Recommendations, please.
"No intentions?" Dou Congtong's face was full of disbelief.
"Miss Dou," Chen Xiaojun said, looking at her in a calm tone, "if I truly had some scheme, then the ones visiting today would not be us 'children.' I came only to inform Vice Leader Dou's family of his current situation. That is all."
A ripple flashed through Ye Sirong's eyes. "Not to have us persuade my Old Dou?"
Chen Xiaojun shook his head and smiled. "Madam, you're overthinking it. There's no need, because Vice Leader Dou has confessed."
Ye Sirong's expression finally changed slightly. "What does Young Master mean by that? I know Old Dou's character. Though he isn't blindly loyal to Barton, he is by no means someone who fears death and betrays his master lightly. How could he possibly..."
She suddenly thought of a terrifying possibility, and a sharp gleam flashed through her eyes. "Don't tell me you used some... special means?!"
At that moment, Zhu Yanfeng, who had been silently smoking all this time, slowly spoke. He tapped his pipe against the edge of the table, making a dull sound.
He looked at Ye Sirong and cut in, "Sirong, my good niece, this old man is a generation older than you, so I'll speak plainly. Dou Jing... is a tough bone. That much, even this old man finds pleasing."
"We used torture, and he endured quite a bit. But hard bones don't mean there are no soft spots. What his soft spot is... you should know better than anyone."
Ye Sirong's body tensed almost imperceptibly. Her face paled slightly, and her gaze abruptly sharpened like an icy blade.
She understood! Everything suddenly clicked into place!
"You... how did you learn of our existence?!" Her voice sank, carrying suppressed anger. "Did those in the Bone