We've Become Resources The Pressure Is on Lin Yu (Bonus Update)

After Shen Jiuyi made some remarks unrelated to the current situation,

Du Ruxue cast an appreciative glance at her, as if seeing a kindred spirit.

Food supplies and military forces were two distinct resources that needed to be considered separately.

Shen Jiuyi’s words inadvertently exposed the little scheme Du Ruxue had been hiding—

They would only share food supplies, not military forces!

From Shen Jiuyi’s speech, it was also clear that

the Wu faction lacked military resources, or rather, character skills that could enhance them.

This was both a deliberate weakness revealed and a statement of their own demands.

When it was Chi Qingshui’s turn to speak as the representative of the Shu faction,

the pressure on her was immense!

Compared to the two veteran gaming monsters, she had no real talent for tabletop games.

Of course,

being a top student had its advantages.

While others were speaking and Ying'er was explaining the rules,

Chi Qingshui’s pen never stopped moving, meticulously recording and organizing key information.

From these notes, she filtered out the details most advantageous to her faction.

Holding her draft, she launched into an unconventional speech—

except…

she was just a tad too nervous!

"Fellow players of Fractured Three Kingdoms, today the realm is divided into three… three…"

With the outstanding speeches of the two faction leaders before her and the high expectations of her teammates,

the dual pressure made the usually composed and proud Chi Qingshui uncharacteristically stumble over her words!

Chi Qingshui: "Apologies, three…"

Chi Qingchi chimed in with a deadpan remark:

"Three parts cooked."

The moment those words left her mouth, the entire discussion derailed—

Huang Feirong: "Three parts destined by heaven~"

Shen Buyao: "Three parts unified energy!"

Fang Xinran: "Three parts freebies—take it or leave it."

Lin Yu: "Three parts indifference, three parts mockery, four parts nonchalance."

Chi Qingshui: "…"

The entire group burst into laughter.

The playful banter lightened the mood considerably.

Chi Qingshui’s burden eased slightly as well.

She took a deep breath and recalibrated her speech:

"My apologies, everyone. I was a bit nervous…"

"Let’s not waste time—I’ll skip the preamble and get straight to the point."

"The Wei and Wu factions have already stated their positions. I have no objections to allocating a quarter of the food supplies to our faction."

"As for our stance toward the neutral faction…"

At this point,

Chi Qingshui hesitated and glanced at Lin Yu.

Lin Yu remained expressionless, giving nothing away.

He trusted his girlfriend would understand the message in his eyes.

This was just a game.

There was no need for real-life emotional considerations—just play by the rules.

Besides,

this was a tabletop game Ying'er had painstakingly designed and longed to test.

If everyone prioritized personal sentiments over gameplay, it would disrespect her creative efforts.

Reassured by Lin Yu’s silent approval, Chi Qingshui steadied herself and continued:

"Our approach to the neutral faction should be…"

"not treating them as potential allies to be wooed, but rather as…"

"resources in a talent market!"

"The Three Kingdoms era never lacked heroes—what it lacked was a stage for them to shine."

"If our three major factions approach job seekers with fawning flattery, wouldn’t that be putting the cart before the horse?"

"If they don’t aggressively promote themselves in the second round, then…"

"we should just eliminate them first?"

Lin Yu froze for a few seconds: "…"

Okay, so…

He knew she wasn’t treating him as her boyfriend in the game,

but did that mean he wasn’t even human anymore?!

Now he was just a plunderable resource?!

This Shu faction leader was ruthless!

If Shu had someone like you back then, they wouldn’t have surrendered to Wei!

Fine.

Just fine, Chi Qingshui!

We’ll settle this privately after the game.

The first leaders chosen by Wei, Shu, and Wu each had their distinct styles,

and their opening speeches fully articulated their respective strategies.

The core focus of these strategies inevitably revolved around one question—

whether the neutral faction would pledge allegiance in the second round!

When it was Lin Yu’s turn to speak, the real pressure began.

If he gave a vague or evasive speech, there was no way he’d get past the scrutiny of the three faction leaders.

His small team might not even survive three rounds before being wiped out.

Once neutral players chose to align with Wei, Shu, or Wu, they’d have to fully commit to that faction’s cause.

No "body in Wei, heart in Han" tactics,

no "together we burn bright, apart we scatter like stars,"

and certainly no "secretly plotting the revival of the Great Yu Dynasty."

Pledging allegiance meant a complete faction switch.

Of course, if Lin Yu took a firm stance in his speech and declared an all-out fight,

his three companions wouldn’t blame him.

But wouldn’t that ruin their gaming experience?

Judging by the current pace,

it was questionable whether they’d even finish two full games tonight.

As Du Ruxue had rightly said—

if you don’t think about yourself, shouldn’t you at least consider your teammates?

Lin Yu glanced at his three teammates beside him.

Shen Buyao whispered: "It’s fine. Speak freely—we’ll follow your lead."

Huang Feirong murmured: "Leader, whether we submit or fight, we’ll obey your command."

Ye Mengfu whispered softly, "You've got this. Don't... don't stress."

What great teammates.

How could we let them feel left out of the game?

When it was Lin Yu's turn to speak,

he gathered his thoughts and said:

"Esteemed lords of Wei, Shu, and Wu, there’s no need to dwell on our allegiance."

"I can assure you that by the start of the second round, we’ll each choose the faction we prefer."

"If we haven’t decided by then, you’re free to come after us."

"But I have one small request. If you can agree to it, we’ll make our choice without hesitation."

"If you can’t even show that much goodwill, then we’ll at least hold out for a few rounds and drag down one faction’s chances of winning..."

His words instantly drew everyone’s attention to Lin Yu.

They had expected him to dodge the question of allegiance with some excuse.

But instead,

he agreed so readily.

Now, the focus shifted to Lin Yu’s request!

Lin Yu continued:

"The Game Master hasn’t revealed the rules for daytime actions yet—what we’ll do and how remains unknown."

"My request is this..."

"If there are any unfavorable penalties during the daytime phase, you’ll take them on our behalf."

"If there are beneficial rewards, you’ll hand them over to our faction."

"Your choices, your actions, will determine which side we join in the second round!"

...

(Extra update delivered—more to come tomorrow. Goodnight, everyone!)