Just as he was embracing the woman, a sharp pain suddenly shot through his hand holding the knife, causing his muscles to tense up and rendering him unable to move.
What kind of hidden weapon did this woman use?
Inside the room, besides the young master Wuda and his wife, there was also an old man in his fifties staring at him with a half-smile.
Jian Fangtong felt a chill run down her spine from the three men's stares and couldn't help but swallow hard: "You... you can kill me if you want. I've always lived a life of constant danger, living one day at a time. Now that I'm outmatched, I have no regrets about dying!"
Old Yu chuckled lightly: "Wanting to die is easy, but before you die, I have a few questions to ask you. Answer them well, and I'll give you a quick death!"
Jian Fangtong's eyes lit up: "Okay, as long as you're being tortured, you can ask whatever you want!"
Now that things have come to this, he no longer hopes to survive. If he were to be dragged along by the horse's rump for even one more day, he would be nothing but bones.
Even if the other party wants to kill me, I won't get my hands dirty with blood.
Zhao Tingduo looked at him coldly and asked, "Where are you from?"
As Mr. Yu mentioned before, the Zhenbei Army had searched outside the city and driven away all the bandits and horsemen. So how did this group of horsemen, which numbered quite a few, reappear?
Jian Fangtong looked at the roaring fire pit, then at the copper pot on top, and the bubbling mutton soup inside. He swallowed hard before saying, "I can tell you, but you have to let me warm myself by the fire and eat something!"
Zhao Tingduo's eyes turned cold, and she lashed him with her whip, knocking him to the ground: "How dare you! This is not a place for you to negotiate. Kneel down and talk!"
He still harbored resentment towards the bandit leader for kidnapping Song Liyun.
Right in front of him, he grabbed A-Yun with his claws. If A-Yun hadn't had a way to save her life, she certainly wouldn't be sitting peacefully next to him right now.
The more he thought about it, the more terrified he became, wishing he could whip the man to death.
The reason this group of bandits has survived until now is because Old Yu had something to say.
Jian Fangtong's arm was wounded by an arrow, and after being tied up all afternoon, he was already numb and unaware. Now, when Zhao Tingduo whipped him open, blood began to flow out again.
Song Liyun frowned in disgust: "Ashi, forget it, don't hit him anymore, let's ask Elder Yu to question him instead!"
Inside the carriage, Song Liyun explained to the still-shaken Zhao Tingduo that she had intentionally allowed herself to be captured by the bandit leader.
To completely annihilate the bandits, casualties are inevitable. Zhao Tingduo can hold off the bandit leader alone, and we only need to use a little trick to reduce the losses. Why not?
Zhao Tingduo was terrified because she hadn't expected to be dragged into the river by the convulsing bandit leader and nearly drown.
Zhao Tingduo suppressed her anger and said to Jian Fangtong, who was struggling to get up from the ground, "Get up and answer me, and I'll give you soup!"
Jian Fangtong immediately perked up, rushed to the fire pit, grabbed a wooden bowl from the side of the pot and scooped the broth into it without fear of getting burned, and began to drink the scalding hot mutton soup in large gulps.
This startled the three people in the room. They had seen people who were not afraid of death or pain, but they had never seen anyone who was not afraid of being burned.
Song Liyun even suspected that the bandit leader's throat was already 70% cooked.
After three bowls of mutton soup, Jian Fangtong's face was flushed, and the deathly look she had taken from being frozen by the cold wind and wet clothes was gone.
Song Liyun thought to herself: What a physique! If he hadn't become a bandit, he could definitely have gotten a position in the Zhenbei Army.
Jian Fangtong was eating mutton soup, and Old Yu was observing him silently. After he finished eating, Old Yu slowly asked, "Did you come from the Lianshan group?"
When Jian Fangtong heard the name Lianshan, he was only slightly taken aback, but he remained expressionless. He sat casually by the fire pit, warming himself by the fire, and said, "Old man, you have good eyesight. My surname is Jian, my given name is Fangtong, and I am from Qingzhou. Five years ago, I accidentally injured someone and was exiled to the frontier."
Occupied and murdered by local military households, he sought refuge with the bandits of Lianshan!
Old Yu stroked his beard and nodded: "Lian Shan Huo Jia used to have a close relationship with the Qi family, were you aware of that?"
Jian Fangtong said, "The wife next to Boss Huo is from a branch of the Qi family. After you raided the Qi family, Huo Jia killed that woman!"
Song Liyun was startled: "How many years has Madam Qi been with him?"
Jian Fangtong glanced at Song Liyun, and his body twitched as if the sudden pain had taken control of his entire body, making his scalp tingle.
His lips, trembling and red from the heat, forced a bitter smile as he said, "Young Madam, Madam Qi has been with Huo Jia for sixteen years and has two sons and a daughter. The eldest daughter was just sent to the chieftain of the Simon tribe last year."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Tingduo suddenly remembered that last March, when she returned to the city with the slaves of the Wu Dynasty she had found on the grasslands, she had attended the wedding banquet of the Simon tribe. It turned out that the bride was the daughter of the leader of the Lianshan bandits.
Song Liyun clenched her fist: "Killing a wife of sixteen years so easily, he really has no regard for our marital bond." She felt that if she ever encountered Huo Jia again, she would definitely tear him to pieces.
Lianshan, located north of Yunzhou and far from Hecheng, is a mountain range between the Wu Dynasty and the Di tribe's grasslands, and also a natural dividing line.
This place is unmanaged and has long been occupied by a group of bandits.
Zhao Tinglei had sent people to suppress them, but the bandits moved freely between the two borders. The Zhenbei Army had tried to suppress them several times, but only killed a few scattered henchmen. Instead, the bandits of Lianshan became more famous and more arrogant.
It now appears that the Lianshan bandits colluded with the Qi family in the slave trade.
But how come Jian Fangtong is now leading more than forty people to the Mida River Valley, thousands of miles away?
Jian Fangtong was a rough man. Without even asking Old Yu, he said without any concealment: "Huo Jia is ruthless and heartless. I disagree with him and have many conflicts. Before the New Year, I took a group of people and left Lianshan to find a way out on my own."
It turns out that Jian Fangtong had a falling out with Huo Jia in Lianshan, so he led a group of people to establish his own independent stronghold.
However, Yunzhou is now increasingly heavily guarded by the Zhenbei Army, and he has no suitable position from the north to the west.
Having finally found a stretch of road from Hecheng to the Mida River Valley, where there were no Zhenbei Army soldiers or other people, they decided to settle down there.
Unexpectedly, the road was full of men who worked, and Zhao Tingduo and Song Liyun's convoy was a rare opportunity for them to find easy prey.
Before this, they had raided a nearby tribe and found some food.
I haven't eaten anything for a day now.
Old Yu's expression was solemn.
The bandits of Lianshan are connected to the Qi family!
The Simon tribe has connections with the Lianshan bandits!
He frowned. Qi Kexian had disappeared without a trace after fleeing Hecheng, which must be related to the Lianshan bandits... or even the Simon tribe.
The Ximeng tribe is also a Di tribe that is currently closely associated with the Wu Dynasty.
The relationships here seem complicated, and even Shan Huojia has distanced himself from the Qi family.
However, there were still clues to be found. These messages were very important to the garrison, and the Simon tribe needed to be on guard.
As for Jian Fangtong, Old Yu looked at Zhao Tingduo.
These bandits who rob and plunder are the most despicable. If it weren't for my own journey, anyone else would have surely met a terrible end.
But if we kill... it's best to let Young Master Uda decide what matters on the grasslands.
Zhao Tingduo didn't speak directly, but looked at Jian Fangtong and said, "Do you know that you are guilty of a capital offense?"
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