The Story of the Qin

As Alice finished speaking, her eyes shone with eager anticipation, clearly already imagining herself as the star of the film, stunning the entire Fontainebleau Film Festival.

Although the Witches' Guild is a very "secret" organization, it is impossible to touch their existence without a certain level of strength and status.

But that doesn't stop Alice from being someone who likes to be in the spotlight.

As can be seen from the Teyvat Guide, Iris was never at peace and never strayed from the life of a mortal.

Of course, because of her intelligence and power, Alice is always able to do some amazing things.

Everyone present was taken aback, then couldn't help but laugh.

As expected of Alice, she always acts boldly, freely, and unconventionally. As soon as she heard about the movie shoot, she immediately wanted to take the lead role.

Wang Yan put down the bowl of porridge in his hand, his expression gentle but his attitude clear and unambiguous:

"Ms. Alice, thank you for your enthusiastic support, but the script framework for this film is already set, and the main character cannot be changed."

Actually, the script hasn't been finalized yet; Wang Yan hasn't had time to write it.

But in Wang Yan's conception, the protagonist is definitely the knight. Whether it is an angel, a vengeful spirit, or a monster or fool that may appear on the journey, they will only be supporting characters.

No matter how free-spirited and flamboyant Alice was, she couldn't possibly force Wang Yan to change the script. Upon hearing this, her eyebrows fell instantly, her face full of disappointment, and her hands drooped down, just like a child whose enthusiasm had been dampened.

"Ah—I see..."

She drew out her words, full of resentment. Her once sparkling eyes dimmed instantly, and she stared at Wang Yan with resentment: "I thought I was finally going to get to play a leading role. It's such a great opportunity to have a film festival as grand as Fontainebleau."

Nico stood to the side, smiling faintly without saying a word. Knowing Alice as she did, she was sure it was all an act!

As the founder of the Witches' Guild, Alice's title of witch is not only because she possesses divine magic, but also because she herself is a demon.

Seeing this, Wang Yan knew Alice's personality, so he softened his tone and offered a compromise, giving her a way out: "However, the witch's role can definitely be expanded."

"You can design your own witch character, outside the main storyline, as a foreshadowing character, a guide to the secret realm, or an ancient witch who has witnessed the changes of the past thousand years. She has enough screen time and a unique and full character design, but she will not take away the protagonist's seat from the knight."

"It can enrich the film's world view and make the story more layered, without burying your role."

Alice's mood finally improved a bit. After thinking for a moment and weighing the options, she finally nodded.

"Alright, alright, if the main character doesn't want to, then so be it. I understand that the framework can't be messed up."

But she never suffered a loss, and in an instant, she raised her head, a cunning glint in her eyes, and immediately presented her terms:

"Then I'll compromise! I can be a supporting character, an extra, I'll never steal the spotlight from the main character. But—I have one condition."

Wang Yan smiled knowingly: "Go ahead."

"Klee has to be on set!" Alice said immediately, her tone incredibly serious. "My Klee has never been on screen before, it's such a fun experience, we have to bring her along!"

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"She can play an innocent child frolicking by the lake, or a little passerby witnessing the wind and poetry, even if it's just a few shots and a few lines. I want her to be involved!"

This condition is entirely reasonable, and even negligible.

Wang Yan nodded without hesitation: "Of course, no problem. Adding a child actor will actually make the film more down-to-earth and heartwarming, which perfectly matches Meng Ziyou's gentle atmosphere."

Upon hearing Wang Yan's agreement, Alice instantly brightened up again, her eyes crinkling with a smile: "Great! I'll bring Keli over to report for duty right away! I promise to behave well during filming, and I won't change the plot or steal the spotlight!"

Amber's eyes lit up, and she immediately chimed in, "Is Klee coming? That would be so much fun! I can take her to play by the lake, and I promise she'll behave and not cause any trouble!"

Klei also gently chimed in, "Klee is so cute. With her around, the shoot will definitely be much more lively."

She knows Klee, as well as Yura, Noelle, and Cole.

Sugar panicked slightly and muttered, "What if... Klee...what if she accidentally blows up the filming props?"

Everyone laughed at these words.

Wang Yan smiled and shook his head: "It's alright. I will set up the filming location in advance and prepare the props in advance. Even if there is a small accident, it can be completely remedied."

"Hahaha, you're really great, Scholar Wang Yan, I like you!" Alice gave Wang Yan a thumbs up.

When she said she liked someone, it was simply because she thought highly of them, but it also carried a hint of affection.

In fact, Alice likes anyone who is good to Klee.

"Heh... This filming will probably take some time. You two shouldn't be in a rush, right? If you have witch work to catch up on, I can film your scenes first." Wang Yan looked at the two witches.

Films are not shot in one continuous shot; they can be edited.

Furthermore, the shooting order was not from front to back, but rather according to the shooting location.

If there are ten scenes in a single location, then film all ten scenes in that location before moving on to another location.

If a big star comes to film, and the schedule can't be coordinated, then we have to finish filming the big star's scenes first. In that case, we can't film according to the location; we have to pick out all of the big star's scenes and film them first, and then film the others according to the location.

This is one of the reasons why many people in the film and television industry used to dislike having someone film multiple projects at once.

Of course, things are different now. Now we have green screens, and if all else fails, we can use photo editing software, or even just scrap the image.

"Don't worry, don't worry, the turmoil on the edge of the world caused by Nokale has been mostly resolved. We even asked Barbie to keep an eye on things, so we can play for a while," Alice said.

Compared to the lofty and unapproachable ruling class, the Witches' Guild are the ones who truly protect the fringes of Teyvat.

The task of the Celestial Rulers is to maintain the rule of the Celestial Order. As for the periphery of Teyvat, while they may not be without responsibility to manage it, they don't interfere much either.

On the contrary, the Witches' Guild, although some of its members are not native to Teyvat, diligently maintains the safety of Teyvat.

All I can say is that Teyvat is truly a godlike place.

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"That's settled then. I'll let everyone know once the film equipment arrives."

"good!"

The crowd echoed.

After chatting with his friends for a few more minutes, Wang Yan said goodbye. He had to go to the Knights Order. Putting everything else aside, filming a story about knights on their territory wouldn't be possible without the Knights Order's approval.

Ahem, although Grand Master Falgar has already agreed, the acting Grand Master hasn't agreed yet.

Wang Yan took his leave, and Nicole and Alice also left at the same time. One of them had received a request from Barbie to bring something to Mona, and the other was going to find her beloved daughter.

Tina and the others naturally did not try to keep them, and the group dispersed.

...

After leaving Xingluo Lake, Wang Yan returned to Mengcheng and went straight to the Knights' Building.

Having visited the Knights Order not long ago, Wang Yan was not stopped on the way. He nodded to the guards at the entrance and entered the building.

This novel was first published on [website name].

Although it was no longer early morning, there weren't many Mongols coming to the Knights Order to conduct business, which showed that the Mongols were indeed relaxed.

If it were Liyue or Sumeru, at this time, there should be people queuing up in either the General Affairs Department or the Vizzil's office.

He arrived at the commander's office door with practiced ease and knocked.

"Knock knock knock"

"Please come in..."

It was Falga's voice.

Wang Yan pushed open the door and saw Falga, who looked ashen-faced, sitting behind his desk with a stack of documents half his height in front of him.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the desk, at the assistant's seat, a blond-haired boy was diligently working on documents with a pen in hand.

Wang Yan recognized the boy as Mika, a surveyor from the Knights of the West's guerrilla squad.

By the way, his captain is Yura.

However, because of Mika's excellent ability to handle odd jobs, he was taken along by Falgar to the Great Expedition, and now he has been tempered and trained.

Of course, he himself is somewhat introverted.

"Hey, isn't this Scholar Wang Yan? What brings you here to see me...?"

For some reason, Wang Yan felt that there was a hint of... resentment in Falga's tone.

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"Did I offend you?" Wang Yanhao asked.

"Someone told me that you guys drank until late last night, and before you left you even gave him a job drinking fifty cups of cider a day..." Falgar's resentment was quite evident in his tone.

Imagine this: everyone went to deal with the Demon Dragon Flesh and Blood Base together, but when they came back, their companions and "outsiders" went drinking together until late at night. Not only did they drink, but they were also given a job that involved drinking.

What would a drunkard companion who didn't get a drink think?

"...In the land of the wind, there really aren't any secrets at all," Wang Yan remarked. "I'm going to deduct his wages for revealing his salary without permission."

"I agree with that." Falgar nodded in strong approval.

Since he can't drink it anyway, we can't let Barbatos drink it all, can we? That's not fair!

"Alright, then deduct half of his wages. I'll just say it was the head of the troupe's request," Wang Yan said with a smile, then got down to business, "I came to see you about the movie."

"A movie? Oh, cough cough, I've already talked to Qin about it." Falgar looked apologetic. "Qin's point is... if the film is going to be submitted to the Fontaine Film Festival, then I'd better not submit it."

"Huh?" Wang Yan was taken aback, then immediately realized, "Oh, Commander Qin is right."

"Huh? You understand?" Falga was somewhat puzzled.

Wang Yan nodded: "Of course, not considering Barbatos's existence, the Grand Master is the supreme leader of Mongol. If you participate in the movie and go to Fontainebleau to participate in the film festival, and you win an award, some people might say it's a rigged affair, which is bad for the reputation of the Knights; but if you don't win an award, it's even more embarrassing for the Knights. It's indeed a thankless task."

"Yes, yes, that's what Jean said too." Falgar nodded vigorously, and then, as if afraid that Wang Yan would be unhappy, added, "However, Jean said that 'filming the story of the knights is a very good publicity for the Knights Order, so although the Grand Master cannot participate, the Knights Order can mobilize its resources to cooperate'... In short, besides me, if there is anything you need the Knights Order's help with, you can ask."

"What are the conditions?" Wang Yan didn't immediately express his gratitude, but instead asked a question.

If it were just a story about knights, and the knight order were to provide such strong support, then Mongolia would have long been a holy land for knight films, and it wouldn't have been Wang Yan's turn to make one.

Therefore, such good treatment must come with additional conditions.

"Haha, what Qin means is that we just need to put the Knights' name on the 'Assistant' list in the video," Falgar said. "After all, I promised you first, but then I went back on my word..."

"Alright, then I won't stand on ceremony." Wang Yan nodded in agreement. "However, since the Grand Master isn't the main character anymore, then... there should at least be a knight, right?"

Wang Yan's gaze shifted slightly and landed on Mika.

You know what, that blond kid, the knight, is good-looking...

Mika, who was helping Falga process documents, felt a gaze and subconsciously looked up, only to see Wang Yan's 'terrifying' eyes.

"???" Mika looked horrified.

He has a hard time even making friends with strangers, let alone acting in movies!

Seeing Mika's terrified expression, Wang Yan couldn't help but shake his head. It really wouldn't work; Mika's personality... was too introverted and honest.

The protagonist can be introverted or honest, but cannot be both introverted and honest.

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Especially in commercial films and popcorn movies, the protagonist can be weak and suffer setbacks, but he must have a standout personality.

Otherwise, the audience will feel frustrated watching the main character, and the box office will naturally suffer.

"Ahem, Mika still has some things to do for me." Falga could also see Mika's fear.

"Then who should we ask? We can't really ask Kaiya, can we? A battle between sworn brothers?" Wang Yan withdrew his gaze, and as he spoke, he revealed a strange smile. "Tsk, it's not impossible."

"Diluc will definitely refuse." Falgar also smiled, seemingly imagining the scene of the two brothers acting together, his smile gradually becoming distorted.

The two men grinned sinisterly, scaring Mika so much that she didn't dare to look up again.

After a while, the laughter stopped.

"How about we ask Abedo?" Falga suggested.

Wang Yan thought for 0.01 seconds, then shook his head: "No, Abedo doesn't have the air of a knight. He's more like a seeker of knowledge, a scholar."

Although Aberdo has an official identity as a knight and is the captain of the investigation team, he doesn't really have much of a knightly air about him.

"Then who should we contact?" Falga was somewhat at a loss.

Just then, the door to the regimental commander's office was pushed open again, and two figures, one in yellow and one in white, walked in.

"Hehe, Wang Yan is here after all! We brought the stuff back!" Paimon shouted loudly.

However, Wang Yan and Falga ignored her and instead looked at Ying with strange eyes.

Ying paused, a chill running down her spine. She looked hesitantly at the two of them: "Why...why are you...looking at me like that?"

"Ahem, Knight of Honor, I'd like to ask you for a favor," Falgar said.

Ying breathed a sigh of relief. It turned out they had something to ask of her. She had thought something terrible had happened.

"Just tell me, Commander. I'll help if I can." Ying's tone was much more relaxed.

She's done the Knights' missions before, whether it's finding cats and dogs or clearing out monsters, she never refuses.

Falga smiled: "Take my place and become the protagonist in Wang Yan's movie!"

"Huh?" Ying and Paimon exclaimed in surprise at the same time, "Why?"

Falgar then repeated his reasoning to Ying and Paimon.

After listening to Falga's explanation, Ying immediately understood.

Although she travels extensively and is not particularly sensitive to political maneuvering, reputation, or gains and losses, she can still understand the key points.

As the highest-ranking active military leader in Mongolia, the Grand Commander was indeed in a dilemma when it came to participating in the competition.

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Winning would easily lead to accusations of bullying others and relying on the reputation of the Ming Dynasty to create a false impression; losing would be an even greater disgrace to the Knights of Favonius.

But the status of an honorary knight is different.

She is a traveler from afar, a friend of Mongols, not belonging to the core power structure of the Knights, and not bound by public opinion. She can perfectly uphold the spirit and glory of knights, while avoiding all political criticism.

More importantly, she has more than just the identity of an honorary knight.

Paimon also realized what was happening and clicked his tongue softly, "So that's how it is... No wonder the Grand Master can't go; that would be too troublesome."

Falgar looked at Ying, who was still in a daze, and said sincerely, with a hint of earnestness, "So, I can only beg you, Honorary Knight. In the entire kingdom of Mon, no one is more suitable than you to take on the role of 'protagonist knight'."

"You possess the steadfastness of a knight and the heart of a protector. You have protected Mon and quelled disasters all the way. Your deeds are far more worthy of the name of knight than many registered knights."

His words were not mere polite flattery, but genuine recognition; the praise in his words was also for Ying Zhenshi's achievements.

Ying hesitated for a moment before declining.

Along her journey, Mon was the first city-state she arrived in Teyvat and settled down in. The wind and the people here were particularly special to her.

Now, acting in a film about knights is not a burden, but rather a unique way of commemorating the occasion.

After a moment, she nodded gently: "Yes, I'm willing to play the lead role of the knight."

"That's great!" Falgar breathed a sigh of relief instantly, all the resentment on his face vanished, and his eyes were full of relief. "With you in the cast, the spirit of this film is secured."

In fact, Falga was also worried that if he stopped acting, what if Wang Yan just randomly found someone to play the knight and they messed it up?

Regardless, once the film is released, some people will inevitably connect it with the Knights of Favonius.

If the performance is too poor, it won't be a good thing for the Knights either.

But if she is an honorary knight... then there should be no one in the entire knightly order who doesn't trust her.

Paimon's eyes lit up, and he clapped his hands excitedly: "Wow, is Ying going to become a big star like Funina? Yay!"

The dull atmosphere in the office was swept away.

Only Mika, standing to the side, quietly glanced up at Ying, whose aura was clean and resolute, and silently breathed a sigh of relief, secretly glad that she had escaped a disaster.

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