Chapter 47: Hypnosis

Chapter 47: Hypnosis

Peng Wang's brows instantly knitted together as he bellowed at the Mo family women, "All of you, get lost! Don't cause any trouble here."

At this moment, his mind was preoccupied with whether Zhou Laoba had indeed encountered danger, as He Zhiran had warned.

Zhou Laoba had been by his side for years, and Peng Wang knew him well.

Zhou Laoba was always punctual, and given that they had only gone out to purchase provisions, there was no reason for them to be gone this long.

Upon observing Li Hu, whose gaze seemed to be evading something, Peng Wang began to piece things together.

He turned to Li Hu with a cold stare.

"Li Hu, where is Zhou Laoba?"

"Boss, He Zhiran fled, and Brother Eight went after her. I came back to deliver the message," Li Hu stammered out the prepared excuse he had in mind.

In this line of work, the greatest taboo was allowing a prisoner to escape.

Li Hu was convinced that if he accused He Zhiran of fleeing, Peng Wang wouldn't let it slide.

Indeed, Peng Wang was highly averse to the notion of a prisoner escaping. Although he didn't entirely trust Li Hu's words, he still turned his gaze to He Zhiran, ready to uncover the truth.

He Zhiran shrugged, feeling no need to elaborate on the matter.

Her return was the strongest proof that she hadn't fled.

"Magistrate Peng, I'm back here. Does that count as an escape? If you trust me, you should hurry and find Magistrate Zhou! As long as we can locate him alive, won't everything become clear?"

Upon hearing He Zhiran's words, Peng Wang realized that finding Zhou Laoba was now an urgent matter.

Fixing his gaze on Li Hu, he asked in a stern voice, "Li Hu, where is Zhou Laoba?"

Li Hu's gaze flickered for just a fleeting moment, but it was so subtle that it would go unnoticed if one didn't pay close attention.

However, this sign of guilt did not escape He Zhiran's keen eyes.

Regaining his composure swiftly, Li Hu knew that as long as he insisted Zhou Laoba had gone to find He Zhiran, no one would suspect anything.

After all, by now, Zhou Laoba was likely already dead.

"Boss, Eighth Brother really went to look for the He family. I'm not lying."

Peng Wang was skeptical but still patiently probed further.

"Where did you two part ways?"

He Zhiran watched as time ticked by, worried about Zhou Laoba's safety.

If Peng Wang continued questioning like this, they would not only fail to obtain any useful information but also waste precious time for rescue.

Before Li Hu could come up with an excuse, He Zhiran politely invited Peng Wang away from the crowd.

Seeing his superior follow He Zhiran out, Li Hu immediately felt a sense of crisis grip him.

It was evident that the leader didn't believe his explanation; otherwise, why would he have left with her?

"Leader, don't believe that deceitful woman's words," Li Hu warned, receiving a cold glare from Peng Wang in response.

Then, Peng Wang turned to He Zhiran. "Do you know where Zhou Laoba is?"

"I don't, but I have a way to make Li Hu tell the truth."

"What way?" Peng Wang urged her to reveal her plan.

"I've learned a secret technique that can hypnotize a person's will, allowing me to easily extract the information I need.

However, my skills are still unrefined, and I'll require Magistrate Peng's cooperation."

In her previous life, He Zhiran had a friend with exceptional hypnosis skills. She had picked up some basics from him, giving her a seventy percent chance of success in simple inquiries.

"To increase the chances of success, Peng Wang's cooperation is essential."

"Peng Wang, what do you need me to do? Speak quickly," Peng Wang said without any doubt in He Zhiran's capabilities. In the past two days, he had seen enough to believe that this woman still had many hidden skills.

"Honorable Magistrate Peng, as I mentioned earlier, my skills are not yet polished. For added certainty, I hope you can have Li Hu intoxicated, but not to the point of being completely unconscious. Ideally, he should be in a state of half-wakefulness, half-intoxication."

Peng Wang looked at He Zhiran suspiciously, unsure why she wanted to interrogate someone in such a condition.

However, he inexplicably held great faith in He Zhiran.

"Alright, just wait there. I'll handle it."

Peng Wang was swift and decisive in his actions. He instructed his subordinates to purchase a jar of wine from the innkeeper and then ordered the officers to restrain Li Hu, forcing him to drink.

Initially, Li Hu resisted.

After their leader was called away by He Zhiran for a brief conversation, everyone began to urge Li Hu to drink.

He would not believe it if there was no hidden agenda in this situation.

As such, when Li Hu was being forced to drink by the crowd, he used all his strength to evade their attempts.

Unfortunately, there were too many officers. With each one contributing a bit of effort, Li Hu had no way to escape.

Peng Wang knew Li Hu's alcohol tolerance quite well. Seeing that he was almost drunk, he instructed everyone to stop pouring drinks.

Then, he ordered someone to take Li Hu to a separate guest room. Zhang Qing and another officer were left behind to attend to him, while Peng Wang called for He Zhiran.

He Zhiran observed Li Hu's state, which suggested he was just starting to feel the effects of the alcohol.

At such times, people's consciousness was usually weakened, making them much easier to manipulate than usual.

Without suspicion, He Zhiran entered the space and found a necklace with a gemstone pendant. Discreetly retrieving it under the cover of his sleeve, he then showed it to Li Hu in full view of everyone.

Li Hu was both greedy and lustful. The sight of such a high-quality necklace instantly sparked a glimmer of gold in his eyes. The influence of the alcohol made him forget how to conceal Zhou Laoba's disappearance.

He extended his hand, intending to take the necklace from He Zhiran's grasp.

With a nimble dodge, she asked with a hint of teasing, "You want this necklace, do you?"

Li Hu didn't hide his desire, nodding fervently.

"I want it," he admitted.

"Alright, if you do as I say, I'll give you this necklace."

"No problem, I'll follow your instructions."

He Zhiran unfurled the necklace, causing the pendant to swing rhythmically before Li Hu's eyes.

Soon, Li Hu's gaze became fixated, losing its luster.

Feeling that the time was right, He Zhiran posed her question.

"Where is Zhou Laoba?"

When asked about Zhou Laoba's whereabouts, Li Hu's rigid expression surprisingly softened, a hint of a smile appearing.

"He was knocked out and taken away by my men. By now, he's probably fish food," Li Hu revealed.

Upon hearing this, the officers present grew tense.

"Captain, I'll lead a team to search the riverbank for Zhou Laoba right away," Zhang Qing declared loudly.

Hearing Zhang Qing's loud voice, He Zhiran's heart tightened, and she quickly gestured for silence, simultaneously cautioning him.

"Lord Zhang, please keep your voice down; we don't want to wake him up just yet. There are still many questions left unanswered."

Peng Wang, fearing that Zhang Qing would disregard He Zhiran's warning, shot him a fierce glare.

Zhang Qing promptly closed his mouth, his gaze fixed intently on Li Hu, nerves evident.

Seeing that Li Hu hadn't been roused by Zhang Qing's outburst, He Zhiran sighed in relief. She continued her interrogation, gently swaying the pendant in her hand.

"Where might we currently locate Zhou Laoba at this moment?"