Holy Bone

Chapter 2004 Dragon Tiger Market, Cliffside Street, Criminal Investigation Department
child time.

Fortunately, the temperature is still warm now. At night, it is not freezing cold, so people do not have to suffer from the cold and do not have to go home early to sit on the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed) to keep warm.

Because there was no curfew in the capital, even at midnight, the streets were still bustling with people, shoulder to shoulder, in an endless stream.

The merchants were busier at night than during the day, because the streets were crowded with people during the day, making it inconvenient to transport goods to various stores. Only at night were there fewer pedestrians, making it easier to transport goods to various stores in the capital. So these merchants drove camels, horses, donkeys and mules, pulling horse-drawn carts through the bustling markets, and the cart drivers were extremely busy.

However, not all places in the capital had so many pedestrians and carriages. There were also some places where, for various reasons, there were few pedestrians and business was slow.

For example, there is a cliffside street in Longhufang Market. No one comes here all year round. The environment is very desolate, and nine out of ten houses are empty. Apart from some homeless beggars or vagrants who come to live here, no normal people come here all year round.

Speaking of this cliffside street, one cannot help but mention an event in Beijing.

The capital city covers a vast area and has a permanent population of over one or two hundred thousand. The environment of the capital city is neither too complicated nor too simple.

For example, there are more than a dozen clear rivers flowing through the capital city and then out of the city.

For example, the capital city is not entirely flat, but it also has several famous mountains. One of them belongs to the royal garden, another belongs to the Jade Capital Golden Palace, and yet another is the place where the Imperial Observatory observes celestial phenomena and where the emperors of past dynasties offered sacrifices to heaven. The remaining two, Jingshan, are open to the public for sightseeing.

The Fragrant Hills, which Emperor Kangzhao bestowed upon the Five Organs Taoist Temple, is one of these last two Jingshan Hills.

Another example is the environment of this cliffside street.

Linya Street, true to its name, features a cliff that appears as if cleaved by a knife or sword, situated in the capital city. This cliff is over ten zhang wide and its depth is unknown; the bottom is pitch black, inspiring both fear and endless imagination.

As an ancient capital of various dynasties, this city had already been developed by the government several dynasties ago. It was developed into a tourist destination for the people to visit. There are wooden plank bridges and lanterns at the bottom of the cliff, which not only satisfied the people's curiosity and exploration of amazing things, but also provided the court with a substantial financial support.

Because of its unique and unusual location, with a deep ravine that seems to have no bottom, this place attracts a constant stream of people every year who come to explore and seek treasures.

And this treasure hunt and adventure naturally requires paying an entrance fee, which comes from the imperial treasury revenue, replenishing the national coffers.

Located in the capital, Linya Street has been explored countless times by various sects. It is precisely because it has been confirmed that there is no danger and no lost treasures, and that it is just an ordinary place, that the imperial court opened it to the public to generate revenue from ticket sales and replenish the national treasury.

However, during the previous dynasty, due to the war between the previous dynasty and Kangding Kingdom, some soldiers of the previous dynasty hid in Linya Street to resist. Later, the wooden plank walkway and the soldiers of the previous dynasty were wiped out by Kangding Kingdom, and Linya Street was abandoned.

Since Kang Dingguo established his capital in Beijing, he has shown little interest in Linya Street and has never begun to repair it. As time has passed, Linya Street has gradually fallen into disrepair and desolation, eventually becoming completely ignored.

Later, after rumors of ghostly soldiers passing through the cliffside street spread, no ordinary person dared to pass by, preferring to take a longer route rather than go through the cliffside street.

The legend of ghostly soldiers borrowing a path is a well-known supernatural event in folklore, and no one wants to encounter it.

According to folklore, if ghostly soldiers were to pass through, no one would survive.

With survival being the priority, everyone naturally wouldn't pass through this place.

The reason these ghostly soldiers are said to be that too many soldiers from the previous dynasty died here. Because the place is located in a deep abyss, they could not be reincarnated and were trapped in the abyss for many years, so they slowly became ghostly soldiers.

Every day, ghostly soldiers would pass through the area, following their habits from their previous lives, patrolling and wandering along the cliffside street, arresting anyone they encountered, leaving no one alive.

The more the legend of the ghostly soldiers borrowing the road spread among the people, the more eerie it became, and naturally no one was willing to come.

However, this cliffside street has been quite lively lately because the Criminal Investigation Department has sent several people to guard the entrance to the tunnel and prevent any scoundrels from entering and doing anything improper.

It turns out that there is also an underground entrance to this cliffside street, so Jin'an sent people to guard it early on in order to safely pass through Emperor Kangzhao's ancestral worship ceremony.

In fact, the imperial court knows best whether there are ghost soldiers passing through this cliffside street. The fact that the imperial court dares to send people to guard this place means that it is undoubtedly certain that this place is very safe.

The team guarding the tunnel entrance on Linya Street consisted of five people, with the team leader named Chen Zhiyun and the deputy team leader named Guo Zihao.

Although the government knew very well that there were no ghosts or ghostly soldiers passing through the cliffside street, at night, when it was quiet and deserted, with only ten people on duty on a few streets, it was still too desolate and lonely, and the days felt like years.

During the day, I feel fine and don't notice anything unusual, but at night, I always feel a chill and some discomfort.

So these people in the Criminal Investigation Department found some ways to pass the time and make it less agonizing. Their way of passing the time was to buy a table full of braised meat, melon seeds, candied fruit, and dried fruit to while away the night and make it less agonizing.

"Boss, deputy boss, try this gourd of mine, it's a real treasure, I guarantee it's good stuff." A minor official from the Criminal Investigation Department took out a precious gourd and said mysteriously, as if presenting a treasure.

Then he poured a small cup for each of them and asked them to taste it.

Having worked together for almost ten years, they were already very familiar with each other. Faced with their colleague's kind offer, Captain Chen Zhiyun and Vice Captain Guo Zihao did not stand on ceremony. They laughed heartily, picked up their cups, and drank them down in one gulp.

After finishing their drinks, the two smacked their lips, then their eyes lit up. Vice Captain Guo Zihao exclaimed, "Wow!"

"Liangzi, is this plum juice?"

"Your plum juice tastes great! It makes me feel refreshed and energized, instantly banishing any drowsiness. Come on, pour me another glass. Such a good pick-me-up is a rare find."

Team leader Chen Zhiyun laughed heartily and said, "Liangzi, you're from Jiangzhou, and sour plums are a specialty of Jiangzhou. Did you bring this sour plum juice from your hometown?"

"Liangzi, have a glass for everyone, let them try your plum juice, and then let them buy some from you to open up sales channels for your hometown, hahaha."

Liangzi chuckled, then poured everyone a refill of their cups, and said with a wry smile, "Boss, as you know, the commander is very strict with me and forbids us from drinking alcohol while on duty. But keeping watch at night is too hard to bear, so I wrote home and asked my family to bring me some plum juice."

"Although this plum juice isn't as potent as alcohol, its sour, spicy, and sweet aftertaste, along with its unique aroma, makes it comparable to a small bottle of wine. It can even help ward off some of the drowsiness of those keeping watch at night."

After finishing the plum juice, the group was pleasantly surprised and full of praise, saying that the plum juice was excellent and had a unique charm.

Then, amidst jokes, the group finished off a gourd of plum juice.

Liangzi smiled bitterly, turned the gourd over, and spread her hands, saying to everyone, "It's gone. I only drank two or three sips of this gourd of plum juice before it was gone. I've lost a lot of money."

Everyone laughed and joked that after the yamen, they would invite Liangzi to a tavern for a meal to cool off.

Upon hearing that there would be wine after the yamen, Liangzi smacked his lips and chuckled. The group ate for a while with braised meat, melon seeds, candied fruit, and dried fruit. Suddenly, someone brought up the tunnel, pointing to the tunnel entrance that was sealed off by iron bars, leaving only a few small openings, and said, "This tunnel has long been sealed off by several iron bars. Is it still necessary for us to guard it? What is the commander worried about?"

Speaking of the tunnel entrance, Captain Chen Zhiyun said with a serious expression, "The commander didn't just order us to guard this one tunnel entrance. He said we have to guard all the tunnel entrances in the capital. Because of the shortage of manpower, the commander borrowed a lot of manpower from local government offices to help us guard them."

"It is estimated that some of the tunnel entrances are not peaceful and are often used by all sorts of people, so the commander wants to control all the tunnel entrances."

"After all, His Majesty's ancestral worship ceremony is about to take place. In just half a month, the grand ancestral worship ceremony will be held. The Commander must want to ensure that the security is perfect and without any loopholes."

The man who had spoken earlier grabbed a handful of braised pig's head meat and stuffed it into his mouth, chewing as he said, "Boss, of course I understand these principles. I just can't keep my mouth shut, so please don't take offense."

After saying that, the man stood up and said he was going to relieve himself nearby.

Team leader Chen Zhiyun nodded and said, "Okay, go and come back soon."

"Guo Zihao, you go with Liang Zheyu, don't go alone."

Guo Zihao was the vice-captain, so naturally he had to listen to Captain Chen Zhiyun. He looked at Captain Chen Zhiyun helplessly and said, "Boss, there's no one around on Linya Street, do we really need to be so cautious?"

Team leader Chen Zhiyun firmly stated, "Safety comes first; I don't want anything to happen to anyone."

Guo Zihao threw down the melon seeds in his hand, stood up and said, "Alright, alright, boss, I'll listen to you and go with Aqing to relieve herself. You owe me a drink, remember to pay me back later."

Team leader Chen Zhiyun laughed and scolded the two of them, telling them to get lost and come back quickly.

Aqing said to Guo Zihao apologetically, "Deputy Boss, I'm sorry about this."

Guo Zihao waved his hand and then accompanied Aqing to relieve herself.

call--

At midnight, a gust of cold wind swept by, and Captain Chen Zhiyun couldn't help but shiver. He looked up at the moonless night scene and muttered, "This damn weather, a sudden gust of wind in the middle of the night, it's really creepy."

After saying that, Captain Chen Zhiyun looked around, then frowned and said, "Guo Zihao and A Qing, why haven't they come back yet after so long?"

Liangzi looked back and said, "Indeed, it's been almost an incense stick's time and she still hasn't returned. Could it be that Aqing changed her urination to defecation?"

Captain Chen Zhiyun ate a few more bites of pig's head meat. Just then, a gurgling sound came from the dark corner in the distance, carried by the night wind.

It was a string of lanterns that had been there for so long that the paper had torn and only bamboo remained. Suddenly, they rolled in from the darkness. If you didn't look closely, you might think they were several human heads rolling over, making you instinctively tense up.

Upon seeing that it was just a bamboo lantern, Captain Chen Zhiyun breathed a sigh of relief; he had almost mistaken it for a human head rolling over.

He originally wanted to eat the food on the table, but he was restless and worried about Guo Zihao and A Qing, who had been missing for some time. So he stood up, picked up the waist knife on the bench, and said, "I'm a little worried about Guo Zihao and A Qing. Let's go and check on them."

Liangzi and Suwei, concerned for their colleague, immediately stood up, picked up their waist knives, and accompanied Captain Chen Zhiyun to check the situation.

The three of them carried lanterns and walked into the dark night.

They headed in the direction of that bottomless cliff.

Ah Qing needed to urinate, so she would definitely head towards the cliff. This is called adapting to local conditions and not wasting the environment.

The group had only walked a few steps when they suddenly heard a strange sound behind them—a snap!

Snapped!
Snapped!
As if someone was following them, the three immediately changed their expressions, turned around, and shouted, "Who's there?"

"We are from the Criminal Investigation Department investigating this case. If you don't come out now and continue to play tricks here, we will definitely throw you into the water dungeon!"

Snapped!
Snapped!
However, the footsteps behind them continued unhurriedly. The three frowned, then gritted their teeth and went to investigate who was following them.

However, when they found the source of the footsteps, all three of them looked quite displeased.

"Dog shit, it's so late at night, it's scary."

"It's true that I tend to overthink things at night."

Liangzi and Suwei cursed and swore as they sheathed their drawn swords.

Before them, a string of bamboo lanterns rolled on the ground, and the scraps of paper scraped against the ground, sounding just like footsteps.

Why is it this lantern again! Captain Chen Zhiyun stepped forward and stomped on the bamboo lantern, smashing it to pieces, then kicked it away before continuing to look for Guo Zihao and A Qing, who had gone to relieve themselves.

After walking a short distance in the dark, the three finally found Guo Zihao and A Qing. Both of them were standing facing the cliff and looked like they were urinating.

"Guo Zihao and A Qing, are you done relieving yourselves? Why do you take so long to pee, like an incense stick burning?" Captain Chen Zhiyun said with dissatisfaction.

However, neither Guo Zihao nor Aqing responded to him.

The stillness of midnight was eerily profound.

"Guo Zihao? Aqing?" Captain Chen Zhiyun called out several times, but neither of them responded.

Captain Chen Zhiyun cursed and said, "Are you deliberately trying to make fun of us in the middle of the night? You just wait, I'll show you what's what."

Team leader Chen Zhiyun walked towards the two while cursing. Liangzi and Suwei followed, trying to persuade Guo Zihao and Aqing to calm down, asking why they were acting so strangely and ignoring people so late at night.

However, when they arrived in front of Guo Zihao and A Qing and reached out to pry their bodies apart, they found that they couldn't move them at all, and they also discovered that their bodies were already stiff.

Just then, *smack!*
Snapped!
Snapped!
Footsteps approached from behind them, growing closer...