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At dawn, screams echoed endlessly in the prison.

When the Xiahou people were awakened by the sound of footsteps again, they were horrified to find that the jailer outside the cell began to call names:

"Xiahou Wenming, come out."

The young man, who was no taller than the weakling, trembled and shrank back in fear.

In the past few days, their interrogation in the imperial prison was continuing, and they were called and tortured in turn every day.

It's his turn today.

"Dad...grandpa..." The young man asked his elders for help in fear. Xiahou Yuanshao, who was in his fifties, turned his head unbearably, while the old man turned a deaf ear.

He was allowed to be dragged away by the jailers.

Days of torture have made them lose the courage to resist.

Especially in the past two days, after the old Marquis "killed relatives for justice", this group of drowning people lost their last hope.

Start lying flat.

…

The jailer dragged a young man named Xiahou Wenming through the corridor and into a torture room, which contained steel instruments covered with spikes.

Xiahou Wenming struggled violently, and the next second, he was hit hard on the back of his neck, his eyes rolled, and he fainted.

Qi Ping took back his knife and said calmly: "Get out."

The two jailers bowed their heads respectfully, walked away in small steps, squatted down, and began to look at every detail of the young man from beginning to end, completing the model in their minds.

After a long time, he picked up the mask and covered his face.

His body was slightly distorted, and he turned into the appearance of Xiahou Civilization.

"Amazing skills."

Behind him, Mo Xiaoqiong praised:

"Not only the face, but also the body shape, skin, and even the wounds are all disguised. It's hard to imagine that this is just a mysterious magic weapon. I have seen some disguise techniques in the past, but none of them were so perfect.

"

‘Xiahou Wenming’ put on the prison uniform he took off and said curiously:

"Is disguise magic common?"

He didn't have much contact.

Mo Xiaoqiong said: "It's not much, but there are some rumors in the world, but the effects are average."

Qi Ping suddenly remembered the eagle strike sent by Elder Lu, and thought that this mask might also be related to the leader.

No...that would be too perverted.

Putting aside distracting thoughts, he said:

"Send me over after a while, so that you can ensure that the other party does not lose control. If no fish takes the bait, I will try to use this identity to make a ploy."

Mo Xiaoqiong nodded, flicked his wrist, and threw the jade piece the size of a fish scale:

"Bring this with you so we can determine the location."

Qi Ping grabbed it with one hand, stuffed it under his tongue, and turned to look at the vent of the prison.

Outside, the first ray of morning light was shining through.

…

The autumn banquet is about to be held.

This news was released yesterday and spread quickly in Zhenfu Division.

Thousands or hundreds of households are expected to participate. During the banquet, we can reflect on the past and look forward to the future. It is always a formal occasion.

Mo Xiaoqiong, who usually lives in the imperial prison day and night, will also leave rarely.

Dongcheng, in the small courtyard.

The weather has turned cooler, white mist has appeared at dawn, and the grass is covered with dew, making it look desolate.

In the area covered by the masking method, a circular formation has been formed. Around the courtyard, stones, stones, plants and trees are placed according to the directions. The flower-armed monk sits quietly among them, with his sword across his knees:

"Everything is ready, all we need is the east wind."

He grinned, his lips and teeth were extremely red, as if they were stained with blood.

…

Somewhere in the city.

One of the guards on shift yawned and walked out, as if he hadn't woken up, shivering in the coolness of the autumn day.

As if he sensed someone watching over him, he turned his head and looked towards the alley to one side.

The next second, his eyes widened and he was about to scream, but suddenly a hand covered his mouth and nose and dragged him into the alley.

…

Deep in the prison.

The iron gate rang again, and the Xiahou people woke up. They looked at the door blankly and saw the familiar jailer dragging 'Xiahou Civilization' back.

The smell of blood filled the air, and the clothes of 'Xiahou Wenming' were all wet, as if they were in a coma or dead. It was obvious that they had been tortured.

"Get in!"

The jailer opened the cell door and threw the young man in brutally.

The latter screamed in pain, but lay still like a corpse.

No one cares, because everyone has experienced similar scenes and is used to it.

During the long period of torture, they only hoped that the person chosen would be someone else, not themselves, and that the already indifferent family affection in the Marquis Palace would disappear.

People were nervously waiting for who would be next. However, the damn jailer did not read the name anymore and sneered:

"Today's autumn banquet is your luck."

During the autumn banquet, ordinary school captains, yamen servants, and jailers who were unable to attend would also have dinner together, and torture would be suspended.

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

The old marquis opened his eyes slightly, "Autumn banquet?"

"Wenming, how are you?"

Xiahou Yuanshao paid proper attention to his son, but all he could hear was his breathless breathing.

He didn't care either. He was the one who was tortured last time, and now he had no energy to care about others.

…

"Today's autumn banquet, I will be back later, please do your best to patrol and don't slack off."

At the gate of the prison, Mo Xiaoqiong, who was dressed up in fine clothes, said calmly and left immediately.

Rushing to the restaurant where the autumn banquet is held.

It was not close to the Zhenfu Division, and the banquet started early, but this kind of thing had to be in place before the leader arrived, so his departure was not sudden.

When he arrived at the restaurant, many people in fine clothes had already arrived, joking and chatting with each other, but no one came to see him.

Although they belong to the same yamen, all the halls always avoid Mo Qianhu, who is in charge of the imperial edict.

Mo Xiaoqiong didn't care. He picked up the teapot, sat by the window and drank. He turned to look outside. The sun was shining brightly and the crowds were getting denser.

"Will there really be fish taking the bait? If so, you may not be safe." Mo Xiaoqiong was thinking.

Suddenly, a figure with thick eyebrows and big eyes sat down in front of him.

It's Honglu.

"Is something wrong?" Mo Xiaoqiong raised his eyebrows.

Hong Lu had a straight face, and suddenly looked around vaguely. When he saw no one approaching, he picked up the teapot, poured himself a cup, and whispered:

"Is what was said in the Yamen about Qi Ping true?"

Mo Xiaoqiong smiled half-heartedly: "Why do you think of asking this? It's a bit against the rules."

Regarding the details of Qi Ping's investigation, only Du Yuanchun and Mo Xiaoqiong knew about it in the entire yamen, while several thousand households knew nothing about it.

Hong Lu was helpless and said to himself, "You think I want to ask, isn't it because my daughter was stalking me last night, asking him to inquire."

You know, when it comes to major cases, it is taboo to ask each other, as it will give Mo Xiaoqiong an excuse.

"Just wait, there will be results." Mo Xiaoqiong said vaguely.

Hong Lu was very dissatisfied and was about to ask again.

Suddenly, there was a commotion in the restaurant. The two of them looked out the window and saw a man dressed in black and red brocade robes getting off the carriage.
To be continued...