Once I enter the pass, great Confucian scholars will surely debate the classics for me.

Upon hearing this, Zhou Qingfeng stroked his chin, not rushing to a conclusion, but instead turned to Ye Tingxiu and asked, "Ye Zi, what do you think?"

Ye Tingxiu crossed his arms, frowned slightly, bit his lip, and clicked his tongue: "Tsk, my intuition tells me this isn't over yet. Theoretically, these two small fry can't cause any big trouble, but my heart is still hanging in the balance, I really can't put my mind at ease."

Zhou Qingfeng pondered for a moment and said, "In any case, the Dragon Ascension Banquet is about to be held, and we must eliminate any potential hidden dangers."

Ye Tingxiu and Xiao Hongyun exchanged a glance, nodded, and said nothing. They both knew what to do. They had to continue to hunt down any fish that had slipped through the net. Even if there was only the slightest chance of them causing trouble, they had to eliminate them completely. It would be best to find out who the mastermind was.

Ye Tingxiu immediately said, "I have memorized the physical characteristics of these two men. One is bald with a full beard, fat and strong, nicknamed Big Beard, and the other is a short man with a small head and a long neck, nicknamed Little Club. I will order people to search the whole city for these two men."

After saying this, Ye Tingxiu turned around and strode away from the main hall of the Plum Blossom Division to assign new tasks to his subordinates outside the hall.

Zhou Qingfeng squatted down and continued to examine the corpses one by one, hoping to find some new clues. However, everyone has their own expertise, and examining corpses is a highly specialized job. Even the most talented person is useless if they don't cultivate this professional field.

Fortunately, Zhou Qingfeng did not need to study autopsy, because autopsy was handled by professionals: "Send word that Ren Wuji from the cremation department has come to perform an autopsy."

Upon hearing this, Xiao Hongyun beckoned to his subordinates waiting outside the hall. The subordinates immediately stepped into the hall, clasped their hands in greeting, and waited for orders. Xiao Hongyun whispered a few words in their ears, and the subordinates immediately obeyed, pressing their swords down with one hand to carry out the order.

Immediately afterwards, Xiao Hongyun approached Zhou Qingfeng, looked down at Li Xiangsi's body, and said, "This is Li Xiangsi's body. Old Zhou, why did you call the coroner to examine the body? Perhaps you want to find some clues from the thief's corpse?"

Zhou Qingfeng focused on examining the body, replying, "Hmm, let's give it a try. Pulling up a radish will bring out some mud, and we'll eventually find some new clues. However, we can't rely entirely on the autopsy results. Xiao Xiao, have you checked the owner of the house?"

Xiao Hongyun, holding a fan behind his back, said, "I've checked. The owner's name is Di Xinjian. He came to Jianta to do real estate business eight years ago. Now he owns many properties, including eighty-six shops and two hundred residences. I don't think he's a simple person."

Zhou Qingfeng reached out and covered Li Xiangsi's face with a white cloth, then stood up and said, "Is there any evidence to prove that he colluded with Li Xiangsi?"

Xiao Hongyun said, "No, Di Xinjian entrusted the vacant house to Zhuang Zhaiya Ren for agency. Li Xiangsi and his group signed a lease agreement with Di Xinjian through Zhuang Zhaiya Ren. Neither Di nor Li had ever met. Now, based on just a lease agreement, it is difficult to prove that the two were connected."

Zhou Qingfeng pondered for a moment and said, "Is there any evidence to rule him out as a suspect?"

Xiao Hongyun said, "No."

Zhou Qingfeng asked, "Where is he?"

Xiao Hongyun said, "The man is currently in the dungeon. I will send someone to bring him back."

Zhou Qingfeng asked, "Where is the broker from the Zhuang family's residence?"

Xiao Hongyun said, "We also sent someone to bring them back."

Zhou Qing said, "Okay, let's go and take a look at the dungeon together."

The two left the main hall of the Plum Blossom Bureau side by side. Just then, Ye Tingxiu returned after assigning tasks. Seeing that the two were about to leave, Ye Tingxiu hurriedly asked where they were going. Zhou Qingfeng did not explain much, but simply told Ye Tingxiu to stay there for the time being. When the coroner from the crematorium arrived, he was to have the coroner examine the body carefully. He also instructed Ye Tingxiu to keep an eye on things and report any new developments to the dungeon immediately.

In the blink of an eye, the two entered the Plum Blossom Division dungeon through the narrow entrance. This dungeon was generally used to imprison officials and major criminals. Ordinary people usually had no chance to enter the Plum Blossom Division dungeon, let alone drink the Plum Blossom Division's tea.

Inside the torture chamber, the clerks recording the proceedings and interrogating the suspects were ready to begin the interrogation at any time. Zhou Qingfeng and Xiao Hongyun sat to the side and discussed the matter privately, deciding to interrogate the broker first and then Di Xinjian. Thus, they ordered the Plum Blossom Guards to bring the man from the cage to the torture chamber for interrogation.

Zhuang Zhai's servant was dragged to the torture chamber, his legs trembling so badly he could barely stand. He was forcibly dragged and tied to the rack.

According to unwritten rules, if a non-official was arrested and thrown into the dungeon of the Censorate, he would be given a beating without being asked anything first.

Although this has some suspicion of torture to extract confessions and could lead to wrongful convictions.

However, in order to deter suspects and efficiently obtain confessions, the law allows for a certain degree of criminal interrogation of non-official suspects. How to determine the upper limit of this punishment is entirely up to the presiding official.

Generally speaking, the suspect will not be killed or driven insane; these are two very clear bottom lines in interrogation.

The interrogation officer, wielding a leather whip dipped in salt water, began to lash the man from the Zhuang family estate with brutal force: "Will you talk? Will you talk? Will you talk?"

The broker was beaten so badly that he howled and cried out for his parents, repeatedly shouting, "Sir, sir, don't just beat me, ask me what's wrong!"

The interrogating clerk: "Stop talking nonsense! You don't even know what I'm saying. Tell me, shouldn't you be beaten?!"

"Oh my god~~~" Zhuang Zhai's broker was in tears, being whipped half to death, jumping around like a fish on a chopping board: "I'll talk, I'll tell you everything, please stop hitting me, I admit it, I made dirty money, I used fake listings to attract customers, I concealed the defects in the houses, I used dual contracts, I charged exorbitant fees, I ate both the landlord and the tenant, I'm not human, I broke the law, I plead guilty, please stop hitting me."

"Alright!" Xiao Hongyun stood up, walked forward, and waved to the interrogation officer.

Upon seeing this, the junior official immediately clasped his hands in a fist salute and stepped aside.

Xiao Hongyun stepped forward, holding a fan behind his back, and looked the suspect straight in the eye: "What's your name? What do you do?"

The estate broker groaned in pain, slowly raising his head as blood dripped from his mouth. His chest and abdomen had been lashed dozens of times, leaving his skin torn and bleeding. "Sir," he said, "my name is Bao Anxin. I am a professional estate broker, and I have been engaged in the buying, selling, and leasing of estates for ten years."

Xiao Hongyun said, "Bao Anxin, whose orders did you take to help Li Xiangsi hide? Besides them, how many accomplices do you have? Where are they hiding? What conspiracy are they plotting? I advise you to confess and be lenient, or resist and be severely punished. Think it over before you speak."

After groaning for a moment, the broker Bao Anxin said, panting, "Sir, I'm innocent! I'm just a middleman who rents and sells houses. This customer named Li Xiangsi came to me not long ago, saying he wanted to rent a house to stay in, so I found him a house. I really don't know anything else."

“You’re not being honest. I need you to give me useful information, not to listen to your nonsense.” Xiao Hongyun pointed at Bao Anxin, the clerk, and then beckoned to the interrogation officer beside him, saying, “Come on, give him something substantial and help him recall his memories.”

Upon hearing this, the interrogation officer revealed a cruel smile. He stepped forward and pulled Bao Anxin's pants down to his ankles. Then, he took out a red-hot pair of iron tongs from the iron stove next to him and held them up to Bao Anxin's crotch. The sharp iron tongs sparked like interlocking canine teeth.

“You little thief, I used to use iron pliers to castrate horses’ testicles. Let’s cut one off first, then the other, and I’ll make sure it’s clean.”