Zhao Yun Ru

Zhao Yun Ru was a member of the Illuminati who helped to oversee a secret division of Project Cadmus in 2014.

History
In 150,084 CMT (2014 on Earth), Zhao helped to oversee the operations of a secret division of Project Cadmus. This Cadmus division was responsible for the creation of a clone of Yon that they implanted with false memories and released into the universe for an unknown reason. The clone seemed to operate out of his own free will, but was implanted with a hidden camera that allowed Project Cadmus to observe his surroundings at all times.

Zhao witnessed the return of the Caged Lion on Atuar Sadiares through the camera implanted in Yon's clone and went to tell the facility administrator, Dr. Breen, the news. Breen was hesitant to listen to Zhao because he was busy examining a cross-section of the clone at the time, but Zhao forced a computer tablet with the information into his hand regardless and reminded him of his duties as the administrator of the complex. At Zhao's behest, Breen used the tablet to open the live camera feed to Yon's clone and saw the Caged Lion for himself. In response, Breen ordered Zhao to begin the "extraction process" because they could not afford to let the Caged Lion "ruin everything" for them again, implying that it had caused problems for Cadmus or the Illuminati in the past. Zhao retrieved her tablet and walked away to execute Breen's instructions.

However, mere minutes later, Cadmus discovered that Yon's clone had been sedated and captured by unidentified individuals calling themselves "Harmony" and "HIM". When a concerned worker rushed over to Zhao and Breen and told them the news, Breen immediately used a workstation to transmit the clone's killphrase, "Jericho Eggnog", which would cause it to explode and leave behind no trace of its existence. Zhao protested Breen's sudden decision to use the killphrase to kill the clone because Cadmus had invested significant time, work, and resources into its creation, but Breen attempted to justify his decision by saying that he could not allow the existence of Yon's clone to be traced back to them or have his involvement in the project discovered in any way. Concurrently, Yon's clone realized something was wrong and ran into a closet on Atuar Sadiares, where it exploded without incident.

After the termination of Yon's clone, Breen decided to quit Project Cadmus because he felt that the project was in shambles due to general mismanagement and the existence of other splinter factions. Zhao tried to persuade him to stay by suggesting that they could clone someone else and continue their work, but Breen had made up his mind. Relenting, Zhao warned him "You might be able to quit Cadmus, but you can't quit the Illuminati," so Breen asked Zhao for another job where he could have a public face and be a true "representative to the people," which he had been missing ever since Black Mesa had shut down. Zhao merely replied "We'll be in touch".