Chapter 466 - 467: Punishment
Chapter 466: Chapter 467: Punishment
Every time he saw the two little ones, he felt an unprecedented sense of relaxation.
Zhou Shixiong had always loved children. But ever since he got that long scar on his face, kids would burst into frightened tears before they even got near him. Over time, even though he still adored them in his heart, he became reluctant to get close.
But that curse was broken by Ancient Wenheng’s two sons. He had no idea why the two boys were so fearless, but they always giggled foolishly and happily whenever they saw him.
When he held them, they showed no fear at all. They would even curiously stroke the scar on his face and ask in their babyish voices if it hurt.
’How could he not love children like this?’
All he did was visit a few more times and play with the kids a bit, all because he was so fond of them, and now Brother Gu was being this stingy.
Ancient Wenheng wasn’t actually being stingy. The problem was that Zhou Shixiong would indulge the two boys in everything. After every play session with him, his sons would become even more domineering.
He and his wife had just barely managed to rein in their behavior, and now that they were back together, it was going to be another headache.
"You spoil them way too much. You give them whatever they want, and it’s going to make them incredibly bossy when they’re older." Ancient Wenheng took the opportunity to reason with him.
"I don’t like the sound of that. How old are they? This is the time for them to have fun, yet you always keep them cooped up like little old men."
Ancient Wenheng rolled his eyes. "Isn’t the reason you like my Luo Luo because he speaks and acts so reasonably and properly?
And now you’re saying he’s like a little old man. When he gets here, I’ll be sure to tell him his uncle is finding fault with him."
"Don’t do that," Zhou Shixiong said, having completely forgotten about whatever formal visiting card he was supposed to be dealing with. "That was just a slip of the tongue. You’re not that petty, are you?"
"..."
Joking aside, Ancient Wenheng and Zhou Shixiong were swift when it came to business. Wenheng spent the night interrogating several of the bandit leaders, while Zhou Shixiong took his men to redeploy forces along the border.
Mountain Leader strained against the iron chains dragging on the floor. "What? You want to let us out now? Let me tell you, it’s too late. This isn’t over."
Ancient Wenheng waved for the government officials to take him away, but the man began to struggle. "Get these damned things off me first! Then have someone prepare some clean water. I need to wash up properly."
Ah Ba, who stood beside Ancient Wenheng, walked straight over and kicked the man in the back, sending him stumbling to the ground.
"Cooperate if you know what’s good for you. Otherwise, you’re in for a world of hurt."
Mountain Leader glared up at him fiercely. "You wouldn’t dare."
Ah Ba raised his foot and stomped on his back. "You tell me. Do I dare?"
Ancient Wenheng glanced at Tian Er and the others who were still watching. "All of you better behave. If you don’t have the land cleared by the time my seeds arrive, then you can forget about eating."
Just because he hadn’t been around didn’t mean he was unaware of their recent shenanigans.
They thought their salvation was at hand, so every one of them was looking for ways to slack off.
His visit today wasn’t just to interrogate Mountain Leader; it was also to give the rest of them a warning.
Watching Mountain Leader get hauled away, Tian Er had a complicated expression.
Part of him hoped Lord Shan would suffer greatly, maybe even die before the Prince could save them. But he also feared that the new Magistrate of Lu City was ruthless and had no intention of letting any of them go.
’If we’d known it would turn out like this, we wouldn’t have bothered getting rid of the last Magistrate,’ he thought. ’Who knew we’d end up attracting a monster like this one.’
Indeed, Tian Er and the others had been reflecting lately. They had ended up in this miserable state all because this man had arrived.
In the past, no matter how much Great General Zhou hated them, the most he ever did was capture and imprison them. Once the envoy arrived, he would have to let them go.
They’d suffer a little in the meantime, but at least it was nothing like this.
He touched his arm, which was now just skin and bones.
’If I can’t get out of this godforsaken place soon, I don’t know how much longer I can hold on.’
But Mountain Leader had no time for such thoughts. He was dragged into a bare room and kicked inside before he could even get his footing.
"F*CKER! SON OF A B*TCH!"
A stream of curses poured out of him. Ancient Wenheng ignored him, found the only stool in the room, and sat down.
Once he had cursed himself tired, Ah Ba began to pick out torture instruments.
"So, which one would you like to try?" he asked, giving the prisoner a wicked smirk.
Mountain Leader was speechless. ’Where in the hell did they get these things?’
Before he could answer, Ah Ba picked up a set of finger clamps. "Actually, this one won’t do. You need to keep your hands for labor. It would be letting you off too easy otherwise."
He then picked up an iron brush and made a few gestures in the air. "This one looks pretty good. It’s guaranteed to scrape off a layer of skin. It’ll only hurt for a little while, and you’ll most likely survive."
Seeing Mountain Leader’s eyes widen in terror, Ah Ba frowned. "Not satisfied? I can find something else. After all, you’re our guest. You people are always reminding us that we’re a nation of etiquette, so naturally, we must respect your wishes.
But to demonstrate our hospitality, even if you don’t make a choice, I’ll be sure to serve up a few of our specialty dishes for you."
Mountain Leader’s fear intensified as he heard the excitement in his tormentor’s voice.
"A whip? Nah, that won’t work. You’re all too familiar with it.
A finger press... this also targets the fingers. If it’s too much, I could go a little lighter. How about we just go with this one?"
Seeing the man approach him with the instrument, Mountain Leader frantically shouted to Ancient Wenheng, "Sir! Whatever you want to ask, just ask! I’ll talk! I’ll tell you everything!"
He had barely survived a whole winter, and now hope was finally in sight. He didn’t want to suffer the torture of the flesh, only to die in this tiny room.
Ah Ba looked a little disappointed. "If you don’t like it, you should have just said so. We have plenty of other options we can take our time choosing from.
Now that you’re here, you have to at least let me get my hands dirty!"
Mountain Leader immediately started shuffling his body, dragging his heavy shackles as he tried to get closer to Ancient Wenheng.
But he hadn’t shuffled more than a few steps before Jiang Shiniu blocked him with the tip of his saber. His voice was filled with disgust. "Say what you have to say from there. Don’t you know how bad you smell?"
Mountain Leader felt he had suffered a lifetime’s worth of humiliation in this single day.
Seeing that the time was right, Ancient Wenheng finally began his interrogation.
Mountain Leader tried to evade the questions and change the subject several times, but Ancient Wenheng saw through his attempts every time.
In fact, there were several instances where Ancient Wenheng was able to state the answers to his own questions more accurately than Mountain Leader could.
Mountain Leader was bewildered. ’Could the others who were captured have already confessed?’
Seeing that he wasn’t being cooperative, Ah Ba actually did pick out a few instruments and gave him a small taste.
If Mr. Gu hadn’t given prior orders not to interfere with the prisoner’s ability to do farm work, Ah Ba would have made him try every last one of them.