Chapter 2: The Run-down Temple In the Snowstorm
In the dimly lit hall, it was very hard for that pile of fire to illuminate the entire house with the light that it required. The great hall's door was opened and cold wind poured in, kicking up a lot of sparks.
The flame caused the youth to have a long silhouette.
The youth in black turned around and looked at the young girl who barged into the great hall. There was some suspicion in his eyes, but it instantly dissipated. But the moment he turned his head, it also allowed the young girl to see the youth's features clearly by borrowing the light of the fire. He had delicate features and could not be said to be handsome, but that pair of eyes were particularly beautiful. They seemed like two bright stars, making it hard for people to forget after one glance.
"Rushing on a journey?" "Doesn't seem like it."
The youth in black raised his eyebrows and muttered to himself, "Someone still dares to appear here alone at this time, I admire you a bit."
The young girl looked at the youth in black before her eyes rather nervously, uncertain about the other person's identity. According to records, some demons who had attained a certain level in cultivation could transform into a human. Ordinary people could not differentiate them at all.
When the youth in black saw that this young girl was just standing on the spot, looking at him rather nervously, he figured out the reason in just a second. Just as he was about to speak, the wind suddenly howled outside the door. A cold wind poured into the great hall together with the blizzard. The entire hall instantly became bone-piercingly cold.
Demonic energy that filled the sky flooded into the hall. The young girl's expression immediately turned ugly.
While the youth in black became inexplicably excited. After waiting all night, there was finally work to do.
In the next instant, a blood-red mass flowed into the hall along with the wind and snow, appearing in front of the two people. When that cloud of scarlet blood mist dissipated, the true face of the demon was revealed before the two people as well.
That was an extremely ugly demon. It was blood-colored from head to toe and covered in scales all over. It flashed with dark red light and its four limbs were born with extremely sharp claws.
Looking at this ugly demon, the eyes of the young man in black began to shine.
While the color on the young girl's face had already faded completely. Her petite face turned snow-white, like a fragile pear blossom.
The moment she saw this blood demon, she already knew that it was impossible for her Uncle Song as well as those guards to have survived. There was some pain in the young girl's eyes.
When that savage-looking blood demon saw the young girl, it revealed a look of satisfaction too. The flesh and blood of this young girl was definitely the best that it had seen in years. Just the smell made it feel extremely comfortable when it felt that fragrance.
After eating her, it would definitely be able to take another step forward. At that time, taking human form would not be a wild wish!
Except, he soon noticed that youth in black who had been sitting in front of the fire.
As well as the saber hanging at his waist.
That saber was very short. It was half as short as the Great Liang Dynasty's standard length saber.
A broken saber!
In an instant, the blood demon thought of a legend that had spread here.
Just as it looked towards that youth, that young man was also looking at it. Furthermore, he was even smiling.
The blood demon immediately felt its hair stand on end. It opened its mouth and cried out strangely in horror, "It's you?" !
The youth in black stood up. Looking at this blood demon, he grinned and said, "Of course it's me."
With this one sentence, it completely confirmed the identity of the youth in black. The blood demon's expression was ugly to the extreme.
As he said, the youth in black rubbed his hands excitedly, "Tell me, where are your kind hiding?"
The current appearance of the youth in black made the blood demon incredibly angry. But it did not dare to take another step forward. Instead, the two blood-red eyes were sizing up the surroundings as it already had the intention of retreating.
Even if it still coveted that young girl's flesh and blood greatly, at this time, it was very clear that with this youth in black around, what it had to consider now was how to live.
That blood demon did not hide its actions which were caught by the youth in black. He raised his eyebrow and said in amusement, "Want to leave? Why don't you try it?"
Before his voice faded, the blood demon opened its mouth wide and spat out a large mouthful of blood mist. Demonic qi surged and the entire great hall instantly started shaking.
The blood demon in front of them was rather formidable to begin with. If that was not the case, Tutor Song would not have died at its hands previously too. At this moment, it suddenly launched an attack. The density of the demonic qi was truly unimaginable.
When the youth in black saw the demonic qi, he nodded his head with some satisfaction. Then, he took a deep breath and performed a shoulder-turn lunge, clenching his fists tightly.
The young man's entire body instantly tensed up at this time and stored up power.
"Break!"
Throwing a punch out, the blood qi that filled the sky was instantly blown apart.
The hair on the youth in black flew up. He was like a human-form ferocious beast. The terrifying aura under his black clothes swept out in waves, pushing the wind and snow pouring into the great hall into disarray.
When the blood demon who had just retreated to the entrance of the great hall was struck by this fist, blood flowers instantly burst forth from its body. It fell into the snow in the courtyard, its life and death unknown.
By the time the young girl made out the figure of the youth in black, he had already arrived at the entrance of the main hall.
The young man's black hair moved in the wind.
That tall and slim back view was reflected in the eyes of the young girl, leaving her somewhat absent-minded for a while.
She had never met such a youth before.
Arriving outside the hall, the youth in black leaped and landed on top of a large half-exposed incense burner in front of the great hall.
The broken saber had already returned to its sheathe and was hanging at his waist again.
The blood demon lay in the snow. Those eyes that were looking at the youth in black were filled with resentment.
"Why are you looking at me with those eyes?" "You're making it seem like you guys are the victims."
The youth in black looked at the blood demon indifferently.
"This place isn't under your jurisdiction! Why are you here?" !
Since he knew that legend, the blood demon naturally did not dare to go near that forbidden place. But, there was still quite a bit of distance away from that county town. Why did the youth wearing black who was in front of him appear here?
"I was hunting."
The youth in black felt a headache and appeared even more despondent. Reaching out to massage his head, he said very seriously, "You guys refuse to go over to the county town. So, I can only come out and find you."
The blood demon gnashed its teeth in hatred. For the ordinary people of Great Liang Dynasty, human-eating demons like them were the real devils. But here, to these demons, the youth in black who carried a broken saber was the devil.
Seeing that the blood demon did not speak, the youth in black suddenly had a gentle look and asked softly, "Is there a possibility that you've changed your mind and want to tell me where your companions are hiding?"
The blood demon's expression became extremely complicated. Suddenly, it jumped up and pounced toward the young man.
Except, in the next second, the young man's saber moved.
A streak of blade light flashed past.
An ugly head shot into the air, carrying with it a large amount of fresh blood. It was just that by the time it fell down, it was split in half by that youth in black. He reached out to grab the bright red demon bead inside of that blood demon's head. After glancing at it, he tucked it into his bosom.
By the time he turned around, he just so happened to see that teenage girl standing at the entrance of the main hall, looking over. Except, she was still gripping that silver pin in her hand.
The young man grabbed a handful of snow and wiped the body of the saber clean. Only then, did he return the saber to its sheathe.
...
...
"I'm not a demon."
Jumping down that rather old incense burner, the young man dragged the blood demon's corpse and brushed past the teenage girl.
Throwing that corpse into the fire, the flames immediately grew bigger. It also brought a lot of warmth to the entire great hall.
Seeing that the teenage girl was still standing at the entrance, the young man waved his hand at her and yelled, "Are you really going to stand at the doorway all night?" "You barely managed to survive. Are you in a hurry to freeze to death here?"
Hearing this, the teenage girl who did not speak the entire time stopped hesitating. She soon arrived in front of the fire and sat down. Feeling the warmth transmitting from the fire, her tensed emotions eased up considerably at this time.
Very soon, the young man smelled a very fragrant vanilla scent. It made the young man who dealt with demons all year round feel a bit strange.
"It seemed to be very scared of you."
The teenage girl finally opened her mouth to speak, her voice sounding very pleasant. She reached out to re-tie her hair and that silver pin was reinserted into her hair.
The youth smiled and said something incomprehensible, "I wish that they weren't so scared of me."
Lifting his robes, the youth removed that black waist token that had been tied there all along and passed it to the teenage girl.
The teenage girl hesitated for a moment, but she still took it. By borrowing the light from the fire, she could clearly see that some words were engraved on the palm-sized waist token.
Tianqing County Warden.
Turning it over to the other side, there was only a name.
"Chen Chao."
The young man introduced himself at the same time.
After the teenage girl heard, she lowered her head and opened her mouth gently.
"Xie Nandu."
Chapter 3: A Good Person
The Great Liang Dynasty's era was not very peaceful. When the kingdom was established, millions of civilians were drafted to build the Great Wall in the north. Every year, half of the taxes were used to maintain the Northern Frontier Army's expenses. But, for over 200 years, Great Liang could only maintain its defensive position in the war with the Demon King's Court. They could only prevent large numbers of demons from crossing the Great Wall.
In the face of those demons that rampaged within the country's borders, a position called warden was set up in the local area during the founding emperor's era so as to protect the local area.
Except, apart from those demons that rampaged within the Great Liang Dynasty's country borders, there were many sects too. Cultivators on top of the mountains looked down upon the human world, viewing lives like grass and all life as livestock. Because their cultivation realm was not powerful enough, these wardens who were originally set up in order to protect the local area had long become useless. They could only turn a blind eye to those cultivators from major sects who killed the innocent indiscriminately. Even for some powerful demons, they stayed far away from them and did not dare to provoke them at all.
Only Chen Chao this warden was clearly different from the others.
Ever since he came to Tianqing County three years ago to replace his predecessor who met with a violent death, in these three years, there were scanty few Tianqing County civilians who died at the hands of demons.
Especially in the recent two years, with the increasing number of demons killed by Chen Chao, stories about not provoking a youth in black who carried a broken saber started spreading long ago among the demons within a radius of hundreds of miles.
In the eyes of Tianqing County's civilians, Chen Chao was a youth who was harmless to man and beast. But in the eyes of those demons, he had long already become the greatest devil.
As a result, he became unable to find another demon in the county town. Hence, he had no choice but to go out on a snowy night to 'hunt'.
If not, how could he have rescued that teenage girl in this run-down mountain god temple?
By borrowing the light of the fire, the night was drawn-out. Since they both could not sleep, the two naturally talked a lot.
However, the two people were both not stupid. They were very cautious during the process of the conversation. Neither one revealed everything about themselves.
When wandering the world, the biggest taboo was to have a hearty talk with a mere acquaintance.
Chen Chao roughly learned about the cause and effect of how the teenage girl ended up in the mountain god temple all by herself.
"What's the plan going forward?"
Chen Chao took the initiative to ask.
Xie Nandu said calmly, "On my journey northward to the Divine Capital, my family will send me to Tianqing County. The north will send people to come and fetch me. But, it seems like it won't be that quick anymore. I'll write a letter to them. During this period before they send people to pick me up, I want to stay with you. Because this... is the safest way."
Very straightforward. She did not beat around the bush at all.
In the entire Tianqing County, there definitely would not be a place safer than staying by this young man's side.
Chen Chao frowned. Protecting the local people was his duty. But, this did not mean that he was obliged to be this girl's... bodyguard.
"Clearly, you're in big trouble."
Since the other party had already made her stance known, Chen Chao was more direct too.
Although he did not know the teenage girl's identity, judging from the events that happened before, as well as the information that the teenage girl revealed, this girl was definitely trouble.
Xie Nandu did not refute it. She just continued, "You're a martial artist. As far as I know, martial arts cultivation is extremely difficult. The skygold currency that's spent to temper the body isn't a small sum. With your paltry salary, it's not enough to support your expenditure."
It struck Chen Chao's sore spot. There were numerous immortal cultivator sects in the world. The martial arts path was the hardest to cultivate. Just the skygold currency expended on tempering the body was a huge sum. Therefore, the vast majority of martial artists in the world chose to join the imperial court. What they sought was the large amount of skygold currency used for martial cultivation.
Chen Chao frowned and said, "How do you know that I don't have another way?"
Xie Nandu shook her head and said with a slight smile, "It might be sufficient based on these demon beads. But now, how many demons are there in the vicinity for you to kill?"
This was another one of Chen Chao's sore spots.
Along with the increase in realm, the skygold currency that Chen Chao required could no longer be satisfied by killing a few demons. Moreover, there were likely no more than a few demons around Tianqing County anymore.
He had been struggling with this for a long time.
If not for the fact that he was really unsuited for immortal cultivation, Chen Chao absolutely would not have chosen to be a martial artist.
Putting aside that cultivation was slow, after those immortal cultivators had the ability to ride the wind, martial artists would have a natural disadvantage. Because it was very difficult for martial artists at this stage to approach those immortal cultivators. Even if one's physique was unparalleled in the world, what was the use?
Only after reaching a higher realm and being able to similarly ride the wind, could a martial artist resolve this disadvantage. The cultivation of martial artists was difficult to begin with, how many martial artists in the world could really reach that stage?
Killing that blood demon previously looked simple. But, only Chen Chao himself knew how much it cost him to repel the blood demon with that punch just now.
Returning to his senses, he did not speak immediately.
"You saved my life. Even if you don't acquiesce to my request right now, I won't forget this favor either. Honestly speaking, my identity is considered decent. If I can reach the Divine Capital alive, I'll definitely prepare a big gift for you." Xie Nandu frowned slightly, appearing somewhat wronged: "However if I were to die here, there won't be a gift. You might even be implicated..."
She had a pitiful appearance as if she was still thinking for Chen Chao.
Chen Chao narrowed his eyes. Looking at her appearance, he wished to dig a pit for this girl and bury her.
Scheming against me?
However, he still smiled quickly and said, "I never cared about any gifts. I'm warmhearted and compassionate to begin with. I'm also famous in Tianqing County for being a good person. Since you're all alone, am I still human if I don't extend a helping hand?"
In the end, even though he knew that this matter might drag him into some trouble, Chen Chao was willing to take a chance after weighing the pros and cons.
After all, it was really difficult to earn a large amount of skygold currency in a remote small county town like Tianqing County.
Xie Nandu smiled and seemed to have believed Chen Chao's words too. She said rather seriously, "Actually, being my friend is definitely not a bad time."
Chen Chao also smiled. Except, whether he was cussing her in his heart or not was unknown.
In the latter half of the night, Chen Chao clearly became a lot more talkative. Except, Xie Nandu still did not divulge much information under his continuous veiled questioning too. Seeing that it was already dawn, Chen Chao who was a bit tired gave the teenage girl a deep glance. Standing up, he prepared to descend the mountain and return to the county.
...
...
The blizzard never stopped. There was still accumulated snow on the long streets of the county town. There were not many pedestrians, but those children could not help but pass through small alleys in groups, laughing as they formed snowballs with the snow and had a noisy snowball fight.
How could they care about heavy snowfall weather? They also did not care whether or not they would be beaten with bamboo boards by their unsmiling fathers because of their wet cotton clothes. Even if their tiny hands were red at this moment from the cold, their noses running non-stop, they were full of joy too.
Xie Nandu carried an oiled paper umbrella as she walked next to Chen Chao. Glancing at Chen Chao who already had a head full of white frost, she immediately shifted her gaze. She smiled as she looked at those children running around in the distance, listening to the laughter.
She was also rather happy at this moment.
In the past decade or so, what she had done the most was reading. How could she have seen such a scene in that manor? Even in heavy snow weather, the elders in her clan would only set up a themed exam based on the heavy snow. How could they let them have a snowball fight?
By the bridge in the distance, hawkers selling roasted sweet potatoes were shouting from time to time. Their voices were drawn-out and rhythmic. It also followed a regular pattern.
These marketplace sights were commonplace to many civilians. But to her, it was an unprecedented feeling.
But, she did not feel discomfort at all. She was just filled with newfound curiosity toward everything around her.
By the time she crossed that small bridge and arrived in an alleyway, a medium-sized sweet potato was already in Xie Nandu's hand. Holding the sweet potato, she started using her snow-white fingers to carefully peel away the outer skin. Looking at the golden-colored flesh that was revealed, her eyes were actually somewhat glowing. Biting off a tiny piece of the flesh, the burning hot sweet potato emitted heat in her mouth without restraint. It burned her lips red as if the finest rouge was used.
Looking at this scene, Chen Chao became somewhat absent-minded without rhyme or reason.
Such a lovely girl, everyone would love her, right?
Shaking his head and converging his mind, Chen Chao took large strides toward that alleyway called Peach Blossom Alley. The alley was not large; with just seven or eight households. The one that was furthest in was his home.
Arriving at the entrance, he placed the oiled paper umbrella at the doorway. Chen Chao fished out a key from his bosom and was about to open the door with familiarity.
Right at this time, the door of the house opposite suddenly opened. A medium-build man with a beard stubble walked out with a large bowl. Plopping down on his own doorstep, he darted a look at Chen Chao. Then, he glanced at the teenage girl in the alley who was holding a sweet potato and eating it in small bites. Immediately, he opened his eyes wide and yelled at the top of his voice, "Chen brat! Became capable huh! After not seeing you for several days, where did you abduct such a pretty wife from?" !
The man's voice was not soft. The moment he yelled, the seven to eight households along Peach Blossom Alley virtually opened their front doors without prior agreement. Dozens of pairs of eyes looked towards the entrance of that house deep in the alley from their own front doors.
Chen Chao who was just about to open the door, his hands stopped in midair. The corners of his mouth could not help twitching somewhat helplessly.
As for the Xie Nandu behind him, her petite face turned slightly red. It was unknown if it was because she was burned by the sweet potato or something else.
Chapter 4: Peach Blossom Alley
Retracting his hand, Chen Chao immediately turned around and leaned against the door as he raised his eyebrows. Looking at the man who was currently carrying a large bowl and shoveling rice into his mouth, he said, "Why? Envious?" "There's nothing you can do even if you're envious! It can't be helped that I'm born handsome!"
The man had just swallowed the last mouthful of rice in the large bowl. With a slurp, he swallowed the cabbage leaf at the corner of his mouth into his stomach too, and said, "What's the use of pretty? Is there a sense of security from being over 100kgs like Your Father's wife?" !
Casually placing the large bowl on the doorstep, the man carelessly wiped the remnants from the corners of his mouth and smiled with slightly yellowish teeth as he said, "Chen brat, listen to a piece of advice from Your Father who has had the experience; a brat like you can't hold on to a pretty wife. Your poor household doesn't have that fate!"
"I say, where is that girl from?" "Why did she fall for this poor kid?"
The man's gaze sized Xie Nandu up and down. However, he skipped the places that should be skipped and glanced at the places that one's gaze should look at without leaving a trace; doing it rather covertly.
Xie Nandu held the half-eaten sweet potato that was still steaming as she looked at that man too. There was no disgust in her eyes. She was just sizing up this sloppy guy that she was destined to never see at home with some curiosity.
"F*ck off!" Chen Chao cussed and pointed his middle finger at that man. If it were before, he would have definitely sat down and argued it out with this old punk. But no idea why, he lost interest right away today.
Chen Chao felt that his verbal skills were not bad. But for some reason, he was always at a disadvantage every time he argued with this middle-aged man. It was like this old man seemed to know what he was thinking. He could shut him up with a word every time. Yet, the two of them were staying opposite of each other, so they frequently met each other. The moment they met, an argument could not be avoided.
His prowess was still lacking.
Chen Chao gritted his teeth and yelled at the door, "Auntie, your man said that he wants to marry Widow Li as a concubine and asked for your opinion!"
The man was originally still looking down on Chen Chao. Hearing this, his expression changed slightly and his aura suddenly weakened. He lowered his voice and said, "You f*cker, why did you do that?! Be careful that you can't find a wife..."
Before his voice faded, an extremely loud voice came from behind the door, "Zhou Gouqi! Get inside for Your Mother!"
Xie Nandu looked over at that man and could faintly see that there was a robust woman in the courtyard who was holding a rolling pin in her hand.
The moment this voice sounded, the alley instantly roared with laughter. The atmosphere became very gleeful all at once.
Hearing the voice behind the door, the man who was sitting crossed-legged with his ankle on his knee on the doorstep shot Chen Chao a hateful glare. But he still yelled at the top of his voice and said with an indifferent look, "So what if I want to marry Widow Li?" "Your Father also likes Great Liang's princess! But aren't I sucking it up and living with a b*tch like you?" "Why? I can't be the emperor's son-in-law, but I'm not allowed to fantasize?"
The man spoke with an imposing aura. However, the neighbors present were not outsiders. Their ears had long grown calluses from listening to such words. Hence, they were just waiting to watch the show."
A gust of wind suddenly blew and a rolling pin flew out of the courtyard, accurately hitting the back of that man's head. The man yelped in pain as he fell off the doorstep and plopped onto the ground somewhat ungracefully. He let loose a torrent of abuse, "You fat b*tch! Your Father will hang you up and beat you later!"
Right when this sentence was finished uttering, a woman with an ordinary face but a robust body already arrived at the front entrance with a black face. Without a word, she grabbed the man's collar and dragged him towards the door just like that.
It did not look like the first time.
Laughter sounded out in the alley again.
"Chen brat, just you wait..."
The man who unwillingly entered the door snorted coldly and vanished from Chen Chao's line of sight.
Chen Chao looked at this scene and grinned. Feels great!
...
...
"Everyone disperse, all shoo."
Chen Chao waved his hand. He did not care whether these neighbors were really going to disperse or not, he just turned around and opened the door deftly. Then, he walked into that courtyard that was neither too big nor too small.
The layout in the courtyard was simple. Apart from a stone table, there was only a water vat that was full of moss. There was a thin layer of snow on the edge of the water vat and the ground was full of accumulated snow. There were some dead weeds in the cracks of those stone bricks near the eaves that were currently dormant. Looks like after this winter, it would grow stubbornly.
"Get lost!"
Casually grabbing a handful of snow, Chen Chao accurately hit a black stray cat under the roof. The stray cat meowed and climbed up the pillar onto the roof. Turning around to look at Chen Chao, it disappeared into the snow.
The girl behind him followed quietly, neither fast nor slow. She maintained a distance of roughly ten feet away from Chen Chao.
Only after watching Chen Chao finish all this, did the two people arrive in front of the central room.
The entire courtyard was a little old. The paint on the wooden pillars and whatnot was flaking off. The exposed parts had even sustained moth damage.
Chen Chao dragged an old wooden chair and a bench out of the central room. Scratching his head, Chen Chao who was about to speak saw Xie Nandu walk straight towards that wooden chair and sat down.
"Quite cognizant." Chen Chao mumbled. Originally, he was planning on letting Xie Nandu sit on that bench.
But at this moment, he could only sit on the bench himself. Wriggling his buttocks, he found it really uncomfortable.
"Aren't you the local warden?" "Why don't they seem scared of you at all?" After Xie Nandu sat down, she already opened her mouth to speak. As she spoke, that mouth which was burned red from before exhaled a lot of vapor.
She was sizing up this youth who was totally different from in the run-down temple.
In the run-down temple, this youth was decisive and calm. But after arriving here, he was like a ruffian;, his entire person was full of delinquent aura.
This change was very interesting for the teenage girl.
Chen Chao leaned against the pillar beside him. Using his hand to peel off a piece of paint that was already flaking off, he said indifferently, "If they aren't scared, so be it. What can I do? Hack them to death with a blade?"
When talking, Chen Chao's hand was constantly rubbing back and forth on the handle of that broken saber.
Those calluses on his palms were actually sufficient to explain something.
Xie Nandu smiled and said, "Actually, given your abilities, if you were to join the army and train in the north for a few years, you might be able to become a lieutenant. Then in another few years..."
"In another few years, I'll die at the hands of that demon army who eats people without spitting out the bones. Then, when the imperial court wants to pay blood money, they won't even be able to find who to pay." Chen Chao looked at the teenage girl in front of him with eyes like he was looking at an idiot. "Do you think that even if I made some military achievements in that damn place, I'll be able to get what I deserve?"
Xie Nandu shook her head. She naturally knew the answer to this question.
In Great Liang Dynasty, people who thought that effort would definitely yield results were either stupid or stupid.
"However, I'm still very curious. How did you become the warden? Are you a bastard from some family in the north?"
This was the question that she had been thinking about all along. At this time, she finally asked it.
But, Chen Chao ignored her. He just leaned against the pillar that was flaking badly, thinking about something rather absentmindedly.
Xie Nandu glanced at the heavy snowstorm outside before retracting her gaze and saying somewhat seriously, "You saved my life, maybe I can give you a better future."
"If you want me to send you to the Divine Capital, I urge you to dispel this notion." Chen Chao reached his hand out and caught some snowflakes. Then, he pressed it against his forehead and said rather tiredly, "Some things, you know it. I can guess a little too. But, it's meaningless to lay it bare."
Hearing this, Xie Nandu's expression grew more solemn. Looking at the youth in black in front of her, she wanted to speak several times. But in the end, she just asked, "Where do I stay?"
"There are a total of two rooms. The one in the east has been empty for a long time. There's an old cotton quilt, but no guarantee that it's warm. If you despise it, hand over the money and I'll buy for you in a while. But, I'm going to say this first, you can't bring the item away afterward."
Chen Chao rubbed his somewhat red nose, a pair of eyes hiding some cunningness.
A quilt did not cost much. But right now, every skygold currency coin was seen as extremely important in Chen Chao's eyes. He was not willing to fork out a single coin for this.
"Also, how many days are you staying? Regardless of how many days, either way, it's ten skygold currency every day. Just take it as your daily expenses."
"You seem a little greedy. Ten skygold currency can cover expenses here for at least several months."
The teenage girl was born into a wealthy family. But, it did not mean that she was the kind of girl who did not understand anything. When she was buying the sweet potato previously, she took out a single skygold currency. That hawker searched for a long time and failed to find enough Great Liang general currency to give her change.
Skygold currency was the Great Liang Dynasty's cash in circulation. It was just that this kind of currency was circulated more commonly among those wealthy families and cultivators. The common people living at the bottom rung of the Great Liang Dynasty used copper coins engraved with the four characters, Great Liang general currency, for everyday use.
A single skygold coin was sufficient to convert to a hundred Great Liang general currency.
"This is a poor household. Aren't I thinking of ways to earn more money?"
Chen Chao was all smiles, looking like an everyday man.
Hearing poor household, Xie Nandu could not help recalling the conversation between Chen Chao and that man from before.
If those words were heard by those tutors who taught her virtue and principles, they would definitely scold it as vulgar. But at the same time, she who had never heard such things before did not feel any aversion to it. But, one could not say that she liked it either.
"I don't dislike it. As for daily expenses, one skygold currency per day."
Even she herself did not realize it. She seemed to have gotten closer to this youth.
Her thoughts were mostly on this mysterious youth in black.
But curiosity would often trigger unexpected things.
The sky gradually turned dark.
Xie Nandu walked towards the eastward house while Chen Chao sized her up under the eaves.
Before long, Xie Nandu returned and threw a money pouch from afar.
"Go and buy a quilt. Here's the money."
Chapter 5: Murder
When he went to buy the quilt, he naturally still brought Xie Nandu with him. She was very cautious and did not want to leave Chen Chao even for a second.
Except, the two people did not see the man opposite on this trip. They just faintly heard the woman's scolding.
Chen Chao was in a good mood. He could not teach that guy a lesson, but there was naturally somebody to take care of him.
The boss of the cotton shop was a lean, middle-aged man. He was all skin and bones, looking just like a skinny money. The people in the town all called him Lord Hou. When buying the quilt, Lord Hou's eyes sized Xie Nandu up. Then, he asked with some surprise, "You got lucky with the ladies? Turns out that the rumors are true, staying in Peach Blossom Alley will get you hitched."
Chen Chao received the quilt expressionlessly as he said, "If you want to stay there, I'll sell that house to you. 100 skygold currency; equally honest to the old and young."
"Are you stupid or am I dumb?"
Lord Hou raised his eyebrows and looked even more like a monkey.
Chen Chao could not be bothered to reply him. Hugging the quilt, he turned around to leave. But he was stopped by Lord Hou. He pulled Chen Chao to one side and whispered, "I have some intel. I'll charge you one skygold currency, you'll definitely want to know."
Chen Chao glanced at Lord Hou and said with a nod, "Alright. The next time something happens to your home, I'll definitely leave an hour late."
"Pooh! What are you saying such inauspicious things for?" Lord Hou shot Chen Chao a rather resentful look. "You mustn't show ingratitude for kindness. Back then, when you came here, wasn't your first meal eaten at my place?"
Chen Chao nodded his head and said with a serious look, "How can I forget? I ate one meal and worked half a month of manual labor for you."
"... All in all, there's some friendship there, right?" Lord Hou still did not give up. This old man was infamous in the county town for being stingy. He was equally famous as the guy who stayed opposite Chen Chao.
The two people's reputations were about on par.
"Forget it if you don't want to say. I've decided to come to your house for dinner next time."
Chen Chao could not be bothered to haggle with this guy. Hugging the quilt, he turned around to leave.
Lord Hou had an ugly expression. Grabbing hold of Chen Chao, he stopped hiding it and said in a low voice, "Alright, alright, alright, consider it as if I'm scared of you. The intel is free, but you have to keep an eye out and pay more attention to our neighborhood. Your Father doesn't want to enter those damn demons' stomachs in my sleep one day."
After shooting Chen Chao a resentful look, Lord Hou started telling the so-called intel that he had.
It was the murder that happened yesterday on Changyuan Street. Wang Ji's Rouge Shop's boss and his wife died at home. Tianqing County was only so big, this matter could not be hidden to begin with. It was just that Chen Chao was not in the city. After returning today, he did not go out again. Naturally, he had not heard of it.
Chen Chao looked at Lord Hou expressionlessly, the look in his eyes sharp.
This kind of intel and this old man actually dared to open his mouth and ask for one skygold currency?
Besides, something like a murder case happening, it's all under the jurisdiction of the government office as long as it did not involve demons. Chen Chao this warden did not have the authority to get involved.
Lord Hou gave a dry laugh, "If it was a normal murder, it would definitely be worthless. But, it seems like this matter isn't simple. I heard that there were no wounds on the corpses of that Shopkeeper Chen and his wife's bodies. They died without rhyme or reason."
"Could some demon have come here again?"
Lord Jou looked at Chen Chao and said hopefully, "If there's really a demon, you can't ignore it."
"If it was a demon, could there still be an intact corpse? They more or less have to be missing some bits. But, what does the government office think?"
Chen Chao asked casually. Ever since he came, the demons in the vicinity have been cleaned up by him. Demons had not appeared in this city for many years. It was only after these years of peaceful days that even humans like Lord Hou dared to talk about demons as a general topic. If it were before, whose faces did not change when talking about demons?
"That, I don't know. I only know this bit of intel." Lord Hou felt a little guilty. This information was not worth one skygold currency to begin with.
...
...
Looking on the account of skygold currency, Chen Chao personally changed the entire bedding set. After finishing all these, it was already dark. It was still snowing heavily outside non-stop, getting colder and colder.
"My household isn't a wealthy family. I don't have the habit of lighting up a heater at night to sleep. Two quilts should be enough. If you're cold, I can buy a heater for you too. But, you'll have to pay extra!"
Chen Chao rambled away, but when he lifted his head, he discovered that the young girl who was akin to a pear blossom was just quietly looking at him from under the porch. It made him somewhat uncomfortable.
It was true that there were no heaters at home. He was long already a martial artist whose realm was not considered low. His physique was especially tough, so being impervious to heat and cold was something natural.
Xie Nandu thanked him with a slight smile and asked, "I wouldn't die in your home, right?"
The corners of Chen Chao's mouth twitched. This woman was really scared of death.
"I can't guarantee it. Ordinary demons probably won't dare to come and cause me trouble. If it's the kind that's too powerful, don't you worry, I'll definitely abandon you and run."
Did he not have a conscience?
Xie Nandu did not mind and asked with a smile, "If it's not a demon?"
These words more or less had an underlying meaning.
Chen Chao massaged his head and said rather helplessly, "If everyone wants you dead, no matter how powerful I am, I can't save you either."
Xie Nandu smiled and did not speak.
Interacting with clever people was never something difficult.
"Sleep with peace of mind. I feel that your luck won't be too poor."
Chen Chao waved his hand, turned around, and went under the eave to sit down. Then, he closed his eyes to rest.
...
...
In the night, the heavy snowstorm still did not stop. A suit of black clothes hastily walked into the brightly lit county government court from outside and clasped his hands. A skinny middle-aged man dressed in blue official robes sat in the hall. Holding up his black gauze cap, he waved his hand, gesturing for the low-ranking official to present the findings in his hands.
This person was Tianqing County's magistrate, Mi Ke
He became a scholar in Tianjian Year 2.
Although his ranking in the imperial examinations that year was considered high, because of his ordinary background, Mi Ke had already languished in the position of Tianqing County's magistrate for over ten years. From the initial-most boundless enthusiasm, wanting to carve out a career, till now; not seeking to render contributions, but only to avoid being blamed. Mi Ke was considered to have expressed the attitudes of the vast majority of the Great Liang Dynasty's bottom-level officials to the fullest expression of its beauty and form.
Originally, being a government official in Great Liang Dynasty, especially being the official in this sort of remote place, the biggest problems encountered were those demons that would appear from time to time. Initially, Mi Ke this official was haunted with fear; terrified that he would be eaten by those demons someday. Only until three years ago, after Chen Chao came to take over the previous warden who met with a violent death, did his days get better. With Chen Chao around, no demons dared to appear in Tianqing County anymore. Only then, did his government official post get much easier.
Mi Ke who was self-aware that there was no possibility of climbing up the hierarchy did not have the intention of tormenting these ordinary civilians too. Under his rule, Tianqing County was considered a rare land of peace in the Great Liang Dynasty. Hence, his reputation in Tianqing County was pretty good too.
It was just that after reading the conclusion drawn from the post-mortem examiner, Mi Ke's brows could not help furrowing tightly.
"That Chen Family husband and wife really didn't form any enmity with anyone?"
Mi Ke turned to look at the official registrar, his expression unfriendly.
The registrar was surnamed Zhang. His build was not considered tall, but he had a full beard and did not look like an intellectual. A registrar was in charge of documents, books, as well as seals. In Great Liang Dynasty, they were the second-in-command in a country; second only to the country magistrate.
Registrar Zhang smiled bitterly and nodded, "Exalted Magistrate, the reputation of the Zhang Family husband and wife has always been good and they were quite kind. The neighbors have praised his couple a lot and they have never had any enmity with anyone."
Mi Ke nodded his head and did not refute anything. This result was long already within expectations.
"Exalted Magistrate, over at the post-mortem examiner's side..."
Registrar Zhang glanced at Mi Ke. He really wanted to know the death cause of that couple too.
"There's no result. After dissecting the bodies, there were no discoveries."
Mi Ke handed that conclusion written by the post-mortem examiner over to Registrar Zhang and muttered to himself, "There were no strangulation marks on their necks too. If they died from suffocation, it shouldn't be like this too. Could it have been ghosts?"
Registrar Zhang took that piece of paper. Looking it over, he did not find any useful clues either. They had been to the scene previously too, that couple died on their own bed. But, there were no signs of any struggle. It was as if they died in their sleep.
If it was just one person, it could be explained as a sudden illness. But, it was the same death for both husband and wife, which really confused people.
Mi Ke currently vexedly scratching his head that did not have much hair in the first place when suddenly, hasty footsteps sounded out from outside. Very soon, another low-ranking official ran into the hall with a look of panic, "Your Excellency, dead! Dead!"
Dead? Your Excellency died?!
Mi Ke lifted his head and scolded, "What rubbish! I'm alive and perfectly fine, who died?" !
The low-ranking official arrived in front of the court and panting heavily for air. Seeing his lord become enraged, he immediately opened his mouth and said, "Your Excellency, someone else died. The death is the same as the Chen Family husband and wife!"
Without waiting for Mi Ke to speak, Registrar Zhang asked first, "Really?"
The low-ranking official nodded his head like a chicken pecking for rice and said worriedly, "It's still that Changyuan Street. The butcher shop's Butcher Zhang has died. We have no more meat to eat!"
"Impudence, what nonsense are you saying?!"
Mi Ke reprimanded at once. But immediately, he realized that things were not simple. He immediately turned to Registrar Zhang, "Follow me to take a look."
Registrar Zhang nodded. Rolling up his sleeves, he picked up the saber that was placed under the table.
Right when the four people walked out of the hall, Mi Ke suddenly remembered something and instructed the low-ranking official next to him, "Go to Peach Blossom Alley and call Chen... request for the Warden to come. Have him go straight to Changyuan Street!"
As the magistrate, Mi Ke's ability was pretty decent. He was already keenly aware that these two murders were not simple. Perhaps there really was some demon causing trouble. If it involved demons, having Chen Chao step in was the most appropriate solution.
"It's the middle of the night, what if Warden Chen doesn't want to come?"
The low-ranking official felt put on the spot. Although the magistrate was the lord of a county, the official rank of a warden was the same level as a magistrate. The magistrate did not have the authority to dispatch him either. Furthermore, the murder cases this time did not have concrete evidence that it was demons causing trouble. It was within reason for that warden to not come.
"Go and invite, just say that it's suspected to be demons causing trouble. That guy won't refuse."
Mi Ke was not worried that Chen Chao this kid would not come.
Because the more demons there were, the more excited he got.
Chapter 6: Demon
Chen Chao had a dream. It was a very regular dream.
These two years, he had actually been frequently dreaming. The contents of his dreams were always about a woman.
In his dreams, a woman would keep staring at him. In the dream, Chen Chao could do many things. It was just that he could not look into that woman's eyes. Each time he wanted to look at that woman's eyes, he could only see a mass of scorching light that was incomparably eye-piercing. That stabbing pain would instantly wake him.
But this time, before he could look into that woman's eyes, he was startled awake by a hasty knocking on the door.
Following the knocking sounds, there was also a series of friendly calls.
"Warden Chen, Warden Chen..."
Chen Chao opened his eyes and just happened to see that stray cat stopping its footsteps on the roof in the distance. A pair of dark green eyes were currently staring at Chen Chao.
"Scram!"
Chen Chao grabbed a piece of paint that fell off a wooden pillar and accurately threw it next to that stray cat's feet unceremoniously.
The stray cat turned tail and ran without staying at all.
Chen Chao stretched lazily and glanced at the sky, muttering, "It's only midnight?"
He arrived at the door and opened the gates. A low-ranking official who was carrying a lantern was covered all over in snow; shivering heavily from the cold.
Chen Chao took a look at him and asked, "What? Lord Mi is inviting me for supper again?"
This was Mi Ke's hobby. He liked to call people in the middle of the night to eat supper together.
The low-ranking official was taken aback. He never thought that Chen Chao's first words after opening the door would actually be this.
"Speak. What in the world happened?"
Chen Chao took a look at the snow on the low-ranking official's body. Braving the heavy snowstorm in the middle of the night to invite him for supper? He was merely saying it casually.
The low-ranking official came back to his senses. Without hesitation, he immediately blurted out everything that happened in the government office previously like pouring out soybeans. However, this guy had clearly never been to school before. It took him a full 15 minutes to recount very simple things. In the end, he finally gasped for air and said, "Changyuan Street's Butcher Zhang is dead too. We definitely don't have any more pork to eat in the future!"
The corners of Chen Chao's mouth twitched. You're still concerned about this?
"No worries. If Butcher Zhang died, we won't eat pork with hair." [TL note: It's impossible to translate this bit. It's some ancient Chinese idiom/story.]
Chen Chao asked, "What does Lord Mi... intend to do now?"
"Exalted Magistrate asked Warden Chen to immediately go to Changyuan Street and take a look. He suspects that it's demons causing trouble."
Demons? Upon mention, Chen Chao straightened his back.
His spirit became totally different from when he opened the door.
Seeing how Chen Chao looked, the low-ranking official could not help but admire his lord's incisive judgment. It was as expected!
However, Chen Chao did not immediately leave with the low-ranking official but turned his head to glance at the courtyard.
"What is it? Does Warden Chen still have other matters?"
The low-ranking official was rather anxious. After all, this was an important matter that concerned lives. If the matter was not investigated clearly, the entire Tianqing County could probably fall into panic come tomorrow morning.
Before his voice faded, the door of that wing room over there was pushed open. A young girl wearing blue cotton-padded clothes walked out from inside.
Looking at that beautiful young girl, the low-ranking official became somewhat absent-minded at first. Then, he felt his face heat up and he immediately lowered his head rather self-reproachfully. He really should not have interrupted Warden Chen's fun in the middle of the night.
No wonder when Warden Chen opened the door, he was not in good spirits.
Chen Chao glanced at Xie Nandu a little suspiciously and asked, "I'm going out. Coming along?"
Xie Nandu nodded and went to pick up the oiled paper umbrella leaning against the door.
Only then, did Chen Chao nod his head and followed the low-ranking official out.
Xie Nandu followed behind Chen Chao, neither far nor close.
The low-ranking official was a chatterbox who could not stop talking. After taking a few steps, he could not resist and asked, "Warden Chen, which family's girl is this?" "Your new wife?"
Chen Chao was silent.
"Warden Chen is a promising youth in the end. You're already a warden at a young age, your martial arts realm is high too. Now, you found a wife who's even prettier than our magistrate's wife."
"That's too much. Can Old Mi's wife compare to her?"
"You can't say that. Madam is really nice. If I can marry a wife like that in this lifetime, it will be worthwhile even if I die too."
"Your aspiration is rather simple."
"Yeah. How can I compare to Warden Chen?"
"You know how to talk."
...
...
With the low-ranking official's flattery along the way, Chen Chao's party of three arrived at a house on Changyuan Street. This place had long been surrounded by court underlings until not even water could seep through. Countless torches lit this place up like it was daytime.
There were different shades of footprints on the streets.
Seeing Chen Chao, the court underlings' nervous expressions relaxed considerably. In Tianqing County, without talking about other things, this young man in front of them was an existence like a sea-stabilizing needle.
With him here, everything would be fine.
However, in the wake of Xie Nandu appearing in their sights, the court underlings' could not shift their gazes anymore. Although holding the oiled paper umbrella covered half of Xie Nandu's face, just based on half of her face that was exposed, it was enough to enrapture them.
The low-ranking official cleared his throat and said, "What are you guys looking at? This is Warden Chen's wife! Don't get any ideas!"
Xie Nandu frowned slightly at this, while Chen Chao's mind was not on this at all.
But this had some effect. At least, most of the court underlings retracted their gazes after he cleared his throat. Although Chen Chao was young and did not have power over them either, under the Great Liang Dynasty's bureaucratic system, he was the same rank as Lord County Magistrate.
It would be too easy to punish minions like them.
After stepping into the courtyard, Chen Chao immediately saw Mi Ke who was standing over there. This Tianqing County court official was currently standing under the roof with a dark expression. After seeing Chen Chao, this Lord County Magistrate's expression instantly changed and he greet with all smiles, "Younger Brother Chen, you finally came!"
Chen Chao rubbed his hands and asked, "What's the situation?"
Although he knew some parts of the whole story, whether was it the low-ranking official or Lord Hou earlier, they actually did not give clear details about the murder case.
Mi Ke nodded his head and started talking about the two murder cases' details on his own accord. He was an educated person in the end and had been the magistrate for so many years too, Mi Ke's ability was at a certain standard. He explained things clearly in a few words.
"No wounds. They died just like that. This is really interesting."
Chen Chao mused for a moment and said, "Come on. Let's go take a look at the bodies."
Mi Ke nodded his head. He had already seen it before and did not have any clues. He did not find anything suspicious at the scene too. It could be said that he had completely no clues, so he could not help but link it to demons.
Upon entering the hall, Chen Chao saw a fat and robust corpse on the wooden armchair right in the center. It was precisely Butcher Zhang.
There was only an empty wine jug on the table and a half-full bowl of liquor.
Butcher Zhang's cause of death was the same as the Chen Family couple previously; both died in their sleep. The only thing different was that Butcher Zhang died on the wooden armchair while the Chen Family husband and wife died on their bed.
"Butcher Zhang has been a widower for many years. He needs to drink some alcohol every day after he closes up shop. There's no poison in the alcohol and his alcohol tolerance isn't poor, so it shouldn't be a problem of excessive alcohol consumption." "As for other wounds, we did not find any either."
The skinny post-mortem examiner bowed toward Chen Chao. His tone was very experienced and not sluggish at all. But between his brows, this old post-mortem examiner who had already been working in the county government for more than ten years actually failed to find the cause of death several times as the post-mortem examiner. How shameful!
"Do you want to summon the witness who found Zhang Butcher's body for questioning?" Yi Ke glanced at Chen Chao and suggested.
Although he had already asked before, he still believed that Chen Chao would have other discoveries.
"There's no need. It must be a demon."
Chen Chao subconsciously touched his saber handle and narrowed his eyes.
Mi Ke was taken aback and asked, "How did you know?"
This was a huge matter. Although Great Liang Dynasty was full of demons nowadays, demons had not been seen in the entire Tianqing County for many years. But in the lands of the Great Liang Dynasty, what threatened people's lives the most was demons causing trouble.
If the local warden was capable, it would still be alright. If they were like Tianqing County's previous warden, then the common people would really be in misery.
"His eye sockets are slightly sunken, but there are no wounds on his body. His soul has left his body, so he naturally could not survive."
Chen Chao glanced at Mi Ke and frowned slightly, "This kind of demon feeds on living human souls to nourish itself. Hence, there won't be any wounds."
Before seeing Butcher Zhang's body, Chen Chao had already detected that faint demonic qi and already ascertained that it was demons causing trouble. But, he immediately raised some doubts.
In the past two years, the demons around Tianqing County had virtually been cleaned up by him. Even if a demon survived, they dared not go near this county, because they feared Chen Chao's infamy. But now, not only did demons appear, but they were also openly killing people in the county.
Did it think that Your Father could not figure things out?
Chen Chao narrowed his eyes and said, "Let's go to the government office to take a look at the two bodies."
...
...
"The cause of death was the same. It was the same demon."
Walking out of the morgue, Chen Chao sat down on the doorstep. At this time, the sky was already getting bright. It was almost morning. Mi Ke's face had exhaustion that could not be hidden. It was just that everyone from the county headed by him were all currently trying to stay sharp and looking at Chen Chao.
"The demon's realm isn't high. But, its trail is a little hard to find. Furthermore, I haven't ascertained what kind of demon it is."
There were many demons within the borders of the Great Liang Dynasty. Just the booklet sent down from above to identify demons was hundreds of pages long.
"This thing hasn't appeared in the past few years. Why is it here now?" Chen Chao muttered; a little irritated.
Failing to find the trail of the demon meant that there would be another victim at any time. To say that Tianqing County was big, it was not big. To say that it was small, it was not small either. Where would the demon commit the next crime?
"The two murders were both on Changyuan Street."
A clear voice suddenly sounded out.
Mi Ke followed the voice and looked over before he saw the teenage girl wearing pale blue robes. This Lord Magistrate furrowed his brows. When was there... a new girl in the county government?"
Mi Ke glanced at Registrar Zhang. Registrar Zhang looked somewhat helpless with his bearded face. Exalted Magistrate's memory was likely hopeless.
Chapter 7: County Government Discussion
"Then we'll make arrangements in Changyuan Street tonight and kill that demon!"
Registrar Zhang rolled his sleeves up, his face raring to go.
Chen Chao glanced at him. He could not understand how a literary official had such enthusiasm for such a thing.
Although, Registrar Zhang's bearded face made him look nothing like a registrar, but more like a bandit chief.
The old post-mortem examiner nodded his head in agreement and said, "This old man is willing to offer my meager strength to eliminate this demon too."
Mi Ke asked, "What can you do?"
"... ..."
Lord Magistrate pulling the rug from under the post-mortem examiner in public put him on a spot.
Mi Ke did not have the energy to care about the post-mortem examiner's thoughts, but looked at Chen Chao and asked, "Younger Brother Chen, do you have confidence?"
He was not scared that it would end without accomplishing anything today, he was afraid that Chen Chao would not be able to deal with that demon hidden in the dark. At that time, this group of people would all have to die there.
"It's not a big deal."
Chen Chao expressed his thoughts, "At that time, have the court underlings secure both ends of the street. If that demon escapes, at least we'll know the direction. Lord Mi has been working hard for so long, you don't need to go over to Changyuan Street tonight. Just rest in the county office and wait for news."
As he spoke, Chen Chao kept looking at Mi Ke.
I've already prepared the stage for you, it's up to you now.
Mi Ke thought about it and said solemnly with a righteous look, "Warden Chen, that's not right. As the local government official, with such a major incident happening in Tianqing County, how can this official wait for news in the county office with peace of mind?"
"Nice! Your Excellency's words are truly admirable! You're well deserving of being our role model!"
The old post-mortem examiner was repairing his relationship with Mi Ke to the best of his ability.
Registrar Zhang chuckled, but he kept criticizing in his heart: His Excellency knows that following Warden Chen would be safer, right?
Chen Chao smiled slightly and said with a nod, "I was shallow. With Lord Mi's character, how can he be someone who clings to life and fears death?"
When talking, Chen Chao kept looking at Mi Ke. The meaning in his eyes was very clear: You're treating the next supper!
Mi Ke nodded his head repeatedly: that's of course.
As for those court underlings present who did not know what they meant, they had more respect for Mi Ke in their eyes.
Our Lord Magistrate is really a great official!
"Since that's the case, I'll go back and make preparations first."
Chen Chao smiled slightly. Looking at the color of the sky, he thought to himself that he could still sleep for the whole day after going back.
Mi Ke wanted to speak but swallowed the words back down. He really wanted to say: I can't bear to part with you. But in the end, he still gritted his teeth and said, "Warden Chen, come earlier later!"
I'm terrified when you're not around.
Chen Chao nodded his head and walked out of the county office, bringing along Xie Nandu who barely said a few words.
Looking at that young girl's back view, Mi Ke frowned again and muttered, "When did this girl come?"
Registrar Zhang turned a deaf ear to it.
While the old post-mortem examiner was thinking about whether or not to find some brain medicine for His Excellency.
Or maybe he should just open his head up to see if there's any problem?
Very soon, the old post-mortem examiner shook his head again. Cutting it open was easy, but the problem was that after cutting it open, he could not patch it back up.
After making arrangements, Chen Chao left the county office under the reluctant gazes of Mi Ke and the others. He stepped into the snowstorm again and returned to his own courtyard.
But before entering the door, Chen Chao bumped into the idle Zhou Gouqi again. Their eyes met and sat down at their respective doorsteps very tacitly and had a loud argument. But this time, it was still Chen Chao who was at a disadvantage. Chen Chao secretly cursed him. When he returned around to open the door, he was still lamenting that he did not perform well today.
After entering the courtyard, he sat down again in front of that heavily peeling pillar and rubbed his back on the pillar. Chen Chao seemed very satisfied."
"You like to argue with that guy so much?"
The young girl's eyes were sizing Chen Chao up and down. The two people had already spent more than one or two days together. She still had not seen through this youth in black. What she cared about was not this boy's fondness for quarreling, but that . . . he seemed like a totally different person than normally when doing something seriously.
However, the young girl immediately narrowed her eyes. She figured it out; this was a disguise. Showing weakness normally was just to give people the most fatal harm at the most crucial time.
"Don't look at me like that. And don't think so much either. We won't have much interaction in the future." Chen Chao said rather nonchalantly.
"I think that we'll meet in the Divine Capital in the future."
Xie Nandu smiled and said, "Someone like you won't stay in this small place for life."
Chen Chao smiled and said, "Then when the time comes, you have to take good care of me. After all, we're friends."
Xie Nandu said, "Since we're friends, why did you still charge me money?"
"Business is business. Talking about feelings hurts the wallet. Moreover, it's not like you don't know my situation. My monthly salary is meager and there aren't any more demons nearby to kill. If I'm not thrifty, how can I..."
Chen Chao had a pained expression. Of course, the pain that he expressed was more painful than his actual pain.
"Stop that, I won't increase the money."
Although Xie Nandu could not see through Chen Chao, she was very clear about something; which was that this guy in front of her rarely told the truth.
"Let's get down to business." Chen Chao changed the topic and took the initiative to talk about the murder case that happened today.
As the warden, that was where his responsibilities lay.
Xie Nandu looked at Chen Chao and said, "Since you already have an idea in mind, why is there a need to ask me?"
"Then why did you say that in the county office?" Chen Chao sighed and said, "You blurted out what I was thinking, it's hard to guarantee that it wasn't heard by that demon. When the time comes, where am I going to look for it across the vast Tianqing County?"
Xie Nandu fell silent and said, "Actually, it might not just be demons."
She said it very slowly. But her judgment at this time was already different from before. But, Chen Chao did not show any surprise, as if he had thought of it a long time ago.
Xie Nandu muttered to herself, "There are some cultivators in the south who are a branch of qi refiners. They follow an unorthodox path and have the ability to control demons. It could be demons raised by them."
"If a cultivator who's passing by lets a demon under their command out to commit evil, then they won't have any misgivings."
Chen Chao's expression was a little ugly. Great Liang Dynasty's cultivators had always ignored imperial authority and viewed lives as grass. If it was really a cultivator, it would be a big problem.
Xie Nandu looked at Chen Chao and asked, "If it's really a demon raised by a cultivator, what will you do?"
This was a very straightforward question. Actually, it was also the question that the entire Great Liang Dynasty had been facing for these 200 years. As for the answer, for many years, many Great Liang Dynasty government officials have already used action to answer it.
That was to turn a blind eye to it.
If they angered those cultivators on top of the mountains, could Great Liang Dynasty withstand their wrath?
Forget about Great Liang Dynasty, just talking about the present situation, if it was really a demon raised by a cultivator, what could you, Chen Chao, a measly little warden do?
Chen Chao did not answer this question. He just looked at Xie Nandu and asked, "Are you staying here tonight? Or following me to Changyuan Street?"
"No, I'm staying at home tonight."
Xie Nandu acted uncharacteristically this time and did not choose to follow Chen Chao.
Chen Chao said seriously, "I feel a need to remind you, this is my home, not your home."
Xie Nandu said rather aggrievedly, "It's just a minor thing, is it worth saying it so seriously?"
Chen Chao nodded his head and was still very serious as he said, "I'm scared that you'll have some designs on me. Of course, I'm a really great guy, if you can't help but fall for me, I don't think that it's a problem. But the issue is, I'm afraid that after you give birth to this idea, you'll feel that me saving you is something that goes without saying, and you'll forget to give me my remuneration."
Xie Nandu was absorbed in thought and asked, "If I really fall for you, wouldn't you be able to obtain more?"
"That's true. This is really something difficult to refuse, but I'll still have to reject you."
Chen Chao casually tore off another piece of flaking paint from the wooden pillar and said with a slight smile, "Living off a woman is comfortable, but I don't like it."
...
...
The snow was lighter today, but it was still very cold.
Zhou Gouqi sat on his own doorstep wearing a thick cotton robe and rubbing his hands. But, he was in a good mood.
The reason for his good mood was not because he won the argument with that Chen brat again. After all, he always won and had gotten used to it.
It was because that fat lady of his returned to her parents' home today. His father-in-law was celebrating his 80th birthday today.
That fat woman gave him a good thrashing before she left. She wanted him to go back together with her, but she was still refused by Zhou Gouqi. He had not been doing well these few years. The relatives on his father-in-law's side had been laughing and mocking him. If it were others, they would not want to suffer eye-rolling again on such an occasion today too.
However, he was purely just lazy.
Lazy to walk from this street to that street.
Troublesome.
Zhou Gouqi who was currently enjoying this leisure time all by himself suddenly heard a creak. Lifting his head and looking, that door opened again. A youth in black walked out.
Who could it be if not that brat who was surnamed Chen?
Zhou Gouqi narrowed his eyes and became energized.
They were old acquaintances after all. Chen Chao knew what this old punk was thinking the moment they met gazes. He waved his hand impatiently, "I have official business. I don't have time to argue."
Zhou Gouqi clicked his tongue and said, "Brat, are you going to Changyuan Street?"
"Yeah, a demon entered the city. Be careful when you're sleeping at night."
"Wow, you punk, you're showing concern for Your Father?" "Do you feel that if Your Father died, no one will argue with you?"
"No, money has been tight recently."
The corners of Zhou Gouqi's mouth twitched, his expression somewhat ugly.
This brat really scolded people without saying vulgarities.
"Do you really think that demon will still appear on Changyuan Street?"
Hearing this, Chen Chao suddenly stopped and turned to look at this man who was far from being handsome.
Could it be...
"What ideas do you have?" Chen Chao looked at Zhou Gouqi, a strange idea gradually emerging.
Zhou Gouqi laughed loudly and said, "Brat, your brain isn't sharp. After committing two murder cases on Changyuan Street, could that demon still continue to stay there tonight?"
"This is the same reasoning as Your Father hiding private savings. Who would hide their private savings in one place?"
The man had a wise look, appearing quite conceited.
"It's gone?"
The corners of Chen Chao's mouth twitched. He was currently full of regret.
What on earth was I looking forward to?
"What? You still don't understand?" The man had a look of disdain, his expression somewhat judging him for being a hopeless case that could not be taught.
Chen Chao raised his middle finger at the man expressionlessly. Without waiting for the man to react, he walked away.