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"Ningguang has requested my presence? Great timing! I was just headed over to her now."
One of Lady Ningguang's secretaries slightly twitched an eyebrow at the lack of formality the boss of the Crux Fleet has when addressing the Tianquan. However, she quickly remembers that those familiar with Lady Ningguang may call her without a title… and Captain Beidou is exactly one of those given the amount of times they've interacted. Perhaps the loyalty of a secretary results in being annoyed at whatever causes pain in the ass of their beloved Tianquan! Captain Beidou is notorious for doing everything as she pleases, which often neglects the rules set in place, which is then taken care of by the Liyue Qixing, and all she has to do is pay a fine. However, that may be only scratching the surface. Rumor has it that their relationship goes way, way deeper. Because, for some reason, whenever Beidou gets in trouble with the law, Ningguang would always handle it in person…
Anyway, the secretary quickly regains her original calm composure.
"Yes. I apologize, I may not escort you to the Jade Chamber. I have to take care of an urgent matter."
"It's no problem. Take care!"
Miss secretary nods and speed walks away.
When Beidou walks in she notices the lack of Ningguang's personal secretaries… in fact, there are no secretaries around… Strange, maybe all of them have urgent matters to attend to.
There Ningguang is, sitting at her desk, reading a scroll.
"Hey, Ningguang! What did you need me for?" Beidou smiles as she walks over and places both hands on her hips.
Ningguang stopped reading and looked up to give attention to the person in front of her.
"All I want to know is what you're planning to do with a crate filled with jewelry you and your crew brought in since there was no receipt, contract, or notice prior to it arriving at Liyue. Yes, perhaps it's treasure from expeditions, however, this box only contains jewelry. This is a particularly special case because it was brought out. Wouldn’t founded treasure stay inside the ship?"
Ah, classic Ningguang. Always knows what's going on around Liyue Harbor. How does one even do this?!
"Oh! About that, haha. It's all a misunderstanding! We are not going to sell it, but rather to use it for the dowry of one of The Crux members! They wanted to go treasure hunting, in true Crux fashion." Beidou sheepishly said.
"I see. Then, you are to be fined for failing to inform the Liyue Qixing on this beforehand. Transparency is ideal when it comes to goods from the outside."
Since Beidou is incredibly reliable, whatever statement that comes out of her mouth is quite a credible one.
"Alright. But, may I possibly pay with this instead?"
Beidou pulls out a small box. She lifts up the top to reveal a not-too-extravagant-but-elegant necklace. The chain is a soft golden color with a shiny, diamond-shaped pendant with golden yellow in front and blue at the back. Think of it as the colors of cor lapis and noctilucous jade. It very much suits Ningguang.
By this point, Ningguang has walked around her desk to stand in front of the captain and take a closer look at the necklace.
"Oh? The Captain Beidou giving someone else her treasure? Quite surprising, I must say." She says in an amused manner.
"I was already on my way here when you requested for me. My only purpose was to give this to you since it reminds me of you and would perfectly fits someone such as yourself, but it seems as though I got another fine to pay. So, what do you say, Miss Tianquan?"
Ningguang's eyes widened a bit for a split second.
"Very well. I shall accept this necklace as payment. You do have an exceptional eye for true treasures, after all."
She takes the box from her companion's hand.
"Many thanks! What can I say? A fine treasure is fit for another fine treasure."
Ningguang chuckles at that statement since it reminds her of something… someone… some relationship…
"Ah! Let me help you put it on!"
"Sure."
Beidou grabs the necklace and moves behind Ningguang. She spreads the chains with her hands and encircles her, careful not touch Ningguang's hairpin as to not undo it. She presses the necklace on her upper chest. Ningguang then grabbed the whole of her hair and moved it over her shoulder perfectly revealing the back of her smooth neck and shoulders. Beidou savored this moment where she could clearly see it.
"Ahem."
Oh, dear. She had been staring for too long, huh! She looked up to see the side of Ningguang's eyes just staring at her. When did her she turn her head?!
"My bad, I zoned out for a bit." She sheepishly said.
Ningguang turned back to face the front and just let out a sigh of endearment while Beidou was finishing up the clasp.
"There, all done!"
She walked back in front of Ningguang, staring at the gorgeous necklace… and maybe the area under it… but it was only for a slight second! She smiled.
"You have my thanks."
Ningguang touched the diamond-shaped gems on both sides of the necklace.
"Next time, I probably won't find another treasure like this one, so what if I just pay with my body instead?" Beidou says with a grin on her face.
Wow, Beidou, that was out of the blue and… extremely bold. But what does one expect from the unpredictable Captain Beidou! A small blush couldn't help but appear on her cheeks. It seems as though she was caught a little off guard and needs to get her head out of the damn gutter!
"Well, then I'll be sure to be wearing this when that time comes."
It isn't as if Beidou can't pay the fine in full mora. But, it is a very interesting scenario when one pays with something other than mora. As long as it benefits everyone in the end, then there is no problem.
Ningguang supposes that she can pay for the fines in mora from her own pocket. It’s worth it, anyway.