YA Ch50: The Cheat Code

Lu Yu noticed that Ming Yan was showing signs of softening tonight, so he took advantage and didn’t let go of the hand he’d been holding for a while. Even after getting into bed, he still didn’t release his grip. In his dreams, he smelled a faint fragrance of plants and felt a warm embrace.

The next morning, Lu Yu groggily woke up, feeling warmth all around his hands and legs. Suddenly, he opened his eyes and saw that his hand was wrapped around a lean waist, and his head was nestled in Ming Yan’s neck!

What a wonderful morning! Lu Yu was reluctant to move, greedily savoring the captivating warmth, unable to control a giggling sound from escaping his lips.

“Mmm…” Ming Yan slowly woke up, letting out a soft, vague hum. When he opened his eyes, he saw Lu Yu staring at him with wide, unblinking eyes. Ming Yan smiled helplessly, “What are you doing? It’s a bit scary this early in the morning.”

His voice, still hoarse from sleep, carried a few raspy notes. Ming Yan slightly stretched, and his long legs rubbed against Lu Yu’s, which were tightly pressed against him.

Lu Yu felt a jolt, like an electric current running up his spine and straight to his brain, where it flipped over and shot back down to his spine and somewhere else.

By the time Ming Yan was fully awake, the person next to him had already dashed into the bathroom and said, “I’m going to take a shower.”

“Why a shower on such a cold day?”

“The cold will wake me up!”

Ming Yan lay sideways on the bed, supporting his head with one hand, watching the blurry, slightly panicked figure behind the frosted glass in the bathroom. He smiled softly.

The two arrived at the office a little after eight. Xiao Jiang directed them to go straight to the conference room; their top supporter, “A Song of Red Silk Countless Times,” was already there.

In the top-floor conference room, a young man in casual clothes was leisurely sitting on the sofa, eating the breakfast Xiao Jiang had bought. When he saw Lu Yu and Ming Yan enter, he looked up and smiled in greeting, “Lu Dog! President Ming!”

Lu Yu curiously eyed the top supporter. This guy was unexpectedly young, appearing to be in his early twenties. He was quite handsome, too, with a small dimple on his left cheek when he smiled, making him look cute and non-threatening. Of course, this could also be because the filter of money made the man appear to glow with radiance.

But, so young? Where did he get all that money? Could he be a minor recklessly spending his family’s money?

Lu Yu’s heart tightened with the sudden sense of impending crisis, as if the donations he had already received might soon be followed by a phone call from some kid’s parents demanding a refund.

Xiao Jiang appeared just in time, handing a clipboard with documents to Ming Yan, along with a chip card. “This is Mr. Hong’s game card; it’s all set up.”

Lu Yu looked at the card, puzzled. Their game pods didn’t require a card, so why had Xiao Jiang gotten one?

Then he glanced at the documents in Ming Yan’s hand:

Hong Wuyang, male, 25 years old, owns two companies, ID number…

Well then, clever Xiao Jiang had come up with an excuse to check the guy’s background. Lu Yu gave Xiao Jiang a thumbs-up behind his back.

Xiao Jiang humbly adjusted his glasses and went over to pour tea for the guest.

Judging by the top supporter’s information, he was probably a rich young heir who threw money around without a care. Lu Yu breathed a sigh of relief. Good, this way, there’d be no guilt in taking advantage of him. He exchanged a glance with Ming Yan, who lightly shook his head, indicating he hadn’t heard of this young master before. He was likely the son of some low-key wealthy family.

“Big Brother, how’s the breakfast? Satisfactory?” Lu Yu asked with an increasingly warm smile, sitting on the armrest of the sofa next to him.

“Not bad,” Young Master Hong replied, his eyes lighting up as he looked at Xiao Jiang. “Your secretary is really good. How much do you want for him?”

Lu Yu was speechless. “Big Brother, do you just buy everything? He’s not for sale!”

Young Master Hong pouted, “Just call me Wu-ge; all my friends do.”

“Alright, Wu-ge,” Lu Yu easily obliged, though the “big brother” was actually younger than him.

Young Master Hong looked over at Ming Yan, who stood gracefully with a noble bearing and smiled with his dimple showing. “President Ming, just call me Xiao Wu.”

“What?” Lu Yu was instantly displeased and moved to block Hong Wuyang’s view. “Why the double standard?”

“It’s out of respect for your wife,” Xiao Wu whispered, and seeing the friendly smile forming on Lu Yu’s face, he added, “Your spouse is really good-looking. If I weren’t straight, I’d ask how much you’d take to let go.”

Lu Yu was speechless. “Is there anything in this world you don’t buy? If you’ve got too much money and nowhere to spend it, feel free to donate it all to me—I don’t mind.”

Once the big brother finished breakfast, Lu Yu dragged him into the live-streaming room, keeping him away from any other company assets he might get the urge to buy. Inside the operations room, Lu Yu repeatedly reminded the curious guy who was looking around at the game pods, “You can only play a small soldier role. No big lines, and don’t talk to Hua Wenyuan too much. You might affect his transformation process.”

“Don’t worry,” Young Master Hong obediently agreed and sat in the game pod, letting Yang Chen fasten the safety belts for him. “Quick, hurry up! My Fairy Zixia, ahh! I have to see her with my own eyes!”

Who’s this Fairy Zixia?

Lu Yu’s mouth twitched as he put on his helmet, and the live stream began.

In the preparation hall, viewers noticed that there was someone new next to Lu Yu and Ming Yan.

Lu Yu looked toward the main camera and introduced to everyone, “This is our top supporter, ‘A Song of Red Silk Countless Times.’ He’s here at Chenyu Technology today to give us guidance, playing the role of Soldier A.”

Young Master Hong, dressed in ragged armor, cheerfully waved to the invisible audience.

On the chat:

[Whoa, top supporter gets these kinds of perks?!]

[Aaaaah, tears of envy are flowing from my mouth!]

[I want to play too, but I’m broke. Damn rich people!]

Amid everyone’s wails of jealousy, the storyline began.

Hua Wenyuan had captured He Dachui’s city and was cleaning up the battlefield.

Ming Yan quickly drew a small soldier’s outfit for the top supporter and let him blend in with the crowd behind them.

He Dachui’s followers were a ragtag bunch, easily defeated, and fled after just a few blows. He Dachui himself, along with his three-foot-long meteor hammer, was captured and tied up inside the military tent.

He Dachui was a burly man with arms full of bulging muscles. His top lieutenants were all blacksmiths, strong but not very bright.

Hua Wenyuan issued an order: those who killed innocent people would be executed; those who committed rape and looted would be executed; those who stole from the common folk would be executed. The rest of the people could return home without further pursuit. Of course, rebel soldiers who did not wish to go home could join Hua Wenyuan’s army and become his soldiers. As for the rebel leaders, those who were willing to surrender would stay to forge weapons, and those who refused would be killed.

He Dachui kneeled in the tent, watching how Hua Wenyuan handled things. Gradually, he realized something wasn’t right. “General, your approach… it doesn’t seem like that of the imperial army.”

If this were the imperial army, these rebel leaders would certainly be beheaded, and their families would be implicated. How could a general of the imperial court keep rebel leaders to forge weapons for himself? Isn’t this… isn’t this treason?

He Dachui didn’t understand much else, but as a blacksmith registered in the artisan class, he knew the rules for forging weapons very well.

Hua Wenyuan smiled meaningfully and asked, “Then what does it seem like?”

He Dachui dared not say the word “rebel” and hesitated for a long time.

“This looks like… the same approach I would take. But the General is much more skilled than me,” said the blacksmith leader, using his wits to quickly add, “I truly had no other choice. The court was preparing for war against the Tartars and was forcing us to work day and night without rest. Even when we were coughing up blood, we couldn’t stop. Every day, someone would die from exhaustion.”

Another blacksmith behind him, upon hearing this, was overwhelmed with sorrow and began to weep. “My father… my son… they both died from exhaustion. And now they want to register my youngest son in the artisan class too. He’s only thirteen! I can’t lose another son!”

Foot soldier A, still holding his spear pointed at the blacksmith’s back, wiped away a tear from his own shoulder.

Hua Wenyuan patted He Dachui on the shoulder. “From now on, you and your fellow blacksmiths will follow me. I’ll provide enough manpower so none of you die from overwork. You’ll no longer be in the artisan class. If you forge good weapons, I’ll even promote you.”

He Dachui, overcome with emotion, immediately kowtowed, saying, “I vow to serve the General with my life!”

The county magistrate in this small town had been killed by the rebels, and the county office had been burned to the ground by these brutes. Hua Wenyuan had originally intended to set up his office in the county hall, but now, seeing the mess, he had no choice but to return to his military camp outside the city.

The scholars recruited earlier followed the soldiers to assess the situation. The wealthy families in the city had paid tribute to the blacksmiths with money and food, so there were few casualties. However, after the rebels had occupied the city for over a month, all the county officials had been slaughtered. The countryside was left unattended, and two large rural households had been completely looted by bandits from the mountains.

The bandits had acted with brutal efficiency, not only taking all the money and food but also slaughtering entire families, leaving none alive—a truly horrific scene.

Xie Zhongyun volunteered to clear out the bandits in the nearby mountains, receiving Hua Wenyuan’s approval. Though excited, he couldn’t help but feel anxious. “Brother, have we become rebels now?”

Hua Wenyuan glanced at him. “Yes, you still have time to regret it.”

“What’s there to regret? This is the great cause I’ve dreamed of!” Xie Zhongyun pumped his fist towards the sky.

Hua Wenyuan sighed. “You should come up with a different name for yourself so as not to bring trouble to your family.”

The emperor wouldn’t take action against the Hua family for now, but the Xie family, being scholars, could be in danger if news spread that the heir of the Xie family had joined the rebels.

After thinking for a moment, Xie Zhongyun said, “I’ll call myself Zhao Ziyun!” His idol was Zhao Yun, styled Zilong, so after some tweaking, this became his alias.

Hua Wenyuan was speechless for a moment. “… Fine, whatever you like.”

Xie Zhongyun, full of enthusiasm, went to gather troops. Spotting the unusual demeanor of Foot soldier A holding a spear, he pointed at him. “You, come with me.”

“I’m not going,” Hong Wuyang, the foot soldier, flatly refused.

Xie Zhongyun’s eyes widened in surprise.

Lu Yu quickly stepped in to mediate. “This foot soldier is doing odd jobs for your second aunt. I just sent him into the city to buy ink and paper, so he can’t leave.”

“Such a coward,” Xie Zhongyun sneered, glancing at the manly-looking second aunt, but couldn’t bring himself to say anything harsh. He left in frustration.

“Lu Dog, you’re a true friend,” Foot soldier A said, giving Lu Yu a friendly nudge with his elbow. There was no way he could leave now; the moment he’d been waiting for was about to come.

The large estates outside the city, now ownerless, could be distributed to their troops. Meanwhile, city affairs needed to be handled, but with all the county officials killed, there was no one available. The few scholars who had been recruited only knew how to read books and balance accounts; they didn’t know how to govern, leaving no one to rely on.

His heartless second uncle refused to let his second aunt assist him either.

Looking at the mountains of paperwork before him, Hua Wenyuan felt overwhelmed.

At that moment, one of his soldiers reported, “General, a scholar has come to offer his service.”

“Hm?” Hua Wenyuan looked up in surprise. He hadn’t even officially declared a rebellion, so how was someone already here to join?

Foot soldier A, standing behind Lu Yu, tugged excitedly at Mingyan’s wide sleeves. He was immediately slapped away by Lu Yu, who then tugged on Lu Yu’s sleeve. “He’s here! He’s here! He’s coming!”

Lu Yu covered his mouth and dragged him into a corner. “Keep your voice down.”

Hua Wenyuan invited the scholar in.

The curtain of the tent suddenly lifted, revealing a delicate young man, sixteen or seventeen years old, carrying a bamboo bookcase. His eyes seemed to smile as he entered, but upon closer inspection, he wasn’t actually smiling; he simply had peach-blossom-shaped eyes, which gave him a naturally cheerful appearance, making him seem charming and likable.

The young man cupped his hands and said in a loud voice, “This humble one is Shen Ying, a candidate traveling to the capital for the imperial examination.”

Shen Ying…

Hua Wenyuan stood up reflexively upon hearing the name. He had indeed heard of this name before because this young scholar, Shen Ying, styled Zixia, would be next year’s top scorer in the imperial examination!

A seventeen-year-old prodigy.

By the time Hua Wenyuan had died, this man had already risen rapidly through the ranks to become a high-ranking official.

Hua Wenyuan stepped forward and helped the young scholar up with one hand. “Why have you come here, Shen? Are you having difficulty traveling to the capital? If so, I can arrange an escort.”

Shen Ying looked up, his eyes twinkling with amusement as he gazed at Hua Wenyuan. “This humble one is unworthy but has come to join the rebellion.”

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Author’s note:

Why did someone guess that the top fan was Zhang Chenfei? Zhang doesn’t read male-oriented novels! Besides, he doesn’t have that much pocket money to throw around!