There was not even the slightest room to resist. He had not even had time to react before his body instinctively shut down.
The executioner did not kill him on the red-hot copper pillar. The iron chains pulling from both sides jerked, and the man was directly flung away.
Nan Zhu knelt on the ground, held up by two iron chains gripping his arms. His head hung low. His back was already a bloody mess, charred and rotten, still steaming with green smoke. The smell of cooked meat wafted out, oil seeping from the wounds. It was truly a sight too horrible to endure.
A prepared bucket of ice water, still floating with ice shards, was brought over. With a splash, it was thrown onto Nan Zhu’s face.
Nan Zhu, who had been unconscious, shuddered. He slowly opened his eyes and raised his head to look up. Though his back was wounded, it felt as if every breath of air drawn into his lungs was a knife. His body trembled uncontrollably. The sensation felt as if his soul was floating outside his body, as if he could ascend to immortality at any moment.
At the same time, it brought another taste. Despair!
“Have you thought it through now? Will you speak or not?”
“I don’t know… I really don’t know… I beg you, let me go.” Nan Zhu said this intermittently, then cried. He cried silently. Tears involuntarily streamed down his cheeks.
He had thought being captured would bring suffering and had mentally prepared himself. But he had not expected it to be this painful. Even breathing hurt. Yet there was still a belief in his mind. He must not speak! He could not speak!
“Then we will wait until you remember.”
Someone beside him began pouring a large amount of salt powder into a bucket of clear water. A stick stirred it. After stirring sufficiently, it was brought over. A ladle scooped the water and poured it over the bloody, steaming flesh on Nan Zhu’s back.
At first, it was not poured in large amounts. Just a little was slowly dripped down.
Even so, Nan Zhu’s body went rigid instantly. His breathing became violently intermittent. Then his hands began to twitch like convulsions. His lips and chin trembled uncontrollably.
The poured salt water slowly seeped into the cracked wounds on his back, slowly flowing, washing out dripping blood.
Xi Qingyue, who had entered, only glanced briefly from the side before turning and leaving.
He went straight to the interrogation room where Yu Qing was held. The treatment here was clearly much better. Though torture instruments were placed all around, a chair had still been brought for Yu Qing to sit on.
The interrogator sat behind a table, currently questioning the suspect.
The reason for such preferential treatment was still Yu Qing’s identity as the Tanhua Scholar. Xi Qingyue knew his identity and also knew that many people were likely watching. So he had given prior instructions, telling those below not to act rashly for now.
Seeing Xi Qingyue arrive, the interrogators immediately stood up to show respect.
Xi Qingyue looked at the interrogation contents. It was clear the suspect was impervious to persuasion or threats. He frowned. After a brief silence, he turned back and waved his hand. The people following behind immediately presented the items on the tray before Yu Qing.
Yu Qing looked closely at the two metal cylinders in the tray. He immediately understood in his heart, but deliberately put on a puzzled expression, as if he did not know what they were.
Xi Qingyue, pacing closer with hands behind his back, reached out and took one metal cylinder. He placed it before his nose and sniffed. “One was found at the fire origin in Wang Xuetang’s room. The residue inside still carries the smell of sulphur. Combined with the circumstances of the crime, it is not hard to guess that this might be a specially made fire stick. So an immediate detailed inspection was made of the fire origin in the firewood room of Langhuan Residence. Indeed, another one was found in the ashes. Combining the circumstances of the two fire origins, and working backwards, there is no doubt these two items are fire sticks.”
He put down the metal cylinder and picked up a metal cap. “The cap of a fire stick cannot easily fall off. Even if it encounters a fire, it will not easily fall off. This was opened by human hands. Who would open a fire stick in Wang Xuetang’s room and throw the cap there along with it? This can only mean it was not the arsonist who wanted to throw it down, but because it could not be taken away.
Unlike a normal fire stick, this cap also has a pull ring. Combined with the fire origin circumstances and the remnants at the scene, it is not hard to imagine that someone secretly placed a fire stick near the window at the fire origin. A hidden line connected to the cap ran through the corner of the window to the outside. They only needed to wait for the right moment, then pull the hidden line from outside. The fire stick would open. And because the window was closed, the pulled-open cap could not be drawn away, so it was left at the scene.
And this fire stick happened to contain the poison ‘Bailuo Sha’, which needs fire to activate. So this fire stick was not an ordinary fire stick, but a specially made object for assassination.
Though ‘Bailuo Sha’ is poisonous, it is not enough to kill Wang Xuetang. So besides this item, the murderer also made a very clever plan. They planned the first fire in the firewood room. Taking advantage of the chaos from the fire, with people coming and going everywhere, no one would notice someone pulling that preset hidden line of the fire stick outside the window.
What was even more ingenious was the smoke from that fire. It misled Wang Xuetang. It numbed Wang Xuetang, which led to him failing to detect the indoor smoke poison. By the time he discovered it, it was already too late. This is also why Wang Xuetang could not even run out of the inner room. It was through all kinds of meticulous design that someone caused Wang Xuetang to lose his life.
To be honest, if not for the remnants at the scene providing a path for deduction, it would truly be hard to imagine someone could design such a brilliant assassination method. It must be said, this is truly admirable. No wonder they say the Tanhua Scholar is the greatest talent under heaven. Indeed, his reputation is well-deserved!”
Tanhua Scholar? The greatest talent under heaven? The others in the interrogation room looked at each other upon hearing this, appearing very surprised. This wretched little man with the moustache was that legendary great talent?
Yu Qing listened as if hearing a story. Hearing to the end, his eyes showed surprise. “You are not saying the murderer is me, are you? You cannot say such things carelessly. It is true that I went to Wang Xuetang’s room, but I did not install any fire stick. Before we went in, we were caught by the Zheluo Mountain people and searched. Even weapons were confiscated. It was impossible to bring any specially made fire stick inside. Sir, this joke is too big.”
He currently did not know that the person before him was the great commander of the Zhenhai Division.
Searched? Xi Qingyue was stunned. This was new information he did not know.
To find out if it was true was very simple. Tu Xiuqui and the Zheluo Mountain personnel were all detained here. He just needed to ask.
He immediately tilted his head and signalled to the person beside him.
His subordinate understood and immediately hurried away.
After waiting a short while, that person returned, also bringing back a statement to hand over.
Xi Qingyue picked up the statement and looked. The more he looked, the more he frowned. It was correct. The guards present at the time and Tu Xiuqui had all proven that when Yu Qing and Nan Zhu entered Wang Xuetang’s room, they were indeed searched. Suspicious items were all confiscated outside and not allowed to be brought in. There were no items similar to a fire stick.
With so many witnesses, it should not be false.
This result truly surprised Xi Qingyue greatly. He did not think of anything else first. Instead, he suspected Qing Ya. Could it be that Qing Ya was cooperating, helping to bring things inside? After all, when Lord Wen died, Qing Ya and this Tanhua Scholar also had dealings.
He suspected Qing Ya and Yu Qing were originally in the same group. But someone had removed Qing Ya from this matter. With his status, he had no way to continue interrogating Qing Ya.
After pondering briefly, he slowly said, “As expected of the Tanhua Scholar. Your methods are truly brilliant. You have completely exculpated yourself. However, there is one point you cannot exculpate yourself from. The poison used to kill Lord Wen was also ‘Bailuo Sha’. I know what you are thinking. Without evidence, nothing can be done to you. And that is indeed the case. However, you should not have caused trouble at Langhuan Residence this time. Your life is not as precious as Langhuan Residence’s reputation.
The matter has come to this. I know you will not easily confess. But I might as well tell you clearly. There are only two paths before you.
The first, do not think I dare not kill you. If you do not confess, you will certainly die. This interrogation room will be your final resting place. You will die horribly. Your death will be in vain.
The second, confess honestly. Whether you live or die will then not be up to me to decide. With your fame, the commander will probably hand you over to Qianliu Mountain to deal with. Whether you can survive will depend on your own luck.”
After speaking, he turned to face his subordinates. “This is the famous Tanhua Scholar. Do not make it look too miserable and unsightly. Cover him with a quilt.”
“Understood.”
A group of people shouted and quickly got to work. They directly seized Yu Qing, dragged him to the side, pressed him onto a wide iron bench to lie down and tied him up. Then they lifted a thick iron plate and pressed it onto Yu Qing’s body.
Someone kindly reminded him, “Tanhua Scholar, I have long admired your great name. I did not expect to meet you here. Please endure it for now. If you wish to confess, speak up quickly. We will immediately stop.”
Yu Qing did not understand what these people were going to do. Torture was not a good thing. To say he was not nervous at all would be a lie. He immediately shouted angrily, “What are you trying to do? Do you want to force a confession through torture?”
“Tanhua Scholar, we do not have such flowery words as you scholars. It is torture to extract a confession. Come, begin.”
After the kind person spoke, the people on the left and right each swung a large iron hammer.
Boom! The one on the left smashed onto the iron plate. After raising the hammer, the large iron hammer on the right smashed down. Boom!
From the very first hammer, Yu Qing felt as if electric currents were surging through his body. His whole body went numb. His internal organs were shaking.
At first, he did not feel too uncomfortable. But after boom after boom came down, he finally experienced the soul-stirring taste.
His vision blurred. It went dark. He tried to widen his eyes, but could not see anything clearly. Dizzying light and shadow swayed.
He wanted to try to breathe. But the space in his body that could draw in air felt less and less. The air he inhaled was increasingly insufficient. That feeling of impending suffocation, yet迟迟 unable to die, prolonged the pain of suffocation at the brink of death. It made one hover at the edge of death the entire time.
He could not hear anything anymore. Not even the enormous booming sounds. Under the torment of pain at the edge of death, he very much wanted to say he confessed. The voice in his mind, on the verge of dissipating, told him again that it would harm Old Seven, Old Nine, and Liu Piaopiao.
This sentence repeatedly reminded him in his mind.
His eyeballs had already begun to bulge outward. The eyeballs were covered with bloodshot veins. It looked frightening.
A mouthful of fresh blood choked out, falling beside his cheek.
Then another mouthful of fresh blood choked out, one after another.
With each hammer strike, a mouthful of blood would choke out of his mouth. Blood was seeping from all seven orifices.
Datou’s small figure had somehow climbed onto the door of the interrogation room.
The door of the interrogation room opened at this moment. Qi Duolai, who had run through several interrogation rooms, arrived. Seeing the scene, he smiled bitterly. He discovered that what the commander said was indeed correct. Even if he did not report Xi Qingyue’s use of torture, Xi Qingyue would use torture himself.
He shouted again, “Stop!”
The sounds of hammering back and forth immediately stopped.
Xi Qingyue turned back to look. He discovered this person had come again. He frowned and stared at him.
Qi Duolai walked close to the torture instruments and looked at Yu Qing, who seemed on the verge of having his soul scattered. He immediately turned back to look at Xi Qingyue and asked in alarm and doubt, “Using this, are you not trying to directly kill him?”
Xi Qingyue: “I will not let him die so lightly.”
Qi Duolai sighed. Then he quickly called for people. “Remove it, quickly remove it. Do not kill the person.”
The executioners were all Xi Qingyue’s subordinates. They also knew that Xi Qingyue and Qi Duolai usually did not get along. Naturally, they all turned back to look at Xi Qingyue’s reaction.
Xi Qingyue said in a deep voice, “Qi Duolai, do you have another reason to release the person?”
Qi Duolai sighed. “I do not want to come and see your face either. But there is no other way. If the people below came, they might not be able to stop you. I could only come personally. Listen to me. We cannot stop. The Ming Temple has come to ask for the person.”