Chapter 230 - 229: Interrogation
The night was deep.
On the night of the final day, there was no moon, the clouds were pressing low, and even the stars were nowhere in sight.
Without lighting a lantern, Yun Qi guided the black-clothed Mu Lianxiao through the streets and alleys, stopping at a somewhat shabby and unremarkable house.
Yun Qi knocked on the door three times, neither hastily nor slowly, and after a while, footsteps were heard from inside.
The wooden door opened to reveal a face darker than the night, only the pair of big round eyes stood out clearly.
The big man, seeing it was Yun Qi, stepped aside to let them in and respectfully saluted Mu Lianxiao after closing the door.
"Is he still locked up?" Yun Qi asked the big man in a low voice.
The big man nodded repeatedly, "Locked up, he’s been kept in the woodshed all along."
The woodshed had candles lit, which were lit as soon as it got dark. Mu Lianxiao took a glance inside through the window.
A person was tied up and thrown in the corner, looking listless and with scattered gaze; it was Ma Dehai, another person was guarding him, sitting at the door and enjoying a bowl of noodle soup that seemed to be brewed with meat bones, the aroma spread even outside the door, let alone to Ma Dehai inside.
The big man brought over a long bench, wiped it with a cloth, and said, "Sir, make do with this."
Mu Lianxiao nodded and sat outside the window; outside was dark while inside was lit, allowing him to see Ma Dehai while Ma Dehai couldn’t see him.
Yun Qi whispered a few instructions to the big man, who nodded and pushed open the door to the woodshed and went in.
Mu Lianxiao watched as the big man interrogated Ma Dehai, his expression calm, but his gaze was focused, carefully observing Ma Dehai’s every move.
He knew Ma Dehai was a tough man who could endure.
Entering the palace as an eunuch in his twenties, unless he had extraordinary willpower, he wouldn’t have survived the castration, let alone live to this day.
Half a month ago, according to the plan, this dark-skinned big man under Yun Qi caught Ma Dehai visiting his parents’ graves outside Yanzi Mountain Village.
Ma Dehai, unaware of their origins, naturally refused to surrender. He said that paying respects to his parents was of utmost importance in his life, and that seizing or beating him was heartless and disrespectful to filial piety.
These words made the big man and his companions laugh so hard they nearly let Ma Dehai escape. Fortunately, they were numerous and trained, while Ma Dehai was not skilled, so they managed to tie him up and bring him back to the Capital.
The big man recounted this incident to Yun Qi as a joke. He said that Ma Dehai, for the sake of a woman, became an eunuch and yet dared to speak of filial piety at his parents’ grave. If his parents knew in their graves, they might have risen to strangle this unmanly son.
Yun Qi had visited the house once, instructed the big man to guard carefully, give him some water and food to keep him from dying, and to deprive him of sleep day and night. After ten days to half a month, questioning him would be easier.
This was the method used in the military to deal with spies, requiring little effort but yielding results. The big man understood immediately and had been treating Ma Dehai this way for half a month.
At first, Ma Dehai would struggle, but after a few days he quieted down. As the big man put it, he didn’t even have the strength to bite his tongue to commit suicide, yet Ma Dehai didn’t know who he had offended. Since being captured, no one had asked him a single question.
However, now Ma Dehai understood.
The big man came in and asked about the events at the hunting ground a few months ago.
That day, there were issues with two horses: Princess Rui’s Caiwei and Du Yunluo’s Snow Clothes. Ma Dehai, who was in charge of the stables, couldn’t have seen nothing.
If Ma Dehai were still lucid, he could firmly deny seeing anything, as there was no evidence. As for his life, it was in others’ hands; whether he spoke the truth or lied made no difference.
But these past half-month had worn him down. Day and night surveillance deprived him of sleep, and the sparse food barely sustained him. Ma Dehai was in such a stupor that he couldn’t even smell the fragrant noodles the guard was eating.
Ma Dehai, in such a state, couldn’t think at all.
Ma Dehai didn’t answer; he couldn’t answer.
The big man took out an oil paper package from his bosom, opened it to reveal two meat buns, placing them in front of Ma Dehai, and said, "Go ahead, say it, and you can eat afterward."
Ma Dehai trembled all over, while being gently coaxed by the big man, and finally, after a while, he stammered out a few broken words.
The big man carefully tried to discern and finally understood Ma Dehai’s meaning.
Ma Dehai said that the one who tampered with Snow Clothes was a young man in his twenties. He hid on the side so he couldn’t see the youth’s face clearly, but either due to inexperience or fear, the youth was kicked in the chest by Snow Clothes midway, causing him to cough up blood on the spot. Later, the palace maid searching for the earring came, and the youth stumbled away.
The big man asked a few more questions before allowing Ma Dehai a couple of bites of the buns. He didn’t let him eat too much—firstly, because starving for so long, eating too much would be harmful, and secondly, because giving him strength might lead him to make more trouble.
After ensuring the guard was attentive, the big man left the woodshed, finding that Mu Lianxiao and Yun Qi were no longer outside the window.
The big man quickly jogged out and found them in the courtyard. He stepped forward and asked, "Sir, should we keep this person?"
"Keep him for now," Mu Lianxiao’s voice was low.
The big man tentatively asked, "Sir intends to catch someone and let him identify?"
Mu Lianxiao replied coldly, "He probably can’t even recognize himself now, let alone anyone else."
The big man scratched his nose, puzzled as to why keep someone who couldn’t identify anyone, but since Mu Lianxiao ordered to keep him, he would, as food was not an issue.
Mu Lianxiao stood with his hands behind his back for a moment, then spoke to Yun Qi, "Have someone inquire who got kicked by a horse at the hunting ground."
Yun Qi was about to nod but suddenly paused, his face becoming very troubled as he regained composure.
"Sir..." Yun Qi wore a pained expression, unsure whether to speak or stay silent.
Mu Lianxiao’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, "Speak your mind."
Yun Qi awkwardly glanced at the big man, who made an excuse of a stomach ache and ran off.
Yun Qi steeled himself, "Sir, it was just late April when Little Six’s father, Fang Sheng, passed away. Little Six’s mother mentioned that Fang Sheng suddenly started coughing up blood. When they wanted to hire a doctor, Fang Sheng refused to spend the money, saying hiring a doctor was pointless. After seven or eight days, he passed. I heard there was a dark mark here."
Yun Qi pointed to his chest.
Mu Lianxiao looked at Yun Qi, "Are you implying that Fang Sheng was involved? Fang Sheng’s father once followed the Fourth Uncle and died heroically on the battlefield, embodying loyalty and honor. Over the years, the house hasn’t treated their family poorly. Why would he harm Yunluo?"
This question, Yun Qi couldn’t answer either. He scratched his head, "It was just something that came to mind. Sir, I’ll visit Little Six’s home tomorrow to inquire further."
Mu Lianxiao nodded and added, "The Royal hunting ground, under normal circumstances, Fang Sheng had no access. Make sure you investigate carefully and don’t wrong Fang Sheng."
Yun Qi agreed readily.