Chapter 43

Xie Wendong crouched down, ruffled the man’s head a few times, and said, “I have a few questions for you. You need to answer ‘properly.’ If you don’t, I’ll get angry, and when I’m angry, I’m capable of anything! Remember that well first!”
The man swallowed hard, stared at Xie Wendong without saying a word. Ignoring him, Xie Wendong continued, “First, I want to know if you put the poison in the Crown Prince’s drink.” The man nodded. “Good!” Xie Wendong smiled. “Second, are you really from the Qing Gang?” The man nodded again.
“Third, who sent you?” As he spoke, Xie Wendong stared intently at the man.
The man took a breath; the pressure from Xie Wendong was immense, and he couldn’t meet his gaze. In a low voice, he said, “It was Gao Zhen!”
Xie Wendong waved his finger in front of the man and said in a sinister tone, “You’re not honest. That disappoints me. I hate liars, and I hate those who lie to me even more! And unfortunately, you fall into both categories. Don’t blame me!” After saying that, someone nearby said, “Cut off one more finger from him!”
As soon as those words were spoken, two men stepped forward, pinned down the man, and forced him to open his hand. Realizing what was about to happen, the man struggled desperately. But no one showed pity. One man pulled out a dagger from his waist and slashed at the man’s little finger.
“Ah!~~~” The man screamed in pain, rolling on the ground, leaving bloodstains everywhere. Xie Wendong stepped forward, stepped on the man’s chest to hold him still, and said, “Oh right, I forgot to tell you—don’t take my words as a joke. I never joke with people who aren’t my friends!” After saying that, Xie Wendong removed his foot and asked, “I wonder if you want to talk now?”
The man, dazed, looked at Xie Wendong and said, “I… I wasn’t lying. It was Gao Zhen… who sent me…”
Xie Wendong shook his head. “It seems you’re still testing my patience! Cut off one more finger from him!” Immediately, a few more men stepped forward and cleanly severed another finger. This time, the man truly couldn’t bear it. With all ten fingers connected to the heart, he soon fainted from the pain.
Xie Wendong looked down and said, “Wake him up!” One of his men responded, picked up a bottle of beer, and poured it over the man’s head.

“Ugh… ah…~~~” The man moaned as he slowly woke up, staring at Xie Wendong in fear, his face covered in sweat. Xie Wendong smiled and said, “How does it feel? I wonder if you’ve thought it through! For every lie you tell, I’ll cut off one of your fingers. Once all the fingers are gone, it will be the toes. And when even those are gone, I’ll have to cut into your flesh. But you won’t die quickly, because you can’t die until I get the answer I want. I’m someone who keeps his word!”
Xie Wendong’s words made everyone around him break into cold sweats, for they knew he would definitely do whatever he said, no matter what it was. The man closed his eyes and remained silent for a long time before slowly asking, “If I tell the truth, will you let me go?”
Xie Wendong looked at him and said calmly, “No! You’re smart enough to know the consequences of what you’ve done. Don’t think of me as a kind person. You must die—just in a more comfortable or more painful way. Choose for yourself!”
Gao Qiang stared at Xie Wendong in confusion, thinking, “Brother Dong, there’s no need to be so explicit. It’s unlikely the man will still tell the truth!” But the man spoke up, “Alright, just as the rumors say, Xie Wendong is indeed not ordinary. I admit defeat. Let me tell you—someone who sent me is Li Shiming, the elder of the Qing Gang!” With that, he closed his eyes and lay on the ground, ready to face whatever fate awaited him.
Hearing this, Xie Wendong thought to himself, “Oh no! If Li Shiming dares to take such drastic action, could it be he’s planning to rebel? If that’s the case, Gao Zhen is in danger!” He shouted at the man, “Is Li Shiming planning to rebel?”
The man sneered, “Planning? That plan has been around for a long time! Haha, Gao Zhen might already be dead by now, and Li Shiming will become the leader of the Qing Gang!”
Xie Wendong was stunned. Waving his hand, he didn’t want to see the man’s face or hear his annoying laughter anymore. The men beside him understood his intention and dragged the man away.
Xie Wendong first tried to call Gao Zhen. “The user you’re calling is powered off or out of range. Please…” He hung up and immediately called Jiang Sen’s phone. “Jiang Sen, it’s Xie Wendong. Go check on the Qing Gang right away, especially Gao Zhen’s situation. The Qing Gang might be in chaos!”
Jiang Sen had just received a call from a member of the secret team and didn’t dare delay. He nodded and said, “Okay, Brother Dong. I’ll send people right away!”
Xie Wendong thanked him and said, “Remember, it has to be fast. I need accurate information by eight o’clock!” “I understand, Brother Dong. I’ll go myself!”

Xie Wendong nodded in satisfaction and agreed, then waited for news with everyone in Beibei Di Hall. After a while, the people from Longtang grew restless, worried about Sanyan. Gao Qiang walked over to Xie Wendong, who was sitting on the sofa, and whispered, “Brother Dong, what do you think? Should we get Sanyan out first?”
Xie Wendong was also thinking of a solution, but none seemed suitable. The city chief’s eyes turned blue at the sight of gang members, making it difficult to get him to release someone easily. Moreover, he wouldn’t budge under either pressure or persuasion—it was really tricky. Xie Wendong cleared his throat, stood up, and asked, “Which police station did they take Brother Zhang to?”
Gao Qiang replied hurriedly, “It should be the local police station. I saw the officers who came were from there.”
Xie Wendong checked his watch—it was just after six. He said, “Alright, I’ll go see Brother Zhang first to see if there’s any way to get him out.” With that, he headed for the door. Everyone followed silently behind him. When Xie Wendong reached the door, he stopped, turned back to them, and said, “Stay here. We’re not going to fight. If so many people go, the police will think we’re trying to rebel! We can’t let them catch us off guard!”
After saying that, Xie Wendong glanced at the group and walked out of the club alone. Upon arriving at the local police station, most of the officers had already left, leaving only a few. Xie Wendong went straight in and stood in the hallway. Just then, a female officer in her twenties passed by. Xie Wendong politely said, “Sis, could I trouble you for a moment?”
The female officer stopped and looked at Xie Wendong, seeing that he was a teenager around sixteen or seventeen. She asked, “What do you need?”
“Wasn’t there a man named Zhang Zhidong arrested here not long ago? I’d like to see him.”
Thinking Xie Wendong was too young and must be the man’s brother, the officer said, “That’s not possible. He’s a repeat offender and likely to be sentenced. No one can see him now! I think you’d better come back later.”
Xie Wendong thought to himself that this was troublesome and asked, “Then I’d like to see the station chief. Do you know where his office is?”
Seeing that Xie Wendong wasn’t giving up, the officer shook her head and said, “It’s on the second floor. Go up and turn left. I don’t think seeing the chief will help either!” With that, she left.
Xie Wendong thanked the officer over her shoulder, turned, and went up to the second floor. Sure enough, after turning left for a while, he saw a sign indicating the station chief’s office. He knocked on the door, and a deep voice came from inside, “Come in!”
Xie Wendong entered. The station chief was a middle-aged, obese man who was quite cunning. Seeing it was Xie Wendong, he quickly stood up. “Oh, it’s Brother Xie! Please, have a seat!” Although Xie Wendong and the station chief weren’t very close, they had met a few times before.

Xie Wendong had no time for nonsense and said directly, “Director Du, don’t be polite. I’m sure you know why I’m here!”
Director Du knew well that despite Xie Wendong’s young age, he couldn’t afford to offend him. He must be here over the matter of Sanyan. He hurriedly said, “Brother Xie, it’s true we arrested Zhang Zhidong, but it was an order from the higher-level police bureau. If you ask me to release him now, I really can’t do that! You have to understand my situation—I still have the bureau chief above me!”
Xie Wendong knew he was telling the truth and said, “I’m not asking you to release him, and you don’t have the authority to do so. I just want to see him. That shouldn’t be a problem, right?”
Director Du breathed a sigh of relief and said with a smile, “Of course, that’s no problem at all!” Xie Wendong nodded in agreement.
Director Du led Xie Wendong to the detention room. Upon entering, he smiled—Sanyan was there, smoking a cigarette, shouting, and playing with three police officers using a tractor. Beer bottles and cans were scattered all over the floor. Sanyan was quite influential in City J and was familiar with the local police, often eating and drinking with them. There was no other way but to arrest him this time, so a few police officers who were close to him brought some food and drinks to keep him company. When they saw the director and Xie Wendong enter, they quickly stood up. Director Du sensibly called the police officers outside.
Sanyan smiled at Xie Wendong and said, “Brother Dong, how am I!? Even though I’m in the station, I can still have a good time! Haha! Damn, even the cops treat me like a brother!”
Xie Wendong found a chair to sit down and said, “I’m relieved to see you’re fine. There’s no need to rush. Things are busy right now, but I’ll find a way to get you out soon!” Sanyan knew the situation was tense with the new bureau chief, who wasn’t easy to deal with, and said, “Brother Dong, I’m fine. Who would dare bully me now? Don’t worry about me!”
Xie Wendong inwardly praised him, took Sanyan’s hand, and said, “Just keep having fun here. I guarantee you’ll get out safely within ten days! Consider it a vacation!” “Haha!” Sanyan was touched by Xie Wendong’s concern and hid his excitement with laughter.
The Pafel Hotel was considered one of the top hotels in City J, with luxurious decorations—the perfect place for the wealthy to dine and stay overnight. Li Feng drove Gao Huimei and her sister here and led them to a private room on the second floor. Soon, the hotel staff brought food and drinks, and Li Feng cheerfully poured drinks for Gao Huimei and her sister. Gao Huimei frowned slightly and said, “Brother Li, my sister and I can’t drink alcohol. Some drinks will be fine for us!”

Li Feng slapped his forehead. “Ah, look at my head—how could I forget that you two can’t drink!” With that, he stood up, opened the door, and said to his subordinates waiting outside, “Go get me two bottles of juice—make sure it’s ‘fresh’!” With his back to Gao Hui Mei and the others, Li Feng secretly gave his subordinates a signal. Understanding his intention, they nodded and left. Li Feng sat down and chatted half-heartedly with Gao Hui Mei and her sister. Gao Hui Yu interrupted his boredom. “Li Feng, didn’t you say there was something about Wen Dong? Go on, tell us!” Hearing this, Li Feng felt jealous and resentful. “You wench, all you think about is Xie Wen Dong! I’ll make you realize that only I exist in your heart! Just wait!”