situation at the front in his official document.

This may be the downside of bloodline politics. Officials like Kujo Takayuki, who rose to power through bloodline, lack experience in political struggles and cannot compare to the Fontainebleau bureaucracy, which is full of intrigue and cutthroat competition.

If it were Richard, he would insert a few descriptions of the frontline situation into the extensive text praising the peace and happiness of Inazuma Castle, using phrases like, "There's been a slight disturbance at Nashii Beach, but everything is under control," to make the Coral Palace rebellion appear as harmless as possible.

—To whitewash the truth.

This way, he wouldn't arouse General Thunder's suspicion, and he could also exonerate himself if things worsened later.

General, I didn't lie to you. Things were indeed under control before, and I reported it to the authorities. However, things didn't go as planned, and things spiraled out of control, which is why we needed your intervention...

This wouldn't completely absolve them of their crimes, but it would at least lessen their punishment, preventing them from being punished like Kujo Takayuki and Bagu Toga, who were convicted of "treason" and dismissed from their posts.

If you're lucky, a little sweet-talking, and decisive when it comes to punishing yourself with a drink, you might just get a chance to redeem yourself...

Thinking of this, Richard shook his head, feeling that their level was really too low. If it weren't for the fact that General Thunder's level was even lower, plus the interference from foreign forces like the Fools, it would be a different story.

Yae no Kamiko alone is enough to kill these people.

Even if Richard didn't come to Inazuma, and Yae no Miko had some time, things could still be calmed down and resolved.

Richard's arrival was simply to speed up this process and incidentally reduce some losses.

Richard only thought these words to himself and did not say them aloud in front of Kage and Yae no Miko.

If he really said that, do you believe that Yae no Kamiko would immediately take advantage of Richard's words and say something like, "Can I sit in your general's position for a couple of days?"

"So there are so many intricacies involved in managing just one department... I was definitely a bit lazy when I was setting up General Thunder." Shadow pondered, rubbing his chin with his fingers.

Meanwhile, Yae no Miko, who was watching Kage and Richard manipulate the Thunder General together, was lying on her side on the tatami without any regard for her image. But no matter how unseemly the posture was, it still formed a beautiful picture of a reclining beauty on the side of this fox spirit.

It just goes to show that good-looking people look good no matter what they do.

The fox spirit laughed and teased, "That's not called being lazy, you just didn't think of it."

It's like blaming the device for lagging when you make a mistake while playing a game, instead of blaming yourself for being bad.

Shadow wasn't annoyed after hearing this, because although Yae no Miko's words were unpleasant to hear, they weren't actually wrong.

She did underestimate the art of politics, mainly because she was spoiled by Richard.

Not long after she took over the position of Narukami, Richard had already become her right-hand man. With Richard and Yae no Miko in charge of political affairs, she really didn't need to worry about anything else.

During that time, besides acting as a signing tool, Ying spent her days teaching Richard martial arts, leading a regular and fulfilling life.

It can be said that during that period, Richard filled the void in Shadow's heart caused by the successive departures of her sister and friends, so Shadow was not thinking about anything like "eternity" at that time.

For her at that time, having Richard and Yae no Miko by her side was the eternity she desired most.

Therefore, strictly speaking, Shadow is the most loyal supporter of the monogamous system.

Of course, with Richard's departure and the long period of silence that followed, the eternity that Shadow longed for gradually faded away, and what she believed should be granted to her subjects was "eternity".

Thus, the roles of the Scatter Soldier and the Thunder and Lightning General came into being.

"So I said, instead of creating an eternal puppet, why not just give me the general's seat? It doesn't matter who sits on it, right, Richard?" Yae no Miko said with a smile.

I wouldn't dare say that.

Richard wisely remained silent, while Shadow unleashed a death stare at Yae no Miko.

"Son of God..."

"Forget it, I don't want this kind of trouble. You can just go back to your general's position!" Yae no Miko sat up, then lazily stretched. Her alluring fox-like eyes narrowed slightly with a yawn, and her parted red lips revealed pearly white teeth and a pink tongue, glistening with a hint of crystalline color, making one want to taste it...

Yae no Miko, in human form yet resembling an ordinary fox, gracefully crawled to Richard's side, wrapping her arms around his neck and leaning her entire upper body against him. Her face pressed against Richard's cheek, she whispered sweetly in his ear:

"Hey, let's go do something else fun, and let Shadow fight her Thunder General all by herself, shall we?"

Is what you're playing with... serious or not?

Upon seeing this, Ying tensed up, her brows furrowed, and her fists clenched.

It's not that she's petty or jealous, it's just that she simply feels that Yae no Miko is too frivolous, what does she take Richard for, what does she take me for?

Do you really consider me just another part of your game?

Ying silently stood up, gave Richard a slight smile, and then said, "Richard, could you excuse me for a moment?"

Richard felt the slender white arm around his neck tighten, and he turned his head slightly to look at Yae no Miko, only to find that the guy was looking at him pitifully.

It seems to be saying: You won't be an accomplice to evil, right?

Sorry, you guessed wrong.

Richard broke free from Yae no Miko's attempts to keep him, resolutely went to the corridor, closed the wooden sliding door, and stood in the corridor to keep watch for the general.

Inside the room, Yae no Miko's pretty face stiffened slightly. She suddenly spoke, "I... I just remembered that I haven't offered incense to Narukami at the shrine today. I'll go back first..."

Narukami himself is right here. What incense can't be offered in person?

That's true, since all his time was spent flattering Lord Narukami, he naturally didn't have time to offer incense.

"Divine Child, sit properly." Shadow sat upright on the tatami mat, his expression as solemn as that of General Thunder.

Even the wise and beautiful Yae no Kamiko couldn't help but feel a little apprehensive when faced with Kage at this moment.

Is Ying really angry?

Surely not? This is nothing. She wasn't angry at all when I did that to Richard in front of the statue...

At this moment, Yae no longer dared to tease Kage recklessly. She obediently sat up straight as Kage wished, her pink fox ears pressed tightly against her head, looking as adorable as could be.

"Son of God..."

"I admit, I went a bit too far just now. Next time, I'll try to avoid you a little," Yae no Miko quickly admitted her mistake.

This is based on her experience over the years: as long as you admit your mistake first, given Ying's personality, she probably won't pursue the matter too much.

"Excessive?"

When Yae no Miko heard Ying's words, her heart sank, and she felt that Ying was being sarcastic.

People do change, as expected. What worked in the past may not work now. I was too hasty...

How about turning back into her original form and acting cute?

No one can resist the allure of the pink fox. At worst, I'll just suffer a little loss this time and allow her to touch my tail.

Just as the divine child was about to beg for mercy in his physical form, he heard the shadow speak up: "Divine child, I think you've misunderstood something."

"?"

"I'm not trying to accuse you of anything; on the contrary, I want to apologize to you."

"Apologize? Apologize for what?" Yae no Miko was even more confused. Did you do something to offend me? Do you have another little fox outside?

Ying lowered her head, her expression shifting several times before she finally revealed her true feelings: "I might have to compete with you for Richard."

Yae no Miko was taken aback. Was it all about this?

“I know what I’m doing is wrong, but… Divine Child, I…”

"No, Shadow, is this what you wanted to talk to me about alone with Richard?"

“Yes.” Shadow nodded.

Yae no Miko rubbed her forehead, her posture becoming somewhat relaxed. She said in a light tone, "Didn't I tell you about this before when we were in the Pure Land of One Heart? Richard, that guy, never intended to let either of us go from the very beginning."

“I know, but it’s Richard’s business what he thinks, but this is very unfair to the Divine Child.”

"If it's unfair to me, is it fair to you?"

“It’s different. After all, you came first and I came later. Since I chose Richard, it means that I have accepted his shortcomings…” Shadow said seriously.

"What kind of sci-fi light novel heroine is this?" Yae Miko thought to herself.

"So the reason you apologized to me is because you wanted to take action against Richard and monopolize him, excluding me?" Yae no Miko asked.

“Of course not.” Ying shook her head, her eyes conveying a look of ‘How could I possibly think that?’

Later, Richard's feelings were already bad enough, but to drive him away again and try to monopolize Richard is beyond imagination. Our Yingbao is not that kind of person.

“I may have to take some of Richard’s feelings for you,” Shadow said.

"It's alright, they were already divided up from the beginning. Even if they're divided up now, it shouldn't be your fault," Yae no Miko waved her hand and said.

"Is that all you have to say?"

"Well, also, I might do some... rather intimate things with Richard in front of you later."

"film……"

"Hmm? If you mind..."

"That's all you're good for."

Volume 1: Chapter 144 Yo yo yo, isn't this a kitten?

Richard stood guard in the corridor outside the main hall of the General's Mansion. The guards of the General's Mansion who were on patrol all bowed to him as they passed by.