Chapter 63: Hu Tao: Yaho~

Hu Tao was speeding through the skies above Liyue Harbor on her flying motorcycle.

"Yahoo!!!"

This spectacle was caught precisely by Ningguang, who had stepped out onto the Jade Chamber for some fresh air.

"What is that?" asked Keqing, who was working nearby.

"What's the matter, Ningguang?"

Ningguang pointed out the window.

"Director Hu has gotten her hands on a new contraption. Would you care to take a look?"

Hearing this, Keqing asked, "Director Hu? What about her?"

Keqing slowly stood up and walked over to the window.

Down below, Hu Tao was riding her flying motorcycle at high speed across the sky of Liyue Harbor, heading in the direction of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.

"What is this? What manner of object is this? Why is it allowing Director Hu to fly through the air? Could it be some kind of adeptal treasure?"

Ningguang put down her pipe and slowly straightened her posture.

"Shall we go and ask? Baiwen."

Baiwen, standing by at attention to take orders at any moment, gave a slight bow.

"I will make the arrangements immediately, Lady Ningguang."

........

With a smooth drift, Hu Tao landed her motorcycle right inside her courtyard.

Once the vehicle came to a complete halt, she shut off the engine and hopped off.

Just as she was about to head back to her room, she spotted Zhongli walking toward her, holding a notebook.

"Consultant, you're back rather early today."

Zhongli gave a slight nod.

"Indeed. I acquired a few items. Would the Director care to take a look?"

Hu Tao quickly hurried over to Zhongli's side, leaving a trail of fiery little butterflies that flickered and vanished into the breeze.

She poked at the notebook in Zhongli's hands.

"What is this? Did you buy it from Ye Yun?"

Zhongli shook his head slightly.

"Not quite. This item was a gift presented to me by Mr. Welt. It is called a laptop computer, and it possesses numerous wondrous functions."

Noticing that Hu Tao seemed rather interested in the laptop, Zhongli asked, "Would the Director care to join me in examining it?"

Hearing this, Hu Tao's face lit up with a broad smile and she readily agreed.

"Hehe, I've been waiting for you to say that."

With that, Hu Tao snatched the laptop from Zhongli's hands and eagerly dashed toward the house.

Zhongli offered a faint smile and followed after her at a leisurely pace.

.........

In the blink of an eye, the two of them returned to Zhongli's quarters.

The interior of Zhongli's room was furnished with great elegance, filled with piles of various antiques and curiosities, while several scrolls of calligraphy and paintings hung upon the walls.

Hu Tao sat down by the table and opened the laptop.

"Consultant, consultant, hurry over and teach me how to operate this."

At her behest, Zhongli walked over and sat beside Hu Tao, guiding her to input the unlock password and open the video playback software, which already had several pre-downloaded television series and movies stored inside.

Hu Tao browsed through the selections for a moment before picking a horror movie to watch.

The screen began to play, and before long, eerie and terrifying sounds echoed throughout the room.

Shortly afterward, Ningguang and Keqing arrived at the entrance of the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor accompanied by a squad of Millelith guards.

The receptionist at the door quickly stood up to receive them.

"This humble one pays her respects to the Tianquan and Yuheng."

Ningguang gave a slight nod.

"Is your Director at home?"

The receptionist paused in thought. She had been on duty at the entrance and hadn't seen the Director go out today.

What the receptionist didn't know was that nowadays, Hu Tao no longer needed to use the front gate when leaving the premises.

Are you kidding? Once you have a flying motorcycle, who still uses the front door? How outdated! Naturally, flying directly out was far more dashing!

"She is at home. Please come this way, have a seat and a cup of tea, and I shall go fetch her for you."

The receptionist stood up and headed deeper into the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor.

Before long, she arrived at Hu Tao's courtyard.

As soon as she stepped into the courtyard, a sudden burst of ghostly shrieks echoed through the air.

The receptionist was hardly surprised by this; after all, the Director frequently brought various "guests" back with her. By now, she was thoroughly accustomed to it.

Following the direction of the noise, the receptionist noticed the sounds seemed to be originating from Mr. Zhongli's room.

Thus, she headed toward Zhongli's quarters and quickly reached the doorway.

Listening to the chilling wails of spirits coming from within, the receptionist fell into thought.

At this time of day, shouldn't Mr. Zhongli be out? Based on past experience, Zhongli ought to be listening to arias at the teahouse right now.

Furthermore, today was the day Miss Yun Jin was performing, so Mr. Zhongli surely wouldn't miss it.

With that thought in mind, the receptionist pushed the door open directly.

To her surprise, upon pushing the door open, she discovered that Mr. Zhongli was indeed at home, and the Director was here as well.

The two of them were seated before a table, facing a glowing object, staring at it with rapt attention.

The noise of the door being pushed open caught the attention of both Zhongli and Hu Tao.

Seeing that it was the receptionist, Hu Tao smiled and asked, "Little one, what brings you here? Is there new business?"

The receptionist shook her head.

"No. Lady Tianquan and Lady Yuheng are at the front gate, saying they have matters to discuss with you."

Hearing this, Hu Tao looked thoroughly puzzled.

What business could the Tianquan and Yuheng possibly have with her? Surely they weren't about to place a massive funeral order with the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor!

The current Tianquan was, after all, the wealthiest person in Liyue—the immensely rich kind.

"Alright, alright, I'll head right over."

Hu Tao walked over to the laptop and hit the pause button on the video.

"Consultant, wait for me to come back so we can watch together! I'll be right back."

With that, Hu Tao rushed out the door in a flurry of haste.

Watching her retreating figure, Zhongli had already guessed the true intentions of Ningguang and Keqing.

They were undoubtedly here to inquire about Hu Tao's flying motorcycle.

Zhongli had no intention of stopping them; in fact, he more than welcomed Ningguang and Keqing getting acquainted with Ye Yun and his companions through Hu Tao.

It would save him a considerable amount of trouble, sparing him the need to guide them himself.

Judging by the circumstances, Hu Tao likely wouldn't be returning anytime soon.

Consequently, Zhongli retrieved his tea set and brewed himself a fresh pot of tea.

Meanwhile, Hu Tao arrived at the reception room.

"My, oh my~ I was wondering why the birds in the courtyard kept chirping today; it turns out we have distinguished guests calling upon us. Good afternoon, Lady Tianquan, Lady Yuheng! Have you both eaten yet? If not, please join me for a bite."

Ningguang looked at the smiling Hu Tao and responded with a gentle smile.

"It has been a while, Director Hu. I've come today because there are a few things I would like to ask you."

At her words, Hu Tao instructed the receptionist to pour three cups of tea and took a seat nearby.

"Ask away, ask away! As long as it's something this Director knows, I'll tell you everything."

Ningguang paused briefly before asking, "Director Hu, earlier this afternoon, I witnessed someone riding a certain magical treasure through the skies above Liyue Harbor. Might Director Hu happen to recognize this person?"

Hearing this, Hu Tao immediately replied, "That was none other than this Director. And that thing isn't a magical treasure; I bought it from a friend of mine."

Ningguang pressed on, "Oh? A friend, you say? To be frank, I am quite fascinated by the contraption Director Hu was riding. Would you mind asking your friend if they happen to have any more of them?"

Ningguang figured she could have Hu Tao purchase one for her, and then she would have Liyue Harbor's finest artisans study it.

If they could successfully replicate it, her profits would be astronomical.

Hu Tao pondered the question for a moment.

"Ummmmm, they probably do? How about this—I'm heading over to my friend's place tomorrow anyway. If you have the time tomorrow, would you like to come along with me?"

Considering the offer for a moment, Ningguang agreed.

"Very well. You wouldn't mind if I bring two friends along, would you?"

Although Hu Tao was a native-born citizen of Liyue and utterly loyal to her homeland, it never hurt to exercise a bit of caution, did it?

Hu Tao, however, didn't mind in the least.

Her primary thought was to send a few customers over to Ye Yun's way. After all, March 7th had mentioned to her earlier that morning that she was welcome to bring friends over to spend money at Ye Yun's place.