The Thief Prince

At that moment, Cao Su suddenly knelt down, his tiger-like eyes filled with tears: "Brother, please, brother, save my wife and children."

Only then did everyone realize that Cao Su's family was still in Danzhou City.

"Brother, what are you doing?" Li Zheng stepped forward and helped him up. "I already promised you, how could I not lend a hand?"

Cao Su was moved to tears, and the other leaders also stepped forward to comfort him.

Hearing everyone's comments, Wang Xun felt a chill run down his spine.

No wonder this person looks so familiar; isn't this "Partridge General" Cao Su?

How did he also become a thief?

and many more!

If he were here, wouldn't that mean that this group of people are the infamous Black Wind Bandits who have been causing such a stir lately?!

Just as I was pondering this, I felt a dark shadow fall down.

Looking up, he saw Li Zheng standing right in front of him, looking down at him.

"From now on, I will ask, and you will answer. Do you understand?"

Wang Xun gritted his teeth and lowered his head, pretending not to hear.

Li Zheng chuckled and looked at Tang Meng behind Wang Xun.

Tang Meng immediately stepped forward, pinned Wang Xun to the ground, grabbed his chin with one hand, and put the other hand into his mouth, pinching one of his front teeth.

Amidst Wang Xun's muffled screams of agony, Tang Meng used his thumb to forcefully break one of his front teeth.

The excruciating pain nearly made Wang Xun faint. Ignoring the blood filling his mouth, he rolled around on the ground.

But Li Zheng wouldn't let him catch his breath. He gave Tang Meng and Zhang Yin a look, and the two of them dragged him back to Li Zheng.

"It's not like it's your family business. Is it worth risking your life for the Zhang family?"

Li Zheng reached out and patted Wang Xun's cheek: "Think carefully, don't do anything foolish."

Wang Xun lowered his head and nodded twice.

It wasn't that he wanted to betray his master; it was just that the pain was too much.

"How high are the walls of the Zhang family mansion? How many gates does it have? How many servants does the family employ?" Li Zheng began to ask.

Despite the excruciating pain, Wang Xun mumbled, "The wall is over ten feet high, with two gates: an outer gate and a screen gate. There are more than thirty servants in the house."

Li Zheng looked up at Cao Su, who nodded slightly.

Li Zheng then asked, "There's only one main door, and no other hidden doors?"

Wang Xun said with a mournful face, "The imperial court stipulates that officials' residences must have three courtyards, with a front hall and a rear bedroom, and no one dares to disobey it."

Li Zheng frowned slightly. If there was only one entrance and exit, it would be very difficult to launch a strong attack.

If they get bogged down and attract the attention of government troops, they might not be able to break out of the city.

Although Li Zheng really wanted the weapons and horses that Zhang Pin had embezzled, he didn't want to risk his life here.

At this moment, Cao Su, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "That can't be right. Everyone says that when that corrupt official accepted bribes, he had someone smuggle the stolen goods through a dog hole. Is that true?"

Wang Xun tensed up immediately, feeling Li Zheng's gaze on him, and stammered:

"But that's...that's a dog hole..."

Li Zheng squinted and interrupted, "You're being a bit dishonest."

"No, no, no, the hero is asking about the door, how can a dog hole be considered a door?"

Without waiting for a reply, Li Zheng said to Tang Meng, "Put that tooth back in for him!"

Tang Meng grinned maliciously, grabbed the front tooth, and pressed it down hard into the empty gum.

Wang Xun let out a bloodcurdling scream, like a pig being slaughtered.

Wu Anqing hesitated for a moment, then moved closer to Li Zheng: "Brother, are you really going to crawl through the dog hole?"

Li Zheng glanced at him: "Brother, you're so foolish. We're already bandits, what's the point of saving face?"

"Don't even mention a dog hole; if the profit is big enough, I'll even crawl into a cesspool!"

Wu Anqing's lips twitched slightly, and he fell silent.

If even the Crown Prince can be so humble, what else can I say?

Just do it!

By the time Tang Meng finished fitting Wang Xun's teeth, the latter was lying on the ground, drenched in sweat, too exhausted to even groan.

Li Zheng came to his side and squatted down: "I'll give you one last chance. Draw a map of the Zhang residence for me."

"Don't you dare try to cheat us. You'll have to come with us, and if anything goes wrong, I'll kill you!"

Wang Xun dared not utter a single word. He covered his mouth, took the pen and paper from the henchman, and squatted down to start drawing.

Before long, he handed over a drawing.

Li Zheng took it and looked at it. The lines were crooked and messy, probably because the hand was in so much pain that it was hard to use.

However, this did not prevent us from getting a general idea of ​​the house's layout; all the rooms and passageways were clearly visible.

After watching for a while, Li Zheng had already made up his mind.

After tying up Wang Xun and throwing him into an empty car, Li Zheng called for the other leaders to gather around.

Li Zheng squatted on the ground and scratched the ground with a twig: "We'll enter the city tomorrow, and we'll split into two groups."

One group went to the residence of Cao Su's family to bring them out; the other group headed straight for the Zhang residence.

"This time we must infiltrate in disguise. We should use a select few troops rather than a large number. The rest of the brothers will stay at the camp to guard it."

"Regarding tomorrow's operations, I have made the following arrangements!"

After saying that, he looked at Cao Su and Ma San: "Brother Cao Su and Brother Ma San, take three or five good men with you, bring your families out, and you can retreat."

"You two must look after each other. If anything happens, Ma San should come and inform us immediately."

Cao Su immediately stepped forward, cupping his hands in greeting: "Yes, sir!"

After saying that, he turned around and clasped his hands in a fist salute to Ma San, saying solemnly, "Brother, I entrust the lives of my entire family to you."

This was the first time Ma San had been entrusted with such a solemn task, and he was momentarily at a loss for words: "Supervisor Cao, what are you saying? I will do my utmost!"

Li Zheng then turned to Wu Anqing: "Brother Wu Anqing, take ten men, disguised as merchants and porters, and spread them out around the Zhang residence to keep watch."

"If things change, you must come to my aid immediately. I hope you can adapt to the situation."

Wu Anqing nodded in agreement and said in a deep voice, "Don't worry, brother."

Li Zheng then looked at Zhang Yin: "The city is heavily guarded, and it's inconvenient to smuggle bows and crossbows. Brother Zhang Yin, please stay here to guard the camp and watch over the supplies."

Zhang Yin has a more composed personality, so Li Zheng feels more at ease leaving the camp to him.

Zhang Yin clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Yes, sir."

Li Zheng concluded, "Tang Meng and Yan Yun, come with me. We'll also select twenty more skilled fighters to meet with that Prefect Zhang."

Tang Meng and Yan Yun bowed to each other.

At this moment, Li Bao reached out and tugged at Li Zheng's sleeve: "Brother, I..."

Seeing his bright, clear eyes, Li Zheng couldn't help but chuckle: "You want to go too?"

Li Bao nodded vigorously.

Li Zheng looked him up and down and said with some helplessness, "We're probably going to have to crawl through a dog hole this time. The passageway inside is narrow, and you probably won't be able to move around freely with your physique."

Li Bao's dark face immediately fell, and he hung his head without saying a word.

Seeing his expression, Li Zheng finally relented: "Alright, you can go with Brother Wu'an, is that alright?"

Li Bao grinned, revealing a set of white teeth, and nodded sheepishly to Wu Anqing.

Wu Anqing cupped his hands and smiled, "Brother, rest assured, I will take good care of Brother Li Bao."

Li Zheng wiped away the marks on the ground and stood up.

"Get a good rest tonight. We'll set off into the city tomorrow afternoon. Follow my orders!"

Everyone responded in unison, "Yes, brother!"