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As Liao Ruxue had predicted, upon entering the game, he immediately faced the death of the Grand Marshal.
The jade pendant turned into a pendant and flew away, the dagger directly stabbed into the Grand Marshal’s chest. Moreover, the Grand Marshal’s entire body turned into a dried corpse. If not for still wearing a military uniform, he would not be recognized as the Grand Marshal.
The bizarre death scene threw the entire Marshal’s Mansion into panic. Liao Ruxue promptly decided to conceal the Grand Marshal’s death, covering the corpse with a white cloth and suggesting immediate cremation. Apart from a few individuals, most soldiers only knew of the gruesome state of the Grand Marshal’s death, with no one knowing the specifics.
No one dared to remove the dagger. The deputy suggested cremating the body directly, but unexpectedly, the Grand Marshal’s elderly mother disagreed. Her eyes were half-blind and she couldn’t see clearly. She hadn’t seen her son’s miserable state and couldn’t listen to others. She insisted on following the customs of her hometown, keeping the body for a seven-day wake before burial.
The deputy intended to secretly cremate the body while the elderly mother couldn’t see clearly, replacing it with a paper effigy to deceive her. Liao Ruxue, however, considering this might be part of the game’s plot and that the Grand Marshal’s corpse might conceal secrets, advised the deputy against such actions.
With the deputy and Liao Ruxue each leading a unit of soldiers, they were second in command under the Grand Marshal, and there was no initial conflict. However, once the Grand Marshal passed away, the deputy suddenly turned against Liao Ruxue, intending to kill him and take over as the leader.
Liao Ruxue, by suggesting cremation and realizing Deputy Tan’s single-minded ambition for power, concluded that Tan was not a player but an ordinary person within the game. He then engaged in a private and frank conversation with Deputy Tan, the details of which remain undisclosed, but the outcome was a joint agreement to take control of the Marshal’s Mansion and maintain order in the ancient town.
“How did you ‘talk’ with him? Your abilities?” Mo Qi interjected midway, asking.
“Well… it’s not really any special ability,” Liao Ruxue replied. “Just exerting influence where needed, taking action when necessary, and telling him that for now, we need unity to leave the town together. We can discuss seizing power once we’re free.”
Liao Ruxue clenched his fist.
Mo Qi squinted slightly. “It seems like your personal attribute card must have a high Execution value.”
“The high or low value of Execution directly determines a player’s stamina, and looking at Liao Ruxue now, it seems he doesn’t need to worry about stamina anymore.”
“You guessed right,” Liao Ruxue praised Mo Qi. “If only you weren’t so clever. If you were a fool, I could enjoy killing you without any qualms. But since you’re so sharp, I enjoy the feeling of crossing swords with you. For that feeling, I can restrain my urge to kill. Mo Qi, I’ve always looked forward to being on a mission with you.”
“Then I’ll ask you to bear with me a bit longer,” Mo Qi said expressionlessly. He had grown accustomed to Liao Ruxue’s occasional bouts of madness.
After subduing Deputy Tan, Liao Ruxue had intended to start investigating from within the mansion. However, chaos erupted in the town the very next day. People came to the mansion demanding answers, insisting on cremating the Grand Marshal’s body and performing a ritual to appease the heavens, claiming it was the only way to lift the curse on the town.
Facing such unrest, Liao Ruxue and Deputy Tan led troops out of the mansion, arresting the leaders of the rioting groups who were looting and hoarding food and money in the streets.
They gathered all the city’s food supplies under heavy guard, demanding that residents come to the warehouse daily to collect rations, thus quelling the turmoil.
“Wait!” Mo Qi’s eyes lit up at the mention of collecting rations. “Are they white-collar workers?”
“Of course not,” Liao Ruxue clarified. “For example, if I take 10 pounds of food from Resident A, I give them a voucher for 10 pounds. They can then use this voucher to collect food according to their needs. When they take 1 pound, they return the voucher for 10 pounds, receiving one for 9 pounds in exchange.”
“And what about those who do business selling grain?” Mo Qi inquired.
“Do you think those soldiers would understand such complicated food management?” Liao Ruxue replied. “I’ve deployed the town’s food suppliers along with their managers to accompany them. If residents want to buy grain, they pay money directly to the suppliers. With their help and under guard by soldiers, we can temporarily resolve the food supply issue. Of course, there will likely be issues like substandard goods and collusion between officials and merchants, but it shouldn’t be a major problem in the short term. Each food supplier operates independently for now, and even if they wanted to cooperate, it would take time to coordinate. In a few days, I’ll have completed my mission and moved on, so I won’t have to deal with the aftermath.”
“No wonder you’ve been so efficient at resolving these issues, just like when you were student council president,” Mo Qi remarked.
“So, you’ve been dealing with the riots these days and haven’t had time to investigate the jade pendant?” Mo Qi asked.
“I did look into the people at the mansion. The old lady and Deputy Tan are definitely not players, but the old lady isn’t quite normal either. I suspect there’s something off about her. The Grand Marshal reportedly had one wife and seven concubines, but he only brought two concubines and a daughter to this town as his temporary residence. They’re all referred to as madams in the mansion. His younger brother is also here. I suspect at least one of these four people is a player,” Liao Ruxue explained.
Mo Qi: “The higher you climb in this game, the harder you fall. The higher your status here, the greater the risks. For someone else, just dealing with the riots could be fatal. I suspect there’s someone behind these riots, either a player or someone connected to the curse.”
Liao Ruxue: “I don’t think it’s the same group. The ones attacking the mansion are players, while those looting food are related to the curse.”
Mo Qi and Liao Ruxue share the same view. The game’s background directly points to the Commander’s Mansion. If players want to investigate clues, they must enter the Commander’s Mansion. Only by entering the mansion do they gain authority to speak. Given this, it’s understandable why some players would want to occupy the mansion using residents. Players have skills and item cards, so stirring up emotions shouldn’t be difficult.
As for looting food, which player would waste valuable skills and item cards to compete with ordinary people for food? It’s already good enough to grab enough for themselves.
Given this, there’s one question that’s hard to explain.
“Where have I been these three days?” Mo Qi frowned.
He neither went to the Commander’s Mansion in the center of the vortex, nor did he dabble in murky waters to scrounge for food. What was he up to?
Mo Qi glanced at the system app discreetly. His points and item cards remained unchanged, with two clue detectors lying quietly in his card pack.
At this moment, a thought occurred to Mo Qi. He tapped on the clue detector, attempting to use it, but the system promptly informed him that he couldn’t.
The clue detector can only be used once per team. Since Mo Qi couldn’t use it, it meant Xiang Zhuo had already used it.
“Xiang Zhuo isn’t particularly clever, but he’s not without cunning. Being on the same team as me, would he use the clue detector without meeting up with me?” Mo Qi asked himself, then answered, “No, he wouldn’t. Using the clue detector prematurely without even going to the Commander’s Mansion would be a waste. Xiang Zhuo isn’t that foolish.”
Liao Ruxue added from the side, “I had someone keeping an eye on the Commander’s Mansion. I’d know if anyone came, and I know what he looks like. He definitely didn’t come to the mansion.”
“So Xiang Zhuo and I must have met up right away, found suspicious points outside the mansion, and used the clue detector for it. Now one of us has amnesia, and the other is missing. I haven’t made any reckless moves, meaning I haven’t encountered a life-or-death situation. I’m willing to bear the consequences of amnesia,” Mo Qi analyzed his situation.
Liao Ruxue watched Mo Qi intently from the side, occasionally pinching his own hand, trying hard to control his murderous intent.
“Why does no one live on that rundown commercial street in Zhenbei?” Mo Qi pondered, realizing that his only lead might be the location he remembers.
“There’s a river running through the commercial street, and the jade pendant was dredged from that river. Before the Commander subdued the jade pendant with a fierce blade, many people died there. After the jade pendant was subdued, no one has lived on the commercial street again,” Liao Ruxue explained.
“Does everyone in the town know about this?” Mo Qi asked.
“I haven’t met anyone who doesn’t,” Liao Ruxue replied.
Mo Qi pondered for a moment, and Liao Ruxue reminded him, “We agreed to exchange information. Don’t withhold anything. Besides, discussing it together would be better, wouldn’t it?”
Mo Qi didn’t hide anything from Liao Ruxue. He explained about being on the commercial street and encountering Little Red Coat there, saying, “I believe both the Commander’s Mansion and the commercial street are related to the curse of the jade pendant. My memory being wiped on the commercial street must have happened when I was close to the truth but lacked some necessary condition. Currently, it seems that condition should be inside the Commander’s Mansion.”
“I can arrange for you to stay at the Commander’s Mansion, but it’s not peaceful there at night; everyone inside has their own secrets. As for that Little Red Coat of yours, she doesn’t seem simple to me either. The more I look at her, the more I dislike her,” Liao Ruxue said.
“Do you not worry that she might be related to the curse? She appeared on the commercial street and followed me all the way,” Mo Qi said.
“Suspicion, huh? Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed all the suspicious things about Little Red. But the more you suspect, the closer you need to get, right? How else will you observe her? Not only do I want to keep her around, but I also want to arrange for your father-daughter residence near the mortuary,” Liao Ruxue replied.
“Are you planning to relax the guard at the mortuary, giving someone the chance to approach the Commander’s corpse and the fierce blade?” Mo Qi asked.
Liao Ruxue pushed his glasses up and picked up a jade paperweight from the table. With a slight squeeze, the paperweight shattered into pieces, clattering to the ground.
“Mo Qi, you’re cautious by nature and probably reluctant to spend points on card draws, so you should still have plenty of points. Let me tell you, R cards are mainly support cards, not very useful in combat but handy for solving puzzles, mostly single-use. SR cards can enhance various abilities, some even have special uses. Draw a few SR cards, preferably defense cards. You need to guard against dangers in the game and other players, but also against me,” Liao Ruxue earnestly advised Mo Qi. “I constantly feel like killing you, yet I also constantly think it’d be a shame if you died. I don’t know how long I can remain rational. Be careful.”
“Thank you, I’ll keep that in mind,” Mo Qi said, finding the situation before him exceedingly bizarre as he thanked someone who harbored murderous intentions toward him.
“I’ll arrange your accommodation now, and you can explore the Commander’s Mansion as well,” Liao Ruxue began to abuse his authority.
Mo Qi stood up, his face suddenly reddening a bit. He hesitated before asking Liao Ruxue, “Could you lend me 10 kilograms of grain on credit? I know I’ll be provided for at the Commander’s Mansion, but I have an assistant at the bookstore who’s… who’s still hungry.”
Liao Ruxue seemed to doubt his own ears, tilting his head and licking his lips. “Mo Qi, did I hear you correctly? Are you asking to borrow for the sake of an ordinary person from me?”
Mo Qi disliked owing anything, and borrowing was especially difficult for him.
“Yes, and I’ll repay you by helping you once or using best-selling martial arts novels from the bookstore to settle the debt,” Mo Qi said earnestly.
“I’d rather have a chance to kill… Forget it, let’s settle it with a bestseller. After all, a food requisition slip is as good to me as your bestseller.”
Liao Ruxue wrote a requisition slip for Mo Qi, easily letting Mo Qi off.