Starting from the pharmacy, he grew into a martial saint among men.

Upon hearing that Su Changli had already gone to the prefectural city and there was no way to ask him anything, Chu Hong's heart sank.

She turned her head to look at Xiao Yi beside her, and their eyes met briefly in the air, their thoughts coinciding.

Clearly, the other party had anticipated that they would investigate the Second Master, and thus took precautions in advance.

Su Changli is either already in the prefectural city, or he is deliberately hiding himself.

As for those able-bodied men and guards, whether they were the same group from the beginning is another matter.

Even if they were, Su Changchuan must have given them prior instructions that they would receive an "I don't know" answer when they asked them questions, so this investigation is likely to be in vain.

The atmosphere suddenly became tense.

Just as Chu Hong and his companion were pondering a solution, Qingqing, standing to the side, raised her eyebrows and spoke aggressively:

"Since Su Changli is not here, we will wait for his return at the manor."

"If he doesn't come back for a day, we'll wait for him; if he doesn't come back for a month, we'll wait for him for a month. We'll just wait until he comes back."

These words were very sharp, leaving no room for negotiation.

It shattered the feigned peace in the living room.

Upon hearing this, Chu Hong felt a surge of emotion.

He had only been focused on the seven-day deadline given by Zhao Shan, so he never thought he would have to wait any longer.

Even if he had this idea, it wouldn't be particularly appropriate for him or Xiao Yi to bring it up.

On the contrary, Qingqing, who has already established an image of being unreasonable, is the most suitable candidate at this moment.

Thinking of this, Chu Hong gave Qingqing an approving look.

Upon hearing this, Su Changchuan's eyes twitched violently.

He thought the other party would ask their subordinates directly and leave without getting any clues.

Unexpectedly, a strong-willed woman appeared out of nowhere, completely reversing the situation.

If he were to try to stop them and forcibly drive them away, wouldn't that just confirm that they had something to hide, which would be tantamount to admitting guilt without being asked?

After weighing the options several times, Su Changchuan felt rather helpless, but he forced a hearty smile and raised his hand, saying:

"The three young heroes have been working hard practicing martial arts in the Seven Star Palace and have probably never seen the scenery outside. It would be excellent if the scenery of the manor were beautiful right now, and the young heroes could stay here for a while."

"Within the boundaries of my manor, apart from the designated restricted areas, you are free to roam the rest of the area. Is that acceptable?"

"Thank you for your kindness, Master!" Chu Hong and Xiao Yi exchanged a glance and bowed to express their gratitude.

Seizing the opportunity, Chu Hong stepped forward and calmly began to speak:

"Now that we are free to move around, there is no need for the manor lord to gather manpower. Please provide us with a list of those who accompanied us that day, and we can inquire about them one by one ourselves."

"To avoid gathering manpower and making a big fuss, which would disturb the peace of the manor."

Chu Hong's request is quite unreasonable.

A cold glint flashed in Su Changchuan's eyes.

When there are many people gathered together, with supervision and reminders from each other, everyone is aware of the situation and it is impossible for them to go astray.

One-on-one questioning is a different story.

Because this is the easiest way to break people's hearts.

But now that things have come to this, refusing would expose one's guilty conscience.

Su Changchuan maintained a magnanimous demeanor and verbally agreed:

"Young Master Chu is right. I will simply hand over the roster to you, which will save us the trouble of making a fuss."

But he had already made up his mind.

First, the delivery of the roster must be delayed; second, orders must be quickly issued to restrain the relevant personnel.

They need to know that their families are all here, and if they dare to betray the manor, they will face the manor's wrath.

-----------------

A moment later, several servants led Chu Hong and his companions to the guest courtyard.

The courtyard is elegant and quiet; simply standing there is very comforting.

Throughout the entire process, Qingqing always kept Wang Xiaofang by her side, seemingly as close as sisters, but in reality, she kept her firmly under her control.

Wang Xiaofang, naturally, is the woman in the yellow dress and also Wang Ping's sister.

Wang Xiaofang appeared quite docile, but her eyes kept glancing at Chu Hong, and she tried several times to get closer and strike up a conversation.

But who is Qingqing? She always stopped him without making a sound.

Wang Xiaofang cursed inwardly, but there was nothing she could do.

After the servants left, Qingqing asked in a low voice:

"Do we really have to ask everyone in the village what to do next?"

Chu Hong nodded, turned to look at Wang Xiaofang, and said calmly, "Of course we will investigate."

"Investigating her brother's case in parallel with the case we're pursuing might yield some additional clues from others, killing two birds with one stone."

"Miss Wang, do you have a problem with this?"

"No objection, no objection!" Wang Xiaofang nodded repeatedly.

In her and Su Changchuan's plan, the matter of their "younger brother" would never come to a conclusion.

However, by following the crowd, she could get close to Chu Hong, monitor his movements, and find out who the traitors of the manor were, which was a win-win situation for her.

The four immediately devised a plan.

Chu Hong directly summoned the manor servant who was supposed to be leading the way, and on the pretext that they were new to the manor and needed to familiarize themselves with its layout, he asked the servant to lead the four of them around.

The servants had already received instructions from the master of the estate and had no objections.

So he led the four of them through various parts of the manor. One moment they were at a magnificent martial arts arena, where dozens of guards and soldiers were practicing their fist techniques with swords, the sound of swords cutting through the air rising and falling.

One moment it's the Sword Fortress, where the furnace roars and the clanging of hammers echoes incessantly.

The group walked slowly, and Chu Hong's gaze seemed to casually sweep over each courtyard, but in reality, he memorized the terrain, the distribution of guards, and other details.

The group didn't finish exploring most of the area until mid-afternoon.

Only the two forbidden areas of the mountain villa remained untouched by the group.

The place was located in the back of the mountain, deep in the forest and quiet, and didn't seem like a place that people often came to.

The other place was in the core area, a heavily guarded courtyard surrounded by high walls, which was led away by servants from a distance.

Although the group had not yet approached, Chu Hong and his companions keenly sensed that this place did not seem to be a forbidden area.

There's no other reason than the marks on the stone slabs on the ground, which indicate that people used to come and go regularly.

here......

A guess arose in Chu Hong's mind. He stopped and looked at that area, speaking casually:

"We've seen the residences of the manor lord and his retainers, the martial arts training ground, the sword-forging fortress, and other places along the way."

"Why don't I see your Second Master Su Changli's residence? Could it be that he doesn't live in the manor?"

The servant leading the way suddenly stopped, his mouth twitched a few times, and his expression was slightly flustered.

But it returned to normal after a short while.

"Young hero, the Second Master and the First Master are very close brothers and usually live together, so they do not have separate residences."

"Oh?" Chu Hong looked at the servant with a half-smile.

This explanation is riddled with flaws.

After a careful analysis, the group realized that the servant was lying.

No matter how deep the bond between siblings is, it's impossible for them to live together in their fifties or sixties; that's common sense.

This is only possible if one of them has a physical disability.

Chu Hong's expression turned cold, and he leaned forward slightly, his gaze fixed on Zhuang Pu's eyes like a sharp blade:

"Your lie is not clever. Looking at those high walls and courtyards, it's clear that someone has lived there for many years."

Chu Hong pointed to the forbidden area and pressed closer, saying:

"That so-called forbidden area, isn't it just your second master's hiding place?"