bookbashuk Chapter 111 18 lives
Chapter 111 18 lives
"Thank you so much, Brother Stone." Yan Shuo stood up and thanked him. "You're familiar with my house. The room on the second floor by the west balcony is for you and Sister Huifen. Your whole family can come over for meals. The children can stay in the guest room downstairs for easy care."
"No need, no need," Wang Shitou quickly waved his hand. "We live right next door, it's just a short walk. I'll have Huifen go over and look after her during the day, and we'll go back to our own homes at night. The first few months are fine, just let Xiaoyue move around more and get normal rest. When her period gets heavier, I'll have Huifen stay at your place for a few days. We're neighbors, no need to be so polite!"
"Then I won't stand on ceremony, thank you very much, Brother Shitou," Yan Shuo said gratefully. "Want to come over for drinks tonight? I'll have the kitchen prepare a few extra dishes."
"Okay! I'll be there tonight!" Wang Shitou readily agreed.
In the gloomy, secret office, Yan Shuo was furious.
"Slap!" A slap landed on Jiang Feng's face. Zhao Lie, Zhou Hu, Liu Kuai, and others were standing next to him.
Yan Shuo furiously circled the ground twice, then turned and pointed at Jiang Feng. "Where are my men? Eighteen of them, all highly skilled tacticians, experts in sniping, assassination, and hand-to-hand combat—all gone in just a few days? Tell me, where are my men?"
Jiang Feng staggered back two steps after being slapped by Yan Shuo. Half of his cheek instantly became red, swollen, and hot, and a trace of blood spilled from the corner of his mouth.
In the office, Zhao Lie, Zhou Hu, Liu Kuai, and others stood with their hands at their sides, not daring to utter a sound.
Yan Shuo's chest heaved violently, his eyes blazing with fury. He paced back and forth on the ground in a rage, the sound of his leather shoes grinding against the floor like a countdown to death.
Jiang Feng covered his burning cheek, his eyes darting around. He instinctively shrank back, then forced a calm demeanor and explained, "Sir, I didn't want this either! Our planned raid on the airfield only had a dozen or so sentries, according to our reconnaissance. But there were over thirty bombers parked there. We intended to silently eliminate the sentries, destroy the bombers, and then withdraw. But just as we infiltrated the outer perimeter of the airfield, a large number of Japanese soldiers suddenly appeared and surrounded us. Their firepower was terrifying; we didn't have time to react at all… I fought my way out with my life on the line. Look at my injuries!"
He rolled up his left sleeve, revealing a blood-soaked bandage wrapped around his forearm, looking rather disheveled.
But Yan Shuo stared at the faint purple mark on his head, his face growing increasingly ashen.
He stepped forward, grabbed Jiang Feng's injured arm, and pinched the flesh around the wound with his fingertips.
"Ah—!" Jiang Feng convulsed in pain, screaming in agony, his forehead instantly covered in cold sweat.
"Tell the truth!" Yan Shuo's eyes were ferocious, and his grip tightened. "What deal did you make with the Japanese? How much did you sell my brothers for? If you dare lie again, I'll throw you into the incinerator and leave not even a bone behind!"
Jiang Feng's face was deathly pale, his eyes twitching between fear and defiance. His lips trembled, yet he still stubbornly insisted, "I didn't! It was your men who disobeyed orders and acted without authorization, thus exposing our position! I'm a lieutenant colonel of the Kuomintang, how dare you torture me? I'm going to sue you in a Kuomintang military court! You're forming factions and engaging in dictatorship! I've already told you I'm injured too, let me go! Otherwise, I'll make you pay!"
"Sue me? You want to make me regret it?" Yan Shuo was completely enraged. He sneered, his eyes filled with murderous intent. "Take him down! Interrogate him thoroughly! Find out all the details of his collusion with the Japanese, who his backer is, how he betrayed them—leave no stone unturned! Dead or alive!"
"Yes!" Zhou Hu and Liu Kuai responded and stepped forward, their large, iron-like hands gripping Jiang Feng's arms tightly.
Jiang Feng panicked instantly, struggling and roaring, "Yan Shuo! How dare you! I am the nephew of Major General Zhang Lingchi from the Ministry of Military Affairs, try touching me!"
No matter how much he yelled, the two dragged him into the basement interrogation room like a dead dog and tied him to the cold rack behind his back.
Silence fell over the office again. Yan Shuo lit a cigarette and smoked it with red eyes, the atmosphere heavy.
"Captain, he's a lieutenant colonel. Do we really want to kill him?" Zhao Lie asked hesitantly.
"Lieutenant Colonel? What's wrong with Lieutenant Colonel? Are you scared?" Yan Shuo looked at Zhao Lie with red eyes.
"No, we have no reason to let someone die at our hands! This Jiang Feng, coming to us alone to ask for people and equipment, and carrying out missions solo, is clearly just trying to gain experience. He'll probably get promoted soon when he gets back. He definitely has powerful backers. If he dies at our hands, it will be bad for you!"
"Backer? Go to the interrogation room and dig out his backer. I want to see which scum got him into the Party-state's ranks. My brother, he can't have died in vain! Draw out the whole story, every single detail. Don't miss a single thing. Eighteen lives, and he just dismisses it with a 'gone'? If you can't do that, I'll shove you into his hands and have him take you to the airport! Get out!" Yan Shuo picked up a folder and slapped it at Zhao Lie's face.
Zhao Lie was so frightened that he quickly took the folder, placed it on the small stool by the door, opened the door and went out. Outside the door, he wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, gritted his teeth, and ran towards the interrogation room.
"Damn it, what does this have to do with me? That Jiang Feng is such a troublemaker! He even made me get scolded! I almost got hit by the falling object!" Zhao Lie touched his cheek with lingering fear.
The basement of the secret hideout was dark and damp. The racks were made of thick, round steel, and the chains dragged on the floor with a cold sound. In the corner, branding irons, bamboo skewers, and a tiger bench were neatly stacked, each instrument of torture exuding a chilling aura.
"Clang!" Zhou Hu slammed Jiang Feng onto the rack, chains piercing his wrists and ankles and locking him tightly to the steel pillar. When the bolts were tightened, the chains cut Jiang Feng's skin painfully.
He glanced at the instruments of torture around him, his earlier arrogance gradually fading, a hint of panic flashing in his eyes, yet he still forced himself to shout, "You are illegally detaining me and abusing your power! I'm going to complain to the Ministry of Military Affairs! Major General Zhang will definitely stand up for me!"
Liu Kuai squatted down, staring at Jiang Feng's forearm wrapped in bandages, a mocking smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
He didn't say anything, but simply reached out, grabbed the edge of the bandage, and yanked it off sharply.
The medical bandage was torn open instantly, revealing the wound underneath: the wound was shallow and neat, with smooth edges, clearly deliberately cut with a sharp knife, and the bleeding was stopped in time, with little redness or swelling in the surrounding skin and flesh, which was not an injury caused by gunfire or explosions during the breakout.
"That's it?" Liu Kuai poked the edge of the wound with his fingertip, and Jiang Feng winced in pain. "Lieutenant Colonel Jiang, is this a wound for a three-year-old? How can a wound from a breakout be this clean? You must have had a Japanese army medic carefully treat it, right?"
Jiang Feng's face paled, his eyes darting around, but he still stubbornly insisted, "You're lying! This was a cut I got from a Japanese bayonet during my breakout; I was just lucky the wound wasn't deep!"
"Good luck?" Zhou Hu picked up a charcoal brazier from the corner, inside which a red-hot branding iron was emitting blue smoke, its scorching heat instantly spreading out. "Eighteen brothers are dead, and you're the only one who's 'lucky'? And you just happen to come back with such a 'decent' wound to claim credit?"