You Don't Understand My Brother at All!

"Knock knock knock."

Who... is knocking on the door...?

"Zhao Yijiu, get ready, you can go out today."

What?

Is someone calling me...? Go out, where to?

In the complete darkness, Zhao Yijiu huddled in the corner. His eyes had long since adjusted to the light, and he could see every outline in the small, dark room clearly.

Even during his breaks, he never put down the dagger in his hand, because perhaps at any moment, something indescribable would crawl out from the small square doors around the dark room.

[Yes, you were born to be the protagonist. The real story begins on the day you gain your freedom after experiencing all sorts of hardships.]

The narrator whispered in Zhao Yijiu's ear.

He had gotten used to it, used to the concepts of scripts, roles, twists and turns, and revenge that were constantly being instilled in him.

He must have been in the dark for a long time, right? Actually, he couldn't remember whether the memory had only come 20 minutes ago or whether he had been living in the dark room for several years.

Anyway, he seems to be just... a protagonist who was reborn from the distant future, carrying a rebirth script.

So is he a child now?

Zhao Yijiu was somewhat bewildered. He felt that something was wrong, but fragments that had been dormant in the deepest part of his memory were magnified again, causing his mind to become chaotic and making it impossible for him to think clearly for a moment.

He could only passively wait for the plot to unfold, following the narrator's prompts.

And now, someone is knocking on the door of the dark room, saying they want to let him out.

His brother is coming to take him away.

With a creak, the hidden door of the small dark room was opened from the outside, and a long-lost ray of light suddenly appeared on Zhao Yijiu's retina.

"Zhao Yijiu, come out." Outside the door was a cold, unfamiliar person, but the voice sounded familiar. When he was in the dark room, whenever there was something new to test, this person's voice would come out from the loudspeaker.

He vaguely remembered that when he was freed, Zhao Mou led him out without him saying a word.

When they arrived at Zhao Mou's new house, which he had bought himself, he hugged Zhao Mou's waist and rested his head on Zhao Mou's shoulder. He didn't actually cry, and he didn't show much emotion. He just knew that he wanted to do this.

As the younger brother, his older brother was the only person he could show weakness to.

However, he only showed weakness that one time. Otherwise, he always made Zhao Mou feel like he wished his mother had never given birth to this younger brother.

Zhao Yijiu was somewhat dazed. He stood up, skillfully gripping the dagger in his hand, and walked step by step toward the light.

He hadn't actually been away from the light for very long; he had a persistent illusion... it seemed as if he had only lost his sight for a few minutes.

With a slightly strange feeling, he stepped out of the small dark room.

Zhao Mou was right behind that stranger. The older man looked much younger, as if he had just come of age. His face was slightly immature, but he wore a pair of refined, mature-looking gold-rimmed glasses on his nose.

The younger body seemed weaker than his, but it had grown up.

"A Jiu, let's go home." Zhao Mou's voice was cold, but it was clear that this coldness was not directed at him, but at the Zhao family members standing nearby.

Zhao Yijiu was just about to take a step.

[This is a huge turning point. Are you really satisfied with the original script?]

The narrator appears.

[You so easily let the Zhao family go back then. In the days that followed, you were seen as a freak, an outcast. Your brother, however, continued to work tirelessly for the Zhao family. This is the fate of a collateral branch of the family.]

Zhao Yijiu blinked, her gaze fixed intently on Zhao Mou, while her peripheral vision inevitably swept over the people beside her.

The look in their eyes was a mixture of regret, curiosity, and a hint of wonder, like looking at some rare animal.

They were disappointed to have lost a test subject, and curious about what interesting reactions would occur once that subject was released.

The novelty lies in the fact that one cannot regard him as one of their own.

[What if you had the chance to rewrite the script? You've already lived a second life, are you going to just passively accept it all the time? The first time you lived, you were in a state of chaos, struggling with the vengeful ghosts for your thoughts, unable to feel emotions, hence the lack of anger. But as you gradually regained your human emotions, didn't you regret it? Don't you really want to tell your brother right away, thank him for everything he's done for you? Don't you really want those who exploited you and your brother to pay the price?]

The narrator's murmurs were like the devil's whispers, constantly urging him to make a choice.

Zhao Mou stepped forward and patted his head. At this time, he was not even as tall as Zhao Mou.

"Don't think too much, let's go home." When Zhao Mou spoke to him alone, his voice was extremely gentle, and his eyes were full of heartache. He had truly done everything an older brother could do, and had never asked for anything in return.

According to the script, not long after, Zhao Mou will injure his leg while helping a younger member of the Zhao family during a simulation.

His fox cane was created during the time he injured his leg and merged with his Persona Mask.

Although his leg later healed, this incident had a great impact on Zhao Mou... It made Zhao Mou's false mask when facing others become thicker and thicker, and a smile appeared on his face just like the little fox on the fox cane.

Zhao Yijiu still remembers that Zhao Mou was very unhappy during that time. To thank Zhao Mou for protecting that junior, the main family gave Zhao Mou more power, even though that junior was actually a few years older than Zhao Mou at the time.

[The dagger is still in your hand. Have you made up your mind, protagonist? This time, the script can be written the way you want.]

The narrator speaks captivating words.

Zhao Yijiu tilted his head to look at his dagger, a gesture that alerted those who had been observing him.

Although no one treats him like a human being, it is true that everyone is afraid of him. The Zhao family is not good at fighting, so they trained him like a weapon. Only when Zhao Mou proved that he could make a greater contribution to the Zhao family were Zhao Yijiu replaced.

[You can kill one person, or you can kill them all. If you're worried about Zhao Mou getting into trouble, it's good to teach these people a lesson and let them know that you're not someone they can bully. Then they won't bother you anymore.]

Zhao Yijiu raised her hand.

He said, "Here's your stuff back."

He only had a vest and shorts on him, and the dagger was his only "possession." However, both the clothes and the dagger were given to him after he entered the small dark room.

He couldn't return the clothes, and even if he did, no one else would want them. But this dagger could harm ghosts; it was a resource the Zhao family obtained from the Xu family.

Since you're leaving, don't leave any room for gossip.

Soon someone took the dagger and carried it away.

Judging from the expressions of those people, many of them were surprised that he could still speak normally.

Because Zhao Yijiu remained silent throughout the small dark room.

Actually, he just felt there was no need to say anything to these people.

Zhao Yijiu followed behind Zhao Mou, just like in the script before, and did nothing but go straight home.

[You actually gave up this opportunity, Zhao Yijiu. Don't you think it's a waste? If you had intimidated them, your brother might not have received that mission next time, and he wouldn't have injured his leg and been so weak for so long.]

The narrator seemed confused; he wasn't in a hurry, just puzzled.

Zhao Yijiu got into Zhao Mou's car, sat in the passenger seat, and turned to look at the scenery outside the window.

The car drove out of the garage, out of the secluded manor in the suburbs, and onto the bustling street.

Amidst the chaos of the world, Zhao Yijiu suddenly felt that something was blurry, as if it were an unreal image.

The narrator continues to ask questions.

Zhao Yijiu was getting annoyed by the questions. She turned to look at Zhao Mou, who was focused on driving, and thought to herself, "If you could control the script, asking questions like this means you don't understand the character at all."

Narrator:???

This sounds familiar.

"Take my brother for example, you just don't understand. That injury... he did it on purpose, maybe it was opportunistic, but the benefits he gained afterward were what he really wanted. His unhappiness and dejection during that time were all just for show for the Zhao family."

Because of his missing leg, the Zhao family felt indebted to him and trusted Zhao Mou even more, which led them to delegate power to Zhao Mou.

Perhaps because she was only speaking to a vague and ethereal narrator, Zhao Yijiu became unusually talkative.

"He's already got those people wrapped around his little finger. If you're holding the script, don't underestimate my brother. I don't want to ruin his plans."