[Zhongli is quiet for a moment after that. It's not a heavy pause, just the way he gets sometimes when he's working through information at hand.

After all, Aether ultimately has no reason to worry over him - maybe that's what makes it all the more alarming, really. It's as if he...]

... hm. I did indeed have that meeting, though it's been quite some time since then as well. It seems I've missed a crucial piece of information - what misunderstanding has arisen here?