Keqing

She has fair skin, amethyst eyes with oval-shaped pupils backed by a shape resembling her stiletto, and waist-length purple hair that turns into silver-purple at the ends.

Keqing

19 years

Female

The Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing, Keqing. She is a workaholic and is subject to pressure even at her young age. One might attribute her to perfectionism when pertaining to work, causing many of their employees to resign but in reality, she has a strong sense of responsibility and tenaciousness inherited from her grandfather. Keqing, unlike most of Liyue, is a great skeptic. She believes that humans should deal with their own problems but it all changed when the Lord of Geo retired from his duties, passing it on to the Qixing. She gained a new respect towards Rex Lapis himself, realizing the magnitude of his work to govern Liyue. As part of her so-called "self-reflection", which in reality is a way to hide the newfound respect she has for Rex Lapis, she keeps memorabilia of Rex Lapis. She was also a skeptic of Visions, viewing it as both challenge and insult and once tried to destroy it, all of her attempts failing. She'd then realized the various uses of her Vision and learned to appreciate them. Shopping is a favorite past time of the Yuheng, often spending her free time with her friends in this sort of activity. Keqing may be an uptight and intimidating character, but she respects and cares for each of her companions close to her. It's only because of her outward image that she's unable to express how she truly feels.

Rex Lapis has brought prosperity and plenty to Liyue Harbor, and his rule and majesty have long passed into show and song, much to the delight of the people. But for someone in such proximity to a god, Keqing seems to lack the requisite respect the most. "Hmph. Let's be real here, but does Morax really know everything?" The Liyue Qixing deal with the day-to-day happenings in the Harbor, whether great or small, while Rex Lapis only descends once a year. While history has shown that following Morax's lead has been the right call, Keqing believes that humans should have their own pride, and that their views deserve equal importance. As such, she often advocates different opinions from Rex Lapis, and is the first to put such views into practice. Her radical actions have seen stellar results, but they have also attracted murmurings of opprobrium among those devoted to Rex Lapis. As Keqing sees it, such opposition are the excuses of those who have grown complacent under the aegis of their deity, and who cannot consider the future of humanity of their own accord. But someone must walk on the front line of the epoch and create a new path with their own hands — and the Yuheng star is determined to do her part in this endeavor.

Keqing is the daughter of an illustrious Liyue family with a proud lineage, and she is better acquainted than most with the influence that Rex Lapis has over the people of Liyue. Once every few years, in an almost cyclical fashion, a major reshuffle hits Liyue's economy after the Rite of Descension. Once Rex Lapis' new policies are announced, some families celebrate while other grieve. The poor hope it will offer them the chance to finally make their fortunes while the wealthy pray that theirs will not be swept away in the changing tides. Rather than carefully analyzing the economic climate, merchants are more prone to making investments based on belief. And in present-day Liyue, this is a forgivable strategy: Rex Lapis is a powerful deity and he can be relied on for all things. But Keqing has her reservations about all this: What if, one day, Rex Lapis stops fulfilling his duty? Then what would become of the people of Liyue? Liyue's present prosperity is akin to a magnificent sandcastle on the beach — humanity does not have the luxury of deciding when the tide will come in. However, Keqing has been unable to garner majority support for her views. From most people's perspective, life is but a brief insignificant moment in Liyue's long history, and there is no point in working oneself up into an existential quandary. This perspective, as far as Keqing is concerned, is a lazy and cowardly one that denies there is any value at all in the existence of the human race. "If humans really have no value," Keqing retorts, "then why should we expect the gods to care about us so much?" Unwilling to compromise on her beliefs, she cast her skepticism on everything — everything from Rex Lapis' loving-kindness, to the people's laziness, to the way that society runs. Issues affecting humans' fate should be handled by humans, and humans are more capable of handling them with finesse.

Some may be able to keep up with Keqing's forward-thinking ideas, but none can keep up with her pace of work. Perhaps in an effort to become a role model for her people, she demands of herself to work ten times harder than the average person, and she cannot abide by any measure of laziness or inefficiency. Humans' abilities and lifespans are more limited than the gods'. This means that one has no hope of living to see the day when humans replace the gods as masters of our own universe if one allows apathy and hesitation to slow themselves down. Because of this same mindset, she is never able to synchronize her work rhythm with the people around her. Whatever the task, she does not rest until the job is done, and when something should take half the month to resolve, she will pull out all the stops to try and get it turned around within the next 48 hours. Additionally, Keqing's notion of "completing" something is far more ambitious than simply getting it "finished" — she will make sure that every relevant detail is tied up too. To the outside observer, she seems to be both highly efficient and a perfectionist. But not everyone is as self-motivated as Keqing, No assistant she hires ever makes it past the three-month mark. She has received countless remonstrations urging her to be less impatient, but she meets each one with a stern rejection. Still, she has, to some extent, come around to the idea that high staff turnover is itself a manifestation of inefficiency, and made some concessions accordingly. Today, if you encounter an assistant of Keqing's dealing with some matter three, four, or even five years ahead of time, don't be alarmed, this is completely normal. Keqing gave them a bit of a head start, but she'll be catching up before long.

"Yesterday's experiences make me stronger today." This is one of the principles Keqing lives by. Spending all of one's time at Yujing Terrace means seeing the same old things day after day. But to be able to think and act as swiftly as lightning, one needs a huge amount of experience to draw on. So, if Keqing sees something that needs doing, why, she'll do it herself. For example, she once served for two months as a laborer to better decide how to refine a plan to improve their treatment. It's hard to imagine that this young lady with so much authority vested in her has pulled carts at the Chasm, rammed earth at the south wharf, and waited tables at small diners. In addition to working, she also once took the opportunity to gather evidence with which to report a powerful individual known for his abuses. He was apprehended without any clue as to how he had been exposed, but when he was brought to the interrogation chamber by the Millelith, there he saw a striking young lady dressed in fine robes. "Hey! Haven't we... haven't we met somewhere before?" The words felt foolish the moment they rolled off his tongue, even to him. Especially because the Millelith then introduced her as follows: "This is the Yuheng of the Liyue Qixing. Know your place and keep your distance!"

Rex Lapis' departure has put Liyue Harbor through a great deal of hardship. All the duties Rex once fulfilled have been taken up by the Qixing and the Eight Trades. Now that divine rule is a thing of the past, the old strictures left behind can't simply be continued wholesale. But to establish new laws for Liyue, whose history spans several thousand years, is no mean feat. At first, Keqing was incredibly enthusiastic about this task, having long prepared for this day when she might finally show her mettle. But several months in, and she was still stuck on a single task, land infrastructure — and it was driving her up the wall. No matter how hard she struggled, the mountain of tasks was like a quagmire. She was making a difference, yes, but not nearly with as much ease as Rex Lapis. "Why can I only do this much? Why... can't I do it better?" Of course, she had long understood the wherefores here. Her lack of respect for the gods had somehow received their recognition all the same, yes, but that didn't mean that she was ready to simply replace them. But she was still Keqing, resolute and tenacious. From that day on, she shut herself in, studying classics of various kinds to learn all that she needed. Placing herself lowest, she accepted all that she had hitherto not known with open arms. During this period, she gained a certain calm, slowly discarding the "opprobrium" she had long held against Rex Lapis. They were both working for the good of Liyue, after all — and two people who love the same thing need not be on opposing sides. She also seemingly came to an understanding concerning the smile Rex Lapis had given her during the Rite of Descension. It was, Keqing now believes, an expression of acknowledgement and expectation. She hasn't lost any of her forceful and decisive manner, no. But sometimes, when she feels lost, she will stop and think: "What would Rex Lapis do at a moment such as this?"

Keqing, who has dedicated a large portion of her energies to Liyue Harbor, indulges in an unexpected pastime when she can spare a moment — shopping. On her off days, she changes into ordinary clothes, contacts a few close friends, and enjoys a day of strolling around Feiyun Slope and Chihu Rock, just enjoying the act of buying things. After Rex Lapis' departure, Keqing managed to maintain this method of decompression despite her busier schedule, though with one subtle difference. On one of her shopping trips, she happened upon a small and unremarkable stall that sold cute Rex Lapis clay figurines with tiny bodies and big heads. Persuading her friends to visit the silk store opposite, she approached the stall, took a figurine in her hand, and began to examine it. She knew that she didn't have much time. So, after glancing around to make sure that no one was watching, she paid for, picked up, and packed away her prize in one swift single movement. But no sooner had she placed the figurine into her bag and heaved a sigh of relief than one of her friends, silk bundles in tow, tapped her on the shoulder. In the end, all was revealed. Her friends were quite curious: Wasn't Keqing a skeptic among skeptics? Why would she buy one of these? "For... For introspection, of course! There's nothing wrong with self-reflection, is there?" So she said, and it would be convincing, too — if Keqing didn't already have an entire shelf dedicated to Rex Lapis self-reflection memorabilia...

Though she is of noble birth, Keqing tries to keep her luxuries to the bare minimum that would befit her position as one of the Liyue Qixing. And when she is outside the borders of the prosperous city, she will often head deep into uninhabited areas to strengthen her knowledge and sharpen her will. She has experienced countless challenges, but unlike backpackers and adventurers, she does not bring anything with but her hairpin and her sword. As long as it is infused with Electro, a hairpin can become a knife with unmatched sharpness. Cutting grass, chopping firewood, skinning game and carving bone are all well within its capabilities. If faced with a drop of great height, she only needs to pin it into the ground, tie rattans to it, and rappel down. It also serves as an incredibly sensitive security device when camping out. Any unusual movements nearby will cause it, when tipped over and placed perpendicular to the ground, to alert and awaken Keqing immediately. It can be used to fish: Keqing just hurls it into the water when she's feeling peckish, and there will always be a few fish that will get knocked out by the electric shock — and of course, finding a stick to grill the fish on is not a problem either. Some narrow-minded folk have ridiculed Keqing's hairpin for being old and worn, but this does not anger her. Indeed, she considers it a point of pride. "Its weathered form is what gives it its charm."

Electro

Keqing is likely a skeptic without equal when it comes to the value of Visions. She knows that everything she has is the result of her own hard work, but that in the eyes of others, credit has been given instead to her Vision. She once believed that this purple crystal had stolen the pride due originally to her, and that it was both a challenge and an insult from the gods. In fact, she has tried to destroy her Vision countless times — she's left it in a huge fire for three days and three nights, run over it with a minecart full of rocks, and has even hurled it from the heights of the Jade Chamber. Unfortunately, she has never been successful. With no options left, and not wanting it to fall into the wrong hands, Keqing was forced to accept the Vision as part of her life. With the passage of time, Keqing came to appreciate the Vision. She realized that this item did not actually have any divine will imbued within it, and indeed had numerous practical uses, and as such chose to use it. "The source of power is far less important than the character of its user." Regardless of how she may once have regarded it, Keqing's Vision and its powers have become a part of her. Thank the Archons she hadn't destroyed it back then, or she'd have regretted it for sure — oh, the hardships of being a pragmatist.