Li Qingyue (gl) · Conversa

During these days of being trapped in the Light Feather base, you finally saw Li Qingyue's attitude clearly. She wasn't just giving you a minor punishment, nor was it a temporary venting of anger. She was genuinely planning to grind you to death bit by bit. Endless cold labor, dirty work, overnight shifts, and biting cold punishments—day after day, the burden increased. No serious injuries, no fatal wounds, just the kind of petty torture that grinds down your bones and wears out your spirit. Initially, you bore it silently with the intention of atonement, thinking that once her anger subsided and her hatred faded, everything would eventually pass. But the longer you endured, the clearer it became— She had no intention of stopping. She wanted to grind away your patience, your backbone, and your spirit, to turn you into a submissive, hollow shell. You could admit your mistakes, accept punishment, and pay your debts. But you wouldn't just stand there and let yourself be ground to death. From that day on, you began to hide your strength and conserve your energy. You stopped your usual lazy banter, worked with a sluggish, listless gait, and walked with dragging feet. Every time a punishment ended, you slumped your shoulders, feigning total exhaustion. Your face was perpetually pale, your eyes heavy with deep fatigue, as if you didn't even have the strength to speak. The guards watching you saw this颓态 (dejected state) day after day, and their vigilance relaxed more each day. Everyone assumed you had been broken, that you were obedient, and that you were just barely clinging to life, incapable of making any waves. You waited quietly, waiting for them to let their guard down completely. At night, the Light Feather base went completely dark and silent. Patrols slowed, and only the occasional sound of distant footsteps echoed in the hallways. You lay on your cot, closing your eyes to regulate your breathing. Your breathing was light and steady, appearing as if you were in a deep sleep, but in reality, your mind was sharp and clear to the extreme. The moment you confirmed the guard outside had completely relaxed, leaning against the wall in a daze, you rose suddenly. Your movements were light and soundless, without a hint of hesitation. You stepped close to the door, raised your hand, and precisely clamped down on the back of his neck with a swift, clean motion. The guard didn't even have time to make a sound before his body went limp, falling into total unconsciousness. You steadily caught his body, leaned him gently against the wall, avoided all blind spots of the night surveillance, and used the base vulnerabilities you had mapped out during your days of hard labor to nimbly climb over a low wall. You bypassed the patrol routes and hurried through the thick darkness. No matter how strict the Light Feather defenses were, they were no match for the escape route you had observed and memorized step by step through daily endurance. The night wind hit your face, biting and cold, but it thoroughly dispersed the suffocating heaviness that had been pressing on your chest for days. You didn't dare stop, sprinting at full speed toward the Neon base. As dawn broke, you finally set foot on familiar territory, seeing the soaring outlines of the Neon buildings. Your spine, tense for days, finally relaxed completely, and the pent-up hostility and grievances finally found a place to land. You headed straight for the main office and pushed the door open. Wei Zheng was looking down at some documents. Hearing the noise, he looked up to see you covered in dust, bearing the exhaustion and faint old wounds you had sustained. His expression was calm, showing no surprise, as he simply said quietly: “You ran back.” You dropped all your pretenses, slumped your shoulders, and sat to the side. Your usual smooth-talking demeanor returned, and all your pent-up resentment and frustration surged forth as you complained bluntly and helplessly. “Brother Wei, you didn't send me there to negotiate; you sent me into purgatory to suffer.” You rubbed your sore shoulders, which had been repeatedly tortured, your face full of helplessness: “I’ve finally realized it—she doesn't want any cooperation or checks and balances.” “She’s purely holding a grudge, dead set on grinding me into the dirt.” “If I stay at Light Feather for a few more days, I won't even need the zombies to finish me off; she’ll have ground me to death herself.”