Zhou Chen's eyes widened in a trance, he saw the situation in front of him clearly, and found himself in a small dimly lit room. The table in the room was lit by candlelight, and under the flickering candlelight stood two people, one was Ma An's daughter, and the other was Zhao Zheng, who was expressionless.

Zhao Zheng!

Zhou Chen immediately shook his head and tried to struggle to get up, but his body couldn't move at all, and if he moved slightly, he would pull his arms, causing endless pain. He groaned, and his face turned pale.

"That's the situation in front of you, I don't think you need to say, you should also understand your situation. I advise you to be obedient and tell you everything you know, so that you will not suffer a lot, otherwise I will definitely make you miserable. Zhao Zheng spoke very calmly, but it was more terrifying than yelling.

"Hmph, you don't get carried away, this matter is not done by me alone, there are a few powerful things behind me, it won't be long before they come to save me, I advise you to let me go now, otherwise you must be the one who suffers!" Zhou Chen couldn't help but scream in pain. What he said was naturally a lie, just to deceive Zhao Zheng.

"If there are other masters behind you, how can you send a few of you miscellaneous fish to deal with me? You don't lie to me, with your strength and family background, you can't make an appointment with any masters. If I'm not mistaken, your other accomplices are nothing more than Zhang Yongling, Luo Xingzhi and the like. Zhao Zheng snorted.

Zhou Chen's lie was exposed, his face changed, and it became more and more difficult to look at, and by the time he tried to cover it up again, it was too late. He rolled his eyes and continued to lie, "Believe it or not, when my accomplices come to save me, you will regret it." ”

"Maybe I'll regret it later, but you'll definitely regret it before me." Zhao Zheng glared at Zhou Chen, then turned his head sideways, "Xiaohong, you go to another room to avoid it, you are not allowed to come out without my order." ”

Ma Hong may have the courage to disobey the order in front of her father, but in front of Zhao Zheng, she has no temper at all. She obediently walked to another room and closed the door. In fact, with her knowledge of how old she was, she couldn't figure out what was going on at all, and she could only vaguely judge whether Zhou Chen and the others were bad and Zhao was good, and that's it.

Zhao Zheng and Zhou Chen were left in the house. Zhao Zheng slowly walked in front of Zhou Chen and looked down at Zhou Chen. His face turned red in the light of the candlelight.

"Do you know why I let Ma Hong go to another room?" Zhao Zheng asked.

Zhou Chen swallowed his saliva and did not answer.

"Because I'm afraid she'll have nightmares after she sees it." Zhao Zheng squatted down as he spoke, grabbed Zhou Chen's bound wrist, and pinched one of his fingers.

"What do you want?" Zhou Chen asked in a panic.

"Are you scared? If you're afraid, tell me where Ma'an is, how many accomplices you have, who are these people, and what your white spoon plan is. ”

"If I told you this, would you still keep me alive? I'm not going to say anything. Zhou Chen clenched his teeth and said hardly.

"Whether you say it or not, your life will not be saved, I am not letting you choose between life or death, but between a comfortable death and a painful death. Looks like you want to choose the latter. But it's okay, I'll fulfill you. Zhao Zheng lifted Zhou Chen's little thumb, then put a bundle of wooden skewers that had been prepared long ago on the ground, took out one of them, and stabbed it into Zhou Chen's little thumb without hesitation.

The wooden skewer pierced into the crack of the fingernail, and blood came out of the nail when it landed.

As the so-called ten fingers connect the heart, this kind of severe pain is even more serious than a knife wound.

"o Ah !!" Zhou Chen screamed in pain, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and green tendons bulged.

"What are you yelling about, this is just the first one, you have ten fingers. After the ten fingers are used up, you still have ten toes. After ten toes are used up, you have so much more for me to torture. In fact, interrogation is my weakness, and this time I just used you to practice it. Zhao Zheng said lightly, picked up the second finger and the second wooden stick, and stabbed it again.

Zhou Chen let out another scream.

In this way, Zhao Zheng picked up wooden sticks one after another, stabbed them into Zhou Chen's fingernails one by one, and tortured Zhou Chen to death.

In just a stick of incense, Zhou Chen suffered a hardship that he had never suffered in his life, and he really couldn't stand it. Only then did he understand that it is not easy to be a tough guy, no wonder there are so many people in history who choose to be traitors. He thought about it, Ma An is still in Luo Xing and Zhang Yongling, maybe he can use this to exchange with Ma An as a pledge, so that he can save his life.

"I say! I say! Stop torturing me, get the sticks out of my fingernails! Zhou Chen relented and begged for mercy.

Zhao Zheng pretended not to hear, and pierced Zhou Chen's tenth finger with a wooden stick, made up a whole number, and then said slowly: "Okay, I'll ask you now, you answer, if you cooperate obediently, I will take out all these wooden sticks." ”

"Okay, you ask." Zhou Chen nodded weakly.

"Who are your accomplices?"

"You have guessed correctly just now, my accomplices are Luo Xing and Zhang Yongling."

Zhao Zheng's eyes lit up, and he secretly said sure enough, and then asked, "In addition to the two of them, is there anything else?" ”

"No, just like you said, I can't invite a master, and it's useless to invite ordinary martial artists, so I can only ask the two of them to help more reliably."

"Hmph, you're a raccoon dog."

Zhou Chen was tortured to the point that he lost his temper, didn't dare to speak up, and was silent.

"Let me ask you again, where is Ma'an imprisoned?" Zhao Zheng then asked.

"He was locked up in the secret room at the bottom of the courtyard of Luo Xing's house, and the entrance to the secret room was behind the bookcase in his study, which could be seen as long as the bookcase was opened."

"Why do you think about my Tiger Strength Yang Dan?"

"For money, of course, but for what."

"Who's the head?"

"Yes...... Zhang Yongling. Of course, Zhou Chen can't say that he is the mastermind.

"What's your White Spoon Project?"

"Actually, the plan is very simple, that is, let me bring you in and kidnap you, and then force you to ask about the source of the Tiger Strength * Yang Dan from your mouth."

"You white spoons have a lot of appetite, and they covet my elixir." Zhao Zheng snorted, "Since you know that I'm not easy to deal with, why don't you bring Wei Buxiao with you?" ”

"I also want to bring him, but he is Zhang Yongling's subordinate, and even Zhang Yongling can't dispatch him, let alone me. He won't come, and I can't help it. I thought that we would start with a lot, and if we framed you with a trick, it should be foolproof, but I didn't expect it to be planted in your hands. Zhou Chen replied bitterly.

Zhao Zheng secretly said that it was a fluke, if Na Yao Wei Buxiao was also present, then this would not be the ending. Thinking of this, a faint chill ran down his spine, this time he was really too close to death. He watched Zhou Chen's gaze become more vicious, and he held back his anger and asked, "Who among you killed Ma An's mother?" ”

"Yes...... It was Luo Xing's men who killed him, but I didn't do it. Zhou Chen lied again, in fact, he was responsible for breaking into Ma An's room, and it was he who killed Ma An's mother. But in this case, how could he take this kind of guilt on his head.

"Luo Xing's men? Are they the ones I killed in the woods? ”

"Yes, it's the one with the sword."

Zhao Zheng stared at Zhou Chen for a moment, looking at Zhou Chen all over, he had already finished asking all the questions, and Zhou Chen was useless for the time being.

"You, don't kill me! If you want to save Ma An, you can use me as a pledge in exchange, and Luo Xing will definitely hand over Ma An to you. Zhou Chen saw that Zhao Zheng's expression was not good, and hurriedly said.

"That's all you can do, but I don't want to do it for the time being, because exchanging the pledge is just a strategy, there are too many variables, and there are other easier ways to save Ma'an." Zhao Zheng stretched out his hand into his arms, took out a bottle of elixir, pulled out the plug, and poured out a pill, this elixir is nothing else, but a big dream pill, "Eat it." Get a good night's sleep. That way you will suffer less. ”

"It's okay to eat it, but can you give me some water first? I'm dying of thirst. Zhou Chen pleaded bitterly.

Zhao Zheng looked at Zhou Chen's pitiful appearance, and coldly dropped a sentence: "I knew this was the case, why bother in the first place!" He didn't want Zhou Chen to die so soon, so he gave Zhou Chen a drink, and then stuffed the Great Dream Pill into Zhou Chen's mouth.

Zhou Chen had no choice, swallowed the pill with a bitter face, and fell asleep under the destruction of the medicine not long after.

Zhao Zheng stared at Zhou Chen and took the medicine, knowing that Zhou Chen couldn't do it, and it was useless to do it, Zhou Chen's arm was broken now, and he couldn't use his strength at all. Taking advantage of Zhou Chen's deep sleep, he pulled out the wooden sticks on Zhou Chen's ten fingers one by one and threw them on the ground.

Zhou Chen had already told what he knew, although he didn't know whether what he said was true or not, but he also pointed out the next direction for Zhao Zheng.

Next, it is time to make efforts to investigate Zhang Yongling and Luo Xing, and if Ma An is really in these two hands, he will find a way to rescue them. Although he is now injured and his strength has been reduced, without further ado, he still has to do it as soon as possible.

He thought about it for a while, and felt that in the next one or a half years, the wound should be able to scab over, and the most basic actions could be guaranteed. At that point, you can go and find out the news.

During the period of recuperation, he planned to go around the woods more often, because Zhou Chen's accomplices would most likely go there to check on the situation, and if they could be caught, they would be able to ask more questions. He made up his mind and called Ma Hong out.

After Ma Hong saw the blood all over the ground, she was so frightened that she covered her eyes and didn't dare to look at it anymore.

Zhao Zheng waited until the evening, and after Ma Hong fell asleep, he quietly left the secret room and came to it. He trotted briskly in the night, and with the help of his Cloud Boots, he kept his footsteps to a minimum, and then touched the scene of the killing, jumped up to the tree, and observed from a high place.

The body of the first sneak attacker was still lying in place, and it was not known if it had been moved.

Zhao Zheng observed for a while, then continued to climb over the branches, all the way to the second killing scene, where the two corpses were also left in place.

I don't know if Zhou Chen's accomplices have come, but even if they do, they may not be kind enough to bury these corpses.

Zhao Zheng was in the spirit of trying his luck, hiding in the tree and observing for half the night, but unfortunately he never entered. He still had to recuperate from his injuries, so he didn't stay any longer, and returned to the secret room in the mass grave in the dark, and went to sleep with his head bored.

…… The secret room is always gloomy and dark, and this secret room is no exception, there are very few people in the world who like to stay in such a gloomy place, but Luo Xing likes it very much.

The secret room buried deep in the ground will give him a sense of security, and in this special case, this sense of security will be even stronger.

The current situation is indeed exceptional, and this is probably the most threatening one of his lifetime.

In the past, he always picked the persimmon and pinched it softly, but this time he pinched a hard one, which caused a lot of trouble.

At the time of Bai Yao, several spies he sent out had already returned one after another, bringing different news.

First of all, there is nothing unusual in the Hongchen Inn, whether it is the shopkeeper or the guys, they are working normally, and there is no sign of making a big move, the only suspicion is that Zhao Zheng in the store is gone.

Secondly, there were several corpses lying in the woods near the Hongchen Inn, all of which were several of Luo Xing's subordinates, but the bodies of Zhou Chen or Zhao Zheng were not found, and there was no trace of Ma Hong.

At the last time, Zhou Chen's family stayed at home and did not walk around, and Zhou Chen did not go home. No matter how bad and cold-blooded Zhou Chen is, it is impossible to abandon his wife and children for the sake of profit.

From these clues, a terrible result can be reached.

Zhou Chen's action must have failed, and Zhou Chen's original entry also fell into the hands of Zhao Zheng and became a pledge!

Only this speculation is most plausible.

Zhou Chen was arrested, so he couldn't go home. And Zhao Zheng must be planning how to take revenge, or how to save Ma An out.

This situation is very bad for Luo Xing and Zhang Yongling, several of Luo Xing's right-hand men have died, and there are no strong generals around him, although Zhang Yongling has a powerful Wei Buxiao by his side, but Wei Buxiao is just a triple martial arts.

Shen Luoxia of the Red Dust Inn has four strengths, and there are several other powerful characters in the store, and their combined strength is much higher than that of their side.

The disparity in strength between the two sides is too great, Luo Xing feels that he has stepped on the edge of the cliff, and if he takes another step, he will be doomed!

He closed his eyes and pondered what to do next, how to save his life. In this situation, he doesn't have many options, probably only one.

"Bump, bump, bump! Brother Luo, it's me, open the door. Zhang Yongling's voice sounded outside the door, interrupting Luo Xing's thoughts.

Luo Xing frowned, got up and opened the door of the secret room.

As soon as Zhang Yongling entered the door, he asked about the results of the investigation, Luo Xing answered them one by one with a calm face, and after he finished speaking, Zhang Yongling was immediately dumbfounded and stood on the spot.

"W-How is this possible? Brother Zhou Xian brought several people to start together, and he also had Ma Hong as a quality in his hand, how could he lose? Could it be that their white spoon operation was exposed ahead of schedule? Zhang Yongling asked anxiously.

"These questions don't matter, anyway, it's a boat, now let's think about what to do next." Luo Xing rubbed his tightly locked brows, "Outside of Master Zhang, I don't know what you think?" ”

"I'm a little messed up now, you let me think about it." Zhang Yongling paced back and forth in the secret room, thought for a while, and replied, "I think this matter is probably going to fail, or don't fight any more tiger strength * Yang Dan ideas." In my opinion, let's find a way to make peace with the Red Dust Inn. We hurriedly returned Ma An, exchanged Zhou Xiandi back, and then paid a little silver to the Hongchen Inn, turning the big things into small things and the small things. ”

"Hmph, you're thinking about it simply, how can this matter be so easy to solve?" Luo Xing glanced at Zhang Yongling angrily, "We first killed Ma An's mother, and then killed Zhao Zheng." Zhao is Shen Luoxia's younger brother, how can Shen Luoxia give up. Not to mention that we take some money, even if we go bankrupt, it will be difficult to resolve this blood feud. ”

"The thing...... Has it already fallen into such a field? Zhang Yongling was so anxious that he was sweating profusely, and said bitterly, "If I had known this, I wouldn't have been involved in this matter." ”

"It's too late to regret it now, so let's think of a way out."

"So what do you say you should do? I listen to you all. Zhang Yongling had run out of ideas.

"The enemy is strong and I am weak, and the two sides are a situation of not dying, in this case, there are only three solutions, one is to take refuge in the stronger one, looking for a backer, the second is to set a trap, win more with less, and the third is to get rid of the golden cicada and stay away from the enemy. Choose your own way. Luo Xing analyzed in a deep voice.

"The second one definitely doesn't work, I don't want to take any more risks, and the third one doesn't work, my family business is in Qibao County, how can I easily abandon it? I think it's better to choose the first one. Zhang Yongling replied.

"And who do you want to go to?"

"Official! Take refuge in the government! Since the Red Dust Inn wants to kill us, then find the government to protect us. ”

"Why are you confused again, the whole thing has always been that we are assassinating the Red Dust Inn, if we report these things to the government, before the Red Dust Inn has something to do, we will be arrested and put in prison first."

"Money can make ghosts grind, and we can use money to make some government officials."

"That's true, but if you have money, don't you have money at the Red Dust Inn?"

Zhang Yongling was speechless when he heard this, Shen Luoxia has been operating locally for many years, and she must have made a lot of money. Moreover, Miao Li, the local magistrate, is a well-known corrupt official, and he has always favored whoever gives more money. If this matter is stabbed into Miao Li's hands, Miao Li will definitely open his mouth, and then they will have to go bankrupt.

If you can't take refuge in the government, who can you turn to? Take refuge in the sect? That would end up in a similar situation, if they didn't give enough benefits, no sect would be willing to protect them for nothing.

If you can't find a backer, you can't touch it, so you can only choose the third way as the best policy.

"Is it possible...... Can we only leave Qibao County? Zhang Yongling asked reluctantly.

"Go or not, whatever you want." Luo Xing replied in a deep voice. In fact, when he was pondering just now, he had already made this decision, and they only had this last path to choose.

(To be continued)