Minglong

Chapter 2: Falling into a trap
The next day, on the outskirts of Danyang City.

It was August, and the warm autumn sun shone on the official road. Thousands of ships gathered at the riverside harbor, and people of all kinds were rushing on the dock. Occasionally, one could hear idle people whispering:

"I heard there was a huge thunderstorm last night, and a dragon fell into Zihui Mountain. The government officials went to search for it..."

"Dragons are inherently lustful. If this is true, the female birds and beasts of Zihui Mountain will probably be in trouble..."

……

Xie Jinhuan stood alone on the dock, carrying coal briquettes, his eyes full of doubt about his life.

Last night, he was worried about being caught up by the female monster, so he fled from the mountains overnight. After making inquiries from many sources, he learned that it was indeed the eighth year of Jingning, and he had been in a blackout for nearly three years!

Amnesia is not a problem. At worst, you can go see a doctor and check your brain. You can still live without a brain.

But his father, who was an official after all, was missing, his servants and maids were missing, and even his little white horse that had learned to move on its own was nowhere to be found.

All I have left is a lazy and gluttonous bird and a wallet that is cleaner than my face.

Just now, when we took the ferry, we all paid by scanning our faces, but the boatman didn't judge people by appearance and only accepted payment by hook. He had no choice but to help the old man row the boat all the way.

In the past, Xie Jinhuan was at least a young master. He was not rich, but he had everything he wanted. The only thing he had to worry about in his life was that his house was not big, so where would he live with his three wives, four concubines, five mistresses, six concubines, seven maids, eight rooms, and a dozen or so mistresses outside?

Now, not to mention his three wives and four concubines, he also has to serve the personal servant on his shoulders.

Coal Ball doesn't know how to catch mice at all. If he dares not to feed them, Coal Ball will make him lose the last loved ones around him, or starve to death. What a cruel bird!
What to do next...

Xie Jinhuan felt the bleak autumn wind, secretly pondering his future. Just as he was lost in thought, he was patted on the back:
"Brother, are you leaving or not?"

Looking back, the villagers waiting to get off the boat were almost crushing the pedals.

"Sorry, distracted."

Xie Jinhuan made way and asked the boatman who had taken him there for free:
"Old man, can we discuss this? I'll row the boat to the capital myself and I'll pay you double when I get there. My father, Xie Wen, was originally a lawyer in Wan'an County..."

The old boatman tied the anchor rope to the wooden stake, shook his head and sighed:
"Alas, it's not that I don't want to help you, young man. Something seemed to have happened in the city yesterday. All the boats crossing the river have stopped, and there are sailors patrolling the river. You can't go to Jingzhao Prefecture now."

Xie Jinhuan looked out over the river and saw no ships passing by. He asked in confusion:
"What happened?"

"I'm not sure. I guess there was a big bandit incident and they're afraid they'll run into Jingzhao Prefecture and disturb you. Don't you have any relatives or friends in Danyang? Go stay there for a few days and I'll take you there once the shipping is open."

Relatives and friends...

Xie Jinhuan thought carefully and remembered that a constable his father had led was transferred to Danyang County Government and had seen his father off three years ago.

As someone in the government and an old friend, he might know what his father had been doing in the past three years.

"Old man, is Captain Yang Dabiao still serving in Danyang?"

The boatman made a living by ferrying people, and was inevitably visited by the police. He was quite familiar with the government office:
"Yes, a few days ago, Lord Yang brought yamen runners to the dock to investigate bandits, and now he has been promoted to lieutenant..."

Wei Shi was the deputy of the county lieutenant. Although he was not a high-ranking official, he was considered a high-ranking official for the common people.

Xie Jinhuan found an acquaintance and didn't delay any longer. He asked for directions along the way and headed towards Danyang City...
-
Danyang City, Dongcangfang.

Dongcangfang is a storage area. The outer streets are mostly occupied by escort agencies and carriage and horse shops, while the inner streets are lined with warehouses.

At noon, above a restaurant.

Yang Ting, the lieutenant of Danyang County, sucked on a bamboo pipe and glanced out the window at the scattered buildings:
"Are you sure there are demonic bandits hiding there?"

His son, Yang Dabiao, stood before him. He was no less than ninety feet tall, with broad shoulders and a broad back. His chest muscles were like a double-door refrigerator, but his expression was quite fawning. He was using a lighter to help his father light a cigarette.

"Of course there is. I heard from the wonton shop owner that there's a new face who's been buying wontons every day, enough for three people. The warehouse manager at Lijiacang heard a dog barking at night, but when he opened the door, he couldn't find anyone..."

Next to the two men stood a woman wearing ink-colored Qilin armor and a sword hanging from her waist. She was not very old, but had a rather cool and elegant temperament. Her name was Linghu Qingmo.

Linghu Qingmo, who had learned from the current head of Zihui Mountain, was now training as a personal guard in the palace. He was on good terms with Princess Changning and her sister, and held a high position. Hearing this, he interrupted:
"Dongcangfang is two miles long and one and a half miles wide. The terrain is complex. As soon as the officers show up, the demonic bandits will surely flee. How do you plan to search for them?"

Yang Dabiao covered the fire stick and turned around:
"Mobilize a hundred or so people to seal off all the entrances and exits to the warehouse, and then catch the turtle in the jar..."

Linghu Qingmo frowned slightly:

"Last night, a 'blood-soaring evil aura' appeared on Zihui Mountain, as if a great demon had emerged. Two hundred and eighty of the three hundred warriors have already been dispatched, and the various constables are also out on patrol. You haven't even figured out the details of the thieves, so how are you going to mobilize a hundred or so men?"

Yang Ting sucked on his pipe and nodded, "If they mobilized over a hundred people and finally caught three pickpockets, your father and I would have been stripped of our skins by County Magistrate Zhang."

Yang Dabiao knew that it was difficult to mobilize people, otherwise he would not have invited his father and the female Bodhisattva from the palace. He smiled attentively:

"Master Linghu comes from the Taoist sect, so he should be able to detect evil spirits. How about performing a ritual to try?"

Zihui Mountain belongs to the Danding School of Taoism, which practices both Taoism and martial arts. It can indeed use magic to exorcise evil spirits, bind demons, and kill monsters, but since it is a Taoist sect, its "Taoism level" must be considered.

Linghu Qingmo was currently training in the palace, and hadn't yet left the mountain. If she could find a subtle hint of evil spirits among the thousands of buildings, what else would she need to train for? She could directly go to the Imperial Observatory in the capital and become an "immortal official."

"I have something else to attend to. I'll take my leave now. Lord Yang, please inform me once you have confirmed any traces of the demon bandits."

"Eh?"

Yang Dabiao, with only a few followers, could not possibly keep an eye on the entire Dongcangfang. Seeing the female Bodhisattva was about to leave, he quickly stopped her and flattered her with a smile:

"Master Linghu, we are neighbors after all. Why don't you call Lao Liu and the others over? With ten or so people, we can at least keep watch on all sides."

"Liu Qingzhi is serving as a guard of honor for Her Highness the Princess. Call them over. Will you take over?"

"Uh……"

……

As the two of them were arguing, Yang Ting, who had been smoking his pipe, suddenly narrowed his eyes and looked towards the outer streets:
"Is this the man?"

Linghu Qingmo went back to the window to check and saw a figure entering Dongcang Street.

The figure was dressed in a white brocade robe, two weapons dangling from his waist, and a plump black eagle slung over his shoulder. Although dressed like a wealthy young man, his steps were steady and his torso as solid as a rock, indicating he must be a skilled martial artist. He was also alone, glancing left and right as he walked, his behavior slightly suspicious.

Yang Dabiao looked at him carefully and felt that the man looked familiar. He took out a portrait from his sleeve to check it out.

The person in the painting is thin, has a goatee, and is dressed like a wandering Taoist priest. He is probably in his forties or fifties.

"No, the person I saw at the wonton shop was a middle-aged man, but he looked familiar. Maybe he was another wanted criminal."

Seeing this, Linghu Qingmo took out the telescope from his waist and opened it to take a closer look.

It turned out that the young man on the street was indeed behaving suspiciously. After walking a distance on the street, he quickly turned his head left and right, as if he heard a call, and then he went into the alley and disappeared.

"I guess they are really accomplices!"

Yang Dabiao became excited when he saw this, and looked downstairs to greet:

"Let's get some rest, it's time to live!"

At the foot of the tall building, four resting constables quickly got up, adjusted their hats and hung their swords.

Seeing this, Linghu Qingmo quietly jumped out of the window and headed towards Dongcangfang...
-
Danyang is not as big as the capital, but it is adjacent to the capital and has convenient transportation. It has a permanent population of over 700,000 and is still quite prosperous overall.

Xie Jinhuan walked through the streets and saw dense crowds of pedestrians everywhere. The shops on the street were also filled with the aroma of food. Several times, while walking, he found that Coal Ball was missing. When he turned around, he found that it was squatting in front of the shop door, begging for food.

Coal briquettes could not satisfy him at all, and Xie Jinhuan did not stop to waste time. He just went to the county lieutenant's office to inquire about Yang Dabiao's whereabouts. When he learned that he was patrolling in Dongcangfang area, he came to find him.

Dongcang Street is mostly occupied by carriages and escort agencies, with a mixed crowd and constant noise along the street:
"steamed stuffed bun……"

"Selling coal..."

"Where are you going, sir? Do you want to buy a horse? The mare just shipped back from Fengzhou is rideable and can give birth..."

But there were no detectives on the streets.

Xie Jinhuan, holding onto his coal-bread, wanted to watch the excitement, and looked around the street. He hadn't found anyone he knew yet, when he suddenly heard a voice:
"and many more."

The charming and lovely voice of a mature lady makes her sound like a sister with big breasts.

Xie Jinhuan was stunned and quickly looked around, but found that the street was full of peddlers and hawkers, and there was no one who matched the image of the voice.

"Coal Ball, did you hear the woman say 'wait' just now?"

"Guji?"

Coal Ball, squatting on his shoulder, looked around in confusion.

Looks like he didn't hear...

Could it be an auditory hallucination?

Xie Jinhuan was quite confused and looked around, finally his eyes fell on the bluestone alley on the side of the street.

The alley is located between rows of warehouses. It is almost impossible to see the bottom at a glance. The wall is two meters high and quite deep. In the distance, you can see a figure pouring something into the sewage ditch.

Although the distance was far, Xie Jinhuan had excellent eyesight and could see clearly that the figure was wearing a yellow linen shirt and a felt hat. There was no hair around the hat, and he looked like a bald porter.

But even though he was unconscious, he still kept his feet one in front of the other, ready to move at any moment. It was obvious that he often traveled around...

Disguised as a skilled laborer, he sneaked into the sparsely populated warehouse area...

Could it be bandits?
Xie Jinhuan came to look for an acquaintance who worked in the yamen. Seeing something unusual, he had to say hello. After searching around and still not finding the official, he turned into the alley and headed in the direction where the yellow-clothed figure disappeared.

The bluestone alley was quite deep. It took about half a mile to reach the place where things were dumped. There were some finished noodles and soup.

Xie Jinhuan's ears twitched slightly, and he quietly turned into a side alley and came to a warehouse. He listened through the wall and heard voices talking inside:
"We've harvested enough dragon beard grass, and there won't be much to do later. How about going out to celebrate tonight?"

"The body found by the river a few days ago has already attracted the attention of the government. The entire city is under investigation, and the higher-ups have instructed us to keep a low profile..."

"We're not going to cause any trouble. I heard there were some Hu girls in Brothel Street, with red hair and blue eyes, and breasts bigger than their heads..."

"Let's talk about it after I'm done..."

……

The tits are bigger than the head...

Xie Jinhuan memorized the key information and after confirming that it was a lurking demon bandit, he prepared to leave quietly and go to the police to report it.

But Xie Jinhuan thought he didn't reveal any breath, but the coal ball on his shoulder was disturbed by some dirty thing. It suddenly made a "Chi?!" sound and its hair stood on end. Then it turned its head to look around and was so scared that it flew high up.

As the unusual movement sounded, a voice came from the warehouse:

"what?"

"There's someone outside..."

……

Xie Jinhuan felt that something was wrong and wanted to fly away immediately.

But also at this time!
boom--

Wow…

The bluestone wall three meters ahead was directly knocked open, and a figure flew out and landed in the alley.

The door of the warehouse at the rear exploded, and a figure in green flashed by.

A person rushed out from the roof and landed on the eaves...

(End of this chapter)