No taboos

Chapter 325 Brother-in-law (Three-in-One)

This sparrow firmly believed that in the entire Xiaoyu Mountain, only the Great Dragon King was worthy of the Ghost Queen.

Furthermore, King Jiao and Queen Gui are a perfect match, and they must be deeply in love, having secretly made a vow of eternal love.

So after the entire family of the Corpse Sparrow moved to Ghost Witch Mountain, it searched the whole mountain for traces of the Great Dragon King.

Several times, he even accidentally stumbled into the territory of a great evil spirit and was almost eaten alive, but he remained steadfast in his determination and would not give up until he achieved his goal.

Unfortunately, Guanghuo Street was not a place that these little creatures could set foot in. So it wasn't until yesterday, when the Great Dragon King suddenly came out of Guanghuo Street, that it saw the Great Dragon King again.

It flew above the Dragon King's head, chattering on and on about the Ghost Queen's tragic fate.

According to the dead sparrow, this is a tragic story: "In a remote village, there lived a golden boy and a jade girl. The golden boy went far away to work hard alone for a better future, while the jade girl stayed in the village, eagerly waiting. However, the local bully coveted the jade girl's beauty and used every means to force her. To protect her chastity, the jade girl committed suicide."

Now the story is finally about to unfold its second half, which is also the climax of the whole story!
The golden boy returns home in glory, determined to avenge his beloved and severely punish the villain!

The Great King Jiao was puzzled. What does this have to do with me?
I ignored it.

The dead sparrow chattered incessantly the whole way, completely ignoring whether the Great Dragon King responded.

Then, excitedly, he flew to Xiaoyushan and searched everywhere for the great villain.

It actually found it, and then it couldn't wait to unilaterally announce the "end of the story".

Then Lord Xu shot it down with a slingshot.

After some questioning, Lord Xu discovered that the sparrow lived entirely within its own perception.

I made up two wicked love stories and I'm totally hooked.

When asked what the Great Dragon King had returned for, it said it had no idea.

When asked where the Great Dragon King had gone, it had no idea.

Xu Yuan was speechless with anger.

Unfortunately, Lord Xu wasn't exactly a magnanimous person.

Enraged, he tied the sparrow up with a rope made of animal sinew and threw it into the canal, where it rose and fell three times.

It's like having hot pot.

It almost choked the sparrow to death again.

The Corpse Sparrow was also pitiful; it was a minor evil spirit that could barely be considered a ninth-rate creature, yet it was tightly bound by a fifth-rate animal sinew rope.

This isn't even using a sledgehammer to crack a nut; it's like a bronze craftsman using a cannon to kill a mosquito.

Xu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief before finally throwing the little thing away.

Then, after thinking about it, he went to Xiaoyu Mountain.

First, go to the place where the dragon used to live and make sure you find out why it came back.

……

Miao Yu sensed something was off when he arrived at the dock.

A new military camp has been built to the northwest of the dock.

Miao Yu could tell at a glance that these were river soldiers from the "River Management Battalion"!
The Grand Canal Administration wielded immense power, possessing not only the Department of Water Resources but also its own military corps!
In terms of strength, the River Camp is stronger than the Demon Extermination Army.

"They've even sent out the river management team. This matter seems to be more complicated than it appears," Miao Yu muttered to himself as he went to see the Champa River Supervisor.

The matter of the cargo ship smuggling spirits was reported.

The river supervisor acknowledged the situation and told Miao Yu to handle it himself.

This case has essentially been handed over to the Shanhe Division.

Miao Yu was happy with this arrangement.

As I was leaving the canal office, a voice suddenly called out from the side: "Brother-in-law!"

Miao Yu turned his head and saw a young man about the same age as Xu Yuan, dressed in the official uniform of the Shanhe Division Inspector, leading a group of captains, walking over from the side with a smile.

"Zhan Lei!" Miao Yu exclaimed in surprise, "What are you doing here?"

The surprise wasn't seeing Zhu Zhanlei, but that Zhu Zhanlei called him brother-in-law.

The marriage arrangements between the two families have not yet been finalized, but Miao Yu is very satisfied with the woman.

However, the woman reportedly never agreed, leaving Miao Yu feeling very uneasy.

The soft sword wrapped around my waist that I sent over earlier was returned.

Zhu Zhanlei's use of "brother-in-law" implies that the woman's family agrees.

Zhu Zhanlei walked closer and whispered, "The family members have all arrived, but they're all with Luo Cheng."

At this point, Zhu Zhanlei's face showed a hint of resentment: "My eldest sister is biased towards my third sister. She insisted that I would only cause trouble in Luocheng and sent me to Zhancheng."

“My older sister always judges people with outdated views. I’ve been working in the Shanhe Division for two years, and I was promoted to inspector based on my own abilities.”

He put on a smiling face again: "Well, I guess I have no choice but to come and stay with my brother-in-law."

“Alright.” Miao Yu also smiled and said, “It’s good to come back with me first to handle a case, a case of smuggling hundreds of ghosts. It’s a meritorious deed, no matter how small.”

"Thank you so much, brother-in-law!" Zhu Zhanlei was overjoyed.

Miao Yu meant that he would get some credit for this case, and if he accumulated enough credit, he could be promoted to inspector.

So everyone returned together to the Shanhe Si Yamen (official residence of the Champa Mountain and River Administration).

Miao Yu went to process the case files. After finishing, he thought for a moment and said to his brother-in-law, "Come with me to see someone. He deserves the most credit for this case."

In other words, if the brother-in-law wants to gain credit, he needs the other party's approval.

"Okay."

Miao Yu then took Zhu Zhanlei to the South City Patrol Office. Zhu Zhanlei's eyes widened in surprise: "Brother-in-law, why is it the Exorcism Division? We've always been at odds with the Exorcism Division..."

Miao Yu quickly made a gesture, telling him not to say anything inappropriate.

Miao Yu politely asked Old Qin at the door, "Is Brother Xu here?"

Old Qin looked listless.

First, the bruises on my eyes haven't faded yet, and second, I don't know how I offended the inspector recently, as he keeps assigning me this gatekeeper job.

"My master hasn't returned yet, Master Miao, would you like to go inside and wait for a while?"

"Alright."

Miao Yu led his brother-in-law, who was full of questions, inside.

As soon as I arrived in the backyard, I saw Dafu.

Every day at noon, Dafu would curl up in his nest by the bridge stone and take a comfortable nap.

If someone were to go into its den, they would find that it is lined with thick, soft materials such as weasel skins, rat skins, and wild dog skins, making it extremely comfortable to lie on.

These furs... all came from the evil spirits in the city.

Nobody knows where Dafu got it from.

As a result, Dafu drank too much tea in the morning and couldn't fall asleep at noon.

It's now listlessly crawling out of its nest and wobbling around in the backyard.

Zhu Zhanlei's eyes lit up the moment he saw Dafu: "What a fat goose! Brother-in-law, let's have roast goose for dinner tonight..."

"Gah!?" Dafu was so scared that all the fur on his body stood on end.

It spread its wings and turned to run away.

I knew I shouldn't have eaten so much.

After arriving in Champa, I've become a bit lax.

It ran a couple of steps, flew low for a while, and then plunged into its nest, huddled in a corner trembling, and refused to come out again.

Zhu Zhanlei was dumbfounded: "This goose can understand what I'm saying?"

Miao Yu was both amused and exasperated: "You little rascal, stop talking nonsense. That goose is not to be trifled with; if it gets angry, it'll peck you."

Zhu Zhanlei didn't listen at all.

I'm not some village kid, why would I be chased by a goose?
Miao Yu went to Xu Yuan's room to wait.

Zhu Zhanlei sat down as well, shaking his head and saying, "The decor here is tacky..."

Miao Yu sighed inwardly, having already figured out his future brother-in-law's temperament.

If you were to say that he truly rose to the rank of Inspector in the Shanhe Division within two years based on his own abilities—Miao Yu would never believe it now, even if you beat him to death.

Yu Yunhang came in to keep him company, serving him tea and water.

Miao Yu mentioned it briefly: "I brought some good tea for Lord Xu this morning, so I brewed that."

If I hadn't told him in advance, my brother-in-law would definitely have started complaining.

Yu Yunhang laughed and said, "That's all. Dafu took your good tea into its den, and I dare not take it."

Of all the patrol officers in the entire South City, only Xu Yuan himself was unaware of how troublesome Da Fu was.

"Never mind." Miao Yu shook his head with a wry smile.

Yu Yunhang also knew that his master was very "stingy" in some ways, and there was no way there could be tea worth more than two taels of silver in this room.

"Please wait a moment, both of you."

Yu Yunhang went out to Aunt Wang's place and borrowed some good tea.

Aunt Wang didn't have the money to buy any; these were all gifts from Master Fei and the others in the last few days.

Aunt Wang ventured out into the world when she was young, and she's seen it all.

Unfortunately, her health is not good right now, so she can only try a little of these good things.

Yu Yunhang brought back some tea leaves and brewed them for the two of them.

Zhu Zhanlei took a sip and nodded: "It's alright, it's the best 'Banpo Su' from Jiaozhi. But it's still quite a bit inferior to the real good tea from Zhengzhou."

Yu Yunhang lowered his head and remained silent. With a brother-in-law like this, Master Miao would have a hard time in the future.

Miao Yu's toes, hidden inside his official boots, gripped the ground, while he maintained a polite smile on his face.

……

Xu Yuan searched all over Xiaoyu Mountain and even went to the village, but he couldn't find the dragon, so he had to return to the city first.

As soon as Old Qin saw him at the door, he greeted him with a big smile from afar: "Sir, you're back."

"Ah."

"Lord Miao is waiting for you inside."

Xu Yuan nodded and entered the house. His subordinates greeted him along the way, and Xu Yuan responded. Just as he was about to reach the backyard, he suddenly heard a cry of "Ouch!"

Then chaos ensued.

Someone shouted, "Ji Shuangqiu, you've gotten yourself into big trouble!"

Xu Yuan strode in and saw a group of captains gathered together. Ji Shuangqiu was clearly a head taller than the others, standing out from the crowd, with her hands on her hips and a look of dissatisfaction on her face.

A person was lying on the ground, having received the same treatment as Lang Xiaoba, having been punched in the eye socket.

Yu Yunhang was supporting him, apologizing repeatedly: "She's just a rough girl from a humble family, she doesn't know any manners, please don't take it to heart, Lord Zhu..."

Miao Yu stood to one side, awkwardly rubbing his hands, unsure of what to say.

Upon seeing Xu Yuan return, everyone immediately bowed and said, "My lord."

"what happened?"

Yu Yunhang whispered a few words in Xu Yuan's ear.

Miao Yu's brother-in-law was impatient. After waiting for a while, he couldn't sit still and got up to wander around the yard.

Miao Yu and Yu Yunhang got up almost at the same time and quickly followed him.

With that troublesome nature of his, if you don't keep an eye on him, who knows what kind of trouble he might cause.

In the end, he still couldn't stop him. Zhu Zhanlei circled around twice and saw Ji Shuangqiu carrying two large buckets back.

Zhu Zhanlei, ever the sarcastic one, said, "Her husband probably has to stand on a stool to even reach his butt..."

Ji Shuangqiu put down the bucket and punched him.

It has to be admitted that this punch really hit Yu Yunhang right in the heart.

Yu Yunhang had wanted to do this for a long time.

Ji Shuangqiu didn't really understand what Zhu Zhanlei meant by those words.

However, Ji Shuangqiu was still a virgin, and Zhu Zhanlei insisted that she had a husband. Ji Shuangqiu valued her reputation like an adult, so she couldn't tolerate it.

Xu Yuan was also a little embarrassed. After all, Miao Yu's future brother-in-law had been beaten by one of his own captains. Even though his man was in the right, he still took action.

Xu Yuan stepped forward to help Zhu Zhanlei up, his face dark as he scolded Ji Shuangqiu: "Come here and apologize to Inspector Zhu!" An apology would be enough; of course, Lord Xu had no intention of actually punishing Ji Shuangqiu.

Ji Shuangqiu looked indignant: "Why?"

"You stupid girl!" Xu Yuan cursed inwardly, but Zhu Zhanlei pulled him back, saying, "It's alright, it's my fault for being so sharp-tongued. How could I argue with a woman?"

Everyone was stunned. You knew that?

Zhu Zhanlei took out a medicinal pill from his pocket and rolled it around his eyes a few times—this was an external pill cultivated by a pill master, clearly of extremely high quality—and the bruises visibly faded away quickly.

Zhu Zhanlei waved his hand at everyone: "Let's go, let's go, what's so interesting?"

Then he slunk back to Xu Yuan's room.

The crowd dispersed inexplicably. Yu Yunhang was both amused and exasperated. This Prosecutor Zhu, despite his playful and cheerful nature, was not a bad person at all.

Once inside the room, Miao Yu explained his purpose, and Xu Yuan didn't mind: "You can arrange it. Actually, you'd better not write me into the case file. Just say it was your and Inspector Zhu's doing, since I'm from the Exorcism Department."

Write me down so your superiors can see that your cooperation with the Exorcism Bureau will inevitably be detrimental to you.

Before Miao Yu could speak, Zhu Zhanlei, with his big mouth, jumped out again: "That's how it should be. Brother-in-law, you're just too rigid."

Xu Yuan's involvement in this matter stemmed from the benefits you provided, so it shouldn't be considered part of his case.

Miao Yu: ...

That makes sense, but couldn't you have put it more tactfully?
Xu Yuan looked at Miao Yu with sympathy.

He shared the same thought as Yu Yunhang: With a brother-in-law like that, Miao Yu, you're in for a rough time.

The topic then returned to the case, and Zhu Zhanlei said whatever came to mind: "We don't need to put in too much effort in Champa."

The incident happened in Luo City. Since they stole the Ghost King's body, they can go anywhere they want. What are the chances they would end up in Champa?

Miao Yu asked helplessly, "Then, according to you, what exactly happened in this case?"

"Isn't this just someone bribing an insider to secretly smuggle the Ghost King's body out using some kind of craftsmanship or treasure?"

Miao Yu shook his head repeatedly: "You're thinking too simply."

"I'll bet you," Zhu Zhanlei said defiantly. "I'm even more certain that the mole is someone from the Demon Extermination Army! If you think about it a little deeper, this was all orchestrated by the Demon Extermination Army!"

Have you heard of the saying "raising bandits to enhance one's own power"? The Demon Extermination Army is in Siam, and they're about to wipe out the rebels.

The imperial court will stop paying us money as soon as the war ends. How can that be? The demon-slaying army hasn't earned enough yet.

So they found a ghost king's body and secretly transported it to Siam.

Who would have thought that my third sister, while diligently patrolling the river, would detain them? And it ended up like this.

Miao Yu couldn't help but shake his head: "That's too far-fetched."

Xu Yuan didn't say anything, because from the moment they met, he could see that Zhu Zhanlei had an orange destiny mark on his head that rose five zhang high like a flagpole!

Destiny: Shaded by green willows.

The more you try, the less you gain.

One effort, yet failure.

This life is destined to be a life of luxury, devoid of true opportunity.

Xu Yuan frowned inwardly, wondering if he and Miao Yu had really overcomplicated things.

Zhu Zhanlei was somewhat displeased when he was described as "out of touch with reality": "Brother-in-law, do you dare to bet?"

Miao Yu waved his hand and laughed, "Do you have your eye on some treasure of mine? Just say the word, and I'll give it to you. If we're going to bet, you're definitely going to lose."

"I don't like hearing that," Zhu Zhanlei shouted. "I'm really going to take this bet! How about a sixth-rate craftsman's item?"

Miao Yu tried to refuse, but Zhu Zhanlei insisted on the bet, so Miao Yu had no choice but to accept.

Zhu Zhanlei laughed heartily: "Xu Yuan, you be a witness, so your brother-in-law won't renege on the debt."

Miao Yu shook his head with a wry smile.

With the bet settled, Zhu Zhanlei's mood improved. He grabbed Miao Yu with one hand and Xu Yuan with the other, saying, "Let's go, tonight at Xieliu Lane, it's my treat!"

Miao Yu repeatedly said, "I am of upright character and keep myself clean; I would never go to such a place..."

This is her future brother-in-law; the news of them visiting a brothel together reached his sister's ears...

Zhu Zhanlei scoffed, "What are you pretending for? I've already found out that you're Baiyue Pavilion's biggest patron."

"Ah...this..."

Xu Yuan wasn't going; mainly because it wouldn't be interesting. Even if the three of them teamed up, they couldn't outmaneuver that ancient fox.

In the end, Miao Yu was dragged there by his future brother-in-law.

Xu Yuan wrote a letter to Ma Tianshou, asking the old man to keep a close eye on the demon-slaying army in Luocheng.

It's too late today, I'll send it out first thing tomorrow morning.

……

The next morning, Xu Yuan first checked the Chinese almanac.

Today's prohibited activities: stargazing, shouting at the mountains, getting drunk, and forging.

The captain on duty last night was still sleepy-eyed and greeted Lord Xu listlessly.

After breakfast, the captains arrived, and those on duty went back to catch up on sleep after their shift.

Xu Yuan arranged for Yu Yunhang to deliver a letter to Luocheng.

With only seven or eight days left until the Lunar New Year, everyone is getting a little complacent.

Xu Yuan overheard several captains whispering: they would sneak out in the afternoon to buy New Year's goods for their families.

Fu Jingyu, Jia Yi, and several other inspectors appeared worried.

Fu Jingyu came to find Xu Yuan specifically: "The year is almost over, but there is still no 'No Gaze Day'."

Xu Yuan's heart skipped a beat: "So that means there will definitely be a 'no-viewing day' during these few days of the Lunar New Year?"

Fu Jingyu nodded.

There is at least one "no-viewing day" every year.

These are the days of the year when evil spirits are most rampant and the living are in the most danger.

In most years, there is only one day of prohibition against viewing.

But there are two days in a leap year.

Since we couldn't check the almanac beforehand, no one knew the exact day.

More than a hundred years ago, the purification department in a certain city in Goryeo (Korea) used a clever trick, bribing the local almanac reprinting company "Fuwenzhai" with a large sum of money to find out the date of the "day of prohibition against peeping" in advance.

In the ten days that followed, Fuwenzhai suffered a series of misfortunes.

The owner's entire family was brutally murdered, and more than half of the shop's employees and managers were killed or injured.

Even after surviving, he was plagued by tuberculosis and constant misfortune for the rest of his life.

On the day of the "forbidden viewing", the well-prepared exorcism department was completely wiped out!

From the time the incident at Fuwenzhai occurred to the arrival of the "day of prohibition against viewing," there were four and a half months in between.

Dozens of officials in the city's purification bureau have already tried to transfer out of the city.

Two of them were even transferred back to Zhengzhou.

But on that day, no one escaped.

No one, from north to south or across the country, was spared!

"Be careful!" Xu Yuan said in a deep voice. "Once we get through this, I'll give everyone twenty taels of silver so we can have a good New Year."

"it is good."

At noon, Shi Bading came over with one person.

“The Qihetai Public Office sent someone to find you.” Shi Bading pointed at the man and said, “He didn’t know you were on duty at the South City Patrol Office, so he went to the office first.”

Xu Yuan guessed it was related to the dragon.

Sure enough, after bowing, the man took out a letter from his pocket: "Sir, this is a letter from a friend in the mountains."

Xu Yuan took it and opened it.

In his letter, Old Man Bai said that the Great King Jiao had been acting "abnormally" lately.

On the last few times Bai Laoyan visited Guanghuo Street, Jiao Dawang only made a brief appearance each time, and it seemed that Jiao Dawang's relationship with the great evil spirits on Guanghuo Street was becoming increasingly close.

The day before yesterday, Bai Laoyan went to Guanghuo Street again, but he did not see Jiao Dawang. Only Tian Jing came to deal with him.

Old Bai was worried that something had happened, so he secretly wrote a letter to inform him.

Xu Yuan frowned. The dragon went to Ghost Witch Mountain and was corrupted by Yin energy, causing some "changes"?
The erosion in Xiaoyushan is much weaker than that in Guiwushan.

According to the Corpse Sparrow, the Great Dragon King has returned, but Xu Yuan has not been found.

It clearly had no intention of contacting Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan asked the messenger, "Did our friends in the mountains have any other instructions?"

"Nothing."

Xu Yuan nodded: "Stay here for now. I have written a reply, and I will trouble you to take it back."

"Yes."

The messenger was a servant from the government office. Xu Yuan instructed Lang Xiaoba to give him two taels of silver as a reward and settle him in the patrol room in the south city.

"Have Di Youzhi bring his men and come with me for a while."

……

Of course, Di Youzhi brought Zhou Leizi along.

Lord Xu's current skill level is not enough to make him invincible in Xiaoyu Mountain, but as long as he doesn't encounter anyone of the level of a wild boar or a ghost queen, he can be guaranteed to be safe.

They ventured dozens of miles into the mountains, but still found no trace of the dragon.

Xu Yuan felt a deep worry. "Great King Jiao, you must not ruin your reputation in your later years!"

In the late afternoon, Xu Yuan had no choice but to lead his team out.

If we don't leave now, it will be too late.

As they were about to leave the mountain, Xu Yuan suddenly noticed something swaying on the hillside not far away.

Lord Xu opened the "Looking at Fate" book, glanced at it, and couldn't help but smile.

The weasel was hiding in a patch of grass.

He also had a large bag of gunpowder hidden nearby.

It's bigger than its body.

It passed by here and saw a large group of people in the ravine below.

The leader was someone we knew.

The weasel didn't make any attempt to greet us.

In the end, he couldn't hide from the person. The footsteps came from the foot of the mountain all the way to his front: "Old friend, why are you hiding?"

"Are you feeling guilty?"

"You're doing something bad, aren't you!"

Xu Yuan used a rope made of animal sinew to lift the poor weasel by its tail.

Then Xu Yuan saw the large bag of explosives: "What are you planning to do?"

The weasel family, after returning to the mountain, had less income.

A while ago, Xu Yuan dealt with the Ghost Queen, which gave the weasel family an idea: there's money in the tomb!
Burial goods, jewelry, gold and jade, etc., can all be sold for money as long as they are dug up!

So the whole family searched the mountain for the grave.

This kid was lucky; he actually found one. He dug for several days, only to be blocked by a stone wall.

No matter how you dig, you can't get around it.

The young man gritted his teeth, went down the mountain, used his trickery to capture a man, and made him buy a packet of gunpowder for him.

If we can't dig it through, then we'll blast it open!
"Squeak!" the weasel protested, "Put me down! Or I'll scratch your face!"

Xu Yuan abruptly changed the subject, saying, "Speaking of Your Majesty... have you seen that Jiao King?"

"I didn't see the Great Dragon King, but I did see a Great Ghost King. I've already sworn allegiance to that Great Ghost King. If you don't put me down, I'll shout, and the Great Ghost King will come straight over from dozens of miles away and bite your head off!"

"The Ghost King? What Ghost King?" Xu Yuan's heart skipped a beat.

(End of this chapter)