Chapter 39: Not a Single Word of Truth
The shut-in swallowed and cleared his throat. "N-No need. I... cough, cough. It's not like I can't help with something this small, but I'm curious. Do you really have to tip that Xilulu? Can't you pick another streamer?"
"Well..."
Cannon Fodder Misses looked even more conflicted.
There happened to be an ice cream shop nearby, so she walked over and bought one. Seemingly remembering something, she bought another and handed it to him.
"I'm really sorry for asking you to help."
The young man shyly accepted the ice cream. "I... I've never had a girl buy me something before. Whew... But what exactly happened to you? And you said your experience was a lot like mine?"
"Mm."
Cannon Fodder No. 1 began making up an experience similar to the young man's—running away from home and the like—but made it many times more miserable than his. She casually mentioned being violently abused by relatives, going hungry yet being too scared to return home, making it as tragic as possible until the shut-in brother felt terribly sorry for her.
"It's okay, it's okay. Things will definitely get better from now on. No one will bully you anymore." Min Xingyuan felt ashamed.
Compared to the girl's experiences, he really had been whining over nothing. She was genuinely pitiful, while he had simply been completely immature.
"Yes, but... the only older brother willing to help me had a girlfriend who happened to be Xilulu. Only after this matter was exposed did he realize that he had become a victim too."
"Your brother was the one from the news who rushed into the room?"
"No, the one in the news was someone else. Seeing my brother suffering alone every day hurt me too. Recently, he seemed to have approached the Insect Blood Society on his own to get revenge. I never expected that not only would he fail to achieve his goal, but he'd end up getting killed himself. I really want to avenge him in my own way." After saying that, Cannon Fodder Misses bit her lip resentfully.
Min Xingyuan was already starting to believe her.
Whether it was her looks, her experiences, or those reddened eyes, Cannon Fodder Misses made his heart race and ache for her.
Perhaps he had been infected by her emotions. He wanted to help.
Taking advantage of the moment, Cannon Fodder No. 1 suddenly looked guilty and hesitated. "N-No... I'm so sorry, but forget it. That Xilulu isn't a good person, and this is risky to begin with. I can't let a kind stranger bear that risk. I... I'll think of something myself." As if she had given up, she bit her lip, looking utterly pitiful.
"No, no, no, I'll help you. That woman is disgusting, practically a public bus, and she even harmed your brother." Min Xingyuan clenched his fists fiercely and patted his chest. "Leave everything to me."
"Mm, but if you're scared too, you can find someone else and have them tip her using a newly registered account. It'd be best to privately message Xilulu beforehand and make it clear, or it would be bad if the money were wasted for nothing."
As she spoke, Cannon Fodder No. 1 touched her pocket. "I saved up some money from working. It's not much, but I'll give it all to you. If it isn't enough... I'll pay you back after I get a job."
"No, no, no, there's no need." The shut-in brother hurriedly waved his hands and straightened his back. "Leave this little matter to me. I've got plenty of money."
He truly sympathized with the girl before him... and she was so kind. At that moment, he completely fell for her.
"Thank you so much. For your safety, we should use temporary accounts to add each other as friends," Cannon Fodder No. 1 said.
"Understood. I'll be careful."
After exchanging a few words, they waved and said goodbye.
Once that guy's back disappeared from sight, Cannon Fodder No. 1's gaze flickered, and a smile curled across her lips. "The preliminary objective has been achieved, I suppose. But it still depends on whether that guy actually does it."
The facts proved that sometimes, there was no need to waste her own money. This step had gone very successfully. Next, she only needed to check out that woman's livestream.
Cannon Fodder No. 1 had the other party's account, but she would add her using the temporary account she had registered earlier. It would automatically be deleted after three days, meant to erase her online traces. During their actual exchanges, she would not reveal any clues online either.
Since everything had been explained and the note had been given to him, the rest would be easy.
She turned around and felt her pocket. She had some cash, so she bought a pair of gloves and put them on. Then she ran to a nearby internet café. Although she had no ID, the owner still agreed to give her a computer after she pulled out a little more money.
Sitting before the computer, she checked on Xilulu. That woman still had three hours before going live.
So Cannon Fodder No. 1 logged into her temporary chat account on the internet café computer and found that Min Xingyuan had already added her.
He was using a temporary account as well.
Perhaps because Cannon Fodder Misses had previously said, "You can't contact me right away," he did not immediately speak.
"Looks like he did pay attention to my request." Cannon Fodder Misses breathed a sigh of relief.
She played games while waiting for two hours, then the other party sent a message. "It's done. I found a stranger and paid him to privately message Xilulu. He directly tipped her 5,000 yuan and told her that another 5,000 yuan would be tipped in the livestream later, asking her to read out the words on the note. If she completely reads it in the required tone, she'll immediately get 50,000 yuan. Then, as requested on the note, the relevant video will be uploaded to the forum afterward."
Hahahahahaha Hiccup (Cannon Fodder No. 1): "They both agreed right away?"
m247328423: "Yeah. I found that person offline, so there aren't any chat records. I'm a little worried he'll take the money and not do it. But he should follow through, right? After all, I promised him even more money."
Hahahahahaha Hiccup (Cannon Fodder No. 1): "Very good. Thank you. (smile)"
m247328423: "No need to thank me. You said you were a lot like me. Helping you makes me feel more at ease too."
Hahahahahaha Hiccup (Cannon Fodder No. 1): "Hehe."
As if I'd believe that.
Spending so much money on a strange girl—this guy was probably expecting something.
What a pity. The naughty Cannon Fodder No. 1 was using him.
All she could say was that he was too stupid. He actually believed in something as good as pie falling from the sky.
Honestly, Min Xingyuan was nowhere near as nice as he looked on the surface. That ridiculous incident from when he had been in the news was simply laughable. The people around him probably did not think very highly of him either.
Another hour later, she opened the livestream account.
Xilulu went online at the announced time.
The normal opening stream lasted around twenty minutes. The barrage was filled with people cursing her and people defending her. It was truly spectacular.
Just as Cannon Fodder Misses waited in boredom, five consecutive interstellar spaceships flew across the screen.
A huge 5,000-yuan tip.
The tipper was a new level-one account, and the message read: "5,000 yuan for the streamer to do something. Do it, and I'll immediately tip 50,000. If the performance is good, I'll add another 30,000."
Xilulu's eyes lit up. "What is it? It isn't something too outrageous or evil, right? Nothing against the rules, okay?"
Please Do Me a Favor (Tipper): "No, no, no, it's very simple. I'll private message you."
The barrage immediately went wild.
There were countless comments saying it was slick, that she was showing off, that the streamer was about to sell her body again. There were also jealous comments, mockery, and contempt.
But all of that meant nothing to thick-skinned Xilulu.
Chapter 40: Cannon Fodder No. 1: Farewell Forever
Cannon Fodder No. 1 could no longer stop herself from laughing. "It's going fairly smoothly. Now it depends on whether she reads it in the end."
A few minutes later...
"So that's how it is. The request is simple, but I do feel like I'm being dragged into something," Xilulu said with a soft smile. "If you have any enemies, don't come looking for trouble with me. I'm only helping read something out. I take the money and do the job. After all, who would refuse such a good deal?"
Facing the barrage, her expression suddenly became very serious.
"The following content is being conveyed to the Shadow Bureau on behalf of a rich boss who asked me to do him a favor!"
"Last year, fucking XXXXXX, Shadow Bureau, your whole famiXXXXX (profanity)! You dared to wipe out our Insect Blood Society stronghold and kill our members! XX (profanity), trash Shadow Bureau! I, on behalf of the Insect Blood Society, formally declare war on you!!! Go die, idiots—(censored)! XX Konghai City Shadow Bureau, not only will I make you die, I'll make your parents, sons, and daughters all XXX! Hahahaha, I'll fuck you all up! Listen up, our Insect Blood Society is declaring war on you! Shadow Bureau XX!!! I'll repeat it: the Insect Blood Society is declaring war on your Shadow Bureau! Just wait to die! Idiots—(censored)!"
After reading it, Xilulu hurriedly coughed. "Um, the message has been delivered. Is that enough?"
Fifty interstellar spaceships swept across the screen.
Xilulu's pupils abruptly widened, and she sucked in a sharp breath.
She had never expected to earn so much money so easily, merely by reading from a piece of paper.
Please Do Me a Favor: "From now on, every two more times you read it, I'll add one spaceship. Read it at most ten times, and I'll give you ten spaceships."
Xilulu's eyes lit up, but she somehow felt that this was not simple.
What Insect Blood Society? What Shadow Bureau? She had never heard of them. They sounded like some childish fantasy nonsense, but someone had spent so much money to make such a declaration of war. Could it really be that simple?
Could there be some unknown inside story?
Barrage:
"This is outrageous. I can't make sense of it."
"Shadow Bureau? What the hell is that? What's the Insect Blood Society?"
"Damn, Shadow Bureau? I know about it. I heard it's a special official department of the Kingdom of Order that specializes in investigating supernatural incidents."
"Something like that exists? You've read too many novels."
"Holy crap, fifty spaceships. They really sent them. What kind of rich guy is this?"
"I'm going online to look it up."
"It's done."
Cannon Fodder No. 1 slapped down the tool in her hand.
She had been recording the screen as well, and she decisively uploaded it to the local chat section of a certain forum.
Next, even if the Shadow Bureau did not notice it, she would have Shi Jing spread word of it.
She refused to believe the authorities would not care about this.
Although it was absurd, such a rude threat and declaration of war was a provocation against an official supernatural organization. She refused to believe they could sit still.
They had previously not taken the Insect Blood Society seriously and investigated slowly. What about now?
She stood up and left the internet café.
She began running toward a remote area downhill.
"My body's location is dozens of kilometers from Konghai City's urban district. It counts as a neighboring city area. It looks like what I need to do next will be simple."
She felt the large pile of Explosion Rings in her pocket.
Each one was equivalent to a fragmentation-free grenade.
"This time, sacrificing one body will directly cut off any leads connecting it to my main body and my other bodies. Besides, the one who actually did that was not me. It'll be practically impossible for them to trace it back to me."
Cannon Fodder No. 1 entered the mountains alone and found a deep river.
She judged the current and the water depth. The water was green, and she could not see the bottom.
Following her original preparations, she found a pile of rocks, placed them in the bag she carried with her, and tied it to herself.
"This will guarantee that I sink."
She took a deep breath. Taking advantage of the moment, she pulled out the broken secondhand phone she had bought for 100 yuan. It used a temporary SIM card as well. Then she sent her final messages.
Hahahahahaha Hiccup (Cannon Fodder No. 1):
"I've been found."
"I'm sorry. I might not survive. Thank you for everything you've done for me. No matter what... I'll never give you up, because you are my benefactor."
"Make sure you hide well. No one can find you. I haven't mentioned anything related to you. The temporary account will automatically be deleted in three days, and today is already the last day for my account. All records have been cleared."
"I'm sorry. I really shouldn't have made you bear such a huge risk. I feel so awful right now. I really can't hold on anymore. Farewell forever."
"Goodbye!"
After sending those messages, Cannon Fodder No. 1 took a deep breath and logged out.
"Done."
She gripped several Explosion Rings in her hand and put them together with the phone. Then, with the rocks tied to her body, she held her breath and leaped into the water.
"Damn, it's deep."
She swam all the way to the bottom, then drilled to one side and entered an area resembling a cave.
Boom—
"The connection has been severed."
The main body breathed a sigh of relief.
This time, there truly were no traces of a connection left.
That explosion itself would erase many traces, not to mention the large pile of heavy rocks on her body.
Of course, some shattered limbs would definitely mix into the current, but there were plenty of creatures underwater. They would probably eat them.
As for that shut-in, Ye Qian definitely would not pay attention to or contact him from now on.
She would just treat this as though it had never happened, as though it did not exist.
Before you continue