The two of them untied the ropes binding the other captured men and women. These people ranged from sixteen or seventeen years old down to five or six.
"You should all go back to your homes," Shen Yunyun said.
The women scrambled to flee outside, but the general's eldest daughter threw a tantrum: "Since you had a way to escape all along, why did you wait until now to use it? You made me, the young miss, suffer so much!"
Shen Yunyun didn't indulge her either, glancing at her and saying, "If you don't want to leave, you can stay here."
With that, she said no more and, along with the young emperor, began tying up those people. Anyone who struggled got a jolt from the electric baton. That kept them obedient.
The people they had arranged hadn't arrived yet—something must have gone wrong.
The two were about to act according to the situation when the women who had run outside all came rushing back in.
"What happened?"
Before they could stammer out an answer, a squad of men entered the courtyard. Their movements were uniform, clearly from specialized training. Then a tall man, about two meters in height, stepped into the yard, his gaze sweeping the scene like a hawk's before settling on Shen Yunyun and the young emperor.
The young emperor's face darkened as if it could drip water.
Shen Yunyun initially thought it was their arranged people arriving, but sensing the young emperor's grim expression, she knew she was mistaken.
"Who's causing trouble?" the tall man demanded coldly, though his eyes had already locked onto his target.
Hearing his voice, the general's eldest daughter immediately cried out, "Second Brother, Second Brother, save me, boohoo, it's me, Lian'er."
The tall man's brow twitched at the sound of Lian'er's voice. He strode over in a few steps, confirmed it was indeed his sister, and suddenly ordered, "Kill them all."
The madam, who had woken up at some point, heard the tall man's order and immediately begged for mercy: "Second Young Master, spare me, spare me! This is a case of the flood washing over the Dragon King's temple—I didn't know it was the young miss, I didn't know it was the young miss..."
The more she pleaded, the darker the man's face grew. He drove a knife into the madam's chest.
The madam's eyes bulged as she collapsed, convulsing on the ground.
Shen Yunyun quickly pulled the young emperor aside.
To be honest, she had killed zombies in the apocalypse but never a human. Watching a living person get stabbed right before her eyes made her go weak with fear.
"What are you standing around for? Kill them all," the man said, turning his knife toward his own sister.
"Second Brother? Second Brother?" the young miss shrieked.
She never expected her second brother to raise a blade against her.
At the same time, the men outside raised their weapons, ready to strike at the women.
The women screamed in terror.
Without a moment's hesitation, Shen Yunyun pulled out a laser gun, aimed at the man's hand, and fired. With a howl, his knife clattered to the ground. A hole had been burned through his forearm, and the acrid smell of scorched flesh filled the air.
She then shouted at the armed men, "Stop!"
Everyone was startled by the scream from inside the room. They exchanged glances, then charged forward with a roar.
Shen Yunyun fired directly, and the leader was shot clean through, collapsing face-first to the ground.
The others, seeing this, were terrified.
The women had all taken cover behind Shen Yunyun.
"Drop your weapons."
Everyone dropped their weapons.
"Turn around, hands on your heads, squat down."
Everyone complied.
Shen Yunyun thought for a moment, then walked over and used the electric baton to knock out all twenty-some people. She then had the young emperor help her tie them up.