Chapter 41: The Event

The two of them walked down the stone steps. Qiong Cang was clearly distracted, her mind wandering.

He Jueyun placed a hand on her shoulder, prompting Qiong Cang to look back at him in surprise.

He Jueyun asked, “What are you thinking about?”

Qiong Cang pondered for a moment before saying, “I’m wondering what she meant. Her psychological resilience and emotional control are fairly average. The shifts in her facial expressions told me that I got part of it right, but I also guessed part of it wrong. However, without knowing the specific details, I can’t determine whether I made a mistake or if she was actually deceived by someone else.”

“I’ve noticed that people like you always pay too much attention to cryptic words. The more vague the other party is, the more you want to investigate, right?” He Jueyun smiled, looking at her deeply analytical expression. “If she had thrown a tantrum and had a screaming match with you today, would you still be thinking about her?”

Qiong Cang replied instantly, “Yes.” Because right now, Li Yujia was the most concrete clue.

He Jueyun said, “You truly believe Fan Huai is innocent.”

He spoke in a declarative tone, showing neither surprise nor condemnation.

“What else can I do?” Qiong Cang gave a self-deprecating laugh. She didn’t deny it, simply continuing forward. “If people like us can’t even trust each other, what hope is there?”

He Jueyun asked, “What kind of people?”

Qiong Cang fell silent for a long time before offering uncertainly, “People who are so smart it makes others jealous?”

He Jueyun: “…” He shouldn’t have let his sympathy get the better of him. This woman was shameless.

They hadn’t walked far when they saw a tall figure rushing toward them in a flurry. Seeing him approach, the two tacitly dropped the subject.

The newcomer was clearly very wary of Qiong Cang. He deliberately avoided her gaze and stopped abruptly beside He Jueyun. Grabbing his friend’s arm, he scolded, “I heard you came to visit Liang- you guys! Do you know this is against the rules? Even if she’s a game prototype, you can’t just meet with her whenever you want.”

He Jueyun spread his hands. “We went through the proper channels and got her consent. There’s no violation here.”

“Then did you-” Xie Qimeng’s tone suddenly softened, “-find out anything?”

Qiong Cang found it amusing. “Trying to fish for information? Is this how you ask for favors?”

“You think we don’t know anything? We’ve definitely uncovered far more than you. Don’t underestimate the state apparatus!” Although Xie Qimeng was talking to her, he kept his eyes fixed on He Jueyun.

He Jueyun, uncomfortable with the staring, pinched his friend’s chin with two fingers and twisted his head to the side, forcing him to face Qiong Cang directly and signaling him to stop being so passive-aggressive.

Qiong Cang sneered. “What’s the matter? Is a servant of the people¹ too embarrassed to look at me?”

“Why would I be embarrassed?” Xie Qimeng retorted. “Shouldn’t someone being investigated as a suspect have a little self-awareness?”

Qiong Cang replied, “I thought only the incompetent felt ashamed.”

Xie Qimeng couldn’t outtalk her and didn’t dare snap back, so he patted his friend. “Old He, come with me for a second.”

He Jueyun grimaced, thinking his friend was truly a bit too cowardly. Then he heard Qiong Cang chime in, “I don’t know how to drive.”

Xie Qimeng yelled, “If you can’t drive, call a cab!”

He Jueyun said, “I drove her here, so I have to drive her back.”

Xie Qimeng said in disbelief, “Old He! You- aren’t you prioritizing romance over friendship a bit too much?”

“First come, first served is also a rule.” Qiong Cang smiled at the man beside her. “Thanks.”

He Jueyun replied, “Don’t mention it.”

Once Qiong Cang had walked away, He Jueyun nudged Xie Qimeng with his elbow and clicked his tongue. “Grow up. What are you doing? Why are you so afraid of her? Look at your size, does that make any sense?”

Xie Qimeng lowered his voice. “I warned you! But I see you’re already in way too deep!”

“I believe we’ve already discussed similar issues. I have my own judgment, and there’s no point in repeating ourselves.” He Jueyun tilted his chin toward the car. “Get in.”

Xie Qimeng followed. “I have my own car!”

He Jueyun replied, “Then follow me!”

·

He Jueyun dropped Qiong Cang off downstairs and drove away with the little tail following behind his car. Qiong Cang didn’t care what the two of them would mutter about. She returned to her apartment alone, rested for a moment, and turned on her computer.

Turning on the computer was purely subconscious; her hand launched the browser a step ahead of her brain. Once the search engine occupied the center of the screen, she fell into a daze, unsure of what to do next. After a moment of thought, she moved the mouse, clicked through a few prompts, and entered the Sanyao forum.

When the webpage loaded Sanyao’s signature blue icon, Qiong Cang’s computer actually lagged a bit. The icon in the upper right corner spun a few times before the page continued loading.

The first thing to appear was a title highlighted in red. An hour ago, Sanyao had posted a new event announcement.

【Pinned】【Notice】【Case Scene Analysis】 Golden September, Special Limited-Time Instance: Thrilling Escape, recruitment has officially begun! Players who have achieved an individual ability score of 90 or above can sign up to become a 【Fugitive】. Ordinary netizens can sign up to become a 【Pursuer】. The Sanyao system will review the data and select suitable players to grant game access, with priority given to those with experience. Rich game rewards await, we welcome everyone to sign up enthusiastically!

【Click here to view event details】

Qiong Cang read the content back and forth twice, confirming that this instance was designed specifically for Fan Huai.

Back then, Fan Huai had escaped the police dragnet completely unprepared, which led to widespread questioning of the public security organs. In particular, criticism from the media had triggered an online “earthquake.”

Afterward, Fan Huai was placed on the national wanted list. Despite months of intensive searches, he still had not been caught.

Public dissatisfaction with law enforcement grew increasingly severe. From an outsider’s perspective, people constantly criticized their actions, offering absurd suggestions and playing armchair detectives. The prejudice and harsh criticism from all sides severely damaged the credibility of the authorities. The officers involved in the case faced immense pressure and stepped forward multiple times to explain, but their explanations were always perceived as passing the buck.

This instance was likely designed to explain to netizens the various difficulties faced during the pursuit of fugitives, including limitations in manpower, material resources, finances, and technology.

The announcement was quickly bumped to the top as a trending post, with netizens flooding the comment section.

“A time-limited instance? How many players with scores over 90 are there anyway? Most of them aren’t professional players, so even fewer will have the time to participate in a limited-time instance, right?”

“Is 【Pursuer】 open to all netizens? Meaning I can sign up? A person’s got to dream, maybe it’ll actually happen.”

“Did they release another joint instance because they couldn’t handle the netizens’ abuse?”

“Don’t forget that powerhouse rookie. She’s the only rookie to score over 90 recently, right? She doesn’t run instances very often, will she participate?”

“I think it’s doable. There’s only one fugitive, while the Pursuers start with at least a hundred people, and they’ll keep adding investigators over time with no upper limit. They’re also getting all available technical support. The Pursuers are starting with a stacked hand; it’s just that the requirements for the fugitive are a bit high.”

“A massive game of city hide-and-seek has begun! 【Smirk】”

“What if the few fugitives get completely wiped out? Wouldn’t that just prove the police’s incompetence even more? The resource allocation for this round is a bit too unbalanced.”

“I think this is the only way it’s fair. Otherwise, if a player actually escapes, keyboard warriors² will start spinning conspiracy theories about how this round didn’t count. 【Smile】”

Qiong Cang glanced at the handful of names on the 【Fugitive】 list and submitted her application through the system backend.

Translator’s Notes