Cao Qiang wanted to remain silent, but Dou Yong directly ordered the soldiers to begin the torture.

The criminal law doesn't need to be special; just pull off the medication and bandages, and kick them a few times.

For burn victims, this kind of punishment is extremely painful.

Cao Qiang screamed in agony, terrifying the other prisoners.

It was already very painful, and this treatment made the pain even worse.

Dou Yong said coldly, "If you still don't tell me, I'll have someone add some salt water to disinfect you. It really disinfects."

Cao Qiang finally couldn't hold on any longer; he wasn't the type to endure that. Before Dou Yong could say anything more, he blurted out, "I'll talk, I'll talk, stop torturing me."

"That's right, Army Doctor. Apply the medicine to Young Master Cao again and bandage him up again."

Cao Qiang shuddered; the process of applying the medicine and bandaging was also very painful.

However, without medicine and bandaging, his injuries will be difficult to heal, and if they become infected, it could be fatal.

After another round of howling, Cao Qiang, covered in sweat, was forced to kneel on the ground.

Despite the pain in his legs, Cao Qiang honestly confessed about the Cao family's spies, even revealing the spies from his in-laws and other close relatives.

Dou Yong took notes very seriously, not missing a single word.

I asked it repeatedly; these are things that cannot be overlooked.

After asking several times and finding no omissions, Dou Yong asked again, "Now tell me everything you know about the military equipment of the Cao family and other aristocratic families, and where they are stationed. Don't try to hide anything."

Cao Qiang was at his limit; once he opened his mouth, he could no longer hold back and told everything.

Hua Yi, standing to the side, was already numb. He hadn't realized how powerful the Cao family was. He was just a county magistrate's clerk; his knowledge was indeed shallow.

After asking back and forth, Dou Yong didn't find anything new. He changed the subject and, just like when he asked Hua Yi, started asking about matters concerning the inner quarters.

Cao Qiang's mind was becoming increasingly muddled, and he answered whatever Dou Yong asked.

Another half hour passed before Dou Yong finished asking his questions and signaled for someone to take Cao Qiang away. He could tell that Cao Qiang was about to collapse.

Hua Yi stayed obediently to the side, having already explained everything he needed to.

Dou Yong had someone take him away for treatment.

Then they started questioning the ordinary soldiers.

The procedure was the same as before. Most of these soldiers were not bad people; they obeyed orders and many had not done anything that would be considered heinous by humans or gods.

Of course, there were also a few who did bad things, and Dou Yong recorded them all.

Then people took them away for treatment and to let them rest.

Dou Yong carefully put the record away, then went to the room where Li De was sleeping and asked the soldier guarding outside, "Is the company commander still asleep?"

The soldier nodded.

Dou Yong did not disturb Li De, but returned to the room where he had been resting. Kong Ze was sleeping soundly with his head spread out.

Dou Yong smiled wryly, thinking that he was destined to be a hard worker.

He was exhausted. Gazing at the rays of the setting sun streaming through the window, he slowly drifted off to sleep.

As the sun sets and withdraws its last rays, night gradually descends.

Shenxi gazed at the flickering flames on the cliff. The flames closer to them had almost died down, but she believed that the fire was not yet extinguished; it was just that the fire here had become very small.

This day was absolutely agonizing. Below the cliff, there was no food or drink, and everyone was just surviving.

Apart from the very young children who ate a little something, and Shen Xi and Leng Aofu who ate a little something, no one else ate or drank anything.

Leng Aofu looked at the kettle with less than half a splash of water and the empty food bag, and sighed, "I didn't expect that following Chief Shen would not bring me enjoyment, but rather make me suffer."

"Aunt Leng, when we get back, I'll have Xiaoqin cook you a big feast so you can enjoy yourself."

"Don't try to make empty promises. I'm going to go up and see for myself tomorrow."

Shenxi immediately said, "Alright, alright, this place will definitely be destroyed by tomorrow. Even if it burns, it will have burned elsewhere. We'll see if we can find a way out then."

Leng Aofu finally felt a bit more comfortable; the night breeze was warm, and occasionally dust was blown down from above.

Zheng Ankang found some dry grass in an area that hadn't been burned and laid it out for Shenxi to rest.

Chenxi wasn't being dramatic; she was on edge all day.

Lying on the hay, Chenxi gazed at the night sky and calculated the time. It had been three months since he arrived here. One thing after another had happened, and there hadn't been many days of peace and quiet.

In other words, this body had a good physique and good constitution, and no major problems arose during her intense martial arts training and work.

This was also thanks to the care of those around her; in just three months, Shenxi felt that she had grown a lot.

The sky was dotted with stars, and the crescent moon was perfectly complementing the scene. The pristine, unpolluted night sky was far more beautiful than the night sky of the new century.

Chen Xi suddenly asked Leng Aofu, who was lying next to her, "Aunt Leng, was that firework a gift from a friend?"

Leng Aofu scoffed and said disdainfully, "What, do I always have to have others give me my good things? Can't I make them myself?"

Chen Xi was stunned: "Aunt Leng can make fireworks?"

"That's natural."

"But in my memory, and in Bian'ai County, I've never heard of anything like fireworks."

"You haven't seen this before, so it's not new. These are all made by alchemists. My older brother also makes alchemy, so I turned this thing into signal flares. We call them fireworks."

"However, these fireworks are not unique to me. When I was in the North, I saw several other people with them."

In other words, gunpowder is basically still in the possession of alchemists.

Shenxi wondered if it should be used for military purposes; it was bound to happen sooner or later.

Once she masters the application, she will have an absolute advantage on the battlefield.

However, Shenxi only knew the general proportions of this stuff; she had no idea how to make it into gunpowder weapons.

If she had known she would travel to this era, she should have studied weaponry more thoroughly in the new century, since advanced weaponry can determine the outcome of a war.

Perhaps she could talk to Zhou Ren and the others about the types and uses of weapons in the new century, and maybe they could develop one or two useful weapons.

For example—firearms or even pistols. Or, they could develop bombs.

It's unlikely that it will be developed in the short term, given the current state of technology. Iron production is limited, and steel is even scarcer, making it difficult to mass-produce large quantities of precision parts.

Amidst these chaotic thoughts, accompanied by the twinkling starlight, Chenxi gradually drifted off to sleep.

The town of Qiao was already in chaos.

Zheng Hongfang had just finished presiding over the recruitment when he heard someone shout, "Mayor, something terrible has happened!"