"If you wanted intelligence on Liangshan, you would have interrogated them separately. They would have said more. Why kill them like this? Search: \(¨完¨本¨神¨站¨) to read high-quality literature for free."

The night wind swept under the eaves, carrying the faint scent of blood. Zhu Chaofeng and the others, having witnessed the previous events, didn't seem particularly enthusiastic. Earlier, Ning Yi had revealed his identity to Zhu Chaofeng and requested cooperation. Zhu Chaofeng had agreed, as Zhu Family Village was already cornered and could use any help.

However, once things had started, they could calmly consider and discuss many things. Zhu Long's question wasn't without reason. Although the Liangshan bandits were tough, it was unlikely they were all fearless. If real intelligence was needed, separate interrogations would have yielded everything. Even the leaders might not have held out. Ning Yi gathering them in the square to question them one by one was the reason for their resistance. Liangshan's rebellion relied on a sense of righteousness, and no one wanted to be seen betraying their comrades.

His question was direct, but Ning Yi's answer was simple.

"Intelligence… who wants their intelligence? Brother Zhu misunderstood." Ning Yi smiled and cupped his fist towards Zhu Chaofeng. "The night is long, Boss Zhu. Please gather all the literate and ruthless gentlemen in the village to come and observe, learn how to interrogate, organize, and file information. It will be useful later."

He was covered in blood, his face still bearing the coldness of his earlier killings. Though his smile was gentle, no one dared underestimate him. Zhu Chaofeng nodded but only looked up at Ning Yi after a moment.

"Young Master Lei, I admire your method of alienating those two hundred people, but how does that help our Zhu Family's war effort? As an official, revealing your identity only now suggests you intend to use Du Long Gang as a pawn. Am I wrong?"

This was the real question.

As an official, he had remained hidden for so long only to appear when the war was at its worst, wanting Du Long Gang to deplete Liangshan's forces while the government reaped the benefits. Under the questioning gaze, Ning Yi, still stained with blood, smiled and cupped his fist, his tone casual:

"It's best if Boss Zhu understands!"

Zhu Chaofeng waved his hand abruptly, "If you government officials truly want to eliminate the bandits, why not send a large army! He attacks my Du Long Gang, and you could attack from both sides with your troops, severely damaging these Liangshan bandits! Where are the troops of the Wu Rui Camp?"

During Zhu Chaofeng's interrogation, Zhu Long stared at Ning Yi with murderous intent. Ning Yi looked at him and smiled. "Boss Zhu, are you joking? You just said you understood, but now you're saying this? What combat power does the Wu Rui Camp have? You should know better than I do. Attack from both sides? It's more likely we'd be defeated one by one… Or, to take a step back, let's say we really repel this Liangshan attack. Do you think they won't be back in three months or half a year?"

"If we'd be defeated one by one even with a combined effort, how much longer can my Zhu Family Village last! Even if you want Du Long Gang to contribute, you must first help us repel this disaster, otherwise, if Zhu Family Village is destroyed in a few days, what can you do then, other than use the lives of my three villages to deplete some of Liangshan's strength!?"

During their conversation, Zhu Long seemed to realize something and suddenly looked up. "Could it be that you're using my Du Long Gang and Wan Family Ridge as bait, while the Wu Rui Camp secretly attacks Liangshan? To raid their base? If it's really a 'besiege Wei to rescue Zhao' strategy, shouldn't that information have arrived already? Or are you truly using Zhu Family Village as a discardable piece?"

The feeling that Zhu Family Village couldn't last much longer hadn't spread widely, but at least the Zhu family members were aware of it. Now, they were trying every possible means to protect themselves. If the army took the opportunity to run to Liangshan to snatch a bargain and used them as discardable pawns, their mood would be imaginable. To be honest, the Wu Rui Camp was capable of such things. However, after he asked this, Ning Yi couldn't help but laugh.

"As if they don't want to die fast enough, who would do such a thing…" He rubbed his forehead. "Heh… They can't even win a direct fight, so they run to raid the base, forcing people into a desperate situation. Their rebellion also involves their families. If something like this happens, those twenty thousand people outside, if not as good as those Jurchen fellows in the north, at least a direct assault on the Wu Rui Camp wouldn't be a problem. Within half a year, they might sweep through half of Shandong. By then, if Song Jiang wants to become emperor, they'll be his best fighters. He'll hold our hands and thank us…"

He laughed to himself, and when he looked up again, his face was completely cold.

"I won't beat around the bush, Boss Zhu. I'll sincerely give you the bottom line. I can mobilize the Wu Rui Camp, but we can only fight one big battle at most. You know their fighting strength. Whether it's raiding Liangshan's base or attacking from both sides to relieve your Zhu Family Village, the problem won't be solved. If Liangshan comes again, you're dead."

"But if the army doesn't come, my Zhu Family Village might die now!" Zhu Chaofeng looked at him.

"At least I'll die with you," Ning Yi replied casually. "If they don't die, we'll die, so there's only one way: kill all the Liangshan people here this time, scatter and wipe them out in one go."

Zhu Long shouted, "What nonsense are you talking about!"

"It is indeed nonsense!" Ning Yi waved his hand, and Zhu Long reflexively took half a step back, thinking that this madman in the courtyard was about to attack again. "The Wu Rui Camp is greedy and afraid of death, and so are you! You say that fighting Liangshan is the government's responsibility, you're right, curse them then! But what's the use! But now… Boss Zhu, you should understand that if Liangshan doesn't die, you will. Now I want to ask, if the siege of Du Long Gang is lifted, and if we can really kill Liangshan, are you willing to send troops, really fight once…"

Ning Yi looked at him and then said, "I can't control those soldiers in the Wu Rui Camp. I can only rely on you."

Zhu Chaofeng said, "Could it be… you really have a way?"

"Just a possibility. I'm already working on it." Ning Yi gestured towards the courtyard. "Whether it's possible or not, Boss Zhu, you can see for yourself. If there's no effect within three days… anyway, I'm dying here with you. I killed these people, they won't let me go, and neither will the Zhu family. Even if you treat them well, they will definitely kill the Zhu family… Think about it yourselves, I'll go wash up first."

As Ning Yi spoke, he walked past the Zhu family father and son. Zhu Long thought for a moment, turned around, and couldn't help but say, "Do you really think this is useful? Even if you find out everything, even if you can get them all on our side, so what? It's just over a hundred people! Do you think Liangshan has no way to deal with it? I'm telling you, if they tell some lies, you might not be able to find out in three or two days!"

In the lamplight, Ning Yi turned his head and smiled.

"Honestly, Brother Zhu, you've misunderstood. Whether they tell the truth or not, whether they come to our side or not, ha…" He spread his hands, his eyes cold, and said, word by word, "I. Don't. Care."

***************

The night deepened, and the battlefield was filled with the stench of blood, corpses, and burning.

The summer temperature was high. The lingering smells from days of fighting, in this oven-like weather, had become very unpleasant. On the paths near Zhu Family Village and Hu Family Village, teams of people moved silently. In the distance, the celebratory fires of the Liangshan camp could be seen.

Occasional cries came from the teams.

The daytime battles weren't as deadly as large-scale positional warfare, but the back-and-forth would leave behind corpses that couldn't be collected in time. At night, when the Liangshan people no longer attacked, the villagers would come out to try to transport the corpses back and also take advantage of the darkness to continue laying bamboo spikes, traps, and caltrops, hoping to have more room to maneuver in tomorrow's battle.

Of course, such things weren't entirely unobstructed at night. Liangshan had enough manpower, and occasionally, generals would lead three or five hundred men to attack at night. Even without the advantage of terrain, their high morale could scatter the village soldiers. In the earlier nights, many women came out to collect corpses, but after several attacks, some were killed, and some were captured on the spot and taken back to the Liangshan camp. If one approached at night, one could sometimes vaguely hear the cries of women. Several brave men from the village couldn't bear this humiliation and rushed towards the Liangshan camp at night, but they were all shot dead before they arrived.

In the past few nights, Luan Tingyu and others had stipulated that the villagers, even when going out to set traps, weren't allowed to run around randomly at night. Those who went out to collect corpses were mostly men or old women. However, there had been no more cries from that side in the past few days. It was said that Liangshan leaders like Guan Sheng and Li Kui inspected the camps and believed that such women were corrupting the camp and that bullying women and children damaged the reputation of the Liangshan heroes. They killed all the captured women with a single slash and threw the corpses out of the camp to spare them further humiliation.

The war had been going on for several days, and even some of the villagers who came out at night were injured. They looked at the scene of the Liangshan camp from afar. Among the crowd, some would occasionally crack a few jokes, but most had fallen silent, gritting their teeth and setting up tripwires and inserting bamboo spikes on the roads, hoping they would be useful in the coming days. The area was large, and there weren't enough people. Doing these things was better than nothing. That was all they could do.

In the desolate wind, the cries of women would sometimes echo, those were women whose families had all died, who came out without being able to find even the corpses, and who had mostly broken down mentally, half-crazed. Such women insisted on coming out, and the villagers couldn't stop them. Lonely figures swayed in the fields and forests. People tried to keep an eye on them, hoping they would give up after not finding the corpses. If there was still room after setting up the traps, they would take them back to the village. If they ran away, they could only hope they would die a good death.

Living in such a world, even if one felt pity for such things, one couldn't pity them all. A crazed person who had lost their family was equivalent to being dead. And in the Liangshan camp over there, not many people would be moved by this, or have some slight touch, but having seen it too much, they saw it as normal. They drank wine from large bowls, ate large pieces of meat, robbed the rich to help the poor, were loyal to their brothers, and acted on behalf of heaven. Surely, doing so couldn't be considered heroes?

Some had ambition, some lived for the moment, some enjoyed the thrill of killing and the glory of having power, and some were enjoying the pleasure of gradually pushing the enemy towards the cliff. Despite the losses, the momentum and morale of Liangshan had reached its peak. Taking advantage of the night, another general led his soldiers out with laughter to give those ants laying traps some surprises.

The scattered villagers fled back to Zhu Family Village in chaos. Zhu Long then led people out to meet others who hadn't returned. There was laughter and the collective shouts of the Liangshan soldiers in the darkness. Amidst this chaos and darkness, in the small courtyard, the Liangshan people had been reduced by half. Occasionally, the corpses of some would be dragged out of the small rooms and thrown away, but the proportion had decreased significantly. Out of a hundred people being interrogated, only eight or nine had been killed.

Such interrogations took a long time. The prisoners who had been questioned were taken away from the back door and randomly locked into small rooms, with a maximum of three to five people in each room. They were given food and weren't allowed to speak. This night's interrogation of the two hundred people was actually not just this once.

Wang Shanyue walked past the rooms, listening to the questions and answers coming from inside. He had now understood the general outline of the whole thing. The initial questions were basically about their name, place of origin, how they came to Liangshan, which Liangshan leader they belonged to, who they knew, then basic questions about Liangshan intelligence, and letting them confess any secrets themselves.

During this process, some were willing to answer, some lied, and some were hardcore Liangshan members who chose to remain silent. But even those, after entering the interrogation room, weren't forced. They slowly spent their time and were taken to the back to be locked in a small prison with three to five people. Among these people, only a few were casually killed and their corpses thrown out.

One "questionnaire" after another was handed out and sent to a small room on the second floor of the courtyard. Since changing into new clothes, Ning Yi had been staying in this room, archiving each answer, thinking, comparing, and organizing new questions for each person. The entire workload was very large. Originally, Wang Shanyue, Qi Xinhan, and others had asked if he needed help, but they received a shake of the head as an answer.

"This is the first time I'm doing this, so it might be a little troublesome. I'll do it this time first, and I'll have to ask everyone for help in the future…"

Wang Shanyue had actually seen some things in these questions and answers. For example, there might be some fictional questions in the interrogation, asking if there was a small path on the east gate of Liangshan that could be used for a surprise attack. This question itself was non-existent, but based on the other person's answer, one could see what that person was thinking. Some frankly said they didn't know, some said there wasn't, some said there was, and they even made it sound vivid and detailed.

Looking through two hundred copies of such things, comparing them back and forth, the next step was the second interrogation and comparison of the second set of answers. Some people's lies were pointed out, and some weren't. After asking, it was already early morning when most people had gone to sleep. Ning Yi began to summon the prisoners in batches of three to five and spoke to them in a small room.

This time, the words were similar.

"...You chose a good time for your rebellion, but the imperial court can't tolerate such things anymore... I'm the vanguard this time, the Wu Rui Camp has already been dispatched... Believe it or not, it's up to you, but you can see for yourself what will happen next... I'm giving you a way out, and that's to have you help me do some things. If you do the things, you'll be pardoned... Your information is all here. I came here on the order of the current Right Chancellor, and these are your rewards after you do the things... Of course, you can choose not to do them, but I can't say what will happen when you're defeated..."

In Wang Shanyue's view, these words were mostly empty threats, but Ning Yi's expression was natural. After saying this, he gave each person tasks in private. Even some hardcore members who said nothing were left to be locked up for a while before being pulled back.

In fact, Zhu Chaofeng was also observing the situation here.

Throughout the whole night, the young master named Lei Feng kept the lights on all night. In fact, since the second interrogation, almost everything had been done by this young man alone. Zhu Chaofeng seemed to have understood something about the whole process, but he couldn't fully understand it. However, in the subsequent meetings with three or five people, he was surprised that this cold young man had almost memorized everyone's information. He could casually say anything that was on their answers.

He didn't know what use it would be to torture these two hundred people like this. But the whole night's process was linked one by one, never stopping. It was almost like a strange and huge water-powered workshop. The courtyards in the dim light were like crouching behemoths. It was swallowing something, chewing, digesting, and then... was about to spit out something strange.

The next morning, when the morning mist rose and the war outside started again, the matters in these courtyards finally came to an end. Ning Yi walked out of the room and washed his face with cold water. He had been constantly summarizing, thinking, and writing all night, and then constantly talking, but at this time, there wasn't much fatigue on his face. A little haggardness instead made those eyes sharper and deeper.

He went out to meet Zhu Chaofeng, Luan Tingyu, Zhu Long, Zhu Hu, Zhu Biao, and others, and after saying what needed to be said, the Liangshan soldiers locked in the small prison began to be called out, ordered to put on their previous Liangshan uniforms, and some were packed into sacks, while others were escorted to the gate of Zhu Family Village.

On June 5th, early in the morning, the Liangshan soldiers came to challenge again. Then, the sounds of killing rose everywhere. On this day, the Zhu Family Village people, who had no way to turn the tide, made strange moves. It wasn't until noon that it caught the attention of Wu Yong and the others. At that time, they were already discussing how to celebrate after attacking Yun Prefecture and taking Du Long Gang.

On the road on the Zhu Family Village side, in the morning mist, three people were dumped out of sacks and thrown into the field.

At the east gate of Zhu Family Village, Liu Fu and two Liangshan soldiers next to him who he didn't recognize were pushed over. Someone threw mud at them, and in front, someone opened the gate of the village.

"Get out!"

Someone kicked them in the butt several times. They walked forward, and with a bang, the gate of Zhu Family Village slammed shut behind them when the three turned back. Three weapons were thrown down from the gate. Looking up, the fog ahead was thinning, and freedom was close at hand.

"You... you want to sow discord..." Someone was cursing somewhere, but the sounds of fighting rose on the battlefield. In the end, they could only head towards Liangshan.

On the outer walls of the village, Zhu Chaofeng and others were watching the battle outside. Next to them, the young man named Lei Feng rubbed his face in the morning wind.

"Hoo... The seeds of malice have been released. Let's wait for them to sprout... Boss Zhu, I'm going to take a nap..."

The crowd watched his figure stagger away, and a strange, low-pitched song came from the wind.

"On the... right side of the left leg... left side of the right leg... the black forest... they are naughty and smart, they are lively and clever, they live freely in that black forest... da da da da forgot how to sing..."

The war in the wind didn't stop, and there was killing everywhere. Smoke and blood were still rising.

"...What the hell... what kind of person is this..."

**************

ps: The unscrupulous song is provided by friend Jian Suyan. Double monthly tickets will start on the 28th. There will be an update at midnight today, which is being revised, and then... Li Heng has already made a move, and it's about time we made a move too.

Support (完本神站) by sharing this site to those little friends who need it! Leave a message if you can't find a book!