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Liyue Harbor is blessed to experience the warmth of the sun on a daily basis, all thanks to the protection of Rex Lapis. Even though their archon has passed, the citizens of Liyue continue to bask in the sunlight, waiting for new experiences to peek over the horizon.
The sun hangs high in the sky as Chongyun and Xingqiu walk amidst the throng of merchants and consumers littering Liyue Harbor's streets. There’s never a day when people are bustling from place to place, merchants from all across Teyvat hoping to sell their wares and make a profit. In their hands they have decently sized square containers wrapped in decorative cloth, holding it close to their chests so they don’t drop it.
On the rare occasions that Xiangling isn’t out collecting ingredients, she invites both them and Xinyan to Wanmin Restaurant for a potluck. Today is such a day, carefully handling the food that they both prepared.
“You don’t think Xiangling is going to put jueyun chilis in her food again, do you?” Chongyun grimaces as they walk over the bridge, the large sign of Wanmin Restaurant seen in the distance. Xingqiu laughs beside him, gently bumping his shoulder with his own.
“Ah, dear Chongyun, you needn’t worry about that,” Xingqiu tries to reassure him. “I’m sure Xiangling is taking extra care to ensure the last incident doesn’t repeat again.”
The cryo user groans next to him. “Ugh, please don’t remind me. I still have to pay for all the damages…”
“Nonsense! I’m perfectly capable of paying Xiangling back,” Xingqiu clicks his tongue as he hooks arms with Chongyun, picking up his pace once he sees Xiangling and Xinyan waving at them from the kitchen. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll take care of it!”
“W-Woah! Xingqiu, slow down—“ Chongyun nearly stumbles behind him as he tries to keep up the pace, nearly causing both of them to fall to the ground. Xingqiu lets out a resounding laugh in response while Chongyun nearly sighs in distress, clutching the container tucked under his arm for dear life.
They both give their greetings to Chef Mao before slipping into the kitchen. Xiangling smiles at them and Xinyan merely shouts a hello over her shoulder, her attention more focused on the cooking pot.
“Xinyan needs to add a few more finishing touches to her dish,” Xiangling explains to them as she eyes the containers in their hands. “Then, we can dig in!”
Chongyun shifts around on his feet, fanning himself a bit. Xingqiu tilts his head to the side.
“I-Is it me, or does it feel really hot in here—“ Chongyun begins to ask, but then all of a sudden, the cooking pot that Xinyan was carefully watching erupted with a large fire filling the entire pot, causing the temperature of the kitchen to increase tenfold. Smoke begins to fill the air, and Chongyun coughs an excuse before he’s stepping outside, Xingqiu following shortly after him.
“Perfect!” Xinyan shouts from inside the kitchen, her laughter accompanied by Xiangling’s giggles.
“Wow, how did you do that?!” Xiangling hurriedly asks in excitement. From inside the smoking area, Xingqiu and Chongyun can barely make out their conversation. Chongyun tugs at his shirt, letting out a sigh.
It’s not long until the two girls emerge from the smoke as well, their hands full with their own dishes that they planned to serve. Xiangling was carrying her signature dish, Wanmin Restaurant’s Boiled Fish; there is one bowl balanced on her head, completely devoid of all the jueyun chilis found in the other bowls. Xinyan has a large smile on her face as she carries a platter that is quite literally on fire, and Chongyun takes a step back.
“I think I will pass on Xinyan’s dish…” Chongyun mumbles as Xiangling leads them to the back where they won’t be disturbed. It’s not that Chongyun doesn’t think Xinyan’s cooking is bad, but to see his food on fire does not bode well for him in the slightest.
Xingqiu helps prop up an umbrella to protect them from the sun’s rays, and they all set their own respective dishes on the table. There’s the All-Delicacy Parcels, and there’s no doubt in everyone’s minds that Xingqiu threw out all the carrots that are involved in the original recipe. Still, it’s delicious despite missing a core ingredient.
Then there’s Chongyun’s Cold Noodles with Mountain Delicacies; easy on the eyes, and easy on the stomach, too. He made sure to make extra because he always takes a larger portion compared to everyone else, mainly due to him preferring colder dishes. That isn’t to say he doesn’t like other people’s food, too.
Xiangling brings out all the utensils and extra plates, and they all settle at the table as they begin to take their own portions for all the food that is on the table. Some arguments ensue, mainly over who gets the last parcel, or Xiangling defending Xinyan’s fish and insisting it’s one of the tastiest foods she’s ever had despite her face being all red. Xingqiu and Chongyun could have sworn she nearly breathed fire from her mouth after taking a bite.
“You know what would’ve made this better?” Xinyan asks as she slurps on the cold noodles, and everyone turns their attention to her as she swallows her food. “If we had some rockin’ music to accompany our food. Would’ve added to the ambience, don’t you think?”
Xingqiu hums at her words. “Hm, but some people like to eat in silence, no?”
Xiangling laughs. “That’s only because you like to read your books in silence, Xingqiu. Eating and reading are different, and besides, you’re talking to us just fine. I think it would be nice to have some music at the restaurant!”
“Really?!” Xinyan’s eyes seem to nearly light up. “Xiangling, does that mean…?”
“I’ll have to talk to my dad about it, but I think he would be open to the idea!” Xiangling exclaims with a smile. “We just gotta make sure you don’t… burn anything, alright? We already have a few damaged tables because of the incident with Chongyun last month.”
Upon hearing his name, Chongyun nearly chokes on the fish he was picking at, quickly swallowing his food before he defends himself.
“I swear, it was all an accident! I’ll pay you back soon, I promise,” He reassures her, looking down at his food in shame. They all remember the incident clearly, as much as one of them would like to purge it from their memory altogether.
“Don’t worry about it, Xiangling. Just put it on my tab and I’ll have it paid by tomorrow,” Xingqiu nonchalantly says as he sips on his water. Chongyun gawks at him, trying to convince his friend that he will pay for everything himself. The hydro user is having none of it, gently swatting away his hand as he bites into a jueyun chili.
It’s certainly lively behind Wanmin Restaurant, some of the customers realize as they’re ordering or digging into their own food. When they ask Chef Mao about it, he simply chuckles and reassures him that it’s all in good fun.
After all, food tastes better when you’re surrounded in good company. Chef Mao simply just wants to give his daughter and her friends a place to relax while they enjoy their food.