《An Oriental Odyssey》


 CH 1

    It was during the prosperous Tang Dynasty, under the rule of Emperor Gaozong and Empress Wu, thirty miles west of Luoyang City.


    The situation in the sky was cloudy, the storm did not come, but the birds could not fly. The moon peeked from behind the clouds and cast its silver light on the river, at a certain point, the river forked and trickled into a crack in the ground. The water passed through large and small rocks, creating countless holes, gradually stirring the black sand and gravel. Beside the river, on the side of the cliff, countless caves of different sizes have been chiselled into the mountain.


    During the day, the caves were usually sealed with wooden boards, seeming like abandoned tombs, but at this time of the night, these wooden boards were removed and bright red lights came on one after another, there was a wonderful business happening under each light. The boss was either a smuggler with great powers, a clever speculator looking for opportunities, or a wicked beast who digs graves and robs them.


    In Luoyang city, there were some interesting things that could never be seen under the sun: the glittering underworld jewels, the fragrant exotic herbs, I have heard that you can even summon evil spirits by chanting a mantra. Some people have brought strange live animals such as deer with really long necks and pigs with long noses and big heads. It is a truly cunning and strange place.


    The time has come, the shops were open and the number of customers was increasing, so much so that the customers were rubbing shoulders to get passed. On the side of the street, there were masked beauties playing the pipa, singing and performing tricks. There were also dealers who slaughtered cattle and sheep on the spot and cooked them with willow wood. Someone stepped on a fruit skin, slipped and fell to the ground, the wine jar in his hand broke, and the street was filled with a fragrant and strong smell. He yelled and some people laughed at him, his voice got even louder and the scene became even more lively.


    This was outside Luoyang''s ghost city.


    This is where their story begins.


    At that time...


    He had no name or appearance. He was locked in an iron cage that was not even two feet high. A cage that normally housed dogs, domesticated dogs that would guard the house. The human trafficker had finished selling all the others, it was only him left. At that time, she could not see what he looked like: skinny, dirty all over, eyes closed, arms hugging his knees with his shoulders slouched, curled into a ball quietly on the ground at the corner of the cage, he was like a piece of black charcoal that had just been unearthed, this had nothing to do with the excitement of everyone.


    The boy''s owner at this time was a trafficker who had returned from the south. He was well-known amongst those who often came to the ghost market. He said that his green beard was dyed with the blood of a mythical qilin. He once set an inescapable net trap on an island and watched it for ten days and ten nights, when his eyes were starting to bleed, it finally caught a bird-man, a man with wings, he gave it to the land''s Emperor, earning him several chests of gold. He also once threw a fish gun with a poisoned spearhead into a swirling whirling, bravely wrestled with it to death and finally pulled out a man with a fish''s tail, he ceremoniously gave it to the great and wealthy Tang royalty to keep as a pet. But for a merman out of the sea, it did not take long for him to die. Although, money from this endeavour still ended up in his pockets, which he then squandered at gambling tables.


    The goods the trafficker brought today were three slave girls with brown dark skins. He shouted and dragged the three female slaves onto the 3-foot square stone platform, ordered them to open their mouths to show their teeth and the trafficker announced loudly: "Hair is blood, teeth are bones, have you ever seen such thick hair and such even white teeth? This is the best physical health for a slave! Strong muscles and bones, will not get sick, on the farmland, in the house, can do any work! Buy and take home! Will never regret it!"


    One of the female slaves bowed her head, and the trafficker rushed over, twisting her hair, pinching her chin and turning her head about so the customer could see every angle: "Don''t look at her dark skin, look at her big eyes and nose. Not bad, right? Strangely attractive, right? Buy and take home to have a baby!"


    Someone heckled from below: "They were brought all the way here by you, I''m afraid she already has your baby in her stomach, isn''t it?!"


    The trafficker didn''t get annoyed when he heard those words, instead, he laughed and suddenly lifted up the slave girl''s shirt, exposing her bully and brought a large knife to her stomach with the blade pointed: "It''s fine to cut it open for you all to check."


    This was a big declaration, someone shouted from below: "Ah, can you really bear to? It was hard to acquire the goods, can you really bear to open her stomach?"


    The green-bearded trafficker smiled grimly, "Hey, you don''t need to provoke me, let''s make a bet. I''ll cut open this woman open, if there is no baby in there, you pay me double the price. If there''s a baby in there, then I''ve just added some fun to the ghost market tonight! Ghost market, ghost market, there''s no laws or morality here anyway!"


    The crowd of onlookers let out a roar, and the female slave who didn''t understand the language seemed to have a premonition that her life was like grass here, she was about to be disembowelled in public by the savage trafficker. The big knife cut straight into the flesh of the slave girl!


    Some onlookers had the guts to widen their eyes, and the cowardly covered their eyes, anticipating that they were about to hear the screams of the slave girl, who would have expected that it would be the green bearded man''s scream they would hear! With a clang, the knife and his buttocks hit the ground. Someone had pierced through the hand that was holding the knife with a hidden weapon, leaving a bloody hole in its wake, blood was flowing!


    "Who?! Who dared to plot against their grandfather and me?!"


    No one answered.


    "An honest person should not do things in secret, who attacked me with a secret weapon? If you have a problem, come out, let''s compete. Come on, this grandfather is not afraid of you!"


    Still, no one answered.


    The trafficker screamed in anger, but the onlookers were amused, there was a lot of discussion: "Look at the arrogant demeanour of this big green beard, he should have been dealt with long ago, didn''t you just say you wanted to add some excitement to the ghost market? This time, someone added it themselves. I say, big beard, don''t be arrogant, this time someone just cut a hole in your hand, be careful, otherwise someone might cut a hole in your head later."


    Hahahahahahahaha! The sound of laughter erupted, from every corner, and the ghost market instantly became noisy. The boy that was curled up in the cage had fallen asleep, this noise woke him up. He slowly opened his eyes and raised his head, looking around but was then suddenly startled. There was a face outside the cage, Ye Yuan''an was looking at him with eyes wide open.


    Unlike his dirty face, the young man''s face was luminous, even in the night light, one could still tell how good the complexion of this person was. His skin was as clear as jade, with rosy cheeks, his eyebrows and hair were black, his hair was tied up in a bun held in place by a golden pin, the usual style for young men. The young man had a straight nose and plump lips that looked as if he had just been scalded while eating a bowl of noodle soup, his lips were really red.


    The skin on the back of his hand was also jade-like. The boy had heard the human trafficker selling people saying that anyone with a good colour must eat well and have a strong body. The boy thought that this young man looking at him must ear well, otherwise, how could he grow up to have such a fresh and clear complexion?


    The boy in the cage just stared at the young man outside the cage like this, while the other party carefully studied him, and then suddenly giggled and said to the people around him, "Oh, turns out it''s a person! What a person! It''s like a buttoned turtle!"


    His companion was so tall that the boy could not see his face even when he looked up, he could only see the pair of white boots on his feet. The ghost market was originally a stone waterway, so everyone''s feet were covered with mud and water, it was unclear where this guy came from. What kind of shortcut did he take that his boots did not even have a speck of mud or watermarks. He didn''t share the excitement of the young man and simply whispered: "Let''s go. What more excitement do you want to cause?"


    The young man was a little unwilling, but he still had to get up and leave, but the boy in the cage suddenly stretched out a hand and grabbed his hand, as if he would not allow him to leave. The young man was quite surprised, but he let the boy pull his arm into the cage, wanting to see what would happen. The boy in the cage went up along his arm and gently caught the blue butterfly that had fallen on the young man''s shoulder at an unknown time. The boy extended his hand again, and the butterfly flew away.


    The young man laughed: "Yo, this kid is a bit interesting, the cage and the boy are for sale, right? Why don''t I just buy him and take him home?"


    His companion did not want him to be unrestrained and said, "You don''t care about our business anymore? Me bringing you here, did you really come here to go shopping?"


    The young man mimicked his companion, then clasped his hands, got up and left, while still casting glances back at the boy in the cage.

 CH 2

    The boy in the cage saw that they had not even taken a few steps before he found the world suddenly spinning. It turned out that his whole body and the cage were picked up by the trafficker and thrown on the stone platform, it was his turn to be sold: "Who wants this?!"


    Someone immediately asked: "What is this?"


    "It''s a person!" The trafficker ripped a strip of cloth off his robe to bandage the wound on his hand, but he did not forget to continue to sell his goods, "Buy and take home as a slave, chop wood, feed the horses. This is cheap, just 40 yuan!"


    "40 yuan? To buy this child? Even so thin?! Are you saying this is cheap?! 40 yuan can be used to buy a good donkey!"


    "Don''t underestimate him, this boy is very strong, he is stronger than a donkey. When I took him across the desert, a horse along with its baggage sank into quicksand, and it was singlehandedly pulled out by him!"


    "Don''t be a trafficker anymore! You should go be a storyteller! Your skills are really impressive!" People laughed at him again.


    The trafficker was really anxious this time, he jumped up: "This time, you all don''t deserve to see anything real, your grandfather and I won''t come to this ghost market in the future!" Then he picked up a three-pronged iron rod and hit the iron cage, sparks flew everywhere. The trafficker laughed, and the young man and his companion who were about to leave stopped in their tracks when they saw this scene.


    The boy who had just woken up, who had just been catching a butterfly off the shoulder of the young man when he was suddenly thrown onto this stone platform, and now his mind was ruthlessly provoked. Feeling aggrieved, the iron rod and sparks stimulated his blood, and his energy instantly surged up. He growled, gnashed his teeth, grabbed the iron bars of the cage and shook them with his lean hands.


    The cage made creaking sounds as if it were about to fall apart. Looking at this, the buyers also became a little excited seeing this lively scene. The trafficker grinned: "It''s not over yet." After saying that, he swung the iron stick and brought it down, aiming for one of the boy''s fingers. Everyone thought that the boy''s finger would be shattered at once. Who would have expected that the boy would stretch out his hand and catch the iron rod mid-air? He grabbed it with his hand, and when he applied force, the iron rod actually bent like it were noodles.


    The crowd cheered, and some people inquired, "This wild thing, how can I take him back and train him?"


    "Hey, hey, look at the way he is, you can''t even control him now!"


    The trafficker snorted: "I can''t control him? If I can''t control him, how did I bring him here? Those who are willing to buy should be optimistic. This slave, like a beast, must be handled like this."


    As he said that, he dug out some red-hot charcoal from the fire next to him and was about to use them to burn the boy''s hand. Suddenly, someone flew out and kicked him in the chest. The trafficker''s eyes rolled, and his butt hit the ground again. He clutched his chest and was about to rage but then vomited a mouthful of blood. It was clear today was not a good day for him. He opened his mouth and saw a young man with a golden scarf wrapped around his head. "What are you doing?!"


    "I''ve bought this kid. If you injure him, it can be counted as injuring me. There, money, now, open the cage and let him out!" The young man said as he threw money over. The trafficker caught it, but he was still unwilling and loudly shouted, "You bought this person, but you also kicked my chest, injured me and caused me to vomit blood. How do we calculate this?"


    "Want to extort me?" The young man smiled, "I have money to pay, but you are not worth it!"


    The trafficker became furious, he drew his sword and swung at the young man, but his opponent was agile, simply dodging left and right, unscathed and still had time to joke: "Oh, how dare you go out to see the world with this little ability? I kicked your chest lightly, I should have crippled your hand back then!"


    Trafficker: "Ah, it was you who hit me with a hidden weapon! Where did this thief come from? I want your life!"


    The trafficker lunged forward with his sword, and the young man jumped and dodged again. He was very flexible, some members of the crowd applauded, enjoying the fun. Suddenly, the young man pulled off his belt and with a flick of his right hand, the flexible belt straightened out into a sword with a cold glimmer. The trafficker''s eyes became bloodshot and he turned to pounce.


    It seems the patience of the young man had run out, he longer wanted to tease with dodging, he pointed his sword and went straight at the trafficker! The trafficker raised his sword to book it, but when the originally very hard-looking iron sword met the young man''s sword, it seemed to become paper and hay, it snapped in half. The trafficker did not even have the time to beg for mercy, he could only close his eyes and accept his fate.


    At that moment, the young man''s companion spoke up. Although his voice was cold, he was pleading for others: "Just a businessman, do you really want his life?"


    That advice was said as if this situation was not a big deal, but the sword stopped. The trafficker who was already frozen and cold sweating stayed on the ground, unable to get up. The young man put away his sword and still smiled, "Hehe, I''ll spare you. This youngster just wanted to see how powerful you are. No matter the colour of your beard, shouldn''t you still treat people as people?"


    "Yes, as you say."


    "Well, I''ve paid the money. Can I take the child in the cage?"


    "I will hand over the cage for you." The trafficker was about to get up, but he found that his legs and feet have become soft, but he could not get up at all.


    The young man laughed loudly: "Look at how weak you are, why waste the effort?!" He said as he turned around and swung his soft sword, the trafficker yelled, "Don''t!" But it was too late, the extremely sharp soft sword came down and the railings of the iron cage shattered into six or seven pieces. The dirty boy inside seemed to have been waiting for this moment for a long time and instantly jumped out of the iron cage. He stretched out his body like a strong and energetic little eagle, the next moment, he had already risen, climbing over the rocks raised high above.


    The young man was taken aback and stammered incoherently. He turned back to the trafficker who was still on the ground: "Ah, ah, ah, Hey, what trick is this? How can he fly?"


    The trafficker was aggrieved: "He can''t fly, he can jump, he can jump very high. I told you, don''t let him out, but you didn''t listen to me! It''s over, you can''t catch him anymore. I''ll say it now, he ran away in your hands, I won''t refund the money."


    The dirty boy climbing the rocks turned to look back at the young man as if to thank him for his rescue, and also seemed to be condescendingly laughing at his ignorance. The cold night wind blew in through the cliff openings into the ghost market. The boy seemed to rise with the wind, jumping higher and higher until he eventually disappeared from everyone''s view.


    The young man watched the dirty boy from the cage disappear with his eyes wide open, not only could he not accept him as a servant, but he also did not even receive a word of thanks. The young man looked quite regretful, he retracted his soft sword and returned it to his waist, lowered his head and sighed.


    His companion took a few steps forward and said: "If you don''t get serious, it''ll be daybreak soon." The young man immediately nodded and that little show of regret disappeared in the blink of an eye: "Let''s go!"


    It''s only the young that have this advantage. They can always remember that there are better and more fun things waiting for them down the road, it''s not a pity to miss one thing here and there.

 CH 3

    The young man and his companions left the messed up trafficker''s stall, walked along the winding streets of the ghost market, looked up and saw a small shop, which was dark, its entrance was covered by a curtain with a blood-red thread embroidered on it. The two stopped. The young man''s companion brought out a black metal snake-shaped ornament from his sleeve, the shape looked exactly the same as the embroidered snake on the curtain.


    He smiled: "It''s almost the same."


    The young man turned his head to look at his companion''s face, his mind wandering. Other people don''t look good if they don''t smile, but this person was still a bit good-looking even when not when smiling. It must be because he has long eyebrows, straight and thin, and the tight corners of his mouth seem to have been drawn by fine brushwork.


    This man''s eyes were still studying the small snake-shaped ornament in his hand when he asked: "Ye Yuan''an, what are you looking at?"


    Yuan''an asked: "Zhao Lanzhi, can we be regarded as partners?"


    He sneered, his eyes were still not on Ye Yuan''an, but this time he really smiled: "In your dreams."


    Let''s rewind to two days ago, late at night in Luoyang''s county prison.


    Zhao Lanzhi, the head constable, was interrogating a salt smuggler who had just been arrested.


    Zhao Lanzhi was in his twenties. He originally served in the military at the border but was then transferred to Luoyang county''s police bureau office and has been working here for less than a year. This person''s appearance looks exceptionally young and tender, there was no trace of the seasoned and fierce looks of the other officers of the police bureau. If you did not pay close attention to the broad shoulders forged from his year-round martial arts training or his taut face that was tightly squashed like a tiger''s, he would clearly be a well-favoured handsome government officer.


    The salt dealer looked down on this person and was very arrogant, he laughed: "Even if you''ve caught me, I have nothing important to say ah! It''s just selling salt, what''s the issue? It''s just making money, what''s the issue there? Grandpa, what I spend in a day is more than you earn in the whole year! What''s there to say? I''m afraid if I talk it''ll scare you to death! Hahahahahaha!


    Subordinate Xiao Hu said: "My lord, let''s just use torture, hm?"


    Zhao Lanzhi added charcoal to the stove while quietly saying: "This man dared to buy and sell salt privately, this person is not afraid of losing his head. Look at the scars on his body, he has suffered a lot before and has seen the world. Even if he committed a crime, he can still be considered a man, even if he is afraid of torture, he will not show it. You see, this prison is getting hotter and hotter. We don''t need to treat prisoners badly, let alone if he hasn''t been convicted yet, just him some water."


    Xiao Hu didn''t understand his superior''s intention, but he got water and was about to give it to the salt dealer. But then Zhao Lanzhi stopped him and grabbed two large handfuls of salt from the evidence on the side and put it in the water. Then he squeezed the salt dealer''s nose to force his mouth open and poured the water into his mouth and slowly said: "Taste the good thing you sell yourself. How many people can''t eat it, yet you make money on this! Come on, enjoy it!"


    The salt dealer shook his head and struggled, but he couldn''t avoid it. Originally, the cell had a charcoal basin burning, now that he had gulped down a large amount of saltwater. He was suddenly very thirsty, it was unbearable. His whole body seemed to be burning to death from the inside out. Watching his captors leisurely drinking water, he couldn''t stand it anymore: "Let me some."


    Zhao Lanzhi hovered a large glass of water in front of his mouth: "Come on, where did your ship of private salt come from and where did it go? I''ll immediately give you water to drink"


    This scene of Zhao Lanzhi interrogating the salt dealer was thus witnessed by Ye Yuan''an.


    Where was she at the time?


    On the beam above the prison cell, where the fire''s light did not reach, she was dressed in dark clothes and was hiding in the darkness.


    There are really various methods. Yuan''an shook her head, thinking to herself. No matter what happens, one must not fall into the hands of this person. She would rather die than suffer from this torture. She then turned his head and crawled lightly along the beam to the area above another cell block. It was the death row cell with two female prisoners who were about to lose their heads.


    One woman committed adultery with someone and killed her husband. She was caught and sentenced to be beheaded. She was to be executed the next day. The woman swallowed a few bites of her food, and then looked at the other person, licked her mouth and asked, "Hey, do you want to eat this?"


    The other death row prisoner was a young girl in her teens named Xiao Yu, she was crying hoarsely: "I don''t want to eat this! I didn''t kill anyone! I didn''t kill my master! I don''t want to die!"


    The woman didn''t care about the grievance of the other person. She only heard the other party say they were not eating, so she picked up the food and continued to eat, she swallowed a big mouthful, choked, raised her head and suddenly her soul was frightened. Just then a silver-white hand skeleton hand grabbed the young girl''s shoulder and was quietly lifting her up. Xiao Yu seemed to be petrified too, holding her breath and gathering her voice, not daring to make a noise.


    The woman cried: "Ah, it''s haunted! Haunted!"


    The salt dealer was about to confess, suddenly there was such a commotion from the death row, Zhao Lanzhi and others immediately rushed over just in time to see Xiao Yu, a death row prisoner being dragged up by a silver-white skeleton hand, she was already two-feet off the ground. Xiao Hu was shocked: "I heard people say that the death row area is not clean, and today I am really seeing that it''s haunted?!"


    "Nonsense!" Zhao Lanzhi shouted in a calm voice. He opened the cell door and flew up using the wall, but then he saw the skeleton hand was moving faster. In the blink of an eye, the criminal Xiao Yu was already firmly captured by the dark shadow on the beam. The silver-white skeleton in his hand was actually a delicate spry rope!


    Zhao Lanzhi shouted: Who is it?! Who dared to rob the prison?!"


    It was Yuan''an who robbed the prison. The person had already arrived, and she was proud in her heart. Who would talk nonsense? There was a small ventilation window on the roof of the prison, Yuan''an came in through there. The moment she grabbed Xiao Yu, she used her qinggong skills and quickly jumped out. Zhao Lanzhi followed closely behind.


    Under the moonlight, in the night, Yuan''an held Xiao Yu in front of her and jumped from one beam to another. The wind was at Zhao Lanzhi''s feet. After a few jumps, he had almost closed the distance. Yuan''an was gasping for breath, and her throat was on fire. She thought to herself that this old man in the police bureau really had some martial skill. But if she wasn''t carrying someone in her arms, how would he have gotten the opportunity to catch up? Out of the corner of her eye, she saw that he drew his sword and slashed at her. Yuan''an''s hair stood up and she misstepped and slipped, she rolled and stood up again, still holding Xiao Yu in her arms, she stood face to face with her opponent.


    Zhao Lanzhi also stopped and lowered his sword: "How bold, you dared to break into the prison to steal a prisoner? Who are you? Take off the mask and speak."


    Yuan''an didn''t speak, she just nodded to show compliance and obedience, she held out her small hand and went to remove the mask, but then she suddenly opened her sleeves and disappeared before Zhao Lanzhi''s eyes in one swift movement!


    Zhao Lanzhi was shocked. The two people he had just clearly watching jumping about like grasshoppers, how did they just disappear? Could this place really be haunted? But ghosts have no weight. Just now, the feet of the man misstepping on the beam made a loud noise. This three-legged cat''s achievement can be considered the work of a master, but why were they suddenly gone? Zhao Lanzhi lowered his head and turned around in place several times, unable to figure it out. He swung the sword in his hand a few times as well, but he did not touch anything.


    If she had been staying still like this, Yuan''an might not have been able to avoid Zhao Lanzhi.


    Her dark clothes were originally made by an expert. Under her armpits was a cloak big enough for two people. There was a special coating on the outside that reflected light. It was not a problem during the day, but when used at night, it actually worked like a cloak of invisibility. Yuan''an wrapped herself and Xiao Yu in this invisible suit, but in fact, she was right beside Zhao Lanzhi, quieting her breath and moving along with him, hiding well.


    It was just that Yuan''an was a person with an innate personality flaw, she loves to laugh at people the most. She was hiding in her invisible cloak, but when she saw the constable frowning in bewilderment, she already thought it was amusing. Seeing him swinging his knife in the air and cutting around, she couldn''t help wanting to laugh even more. Zhao Lanzhi stood there with his sword, scratching his chin and pondering, then he angrily said: "Evil ways."


    Yuan''an finally couldn''t help it and she laughed out loud in the end.

 CH 4

    The invisibility cloak could block light and hide people, but it could not block sound. Before Yuan''an''s two hehes landed, Zhao Lanzhi had already heard them and swung his sword. Xiao Yu exclaimed causing Zhao Lanzhi to hesitate, Yuan''an quickly threw the cloak at him and flew away with Xiao Yu.


    Zhao Lanzhi picked up the cloak that Yuan''an left behind: "Unexpectedly used a blocker!" With that being the case, he was even more reluctant to let it go and continued to chase after them. Yuan''an couldn''t escape, she was terribly tired, suddenly she saw a pond in front of her, surrounded by a thick bush of reeds, she had no choice, she jumped into the water with Xiao Yu. The two sank into the shallow water, Yuan''an quickly snapped two reed poles, one for her and one for Xiaoyu, and they used these to breathe while she carefully watched the movement above from under the water.


    Before she could even take one breath, the constable arrived and was looking around carefully, Yuan''an was so angry that she bit the reed stick in her mouth: This man was like a hound, so hard to get rid of! Hmph, but right now he was in the light and she was in the dark. If he really dared to come into the water to catch her, then she will stab him and kill him!


    Zhao Lanzhi didn''t go into the water, but he took out two things from his sleeve. Yuan''an watched his mouth move from under the water. He spoke in a low voice, but every word clearly landed in her ears: "You who broke into prison to steal a prisoner listen well, do you think I can''t catch you if you hide under water? You''re not worried that I''m secretly planning something to catch you?  Well, I have saltpeter and kerosene in my hands. I am going to count to three, if you don''t come out, I will set this reed pond on fire! I will boil you and that death row prisoner to death in there! It''ll save me time!"


    Yuan''an heard it, Xiao Yu next to her also heard it and became scared, she was about to go up but Yuan''an tightly grabbed her wrist.


    Zhao Lanzhi began to count, while counting, he opened the kerosene bottle in his hand and poured it into the water.


    He counted to three.


    Yuan An still didn''t move, she shrank into a small ball nervously, waiting for him to ignite it.


    But Zhao Lanzhi poured the saltpeter in his hand and turned away.


    For a long time, there was no movement. When Yuan''an was certain the man had left, she finally emerged from the bottom of the water, coughed, removed her mask and her hair came loose as she gasped for breath.


    Xiao Yu, who was on the side, had just escaped from death and was still in shock. Seeing Yuan''an''s long and thick hair, her ruddy apple face, Xiao Yu became even more surprised, she pointed at her and said, "You are actually a woman, and -"


    "I am your benefactor!" Ye Yuan''an said.


    Ye Yuan''an, the daughter of Lord Ye, the minister of household affairs, turned 17 years old this year.


    Lord Ye''s original wife passed away when Yuan''an was born. Lord Ye was busy with government affairs, and her stepmother could also not handle the eldest Miss. So Yuan''an became more naughty and abnormal as she grew older. She does not like the female arts, she likes to play with swords and weapons,  she is unwilling to read or draw at home, instead, she prefers to wander around and make all sorts of strange friends of unknown origins. Ordinarily, she would be considered the most beautiful and lovely of girls, but she always likes to go about wearing men''s clothing and she considers herself to be someone of the Jianghu, so she is always like a little grasshopper going about everywhere with vigorous energy.


    **(Jianghu refers to the world of those who practice martial arts, bound by no kingdom and roam the world freely - think sects in Wuxia/Xianxia)***


    So Yuan''an rescued Xiao Yu, the death row prisoner from the prison, and took her back to her manor. She walked through several courtyards before reaching the woodshed next to the stable. Yuan''an''s stable boy Shi Tou was waiting there. It was he who begged Yuan''an to rescue Xiao Yu. When Xiaoyu saw Shi Tou, she burst into tears and ran over: "I thought I would never see you again!"


    Shi Tou also cried: "If it wasn''t for the righteousness of my Little Master, we would never have seen each other again!" The two of them were originally from the same village, they hugged each other and cried for a while, then they both kowtowed to Yuan''an and thanked her for saving Xiao Yu''s life.


    Yuan''an did a good deed, she felt happy so she waved her hand and helped the two up: "The people from Luoyang County''s police bureau were chasing us so closely just now, but in the end, I got rid of them. Since we got rid of them, it will be fine. Even if they beat them to death, they won''t be able to find you here. So live here for now, after two days, when the matter has died down, I will send you two off!"


    Yuan''an went back to her room, the sky was already turning blue, she tucked herself into bed but couldn''t close her eyes, remembering that she had just thrown off the head constable of the Luoyang County police bureau, she was very proud. She smiled sweetly to herself and said: "Still want to catch me? Tire you to death!"


    It was said that Yuan''an''s good dream had not even begun when she was woken up by the sound of knocking on the door.


    One of the family''s head servants, Uncle Xia said from outside: "Little master, little master, hurry up, two officers from Luoyang county''s police bureau are here to question someone!"


    Yuan An immediately sat up in bed, thinking that she must be dreaming, she bit the tip of her tongue, and it hurt. Still not believing her ears, she asked with a guilty conscience: "Uncle Xia, who did you say is here and what are they here to do?"


    "To answer Little Master, it is the Luoyang county government''s constable who has come to ask someone to ask questions with an official document."


    Yuan''an caused in her heart, but she had no choice but to get up and get dressed to go receive the guests. She did not expect that she would see this person so soon after closing her eyes: "Uncle Xia, you serve tea first and tell them I''ll be there soon."


    The night before, she had been too busy running and being chased, too busy fighting to pay attention to what the constable looked like. Now he looked so tall, his shoulders were broad, he was standing with his back facing the door with his head slightly tilted, he seemed to be looking at the painting hanging on the wall.  Yuan''an came in, his subordinate saw her, then he turned around and fixed his eyes on Yuan''an. Yuan''an immediately started to sweat, she guiltily averted her gaze and pointed to the painting on the wall: "What is it? Haven''t you seen anything like it before? This painting was brought from beyond the great wall, look at the fine and detailed strokes on it. This is not just a painting, this is the cream of the crop, threaded with silk, it is more expensive than gold."


    The constable respectfully said: "Oh, I really haven''t seen it before."


    Seeing his reaction, Yuan''an thought to herself that the constable was not able to recognize her now that she was dressed up well. She immediately thought to use this momentum, she put on a little airs and brought out the imposing manner of pampered young master from a wealthy family to scare this person away: "My father used to be an official outside the great wall, but the Empress recognized his worth and transferred him to Luoyang to be the assistant minister of finance, did you know? The minister is the eldest, my father''s second eldest. By the way, I am his eldest son, Ye Yuan''an. You, who are you guys?"    "This lower official is Zhao Lanzhi, the head constable of Luoyang country''s police bureau. This is my subordinate, Xiao Hu."


    "Hey, I don''t who you are and what your name is." Yuan''an waved her hand, "I just wanted to ask one thing, how you from Luoyang county police dared to come to this minister''s manor to look for someone for questioning? Do I look like a bad person to you?"


    Zhao Lanzhi remained respectful and polite: "Young master Ye is jesting, how does Young master Ye look like a bad person. Listen to me explain things carefully..."


    What Zhao Lanzhi said were things Yuan''an had already heard from Shi Tou: It is said that there is a five-story large beautiful ship on the canal called "Qianduan Pavilion", it is the most popular and lively venue in the capital city of Luoyang. Every night, Qianduan Pavilion is filled with pleasure-seeking guests and the ship slowly sails down the canal for 30 miles. The guests drink fine wine and eat delicious food while surrounded by beauties enjoying the moonlit night. It is said that His Majesty, the Emperor also went to Qianduan Pavilion to have fun one time when the Emperor was not watching.


    The most famous among the countless beauties in Qianduan Pavilion was a dancer named Ruyue. Ruyue girl was flamboyant and graceful, and her dancing was unparalleled. How many princes and passionate guests have fallen at her feet and presented countless gifts just to be intimate with her. However, Ruyue was selling her talent not her body, she refused to prostitute herself and did not dally with anyone. However, being a beauty in a pleasure house, even if you want to live a clean and honest life, will others allow you to have peace?


    Half a month ago, on a dark and windy night, Qianduan Pavilion''s assistant manager, Sun mama, heard that Ruyue locked her room and was not answering the door. With great difficulty, they finally forced it open, only to find Ruyue dead in the room!

 CH 5

    The money tree was destroyed, Sun mama cried and vowed to avenge this daughter. She soon discovered that Xiao Yu, the maid who had been serving Ruyue, had hidden a large amount of gold and silver jewelry. Another servant also reported that she had heard Xiao Yu and her mistress quarrelling before. So Sun mama angrily sent Xiao Yu to Luoyang county''s policy bureau, with all this as evidence and - Xiaoyu was sentenced to be executed!


    "It is this death row prisoner, Xiao Yu, who was kidnapped from the Luoyang County''s prison last night." Zhao Lanzhi finished speaking and took a sip of tea.


    After hearing this, Yuan''an averted her gaze, turned around, facing her back to Zhao Lanzhi and said angrily: "The prisoner on death row was kidnapped, it''s because you did not do your job well, what are you doing in my assistant minister''s manor? I didn''t do anything wrong...I don''t know anything..."


    "Of course, Young master, you don''t know anything. I''m looking for a servant in the manor called Shi Tou." Zhao Lanzhi said.


    The tea bowl in Yuan''an''s hand almost fell, her ears perked up and she cautiously asked, "...Looking for Shi Tou, what are you looking for a Shi Tou for?"


    "The death row prisoner Xiao Yu was originally from out of town, she came to Luoyang to work, her social relations are simple. For someone to risk their life to save her, it has to be someone she was very familiar with. She was rescued, but she won''t cut off her relations with familiar people. We did our research and there was only one such person in her life, so we had to come to your residence to ask for the one who comes from the same hometown as Xiao Yu, Shi Tou..."


    After Zhao Lanzhi finished speaking, Yuan''an closed her eyes in anger as she thought to herself: Ye Yuan''an, ah Ye Yuan''an, do you think you can avoid this arrest so easily? Hey... this person is really cunning, no wonder he didn''t set me on fire the night before, he had long known where to look...


    Yuan''an was still lamenting, frowning, when Zhao Lanzhi came up to her side: "Young master Ye? Young master Ye, is something wrong?"


    Yuan''an said: "...Toothache."


    Zhao Lanzhi smiled secretly: "Toothache, why are you holding your stomach then?"


    Yuan''an: "...Have you ever had a toothache? Sometimes it hurts so badly that it will cause pain all over your body, it''s caused my stomach to hurt."


    Zhao Lanzhi helplessly shook his head: "... Young Master Ye, we are all busy, allow Shi Tou to come out and answer!"


    Yuan''an lowered her head, knowing that she couldn''t get out of it this time, so she ordered her servants to call the Shi Tou, intending to play it by ear.


    After a while, Shi Tou came over with a basket of hay. He was normally a child who feeds horses, he hadn''t seen much of the world, and he asked Yuan''an to rob the prison, so when he saw Zhao Lanzhi wearing an official robe and official boots, he instantly felt guilty and knelt down, shivering on the ground: "Little Master, did you want to see me?"


    Yuan''an took a few steps forward, supported his shoulder, and secretly winked at him: "Shi Tou, these two are the county police bureau, they suspect that you went to rob the prison last night and are secretly hiding a criminal. Did you do such a thing? Tell the truth! If you dare to lie, I will rip your skin off!"


    Shi Tou knew how to cooperate, he looked at Yuanan, then looked at Zhao Lanzhi, and smirked: "Sir, Master, how would I have the courage to do such a thing? No, no! The low one would not dare!"


    Zhao Lanzhi came over and kindly said: "Little brother, you are not lying, are you?


    "How many heads do I have that I will dare to deceive you?!"


    Yuan An immediately pushed the Shi Tou aside: "Official Zhao, I''ll make a deal with you, this kid is honest, how could he dare to do something as big as robbing the prison? If you don''t believe it, it''s alright, how about you search my manor to see if you can find the murderer Duan Xiao Yu?"


    On hearing this, Zhao Lanzhi suddenly turned around, his eyes were like torches, and he stared at Yuan''an: "When did I tell Young master Ye that the person''s surname is Duan?"


    Yuan''an rolled his eyes: "... I know all about the Shi Tou, two days ago, a friend from his hometown,  Duan Xiao Yu was arrested on charges of taking a life..."


    Zhao Lanzhi scrutinized Yuan''an for a long time, then finally nodded and smiled: "The relationship between master and servant is really good."


    Yuan''an: "Yes, yes." She turned around and wiped the sweat on her forehead: It''s my fault for opening my lousy mouth!


    Zhao Lanzhi let it go, he clasped his fists and said, "Young Master, I don''t have so many heads to dare to search Ye manor. The situation is clear, our official business is finished. I will now disturb  Young Master Ye."


    Yuan''an''s mind relaxed, but Zhao Lanzhi continued: "However, I still have to remind you of a few words. Robbery of death row prisoners is not a trivial matter. If anyone thinks that because they are skilled in their methods or have some high-level official background they can fish in troubled waters and escape by chance, then they are wrong. A wanted order will be issued, and a reward will be offered for the capture of this person. In other words, if a death-row prisoner runs away, it is definitely not just the two of us who will be after her, she will be followed by countless eyes, to report! Those who dare to rob the prison will definitely not escape justice!"


    Zhao Lanzhi''s words were loud, and Yuan''an felt even more guilty after listening to them, her eyes didn''t know which way to look, and Shi Tou also had a few beads of sweat rolling from his head, his whole body was trembling.


    Zhao Lanzhi looked at him and smiled, he was really not good at fake smiling.


    Yuan''an saw that Shi Tou was about to break, so she hurriedly went over to him and sharply scolded him: "You''re having a fever so early in the morning and you haven''t taken medicine yet! Why are you shaking so much?! The constable will think that as a Master is unkind to you! Not giving you treatment for your illness..."


    Zhao Lanzhi cupped his hands: "Young Master Ye, I''m leaving."


    Yuan''an quickly said, "Uncle Xia see the guests off."


    Zhao Lanzhi and his subordinate Xiao Hu left just like that, Shi Tou and Yuan''an looked at each other, the master and servant were both in shock. Shi Tou said with a crying voice: "Little master, what''s going on? Why did people from Luoyang county policy bureau come here..."


    "No, no, don''t be afraid." Yuan''an grabbed a handful of hay and wiped Shi Tou''s forehead stone, "Tonight, I''ll send you and Xiao Yu away tonight..."


    So while the whole city of Luoyang was almost asleep, three people went out of the back door of Lord Ye''s manor and rode out into the night. In the depths of the dense forest, near the Grand Canal, several large trees that were damaged by lightning fell had fallen next to the water and formed a natural platform. The three dismounted, it was Yuan An, Shi Shi and Xiao Yu.


    Yuan An looked at the moon: "It''s almost midnight, let''s wait here for a while. There will be private boats passing by, if you give them boat fare, they will be able to take you away. Hey, we''re in luck today, a boat is already here! Get up, don''t stand in my way." Yuan An got up made a fire with the saltpeter in her hand, and the boat leaned towards the shore.


    There were two men on the bow of the boat, wearing conical straw hats.

 CH 6

    Yuan An spoke out to them in a loud voice: "Where are you going?"


    "Dingyang City."


    "Help me take these two of you along the way, they''ll get off the boat at Dingyang." Yuan An said.


    "Okay... Two silver taels for one. For two people it''s four taels."


    Yuan''an rolled her eyes: "You really know how to do business! - Then, I''ll give you six taels. You make the boat move faster. Serve tea and a meal and diligently wait on them!"


    The helmsman happily said: "Okay! Please come in."


    Yuan''an tossed the silver taels to the helmsman, then turned around and put a bag of money in Shi Tou''s hand: "This money is for you Shi Tou, don''t lose it. Returning to your hometown like this, you won''t be able to come back for a few years. Find a place where no one knows you two, and buy a plot of land to farm, understand?"


    "I understand, Little Master."


    "Don''t worry about your mother, I''ll have Uncle Xia send money back to her."


    Shi Tou had tears in his eyes, "Little Master, you are so kind to me."


    Yuan''an patted Shi Tou on the shoulder: "You fed our horses well! To tell you the truth, I am reluctant to part with you. It won''t be easy to find a stable boy as good as you, but this is a good thing! You love this girl, and you trust that she is kind and goodhearted. This is a blessing for both of you! Cherish it!"


    Xiao Yu and Shi Tou immediately knelt down and kowtowed to Yuan''an: " We won''t forget Little Master''s words until we die!"


    The helmsman was in a hurry and urged them to get on the boat: "Are you going or not?!"


    Yuan''an quickly helped Xiao Yu and Shi Tou up: "Let''s go, let''s go, don''t delay, it''s time."


    Shi Tou and Xiao Yu got on the boat, Shi Tou and Xiao Yu knelt down inside the boat to thank Yuan''an again.


    Yuan''an waved goodbye, feeling a little reluctant in his heart, but she was also a little relaxed that it was over. She turned around and was about to go home to go to sleep when she suddenly felt that something was not right. The wind was not right, the water was not right, um, even the moonlight was not right, the boat, the two helmsmen were even more wrong - their boat handling skill was not very good...


    Yuan''an was rooted to the spot, then she saw that the boots under the feet of the helmsmen were a pair of thick and clean official boots! Yuan''an''s heart skipped a beat, and then he shouted: "Shi Tou! Xiao Yu! Come back!"


    The sound of the water was deafening, Shi Tou and Xiao Yu on the boat saw Yuan''an gesturing but could not hear her.


    Xiao Yu said: "What is the little master saying?"


    Shi Tou scratched his head: "It seems...she''s telling us not to go back."


    Xiao Yu said: "It doesn''t seem to be..."


    The helmsman behind him spoke: "Of course not, he''s telling you to go back quickly!"


    Xiao Yu and Shi Tou were horrified, and when they turned around, the two helmsmen took off their hats, revealing their true appearance, it was Zhao Lanzhi and Xiao Hu, Luoyang County''s police officers!


    Zhao Lanzhi coldly said: "It really took no effort to get here. Xiao Hu, tie them up! Let''s go and arrest their Little Master! Let''s see how the law will handle this pampered young master who dared to rob the prison!"


    Xiao Hu said nothing and immediately captured Shi Tou and Xiao Yu.


    Yuan''an on the shore saw this scene and jumped in a hurry. She gritted her teeth and took out the silver-white skeleton hand from her sleeve and threw it to the edge of the ship. The skeleton hand was easy to use, the mechanism latched on and she used the rope and in a blink of an eye, she was on the boat.


    Zhao Lanzhi looked Yuan''an up and down: "So it was you who robbed the prison. I recognize your skeleton rope, who made it for you?"


    "Keep your nonsense words, you already knew from earlier that Xiao Yu was rescued by me, didn''t you?"


    Zhao Lanzhi adjusted his sleeve as he looked at Yuan''an with great interest: "We watched you all day and as expected, you ran out at night! Little thief, you were not secure enough, look, I can''t search your manor, but you came out on your own, you, your experience in the Jianghu is not sufficient..."


    *( Jianghu refers to the martial world/out in the world - in more modern terms, "the streets")**


    Yuan''an was furious when she heard those words, she took off her belt and shook it into a soft sword: "Then let''s check if my swordsmanship is not sufficient!" After saying that, she vigorously rushed forward to attack Zhao Lanzhi.


    Yuan''an and Zhao Lanzhi had already exchanged more than 20 moves, and she has already been divided. She was bouncing up and using all sorts of extravagant moves, while Zhao Lanzhi was a professionally trained constable, their swords had swept passed each other''s eyebrows several times. Zhao Lanzhi was deliberately being lenient, while Yuan''an on the sly was even more proud of her own skill and vigorously forged ahead.


    No one realized when the wind picked up and waves began to swell, the boat swayed a lot more and was pushed to the center of the river.


    Zhao Lanzhu did not want to continue fighting anymore, he turned his wrist and pushed his blade straight, Yuan''an swung her sword but she was too late to block it and could only stare at Zhao Lanzhi''s sword at her neck, she stood still and did not dare to jump about.


    Zhao Lanzhi looked at her face, he was feeling quite helpless: "...Why are you so difficult?... You''ve fought with me twice, yesterday and today, and I could have truly killed you several times..."


    Yuan''an pouted: "Don''t brag, I didn''t get a chance to properly display last night!"


    Zhao Lanzhi smiled: "That''s true, your hidden weapons are quite useful. Okay, let''s end it here, we''ll tie your hand and you''ll go back to the police bureau with me. Look... I''m already tired of you..."


    Yuan''an was furious: "You''re tired of me?!... You''re more tiring than me!"


    "You dared to rob a prison, that crime is unforgivable!"


    "It is you all who cannot discriminate between right and wrong, arbitrability deciding cases and wronging good people!"


    The two fought again. Although Yuan''an was wearing men''s clothes, she was a girl with thin skin. Zhao Lanzhi''s words were "annoying" and she was so angry that she was really going for Zhao Lanzhi''s life every time she swung her sword. Zhao Lanzhi wanted to capture her alive, but the space on the boat was small, and it was looking like it would not end well.


    Xiao Hu wanted to come forward to help, but Yuan''an took out time to send out the iron skeleton hand and used to mechanism to tie him up. The skeleton hand grabbed Xiao Hu''s throat and began choking him. Xiao Hu shouted, Zhao Lanzhu rushed forward to rescue him, the boat suddenly violently shook, next thing, Yuan''an''s sword was at his throat. This time, it was Zhao Lanzhi who stopped moving.

 CH 7

    After a moment, Zhao Lanzhi calmed down, he turned around and looked at the tip of the sword at his throat, he asked Yuan''an: "What do you want to do?"


    "Let Shi Tou and Xiao Yu go!"


    "What if I don''t?"


    Yuan''an smiled: If you don''t, I''ll slice your neck first, and then bleed out your assistance. Then let them both go! Either way, same result!


    Zhao Lanzhi looked at Yuan''an carefully, and did not understand: "Your father is an official in the court, do you know what you are doing? Do you know what will happen to you if you kill an official?!


    Yuan''an: "I am the type of person to act first, think late. If there are any consequences, when the time comes we''ll deal with them."


    Zhao Lanzhi suddenly smiled: "You are a bit temperamental."


    Yuan''an approached with her sword, anxiously threatening: "You don''t you believe it? Do you think I''m joking with you?"


    Zhao Lanzhi was motionless and unyielding. He looked at Yuan''an coldly, and was already answering her: "Even if kill me, don''t think you''ll be able to walk away from this..."


    Yaun''an was really going to stab this guy to death, a drop of sweat dropped from her hair down to her eye.


    Xiao Yu who was bound suddenly shouted: "Stop all of you!"


    Everyone looked at her, Xiaoyu gritted her teeth, resolute, desperate: "What the officials want is nothing more than to take me back to prison for execution. Why bother Little Master? I must not implicate others! Xiao Yu''s life is worthless, but she doesn''t want to die a wrongful death! I''ll throw myself into the river, end myself, and leave cleanly!"


    After Xiao Yu finished speaking, she staggered to her feet, turned around and threw herself into the river.


    Everyone on the boat was horrified, and the sword in Yuan''an''s hand fell to the ground.


    Shi Tou cried: "Xiao Yu! Wait, I''ll go too!"


    Yuan''an subconsciously reached out to grab Xiao Yu, but she had already sunk into the dark water, in a swift moment, her head disappeared.


    Yuan''an was not good at swimming, and it was impossible too late to save her using tricks. When she was at a loss, Zhao Lanzhi, who was next to her, jumped into the water to rescue Xiao Yu, who had already passed out and was sinking in the rolling waves. He brought her out of the water and back to the boat, Xiao Yu was still unconscious, Zhao Lanzhi pressed her stomach and Xiao Yu coughed up a lot of water and woke up crying. Shi Tou stepped forward and firmly hugged her. They were both shocked, frightened and confused, didn''t he come to kill them? Why did he jump into the water to save her then?


    The five people were silent for a long while on the swaying boat.


    Zhao Lanzhi looked at Xiao Yu.


    He was ordered to arrest people, but he does not try the case. One day, while he passing through the death row cellblock, this little girl grabbed had grabbed his foot through the railings and cried with blood-red eyes and said in a shrill voice: "You have wronged a good person! You''ve made a careless judgment! If I die, I will turn into a ghost and I will not let you all go!" He is the head constable and is well-informed so he remained cold-hearted. There were many people who shout injustice after being sentenced, but for her to continue to stubbornly insist up until this point, not many would...


    Zhao Lanzhi turned his head and looked at Yuan''an who was sitting in the boat, panting. What made him even more confused was this child, the son of an aristocratic family, for the sake of his stable boy and a murder suspect, how could he take such heavy risks even to this point?


    Could it be that there was indeed another secret in the case of Qianduan Pavilion''s dancer Ru Yue''s murder?


    Seeing the hesitation on Zhao Lanzhi''s face, Yuan''an acted quick and grabbed Xiao Yu''s shoulder, and asked her loudly: Xiao Yu, tell this constable, why did they say you killed someone to steal their property?  What stolen property did they catch you with? ¡±


    Xiao Yu wiped away tears: "They said I took Miss Ru Yue''s bracelet. But that coral bracelet was actually given to me by the Miss! She has so many exquisite treasures that are more valuable than that. If I really killed her to steal the bracelet, why wouldn''t I steal some more valuable jewelry? Why would I stay in Qianduan Pavilion waiting to be caught me? ¡±


    Yuan''an gritted her teeth angrily, then suddenly smiled again and turned to look at Zhao Lanzhi, and viciously said: "Before this person was sentenced to death, before you wanted to take life, didn''t any of you listen to her?¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi still coldly replied: "Government departments have their own division of labor, it was not me who judged on the case."


    Yuan''an said, ¡°Isn''t it that you arrest people? Why did you deliver an innocent life under the butcher''s knife? ¡±


    ¡°¡­¡­¡±


    In the midst of the howling wind and rolling waves, Zhao Lanzhi had already been surprised by Yuan''an rescuing Xiao Yu regardless of her own safety just now. Now his hesitation made Yuanan discover a little chance. She turned around to plead with him, urgently and sincerely: "Official, Official Zhao, right? Official, I beg you to listen to me. You give me a little time, give them a little time, I will be able to solve this matter clearly. Xiao Yu was wronged. I can prove her innocence, just give me some time. I promise, if it doesn''t work, my life will also be handed over to you. Won''t this be worthwhile for you? ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi carefully looked at Yuan''an, truly confused: ¡°I''m not mistaken, am I? You''re Assistant Minister Ye''s son, right? Isn''t this person your stable boy? What kind of relationship do you have with them? ¡±


    Yuan''an indignantly responded: "Don''t mention Shi Tou who is my stable boy and Xiao Yu who is his beloved, even if it were a stranger, I can''t leave it alone when I hear that someone has been wronged. What does this have to do with whose son I am? ¡±


    She was so magnanimous and spoke with courage and conviction in her words, this really moved Zhao Lanzhi.


    He pondered: "Well, I can give you three days. After three days, if she can''t prove her innocence, or find the real murderer...¡±


    Yuan''an: ¡°Then you take our three lives together! ¡±


    Shi Tou and Xiao Yu yelled: "Little master! ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi finally nodded: ¡°Young master Ye, it''s a deal! ¡±


    Shi Tou and Xiao Yu pulled Yuan''an to the side, desperately and anxiously whispered: "Little master, in three days, can you - what can you find out? ¡±


    Yuan''an sneered: "Idiot, keep your voice down, it seems that you can''t escape from this situation today. We fought for three days. Fool him for today, I''ll send you off on another day...¡±


    Xiao Hu on the other side was also anxious: "My lord, we''re just letting them go? ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi sneered: "This person is indeed cunning. But we know where his family is, the monk can run away from the temple, but the temple can''t run with the monk. We''ll keep a close watch on them! ¡±


    Xiao Hu''s eyes lit up: "Alright! ¡±


    Ye Yuan''an and Zhao Lanzhi had their own thoughts, and when they looked back at each other again, they actually went "haha" in harmony. The two who have been at each other''s throats up until now became extremely friendly in an instant.


    Yuan''an: ¡°Then, Official Zhao... to investigate this case, you''ll have to take me somewhere!"

 CH 8

    It was four o''clock in the morning, the sky in the east was starting to brighten, and the streets of Luoyang City were still silent. Only a few ox carts delivering vegetables and water to large households occasionally passed by, the wooden wheels grinding on the stone road, making creaking sounds.


    Yuan''an and Zhao Lanzhi rode through the city and arrived at Luoyang''s county''s building. Zhao Lanzhi led the way in front, and Yuan''an followed. The two went to a black door in the west corner of the building, a black door. Zhao Lanzhi was about to open the door to go in, he hesitated for a while, turned around and asked Yuan''an: "Do you have a copper coin on you?"


    Yuan''an was startled for a moment, and then she brought out a silver coin: "Only this, what''s this about?"


    Zhao Lanzhi took it and put the silver coin in the doorway. Yuan''an instantly understood his intention, she thought to herself that not only did this constable seem to be highly skilled and courageous, but in fact, he was also cautious. The silver coin was used as an offering to passing ghosts and spirits here in the morgue room.


    He finally pushed the door open and they went in, it was very gloomy inside...


    On stone slabs, there were three rows of twelve corpses lying stiffly covered with white cloths. Yuan''an gritted her teeth for a long time, knowing that she shouldn''t, but she still failed to control herself again. While Zhao Lanzhi was not paying attention, she opened a white cloth and looked, she saw that the corpse was blue-purple, swollen, with a head that was double the average size, the two eyes were tightly closed and each seemed to be building with a half-ball shape, and the lips were swollen as if filled with air.  There was a huge wound cut from the top of his head, through the nose bridge and down to the chin. The blood was dried, and she could see the nose bone and broken white teeth inside, this person truly died in an ugly manner, he seemed to be grinning at Yuan''an. Zhao Lanzhi turned to her and coldly smiled: "Hmph, I told you not to come, what is it? Are you scared?"


    Yuan''an said: The cook at home once cooked pig head meat for the servants. After cooking, it was garnished with red sauce, and then it was cut horizontally and vertically all over like this. I was really curious, so I tasted it and it was not bad. The meat was bouncy, the bones were flavorful, the taste is really good."


    Zhao Lanzhi turned his head when he heard those words, he didn''t respond for a long time - this person in front of him really made him speechless.


    While Yuan''an was looking at the corpse with the appearance that reminded her of a pig head she had eaten, a person silently and erratically stopped behind her. Yuan''an turned her head sharply, and seeing an old guy with a long beard, this living person scared Yuan''an into a shiver: "Who are you?!"


    The old man didn''t bother to talk to her, he looked at Zhao Lanzhi and in a hoarse voice said: "Official Zhao, which salted fish do you want to look at?"


    Yuan''an looked at Zhao Lanzhi: "What salted fish?"


    Zhao Lanzhi said: "A salted fish is a corpse. This is Lao Yang, the coroner here, this is the language of the trade. Lao Yang, show me Ru Yue, the dancer from Qianduan Pavilion." Zhao Lanzhi said.


    Lao Yang: "Master Zhao, the case has been concluded, according to the rules, the salted fish was buried..."


    Yuan''an anxiously said, "Where was it buried? I''ll dig it out! "


    Lao Yang blankly stared at Yuan''an for a bit, and then asked Zhao Lanzhi: "Who is this kid? the spirit is too hot, you should eat some sheep grass fruit to nurse your health."


    Yuan''an was puzzled: "What is sheep grass fruit?"


    Lao Yang said: "It''s a sheep manure eggs."


    Yuan''an became furious and grabbed Lao Yang''s collar: "I dare you to say it again."


    Lao Yang pointed at Yuan''an with a finger and slowly said: "I will tell you three times then. You said it three times. Sheep manure eggs. Sheep manure eggs. Sheep manure eggs!"


    Yuan''an gritted his teeth and shook her fist.


    Zhao Lanzhi stopped Yuan''an: "Hey, do you still want to handle business?! Lao Yang, do you still have the autopsy notes, can you bring them for me to see? Was there anything strange?"


    The coroner was silent for a while: "Strange? I have never seen such a strange salted fish before. It was so strange that even though the order was given, I was not willing to bury it. Come with me both of you..."


    After the coroner said that, he turned and scurried forward. Zhao Lanzhi and Yuan''an followed behind. They entered another room, then went down a few steps and entered a dark room. There were many huge ice blocks around the room, and there was a huge box in the center, Lao Yang opened the lid of the box and lifted the white cloth cover, Yuan''an and Zhao Lanzhi finally saw the naked body of the girl Ru Yue.


    It was a well-preserved corpse, with a well-proportioned and slender body, and the half of her face that could be seen showed the side profile showed the outline of a woman who was beautiful in life, but she was curled up, her arms and legs were brought to her chest, her hair was crimped --- this was clearly the state of a body that was exposed to high heat. The skin of the woman was dark blue, and there were traces of blisters of various sizes under the skin - which were caused by veins bursting under the skin.


    Yuan An said: "No matter how she looks... it seems as if she was burned to death..."


    Zhao Lanzhi said: "You have some insight. But if she were really burned to death, why is her skin intact? No part of her body turned black, There isn''t even a single burn mark on her?"


    Lao Yang said, "I checked her nasal cavity, and there was also no ash in it."


    Zhao Lanzhi said: "That is to say, no matter how you look at it, it is a burnt corpse, but there it has not touched fire at all. It''s really strange!"


    Lao Yang smiled: "Offical Zhao also thinks it''s strange too, right? I''ve been in this industry for 30 years, and I haven''t seen anything like this. I reported it to the county magistrate, this is not something a person can do! It''s the work of a supernatural being!"


    Zhao Lanzhi: "Did he believe it? "


    " He believed it, but he could not judge like that! I heard that a suspect was caught and that the old man sentenced that person. It''s about time for the Ministry of Personnel to examine the political achievements of county-level officials, so he could not delay."


    Yuan An angrily said, "Truly have no regard for human life! "


    Zhao Lanzhi turned at her: "You can''t wash away Duan Xiao Yu''s crime just by saying that. Lao Yang, do you have any clues? "


    Lao Yang said: "That''s all the clues, although there is one more thing that can''t be explained. Well, I have a record on it. At the scene of the crime, there was water in that room! It seems this woman was originally about to take a bath but was then burned to death. When she was found, the surroundings were intact, and the bathtub was still full of water..."


    Yuan''an said: "That is really strange."


    Yuan''an and Zhao Lanzhi left the morgue. When they came out, they were each thinking of their own plans and silently walked all the way to the outer courtyard. Zhao Lanzhi then asked Yuan''an: "How is it? Young Master Ye, you have come to the morgue now. Are you satisfied?"


    Yuan''an looked up at him: "This is what I should be asking you, Official Zhao, a person was burned to death, but the inside of the room was intact, and there was even a bathtub filled with water. There were so many unclear explanations in this case, but the judgment was rushed. I think Your county magistrate was just trying to judge the case indiscriminately for the sake of his performance evaluation. Let me ask you, are you satisfied? Even if you know Xiao Yu is not the murderer, must you still take her back?"


    Facing each other, Zhao Lanzhi pondered for a while and then seriously said to Yuan''an: "The case has already been judged. If the real culprit cannot be found, then the case cannot be overturned. Duan Xiao Yu will still have to be brought to justice."


    Yuan An thought for a moment, then said solemnly: "I understand... that you asked me for a coin to place at the door of the morgue just now, and I understand that you are afraid of ghosts! You know that you can''t catch the real murderer! You are just like the magistrate, you want to use Xiaoyu as a scapegoat!"


    Zhao Lanzhi''s fake smile surfaced again, like a good-looking wolf: "Don''t provoke me, this trick is useless. What I want to do, no one can stop it, and what I don''t want to do, you can talk until the sky falls and it won''t matter! Ye Yuan''an, don''t worry about whether I''m afraid of ghosts or supernatural beings, if there is anything suspicious about this case, then I''ll investigate it and set things to order! We still have a three-day period. Within three days, either you or me, the real murderer will be caught, I will release Duan Xiao Yu to you! "


    "Good! We''ll each do things our way, different means to achieve the same end!" Yuan''an turned around and left.


    Zhao Lanzhi watched her back, obviously just like an energetic little tiger, he lowered his eyes and smiled to himself.

 CH 9

    By the time Zhao Lanzhi sent Yuan''an away, the sky was already bright. He was about to go check the files of Ru Yue''s case again, but within a few steps, he ran into the magistrate, Sun Shihai. This Sun Shihai had studied many virtuous books for many years before he took up this position. He also had some principles in his mind, but he was very timid and cautious and was also very self-serving.


    When he saw Zhao Lanzhi, he grabbed his wrist and pointed a finger up at his nose: ¡°Zhao Lanzhi, let me ask you! The night before yesterday, you were obviously interrogating the salt dealer in the prison. Why didn''t you watch it properly and allow people to rob the prison? This is your screw-up! Secondly, I heard that you have already gotten clues about the missing death row inmate and prison robbers, why didn''t you arrest them and bring them to justice?! I think you secretly wanted them to escape! I am going to hold you accountable! Did you hear that?! Where do you think you''re going?!"


    Zhao Lanzhi was ordinarily impatient and eager to get away, but he was chased closely by Sun Shihai. Recalling the dubious nature of Ru Yue''s case, he finally got angry. He suddenly turned, and the short magistrate almost hit him. Zhao Lanzhi looked down at him, caught the wrist Official Sun was pointing at him and folded it back: "My lord! The whereabouts of the criminals are within my control, and they can be brought back at any time. However, the murder case of the peerless dancer is full of doubts. In a few days, the Ministry of Personnel will be coming to evaluate the performance of officials. My Lord, you don''t want someone to beat the drums and put mud on your face, right?!"


    **(In ancient China, a petitioner would bang on the drum outside the magistrate''s office to signal that he/she wants an audience with the magistrate to protest some injustice - Basically appealing a case and asking for it to be redressed.)**


    The magistrate suffered grimaced over the pain in his hand and the fact that he was just severely scolded by a subordinate: ¡°You! It''s the other way around! You, a constable who has just joined the department, dared to talk to your superior like this... Oh, let go, it hurts... You are not afraid that I will send you back to the army outside the wall...¡±


    At this moment, an officer led a young master over and reported: ¡°My lord, constable, this Young Master Pei is here to see the constable. ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi released Sun Shihai''s wrist, and the magistrate did not manage to catch himself from falling to the ground. The person who visited was a handsome young man, dressed in white, lightly waving a hand fan, looking at them with a smile. Zhao Lanzhi said, "Please pardon my offence. I have an old friend visiting here, so I will leave first! "After Zhao Lanzhi''s words, he quickly led the man away.


    Sun Shihai got up from the ground, still unconvinced, and shouted at their back: "Let me tell you! You haven''t properly investigated the salt dealer''s case for me yet! This is the matter you should be focusing on! Don''t waste time on that dancer''s case..." The voice was ignored by Zhao Lanzhi and his visitor. Sun Shihai suddenly felt something was wrong and turned to ask the officer at his side, ¡°You talk, who did you say was the person that came to see Zhao Lanzhi?"


    ¡°Replying to the Lord, his surname is Pei. ¡±


    ¡°Surname Pei... Surname is Pei...Why did I get the sense that he looked familiar?... Oh, not good, isn''t that the third son of Minister Pei''s family, Young Master Xianya?! "Sun Shihai was taken aback, while he subconsciously adjusted his hat and official clothes as he muttered in a low voice, ¡°What is the origin of this Zhao Lanzhi? A small constable, yet someone like this, someone like the son of Minister Pei actually came to him, and is an old friend...¡±


    The one who came to see Zhao Lanzhi was called Xianya, the third son of Official Pei, a high minister of the court. Your master Xianya is twenty-three years old. Since he was a teenager, he has been well-known in Luoyang City because of his handsome appearance and proficiency in music. A painter who knows how to do business secretly painted the scene of him dressed in silvery white playing the qin by a lake and sold it to those young ladies whose hearts were blossoming in full spring. He made a lot of money. Those who wanted to be mean to those boys who love to dress up and look beautiful would also use Xianya to insult them, saying no matter how much you dress up and love being beautiful, can you compare to the handsome Young Master Xianya?


    This relaxed and elegant young master, who was as leisurely as his name encountered trouble a few years ago: The Empress ordered that all sons of officials must take turns to serve in the army at the great wall for one year, and so Young Master Xianya was assigned under Zhao Lanzhi''s command. From childhood, he had lived a pampered life. He had truly never raised a stick, much less a sword. Within a few days, he was exhausted and came down with a serious illness. It was Zhao Lanzhi who desperately rode for two days and two nights to take him back to Luoyang City for medical treatment. Only then did Young Master Xianya''s condition improve, and his life was saved. Xianya was deeply grateful to Zhao Lanzhi, and since then he has acknowledged him as a brother. Xianya was three months older, so he was the older brother and Zhao Lanzhi was the younger brother.


    At this time, the two sat down in the corner of an elegant tea house in the street. Xianya ordered a pot of good tea and two plates of snacks and then came up and scolded Zhao Lanzhi: ¡°You have been back for so long, yet you didn''t contact me? If I hadn''t heard the news from others that you had intercepted a salt dealer on the canal, I wouldn''t even know you were back. ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi was taken aback: ¡°Brother''s news is so up to date? I haven''t had time to review the salt dealer''s case, yet you already got the news. ¡±


    Xianya smiled and said, ¡°Look at you, Zhao Lanzhi, is everyone a criminal to you? The two of us finally found time to sit down to drink tea and you''re interrogating me? There are so many people going in and out of my family home, what news can''t you get from them? I''ve told you, you are too sensitive. No wonder the Emperor said you''re still a young falcon...¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi was slightly apologetic: "Brother, don''t blame me for being rude. I''ve been really busy with official duties recently... I was also scolded by the magistrate... Didn''t you see it all just now...¡±


    Xianya personally poured tea for Zhao Lanzhi: "Which is more work? This or the border garrison?"


    Zhao Lanzhi drank his tea and smiled: ¡°To be honest with you, the errands and life at the border are far simpler than here in Luoyang City. ¡±


    ¡°I understand. "Xianya nodded, ¡°But it''s not as lively as this Luoyang City, don''t you think? If anyone wanted to choose, I''m afraid they will all choose to enjoy life under the Emperor''s feet, right? ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi slightly nodded: ¡°That''s right... brother, you look very good and seem to be in a good mood. Is there any happy event? ¡±


    ¡°Yes. There is something happy. "Xianya said, ¡°I have especially come here today to share my good news with my brother."


    ¡°Oh? ¡±


    ¡°I have made up my mind to marry Princess Xinghui from Duke Jing''s family. ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi was quite surprised. He held a cup of tea in his hand for a while, frozen. He quickly realized that he was being a little embarrassing, so he promptly put down the cup: ¡°Congratulations, brother! Elder brother has a great character, is well learned with many talents. I have heard that Princess Xinghui is also a rare talented and beautiful woman from the royal family. The two of you are a match made in heaven. Congratulations!¡±


    Xianya expected Zhao Lanzhi''s reaction a long time ago, so he simply nodded and smiled: "How is it? Lanzhi, are you a bit surprised too? Actuallyt, those who have heard this news all had similar reactions. That''s right, my father and Duke Jing once had a lot of disagreements, don''t even talk of marriage, the two families even avoided regular socializing with each other. However, I have a favorable impression of Princess Xinghui, and she took the initiative to propose marriage to my family through her brother. It''s a good thing, the two families can also turn their hostility into friendship. ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi got up and cupped his hands: "Of course, it''s a good thing! I congratulate brother in advance!"


    Xianya got up too and pat his shoulder: "Who wants your congratulations? I know you don''t like socializing. Even if the two of us have a good friendship, if I send someone to send over the wedding invitation, you will not necessarily show up so I came to you in person. If I don''t see you during the wedding, I won''t go through with it! ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi: "Brother, don''t worry, I will definitely attend! ¡±


    Xianya sat down happily: ¡°...How about you Lanzhi? Is there a girl you like?"


    ¡°...... No. "Zhao Lanzhi replied. He finished his cup of tea and got up to say goodbye to Young Master Xianya. ¡°Brother, this younger brother still has official duties. I will go back to the bureau to interrogate the prisoners. We will get together again in the future." ¡±


    Zhao Lanzhi said this and turned to leave, Young Master Xianya looked at his departing back with an uneasy expression as he muttered to himself: "Ah... I still have something to ask you...¡±

 CH 10

    While the Young master Xianya and Zhao Lanzhi were reminiscing about the old days in the teahouse, Yuan An was swallowing breakfast in her own manor. The more she thought about it, the more anxious she became: the strange death of the dancer Ru Yue, even the experience The experienced coroner could not explain the cause of death. The county magistrate also arbitrarily settled the case and used Xiaoyu as a scapegoat, but they still couldn''t figure out the case, how was she supposed to find the real murderer?


    Hey, it''s fun to talk big, be heroic and arrogant, but where was she supposed to even start? If she can''t figure out the truth, and if she can''t find the real culprit, then she won''t be able to get Xiao Yu off the hook. If Xiao Yu can''t get off the hook, then three days later, no, two and a half days later, Zhao Lanzhi will really come to arrest someone. The county magistrate has such a diligent constable, he will really chase them to the end! Yuan''an recalled Zhao Lanzhi''s appearance of a life-threatening ghost again and became even more irritable, relying on herself really seemed useless, so she went to go to the old man hiding in her manor''s basement at home to discuss and brainstorm.


    Yuan An took some beef in Huadiao wine sauce from the kitchen and walked across the back garden to the basement. From a distance, she saw her younger brother Yuan Ning walking around the basement with a kitchen knife in one hand and a lantern in the other. She wanted to step forward to stop him, but she was one step too late, Yuan Ning opened the basement door and stepped in.


    This Yuan Ning was the only son of Assistant Minister Ye and Yuan''an''s half-brother. He was the son of the current lady of the manor, who Assistant Minister Ye had married after her mother passed away. He is fifteen years old this year, he is not fat, but his face is white and plump, with a square head, so Yuan''an gave him the nickname called Baotou when they were young, which means that his head is a bun. Normally, the only son in other noble families would be arrogant and unrestrained. Yuan Ning always wants to be arrogant, but he can''t because he has an even more arrogant older sister.


    While Mr. Ye was busy with official business, whatever Yuan An said at home went. When she gave him that nickname and he tried to protest, Yuan''an bullied him into compliance. Since then, he had to endure her feet. Speaking of the basement in the back garden, he was not allowed to go there! Initially, Yuan Ning didn''t even dare to look there. Of course, him not looking did not mean that he didn''t care.


    On the contrary, the more Yuan''an forbade everyone from approaching the basement in the back garden, the more curious Yuan Ning became, causing his little liver itch with curiosity. Finally, he didn''t see Yuan''an in the house for two consecutive nights so Yuan Ning thought that his sister had gone out to play again and won''t be back anytime soon, so he finally seized the opportunity to go to the basement to check it out.


    Speaking of which, Yuan Ning picked the basement lock with a kitchen knife and went in with a lantern, only to feel a damp gust of wind coming up, cold sweat broke out all over his body, it was dark in front of him, and the light of the lantern was weak, the long downward staircase was steep. His head was as big as a bucket and round as a bun, so it was difficult to maintain his balance. As he took the first step, he felt his foot slip, and he fell and started to roll down.


    It was unclear how far he rolled down before Yuan Ning finally used his fingers to grab a section of the steps to halt his fall. When he stabilized, he felt a furry thing crawling on the back of his neck. He held the lantern, and he quickly grabbed at his back with the other hand, when he saw that he had grabbed a spider the size of a palm with big eyes staring at him, the hair on it was thicker and longer than chicken feathers.


    Yuan Ning screamed in fright, shook off the spider, fell to the ground, then heard countless squeaks. Hundreds of tats rushed around his butt as if they were being chased by the wind, they gathered not far from Yuan Ning, and countless small green eyes stared at him fiercely. Yuan Ning only felt that the hair all over his body stand up, he took advantage of the moment the rats did not pounce, quickly jumped up and ran up the stairs. No matter how fast he ran, he felt as if his heels were being bitten by the big teeth of the rats. He took several big steps and was out of breath, just as he was reaching the entrance of the basement, he tripped and fell, the lantern he had been desperately holding fell on his back and ignited his hair, a fire was started. Yuan Ning panicked, screamed and jumped out of the big iron gate of the basement.


    Yuan''an was outside, she had seen Yuan Ning going in not long ago, and now he came up with his hair caught on fire. At this terrible moment, Yuan''an voice interrupted him, "What''s going on?"


    "Ahhh, waa, Hair and face on fire!"


    Yuan An stepped forward without touching Yuan Ning, then she stretched out her foot and knocked Yuan Ning down at once: "Lie down, your older sister will put out the fire for you!"


    Yuan Ning had no choice, he rolled on the ground, and Yuan An stomped on Yuan Ning''s big head.


    The flames on Yuan Ning''s head were not that serious, but he was so scared by the spider and rats and thought that he was about to be burned to death. Yuan''an looked anxious, but in her mind, she was amused. She stepped on his head and stepped on it until the fire was distinguished: "It''s out, older sister put out the fire for you!"


    Yuan Ning stood up. His hair was scorched, his eyebrows were burnt away, his nose was blue, his face was swollen, and his lips were bleeding.


    Yuan''an held his shoulders and suppressed a smile: "Younger brother, ah, younger brother, you can see this is a blessing in disguise. By allowing your older sister to step on your face, you have instantly become even more handsome!"


    Yuan Ning cried and touched his face: "I don''t believe it! I''m going to get a doctor!"


    Yuan Ning ran away crying. Yuan An covered her mouth and said: "We''ll see if you dare to come here again!"


    When Yuan''an saw Yuan Ning running away, and no one else was bothering her, she opened the big iron door and entered the basement. She didn''t have a lantern in her hand, but after skillfully counting down the twenty-eight steps, she turned to the left, opened a wooden door, and entered a circular room with a radius of five feet with a firepit in the middle. The light in from the firepit was bright, the walls on one side were full of bottles and jars with various colored liquids filled with animal organs of different sizes, antlers, snakes, tigers, chickens, salamanders, bats, and dogs. There was a huge mural for divination, next to a few boxes. There was a large pot burning on the fire, the liquid in the pot wa boiling, making a gurgling sound, a tall and thin guy dressed in a black robe with a hood was standing in front of the cauldron, waiting and watching. This was the scene of a warlock''s lair.


    Yuan''an''s shadow grew as she neared the fire, the man in black didn''t turn back, but he knew that it was Yuan''an behind him. His voice was hoarse and low: "Who came down to the basement just now?"


    "My brother Yuan Ning, he didn''t reach here. He fell down and was scared away by your spiders and rats. When he climbed out, his hair was burned by his own lantern and he let me trample on him to put it out." Yuan''an amusingly shared.


    "Shh." The Warlock suddenly motioned for her to be quiet.


    Yuan An understood and immediately fell silent. She knew the crucial moment was coming, and this person''s medicine was almost ready.


    Sure enough, the gurgling medicinal liquid rushed out of the small hole on the lid with a squeak, passed through a thinly curved copper tube like an intestine, cooled and solidified, and finally a dark red pill emerged from the other end of the iron tube. The medicine was caught by the man in a black robe with a copper plate.


    The man in black seemed to be quite satisfied with the result of his work. He shook the pill and slowly walked over to Yuan''an. His face slowly emerged. It was a strangely beautiful face, black eyebrows with boyish eyes, clear and bright, high nose, thin lips, and two shallow smile lines at the corners of his lips. With this face, he didn''t look serious at all. It''s just with that face, that demeanor, no matter how you look at it, he was under thirty years old at most, but his hair was as white as snow!

 CH 11

    "Little hoodlum," That''s what he called Yuan''an, "Come over, I''ve been refining this pill for forty-seven days, come and try it."


    "What will happen?" Yuan''an nonchalantly asked.


    "You will definitely look better than you do now once you eat it." The man in black flattered.


    Yuan''an scoffed: "I''m already beautiful enough. Since it''s so good, you can eat it yourself."


    Hearing this, the man in black threw the copper plate on the table with a slam, and the refined pill he had just spent forty-seven days, the pill he had just been claiming was so precious was thrown into the fire.


    Yuan''an smirked: "I knew it. Last time you refined a pill for eighty-six days and also just threw it away... Isn''t it exhausting? Knowing all this, why bother to continue to refine medicine with so much effort?"


    The man in black raised his sleeves and turned to Yuan''an with his arms on his hips. "You know that I have worked so hard yet you won''t help me test the medicine!"


    Yuan''an retorted, "You don''t even dare to eat it yourself and you want me to eat it?!"


    The man in black angrily responded: "Hmph, since you''re like this, you shouldn''t have let your brother go, you should have kept him for me to test the medicine!"


    As his words landed, Yuan''an''s face sank, with one step forward, a sharp dagger was already on the neck of the man in black, the man in black raised his head, looked down at her, and the two stood in a stalemate.


    Yuan''an did not have a smile on his face at this time: "You and I have an agreement, you are hiding in this basement, because of me, no one dares to come over to disturb you. My brother is an idiot, I scared him off this time, so he will not dare to come here again, but if there is next time, if he doesn''t look where he''s going and falls into your hands again, I ask that you consider my face. Only I can mess with my brother, if you dare to use him for your experiments, I''m telling you now I''ll kill you... Do you understand?"


    The man in black cautiously and solemnly nodded, "Understood. The queen who suddenly becomes hostile and changes her face." He stretched out a finger and gently pushed away Yuan''an''s blade, "...What is this knife for? I didn''t give it to you, did I? Is it for cutting meat? Did you bring me meat?" The man in black''s eyes shined brightly.


    "The five-spice beef made by the cook is the same as what you talked about last time. It''s well-cooked on the outside, tender on the inside, and a jar of tribute wine. It''s in the box over there." He quickly sat on the ground holding the food box that Yuan''an brought, he took out the wine and meat, and didn''t bother to use chopsticks or cutlery, he immediately devoured the meat, and halfway through eating, he looked at Yuan''an, "Ah, I don''t owe you any favors. The invisible cloak you lost before, I''ve sewed another one for you, this time you must remember not to lose it again..."


    "Alright, alright, thank you." Yuan''an squatted beside him, she smiled, eyes twinkling, "Is the wine and meat good? Is it delicious?"


    "The meat is good, the sweetness is a bit heavy. Remember to put less sugar next time..."


    "Rest assured." Yuan''an graciously said.


    The man in black suddenly felt uneasy, and raised his eyes to look at Yuan''an: "...Little hoodlum, you are smiling so suspiciously, what are you going to do? What precious treasure of mine did you remember baby?"


    "Look at what you are saying... but I indeed do have something I don''t understand, and I want to ask you about it, teacher," Yuanan smiled casually, seeing that he was almost done, she went over and explained the situation: She explained how she got involved in Xiao Yu''s case of false accusation of murder, and how she got entangled with LouYang''s constable and how they bet on catching the real murderer, and how they went to the morgue to see the dance girl Ru Yue''s corpse and the strangeness of the corpse...


    "Just now, my brother''s face was lightly touched by the fire and his eyebrows and eye lashes were gone. But the female corpse had all her hair, it was even rolled up. The hands and feet were all hooked, and the blood rushed to the skin. The color of the skin was blue and the coroner said that the form was the same as one that was burned to death, but it did not seem to have touched the fire!"


    The man in black licked the beef sauce off his fingers, and seemed to be a little interested in this incident.


    Yuan''an was even more enthusiastic: "And there was water next to the scene where she was killed... It''s just that doesn''t make sense. It''s like, this thing was done by a ghost or some supernatural being!"


    The man in black laughed: "You idiots, you have little knowledge and can''t understand things, you just want to blame ghosts and supernatural beings. What did you say? No matter how you look at it, it appears it was burned to death, but it didn''t touch the fire, right?"


    "Correct!"


    The man in black stood up, found a piece of leather to wipe his hands, dug out a fragrant hand ointment from a jar on the side and smeared it on the back of his hand while talking: "If you want someone to die, there are two ways. The most common is to harm them physically, slicing their neck, cutting their stomach, drowning, burning and strangling are all conventional methods."


    Yuan''an: "Besides this, is there any other way?"


    Man in black: "Of course. Kill them mentally. Make them see the scariest things, so much so that they can''t live anymore. Make them think to death. The human mind produces a huge stimulus, and it is difficult for the physical body to adapt fast enough. Like this, can cause a person to eventually die from their own illusion. And the described state of the dead body is fully in line with the scene of someone who died in their own illusions!


    Yuan''an''s eyes widened as she heard this: "Are you telling the truth? Has there really been such a case?"


    Man in Black: "Many years ago, there was a sword caster in Qilian Mountain. He finally made a good sword with great difficulty, but he didn''t guard it well and he lost it. The swordsman suspected that it was his apprentice who stole it, so he tied the young man up, cut his veins, blindfolded him, and put a bucket next to him so that the young man could hear the dripping sound of water, making him think that he was bleeding. . Consequently, it didn''t take long for the young man to die, as if he had lost too much blood and died. But in reality, the wound on his veins had already coagulated!"


    Yuan''an got up and wandered around a few steps: "What you said just gave me a bit of inspiration. If this is the case, Ru Yue did not really burn to death in the room. It was an illusion created by someone, and she was actually scared to death, but how did this happen? Ah, thinking of it..."


    The man in black curled his mouth and said: "Do you still have to ask me? If you kneel down and think about it, it was drugs! But if you want to thoroughly understand the situation, you have to go to the place where she died!"


    Yuan''an seriously nodded: "You are right, I have to go to that Qianduan Pavilion to explore!"


    At the same time, the dying salt dealer in the cell finally couldn''t survive Zhao Lanzhi''s interrogation. For two days, he only drank salt water. Now his lips are dry and chapped, and his chest was burning like it was on fire. At this moment, he was exhausted and muttering to himself: "I''m thirsty, I''m thirsty..."


    Zhao Lanzhi''s experience told him that it was almost time.


    He put a bowl of water on the saltwater in front of the dealer''s mouth and happily said: "So, what''s the use of making so much money? At the critical time, you can''t even drink a mouthful of clean water. How''s it going? Will you talk or not? When, where, and from whom did you get your private salt?"


    The salt dealer bit the edge of the water bowl with all his strength. This time Zhao Lanzhi did not take the water bowl back, instead, he sent it forward and let the person drink it. The salt dealer gulped twice, then spat out the water, wanting to cry without tears, and finally collapsed: "I''ll talk, I''ll talk - the person who traded with me, I don''t know his name, he had a medium-sized figure, and there was nothing special about his eyebrows, and such a guy can be found among a random pile of people. But once, the two of us drank happily, and when we were drinking, I saw an eagle tattoo on his wrist."


    Constable Zhao smiled, still patient: "Let''s be more clear, where were you trading?"


    "Qianduan Pavilion."


    "Qianduan Pavilion? It''s Qianduan Pavilion again!"


    Zhao Lanzhi turned around and pondered for a moment: The two recent cases, the strange death of the dancer Ru Yue, and the salt dealer''s trading place are all in this Qianduan Pavilion. Could there be a subtle connection between the two? If he wanted to understand what was going on, it seems he had to go explore the Qianduan Pavilion.

 CH 12

    It was actually a clear and calm night, the breeze was nice, seagulls and birds passed by, the old man who was fishing at night on the canal had just cast his fishing rod, the hook had not touched the water yet when the waves heavily rocked his boat. When he looked back, the five-storey Qianduan Pavilion ship smoothly pushed the waves and approached slowly. It was carrying all the people in Luoyang who love to seek pleasure and mellow in wine. The scent of the incense wafting through the air made the old man sincerely yearn. He looked at the magnificent ship, the men and women splendidly dressed up, men holding beautiful women looking at him as part of the scenery of the night on the canal.


    There was an even more lively scene within Qianduan Pavilion, it was full of people with lakes of wine and forests of meat, Tianzhu dancers were dancing, and flower petals were gliding all over the room.


    Zhao Lanzhi, dressed in casual clothes, was among the drunkards, secretly observing the many people in Qianduan Pavilion, he couldn''t help but sigh: How many sins were flowing under this prosperity? These people in front of him, who are the real drunks? And who are the businessmen conducting illegal transactions? Who are the lazy noblemen? And who would possibly not live to dawn?


    Suddenly he saw Young Master Ye, the one he had still not figured out how to handle. He was wearing a strangely beautiful dark blue robe and was messing around with a few beautiful dancers, then he turned around and went somewhere else. Zhao Lanzhi thought to himself that this Young Master Ye came here to find out the truth about Ru Yue''s death. After all his boasting, Zhao Lanzhi would like to see what he can do.


    By the way, it was Yuan''an who was wearing men''s clothing. She wandered around for a while, then snuck up to the third floor, she stopped in front of a door, moved the curtain to reveal a door.


    There was a seal from the Luoyang county police posted on the door, it was the room where Ruyue was killed.


    A young waiter came up to stop her: "Ah, customer you can''t enter here."


    Yuan''an squinted her eyes and pretended to be drunk: "Why can''t I enter? I''m here to find Ruyue. Doesn''t Ruyue live here?"


    The waiter said: "Miss Ruyue, she used to live here, but she recently went home to visit relatives. You can look for other more beautiful girls, I will take you to a place. Recently, a few Tianzhu beauties have come in. They are really beautiful. Come with me. Come with me."


    While talking, the waiter went to lead Yuan''an to another place, he took two steps and when he turned around, Yuan''an was gone. By that time, Yuan''an had already lightly entered Ruyue''s room. The young waiter was shocked, and after thinking about it for a bit, he was scared: "Oh, that girl Ruyue didn''t know when she died, it wouldn''t be that she is now haunting here, right?" He quickly ran away.


    Inside the dark room, Yuan''an stood by the door and looked out for a bit to make sure that no one was coming over again. Then she turned around, and carefully observed the room from the little light that came in from outside the window. In the outer area of the octagonal circled room, there was an open window with no trace of damage. There were several pots of flowers and plants under the window. The branches were well pruned, which showed the careful care of the owner, but they had all dried out now after many days of no watering; on the other wall was a painting of a beauty, Yuan''an can tell at a glance that it was the dead girl Ruyue''s. Wasn''t she a famous dancer when she was alive? However, she hung up a painting where she''s playing the quqin. It was curious.


    There was the bead curtain separating the inner room, on one side was Miss Ruyue''s bed.


    On the other side was a wooden barrel for bathing, and the body figure marking the area the body was found was still on the ground. Everywhere around, there was nothing unsettled. It didn''t make sense. What''s more, after the murder, the police had searched it already. Even if there was any clue, it is likely that it was destroyed a long ago. Yuan''an couldn''t help but feel anxious, she put her hands together, and bowed to the figure marking and quietly said: "Miss Ruyue, if you are here in spirit, give me some tips so that I can find the real murderer who killed you so that Xiaoyu won''t suffer an injustice."


    There was a sudden movement outside the door. Someone leaned a lantern in front of the window and looked inside. Yuan''an quickly dodged and hit a standing flower pot. She wanted to reach out to stop it, but she was too late. The flower pot swayed and was about to fall down and smash, but it was stopped by a hand in the dark, quietly righting the position. Yuan''an looked on intently and was quite surprised, it was Zhao Lanzhi.


    The people outside had not left yet, still looking in with lanterns, Zhao Lanzhi stretched out his hand and grabbed her and the two of them hid in the dark, lowering their voices to speak.


    Yuan''an: "Why are you here too?"


    Zhao Lanzhi: "Same as you, I have to say you are really bold in your investigative measures, you actually dare to bypass the seal from the Luoyang police bureau posted at the door."


    Yuan''an: "What about you?"


    Yuan''an''s words had barely gotten out when Zhao Lanzhi covered her mouth so that she could not speak.


    This action was originally natural on Zhao Lanzhi''s side, but this sudden gesture made Yuan''an confused. Even though she had a lively and mischievous nature, and never adhered to the rules of propriety like other noble ladies, and that she always dresses in men''s clothing, always acting like a boy.


    In actuality, she had never had close contact with a young man before. At this moment, Zhao Lanzhi covered her mouth and she could feel the heat of his palm on her lips. She raised his head and saw his glinting eyes. Yuan''an suddenly felt as if she had been struck by lightning. She was frozen, obediently staying in place, like a well-behaved child.


    A voice carried over from outside the door, it was the old Mistress of Qianduan Pavilion and the waiter.


    Old Mistress: "Did you hear the movement just now?"


    Waiter: "Faintly, there was the sound of footsteps and the sound of a drawer being pulled. I think I also saw a shadow being reflected when I raised the lantern. Just now, I saw a guest trying to go in and was going to lead them away, but as soon as I turned around, the person disappeared. It was really strange, Ruyue wouldn''t have come back to haunt us, right? Ow - why did Mistress hit my mouth? Your hand is so strong!"


    The old Mistress snapped: "Try to talk nonsense again! If the guests hear that this place is haunted, all the business will be gone! Quickly light the incense here, and if the guests ask, say that it is to repel mosquitoes and flies."


    Waiter: "Yes!"


    After a while, thin smoke floated in through the crack in the door. But Yuan''an was still stiff, and the smoke went down her throat without warning and she couldn''t help but sneeze. Zhao Lanzhi was anxious and covered her nose and mouth even more fiercely, so Yuan''an''s sneeze was snuffed by his palm instead. The people outside didn''t hear anything, and finally left. Zhao Lanzhi breathed a sigh of relief on the inside, and removed his hand, he looked at Yuan''an, and then looked at his palm. Then he rubbed it on his robe a few times, his eyes looked quite disgusted.


    Yuan''an was dissatisfied: "Hmph, I didn''t ask for your help!"


    She was suddenly reminded of an idea, and went straight to the bathroom.


    Zhao Lanzhi hurriedly followed.


    Next to the circle shaped barrel, was a table used to keep soap, towels and other things. In the center was a palm-wide silver snake bject. Yuan''an picked it up and showed it to Zhao Lanzhi: "Look at this."

 CH 13

    Zhao Lanzhi asked, "What is this?"


    Yuan An replied, "When women bathe, they like to light scented candles for ambiance. This seems to be a candlestick."


    Zhao Lanzhi questioned, "If it''s a candlestick, even if it burns out, there should be residual wax without a definite shape. But this one has burned completely clean. What could be the reason?"


    Yuan An speculated, "It''s possible that this is not a scented candle but... a drug, a hallucinogen that caused Ruyue''s death."


    Zhao Lanzhi pondered, "Are you suggesting that Ruyue was poisoned?"


    Yuan An inquired, "Tell me this: On the day Ruyue died, did anything else unusual happen at the Qianduan Pavilion?"


    Zhao Lanzhi responded, "On the day of the incident, apart from Ruyue, no one else fell ill at the Qianduan Pavilion. If there were no issues with the food or water that others consumed, then the problem must have been with... the air she breathed in. Your theory seems plausible. This candlestick has a unique design. Let me take it with me and investigate."


    Yuan An objected, "Hey, that belongs to me!"


    Yuan An tried to grab it, but Zhao Lanzhi had already tucked the small snake-shaped candlestick into his embrace. "If you''re interested, I''ll share the findings with you tomorrow at this time. Until then, I suggest you go home and stay out of trouble, quietly. Don''t go causing a commotion everywhere!" With that, Zhao Lanzhi began to leave.


    Yuan An followed behind and said, "You are so ungrateful! If it weren''t for me, you wouldn''t have found this clue!"


    "Don''t talk to me about gratitude or lack thereof..." Zhao Lanzhi chuckled, "If I lacked gratitude, you would have been behind bars long ago."


    Yuan An suppressed his anger and gritted his teeth in frustration. The two of them quietly left the room where Ruyue had been murdered.


    As they exited Ruyue''s room, Yuan An turned back to seal it with a sticker, then bowed to the incense and flames. Zhao Lanzhi noticed this and couldn''t help but smile inwardly. The two of them mingled among the guests as they went downstairs, preparing to leave. Suddenly, a drunken man in a red robe was being carried by several dancing girls against the flow of people. He grabbed Yuan An''s shoulder and with a lecherous face approached, saying, "Oh my, Li Mama really knows how to do business. When did the Qianduan Pavilion acquire a young master? Look at this child''s face, even more exquisite than Miss Xueyu!"


    Yuan An became furious and pushed the man away, delivering a fierce kick, saying, "Get lost! My father and grandfather are the young masters!"


    The drunkard fell to the ground in anger, reaching out to grab Yuan An. How could Zhao Lanzhi let him have that chance? He reached out and hid Yuan An behind him, pushing the man away. In the struggle, the tattoo on the drunkard''s wrist was exposed. Zhao Lanzhi took a closer look and realized that it was the Flying Eagle tattoo the salt smuggler had mentioned! This person was indeed the superior of the salt smuggler.


    The man in the red robe, now sobering up, saw Zhao Lanzhi approaching to apprehend him and instantly sensed the danger. He fell to the ground and shouted, "Help! Someone''s attacking me!"


    The guests and dancers at the Qianduan Pavilion were startled and panicked. The drunken man fell to the ground in anger, reaching out to grab Yuan An. How could Zhao Lan Zhi give him that chance? He quickly hid Yuan An behind him and pushed the man away. In the struggle, the tattoo on the man''s wrist was revealed¡ªa flying eagle, just like the one mentioned by the salt smuggler. This man was indeed the higher-up of the salt smuggler.


    The man in the red robe, now somewhat sober after being kicked by Yuan An and pushed by Zhao Lan Zhi, sensed the imminent danger when he saw Zhao Lan Zhi approaching to apprehend him. He shouted, "Help! Someone is attacking me!"


    The commotion spread among the numerous patrons and dancers of Qianduan Ge. People fell and trampled over each other, while men cursed and women cried, creating chaos. Seizing the opportunity, the man in the red robe tried to escape. But how could Zhao Lan Zhi let him get away? He stepped on a nearby stool and leaped over the crowd, reaching out to grab the man. He managed to seize his shoulder, but the man swiftly turned around, blowing a handful of lime powder toward Zhao Lan Zhi. Alert, Zhao Lan Zhi evaded the attack, and the lime powder fell into a nearby fish tank, causing it to bubble. Taking advantage of the distraction, the man in the red robe escaped.


    Zhao Lan Zhi was determined not to let the man go. Yuan An pushed through the crowd with him, and they chased him all the way to the ship''s deck. However, the man had already jumped into the turbulent water, shrouded in a dark mist, disappearing from sight. Frustrated, Zhao Lan Zhi expressed his resentment, while Yuan An, puzzled, asked, "Who was that person? You could have just let him go after pushing him. Why did you chase and fight him?"


    Zhao Lan Zhi didn''t want to reveal the official business of tracking down the salt smugglers to Yuan An, so he casually replied, "It''s nothing. He was bothering you. I can''t stand people like him!"


    Yuan An, unaware of the true situation, perceived the events differently. A drunkard had been disrespectful to her, and Zhao Lan Zhi, in a fit of anger, had fought on her behalf. She didn''t know that Zhao Lan Zhi had coincidentally encountered the informant of the salt smugglers, attributing all the benefits to him. The resentment she had harbored earlier, after he had snatched the evidence from her, seemed to vanish. Her annoyance at his persistent pursuit also diminished. She turned her head and couldn''t help but smile to herself.


    Meanwhile, the man who fell into the water was named Li Gui. He was the salt smuggler''s superior, involved in smuggling salt he received from the main supplier and distributing it for hefty profits. He often frequented Qianduan Ge to spend money or meet with clients. Unexpectedly, he was betrayed and exposed, prompting Zhao Lan Zhi to chase after him, leading to his desperate escape by jumping into the water. Li Gui narrowly escaped death and resurfaced from the river only when the Qianduan Ge ship had already sailed away. He swam for a while until a small boat approached.


    Extending an oar, they pulled Li Gui onto the boat.


    As Li Gui adjusted his clothes, he cursed, "I was enjoying my carefree time, and who would have thought I''d encounter such a killjoy? That person had some skills. I almost suffered a loss. It''s strange though. I hadn''t done anything significant, but that person suddenly became interested when he saw the flying eagle on my hand."


    His accomplice smirked, "Strange, isn''t it? Maybe that person was looking for you."


    "Looking for me? What for?"


    The accomplice said, "Don''t you know yet? Shen Da, the one who bought salt from you, has already exposed you. The person who came to see you today might be an official!"


    Li Gui was shocked and asked, "What are you saying? Is it true?"


    The accomplice smirked and said, "Would it make any sense if it were fake? Don''t worry, we were given two instructions from above. One is to make sure the officials don''t catch you. When you fell into the water, didn''t we come to save you?"


    Li Gui said, "Thank you, my friend... What is the other instruction from above?"


    Before Li Gui finished speaking, the accomplice thrust a sword into his chest and said, "The second instruction is not to leave you alive!"


    With the sword in his chest, Li Gui immediately lost his breath, and the accomplice pulled out the sword, stuffed stones into his clothes, and together they pushed Li Gui into the river, thus silencing him.


    The boat quickly sailed away as Li Gui''s body sank continuously. During the process, his eyelids suddenly twitched.