“Regarding the issue of compensation, I will—” “All compensation will be paid by us, the Fatui.” Before Chen Mo could finish speaking, Tartaglia cut him off and took the entire burden upon himself.
The knights and bystanders present were all stunned.
Were the Fatui’s salaries and benefits really that good these days?
He was saying he would fully compensate for the entire Goethe Grand Hotel, just like that?
“Hey…” Tartaglia patted Chen Mo on the back and boasted proudly, “Relax, Mr.
Chen Tailang.
I’m a man who dares to take responsibility for his actions!” “…” Jean silently watched the two men in front of her, feeling a sense of confusion rise in her heart.
When he had introduced himself at noon, this envoy from Liyue had clearly called himself “Chen Mo.” So why was this Fatui Harbinger calling him “Mr.
Chen Tailang”?
Tartaglia’s arm was hooked around Chen Mo’s shoulder.
Although the latter was clearly showing a bit of disgust and resistance, the familiar atmosphere between them still caused Jean to form a few guesses about their relationship.
Jean’s expression grew increasingly serious.
Her sharp gaze did not miss a single detail on the two of them.
Only when her eyes unintentionally fell upon Chen Mo’s bare upper body did a faint crack appear on her otherwise cold and composed face.
“I am glad that you are willing to take responsibility for the compensation.” She gave a light cough and adjusted her tone.
Then she continued, “However, the two of you still need to explain to me why you started fighting so violently inside the city of Mondstadt.” “Well…” Tartaglia awkwardly scratched the back of his head.
He also knew that his reason was rather sloppy, but he still braced himself and replied, “I saw that Mr.
Chen Tailang had extraordinary skills, so I wanted to spar with him.” Tartaglia’s answer clearly failed to earn Jean’s trust.
She turned toward Chen Mo instead.
Her gaze intentionally, yet also somewhat unintentionally, avoided his completely uncovered upper body, trying to find a safe and inoffensive place to rest.
“Mr.
Envoy from Liyue… what is your explanation?” “To answer Acting Grand Master Jean, my actions were entirely self-defense.” Under Tartaglia’s shocked gaze, Chen Mo put on the perfect appearance of a victim.
“As soon as I entered my hotel room, more than twenty Fatui came and blocked the door outside the corridor.” He pointed at Tartaglia’s nose and continued, “After I finally managed to drive them away, this Harbinger attacked me too!” “If I hadn’t fought back, wouldn’t I have suffered terribly?” Although Chen Mo had also started the fight with Childe in the spirit of a sparring match, how could he have imagined at the time that, as they fought, they would end up demolishing half the hotel?
Right now, he did not expect to completely clear himself of blame.
Instead, he had to find a way to firmly establish his identity as the “victim.” As long as he seemed innocent enough, once the matter was reported back to Liyue, he would at least be scolded a little less by Keqing.
“What are you talking about, Mr.
Chen Tailang?
You were clearly the one who asked me first if I wanted to exchange a few moves!” “I only asked casually.
How was I supposed to know you would actually charge straight at me?” Chen Mo put his silver tongue to full use and argued with complete confidence, “Besides, I had just driven away your subordinates, and then you, a Harbinger, suddenly appeared.” “How was I supposed to know whether you had come to avenge them?” Tartaglia’s eyes widened.
The young man from Snezhnaya had never encountered anyone so shameless in his entire life.
Unfortunately, Chen Mo’s “victim theory” really did not have any major flaws.
Even worse, everything he had said was technically true.
“During the fight, didn’t you also…” Tartaglia still wanted to defend himself, but Jean did not give him the chance.
“That is enough.” Jean raised her hand and interrupted him sharply.
“I have already roughly understood what happened.” She signaled for the knights behind her to prepare, then asked politely, “Mr.
Tartaglia, you would not mind if Mondstadt interrogates your subordinates, would you?” Among the Fatui Harbingers, Tartaglia could be considered one of the most honest.
He had martial skill when it came to martial skill, and when it came to politics, he also had martial skill.
Even though he was not good at handling these twists and turns, he still understood the meaning Jean was expressing in a roundabout way.
“Of course not.” Since Jean did not intend to pursue his responsibility, he did not mind returning the favor.
“But they are, after all, subjects of Her Majesty the Tsaritsa.
Any mistakes they have committed should be punished after they return to Snezhnaya.” “No problem.” Jean immediately gave the order to temporarily detain the Fatui members whom Chen Mo had accused.
The small squad leader who had been the first to be sent flying by Gold Experience’s elbow had only just woken up not long ago.
When he heard from his colleagues about the battle between Chen Mo and Childe, he was so frightened that he fainted again.
By the time he woke up once more, he was already inside an interrogation room of the Knights of Favonius.
And the Sumeru man who had handed Mora over to the Fatui was now sitting next door, watching him with obvious schadenfreude.
“Tartaglia has already gone back, so I should be able to leave too, right?” Half of the Goethe Grand Hotel had been destroyed.
Chen Mo figured he probably had nowhere to stay tonight.
He scratched the side of his face that Amber had slapped at noon and pondered whether he should go find her and ask if she could take him in for the night.
Before he could take even a single step, a cold gust of wind blew against him.
Only then did Chen Mo belatedly remember that he was still bare from the waist up.
If he knocked on a girl’s door looking like this, he would probably be labeled a pervert again and receive another hard slap across the face.
“Please wait.” Before he could turn around, Chen Mo felt someone drape a coat over him.
He looked back and saw Jean standing behind him, looking as if something was weighing on her mind.
“Th-thank you.” He was somewhat surprised.
After quickly putting on the coat, Chen Mo turned around and met those pale blue eyes.
“Is there anything else, Acting Grand Master Jean?” “Yes.” “Regarding what happened to you tonight, I would like to express the Knights of Favonius’ deepest apologies on their behalf.” Jean’s tone was so solemn that Chen Mo found himself somewhat troubled.
He quickly waved his hands and replied politely, “It’s fine, it’s fine.
It was just the work of some petty troublemakers.
This cannot be blamed on you.” Jean fell silent, unsure how to continue.
The true purpose behind this envoy from Liyue’s arrival in Mondstadt was still unclear.
After thinking it over, she felt that, for the time being, the most suitable option was to place him under the supervision of the Knights.
But his strength was comparable to that of a Fatui Harbinger.
If he were to show hostile intentions, then aside from herself, there might truly be very few people in the current Knights of Favonius capable of stopping him.
“Speaking of which, Acting Grand Master Jean, have you reviewed the cooperation documents between Liyue and Mondstadt?” Chen Mo could not figure out why Jean had kept him behind alone.
In order to prevent the atmosphere from becoming even more awkward, he could only try to bring up a shared topic and break the silence.
“Ah… yes.
I have already read through all of them.” Jean came back to her senses and hurriedly responded.
Her thoughts shifted, and she suddenly felt that this was a good opportunity.
After mentally preparing herself, she carefully tested the waters.
“Regarding several clauses in the contract, I believe there is still room for further discussion.” “Would Mr.
Envoy be able to spare some time tonight to discuss them with me in detail?”
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