Stranger Danger

The vice magistrate flew into a rage when he heard this, “What!? Who was the culprit? How dare they!”

“I’m still looking into it, but I’m sure we’ll find the culprit very soon. In the meantime, will you please rally the men and remove this Shing Wong temple immediately? The people must be made aware of the danger, and it’ll serve as a warning to all criminals who might be harboring similar ideas!”

“As you command!” The vice magistrate saluted Yan Yufei before ordering, “Yi’an, rally the men and remove this Shing Wong temple immediately! Make haste!”

“Got it, brother-in-law!” The young man named Yi’an answered. He was none other than Tang Yi’an, the gate captain of Anyang.

“Tang Yi’an? Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be at the gates?” Yan Yufei frowned the moment he noticed the gate captain.

“That’s because I noticed an unusual disturbance in this direction earlier, my lord! I thought I should check it out just in case it was a Stranger attack!” Tang Yi’an responded in a righteous tone.

However, Yan Yufei let out a cold hmph and said, “You are the gate captain of Anyang. Your main responsibility is to guard the gates and prevent any malevolent souls from infiltrating the county. Unless we specifically called for you to come to our aid, you should leave the incidents within the county to us.”

“Since you’ve come out of the goodness of your heart, I will not punish you for the crime of leaving your post without permission. But do not do it again, understand?”

“I’m sorry, my lord, I’m sorry. Please forgive me!” Tang Yi’an said hurriedly even as his expression darkened. He had been hoping to earn Yan Yufei’s favor with this initiative, but instead it almost landed him in hot waters. His heart immediately boiled with resentment and hatred.

“Please forgive him, my lord. It is I who failed to teach him properly. When we get back, I’ll be sure to brush up on his education!” The vice magistrate smiled awkwardly as he apologized on behalf of Tang Yi’an. He then turned back to the young man and chided in a stern tone, “What are you waiting for? Get back to the Shushou Gate already! I will hold you responsible if anything happened at the gates while you were gone! Now get lost!”

“Yes, my lord. I’ll be returning to my post now!” Tang Yi’an replied and turned away, but right before he left he glared at Ye Qing with a hint of hatred and bloodthirst behind his eyes.

Yan Yufei’s the one who raked you over the coals, and your own brother-in-law’s who scolded you, so why is the idiot looking at me instead of them? Does he have a screw loose in his head? Ye Qing thought idly to himself. Tang Yi’an’s action, while inconspicuous, hadn’t escaped his notice thanks to his fine senses.

He paid the clown no heed though. He could beat a hundred Tang Yi’an should he ever grow the nerve to challenge him. The military officer on the other hand, now that was someone he needed to be wary of!

Yan Yufei had addressed the military officer as the vice magistrate, and Tang Yi’an his brother-in-law. He could only be the vice magistrate responsible for the military defense of Anyang, You Da!

You Da had a rugged appearance, but his vigor was thick and strong. Like a sun, he was blinding in the auric sense even from a long distance away. Ye Qing had no doubt that he was a powerful martial practitioner and a Vessel Augmentor at least. He couldn’t tell if You Da was a middle-stage or late-stage Vessel Augmentor, but one thing for certain, his cultivation level was definitely stronger than his right now.

There was one more person of note besides You Da. He was another middle-aged man in his forties wearing a black, form-fitting outfit. He had long, straight eyebrows, and eyes that glittered like stars. His aura was as cold and biting as winter, and his face looked like it was carved out of stone, stiff and expressionless. Ye Qing might believe it if someone told him that the man wasn’t really a human, but a heartless golem.

He’s also a Vessel Augmentor, and not just any Vessel Augmentor either. He’s even stronger than You Da!

At first glance, the middle-aged man’s presence was weaker than You Da’s. In reality, it was just withdrawn because he had full control over his power. To Ye Qing, his aura felt rounded, fully integrated, and unfathomable. This meant that he was actually much stronger than You Da.

“Lord Yan. Did you fight against the suspect earlier?” The middle-aged man asked suddenly.

“Well met, Chief Ling!” Yan Yufei turned toward him and nodded. “As to your question, the answer is both yes and no. I had fought against the General of Punishment—the golden statue that had grown some measure of sentience and transformed into a Stranger due to all the power of wishes it had received throughout the year. As for the mastermind behind this, I’m still in the middle of investigating!”

Chief Ling? He’s probably the chief of the Pacification Bureau in Anyang, the “One Sword Autumn” Ling Jianqiu then. No wonder he gave me a dangerous feeling, Ye Qing thought while rubbing his chin.

The reason he came to Anyang was to massacre the Zheng Clan and take revenge for August Hill Village and himself. Naturally, he had made sure to investigate every faction, notable person, and any other variables in Anyang that might pose a concern to his mission, and Ling Jianqiu, the chief of the Pacification Bureau was one of them. To do any less was to court failure at best, or a fate-worse-than-death at worst.

Ling Jianqiu was the chief of the Pacification Bureau. Naturally, he had done some research on him.

It was at this moment the bailiffs carried their dead colleagues out of the Shing Wong temple. You Da’s face darkened as he asked, “My lord?”

Yan Yufei sighed deeply. “I did not think that the mastermind would still be in the temple, and he was able to kill some of our brothers and escape while I was battling the General of Punishment!”

Ling Jianqiu interrupted, “You should’ve reported this case to my Pacification Bureau since it relates to Strangers, Lord Yan. We would have destroyed the false deity and captured the mastermind without suffering any casualties!” 𝐛𝐞𝐝𝐧𝗼𝘃𝐞𝐥．𝗰𝐨𝗺

“Because of your wilful actions, you have cost several bailiffs their lives and even alerted the mastermind. Now, it’ll be far more difficult to capture the bastards!”

“Are you accusing me of incompetence, Chief Ling?” Yan Yufei asked coldly. He could stomach the first half of Ling Jianqiu’s reprimand, but the second half was just a put-down through and through. The Pacification Bureau and the administration division were technically on the same level even though their functions were very different from one another. However, Ling Jianqiu had borne down on him arrogantly and accusingly like he was his superior. It was no wonder that Yan Yufei was displeased.

“You misunderstand me. I’m simply stating the facts as they are!” Ling Jianqiu replied as cool as ever.

Wow, this guy is exactly like the rumors said! Ye Qing narrowed his eyes a little. It was rumored that Ling Jianqiu was cold and heartless, cynical and insensitive, pitiless and strict and more. It would seem that the rumors were not unfounded.

“You want to talk about facts, don't you? Okay! I’ll give you some facts” Yan Yufei retorted, “This was just a serial murder case at the beginning. We had no idea if a Stranger was actually behind the murders. It’s only after we chased the clues to this place that we stumbled upon the Stranger, and by then we were already engaged in battle! We did not inform the Pacification Bureau in time not because we didn’t want to, but because there was no time!”

“Second, could the Pacification Bureau really have done better than us? I could tell from my battle against the Stranger that it had been stealing the power of wishes for some time, and yet the Pacification Bureau had not noticed a thing until now. If I hadn’t stumbled upon it by accident, a terrible tragedy would’ve befallen Anyang, and I don’t need to tell you what would’ve happened to your Pacification Bureau if the emperor heard about this!”

“I haven’t even begun to hold you responsible for your negligence, and you have the gall to criticize me, Chief Ling?”

Yan Yufei had mixed quite a bit of lies into his counter-accusation—for example, he was lying about not knowing that a Stranger might be behind the murder case at all—but it was so well-reasoned and intimidating that a lesser official might’ve caved under the pressure. Unfortunately, Ling Jianqiu was no lesser official. Expressionless as ever, he took the full brunt of the counter-accusation like it was nothing and said, “If a tragedy were to break out as a result of my negligence, then so be it. As the chief of the Pacification Bureau, I am willing to bear the sins and consequences that resulted from my mistakes. But just the same, there is no denying that you’ve committed a mistake today, one that you should take responsibility for.”

“In any case, now that we know for certain that a Stranger is behind this, I would urge you to hand this case over to the Pacification Bureau immediately. The mastermind must be apprehended as soon as possible!”

Yan Yufei sneered. “Thanks but no thanks. Since Chief Ling insists that this matter is a mistake on my part, then allow me to make up for it by resolving this case! You do not need to interfere or worry over this, Chief Ling!”

“Men, let us depart!” Yan Yufei ordered curtly after that and left without even bothering to bid Ling Jianqiu goodbye.

“I need to go, Chief Ling. I’ll see you later!” You Da also took his leave after saluting Ling Jianqiu.

When everyone was gone, a young woman behind Ling Jianqiu asked him, “Foster father, Lord Yan is the newly appointed magistrate of Anyang, and I am sure that his backing is considerable. Why did you butt heads with him instead of trying to foster a good relationship with him? Won’t it make things difficult and impact the Pacification Bureau and the administrative division’s future relationship?”

The young woman was about twenty years old and wearing a long, dark green dress. She had a beautiful countenance, a shapely figure, a gentle temperament, and a natural aura around her that was unique to a waterfront woman.

“I’m not targeting Yan Yufei. I just want to apprehend the Stranger as soon as possible. Strangers are cunning by nature. Every second we waste may result in the death of another person!” Ling Jianqiu replied evenly.

The young woman said gently, “Yun Yan understands that you just want to do right by the people of Anyang, but your temper is causing the opposite effect, foster father. Angering Lord Yan has only made it harder for us to take over this case!”

Ling Jianqiu asked coolly, “Has it though?”

Yun Yan thought for a second before blooming into a smile. “Oh, I get it. You had done it on purpose. You want Yan Yufei to do the investigation part for you so you don’t have to!”

“It makes sense. The Pacification Bureau is busy with August Hill Village and quite undermanned right now. It is better to leave the investigation to Lord Yan and lend a hand only after he has found something!”

“I should’ve known better than to question your judgment, foster father!”

“You know me well, Yun Yan. It’s a shame you cannot practice martial arts, or else…” A hint of rare sorrow appeared on Ling Jian’s features but disappeared immediately after.

“You don’t need to be sad, foster father. Yun Yan might be too frail to practice martial arts, but I am well read in a wide range of subjects. The pen can be mightier than the sword, am I right?” Yun Yan said kindly.

Ling Jianqiu let out a quiet sigh and patted her on the head affectionately. “I know. I just wish you could have a better life!”

Yun Yan shook her head with a bright smile on her face. “Yun Yan is happy with her life. Being able to keep you company and solve your troubles is good enough for me.”

“You are a smart and sensible girl, Yun Yan. I am most happy to have you as well!” Ling Jianqiu smiled one last time before returning to his cold self. “How goes the investigation of August Hill Village?”

Yun Yan shook her head. “Nothing yet. Whatever happened to August Hill Village, it is stranger than anything we could imagine. Not only did the village vanish into thin air, the place where it used to be had transformed into a lake of blood. It has become a forbidden area that pollutes and dissolves anyone that gets close to it. As a result, we’re unable to find any clues as of now.”

“Was there any survivors or witnesses?”

“Unfortunately, no. Since the village itself had vanished into nothing, it’s probably safe to say that none of the villagers had survived. It’s the main reason we’re still unable to determine what had happened.”

Ling Jianqiu frowned deeply. “Regardless of the difficulties, we must find out what happened to August Hill Village as soon as possible. Is it a natural disaster, or is it a Stranger’s doing? Is it a one-time thing, or will it spread to Anyang? We must know.”

.

“I know!” Yun Yan nodded with a smile before bidding her foster father goodbye and taking her leave.