As the sky darkened, the mountain patrol and the captured skinners began setting up tents to rest.
Duojie interrogated the poaching ring's leader, whose hands had been beaten to a pulp. In the end, the man only admitted that his name was Li Yongqiang. When asked anything else, he claimed not to know and stubbornly refused to talk.
The other captured poachers were the same, keeping their mouths firmly shut. Even when Zhacuo and the others swarmed them and gave them a thorough beating, it did nothing to restore their memories.
Duojie shook his head and gave up on further questioning. He walked around to check on everyone, then finally sat in the tent and watched Wang Yan busy himself.
Bai Ji had volunteered to come over and help. Seeing Duojie return, he furtively glanced at Li Yongqiang and the others in the distance before speaking in a low voice.
"Uncle Duojie, let me tell you, these people are terrible. If anyone disobeys, they beat them. When they slaughtered the sheep, every one of them howled with excitement—they were having the time of their lives. Aren't they refusing to confess? You should torture them. Pull out their fingernails, hammer needles under their nails. I don't believe they still won't talk."
Duojie laughed, but patiently explained, "It's not that they won't talk. They don't dare to. That Li Yongqiang is the boss. He has influence and he's ruthless, so they're afraid of him. Once we get back to the county, separate them for detention and interrogation, and they'll all confess."
"Even so, they should get a good beating. Otherwise, they're getting off too easily."
"I think the one who deserves a good beating is you," Duojie said. "Tell me, then. How did you end up skinning animals for a poaching ring?"