READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 23: Interrogation
Chapter 23: Interrogation
When Wei Changtian pushed open the courtyard gate with an old hen in his hand, the two chickens in the yard immediately started clucking loudly, giving him the warmest welcome.
“Ah! Young Master, why did you also buy a chicken?”
Yuan’er dodged the flying feathers and quickly walked to Wei Changtian’s side, her tone filled with curiosity.
Wei Changtian, dumbfounded, asked, “No, you first tell me where these two chickens came from?”
Yuan’er answered honestly, “One was brought by Miss just now, and the other was bought by Sister Qiu Yun at Madam’s request this morning.”
Wei Changtian was a bit surprised: “Lan Jingyao asked to buy it?”
“Yes, Madam said she was afraid Miss would blame you for stewing her chicken, so she wanted to buy one.”
Yuan’er glanced at the chicken in Wei Changtian’s hand and covered her mouth, laughing: “Young Master must have thought the same, right?”
“Hmph, now it seems my chicken isn’t extra.”
Wei Changtian snorted and casually threw the hen on the ground: “Now they can play Dou Dizhu.”
“Dou Dizhu?” Yuan’er blinked her eyes.
“A little game to pass the time, I’ll teach you to play it someday.”
Wei Changtian laughed it off, stepping into the house.
Wei Qiaoling had already lost interest in learning to write and was currently napping on the Big Ghost.
Lan Jingyao was sitting at the table reading a book. When she saw him come in, she closed the book and softly asked, “You came back later than usual today.”
“Oh, I’ll be coming back at this time from now on.”
Wei Changtian replied casually: “I found someone to teach me martial arts for one hour every day.”
“Really…”
Lan Jingyao had been full of ideas on how to turn Wei Changtian into a literary master, and now hearing that his limited time for practicing calligraphy was being taken up by martial arts, she couldn’t help but feel a bit disappointed.
But she couldn’t really demand anything from Wei Changtian as a “wife,” so she could only pitifully and tentatively say, “Then, the calligraphy practice you promised…”
“I’ll practice when I have time.”
Wei Changtian, not aware of Lan Jingyao’s complex thoughts, casually replied and prepared to change his clothes.
At this moment, Wang Er suddenly rushed in from outside, looking anxious: “Young Master, the Master wants you to go over immediately, it’s about Xiao… ahem.”
Seeing Lan Jingyao nearby, he immediately clammed up, looking nervous.
Wei Changtian glanced sideways at him.
Both of them saw Lan Jingyao lower her head, her eyebrows slightly furrowed, seemingly contemplating something important.
The room fell into a silent stillness, with only Wei Qiaoling’s pig-like snores breaking the silence.
Wang Er: Oh no! What should I do? I’m definitely going to be blamed by the Young Master!
Wei Changtian: It seems she’s still thinking about Xiao Feng! Hmm? But that doesn’t quite seem right either…
Lan Jingyao: How can I get my husband to give up martial arts and focus on literature? This is so troubling…
…
“Tell the whole story again properly!”
In the secret chamber, Wei Xianzhi and Wei Changtian each sat on a chair, with a spy from the Spy Department standing nearby.
“Yes, Master Wei!”
The spy responded, bowing towards Wei Changtian.
“Young Master Wei, we discovered Xiao Feng’s whereabouts in the northern part of the city, at Houqiu Village.”
“According to the villagers, Xiao Feng drifted to Houqiu Village a few days ago due to injuries and has been staying with an old man surnamed Liu, being cared for by the old man’s granddaughter.”
“Oh, Houqiu Village has no village head, and all matters in the village are decided by this old man surnamed Liu.”
“Hold on a moment,”
Wei Changtian interrupted and asked, “A few days ago? Exactly how many days ago? And what’s the name of that old man’s granddaughter?”
“Reporting to you, Young Master,” the spy answered solemnly, “It was seven nights ago. The girl’s name is Liu Yingying, and she is twelve years old.”
“Alright, continue,” Wei Changtian instructed.
“Yes,” the spy paused before continuing, “There were four brothers from the Spy Department at the scene. I feared we might not be a match for Xiao Feng, so I sent someone back to the department to request reinforcements while the other two and I kept an eye on the Liu family’s movements.”
“We remained vigilant the entire time but did not notice anything unusual.”
“When the experts from the department arrived, we entered the Liu house together. However, we only found two of Xiao Feng’s garments and no sign of him. It seems he had left before we arrived.”
“Subordinate is incompetent, please forgive me, Young Master!”
The spy stood up straight and stopped talking. Wei Changtian thought for a while before asking, “Have you brought back Liu Yingying and her grandfather?”
“They are currently held in the prison.”
“Have they been interrogated?”
“They have been briefly questioned but not tortured. Both claim not to know Xiao Feng.”
“Good.”
Wei Changtian turned to Wei Xianzhi and said, “Father, I’d like to go there.”
…
Mirror Division, Criminal Prison
The Mirror Division’s functions include investigating cases and executing people. Long-term imprisonment is the work of the Ministry of Justice. Therefore, besides the “Demon Suppression Prison” specifically for imprisoning demons, the Mirror Division has only a small criminal prison mainly for interrogations.
In the damp, narrow corridor, the torchlight flickered. Wei Changtian looked at the person beside him, feeling a sense of familiarity.
“Have I seen you somewhere before?”
The black-clad officer hastily replied, “Young Master Wei, I am Guo Ying. I had the honor of sparring with you the day before yesterday.”
“Oh, I see.”
Wei Changtian nodded, “Brother Guo, where are those two people being held?”
“Reporting to you, Young Master, the old man is in cell A-2, and the girl is in cell C-3.”
Guo Ying, feeling flattered by being called “Brother Guo,” eagerly asked, “Which one would you like to interrogate first, Young Master?”
“Let’s start with the old man.”
Wei Changtian thought for a moment, then whispered a few words into Guo Ying’s ear.
“… Understood?”
“Yes, I understand.”
Guo Ying’s face showed a hint of surprise but quickly returned to normal.
A few minutes later.
The iron door of cell A-2 slowly opened. Surrounded by various torture instruments, an old man with white hair was bound to a chair, unable to move.
“Master Wei, Master Guo.”
Two officers hurriedly stood up, but Guo Ying waved them out of the interrogation room.
“You may leave.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Screech~”
After a moment, the iron door closed tightly.
Wei Changtian looked around before walking leisurely to the determined-looking old man, softly speaking, “Tell me everything you know about Xiao Feng.”
“I don’t know Xiao Feng!”
The old man’s eyes were firm, clearly adopting an “I know, but I won’t say even if it kills me” stance.
“Why are you unwilling to talk?”
Wei Changtian mused aloud, “Let me guess… following the usual clichéd plots, could it be that he saved your lives?”
“…”
The surprise in the old man’s eyes confirmed Wei Changtian’s guess.
Wei Changtian smiled, patting the old man’s shoulder, “Refusing to betray your savior even unto death, you are indeed loyal and righteous.”
“Don’t forget, you still have a granddaughter,” Wei Changtian continued. “Do you know what will happen to her?”
The old man’s face turned ashen, yet he bit his lip, refusing to speak. At that moment, Guo Ying stepped forward, wearing a lecherous and sinister grin.
“Master, that little girl is quite pretty!” he sneered. “Heh, we’ve been stuck in this gloomy prison for so long, our mouths are watering just thinking about it!”
“Slurp~”
“How about you stop the questioning, Master? The brothers can’t wait any longer!”
Wei Changtian, momentarily speechless at Guo Ying’s disturbingly convincing performance.
Despite his inner disgust, Wei Changtian maintained a calm façade, playing along with the “script.” “In that case, give the girl the mind-altering potion to erase her memory. Let the men have their way with her for a few days, and then she can be a prison courtesan.”
As the old man trembled uncontrollably, on the verge of fainting, Wei Changtian leaned in close and whispered, “Old man, turning your own granddaughter into this… aren’t you afraid she’ll come back as a vengeful spirit to haunt you?”
“…”
“Demons… You’re all demons!” the old man finally broke, his voice trembling. “I’ll talk! I’ll tell you everything! Just please, spare my granddaughter! Spare her!”