[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner":3,"chapter-i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-81":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","I'm Not Crazy—This Is the Emperor's Banner",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2291421,4480,"Chapter 81: Dodo","i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-81",81,"\u003Cp>Dodo looked up, revealing a big smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Uncle.” She said politely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The young man with a fierce expression momentarily froze at Dodo’s innocent smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where are you going?” the young man asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m going to find my brother,” Dodo said, struggling to hold her umbrella open.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your brother is at Xicheng Primary School, right?” the young man said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Wow, how do you know?” Dodo’s face filled with surprise.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I guessed. It’s raining so hard—I’ll walk you there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No thanks, I have an umbrella, and I know the way.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo had already opened her umbrella and stepped beneath it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Goodbye, Uncle.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo walked under her umbrella, checked the road, and headed toward Xicheng Primary School—she truly knew the way.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But as she walked, Dodo suddenly felt something was wrong and turned to look behind her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, she saw two green pant legs and a pair of military-green work boots, soaked by rain; she recognized them instantly. She turned, tilted her umbrella backward, and strained her neck upward—sure enough, it was the same uncle from earlier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why are you following me?” Dodo asked.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Remembering her parents’ warnings about bad people, she grew slightly wary.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m not following you. I’m going to Xicheng Primary School to pick someone up,” the young man said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Pick up who?” Innocent as ever, Dodo instantly dropped her guard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I… my little brother.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, your brother goes to the same school as my brother!” Dodo said, delighted.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, yeah. You have a brother, I have a little brother…” the young man murmured softly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He seemed to say something else, but his voice was too quiet, drowned out by the rain—Dodo didn’t hear it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She didn’t care anymore, walked into a nearby alley, emerged from it, and there, across the street, was her brother’s school—Xicheng Primary School.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the moment she stepped into the alley, she felt someone grab her from behind.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I can walk by myself, you don’t need to carry me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even now, Dodo still naively thought he wanted to carry her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then, this little fool began to sense something was wrong.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said nothing, strode forward, his boots splashing large waves of water.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The umbrella in Dodo’s hand nearly slipped to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Put me down! I want to walk myself! Put me down…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo struggled, kicking her short legs wildly; her kaleidoscope fell from her hand to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing her struggle, the young man tilted his head, clamped the umbrella handle between his chin and shoulder, freed one hand, and clamped it tightly around Dodo’s neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t scream, or I’ll kill you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The young man’s face twisted with cruel ferocity, even more monstrous—but Dodo’s face was pressed to the ground, so she couldn’t see.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her neck was crushed; she struggled to pry his fingers loose, but she was too small—her soft, pudgy hands had no effect at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A suffocating sensation spread from her throat to her entire body, as if a dull blade had pierced her, as if countless steel needles were stabbing into her lungs. Soon, her eyes widened, her face turned blue-purple, her hands went limp, and her whole body collapsed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This painful memory was mirrored back to Shen Siyuan, who was watching it, making him feel it as if it were his own.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then darkness swept over his vision—the memory broke off here. When he regained awareness, he found himself inside a dilapidated house.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo sat up, frightened, scanning her surroundings.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a civilian home: red wooden windows, weathered by wind and rain, covered in spiderwebs, every pane of glass shattered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The room was piled with debris—newspapers, bricks, wood, and a coal stove. A wooden door, tightly shut, was locked from the outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo tried to get up and go to the window, but found her whole body weak and limp, no strength at all; her soaked clothes and hair made her feel miserable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad… Mom…” Dodo whispered, her voice trembling with sobs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But no one answered. She looked around fearfully, then noticed her umbrella lying nearby—but her kaleidoscope was gone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She scrambled over, clutching the umbrella to her chest, as if holding it would bring her some comfort.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But soon, soaked through, she grew cold and aching—especially her throat, which was bruised purple; even breathing hurt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was why she dared not cry loudly—it was simply too painful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dad… Mom… Brother…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She whispered, sobbing quietly, filled with helplessness. She reached out a small hand, touched her neck—and immediately pulled it back.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dodo hurts so much… Dodo feels so bad… I want to go home… sob sob…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Dodo will be good from now on… never run away again… sob sob…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Perhaps she cried herself tired, grew sleepy. Add to that the rain, the shock—she developed a high fever. Her cheeks flushed red, and her body curled up instinctively.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But she clutched the umbrella tightly in her arms—now, only this umbrella seemed to offer her any comfort.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After an unknown length of time, Dodo was jolted awake by the sound of a door opening.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She tried desperately to open her eyes, but her whole body ached, her limbs limp, utterly without strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mom~” Dodo whispered faintly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one answered. She called again: “Dad.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Still no response. Her mind was already foggy; she had almost forgotten she’d been kidnapped.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She felt someone approaching, struggled to open her eyes, trying to see who it was.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When she finally opened them, she saw the monstrous face—and only then did she remember.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Uncle…” she whispered timidly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was the same uncle who had kidnapped her that afternoon—he still held an axe used for chopping firewood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo’s once-pale face was now dirty, tinged with feverish red; her blue-and-white dress was filthy, like a flower trampled by a storm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the man’s expression was cold, showing not a trace of pity.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You have a brother. I have a little brother too,” he crouched down, staring at Dodo lying on the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo remembered their earlier conversation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The man gave a light laugh but offered no explanation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then he raised his axe and brought it down straight onto Dodo’s neck.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t blame me. Blame your father…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo shut her eyes tight—and then felt a searing pain in her neck, followed by warmth spreading outward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo opened her eyes, trying to see what had happened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She saw blood staining her dress, flowing toward the umbrella clutched in her arms, soaking the canopy, turning the handle crimson.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dodo was too young, and her consciousness was fading—she didn’t sense anything strange.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Shen Siyuan, observing everything from a third-person perspective, noticed something odd.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This oil-paper umbrella must have been waterproofed—otherwise, how could it shield from rain?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But if so, why was Dodo’s blood being absorbed by the canopy? And the handle too?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This umbrella… was unusual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, the young man swung his axe again—Dodo’s bright, pure eyes lost their light, and her consciousness plunged into darkness.\u003C\u002Fp>",1152,"2026-06-20T03:53:08.657Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","dfc0f4b581f5d8ed8c4888cf55025b099fb6740237a997a397ce632109f1f742","i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-82","i-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-chapter-80",623,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fi-m-not-crazy-this-is-the-emperor-s-banner-cover.jpg"]