Father Xu coughed and said with displeasure, "Youyouyouyou, look at you, all you can say is 'youyou,' no wonder Xu Jinhuan doesn't recognize you!"
After saying that, he glared at Xu Youyou, his eyes filled with disdain and no affection.
Mother Xu snorted coldly, "Our eldest brother didn't say anything to our second brother, but what have you done? It's too late to say these things now!"
Xu Jinhuan, who was walking in front, twitched his ears and heard the complaints of the group of mentally ill people in the Xu family very clearly.
Mrs. Xu was right about one thing: it's too late now...
Just as the group was struggling to climb the mountain, a sudden exclamation arose from the crowd.
"Ah, someone's trying to escape!"
The constables were dispersed to various locations in the crowd early in the morning, and Xie Datou had given them orders not to let anyone escape.
So, as soon as someone shouted, a constable leaped up and caught the escapee.
"I didn't keep shackled because you were going to climb the mountain. But since you're so ungrateful, then climb the mountain with the shackles on."
After the constable Wang Manshan finished speaking, he was about to take a wooden shackle and put it on the runaway man when a woman suddenly ran out and grabbed his leg.
"Sir, he knows he was wrong. This mountain is so steep, and the rain is getting heavier. With the shackles on, it's really impossible to climb it!"
After the woman finished crying and shouting, she still grabbed the man's trouser leg, "Quickly, quickly kneel down and beg the officials for mercy!"
To everyone's surprise, the man curled his lip in disdain and said loudly, "Who would kneel down and beg these people for mercy so that everyone could help them fight off the bandits? And what do they do? They don't even say thank you."
They even crossed the river and then burned the bridge! Making everyone climb a mountain in the pouring rain—isn't that sending us to our deaths? Don't you all agree?
After speaking, the man glanced at the crowd with great pride, as if he were a hero who had saved everyone from the fire.
The crowd, who had been inexplicably addressed, all lowered their heads, pretending not to have heard what he asked, and no one responded to him.
From the moment the man began to speak, Xu Jinhuan observed the expressions of everyone present and indeed noticed a few people who seemed a bit off.
Moreover, if she hadn't been constantly using her mental energy to sense the emotions of those around her while observing, she would have been completely fooled by that person.
Could there be hidden agents here?
Xu Jinhuan fell into deep thought...
"I really don't know how someone like you became an official. You think you're a hero even when others are being used as pawns."
Don't want to climb mountains, and don't want to wear shackles? Fine, I'll grant your wish. I'll send you to meet the King of Hell right now, so you won't have to whine here anymore.
After finishing speaking, the constable Wang Manshan gave the fleeing man a cold look.
If it weren't for the boss saying that they might have gone a bit too far before and needed to change their impression on Boss Xu, he would never have spoken so politely before.
After all, the imperial court allowed its officials to execute those who tried to escape.
Now this person is even trying to sow discord between the constables and the exiles—isn't that just trying to sow discord between them and Boss Xu?!
They're really tired of living.
Since this person wanted to die, he didn't mind helping him out!
Thinking of this, Wang Manshan gripped the hilt of the sword and drew the long sword from its sheath.
The cold blade was placed against the man's neck, and whether from fear or the coldness, he shuddered.
The woman who had previously begged for help immediately knelt on the ground and pleaded in a low voice.
"My lord, please have mercy and let him go. He gets arrogant and overconfident when he's flattered. He really didn't mean to do this."
He's the sole breadwinner of the family. The young children need their father, and the elderly mother-in-law needs her son. Please, sir/madam, help me.
Wang Manshan paused, looking at the woman's back, as if he had thought of something, but his expression quickly turned cold again.
"He himself has no responsibility as a son or a father. He does whatever others tell him to do. Does that mean he can use the same words to shirk his responsibility after killing someone?"
The woman was stumped by Wang Manshan's words. Her hand, which was gripping her trouser leg, slowly slipped down, and she didn't know how to refute him.
The man seemed to be provoked by these words, and he shouted loudly.
"Who doesn't have the responsibilities of being a father and a son? It's because I have a sense of responsibility that I don't want my family to suffer like this!"
Wang Manshan snorted coldly and said sarcastically, "So, someone as responsible as you chose to run away alone, leaving behind your elderly mother, wife, and children?"
The man was about to retort when Xie Datou, who was walking this way, interrupted him.
"What's going on? It's still not resolved?"
Wang Manshan immediately replied, "Boss, this man not only ran away, but also tried to cause trouble. His wife said that someone instigated him. I was just about to ask him who was behind him."
Upon hearing this, Xie Datou scrutinized the man for a while. His menacing face made the man break out in a cold sweat despite the freezing weather.
"Tell me, who was giving you advice behind the scenes?"
Xu Jinhuan also wanted to hear his answer and see if it matched the person he had just observed.
To everyone's surprise, the man snorted coldly and suddenly started putting on airs.
"If you tell me to say something and I just say it, what kind of person would I be? I, Xiang Linsheng, have never been the kind of person to betray my brothers!"
Xu Jinhuan was utterly speechless. Could this guy have bought his official position? He was incredibly oblivious to danger, completely lacking any sense of crisis.
Or perhaps he has something else to rely on?
Xu Jinhuan decided to test the waters. She coughed lightly and gave her loyal henchman Xie Datou a wink.
Xie Datou was not like Wang Manshan. Even through the heavy rain, he immediately understood his master's thoughts and did his best to complete the task.
Xie Datou gripped the hilt of his knife, drew it with a "whoosh," and without blinking, swung it directly at Xiang Linsheng beside him, severing one of his fingers.
"Tell me or not? If you don't tell me, I'll chop off your fingers one by one. If your fingers are gone, I'll chop off your hands. If your hands are gone, I'll chop off your arms."
After saying that, Xie Datou was about to swing his knife at Xiang Linsheng again.
Xiang Linsheng screamed in agony, no longer caring about his promise to his brother, and shouted, "Speak! I'll talk! Stop cutting me!"
Xie Datou didn't sheath his knife; he just stared at Xiang Linsheng, waiting for his answer.
"It was Wu Changhai, Jing Jiaxin, and Lin Liming who asked me to probe the bottom line of the constables."
After Xiang Linsheng finished reciting the names of these people, Xie Datou waved his hand, and the constables quickly ran into the crowd and pulled these people out.
Xie Datou frowned and continued, "That's all? No one else?"
Xiang Linsheng immediately nodded emphatically, his face full of sincerity, "Really, that's all, I've told you everything I know, please, sir, let me go."
Xiang Linsheng watched Xie Datou slowly put away the knife and breathed a slight sigh of relief. But before he could completely relax, he heard a clear female voice.
"Big Head, keep chopping."
Everyone looked at Xu Jinhuan in surprise, clearly not understanding why he was still being chopped after Xiang Linsheng had told the truth. Wasn't that a bit too brutal?
Everyone here is an exile, so why isn't Miss Xu helping her own people?
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