13: Sister, that's all you have.

Night was drawing to a close.

Lin Yao lay on her soft bed, tossing and turning, completely sleepless.

Outside the window, the city lights cast mottled shadows on the ceiling.

Everything was quiet, but her mind was a mess.

Her brother's emaciated back, that foul-smelling container, and the glaring crimson words on the wall replayed repeatedly in her mind.

"I'm playing a big game."

Her brother's calm and resolute words now sounded more like the mad ramblings of self-delusion.

What kind of big game required him to torment himself into such a state?

She couldn't accept it.

How could her brother, who was once so brilliant and omnipotent, have become like this?

Adding to that, the impending professional awakening, and then the College Entrance Examination.

One thing after another, all weighing heavily on her mind.

Her chest felt tight with anxiety.

Lin Yao suddenly sat up from her bed.

If she couldn't sleep, she simply wouldn't.

She changed into a tracksuit, put on her running shoes, and quietly left the house.

The morning air carried a hint of coolness.

She began to jog along the familiar streets, trying to dispel the Boredom in her heart with physical exhaustion.

Her footsteps made a rhythmic "pat-pat" sound on the asphalt.

The streetlights stretched and then shortened her shadow.

As she ran, her feet uncontrollably turned onto the road leading to the abandoned factory district on the city's outskirts.

She knew she shouldn't come back.

She should listen to her brother and Sister Qingxue, focus on her own life, and prepare for the upcoming professional awakening.

But she couldn't do it.

Her own brother was there; how could she truly let go?

When the familiar, dilapidated outline of the factory district appeared in her sight, Lin Yao slowed her pace.

The sky was already faintly bright, the morning glow casting a layer of grayish-white light over the ruins.

From a distance, she saw the rusty container.

However, as she drew a little closer, her steps suddenly halted.

Not far from the container door, the granite stone pier that was originally used as decoration... was shattered.

Not cracked, but completely pulverized.

Large and small gravel were scattered everywhere, the scene a complete mess, as if a bomb had ploughed through it.

In the morning light, she could clearly see several dried and blackened stains on the largest remnant and the surrounding ground.

It was blood!

Lin Yao's mind buzzed, instantly going blank.

The debt collectors!

Those debt collectors from yesterday came back for revenge!

They laid hands on her brother!

This thought struck her like lightning.

She could no longer remain calm and rushed towards the container like a madwoman.

"Brother!"

"Brother! Are you okay!"

Her shouts echoed in the empty yard, tinged with tears and uncontrollable trembling.

The container door was tightly shut.

Lin Yao rushed to the door and pounded on the cold iron door.

"Brother! Open the door! Say something!"

There was no response from inside.

A deathly silence.

Lin Yao's heart sank to the bottom.

She tremblingly fumbled in her pocket for a key.

She had secretly duplicated it; in the entire household, only she still had the key to this container.

The key failed to enter the keyhole several times; her hand was shaking too much.

"Don't let anything happen... please... please don't let anything happen..."

She cried and prayed softly.

"Click."

The lock opened.

Lin Yao violently pushed the door open and rushed inside.

Inside, there was still that familiar, nauseating, sour smell.

But there was no one.

The broken table was empty, and the chair lay overturned nearby.

Her brother's usual seat was empty.

He wasn't there!

Lin Yao's last shred of hope was shattered.

She looked around; the scene inside was even more chaotic than yesterday, as if a fierce fight had taken place.

Connecting this with the broken stone pier and bloodstains outside... a terrifying thought gripped her heart.

Brother... has he already been... She dared not think further, took out her phone, and with trembling fingers, prepared to dial the police.

Just then, her movements stopped.

Something was off at the corner of the table.

A small mountain of gray cards was originally piled there.

But now, the card mountain was gone.

Instead... there was a pile of money.

Not a stack, but a large, messy pile.

Brand new, consecutively numbered, red hundred-yuan banknotes were casually piled there, with a large handful of shiny coins scattered beside them.

The banknotes were excessively new, without even a crease.

In the dim room, that touch of red was particularly glaring.

Lin Yao was stunned.

She walked forward, inexplicably reached out, and picked up a banknote.

The feel was right.

The texture of the paper, the smell of the ink, there was no difference from real currency.

She picked up a coin.

The weight and luster also had an indescribable strangeness.

But, cash, all with the same serial number! How could this be... Counterfeit money?

The word popped into her mind.

Immediately after, all the incomprehensible details from the past five years seemed to find their answers at this moment.

Why did her brother give up the College Entrance Examination and shut himself away?

Why was he obsessed with making those trash cards that would disappear at midnight?

Why did he ignore his parents' advice, willing to break with his family to persist?

Why did he say, "I'm playing a big game"?

Why did he owe so many loans, yet say, "When that day comes, you'll know"?

So... that's how it is.

So that's it!

Lin Yao suddenly "understood" everything!

What making trash cards, what Sisyphean madness... that was simply a cover-up!

He was using his epic professional talent, Myriad Card Creator, to practice!

Those pebbles, sand, and withered grass were all consumables he used to hone his skills!

And his ultimate goal was to create currency!

To make counterfeit money!

Once this thought appeared, it could no longer be suppressed.

It perfectly explained all of Lin Yu's abnormal behavior over the past five years.

He wasn't crazy; he was perfectly lucid!

He had been preparing for a massive, insane, illegal plan!

The bloodstains and gravel outside were probably from a conflict that occurred when he was dealing with certain underground forces.

Brother... my foolish brother!

The counterfeit bill in Lin Yao's hand fluttered to the ground.

Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.

Tears surged out again.

But this time, it wasn't because of heartache, nor because of fear.

But a deeper, more complete despair.

She thought her brother had gone mad, that he had mental problems.

But now she "understood"; her brother had actively chosen a path of no return.

He was a Myriad Card Creator!

A unique, golden, epic-level profession!

He should have had an infinitely bright future, he should have become a person of status, the pride of the entire family!

But he, with this peerless talent, went to do such... such petty, thieving acts!

This was even harder for Lin Yao to accept than him being mad!

Was it worth it?

To give up everything for these things, was it worth it?