Chapter 28 Entering the City (Additional Update)

As long as the people on the ground are still conscious, they are all begging for mercy, and you can't get anything out of them.

Ling Wei looked up at the deep night outside the window, "Gag her and tie her up tightly, take her back."

They avoided the main roads and hurried through the rugged mountains. When they returned to the meeting point in the valley, the crescent moon was already setting in the west, and the guards left behind were already on high alert.

Upon seeing Ling Wei return, they immediately and silently escorted the six people into a secluded crevice in the mountain rocks that had been cleared beforehand.

"Keep them separately and do not communicate with each other."

Ling Wei gave brief instructions and then selected three guards to accompany her into the cave that would temporarily serve as an interrogation room.

Shen Zhilan was instructed to take notes, while Qing Shu stood in the shadows at the cave entrance, sword in hand, separating the inside from the outside.

The interrogation did not last all night, but it was efficient enough.

The three guards each had their own roles: one was good at reading people's expressions, his tone sometimes gentle and sometimes sharp, specializing in attacking the psychological defenses of Granny Li and the female soldier; another was meticulous, repeatedly questioning them about details, looking for unnoticed contradictions and loopholes in the time and place in their testimonies; and the third was taciturn, only responsible for applying pressure at the appropriate time and in the right way.

They took turns questioning them, using tricky angles to ensure they had no chance to collude or calm down.

The confession was quickly recorded by Shen Zhilan, and Ling Wei would occasionally glance at the increasingly thick paper.

Before dawn, the conclusion was already clear.

Aunt Li completely broke down and admitted to colluding with a head constable in the county town to specifically target "disabled men." She only took a cut and didn't know where the men ended up; she only knew that they would be taken away and never heard from again.

The female soldier and several male constables initially insisted that they were "on secret orders from the mining supervisor to investigate suspicious disabled refugees to prevent banditry," but their defenses gradually crumbled under the pressure of details that were hard to explain and the relentless questioning.

A younger male constable finally broke down and, with a sob in his voice, confessed:

"I became disabled early on, so it's not obvious... A couple of years ago, someone came to recruit us privately, specifically looking for people like us. They said a big shot had given us a way to make a living, and if we did well, we'd get paid, and we weren't afraid... not afraid of our wives' mental strain..."

According to their fragmented testimonies, there were more than just a few disabled men recruited at the time. Some of them, like them, were left behind and assigned a female squad leader to learn to wear constable's clothes and patrol the roads leading to the mining area. As for the other group, they did not know where they went and dared not ask.

When it was the female soldier's turn, she initially gritted her teeth and tried to maintain the official rhetoric.

It wasn't until Qing Shu received Ling Wei's signal in her eyes that he took a step forward, his gaze slightly narrowed, and his mental power, carrying a clear sense of punishment, pressed down on her like a mountain.

The female soldier's face turned deathly pale instantly, veins bulged on her forehead, she clutched her head with both hands, and let out a painful, suppressed groan, as if her head was about to explode.

"I'll talk... I'll talk!" she almost screamed, the mental anguish making it impossible for her to continue. "It's... it's orders from above, to specifically look for those who meet the criteria..."

She confessed intermittently: the target was very clear, like the kind of small households that Ling Wei and the others pretended to be, seemingly helpless and with disabled husbands; or some local wives who disliked their disabled husbands as a burden and were willing to "hand over" them in exchange for some benefits.

Once the person is found, they are taken away under various pretexts such as being suspicious.

"We are only responsible for taking people to a designated area on the outskirts, where a special person will take over."

She had no idea what happened after that! She was trembling with pain, and these were the same things she kept repeating over and over.

After signing their statements, Ling Wei flipped through the records that Shen Zhilan had prepared.

A clandestine trafficking chain targeting disabled men, with ties to official authorities.

The final outcome is most likely related to the mine. The fact that the Mining Supervision Bureau has been brought up, whether true or false, indicates that this matter involves a high level of government.

She got up and walked out of the cave; the sky was already beginning to lighten with the first light of dawn.

"Detain these people separately and keep them under strict guard. We must not let any news leak out." She ordered the guards who remained behind. "We will proceed as planned and enter the city openly and legitimately via the main road."

"yes."

......

Outside the west gate of Fuling County.

Ling Wei had changed back into her princely attire and sat upright on the dark clouds. Her attire was dark blue with simplified four-clawed python patterns embroidered on it.

Shen Zhilan and Qing Shu served as attendants on either side, while more than forty guards in gleaming armor stood silently in formation.

A group of people poured out of the gate. Leading them was a woman of about fifty years old with a plump face, wearing the dark scarlet official robe of the Prefect of Fuling County. Behind her were Prefectural Assistant Du Wen and a group of subordinate officials, as well as several officials wearing the brown robes unique to the Mining Supervisory Office. It was quite a grand procession.

The prefect rushed to the front of the horse and bowed deeply: "Your humble servant, Sun Man, the prefect of Fuling, pays his respects to Your Highness the Fifth Prince."

Your Highness has been ordered to inspect this perilous region. We, your humble servants, have longed for Your Highness as a parched land yearns for rain, and have failed to come to greet you. We beg Your Highness's forgiveness!

Ling Wei accepted the greeting from horseback before speaking: "Prefect Sun, there's no need for such formalities. Please rise. My mother is worried about the mines here and sent me to take a look."

Sun Man stood up, his face full of concern: "Your Highness has worked hard! I have prepared a small feast at the government office to welcome Your Highness and wash away the dust of your journey. I hope Your Highness will do me the honor of attending."

Ling Wei didn't dismount immediately. Instead, she leaned back lazily, raised her hand to rub her temples, and said in a voice that sounded tired from the long journey: "Prefect Sun is very kind. I am indeed very tired from this journey."

"Your Highness is too kind. Your presence is an honor for Fuling County." Sun Man's face lit up with joy, and he quickly stepped aside to lead the way. "Please, Your Highness!"

The banquet was held in the back hall of the government office. It was not extremely luxurious, but it was the best that could be offered locally. Sun Man, accompanied by Prefect Du Wen and several key officials, accompanied the banquet with great courtesy.

After Ling Wei took her seat, she visibly relaxed and seemed more interested in the wine on the table, drinking several glasses in a row.

After a few rounds of drinks, Ling Wei's face flushed slightly, and she listened to Sun Man pour out his grievances in a state of half-drunkenness.

"...Your Highness, it is not that I am shirking responsibility, but the bandits are fierce and unruly, numbering three to five hundred. They have turned the mine upside down, and my heart has been hanging in suspense day and night!" Sun Man pounded his chest and stamped his feet. "What is particularly troublesome is that those disabled male bandits are not afraid of the mental suppression of ordinary soldiers, and they are especially difficult to deal with when they charge."

Ling Wei paused for a moment as she lazily swirled her wine glass.

"Disabled?" She raised her eyes, her gaze a mixture of curiosity and instinctive scrutiny. "Where did all these disabled men come from? And aren't they all afraid of mental attacks?"

Sun Man seemed surprised that Ling Wei would single out this detail. He paused for a moment, then quickly added, "Well, they weren't all men. There were also female bandit leaders among them, and their mental strength was quite strong."

Moreover, their cooperation is cunning. Women often use their mental powers to provide cover, while the disabled ones seize the opportunity to attack. It's impossible to defend against them! She quickly steered the conversation back to the overall ferocity and cunning of the thieves.