Chapter 136: Torture
"No need."
Jiang Lin's movements quickened as he heard Qin Xiangnuan's slightly mocking voice. The longsword whistled with a sharp, piercing sound, and even the shopkeeper, despite his stature, was unable to withstand the blow, falling back repeatedly. He glanced at a hole somewhere in the cellar, swiftly trying to slip inside and escape. Qin Xiangnuan, however, spotted his movements first and kicked the wine jar on the table, blocking his escape route.
Crack—with a crisp sound, Jiang Lin's sword cut off the shopkeeper's hair.
A strand of black hair slowly fell to the ground. Jiang Lin placed the sword against his neck, turned around and looked at Qin Xiangnuan and said, "Thank you."
"You're welcome." Qin Xiangnuan accepted his thanks naturally.
The two men deftly tied the shopkeeper and the waiter together. Qin Xiangnuan clapped her hands, pulled a stool over and sat in front of them. Seeing that they were avoiding her gaze, she couldn't help but teasingly said, "Didn't you just say you wanted to do something with me? What's wrong now? You've completely forgotten everything that happened just now?" Qin Xiangnuan picked up the waiter's two kitchen knives, slapped them in her hands, and looked like a real bandit.
Jiang Lin looked at her without saying a word.
"Who the hell are you? I've never seen you before. It's just bad luck for us. We're going to kill you or chop you up!" The shopkeeper was quite resolute and shouted these words directly. Qin Xiangnuan looked at them, the light in her eyes gradually turning cold. "How much blood is on your hands? Now you just say you'll pay with your life? Now that you've fallen into my hands, don't expect such a quick ending."
"Have you ever heard of torture?"
Qin Xiangnuan took out the needle bag in her hand and frowned reluctantly, "Today I'll let you see it. It's a pity that my silver needles, such good things, are used on you. It really dirty them." She stood up and looked around until she saw a few thick straw platycodons on the table. Her eyes lit up and she took them and kept tearing them with her hands to make ten straw needles of different lengths but almost the same thickness.
"What do you want to do? If you have the ability, give us a quick death."
The shopkeeper watched Qin Xiangnuan approaching step by step, and was so scared that his body was trembling and his legs couldn't help shaking.
Qin Xiangnuan shook her head and looked at the two of them with sympathy, "I have no ability, I'm just a weak little woman. It's a bit ridiculous for you to preach those big truths to me?" She narrowed her eyes, held the straw platycodon, and used her skill and strength to directly pierce them into the shopkeeper's ten fingertips. As the ten fingers were connected to the heart, he almost fainted from the pain.
"Ouch, sorry, I think I hit you a little too hard."
Qin Xiangnuan, like a ghost from hell, walked slowly towards the waiter, "Don't worry, I will learn from this."
"What do you want to know? I'll tell you everything! Please give me a chance... to live." The waiter, knowing the situation, shouted immediately. He wasn't afraid of death, but he was terrified that Qin Xiangnuan would torture him and leave him hanging on for dear life. The mere thought of such a scene made the hairs on his body stand on end. Jiang Lin watched the whole process from the side, feeling that there were even more cruel punishments than those in the secret guard dungeon.
If Qin Xiangnuan could be put in charge of interrogating prisoners and enemies, even the tightest mouth could be pried open in a cup of tea.
"In that case, then tell me, when did you get here, and when did you start harming people?" Qin Xiangnuan stopped, brought a stool and sat down opposite the waiter. She put away the silver needles, took out a handkerchief, and soaked it completely. Her eyes revealed a hint of danger. "I advise you not to make up some lies to fool me. If I think there's anything wrong, I will directly block your mouth and nose."
The waiter felt suffocated, swallowed his saliva subconsciously, and shook his head repeatedly, saying, "I dare not say it's fake!"
"This inn was originally run by an elderly couple. We passed by here hoping to beg for food, but... seeing how frail they were, unable to resist, we became malicious and murdered them, seizing the inn. We initially wanted to start a business, but neither my brother nor I knew how to cook, let alone run a business, so we couldn't make any money. One day, a passing scholar discovered the bodies of the elderly couple. Fearing he'd report them to the authorities, we decided to go all the way and kill him as well."
When the waiter talked about this, there was no trace of regret or guilt in his words.
He spoke as if it were nothing special, but Qin Xiangnuan found it particularly difficult to listen. In this day and age, people like them who treated human life as worthless were everywhere, and countless people had died unjustly. She turned to look at Jiang Lin, who frowned, clearly lost in thought.
How could the high-ranking officials in the capital and the people in the imperial city know all this?
They only know how to raise taxes. People like Gu Mingqi are likely to exploit others without caring about their lives. But when there's not a single survivor in this city, when the mountains and plains are filled with criminals driven to action, how long can anyone hold onto that position? Qin Xiangnuan couldn't help but feel a sense of sadness. She sighed, and the cellar grew extremely quiet.
"Ouch, that hurts."
Qin Feng was in good health, and the effects of the drug didn't last long. Rubbing his swollen head, he sat up from the table, his legs resting on the floor. Qin Feng nearly fell over, but the loss of balance gave him a start, and he suddenly regained consciousness.
"What is this? Little sister, this...are you okay?"
Qin Feng scratched his head, still feeling a bit dizzy from the sudden movement. When he saw the waiter and the shopkeeper tied together, he immediately guessed something and rushed to Qin Xiangnuan, "I'll protect you!" Qin Xiangnuan looked at his clueless back and shook her head helplessly. She was afraid that even if she had nine lives, she would not be able to wait for his protection. "Next time, be careful and don't eat anything you put in your mouth carelessly, even if you are doing me a favor."
“Is there something wrong with that beef?”
Qin Feng was quite clever. He reacted immediately and kicked the waiter twice. "You're running a shady shop! I'm going to report you to the government!" As he spoke, the waiter and the shopkeeper paused, their expressions becoming somewhat unnatural. Qin Feng snorted and added, "Are you scared? My little sister is not someone you can easily mess with! You've finally hit a snag!"
"Why can't I hear that you are praising me?"
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