**鳥盡弓藏，兔死狗烹: idiom meaning once the task is done, those who were useful are discarded.
In an instant, the screen was flooded with “terrified” emojis.
The higher-dimensional beings burst into laughter, finding humanity’s emotional fluctuations thoroughly entertaining.
Back inside the instance, the shadow of the woman in Yun He’s room had already risen to her feet and was moving toward the window.
“Miss Yun,” Fu Changxun suddenly spoke, “we’ve taken the liberty of visiting late at night. Please forgive the intrusion.”
Dong Zi immediately followed up. “Please don’t be alarmed. We mean no harm.”
Words alone were hardly convincing. Yun He didn’t believe them in the slightest. “Several people arrive in the dead of night without knocking, climbing over walls instead, and then stand outside my window…” She paused, enunciating each word slowly. “Forgive my bluntness, but I could report you to the authorities right now.”
The final words carried a heavy sense of menace.
Swift Step reacted instinctively, about to charge inside, but Zhao-jie yanked him back hard. “Calm down. NPCs can’t be killed!”
Thinking of Erhu’s death, Swift Step sobered instantly.
He didn’t dare move again.
Fu Changxun let out a quiet breath. “We only wish to know about General Yun’s life before her death.”
“You’re people sent by the emperor?” Yun He’s voice sharpened, turning icy. “Go back and tell him—there’s nothing here that he wants anymore. Get lost!”
“No.” Having probed her attitude toward the emperor, Fu Changxun immediately shifted gears and began spouting utter nonsense with a straight face. “We’re refugees once saved by General Yun. We’ve never been able to let go of her death. After all these years, we finally managed to learn where you lived. We couldn’t wait until dawn, so we came straight away.”
Not just Yun He—even the other players were stunned by how smoothly he lied. How is he so outstanding?
Yun He paused, her tone easing slightly. “Then tell me—how did General Yun save you?”
Fu Changxun was just about to make something else up when Dong Zi cut in first. “How many common people did the General save in her lifetime? Far more than just us. We merely gathered here from all corners of the land for the same purpose—to seek answers from you, miss.”
It was beautifully said, brimming with Fu Changxun’s signature brand of eloquent bullshit.
It sounded like he’d said something profound—yet also like he’d said absolutely nothing. Pure, distilled nonsense literature.
Yun He had clearly never encountered this before. Thoroughly bluffed, she hesitated for a long moment before finally saying, “Please, come in.”
Xu Zhengyi immediately gave Doctor Fu and Dong Zi a thumbs-up— Damn, bros, that was impressive.
Fu Changxun smiled calmly.
The others snapped out of it and filed into the house one by one.
Zhao-jie dragged along a still-dazed Swift Step as they entered. For some reason, an utterly untimely thought crossed her mind: if she ever met “Doctor” in real life, as an HR professional, she’d absolutely recruit him on the spot.
What a pity. How did she never run into someone like this before the game began?
Ahem. Occupational hazard. Occupational hazard.
The furnishings inside the room weren’t luxurious, but they exuded a sense of antique elegance.
Yun He had already washed up and gotten dressed. Seeing a full six people enter, she couldn’t help but be startled, but she still adhered to her role. “Please, sit.”
The players each found a place to sit, waiting for this key NPC to issue her “quest.”
“Do you want to know the truth behind Yun Qing’s death?” she asked. “Even if it costs you your lives?”
Zhao-jie reflexively looked at Fu Changxun. He didn’t signal her at all, instead taking full responsibility himself. “Of course. None of us are afraid of death.”
Swift Step: “……”
I am! I’m extremely afraid of death!
But he didn’t dare say it.
Who knew if angering this NPC would make her instantly turn hostile and wipe them all out?
“Good.” Yun He stared at them steadily, her gaze tinged with nostalgia. “In that case, I’ll tell you.”
“This story begins more than ten years ago.”
***
More than a decade earlier, the emperor of the previous dynasty was foolish and incompetent. He favored powerful eunuchs, imposed crushing taxes, and left the common people in misery. Even the jianghu was affected—many sects simply broke away, seized territory, and declared themselves rulers, openly opposing the court.
Among them, the saber-wielding family led by the Yun sisters was particularly powerful, occupying the northern frontier.
At first, this arrangement allowed both sides to coexist peacefully, each governing their own domain.
Until one day, Yun Qing returned from outside with a man in tow.
He called himself Heng Beishuo, claimed to harbor a deep hatred for the court, and said he had come seeking protection.
Yun He found it strange, but her younger sister insisted on taking him in. In the end, she had no choice but to agree.
Before long, Yun Qing fell in love.
Heng Beishuo was tall and handsome, and possessed a calm, steady presence that ordinary jianghu heroes lacked. After he took the initiative to profess his love, sixteen- or seventeen-year-old Yun Qing resolutely pledged herself to him for life.
From that moment on, the saber-wielding family became his blade— pointed straight at the crumbling, storm-tossed imperial court.
Yun Qing stayed by his side the entire time—becoming the person behind him, the blade in his hand.
Two years later, with troops fully prepared, he negotiated terms with the great families under the promise that “once I ascend the throne, Yun Qing will be made Empress.” With that assurance, he rebelled.
Heng Beishuo proclaimed himself emperor. His army swept southward like an unstoppable tide, smashing through the capital with irresistible force.
Eunuchs were beheaded. The deposed emperor of the previous dynasty was imprisoned…
With thunderous, ruthless methods, he stabilized the court—and bestowed upon Yun Qing the title of Grand General.
***
“That foolish girl Yun Qing… she was so happy,” Yun He said, her voice already choked with sobs. “She’d long forgotten that there’s an old saying passed down through the ages—when the birds are gone, the bow is discarded; when the rabbits die, the hounds are cooked. From ancient times to now, it’s always been this way.”
She paused for a long while before continuing. “After that, Heng Beishuo not only failed to make her Empress, he kept delaying and making excuses. Then, eight years ago, he summoned her into the palace…and she never came back out.”
That was where Yun He’s account ended.
Zhao-jie was completely absorbed. She couldn’t help but blurt out angrily, “That emperor really milked the cow dry and slaughtered it after—bah! What a backstabbing piece of trash!”
Xu Zhengyi shared her fury. “Scum! If anyone dared treat my daughter like that, I’d beat him to death!”
Yun He froze.
After all, people of this era lived under the doctrine of imperial supremacy. No one had ever cursed the emperor like this before.
Yet the way they cursed him struck straight to her heart. The trust in her gaze toward them deepened noticeably—because anyone who spoke like that was definitely not on the emperor’s side.
“I don’t know what happened after my sister entered the palace,” Yun He said softly. “Later, the emperor built the General’s Platform.” She sighed. “I’ll believe, for now, that you’ve come for Ah-Qing’s sake. I hope you truly can uncover something.”
Yun Qing often appeared in her dreams, yet never spoke—only looked at her with deep sorrow.
As her full-blooded elder sister, Yun He could feel that grief even in dreams. That was why she’d gone to the General’s Platform year after year to investigate. Unfortunately, she never found any clues. Since this marketplace was the closest to the platform, she had remained living here all along.
As for why the emperor never moved to silence her, Yun He herself didn’t understand.
Fu Changxun nodded. “Since Miss Yun has told us all this, we will see the truth uncovered.”
Only then did Yun He smile faintly. “To think… after all these years, there are still people who remember my sister. Back then, she was once a figure of great renown…”
Having obtained critical intelligence from this key NPC, the six finally took their leave.
But Swift Step’s eyes darted restlessly between Fu Changxun and Dong Zi.
At this point, if he still couldn’t tell that those two had been acting all along, then he’d truly be an idiot.
Fu Changxun: “?”
