Chapter 350: Very Clever Rhetoric

“Oh, I forgot to mention. You two can’t stay in the same room. Wouldn’t want you to suffocate from the poor air circulation.”

After everyone else had left, Chen Qingdi said to the girl who remained.

“Now that your sister isn’t here, if you’re willing to tell me everything I want to know, I’ll let you both leave immediately. As for the harm you’ve caused, I’ll even let it slide. How about it?”

The girl hesitated for a moment before saying, “We haven’t harmed anyone!”

“Then why is Shen Mingyue still unconscious?”

The girl looked like she wanted to argue, but suddenly, an expression of immense fear crossed her face, and she clammed up.

“Don’t ask anymore, we won’t tell you! Even if you kill us, I won’t say a thing!”

Chen Qingdi shook his head elegantly.

“I’m a law-abiding, ordinary person. I don’t kill people. The reason I’ve ‘invited’ you here is simply to understand why you poisoned my wife. Until the matter is fully investigated, I must ask for your cooperation.”

“Are you from the Dragon Country’s Adjudication Squad? Why are you illegally detaining us?”

Chen Qingdi shook his head. “For now, just think of us as the Dragon Country’s Adjudication Squad. While we don’t have jurisdiction over other cases, when it comes to harming people through medical means within the Dragon Country, we have considerable influence. You’ve also crossed a serious line with me. If I were to hand you over to the real Adjudication Squad, the treatment you’d receive would be far from what you’re getting now!”

In the Dragon Country, the crime of causing malicious injury carried a minimum sentence starting at three years.

In severe cases, the sentence could range from ten to twenty years. It could even be life imprisonment or, if a death occurred, the death penalty.

By comparison, Chen Qingdi’s interrogation methods could be considered quite civilized.

For one thing, the two had only rendered Shen Mingyue unconscious; there were no other pathological signs.

For another, he was unwilling to resort to killing unless he had no other choice.

Lastly, there were legal considerations. He just wanted the antidote for the poison afflicting his wife; he had no desire to fight fire with fire.

The girl looked at Chen Qingdi.

“So you’re not going to let us go, is that right?”

Chen Qingdi said plainly, “Whether or not you’re let go doesn’t depend on me. It depends on you.”

The girl knew exactly what he meant. As long as she spilled everything—her motive for the poisoning, the main antidote, and even her sect’s secrets—she would be released easily.

‘But if I confess all this, will the sect spare me?’

‘I might even endanger the people I’m closest to.’

“If we keep refusing to talk, will you kill us?”

Chen Qingdi said calmly, “I won’t kill anyone myself. However, if Shen Mingyue dies, or if anything happens to my unborn child, I will have no qualms about handing you over to the authorities. They can sentence you to death!”

The girl immediately relaxed.

“Shen Mingyue’s life is not in danger, and your child can be born safely. But as for whether Mingyue will ever wake up… that will ultimately depend on the will of our sect.”

Chen Qingdi asked her, as if chatting with an old friend.

“What sect do you belong to?”

The girl fell silent again.

“That’s a sensitive question. You’re better off not asking, because you’ll only get a lie. And I don’t want you to have to resort to extreme measures because I lied.”

Chen Qingdi nodded. “What are your names? You can at least tell me that, right?”

The girl hesitated.

Chen Qingdi sighed.

“If you’re going to keep playing dumb, then prepare to live here for the rest of your life. I won’t lay a hand on you, but don’t be naive enough to think it’ll be a pleasant stay. As the Island Master of Medical God Island, I have a thousand and one ways to make you suffer without killing you or even leaving a mark.”

As he spoke, he stood up. “I know you don’t enjoy talking to me, so I won’t be a nuisance any longer. I might have to go on a trip, and I won’t be back for at least a month. Don’t worry, all your food and drink will be delivered through that small hole over there. You can also pass the bowls back out through the same hole when you’re done. If you need to take care of your personal hygiene, there’s a bathroom. And with that, I wish you a pleasant journey.”

After a lazy stretch, he walked to the door.

“Come back!”

The thought of being all alone for the next month in this empty room, completely cut off from the outside world, sent a wave of despair through the girl.

‘This man before me is my enemy, but at least he’s another person. With him here, I’m not so lonely.’

Chen Qingdi turned and walked back.

“My time is limited, too. If you won’t tell me what I need to know, there’s no reason for me to be here. You two are very beautiful, but not nearly beautiful enough to make me throw caution to the wind and assault you. Besides, there are laws, and I would never do that. Since there’s nothing to be done, I might as well go on a trip!”

The girl hesitated for a long time. “My sister and I share a name: Shuang’Er. We also call each other Shuang’Er.”

Chen Qingdi was taken aback for a moment. “If you share a name, how does anyone tell you apart?”

The girl hesitated for a moment before saying, “We’re orphans. Our parents died when we were very young, and we grew up in an orphanage. The matron had me take her husband’s surname. My name is Gu Shuang’Er. My sister, the one you sent to the other room, took the matron’s surname. Her name is Li Shuang’Er.”

Chen Qingdi couldn’t tell which of the two was Gu Shuang’Er and which was Li Shuang’Er. They looked practically identical.

On top of that, they used the same makeup, wore the same clothes, carried the same purses, and had the same hairstyle, making it simply impossible to tell them apart.

So he gave a wry smile. “How am I supposed to tell you two sisters apart?”

Gu Shuang’Er smiled. “We’re practically cast from the same mold. Forget you—even the matron who raised us for years couldn’t tell us apart, and neither could our teachers. If one of us made a mistake, we were always punished together. It was hard to get used to at first, but we did. Because of that, if one of us got bullied, we both fought back. If one was wronged, we both bore the burden together.”

Chen Qingdi nodded.

“Can you tell me why you poisoned Shen Mingyue?”

Gu Shuang’Er shook her head. “I’ve revealed enough secrets already. I don’t want to say any more. If you’re really that interested, go ask Shuang’Er.”

Chen Qingdi gave her a polite bow and took his leave.

Then he gently closed the door behind him. The electronic lock engaged automatically upon his departure. No matter how clever Gu Shuang’Er was, even if she could pick a mechanical lock, she stood no chance against an electronic one controlled by artificial intelligence.