mesbooks Chapter 1393 Yunrui's Sincere Inscription: Genius Must Be Pure
Chapter 1393 Yunrui's Sincere Inscription: Genius Must Be Pure
“I can help you find out, but you must follow my instructions and not act on your own. I will first find out the security situation at the laboratory and the detention location, and then find a suitable time to take you in. But remember, if things go wrong, we must retreat immediately and not linger.”
"Thank you, Brother Tai!" Qi Ruixiang's face showed a grateful smile.
"Don't thank me, I just don't want to die." Atai shook his head, his tone still serious. "Now, let's leave here and go back to the guesthouse. There are too many people around here, and we'll easily be discovered."
Qi Ruixiang nodded, followed Atai, and walked quickly out of the alley with his head down.
The two walked along the path in the village, the muddy road under their feet making a "plop" sound.
Meanwhile, Gu Yunxi, who was tied to the pillar, was already feeling dizzy and lightheaded from the sun.
Her lips were cracked, her face was pale, and her consciousness was beginning to fade. But she still hadn't given up. She knew she couldn't fall; as long as she persevered, there was always hope of being rescued.
As the sun gradually slanted westward, the distant sky was tinged with orange-red hues of sunset. The shadows over Black Rock Village grew longer, and danger was quietly brewing.
The setting sun cast long shadows over Black Rock Village, and Gu Yunxi had been tied to the pillar for three hours.
The midday sun had cooled down, but the lingering heat, still carrying dust, repeatedly scorched her exposed skin.
Sweat trickled down his forehead, mingling with dried blood from the corners of his mouth, leaving messy marks on his cheeks. He was itching terribly, but he was bound by ropes and could not move. He could only let the sweat soak through his clothes, sticking to his back and forming cold, damp marks. When the wind blew, it brought a bone-chilling cold.
This is Shen Chengyu's "soft knife"—there is no brutal beating, but the senses are repeatedly torn apart by extreme torture.
Visually, she was forced to stare at the open space not far away. The adobe walls there were bleached white by the sun, and several emaciated wild dogs lay at the base of the walls, tearing at some unknown piece of rotting flesh, their blood splattering on the yellow earth, forming a glaring red.
Occasionally, a guard would drag a person who had been beaten to the point of near death past. The person's face was pressed against the ground, their hair was covered in mud, and their eyes were as empty as a soulless puppet. Each drag was accompanied by the screech of flesh rubbing against the ground, which made her stomach churn.
The torment of smell was even worse. The stench of wild dogs tearing at rotting flesh, the acrid smell of burning drugs in the distance, and the musty smell of rotting straw around her, mixed with the sour smell of her own sweat evaporating, were like an invisible net, tightly covering her mouth and nose.
She tried to hold her breath, but the lack of oxygen caused by prolonged exposure to the sun forced her to gasp for air. Each breath felt like swallowing poison mixed with grit, making her throat burn.
The physical pain alternates between hot and cold, hunger and thirst, and aches and pains. Sunburned skin becomes red, swollen, and burning, as if it's about to crack open at any moment.
A gust of evening wind made her shiver uncontrollably from her damp, cold clothes; her lips were chapped like parched earth, and every time she pursed them, the wounds ached and bled.
Her wrists and ankles ached from the ropes, and poor blood circulation caused numbness in her limbs. Yet, sharp, stabbing pains would occasionally pierce through the numbness, reminding her that she was still enduring torture.
Her consciousness fluctuated between lucidity and confusion.
Sometimes she would think of the cold air conditioning in the London laboratory, the warm water her brother handed her, and the little cakes Su Xingya made. These warm memories were like lifelines, helping her to barely hold on.
More often than not, however, what flashes before my eyes is the sight of wild dogs tearing each other apart, the stench of decay lingers in my nostrils, my body is enveloped in alternating hot and cold pain, my will is gradually worn down, and all I want to do is pass out immediately and escape this endless torment.
Just as she felt she was about to give up and her consciousness was about to sink into darkness, the ropes binding her were suddenly untied.
Gu Yunxi lost her balance and staggered to the ground. Her limbs were numb and she couldn't move. She could only lie on the ground, panting heavily.
Assistant Zhou stood in front of her, his face expressionless, followed by two guards who carried water and a piece of dry bread.
“Mr. Shen said he’ll give you a chance.” Assistant Zhou’s voice was as flat as if he were stating something insignificant. “Come back with us now, do your experiments properly, and you won’t have to suffer like this anymore.”
Gu Yunxi raised her head, looking at him with blurred vision. Her lips moved, but no sound came out.
The guard held the water to her lips, and she drank it greedily like a thirsty wild animal, the water running down her chin and soaking her clothes.
She grabbed another piece of bread and wolfed it down, but the dry, hard crumbs got stuck in her throat, causing her to cough violently and tears to well up in her eyes.
This was the third time in three days. Shen Chengyu never used torture, but he always managed to stop tormenting her when she was on the verge of collapse, giving her a small "gift"—a sip of water, a piece of bread, or a short rest.
Like riding a drop tower, she was repeatedly pushed to the depths of despair, only to be violently pulled back up a second before hitting the ground. The repeated drops caused her will to sway between hope and despair, which was more devastating than simple torture.
When Gu Yunxi returned to the lab with Assistant Zhou, her steps were unsteady and her body was still trembling slightly. She sat in front of the lab bench, looking at the familiar instruments and data, but she could no longer concentrate. Her mind was filled with the pain of being exposed to the scorching sun and the images of being torn apart by wild dogs.
Late at night, only Gu Yunxi and a few guards remained in the laboratory. Assistant Zhou knocked on Shen Chengyu's door, a hint of confusion on his face.
“Mr. Shen, I don’t understand.” Assistant Zhou stood in front of the desk, looking at Shen Chengyu who was sitting in the chair smoking. “Gu Yunxi is on the verge of collapse. We can easily control her with drugs and make her cooperate with the experiment. Why go through all this trouble and torture her in this way?”
— Given Shen Chengyu's ruthlessness, he could directly manipulate the drug to achieve his goal quickly and avoid a lot of trouble. Why go through all this trouble?
Shen Chengyu slowly exhaled a smoke ring, his eyes sharp and unfathomable amidst the swirling smoke. "Medication?" He sneered, tapping his cigarette butt lightly in the ashtray. "Assistant Zhou, how long have you been working for me?"
“Five years,” Assistant Zhou replied respectfully.
“Five years, and you still don’t understand what true control is.” Shen Chengyu stood up, walked to the window, and looked at the dark village outside. “The medicine can control her body, but it can also damage her brain. If her body is damaged, it can be treated, but if her brain is damaged, the loss will be too great.”
He turned around, his gaze falling on Assistant Zhou, his tone filled with unwavering certainty: "What I want is not a puppet that can only follow instructions, but a genius who is willing to serve me. You know, when people are in extreme pain, they will subconsciously look for a lifeline, and I am her lifeline."
“Every time I tortured her, I was destroying her pride and her will to resist; every time I stopped her on the verge of collapse, I was giving her hope, making her feel that as long as she cooperated with me, she could get rid of the pain.”
A cruel smile curled at the corner of Shen Chengyu's lips.
"After a few repetitions, she'll develop a conditioned reflex—resistance equals pain, cooperation equals peace. Then, I won't need to force her..."
He paused, his tone becoming more serious: "A person who is willing to work for me and has top-notch talent is far more valuable than a puppet controlled by drugs."
“I understand, Mr. Shen.” Assistant Zhou bowed respectfully. “I will continue to keep an eye on Gu Yunxi as you wish, to ensure that she can ‘think things through’ as soon as possible.”
"Very good." Shen Chengyu nodded in satisfaction. "Remember, don't rush it. It takes patience to smooth out the rough edges of a genius. When she truly submits, our era will begin."