https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-18-Journey-to-Liuli-Temple-Village/12553788/
Chapter 17: The Liu Family Tragedy
Chapter 17: The Liu Family Tragedy
Having left the government office, Shen Yi stepped into a restaurant and ordered a pot of yellow wine and six meat pies.
After a moment's hesitation, he also ordered some salted pork.
Upon reaching the Initial Realm, martial artists tended to favor foods rich in essence and vitality over grains and cereals. Unfortunately, such delicacies were far beyond the means of a lowly officer's salary.
Nonetheless, one still had to eat, so he could only control his appetite.
Shen Yi found a seat and began eating, washing down bites of meat pie with sips of wine.
It was noon, and the restaurant should have been bustling with people, yet it was strangely quiet.
The passersby outside wore expressions devoid of joy, though not quite sorrowful, as if they had grown accustomed to their dreary lives.
Shen Yi lowered his head and took a bite of his pie.
As a low-ranking official, he couldn't concern himself with the suffering of the masses; he could only focus on climbing out of the mud.
The few scattered tables of guests kept to themselves, quietly eating and drinking, with little conversation.
Thus, the voices of the only two people chatting inevitably drifted over to Shen Yi's ears, despite their attempts to keep their voices low.
"There was a death on Liuye Street."
"I know. I just came from there. Don't bring it up; it'll ruin my appetite."
Expressionless, Shen Yi raised the wine pot and drank the slightly sour and bitter wine, making the dry pie easier to swallow.
Liuye Street was within his jurisdiction, or to be precise... he had awakened there.
Yet, Shen Yi had received no news about this incident, knowing less than random passersby.
He recalled Song Changfeng's reminder before he left.
The higher-ups were certainly quick to act, managing to blindfold and deafen him in such a short time.
"I heard the person was bitten to death?"
"I told you not to mention it. Are you trying to ruin my meal?... I arrived early and caught a glimpse, and even now, I feel nauseous thinking about it."
The two men shook their heads in dismay.
Frowning, Shen Yi looked down at the meat pie in his hand, his own appetite gone.
He wrapped the remaining pies and salted pork in a lotus leaf, then reached for his sword, "Waiter, the bill, please."
...
Baiyun County, Liuye Street.
A few officers walked out of a small courtyard, pinching their noses. "That was disgusting. I wish I hadn't come."
"It's not like this is our turf. Why are we wading into this mess?"
"Boss Zhang, you've got to put in a good word for us with the higher-ups. It's no problem to oversee a couple more streets, but our salaries have to increase."
Zhang Pengtian glared at the speaker. "Enough with the nonsense. If you don't want to do the job, scram. There are plenty of others who will."
When he turned back, his eyes widened in surprise.
Unbeknownst to him, a familiar young man had appeared in front of him, his waist adorned with a sword, quietly gazing at the small courtyard.
"Yo! Young Master Shen!"
Zhang Pengtian quickly bowed. "What wind brought you here?"
Shen Yi nodded and took a step towards the courtyard.
Seeing this, Zhang forced a smile and blocked his path. "If this were the brothel, I'd personally carry Young Master Shen inside, expenses on me... But this is an official business trip from the higher-ups. It wouldn't be appropriate for you to interfere."
Shen Yi looked down.
Just two days ago, he had stood in the same spot, making the same gesture as this man.
"Young Master Shen, even if you don't give me face, you should at least consider Chief Clerk Song."
Seeing that Shen Yi showed no signs of backing down, Zhang Pengtian's smile faded. "Let me make this clear: anyone can enter this courtyard in Baiyun County except for you, Shen Yi."
Once, they had feared Shen Yi because the government favored him.
But now, the winds of favor had changed, and the higher-ups were clearly targeting the Shen family. Without their protection, Shen Yi was nothing but a fox pretending to be a tiger.
"Brothers, show Young Master Shen your weapons and help him sober up.
In that instant of powerful force, he didn't even have a chance to react before he was sent flying like a torn sack.
Shen Yi dusted off his sleeves and strode forward.
"You... you dare to rebel?!"
The remaining officers never expected such a bold move, and they hesitated, unsure what to do with the knives in their hands.
Just then, Chen Ji arrived on the street with the Niu brothers and Zhang Dahai in tow, rushing to the courtyard gate.
Reaching the entrance, Chen Ji grabbed his sword sheath and began raining blows on the officers' heads, shouting, "Blind your dog eyes! Don't you know which street this is? Tie them up!"
At these words, Zhang Dahai froze.
Usually, it was he who would say such things, and he typically directed them at commoners. He had never used such language with his colleagues before.
Chen Ji, who used to despise this kind of bullying tactic, was now surprisingly fluent in cursing.
Despite their confusion, Zhang Dahai and the Niu brothers leaped into action, quickly tying up the officers like rice dumplings.
Regardless of their personal opinions about Shen Yi, they couldn't lose face in front of outsiders!
"As expected..."
Chen Ji had been patrolling the streets when he overheard some rumors and suddenly had a hunch. He quickly gathered his men and rushed over.
"As expected, you think you're so smart," Zhang Dahai scoffed. "Given Shen's temperament, how could he tolerate others intruding into his territory?"
Chen Ji glanced at him, thinking that this explanation made sense. Later, he would have Zhang Dahai apologize to the higher-ups.
As for the real reason...
Although Chen Ji himself found it hard to believe, he felt that... perhaps this family had been killed by a demon.
Given Shen Yi's performance in the village the other day, unless he was putting on an act, he would definitely come to investigate.
...
In the small courtyard, Shen Yi crouched down and looked at the barely intact bodies of the father and daughter laid out on the straw mat.
He took a deep breath and carefully arranged the black-skinned girl's five fingers that had been scattered.
It was this hand that had washed his feet earlier, and although the technique was clumsy, it had been a unique pleasure.
According to past experiences, if they had been harmed by demons, there would likely only be scattered remains. But today was different. Although Liu and his daughter were in pieces, with their ears and eyes having been collected and placed back on their bodies, there were no signs of them being eaten.
This wasn't a predation; it was a brutal killing fueled by revenge!
Just like with Huang Laoliu, demons had friends and family too. If any of them knew where the black-skinned dog demon had gone that night, they might not know who was responsible for the attack... but they didn't need evidence to take revenge. They only needed to vent their anger.
"No, are they your relatives?"
Zhang Pengtian, who was convulsing from the kick, struggled to lift his head. "You still want to beat me... damn it... what can you do even if you see this? If you have the guts, go report this to the county magistrate, or to the demons outside the city!"
"This is obviously the work of dog demons, but can you find out which ones did it? And even if you could, what could you do?"
Shen Yi's ears rang with the incessant chatter, and he felt his heart sink into chaos.
He pulled the white cloth over the two bodies, covering them.
As a lowly officer, he couldn't call upon the Demon Suppression Division or mobilize the city's defense forces. The most he could do was summon a few hapless errand runners.
Shen Yi's only reliance was the broken sword in his hand.
If he couldn't find out who did this, then he wouldn't bother looking.
...
(End of Chapter)
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