There can't be a Harvest Moon in the RimWorld.

"Sigh, if all my subordinates were as incompetent as you, I'd be working myself to death here sooner or later."

I shook my head helplessly, subconsciously ignoring the fact that I had a cheat ability, and suddenly said, "I know you've been unwilling to join the territory because you feel you can't let go of the matter of Shisong Manor. But if I have a relevant clue this time, will you investigate this matter alone? Or will you join us to find the truth?"

Burnett, who had been maintaining his composure, finally broke down and asked anxiously, "Boss! Please tell me what happened at Shisong Manor! Where are those people? Are they still alive? I'll agree to any condition, just tell me now!"

I gave him a meaningful look and asked again, "Choosing to carry out hatred... Are you sure this is your answer? Do you need to reconsider?"

I tapped my fingers lightly on the bar counter twice and said in an unusual tone.

"Because we may have been going in the wrong direction all along..."

Chapter 384: Always choose C

Burnett asked, "Did we make a mistake? Boss, you have to tell me what we found!"

I poured myself a glass of tequila, watching the clear liquid swirl in the glass, creating a slightly unreal light and shadow effect.

“I have already broken into the loader’s territory and searched the slave area from top to bottom. I’ve even abducted the slaves and the slave wardens. But even so, both the slaves and the wardens claim that they haven’t seen any slaves enter the territory or be imprisoned there in the past few days.”

Burnett frowned and said, "Could they be imprisoned somewhere else, which is why the slaves haven't discovered them? After all, hiding a dozen or so people in the loader's territory is like hiding trees in a forest; as long as they move discreetly, the slaves won't be able to find them..."

I shook my head and continued, "Alright, let's put your guess aside for now and move on to the next question. Last night, I also went to the ruins of Shisong Village and entered the secret underground warehouse according to your description. I sent someone to search the warehouse carefully, and the fat man said that, based on the traces left behind, the most recent traces inside were those of children and women."

"What?! Is that accurate?!" Burnett exclaimed in shock. "Only children and women, no men?"

I nodded firmly: "According to Fatty, his technique of tracking prey using handprints and footprints is unmatched. He said that although the traces left by men and women, fat people and thin people, old people and children are similar, he can determine a person's height and weight, and even deduce their age and gender based on the details."

At this point, I emphasized my meticulousness: "I also had a few of my men leave footprints for him to guess, and he accurately described the person's build and approximate age, so I can confirm that he was not lying to me."

Even in the cool, shady room, I could see fine beads of cold sweat immediately appear on Burnett's forehead.

“I thought the tragedy at Shisong Manor was over, and I’ve been sullen here for so long… I never imagined I’d miss my last chance to save them…”

Burnett stared at me, pale-faced, his eyes filled with helplessness and confusion. His hands on the table clenched and unclenched, showing his inner struggle.

I sighed and continued, "Since the survivors are women and children, this information contradicts what I received. Everyone in the loader's guild is certain that the lord is a madman and would never choose to raise the elderly, women, and children—if they catch you, you're doomed."

“Is it all too late…” Burnett sank into deep self-doubt again, muttering to himself without any emotional fluctuation, “Do I still have a chance to save them…”

Of course there's no chance, you noob! The few days you wasted were enough for them to be launched into space, orbit the Earth once, and then disperse and land!

...I really wanted to say that, but seeing his somewhat pathetic and unlucky face, I patiently continued my analysis.

“Under normal circumstances, you certainly wouldn’t have a chance. Unless you can attach a tracking device to them and then catch up with them on a rocket. But I learned a very subtle piece of information during the negotiations.”

I closed my eyes and began to recall everything I saw and heard in the Lord's Hall that day, not missing a single detail, and then pieced together the scattered clues.

The scenes in my mind flashed before my eyes like a movie replay, with extremely short intervals between each frame but a huge amount of information. I had to use all my imagination and descriptive abilities to barely keep up with the speed of the rewind.

“I saw a traitor disemboweled. His crime is unknown, but it must have been an unforgivable offense. The suspicion of collusion I instigated has also made the lord extremely wary.”

"This traitor tried to snipe me, firing at me multiple times in the crowd. This person clearly knew he wanted to get rid of me, but he acted alone, without even the people around him knowing."

“I suspect that the privateer group this person belongs to is not in the territory, but is still on a mission in the wild. He is most likely back as an envoy to report back.”

"That night, according to the bald man's recollection, a group of privateers who were on a mission in the field also took over the entire Shisong Village after them and were responsible for cleaning up the battlefield. They were ordered to hunt down you, the one who had escaped."

"The bald man's orders not only included knowing that you were operating in the shadows, but also knowing the exact time and details of your trade with the pirates."

Amidst a jumble of thoughts, I suddenly opened my eyes, forcefully cutting off the process of recalling the past, preventing further thoughts from arising, and grasping a key thread of events in the darkness.

"Do you understand?" I asked.

Burnett said thoughtfully, "I understand..."

I bluntly called him out: "What do you know about a teapot? Your expression clearly shows you don't understand but are impressed! I can even read a horse's expression, and you, a lowly human, think you can fool me?"

(?ω?) Everyone, please be the judge. Does this expression mean I understand?

"Oh... I didn't understand, boss, please tell me quickly..."

"What I mean is that everyone currently in the public eye is just a facade. They're being manipulated like puppets. So think about it—no, you don't even need to think about it—just tell me who benefits the most from this. Is it the leader who lost the trader's loader? The entire Shisong Manor that was wiped out? Or me, who shouldn't even exist?"

A look of understanding finally flashed across Burnett's eyes, and he said decisively, "I know! It's the Cedar Clan!"

...You know nothing! Where did you deduce this conclusion from?! Why don't you say the Rothschild family is manipulating things behind the scenes?!

"Shut up! From now on, for any multiple-choice question you can't answer, just choose C; for any short-answer question, just write 'This is Lord Shafulin's plan!'"

I immediately gave him the most standard answer, and then said with dissatisfaction, "You idiot! It was clearly the pirates of Sabre Bay who benefited from this! They not only severed the Loader's Territory's power, causing panic in the territory, but also had the opportunity to sow discord between the two factions—although they haven't turned against each other yet, they're bound to develop resentment!"

Burnett lowered his head and began, "Indeed... the timing of the deal with Peter Jr. seemed very suspicious. And given his arrogant and domineering personality, it's hard to imagine him finding a business partner in Sabre Bay..."

But then he countered with a question: "But Sabre Bay did indeed offer scarce supplies in exchange. If things don't go according to plan, won't they lose all their capital?"

I smiled at him, and after a moment of silence, I asked, "Have you forgotten their job? The best way to eliminate risks is to do it yourself. What they need to do isn't as complicated as you think—in cases where there are ulterior motives, they only need to take the goods they're exchanging, and once you're all dead, they can take their own things too, and even abduct the people they need along the way..."

"If you take all your own stuff and split the profits 30/70 with yours, do you think this business can lose money?"

Chapter 385 Whose Name

"Boss...I..."

Burnett's expression was as if he had swallowed a fly; a bitter taste welled up in his mouth, followed by a strange dizziness that assaulted him from head to toe. He swayed unsteadily, trying to stand up, but his body wobbled uncontrollably from side to side. His hands, which were supporting him, swayed weakly like malfunctioning machines, and he crashed heavily onto the bar table.

When he raised his head again, blood was gushing out of the wound on his forehead in a gruesome manner. He was oblivious to the fact that the blood flowed from his forehead to his eyebrows, then thickly covered one eye, and then dripped to the ground, silent yet intensely red.

Wow, the bleeding is huge!

I was shocked by the guy's injuries, but he didn't seem to notice my reaction, my words, or my tone of voice at all. He stood in front of me like a walking corpse.

It seems he still can't escape the nightmare of that night. As long as this story doesn't come to an end, those surging images of despair will overwhelm this poor man like a tide, plunging him into a state of mental suffocation from which he can't breathe.

These symptoms are known as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). PTSD is a mental illness caused by experiencing or witnessing the injury or death of oneself or others. Common triggers include war, violence, and so on.

This illness causes fear of surrounding things, leading to emotional agitation and tension. Simultaneously, certain stimuli can trigger self-doubt and a lack of self-confidence, resulting in a state of self-doubt. This is evident in his strong defeatist tendencies during our meeting.

Although I could teach him the Heart Sutra, the Bible, the Tao Te Ching, Kant, Montesquieu, Aristotle and all sorts of other nonsense theories, just like I did with the bald man, and give him a complete spiritual makeover from the inside out, so that he could regain his vitality.

However, even if I deliberately embellish the spiritual aspects, it's like the paper-cutting work done by Li Hongzhang—a perfunctory effort that fails to touch the essence of reform. Once it encounters a major storm, it will still sink and everyone will perish.

Many patients with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) who recover from the initial shock may repeatedly recall the triggering event over time. This is detrimental to their mental health and increases the likelihood of PTSD relapse.

I don't want to hire people with serious psychological defects who are constantly having mental breakdowns, feeling lost, self-harming, or becoming claustrophobic.

"Who outside is carrying something that looks menacing?"

I went outside and called out, and a man with a resolute face came out from the armored soldiers. He respectfully presented a rough-hewn stone war mask. "Sir, this is the stone mask you left behind on the battlefield! I was planning to clean it before giving it to you after I found it!"

...You weren't planning to keep something from me, were you? What are you planning to do with my mask?

But I think it's forgivable to treat these kinds of brainless fans.

"What's your name?" I asked.

The stern-faced armored soldier was startled upon hearing this and quickly said, "M-Sir! My name is Jero Leonard Prince..."

I frowned, trying to call his name, but then realized I'd been distracted for a moment and hadn't remembered a single word...

"It's too long. I'll rename it for you today! It has both 'zero' and 'lion' in it... so let's call you Zero Lion."

I thought about it again. It was a bit strange to just change his name without giving him any other appointment. I should give him some other benefits. "Then you can pick eight people from the team, and you'll be the squad leader!"

Jero Leonardo Prince... oops, Zero Lion excitedly bowed and walked to the side to begin selecting his subordinates.

"My... sir... I have the short sword you used here!"

Suddenly, another voice rang out from the crowd. A soldier, rather thin but with shrewd eyes, mustered his courage and walked up to me, kneeling on one knee and presenting me with a blood-stained short sword.

"Huh? This sword is..."

I hesitated for a moment, and the thin soldier immediately added, "This is the short sword you used after capturing it on the battlefield. It just happened to fall in front of me, so I picked it up..."

So that's the weapon I used to single-handedly kill the sword and shield soldier? This guy has good taste; he actually managed to get something with such collectible value.

"Okay... I'll take the things. What's your name?" I asked calmly.

Unexpectedly, this fellow was indeed a clever man, and immediately replied, "Sir! What name do you think would be suitable for me?"

Wow, what a talent! They've seized the opportunity to give me a name while I'm at it. Looks like they're planning to be a squad leader too?

I rolled my eyes and smiled, saying, "Giving a name... that's easy... the previous one was called Zero Lion, so you can keep the naming format of starting with a number and call it..."

The thin soldier rubbed his hands excitedly and whispered, "I'll do whatever you command, sir..."

"...Let's call it Four-Legged Chicken!"

The soldier, nicknamed "Four-Legged Chicken," froze on his face with a smile.

“Sir…this name sounds…” he stammered, but I interrupted him rudely.

"What's wrong? Do you have a problem with it? Don't you want to choose your own subordinates?" I asked back, frowning.

"I dare not... I will obey your orders, sir..."

Four-legged Chicken retreated with tears in his eyes. He must have been wondering why his brother, whose name sounded so powerful and whose animal was a lion, had become Four-legged Chicken, a weak creature. Was he really going to have to live with this name from now on?

I chuckled inwardly, but my expression remained calm and composed. "You little rascal, trying to outsmart me with your clever tricks? I'll give you this name so you can reflect on your actions, reform yourself, and hopefully receive leniency."

In a unit of more than 20 people, after removing the two squad leaders and the 16 people they had selected, there was exactly one squad leader and eight members left. It was only right to select a suitable squad leader.

However, among the remaining people, there didn't seem to be any outstanding talents. After all, they had been selected twice, and those who remained were mostly unremarkable in appearance, with no signs of exceptional talent.

Suddenly, I heard someone snickering in the crowd. They seemed to be holding their breath and struggling to breathe, but the laughter still managed to get through the crowd. As they chuckled, their bodies trembled, and they looked like they were about to stop breathing. I could vaguely hear "Hahaha... four-legged chicken... hahaha... so funny..." mixed in with the laughter.

"Hey, you snickering guy, come here! Tell me, did you hear something good? Did your wife give birth?"

Before the smirking soldier could figure out what was going on, his comrades stepped back, exposing him alone.

"My lord... I... I didn't..."

The sudden emptiness beside him finally alerted the dark-skinned, round-faced armored soldier that something was wrong. He quickly opened his mouth to argue, but it was unclear whether he meant to say he hadn't meant to offend or that he hadn't brought what I needed. But how could I let him have his way? I spoke first.

"Nothing? You don't have a name either? Then I'll give you one!" I laughed heartily. "We've already used zero and four, so you can start with six. We just had chicken, but we still need some staple food to fill our stomachs. So you'll be called..."

"Six-faced wheel!"

Chapter 386 Don't Move Around

"I'm going to buy some oranges. You stay here and don't move, understand?"

"Boss... there probably aren't any oranges over there either..."