Perhaps it was best to play along. If they already believed him to be their leader, why not take advantage of it? He might be able to extract valuable information about this other Zhang family.
He spoke sternly, “It’s true that you recognize me—but I do not recognize you. There are those who would exploit my name, using it to commit crimes under false pretenses.
“From this moment on, I will ask questions. You will answer, one by one, with nothing but the absolute truth. If you lie—”
He smiled.
“Three slashes, six wounds. You know the punishment.”
The six assassins hastily bowed their heads. “Yes, my lord!”
Qilin pointed to the first assassin. “Where is our clan’s stronghold?”
“Ba Nai, Guang Xi. The Zhang clan’s century-old tulou.”
Ba Nai…
That was far from Mount Wang Bai—so far that there had been no contact between the two Zhang families.
A century-old tulou, Qilin mused. That meant this Ba Nai Zhang clan had been established for over a hundred years.
But how was that possible?
King Mu would never have allowed a Zhang family to exist outside the Eastern Xia Kingdom for over a century.
Something didn’t add up.
Qilin turned to the second assassin. “How many Zhang clan members live in Ba Nai?”
“One thousand direct bloodline members, and about two thousand two hundred extended family members,” the second assassin answered. “The direct bloodline members live inside the tulou and do not intermarry with outsiders. The extended family members have impure lineage and live outside the tulou, mixed with the other people of Da Yong.”
Qilin nodded thoughtfully before turning to the third assassin.
“Who ordered you to ambush the Silver-Armored soldiers?”
“Fifteen days ago, the Vice Patriarch sent word back home,” the third assassin replied. “He said he had found your whereabouts and summoned us to gather here to plan your rescue.
“But there was also another mission. We were to capture Wang Cang Hai at all costs. He holds a crucial secret—one that concerns our clan’s greatest mystery. No one else can be allowed to know it. We had to act first, capture Wang Cang Hai, force him to reveal the secret, and then… silence him forever.”
Wu Ma Nan Sheng could no longer hold back his fury. He strode forward, his massive frame looming over the kneeling assassins.
“How dare you plot against Lord Xiao Wang?!” he thundered.
Nan Gong Yu quickly grabbed his arm. “Calm yourself, Commander. Let them finish speaking first.”
Then, turning back to the assassins, he asked, “Did any of you actually see Lord Xiao Wang?”
The assassins did not respond to Nan Gong Yu. Instead, they turned their expectant gazes toward Qilin.
Qilin repeated the question. “Did any of your people spot Wang Cang Hai?”
Following his earlier command to answer one by one, the fourth assassin spoke. “We had agreed to send a signal if we located Wang Cang Hai. But today, no one sent any signal.”
Qilin pressed further. “Where is the Vice Patriarch now? Could he have captured Wang Cang Hai already?”
The fifth assassin answered, “The Vice Patriarch is far stronger than any of us. It is possible that he acted before we did and has already taken Wang Cang Hai.
“We do not know his current location, but we do know that he is supposed to preside over the Zhang family gathering at Qing Ze Lake at dusk.
“When he sees you, my lord, he will surely be overjoyed!”
Hearing this, Wu Ma Nan Sheng’s fury reignited. He turned on Qilin, his voice seething with anger.
“So you are their clan leader?! And you still dare claim you’re not one of them? I’m tying you up right now and taking you back to exchange for Lord Xiao Wang!”
Qilin sighed in exasperation. “Big guy, you’re so noisy.”
0 Comments