"Your Highness, I'll tell you! We are..."
Huan Shikang kicked De Ta's right foot. The kick was so hard it made De Ta screamed in pain and thus his words was soon broken off.
"Don't you have any pride?! Even though our entire skin is removed from our bodies, we still have to defend our principles and self-respect! Don't you dare answer him! We'll never answer him even though we must die!"
At first, Zhu Su did this merely because he could not master his tension, yet it turned out that De Ta was easy to be scared of. It all became easier, then... He snapped, "No need to do that in prison. We can start the interrogation here and now!"
"Noooo!!!" De Ta cried. "I will confess! We..."
De Ta's eyes bulged, like a dead fish. All the red color had disappeared from his pale face. He immediately fell to the ground, passed out.
Wu Qi soon approached Huan Shikang. "What are you doing with him? You must be preventing him from confessing, right?!"
"I'm tied right now, how can I make him pass out? But yes, I really want to do it... well, it's so lucky he suddenly collapses like that." Huan Shikang was sullen. Since his words made sense, Wu Qi could only grumble in anger. He was now busy observing his surroundings, looking for any suspicious things.
Huan Shikang stared sharply at Zhu Su who was now astonished as he found that the chess piece which became his hope of victory passed out instead. "Zhou Wang, you can torture me or even kill me! But it won't dampen our struggle! Our struggle will go on, and it's the people who will demand justice for all this!"
God knew it was just a coincidence or not, the thunder suddenly boomed in a deafening sound outside.
"Alright! As you wish!" Zhu Su shouted. "Take them all into the dungeon!"
Outside the window, Yu Mu Li La witnessed everything that happened in that small room. Her hands gripped several small needles covered with anesthetic, and she had thrown one of them directly to De Ta's back neck, blocking his main energy, anesthetizing him.
"That fool De Ta almost ruin Sir Rumilie's strategy, but luckily I can prevent him to do that."
Yu Mu Li La watched Chen Xinyi and his men dragged Huan Shikang, De Ta, and Suo Junhuan to the dungeon. She kept watching, until she noticed it was safe for her to leave. Then she jumped high, disappeared into the thick night fog.
***
Leaving Kaifeng Palace, Yu Mu Li La delivered the message for Rumilie. Only that girl knew exactly the true location of Rumilie's hideout. Because Rumilie deliberately kept it a secret from Huan Shikang and his cronies.
"Zhou Wang recognizes me, so do Wu Qi, Chen Xinyi, and his other subordinates. I certainly have to prevent the possibility that they betray me, hence if they confess, Zhou Wang won't notice my involvement."
"Awesome, Sir Rumilie," Yu Mu Li La praised. "You have predicted that Zhou Wang will find out medical exhibition Master Ren performed, and order their interception."
Rumilie chuckled. "Because everything I design is so provocative that it will surely incite Zhou Wang's fury. No matter how patient or calm a person is, this kind of provocation will make anyone tensed up."
"But what will happen to them? The Jinyiwei will torture them by using the method they always do to their captives, poor guys..."
Rumilie surprised. "What? They aren't just imprisoned?"
Yu Mu Li La shook her head. "And as the result, Master De Ta almost ruined our plan by revealing our identity, fortunately, I was still able to anesthetize him."
"That's beyond my estimation. I think Zhou Wang is mentally weak and fragile, it is out of my expectation that he can do ruthless thing. This is awful." Rumilie prompted his chin. "I must do something. Otherwise, perhaps they'll die because of torture, or perhaps they can't strain any longer and then confess - either way, I don't like the result. I have to do something to prevent that happens!"
He stood up, walking back and forth. In the sixth step, he stopped, and stood still, unmoved.
"The plan will be carried out faster than the plan. We must become the victor in this battle!"
***
Beneath the full moon, the city of Kaifeng which was dim and silent as a matter of course, was instead ablaze. Lots of people gathered there, dragged by the mysterious chain letters. Bright torches lit the entire city hall. And the mass gathering there, were up in arms.
"How dare they arrest our Grandmasters!" A stocky man growled angrily.
"The government is so cruel! Our Grandmasters are so kind and help many needy people, but the government arrests and tortures them!" A middle-aged woman grumbled.
"I heard that they torture our Grandmasters so brutally! My Heaven, our poor Grandmasters!"
"They are really bad people! Always being arbitrary at us, just because we are commoners!"
"We must help Grandmasters, the faster we do, the better! Or else Grandmasters will die soon!"
"We are all Grandmasters' disciples! Grandmasters have been so kind to us, we must return their favors!" They held their torches high. All of them were now hooting.
"Come on, guys! Fight against the government!"
***
"Have they confessed?" Zhu Su asked Chen Xinyi. The sun shone brightly, it was seven o'clock in the morning. Zhu Su could not wait to find out the results. Actually, he did not want to take this way, nevertheless, he found that gentle interrogation and persuasion instead of ended up in the good result, it led to endless debate. He had no other choice. Fu Huang always did this method and the traitors will immediately confess, and the same with Brother Di, he always attempted to dismiss the unfaithful officials by doing this. It seems that doing cruelty is a must, even though I don't want to do this, but I must do it, it is a must in politics anyway...
Chen Xinyi shook his head. "Not that fast, Your Highness. At least it takes a day or two. The harder the suspect's character, the time needed is even longer."
Zhu Su nodded slowly. "Well... it's okay. I'm just worried. I feel something awful and dangerous will happen soon..."
Soon after, a young soldier ran towards them. He was so eager to give his report that he soon kneeled down in front of Zhu Su, even without caring that he was almost out of breath.
"Your Highness... bad news... it's bad, Your Highness, really bad!..."
"What's bad, Boy? Speak slowly, take a deep breath first! Don't let His Highness confused!"
"Well... Please forgive me... Your Highness..." The soldier took a deep breath, and when he was calmed, he immediately reported that bad news. "Your Highness... a mass group of people in the name of "Defenders of the Mandate of Heaven" make large-scale devastation all over Kaifeng!"