At this moment, the maidservants and errand boys were all waiting outside. Inside the room were only Liu Zhengchuan, his wife, and Nanny Lin. Candlelight flickered unpredictably, casting an increasingly eerie glow over Nanny Lin.
She slowly lifted her head, her eerie gaze fixed on Liu Zhengchuan as she smiled. Her lips stretched wider and wider until her grin exceeded human limits. Her voice drifted into Liu Zhengchuan’s ears:
“Mas...ter... I... didn't... expect... you... to... still... remember... the... tea... this... old... servant... brewed. Back... then... you... liked... it... most. This... time... I... specifically... brewed... it... for... you... so... please... drink... more...”
Seeing this horrifying sight, the woman rolled her eyes back and fainted flat onto the bed.
Liu Zhengchuan’s chest heaved heavily. Looking at the aged face before him, he frantically pulled a safety amulet pendant from his robes and clutched it tight against his chest, letting out a cold laugh.
“Mama Zhang, if you have the guts, bring it on! I could kill you once, and I can kill you a second time! Even your master doesn't dare show themselves for revenge—who gave you the nerve to intimidate me here?”
Nanny Lin glared at him coldly.
“Is... that... so? I'd... like... to... see... what... tricks... you... have... Master.”
Nanny Lin reached out both hands, her stiff bones creaking and cracking. She locked her hands tightly around Liu Zhengchuan’s neck, just as Liu Zhengchuan had done to her years ago.
Liu Zhengchuan never expected the safety amulet in his hand to be completely useless. He tried with all his might to pry Nanny Lin’s hands off, but her strength was monstrous, not budging an inch.
“Nanny... Lin, wake up! It’s me, Zhengchuan!” He slapped wildly at her hands, his survival instinct kicking in as he began to cry out,
“Someone, help! Save me!”
...
Having just finished a round of patrol, Gu Qingyun, Bai Fan, and two other constables were sitting in the duty room, munching on peanuts and chatting. Gu Qingyun and Bai Fan had even handed out the meat pies given by the Liu Residence, sharing one with each of the others.
One of them, an older constable with a dark complexion, casually tossed a peanut into his mouth and looked at Gu Qingyun and Bai Fan with a warm smile.
“You two little ones are in for a treat tomorrow. Yesterday on my day off, I went fishing by the river and caught a softshell turtle—must be four or five jin! When we go off duty tomorrow morning, come over to my place for a meal.”
“Heh, we really have you to thank for this, Old Liao! That’s a powerful tonic!” another skinny constable remarked.
The constable named Old Liao nodded.
“I got lucky, too. That stuff boosts Yang and nourishes kidney essence—a rare treat.”
Gu Qingyun’s face went deadpan. Hearing the phrase "boosts Yang," her mind had briefly wandered into inappropriate territory, but she couldn't let anyone notice. Right now, she was supposed to be just an innocent twelve-year-old girl who shouldn't know what boosting Yang meant.
Bai Fan, still an innocent young lad, flushed bright red from his face down to his neck upon hearing the two constables' talk.
Old Liao measured him up and down, bursting into laughter.
“Kid Bai, you're so young, where is your mind wandering off to? When I say boosting Yang and nourishing essence, I mean supplementing the Yang energy and kidney qi for martial artists! It builds up your Qi and blood; I wasn't talking about that kind of thing! A young boy like you who's still a virgin has no use for that anyway!”
Bai Fan drew back his neck, wishing he could dig a hole and crawl right into it.
For a moment, laughter filled the duty room. Gu Qingyun listened quietly from the side, taking an occasional sip of hot tea, feeling relaxed and comfortable.
“Clang! Clang-clang~”
“The weather is freezing cold; take care against the chill!”
The night watchman outside struck his gongs three times in succession. Hearing the sound, Gu Qingyun stuffed the remaining pie into her mouth, took her cup, downed a mouthful of water, and stood up.
“It’s already the Chou hour, the middle of the night when everyone sleeps soundly. Time for us to go out on patrol.”
She picked up her lantern, refilled it with oil, adjusted her waist token, spoke a quick word to the other constables, and headed out with Bai Fan. Little Black scrambled up her pant leg from her feet and perched directly on her shoulder.
“Hey, Qingyun, Bai Fan, isn't it tiring for the two of you to always patrol together like this? Look at me, Old Cao, and Old Yu—we take turns going out and only team up in the late night. That way, we can get a few hours of rest each night.”
Gu Qingyun paused, glanced at Bai Fan beside her, and turned back with a smile.
“Uncle, we’re still young. Having two of us together means we can look out for each other.” Without waiting for a reply, she strode out the door.
At Baiyu Street, Gu Qingyun stood near the back gate of the Liu Residence. On her shoulder, Little Black’s fur bristled as it bared its teeth toward the wall. Looking at the high wall, Gu Qingyun patted Little Black’s small head.
“Alright, stop hissing. We’re still on duty. Let's keep patrolling. The Liu Residence is quiet, so everything should be fine.” She resumed walking down the street.
Having received favors from the Liu family today, Gu Qingyun naturally paid a bit more attention to them. It wasn't that she hadn't noticed something odd about a certain spot in the Liu Residence.
But she was just a constable. If she rashly barged into someone’s estate, she’d likely be beaten and thrown out.
Besides, both Young Master Liu and his wife were protected by karmic merit, so presumably nothing major would go wrong.
What was more, she had noticed that things that harmed people without cause were rare in this world. Generally, they didn't attack people of their own accord. As long as one had a clear conscience, one should be safe.
Seeing Little Black’s reaction, Bai Fan’s expression changed. He quickly leaned in and whispered,
“Does the Liu family have one of those things? Look at Little Black—it acts like it saw something dangerous.”
Gu Qingyun kept walking without missing a beat.
“You’re overthinking it. The Liu Residence is huge with so many people; what could possibly happen? On the other hand, Uncle Liao makes a good point. How about we take turns on patrol too?”
Bai Fan was dumbfounded.
“Sister Yun, please don't! I'd be scared all by myself!”
Gu Qingyun’s lips twitched.
“Fine, fine. We’ll stick together. We get rest between rounds anyway.”
Hearing this, Bai Fan nodded vigorously.
“Whatever you say, Sister Yun!”
Holding their lanterns, the two turned onto another street. Just as they were about to move forward, Gu Qingyun’s expression shifted abruptly. She threw out an arm to halt Bai Fan. Little Black leaped down from her shoulder, letting out a sharp, urgent meow toward a spot nearby.
Confused, Bai Fan looked ahead and gasped. A man was lying face down on the ground before them, and a thick stench of blood blew right into their faces with the wind. Trembling, he leaned closer to Gu Qingyun and stuttered,
“Sister Yun, why is there a dead body here? This is terrifying!”
Gu Qingyun’s face darkened as her eyes locked onto the scene ahead. Her hand tightened on the hilt of her saber. She had thought tonight would pass peacefully, but unexpectedly, something had happened.
She cautiously stepped forward two paces and extended her lantern. The deceased was a man who looked to be around twenty years old, dressed in plain cotton clothes—evidently from an ordinary household.
There were numerous wounds on his neck and body. It appeared he had put up a struggle before dying from severe blood loss.
Gu Qingyun’s gaze darkened. A man had died right here, yet no one nearby had noticed, nor had she heard any screams or cries for help. Something was definitely wrong.
Rate on N.U.
