29: This child must not be kept

“I ask you one question, and you answer one. Do you understand?”

As Lin Yue reached the entrance, he heard General Yu's pained cries. He signaled Feng Cai to stop, or General Yu's body might not be able to withstand the torment.

“Understood, understood!” General Yu’s mind instantly cleared, and he quickly replied.

“Why did you ambush me at night?”

“This humble one heard that this place was the Baron’s Fief and might have some money, so he got an idea.

But this humble one only wanted money, absolutely nothing else!” General Yu quickly explained.

“Then how did that Military General come to be under you?” Lin Yue asked.

This had always been a puzzling question for him. He, as the first player to be granted a Baron title, only obtained Pan Feng. How did General Yu acquire Xing Daorong?

“The Main God of your world favors me, and thus bestowed upon me a Third-rate Military General!” General Yu’s eyes darted around, combining some of his interactions with NPCs as he spoke.

“Heh heh.” Lin Yue said with a fake smile:

“It seems you’re still not being honest.”

Seeing this, Feng Cai took two steps forward. General Yu’s pupils widened, and he quickly shouted, “I’ll tell you! I’ll tell you!”

“We, the Outlanders, have a special way of communicating called live streaming.”

“Because I’ve made friends with heroes from all over the world, and my number of followers has exceeded one million, making it the highest in the world, the Main God bestowed upon me a Silver Recruitment Order!”

General Yu was truly afraid of Feng Cai and spilled everything like beans from a bamboo tube.

“Live streaming?” Lin Yue pondered.

Facing General Yu’s half-truths, Lin Yue was somewhat confused. Even the first record of live streaming with over a million viewers received such a good reward?

He truly hadn't expected it.

But he quickly came to terms with it. The game seemed to have an obsession with 'firsts.' Ye Xuan’s The Number One Village Under Heaven directly rewarded a Golden Military General Recruitment Order, and his own first position and title also came with generous rewards.

“Then why would you sell a Military General to someone else? Isn't a Third-rate Military General important to you?”

“How did you know?” General Yu was shocked. At this moment, he still didn't know that Xing Daorong had found a new master.

Lin Yue didn't speak but kept staring at him.

General Yu felt uneasy under his gaze. He understood that with his intelligence, he probably couldn't come up with any good excuses, so he told the truth.

“In our world, there are some very powerful people who made me an offer: as long as I handed Xing Daorong over to them, they would give me financial and material compensation.”

“I have a younger sister who needs to go to school and grandparents who need care, so I agreed.”

“Very powerful people?” Lin Yue asked.

“Yes, equivalent to the government offices or county magistrates in this world,” General Yu answered truthfully.

Although he wasn't particularly smart, he was definitely not foolish!

Through the matter of the county magistrate, although he didn't understand the reason, he also felt that this game was not simple, which was why he painstakingly developed the Yu Family Army.

Lin Yue was also deep in thought. No wonder. If given the choice, who would refuse a Third-rate Military General?

If a county magistrate from Blue Star knew he had a Third-rate Military General and proposed an exchange, he probably wouldn't be able to refuse either.

However, why would a Blue Star county magistrate be interested in this game, and even go so far as to make conditions and extend their reach into it? This made him somewhat puzzled.

It seemed this game was far from simple.

“Who was the man who killed you with a single sword strike in front of Heye City that day?” Lin Yue asked again after some thought.

He was truly curious why Zhao Bo could escape danger time and time again, always eluding capture.

The first few times could be considered luck or an accident, but the last time, he managed to escape even when surrounded by General General Meng Tian’s personal guards—that was the Golden Fire Cavalry, Great Qin’s premier cavalry!

Zhao Bo must have something extraordinary about him!

Upon hearing this, General Yu’s face changed. He looked closely at Lin Yue, his expression growing even more shocked!

“It was you! You were that General from Heye City!”

“Yes, that’s right,” Lin Yue smiled.

“How did you become a Baron?” General Yu asked incredulously.

“All of this is thanks to your efforts.”

General Yu’s face showed bitterness, then he said, “It has nothing to do with me, it was all Zhao Bo’s plan!”

“I want to know why he could escape repeatedly?”

“It’s said that he was among the first ten thousand Outlanders to enter this world. The Main God bestowed upon him a talent to sense danger.”

“And he achieved the ‘Thousand-Man Slayer’ accomplishment. The Main God granted him a warhorse that is incredibly fast!” General Yu thought for a moment and used a phrasing Lin Yue could understand.

No wonder!

Lin Yue suddenly understood. These two things combined made him a truly chosen person for survival!

But he only achieved the ‘Thousand-Man Slayer’ accomplishment after the Battle of Heye City. How could Zhao Bo have had the opportunity to kill a thousand people?

This Young Master Zhao is truly a talent!

“As far as I know, before the Battle of Heye City, the defenders didn’t suffer that many casualties. How did he kill a thousand people?”

Lin Yue voiced the doubt in his heart.

General Yu rarely showed disdain, and said indignantly, “He was very rich in my world. He bribed other Outlanders to let him kill them, and by repeating this, he achieved the accomplishment.”

Pay-to-win!

This was Lin Yue’s first thought!

He hadn't expected such a way to play; this was pure money power!

This Young Master Zhao is indeed not to be underestimated!

“Then since you knew, why didn’t you use this method to achieve the accomplishment?”

Lin Yue asked curiously. The Yu Family Army probably had over a thousand people, so logically, if each person died once, General Yu could have achieved it too.

General Yu said with a bitter expression, “There are only over two hundred Outlanders in the Yu Family Army; the rest are vagrants from this world.”

“And even if we Outlanders can revive, the pain is real.

He could do it with money, but if I brought up that idea, our Yu Family Army would have disbanded long ago!”

“Besides, I, General Yu, prioritize righteousness. How could I do such a thing?” General Yu’s tone shifted, and he spoke righteeously.

Lin Yue couldn't help but laugh out loud, then restrained himself, feeling it might be impolite.

“Last question.”

“How did you all end up so miserable?” Lin Yue asked curiously, posing the question he most wanted to ask.

“Actually, I have some money, but I can’t find traveling merchants, so there’s nowhere to spend it.

We usually hide in the mountains and can only go down at night to raid or target other players.

But I have too many brothers, and our strength is still weak; we can’t beat anyone.

Even if we encounter someone we can beat, after raiding, each person doesn’t get much.”

General Yu looked world-weary. A large team is hard to lead!

Among a thousand Mountain Bandits, it's inevitable that some would commit arson, murder, and plunder behind his back. If he didn't punish them, the Yu Family Army's reputation would be ruined, and they would face sarcasm everywhere they went.

But if he did punish them, the team's morale would scatter. They were here to play a game, not to participate in a transformation program.

The Yu Family Army inevitably had some complaints.

Suddenly, a light bulb went off in General Yu’s head, and he said excitedly:

“General, I’ll follow you! I’ll tell you the locations of the Outlanders, and I can even suppress bandits for you!

I don’t ask for much, just food and weapons. In return, you can stay in Heye City and continuously gain military achievements!”

Lin Yue’s face instantly showed shock.

Holy crap!

Why does this sound so familiar!

I didn't expect there to be another 'Old Six' besides me!

This person must not be kept!

General Yu saw this and thought Lin Yue was somewhat moved, then continued, “General, if you have any inconvenient matters, I can handle them for you. If we cooperate, wouldn’t Heye City become our kingdom!”

General Yu admired his own mind at this moment, how he could come up with such a good plan!

He was much smarter than Zhao Bo. If a direct assault didn't work, he would outsmart them this time!

“Aren’t you known for prioritizing righteousness?” Lin Yue asked.

“Those aren’t my brothers. My brothers are all willing to endure hardship with me!” General Yu said with a nonchalant smile.

Lin Yue thought that if he were a native, he might actually be tempted, but he was also a player, so General Yu’s suggestion held no appeal for him.

Moreover, he knew the character of players.

Everyone curses the 'Old Six,' but everyone wants to be the 'Old Six'!

He could be an 'Old Six,' but he would never allow his subordinates to be 'Old Six'!

“Forget it, I don’t need it.

But I can recommend a place for you.”

General Yu, after hearing the refusal, had already lost hope, but he didn't expect a twist!

“What place, General? Tell me, and I, General Yu, will surely repay you generously in the future!”

“Food and lodging provided, regular work hours, and it can solve your identity problems.”

General Yu’s eyes lit up, and he asked, “Where?”

“Epang Palace!

His Majesty has ordered the construction of Epang Palace, and there is a shortage of manpower right now.”

“Food and lodging provided, working from five in the morning to nine at night, so the schedule is somewhat regular. Most importantly, after working for one year, you can gain an identity and become a citizen of my Great Qin!” Lin Yue smiled.

General Yu’s vision went dark; the thing he least wanted to face had still appeared.

Could it be that his burgeoning live streaming career was to be cut short like this?

“I can speak to the steward and ask them to make your work less strenuous.” Lin Yue stood up and walked towards the door. This was a small matter for him, a reward for answering so many questions.

“General, wait!

This world is about to descend into chaos…”

General Yu tried his best to persuade Lin Yue to take him under his wing, so as to avoid forced labor.

But Lin Yue paid no attention.

“Give him a plate of meat.” Lin Yue said to Feng Cai without looking back, then walked out.

In the game, since players had joined, and civil and military officials from various dynasties were gathered.

Who could truly say what the future would hold?