Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

Of course, Wang An doesn't care about the first two; he only cares about the latter. If it is confirmed that Song Shuanzhu is a participant, then Wang An will not hesitate to kill Song Shuanzhu here.

Wang An believed that by this point, Song Shuanzhu would definitely be able to answer any questions.

To Wang An's utter surprise, before he could even ask, Song Shuanzhu blurted out such a statement.

Wang An's face lit up with joy, and he followed up on Song Shuanzhu's words, saying:

"Treasure? What treasure? Is it valuable?"

Sensing Wang An's interest in the treasure, Song Shuanzhu quickly said:

“Valuable, definitely valuable. I guarantee that everything Song Ping has hidden is a valuable treasure.”

Wang An felt that Song Shuanzhu was not lying, but what puzzled Wang An was that when he interrogated Song Ping during the day, Song Ping did not mention anything about the treasure he had hidden.

That's rather strange.

It should be noted that after Wang An performed various memory restoration massages on Song Ping, Song Ping even remembered stealing eggs when he was a child, but he didn't mention a word about hiding treasures.

Of course, neither Wang An nor the other two thought to ask him.

The reason they didn't ask him was mainly because all the furs, bear bile, musk, and other contraband that Song Ping had collected in Shuangqiao Township, as well as the stolen money, the furs in Song Ping's storeroom, and the bear bile and furs in his house, had all been confiscated.

All of these things added up, it's no small sum of money.

So logically speaking, Song Ping's family should have nothing left; they should be completely destitute.

It would be hard for anyone to believe that Song Ping, this old rascal, could have any other assets besides these valuables!
If there really are other valuable things, then how damn rich must that old bastard Song Ping be?

Thinking of this, Wang An suddenly remembered something and said directly:

"Are you talking about the commune's warehouse? Or their family's storeroom? If it's something from either of those places, then you might as well just die already."

"Everyone knows those things are valuable, but do you think I'm going to go to his house and rob him? Damn! Even if I could steal them, where the hell am I supposed to hide them? Tell me, are you kidding me?"

Wang An's words make a lot of sense. Although half a warehouse of furs is very valuable, it is too conspicuous!

How could Wang An dare to just swagger into someone's house and steal the fur? Besides, the fur and bear bile had already been confiscated; how could Wang An possibly steal it from the Gong'an Juren? Are you kidding me?
No sooner had Wang An finished speaking than Song Shuanzhu hurriedly said:

"Not those two places, not those two places. Those are his public warehouses. He also has a special place to hide his stuff, right in the mountains. Really, I'm not lying to you, sir."

Wang An didn't continue the conversation, but instead changed the subject, speaking like a charlatan:
"Alright, let's not talk about hiding treasures for now, I'm not interested. My shot at you just failed to fire, I have to believe there's more to it than meets the eye, maybe God doesn't want you to die."

"It's over. If even God doesn't want you to die, then I'll give you a chance to live. I'll ask you a few questions. Tell me the truth. If you tell the truth, then I'll obey God and not kill you. But if you lie, then I'll have to kill you. What do you say?"

Upon hearing that he had a chance to live, Song Shuanzhu nodded hurriedly and said:

"Hero, speak! Hero, speak!"

Wang An's expression hardened, and he asked:
How many lives does Song Ping have on his hands?

Upon hearing this, Song Shuanzhu immediately said:

"This...this, I don't know either. I really don't know. I usually just drive the sled and help him deliver hides and stuff. He doesn't let me get close to him when he goes to collect hides."

Wang An didn't pay much attention and asked again: "On the sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, when you helped Song Ping transport furs from the commune to his house, did you see a large claw skin in his storeroom before unloading the cart?"

Song Shuanzhu hurriedly said:
“I saw it, I saw it. That big paw skin was still there a few days ago. I helped him haul it back on a sled.”

Wang An narrowed his eyes and asked:

"What day did you help him take it back?"

After thinking for a moment, Song Shuanzhu quickly said:
"On the third day of the twelfth lunar month, yes, it was the third day of the twelfth lunar month. That day, around noon, he asked me to drive a sled to take him to Shiqiaobao. When we got halfway there, he told me to wait for him by the roadside. After a short while, I saw him come back with his hair sticking out and carrying a burlap sack. The sack wasn't tied at the top, and when I looked, I saw it was made of large claw skin."

"Maojue de" is a local dialect word meaning hurried and rushed.

No sooner had Song Shuanzhu finished speaking than Wang An immediately asked:
"Where did you two go on the 29th of the eleventh lunar month?"

Song Shuanzhu answered almost without hesitation:

"We've gone to Sanhe Village in Xingsheng Township, far to the west."

Wang An asked expressionlessly:
"When did you get back?"

Song Shuanzhu replied:
"It was already dark before I left, and I didn't get home until midnight."

Wang An asked:
"You dare to drive back in the dead of night? Aren't you afraid something might happen on the way?"

Song Shuanzhu suddenly swore:
"I don't know what was wrong with that idiot Song Ping. I told him to find a place to stay first and leave during the day, but he insisted on leaving. Then, I figured he was probably near Kaoshantun when he had to take a dump. By the time he came back, I had already smoked two pipes of cigarettes on the sled."

Wang An then asked:
"Didn't he have anything in his hand before he went to take a dump?"

Song Shuanzhu thought for a long time before saying:
"It was pitch black then, and I didn't see anything. Anyway, he took the gun away, saying he was afraid there might be wolves in the woods."

After listening, Wang An clicked his tongue and immediately felt that all that effort had been for nothing.

The main point is that Wang An can confirm that Song Shuanzhu was absolutely not lying.

First of all, Wang An never let Song Shuanzhu know who he was.

Secondly, Wang An had already stirred up Song Shuanzhu's hatred for Song Ping.

Furthermore, under Wang An's repeated torment, Song Shuanzhu's spirit had completely collapsed, and he probably wouldn't dare to lie.

Finally, the questions Wang An asked were all unrelated, and Song Shuanzhu couldn't possibly know what Wang An wanted to know.

With a sigh, Wang An suddenly remembered what Song Shuanzhu had said about Song Ping hiding treasures, and so Wang An said with great interest:

"Alright, I've decided to go with the flow and spare your life today. But you have to tell me where Song Ping hid those treasures?"

Song Shuanzhu said, somewhat incredulously:

"Grandpa, you, you, you really aren't going to kill me? Then, didn't Song Ping already pay for that?"

To be fair, Song Shuanzhu is actually a fairly honest and straightforward person. Even when he learned that Song Ping had hired someone to kill him, he showed grief and indignation, not the kind of attitude one would have towards killing Song Ping. (End of Chapter)