Character Details

Rock 'n' roll originates in Fontaine and is just starting to find its feet in Liyue Harbor. Xinyan, thus, is a pioneer in this art.
Every night, she will sling on the instrument that she made herself, stand on a self-constructed stage, and play self-composed tunes to every member of the audience.
As the person is, so are her songs: bold, defiant, loud, and proud.
She is by no means a virtuoso, but her loyal fans will nonetheless lose themselves in celebrating along with her, using their voices and their bodies to shake off the stress and troubles of the day.
In the heat of the moment, the fire that leaps from Xinyan's Vision threatens to turn night into day. "She is a true rock 'n' roll genius, and a greater master still at creating atmosphere," says The Steambird of her skill.
Living in Liyue is expensive, and maintaining one's lifestyle in there is harder still. But as Xinyan would tell those worried about such mundane matters— "Rock 'n' roll is easy, really."

Character Story 1
 
Xinyan does not adhere to traditional performance norms at all. Anything can be used as her instrument. 
The pillars on-stage, the floorboards, the cheers and yells of the audience, and even the explosions and sparks created by her Vision are valid brushes with which she paints her performance. 
The impromptu stage often starts to burn somewhere after the halfway mark of the performance, till all that's left is a smoking pile of charcoal. 
After many warnings, the Millelith were finally forced to tighten their patrols and try to find ways to stop Xinyan from staging her performances. 
The subsequent battles of wits tended to turn out in Xinyan's favor — she was often able to find a place to perform, set up a stage with frightening speed, and begin a raucous night with her audience. 
The more reliable word on the street is that many patrolling Millelith were themselves infected by the "spirit of rock 'n' roll," becoming her loyal fans in the process. 
Xinyan would get wind of the Millelith's latest patrol plans from these "friends of rock," and was thus able to avoid their eyes with ease. 
Eventually, tiring of the lack of results, and in the absence of any evidence that anyone was harmed during Xinyan's performances, the Millelith came to adopt a "one eye open, one eye shut" approach to her actions.

Character Story 2
 
Xinyan is tall, dusky, and has an exceedingly sharp pair of eyes. In order to maintain a mental state suited to her music, she also walks around in the same sort of highly stylized costume as she wears on-stage. 
In the eyes of bystanders, this makes her quite the fierce sight to look upon when she walks down the street, like one of those hooligans who tramp about the marketplace. 
When she lines up for snacks, the people in front will make way, clearing a path for her in fear. 
If she so much as accidentally locks eyes with some little child, they will run crying behind their parents. 
Even if she does nothing at all, Xinyan is often maligned, her fierce appearance making her look like some incorrigible villain. 
While Xinyan did not care how people saw her, she did think that scaring others and making trouble for them wasn't good, either, and thus constantly looked for ways to make a change. 
Every day when she woke up in the morning, she would look at herself in the mirror and massage her face with her fingers to stretch and relax her eyes a little. 
She would even practice smiling and study expressions — verbal and facial alike — of great elegance. 
After significant practice, she once came across a group of children bullying another child, and without thinking, she went over to rescue the bullied child. 
She gave the kid a smile that she thought friendly, and patted his head in a manner she believed gentle. And indeed, the child did quiet down... 
Or to be precise, the child stood there stock still like a soulless husk, urine dribbling down their pants. 
The would-be bullies too fled helter-skelter with panicked cries. 
"Run! Run! That angry aunt's finally turned into an angry ghost! Sh—She's going to eat us all!" 
"Who're you calling an aunt!? And who's a ghost, huh!?" 
Alas, that roar saw all her hard work go to waste.

Character Story 3
 
Xinyan has one standard by which she judges all things: is it or isn't it "rock 'n' roll?" 
All that is just and upright — standing up for those who have been wronged, taking on challenges — is "rock 'n' roll," and all that is reprehensible — fearing the wicked, oppressing the kind, dirty tricks, scheming ways — is "not rock 'n' roll." 
Rock is the spirit of rebellion and resistance, yes, but patently immoral acts are nonetheless "not rock 'n' roll." 
Xinyan reserves the right to make these judgments, and whether these judgments are based on results or her mood, the difference between the things covered by these two opposing terms is clear. 
The only catch is that these standards sound odd in certain contexts. 
Due to her fierce appearance, Xinyan nearly has no friends, with Xiangling of Wanmin Restaurant being one of the few exceptions with whom she can speak most freely. 
Xinyan has a special reason for coming to Wanmin Restaurant — for musical inspiration. 
Whenever Xiangling is researching new recipes, others may run for the hills, but not Xinyan.
She intentionally eats all the experimental products, and amid the taste bud explosion that results from the never-before-seen flavors, inspiration flows into her mind. 
"Tell you what, Xiangling, that dish rocked!" 
Though Xinyan considers this to be the highest praise, Xiangling finds it a little hard to be happy about such ratings.

Character Story 4
 
The eternal subject of rock 'n' roll is resistance. 
But the thing that Xinyan resists is not a concrete thing, but rather, the conceptual shackles of "prejudice." 
She was born into a poor family, and her parents placed great stock in her, giving her the best of what little they had in the hopes that she would be able to rise to "become a phoenix." 
Of course, this "phoenix" would have to be something that they would recognize. 
But things don't always turn out as planned.
Xinyan grew to be taller than most girls, and her looks were far from anything that might be considered "cute." Nor was she any good at any of the feminine arts, whether it was cooking, chores, needlework. 
So, since her childhood was so deeply impacted by such "prejudices," Xinyan understands how terrifying they could be. 
Yet becoming a rock 'n' roll star has not caused her to give up on these other arts. 
This is not only because she hates losing, but because she feels that "giving up because you have no talent" is itself a prejudiced belief. 
Not long ago, a fan of Xinyan's named Yunjin was invited to her place as a guest. 
But if Xinyan hadn't opened the door herself, Yunjin would have thought that she had the wrong house. 
The house was spick and span, the windows were clean, and the home ornaments were hand-made and immaculately arranged. 
The cooktop was still moist, indicating that someone had been cooking not long before, and there was half-sewn cloth by the bedside that looked much like the decorations Xinyan wore during her performances. 
Why, this was practically the room of some refined lady of reputable upbringing, with nary any spirit of rock 'n' roll to be found! 
Xinyan was quite worried that this fan of hers would find the difference between their impression of "rock 'n' roll" and this reality too jarring. 
Unexpectedly, Yunjin's support and fandom would only grow more intense after this.

Character Story 5

The way Xinyan sees it, many adults fail to realize their potential because they are tied down by prejudice, giving in to fear and endless anxiety.
They do not understand what life is about, or where they are going.
She wrote these thoughts into her songs, but invited scorn from the very same adults. "What does this brat know?"
Even so, Xinyan did not waver. After all, such mockery was born of prejudice towards her age.
And if prejudice were something so easily overthrown, there would be no value in resisting it, would there?
She believes that rock 'n' roll is like a seed. After every performance, some seeds might sprout within the hearts of those adults who listen.
When they wake up the next day, perhaps they might receive some inspiration, or perhaps a change of mood will come over them...
Even if it only changes their thinking a little bit... Perhaps they might find that the real-life troubles they are facing are nothing but a storm in a teacup.
Of course, few people other than her audience and the "friends of rock" would credit this to rock 'n' roll.
But people do nonetheless say this around the tables after tea.
"Well, having a girl who plays rock 'n' roll is pretty interesting, no?"

Xinyan's Instrument
 
Xinyan's main instrument is a hand-made lyre of a very unique design. She based it off the rock 'n' roll instruments that were imported from Fontaine before adding additional modifications based on personal understanding.
For example, she mounted a crescent-shaped axe-blade on the tail end of the instrument so it might serve as a weapon in a pinch.
She also connected it to her Vision, allowing it to spew flames and sparks. Its internals can also spew flame, all the better for it to self-destruct if it falls into the wrong hands, preventing its misuse...
The list of modifications goes on, and they are too numerous to count.
This instrument is thus unique, and its sound profile is also special.
—Sorry, what? What do you mean, "these modifications sound like they have nothing to do with music?"
Sounds like you, too, need to attend one of her performances. You'll understand then.

Vision
 
Xinyan was someone who never fit in in Liyue Harbor, and she only found where she belonged when she encountered rock 'n' roll. 
But because she lived in a land that had no place for rock 'n' roll yet, she needed to be able to attract enough attention. 
She immersed herself in the world of music, looking for a way to move people's hearts. She broke many an instrument and played till calluses formed on both hands, but still, it was unsatisfactory. 
"Who'd want to listen to this racket?" 
The rotten-tomato reviews she received were starting to get to her. She wondered if she should quit. 
Sitting on top of Mt. Tianheng, she looked down over Liyue Harbor. But though the lights lit the streets and alleys of the harbor, they could not light the flame of the spirit of rock 'n' roll. 
She considered leaving, to go someplace where rock 'n' roll was appreciated. But would this not be running away? Would it not be a betrayal of rock 'n' roll's spirit of resistance? 
No, she would not leave. She would become a "flame" that could light Liyue Harbor up. 
She started experimenting with the use of fire to move people, adding sparks and explosions to her music. 
But this was no mean feat for an ordinary person. 
Who knows how many times she must have burnt her fingers or blown her instrument up. But still, she continued to practice every single day on top of Mt. Tianheng. 
And perhaps it was that the gods themselves had great expectations of this new form of music that would soon grace the seven nations... 
But regardless, the boiling-hot Vision would be the final stroke of perfection. 
Xinyan dashed down the mountain and began her very first rock 'n' roll concert in Liyue Harbor. 
Thus did her musical journey begin, with showers of sparks and explosions keeping time.