Catching Monsters

Chapter 477 The work of a demonic cultivator
Due to the war in the south, most of the wealthy and powerful people fled to the capital and the north.

Most truly wealthy people wouldn't choose to stay in the capital. No one knows how the war will develop. What if they manage to settle down in the capital, only to find that the rebels have already reached it?

Therefore, most truly wealthy people will continue to flee north.

Many poor people followed the refugees and reached the capital, which was already their limit, as everyone had heard that the capital was rich and powerful.

It is said that even if you were to beg for food in the capital, you could still eat and drink your fill every day.

In a short period of time, a large number of refugees entered Gongxian and other counties surrounding the capital.

Even within the outer city, there were several places established by the imperial court to temporarily house displaced people.

Huayun Temple is one of them. Located in the south of the outer city, Huayun Temple was originally a Buddhist temple, but its business has declined, and most of the business has long been attracted to Changxin Temple.

The imperial court has now requisitioned the entire temple to temporarily house refugees.

Yan Jiu, Chen Ping, and Bai Yun San lived in Huayun Temple.

There were quite a few refugees at Huayun Temple. Over a thousand people were accommodated there, and rooms that were originally meant for two people were crammed with more than twenty.

Even the main hall of the temple was filled with makeshift mats, and many open-air areas were simply covered with thatched roofs to provide shelter from the rain.

There was food every day, but it was mostly rice porridge with hardly any rice in it.

Of course, the imperial court did provide funding. According to the court's regulations, the disaster victims' daily food consisted of pickled vegetables and a bowl of thin porridge.

But now, with the war, refugees are pouring into the vicinity of the capital, and rice prices are soaring.

Chen Ping and Bai Yun were resting in a corner of the temple.

Although they were all refugees, the vast majority of them traveled with fellow villagers.

These three teenagers, arriving in this place for the first time, seemed rather helpless and alone.

Soon, eight or nine young men in their twenties came over. Chen Ping was very ill, and one of the young men kicked his calf: "Where's today's food?"

"Is that kid named Yan Jiu not here?"

These young men were originally local ruffians. After fleeing to the capital, they found that the capital was far from what they had imagined. They couldn't even get enough to eat, so they banded together and started robbing other refugees.

Of course, they dared not provoke those who banded together in large groups, but they set their sights on Chen Ping and his two companions.

However, Yan Jiu is incredibly strong; he just had a fight with them the day before yesterday.

Yan Jiu fought alone and didn't suffer any losses against them.

The thug who spoke was named Wu Yuzhang. Taking advantage of Yan Jiu's absence, he waved his hand and said, "Search them and see if there's anything valuable."

"Let us go." Bai Yunsan hurriedly took out a rusty little dagger and stared at Wu Yuzhang through gritted teeth.

This was something Yan Jiu secretly gave him for self-defense before he left.

Upon seeing this, Wu Yuzhang burst out laughing: "Oh, you little rascal, you've been hiding a blade?"

"Come on, let's see how bold you are to stab here."

As he spoke, he even pointed to his own chest, certain that this young man surnamed Bai wouldn't dare to act recklessly.

The last few times they came to cause trouble, these three boys just swallowed their anger.

Soon, the other thugs found half a spoiled steamed bun on the seriously ill Chen Ping.

"They hide the steamed buns but don't take them out."

“With your sickly appearance, you won’t survive eating this steamed bun. Isn’t it a waste to keep it?” Wu Yuzhang said, taking the spoiled steamed bun, swallowing, and about to take a bite.

Despite his imposing presence, Wu Yuzhang was nothing more than a local ruffian among the displaced people.

I was also extremely hungry during this period.

Just as he put the steamed bun in his mouth, the boy named Bai Yunsan unexpectedly became ruthless.

This is Chen Ping's life-saving food.

The three of them escaped from the rebel army together and endured many hardships on their way to the capital.

Thinking of this, Bai Yun San actually took the dagger and pierced through the steamed bun.

The rusty dagger, through the stale steamed bun, pierced directly into Wu Yuzhang's head.

Drops of blood flowed from Wu Yuzhang's mouth, and then he collapsed heavily to the ground, his eyes wide open.

"Kill, kill someone, kill someone."

The other thugs were terrified when they saw this, and they scattered and fled in all directions.

……

"Chen Ping, Lao Bai, I'm back." Yan Jiu carried two roast geese in his hands and some Chinese medicine he had grabbed on his back as he quickly ran into the temple. He finally breathed a sigh of relief. With this medicine, if Chen Ping could rest for a few more days at the Sanqing Temple that Brother Jiang had mentioned, he would definitely survive.

When they arrived at Huayun Temple and their lodgings, all that remained on the ground was a pool of blood. Upon seeing this, Yan Jiu's heart skipped a beat, and he knew something was wrong. He quickly inquired among the surrounding refugees about what had happened.

Finally, someone said, "Hey, your two companions just now killed Wu Yuzhang, and then the constables from the Jingzhao Prefecture came and arrested them."

"A constable from the Jingzhao Prefecture?" Upon hearing this, Yan Jiu immediately became anxious.

The person who spoke was not young, and kindly reminded him, "You'd better hurry up and think of a solution. These days, whenever any of us refugees cause trouble, we disappear without a trace the next day and are never seen again."

"Alright, alright, I'll go find the Jingzhao Prefecture government office right away."

Upon hearing this, Yan Jiu became somewhat anxious. Before leaving, he gave the roast goose he had bought to the man.

He rushed out of Huayun Temple in a panic, intending to ask someone for directions to the Jingzhao Prefecture government office.

Then they saw Jiang Yun leading more than twenty Imperial Guards, riding fast horses towards them from afar.

Seeing Yan Jiu, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, as Yan Jiu had not told him where he was staying.

Later, when Jiang Yun wanted to find him, he inquired and learned that there were countless refugees being resettled in the capital at that time. In the end, he had no choice but to ask the Imperial Guards to inquire along the streets.

Yan Jiu, dressed like a beggar, bought roast goose and Chinese medicine, which attracted quite a bit of attention.

Finally, we learned that he had come from the direction of Huayun Temple.

"Brother Jiang." Yan Jiu quickly ran up to Jiang Yun and briefly explained the matter.

After listening, Jiang Yun frowned and said in a deep voice, "Don't be anxious. Someone, ask Huayun Temple who's in charge."

Soon, several members of the Imperial Guard entered the temple.

"Master Jiang!"

A short while later, a minor official rushed over and said respectfully, "I am Zhang, the manager of the temporary accommodation office at Huayun Temple."

"Manager Zhang, I heard there was a murder here just now?"

Manager Zhang nodded repeatedly: "Yes, not long ago, constables from the Jingzhao Prefecture arrived and took the person away."

"They should have already left the city and headed south."

Jiang Yun frowned and asked with some surprise, "Since it's a murder case, why not take it back to the yamen for trial, instead of taking it out of the city?"

Steward Zhang's heart skipped a beat. He went to Jiang Yun's side and whispered, "Lord Jiang, you are a big shot in the Zhenfu Division, but you don't know that our court is in a lot of trouble right now."

"The finances were already tight, and now they have to support so many displaced people, so the higher-ups secretly gave them a hint..."

"If any of the refugees commit crimes or break the law, they shall all be dealt with."

This was also approved by Xiao Jingfu at the time.

After listening, Jiang Yun frowned slightly. He understood that in chaotic times, harsh measures were necessary. If the refugees were truly criminals who committed murder, arson, and other crimes, then such methods were justified.

He said, "I want to interrogate those two prisoners. I'll give you half an hour, Steward Zhang, to bring them here. Otherwise, I'll ask you to go back to the Imperial Prison."

Upon hearing this, Steward Zhang turned pale and hurriedly ran towards the south gate.

"Don't worry, with me here, your companion will be fine. You should go back to the Eastern Garrison and wait for news." Jiang Yun patted Yan Jiu on the shoulder.

He ordered his two men to take Yan Jiu away from this place.

Feeling somewhat uneasy, he rode his horse and led the remaining men toward the south gate.

After searching for about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, we finally found it in a secluded, dense forest about six miles from the south gate.

But the person is already dead.

The bodies of Chen Ping and Bai Yunsan lay under a tree in the dense forest.

The constable who committed the murder has disappeared.

The two men had obvious strangulation marks on their necks, suggesting they were strangled to death.

Upon seeing the two men's dead bodies, Manager Zhang, who was the first to arrive, felt his legs go weak...

Upon hearing the news, Jiang Yun rushed to the scene. After seeing the two men's condition, he frowned deeply and quickly stepped forward to examine the cause of their deaths.

But soon, Jiang Yun's heart stirred slightly; these two people were not killed by ordinary yamen runners.

The air around them carried a faint aura of evil.

It was done by evil spirits or demons.

(End of this chapter)