Without hesitation, Ling Shu pushed Yue Dingtang aside and used his body as a shield.

He quickly twisted his body and kicked out, narrowly avoiding the sharp axe.

The man let out a cry of pain as he fell heavily to the ground.

Ling Shu was about to finish him off when someone grabbed his waist from behind.

"Stop!" It was Yue Dingtang's voice in his ear, but when Ling Shu glanced back, he saw the man with the white hair.

His heart skipped a beat and he struggled instinctively.

The man couldn't hold on and let go, allowing Ling Shu to turn around and see that it wasn't the white-haired man, but Yang Chunhe who he had just kicked down.

The girl couldn't withstand his kick and fell to the ground, clutching her stomach and groaning in pain.

Ling Shu looked again and saw that it was Yue Dingtang and Yang Chunhe, who didn't have any white hair at all.

But he took two steps back and this time, he didn't dare to believe it easily.

"Ling Shu, what's wrong with you?" Yue Dingtang's urgent expression caught his eye, faintly visible under the kerosene lamp, with no hint of falsehood in his tone.

Ling Shu shook his head and raised his hand to stop him from coming closer.

"Let me think. Didn't we just take Leader Ying as a hostage?"

"Yes."

"Where is he now?"

"When we crossed the water, he was dragged into the water by a water snake. We barely escaped with our lives."

Something was off. Ling Shu pursed his lips. The fake leader had clearly crossed the river with them and only went crazy when it was time to reveal his identity.

He had been desperate to run back and was knocked out by them before being dragged into the water by a snake?

Was it his own memory that was wrong, or was Yue Dingtang lying?

Yue Dingtang wouldn't lie to him, unless the person in front of him wasn't the real Yue Dingtang.

Most people would be on the verge of a breakdown in this situation, but Ling Shu could still think calmly.

Sweat dripped down his forehead, his heart beating faster. He had a vague sense of danger, but it was all muddled and hard to clear up.

It was like standing with your back to a cliff, unable to turn around and see, but still sensing the danger through biological instinct.

But where was the danger now?

Was it Yue Dingtang, Yang Chunhe, or himself?

"Old Yue, my memory of the fake leader is different from yours. Let's compare notes."

"Okay."

"You know my sister's name, right?"

"Ling Yao."

"How did we meet?"

"Because of the investigation into the Yuan Manor case. You were the prime suspect and I accompanied Smith to the dance hall to find you."

"No, that was when we reunited. I'm talking about the first time we met."

"We were classmates in middle school, weren't we?"

Up to this point, everything was correct.

Ling Shu nodded and asked another question.

"Did you find the golden pagoda?"

"I did."

"Where is it?"

"I later pawned it at a pawnshop for my second brother."

That's not right. The golden pagoda had long been stolen by Ivanov and was lost somewhere in the northeast. It has not been found to this day.

How could Yue Dingtang have brought it back?

Even if Yue Dingtang brought back such an important treasure, he wouldn't hand it over to his second brother, let alone sell it to a pawnshop.

"You're lying, you're not him!" Ling Shu sternly exclaimed, suddenly reaching out to grab the other person, as fast as lightning!

Yue Dingtang sneered, suddenly disappearing in front of him, leaving Ling Shu grasping at thin air.

Where did he go?!