A thousand enlightenments in one night, starting from being a menial apprentice.

Chapter 389: Take and Take
It was already late at night when Duan Rong returned to Liu Shushan's secluded villa.

But Xiao Yu, Shen Mizhi, Ximen Kankan and Liu Shushan were all still awake. They were sitting there waiting for him.

As soon as Duan Rong stepped into the courtyard, Xiao Yu came out to greet him, looking at him with concern. "Why are you so late?"

Duan Rong said: "Something delayed me for a while."

Duan Rong said this and gently squeezed Xiao Yu's hand as a way of comforting her.

The two walked into the hall, and Ximen Kankan said with a smile: "You are finally back! If you don't come back, your sister-in-law will drive us out to the street to look for you."

Xiao Yu laughed and said, "Don't talk nonsense. When did I say I would drive you out to the street?"

Ximen Kankan said: "You haven't said it, but you're already thinking about it in your heart."

Xiao Yu laughed and scolded: "You are so capable, can you read minds?"

Ximen Kankan was about to say something, but Duan Rong interrupted him and asked, "Can you tell me about your investigation first?"

Ximen Kankan then picked out the important information that he and Liu Shushan had investigated and told them again. Liu Shushan added some of the information that he had not explained clearly.

Duan Rong sat there listening, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

He already knew most of the information from Ximen Kankan and Liu Shushan's investigation, but there were some that he was not very clear about.

For example, some details of the Shen family’s major case.

The first person to be arrested was naturally Tang Wanhong, and the entire Shen Garden was surrounded.

Tang Wanhong put the transaction records in a black iron box in the name of pawning and stored it in the warehouse of a pawnshop. The owner of the pawnshop was his sworn brother in his early years.

Because Xiong Yi found that Tang Wanhong would go to the pawnshop every once in a while. Xiong Yi began to have doubts in his mind. Tang Wanhong was not going to pawn anything, so why did he keep going to the pawnshop?

Xiong Yi told Li Hong about this.

On the same day, Chen Xun sent people to seal up the not-so-big pawnshop on the pretext that the redemption of the pawn was fake.

Then, the list and account of Shen Yuan’s transactions were found in the pawnshop’s warehouse.

After getting the list of names and accounts, Chen Xun immediately ordered Li Hong to lead people to seal up Shen Garden and arrest Tang Wanhong and send him to the prison in the city.

Chen Xun got the account book. Although the account was quite detailed, it was only the account transactions between officials and Tang Wanhong, and there was not a single word directly related to Shen Yanliu.

Chen Xun tortured Tang Wanhong severely in the prison, and used threats and inducements. Tang Wanhong knew that she would die whether she spoke or not, so she gritted her teeth and said nothing.

Not long after Tang Wanhong was captured, Shen Yanliu got the news.

Shen Yanliu was relatively calm, but Ma Chunmin immediately panicked. She asked someone to capture Tang Wanhong's wife and children. Then she bribed the old jailer who delivered meals to the prison and asked him to show Tang Wanhong her son's longevity lock to her when he delivered the meal.

As soon as Tang Wanhong saw the longevity lock, she immediately knew what was going on.

Because, the whereabouts of his wife and children were only known to Shen Yanliu and his wife. This was obviously done by Shen Yanliu.

Tang Wanhong was suddenly filled with grief. He had been friends with Shen Yanliu for more than 20 years, and he had already made up his mind not to betray him. But he did not expect that at this moment, he was still threatening him with his son's life.

In Shen Yanliu's eyes, he was just a chess piece.

Tang Wanhong confessed that night!
Chen Xun was naturally overjoyed. Once he got Tang Wanhong's confession, the chain of evidence would be complete.

These dirty deals had originally taken place in Shen Garden, which was built by Shen Yanliu. He had been involved in these things, and with Tang Wanhong's confession, it was completely confirmed.

That night, Chen Xun personally led people to raid Shen Yanliu's house.

On the night of the incident, Shen Yanliu sent a few trusted men to Shenyun Mansion to make moves. He originally expected that if Tang Wanhong did not confess, Chen Xun would not act so quickly!
But he didn't expect that the soldiers had surrounded his mansion.

Shen Yanliu immediately organized servants and guards to resist. He loudly scolded Chen Xun for suppressing dissidents and framing him.

Chen Xun had already expected that Shen Yanliu would not surrender, but he had been planning for a long time, so how could he allow Shen Yanliu to resist?

Under the siege of several Qi realm masters, Chen Xun destroyed Shen Yanliu's Dantian on the spot.

When Liu Shushan mentioned that Chen Xun destroyed Shen Yanliu's Dantian, Shen Mizhi, who was sitting next to him, visibly twitched her eyelids.

But Duan Rong knew that Chen Xun not only destroyed Shen Yanliu's Dantian, but also broke his hands and feet.

Duan Rong also shared some of his findings with them, mainly about the defensive strength of the city dungeon.

When they heard that there were three Qi realm masters in the dungeon of the city, they fell silent instantly.

Duan Rong glanced at Shen Mizhi and said, "You should be mentally prepared. Your father may have difficulty walking."

He was just kindly reminding Shen Mizhi to prepare herself, and he did his best. As for the rest, Duan Rong felt that he was probably helpless.

When Shen Mizhi heard this, her eyes turned red. She could imagine how her father was tortured in prison. If, according to Duan Rong, her father couldn't even walk, then her hope of rescuing her father would be even slimmer.

After hearing Duan Rong's words, Liu Shushan looked at him with curiosity.

The dungeon in the city was such a secret place that the information inside was strictly blocked. Even a local like him could hardly find out the information inside. How did Duan Rong know about it?
Although Liu Shushan had his doubts, he was also a very cautious person and did not ask directly. After all, no one would casually reveal the channel that could find such confidential information. Why would he need to pry into other people's secrets?

After exchanging information, several people looked at Duan Rong expectantly and asked him if he had any good ideas.

Duan Rong just yawned and said he didn't have any ideas. It was too late today, so let's talk about it tomorrow.

When he said this, he clearly saw Shen Mizhi's eyes dim in an instant.

Duan Rong also felt pity for Shen Mizhi, and he admired her filial piety of risking her life to save her father, but one thing is for sure, this matter is obviously a matter of swords and fire, how dare he make random connections?
They were indeed tired, having traveled a lot and had been in a tense state all day. At this time, seeing that it was only about two hours before dawn, they hurried to sleep.

Xiao Yu actually abandoned Duan Rong and slept in the same room with Shen Mizhi, leaving Duan Rong sleeping alone in bed.

He turned over and held the other pillow in his arms.

In fact, there was a very important piece of news just now, which he did not share with Shen Mizhi, Liu Shushan and others.

That is Yang Ji, the governor of Ruyang Prefecture, who will go to Shenyun Prefecture in person. The purpose of his trip is to find a way to have the documents of Shen Yanliu's case reviewed within ten days and sent to Ruyang Prefecture.

The reason why Duan Rong didn't say anything was because he felt that although Liu Shushan couldn't find out the news today, he would definitely know it tomorrow.

Because someone would definitely know that a governor had left Ruyang Prefecture. Since Liu Shushan had found out the news, Duan Rong thought it would be better to wait for him to tell everyone.

After all, after he shared some of the situations in the dungeon, Liu Shushan looked at him with a somewhat strange look.

As Duan Rong expected, at noon the next day, Liu Shushan gathered them all in the hall and told them about the Governor Yang Ji's trip to Shenyun Mansion.

"Ten days?" Shen Mizhi couldn't sit still anymore.

"Yes!" Liu Shushan also knew that Shen Mizhi was anxious, but he had to tell her the truth.

Shen Mizhi's body suddenly began to tremble, her emotions were in a state of violent shock.

She suddenly turned around, faced Duan Rong, knelt on the ground with a plop, and said tearfully: "Brother Duan, as long as you save my father's life, my life, Shen Mizhi, will be yours from now on, and you two can take it as you please! What I, Shen Mizhi, say is witnessed by heaven and earth!" As Shen Mizhi spoke, she kowtowed to Duan Rong. She was very emotional at the moment, with her inner energy floating, and she kowtowed to Duan Rong, smashing a piece of the floor into powder with her head, and a faint smoke rose up.

Xiao Yu immediately stepped forward and tried to pull Shen Mizhi up. "Sister Mizhi, please get up. Duan Rong can't bear such a gift from you!"

Shen Mizhi, however, stubbornly prostrated herself on the ground, and refused to get up even when Xiao Yu pulled her.

She understood that she was not begging for herself, she was begging for her father.

Duan Rong said: "Get up! If you do this, I will shorten my life!"

When Shen Mizhi heard this, she raised her head, her face already in tears.

She was naturally cold and arrogant, and because of this character, the harm caused by her life experience was magnified exponentially and distorted her mind.

But at this moment, for the sake of her father's life, she had given up all her dignity and even her life.

She had just said that as long as Duan Rong saved her father, her life would be taken away by Duan Rong!

This means being willing to be a slave!
"Brother Duan, you have always been resourceful. Please save my father's life!" Shen Mizhi said as she prostrated herself once again. Her shoulders kept shaking, and it was obvious that she was close to emotional collapse.

Xiao Yu looked at Duan Rong helplessly and asked, "Have you thought of a solution?"

Duan Rong looked at Shen Mizhi who was crawling on the ground in silence.

In fact, after lying down last night, he really had an idea and thought of a way. But he was still a little hesitant. Although he felt pity for Shen Mizhi, he was really unwilling to help Shen Yanliu.

A corrupt official who brings disaster to the people deserves death!
But at this moment, he looked at Shen Mizhi, who was crawling on the ground, shoulders shaking, and almost collapsed, and he suddenly changed his mind.

Even though Shen Yanliu deserved to die, he had such a filial and brave daughter, so he was not destined to die!
Moreover, Shen Yanliu's Dantian was destroyed. Even if he saved Shen Yanliu's life, he could never wash away his sins. He could only live in hiding for the rest of his life and would never do anything to harm the people again.

Duan Rong was ready to agree to Shen Mizhi's idea at this point, because the method he thought of, as long as there were no mistakes, would not only save Shen Yanliu's life, but also none of them would be exposed.

Ximen Kankan, who was standing aside, suddenly looked at Duan Rong and said, "If you have a way, help her. Even if it means taking some risks."

Duan Rong glared at him, then suddenly walked up to his side and whispered, "I'll help you if you burn that thing. How about that?"

"Ah..." Ximen Kankan was stunned. He didn't expect Duan Rong to suddenly bring up this matter again. However, he couldn't bear to see Shen Mizhi's pitiful appearance of nearly collapsing and kneeling down, so he said, "Okay, I'll burn it."

Duan Rong glanced at him and whispered, "You'd better keep your word."

Liu Shushan was standing next to Ximen Kankan, looking at them with strange eyes.

"What are you two whispering about?" Xiao Yu suddenly asked coldly.

Duan Rong smiled and said, "Nothing."

Then he looked at Shen Mizhi who was still crawling on the ground and said, "Mizhi, if you really want me to save your father, stand up."

Upon hearing this, Shen Mizhi stood up immediately, tears still streaming down her face, and asked, "Brother Duan, have you agreed?"

Duan Rong nodded and said, "You get up first!"

Only then did Shen Mizhi stand up.

She knew that this was a difficult matter, but in the past three months, no matter how difficult the case was, it could be easily solved in Duan Rong's hands. So as soon as Duan Rong agreed to her request, Shen Mizhi believed that Duan Rong must have found a way to save her father.

Liu Shushan's face was somewhat uncertain. He suddenly looked at Duan Rong and said, "Brother Duan, this matter is of great importance. Are you sure you can save Uncle Shen?"

Duan Rong glanced at Liu Shushan and immediately understood what he meant.

Liu Shushan was afraid of being implicated, which was human nature. His entire Liu family was in Ruyang Mansion, and he was already taking a risk by leaving Shen Mizhi in this secret courtyard.

Duan Rong looked at him and said, "Don't worry, Shushan, we will neither rob the prison nor the execution ground. Not only will I save Shen Mizhi's father, but I promise that no one here will be exposed!"

Liu Shushan's face turned slightly red. Duan Rong had obviously seen through his worries. However, he really couldn't figure out how to save people without robbing the prison or the execution ground? Would he perform a magic trick to save people?

Although Duan Rong spoke with great confidence, everyone present had worried expressions on their faces.

After all, this case was personally supervised by Chen Xun, the Lord of Ruyang Prefecture. This man kept a group of hangers-on, including many martial arts masters and some people with strange skills and cunning tricks.

They wanted to rescue the person from him without being exposed. If Duan Rong had not solved many strange cases and had already impressed them, would they really think that Duan Rong was talking nonsense?

"Since we have decided to do it, we should act immediately without further delay!" Duan Rong said decisively.

After all, he only had ten days, and half of the first day had already passed, so he didn't have enough time!

Duan Rong looked at Shen Mizhi and said in a deep voice: "Mizhi, you must return to the case immediately and finish the half-finished case in your hand. And you must leave on the evening of the tenth day!"

"Ah..." Shen Mizhi didn't expect that Duan Rong would ask her to leave right away. Her father was in the dungeon in the city and could be executed at any time. How could she leave? How could she have the heart to investigate the case?
Duan Rong knew Shen Mizhi couldn't accept it. "I know, this is a bit unreasonable! But it has to be done! Your alibi is a very important part of my plan!"

Although Shen Mizhi saw Duan Rong say this, her eyes were still hesitant.

Duan Rong turned his head to look at Xiao Yu and said, "You go with her. Even if she goes, she won't have the energy to handle the case. You help her handle it."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Yu nodded and immediately understood what Duan Rong meant.

Duan Rong was worried that Shen Mizhi couldn't stay there alone and might run back, so he asked her to go with him, partly to help her with the case and partly to keep an eye on her.

Duan Rong said, "You should leave now. When you get there, change into your old clothes and report to the government office every day so that those people can see you!"

Hearing this, Shen Mizhi suddenly looked at Duan Rong in a daze and said, "Brother Duan, can you really save my father? If you can really save my father, I will listen to you and leave now."

Shen Mizhi really couldn't bear to leave at this moment, she needed Duan Rong to tell her again.

Duan Rong looked at Shen Mizhi's face and knew what she was thinking. He suddenly said, "Mizhi, don't worry! If I can't save your father, I will chop off Ximen Kankan's head and use it as a chamber pot for you."

"Hiss~" Ximen Kankan took a breath when he heard this. "Fuck you! What does this have to do with me? Why did you chop me? Besides, she's a woman, does she need a chamber pot? Is this necessary?"

Xiao Yu and Liu Shushan were both amused by Ximen Kankan's funny look.

But Shen Mizhi and Duan Rong both looked serious.

For some reason, Duan Rong's illogical and absurd words instantly made Shen Mizhi feel as if she had taken a reassurance pill. Her anxious and torn heart instantly calmed down.

"Okay, I believe you!" Shen Mizhi said, turned around and walked out.

Xiao Yu immediately walked up to Duan Rong and asked, "Are you sure?"

Duan Rong said calmly, "About 80% to 90%."

Xiao Yu's eyes flashed, and he said, "Then I'm leaving. Be careful!"

Duan Rong instructed: "Keep an eye on that girl and don't let her cause trouble for me, then I won't have any problems."

"I know." Xiao Yu hurried out to chase Shen Mizhi.

(End of this chapter)