Chapter 227: Half True, Half False

"Don't believe me?" Chen Wuji glanced over with a disdainful look, smiled lightly, "It's fine, I can swear on the Mountain Lord's name; your two lives are of no use to me."

Xiao Lao Hu probably won't mind this small matter.

Ri Wo Bu Ji struggled for a moment, as if finally making up his mind, and said: "We are the Can Lang Qiang Tribe; not long ago, the chief of the Shaodang Qiang Tribe visited our elder and offered many benefits, wanting us to join the war and attack Dayu."

"But we have feuded with the Shaodang Qiang Tribe for decades over pasture, suffering casualties each year. Although the elders were somewhat tempted by the heavy profits promised by the Shaodang Qiang, they feared being used, so they disguised themselves and entered Dayu's Nan Jun to scout, intending to see whether the Shaodang Qiang's words were true."

Chen Wuji wore a harmless smile, shook his head, "You still see me as a fool? Am I really that easy to deceive?"

"What I said is all true." Ri Wo Bu Ji immediately defended.

Chen Wuji waved his hand, wiped the blood on his hands on Lei Yunlei's clothes, "Now the initiative is in your hands; whether you speak and how you speak is up to you. But you'd better figure out one thing: if we didn't know something, why would we be waiting for you here? Coincidence?"

Ri Wo Bu Ji's expression changed sharply, "You……"

Chen Wuji said nothing more, reached into Lei Yunlei's belly and pinched to confirm the exact position of the kidneys. These two can't die yet, so his kidney‑puncture procedure needs to be a bit more reliable.

This old fogey actually still has abs, and they're incredibly solid.

Qin Zhanhong's eyes glowed with an unusual light as he looked at Chen Wuji; the ripples in his gaze seemed to turn into a tangible trend.

Chen Wuji really gave her a big surprise today.

Xiao Huai Dan is hiding pretty deep.

"What I said is indeed true." Ri Wo Bu Ji finally spoke again.

After a pause, he said: "What I lied to you about is that the chief of the Shaodang Qiang Tribe never came to see us; our two tribes have too deep a feud to ever talk. We came here to scout the true situation of several counties in the southern part of the Dayu Dynasty's Shenxian Ling, and then make plans."

"As for the rest, I don't know how the tribe plans; even if you torture us, I can't say anything, and I wouldn't know how to make it up."

Chen Wuji hesitated not, slashed open Lei Yunlei's belly with a knife, and began to probe with a look of disgust.

Doing this was somewhat nauseating, seriously striking his moral bottom line.

Why waste time spouting harsh words when there's nothing to do?

Saying something else would also work!

I don't know what Ri Wo Bu Ji feels, but Chen Wuji first messed him up completely, holding his breath so he couldn't even speak.

"Wait, wait!" Ri Wo Bu Ji shouted urgently.

"The tribe decided to beat the Shaodang Qiang to the punch, take the ancient plank road in Shenxian Ling, and strike first at Nan Jun; we are here to scout the route, truly, everything I said is true."

Chen Wuji gave a sinister grin, "Scouting the route and they still send an elder?"

"Elder Lei is our tribe's Wise One; he wasn't at ease with what we gathered, so he came himself." Ri Wo Bu Ji shouted loudly.

Chen Wuji, with disgust, pulled out his hand and hastily rubbed it hard with grass leaves several times.

This was too unpleasant; his moral bottom line was almost blown apart.

From now on, when spouting harsh words, one really needs to pay attention; can't keep digging such pits for oneself.

Using materials at hand, Chen Wuji simply bandaged Lei Yunlei with his clothes, then went to the creek and repeatedly washed his hands until that extreme uncomfortable feeling faded, after which he turned back.

"Look, if you cooperated a bit, I wouldn't have to go through this trouble." Chen Wuji glanced at Ri Wo Bu Ji, resentment huge in his heart, "You, carry your elder and follow us!"

"You didn't say you'd let us go?" Ri Wo Bu Ji shouted.

Chen Wuji chuckled, "Negotiating terms with me? Your empty talk—shouldn't you leave a statement? You're a runner, we're runners too; is this hard to understand?"

"... Yes." Ri Wo Bu Ji gritted his neck, unwilling, and hoisted Lei Yunlei onto his shoulders.

It looks like he truly respects Elder Lei, carrying him carefully, afraid to touch Lei Yunlei's wound.

Ri Wo Bu Ji walked ahead, Qin Zhanhong deliberately lagged a few steps behind, and quietly asked Chen Wuji, "You don't believe what he said?"

"I believe a little. This kid's words are half true, half false; he looks honest but is actually quite crafty. First get something from him, the rest is up to you—squeeze out their value." Chen Wuji whispered.

"The Qiang Tribe's intention to use troops against us is a settled fact; knowing more information benefits us a bit. Lei Yunlei is an elder of the Can Lang Qiang Tribe; this kid stays by his side, so he surely knows plenty—dig out as much as you can."

Qin Zhanhong nodded, her beautiful eyes flickering, "I didn't expect you to know interrogation."

"That counts as understanding? It's just forcing others to bow; there are many methods." Chen Wuji said offhand, "Lei Yunlei definitely knows a lot, but he's also a tough nut; see how you guys figure it out."

Qin Zhanhong gave a soft hum, "Which point of what he just said do you lean toward?"

"I don't lean either way; I know too little about the various Qiang tribes to corroborate what this kid just said. If the Can Lang Qiang and Shaodang Qiang truly have a great grudge, then what he said later might be true."

"But even if that were so, this statement couldn't be fully trusted; with huge benefits at stake, any death‑do‑us‑part old grudge can be set aside. Among his heap of words, I believe just one—scouting!"

Qin Zhanhong's expression grew solemn, she nodded again.

She very much agreed with Chen Wuji's view, but just felt a bit unwilling to accept it.

In her own field of expertise, she was actually outdone by Chen Wuji!

Chen Wuji stared at Ri Wo Bu Ji's actions ahead, speaking in an extremely low voice: "The Qiang Tribe's scouts have appeared in the heart of Nan Jun; war should be coming imminently. Moreover, this time they won't stick to the borders but launch an all‑out war, erupting everywhere."

"The Qiang People are naturally skilled at jungle warfare; their armies hardly ever carry luggage and supplies. To our forces, Shenxian Ling has always been an impassable natural barrier, but to them, the vast mountains are their home turf."

"Qiang People tribes are mainly based on blood‑line clans; everyone is a soldier. In daily life they herd sheep and hunt; when war comes they become troops, somewhat resembling the Provincial Troops but with major differences."

"Before mobilizing, their luggage and supplies are on each warrior himself, carrying dried meat and such, then they fight while looting."

"This scattered way of waging war has an essential difference from the Dayu Dynasty."

In open battle they are absolutely no match for a large army, but in the mountains and wilderness they gain an absolute home-field advantage.