The world is like a prison, my body is holy

Chapter 57: The Edge Will Show Up
"everything……"

Huang Xingde hesitated for a long time before he reluctantly responded, "Let's do as you wish, Senior Brother."

He has his concerns.

The incident happened in Yangzhou. The White Lotus Sect might not be able to do anything to the entire Cao Gang, but it might be able to do something to his Qinghe Gang.

But he also admitted that what Jiang Jin said made sense. Since he had already done it, how could he be so afraid of wolves in front and tigers behind, or laugh at himself when he had only taken fifty steps?
Seeing him hesitate for a long time, Jiang Jin naturally knew what he was worried about. He comforted him and said, "Junior brother, don't worry too much. Since this matter has been taken over by the Law Enforcement Hall, we will handle it from beginning to end and will not leave any loose ends for your Qinghe Hall!"

Huang Xingde suppressed his worries and bowed with a smile: "Brother, what are you talking about? We are brothers, how can I not trust you, brother?"

Jiang Jin smiled and nodded, "There's no time to lose. My nephew, you should reply to Mr. Zhao today and tell him that our Cao Gang is willing to assist him in digging deep underground to find the White Lotus Sect's altar!"

Wang Wen immediately stood up and clasped his fists: "Then I will hurry back to the yamen to report. Master, please rest for a while..."

"Not urgent!"

Jiang Jin raised his hand and called out to Wang Wen who was about to turn and leave.

He reached out from his bosom and took out a scroll with fresh ink on the cover. He handed it to Wang Wen from a distance and said, "Master, I have nothing but this scroll of handwritten notes as a gift. I hope you will not despise it."

Wang Wendi looked over and saw five powerful characters "Canglan Jiudielang" written on the snow-white cover. He didn't know whether this gift was valuable or whether he should accept it, so he could only look at Huang Xingde.

Huang Xingde also looked at the secret book in Jiang Jin's hand, his eyes a little shocked, but also a little cautious: "Brother, this gift is too much!"

His voice was a little muffled.

Jiang Jin stroked his beard and chuckled, "A little ink and half a piece of rice paper, what's the big deal... Come on, child, don't be like your adoptive father and fuss around. Just take what your uncle-master gives you!"

"This……"

Wang Wen looked at Huang Xingde again.

Huang Xingde pondered for a few breaths and nodded slightly.

Wang Wen then stepped forward, lifted his skirt, knelt down and kowtowed, then raised his hands high above his head and took the scroll from Jiang Jin's hand: "Disciple thanks Master for this gift!"

"Good boy, get up."

Jiang Jin reached out with relief to help him up, saying gently, "This martial art was acquired by my uncle-master during a night tour of Dongting Lake in his early years. Apart from my uncle-master, only your senior brother Xie Zhixuan knows this martial art. When you encounter your senior brother on the road in the future, don't forget the bond of camaraderie."

Wang Wen nodded quickly: "Master Uncle's instructions will be kept in mind. When I see Brother Xie in person, I will treat him like a brother!"

Jiang Jin stroked his beard with increasing satisfaction.

Huang Xingde couldn't stand watching this anymore, thinking that the bastard had never been so submissive to him before. He cursed with a tinge of jealousy, "You're full of jingles! You want to be the top scorer? Hurry back to the government office and report. Your uncle and I are still waiting for your reply."

"Hey."

Wang Wen nodded and bowed in response, then walked back out of the hall holding the secret book in his hands: "Master, please sit for a while. I'll be right back, right back..."

The two men in the lobby stroked their beards and watched him go away with a smile.

After a long while, Huang Xingde sighed and said, "Brother, you are really old!"

Jiang Jin looked at him with a smile: "You are old, how can I not be old?"

“It’s good to be old, it’s good to be old!”

Huang Xingde slapped his thigh sincerely: "Only when you get old can you become more human!"

Jiang Jin laughed loudly and said, "Are you cursing me in a roundabout way?"

"How dare we?"

Huang Xingde exhaled lightly and said with a smile: "To be honest, Senior Brother, every time I saw you in the past, I felt both respect and fear in my heart. But these few times when we brothers get together, I always want to tell you something from the heart..."

Jiang Jin laughed even louder: "I understand, but you're still scolding me in a roundabout way!"

"Let's not talk nonsense for now."

Huang Xingde chuckled and said, "Brother, where is our nephew doing now? Is he also in the Law Enforcement Hall?"

Jiang Jin squinted at him and asked, "What are you planning, kid?"

"Look at what you said. What kind of person do you think I am?"

Huang Xingde complained, then pointed at the ground with a shifty look and whispered, "Isn't this place ownerless? If my nephew doesn't mind, he might as well come and pick up a ready-made one. Although this local tyrant may not be as free and easy as you guys in the Law Enforcement Hall, it's still a stable livelihood that can be passed down from generation to generation. The key is that it's beneficial and free."

Jiang Jin leaned back in surprise, looking him up and down: "You're willing to spit out the meat that's already in your mouth?"

"It's not ours in the first place, why should we be reluctant to give it up?"

Huang Xingde said honestly, "If we hand it over to the headquarters, who knows which young master will be sent to Yangzhou to cause trouble for us. It would be better to let my nephew take care of it. It's better to keep the wealth within the family!"

"Tsk tsk tsk..."

Jiang Jin looked at him and said with mixed feelings: "You really worry about that child."

Huang Xingde said helplessly: "What can we do? Who told you to be so generous? As a son, I can't pay it back, so I have to pay it back as my father!"

"I'm willing to give it to him, but I don't expect him to pay it back. Don't mention such awkward words again in the future!"

Jiang Jin was a little annoyed by his mercenary nature and couldn't help but blurt out, "I want to thank you for your kindness as a senior apprentice on behalf of my useless disciple."

"As for the Sanhe Gang's foundation, I have to ask him first what he wants. If he wants it, then he'll thank you, his uncle, for helping him. If he doesn't want it, you can do whatever you want with it. Even if you swallow it all up, it won't matter."

Huang Xingde quickly said, "Brother, this kind of opportunity is rare. If you miss this opportunity, you will never get it again. You have been running around in the wind and rain all your life. Do you really want our nephew to be like you..."

Jiang Jin pondered for a moment, then nodded and said, "I'll have a good talk with him about this!"

Huang Xingde wanted to persuade him again, but he felt that too much was as bad as too little, so he could only nod in agreement.

He insisted on doing this not just to repay Wang Wen's favor, but also to bring in some of the power of the Law Enforcement Hall to sit together in Yangzhou in preparation for the White Lotus' counterattack.

His Qinghe Hall is just a small arm, but the Cao Gang Law Enforcement Hall is a golden thigh!

……

Wang Wen went straight back to the Astronomical Observatory and started a long and cunning negotiation with Zhao Zhiling and others regarding the joint law enforcement by the Cao Gang and the Astronomical Observatory to search for the White Lotus Sect's altar.

In this negotiation, Cheng first played the good guy, Zhao Zhiling personally played the bad guy, the monk Shou'an moved in and out to mediate, and Li Heng stretched his neck to watch the show.

Wang Wen fought one against four, implementing the policy of keeping constant in the face of ever-changing situations and not releasing the eagle until he saw the rabbit, and kept a steady mind to fight them.

Anyway, he has won over the attitude of the Cao Gang. If Zhao Zhiling and the others can't afford the price, then they can only blame themselves for being incompetent!

He was not in a hurry.

The long negotiation lasted from noon to evening before the two sides barely reached an agreement.

In the end, the Cao Gang sent out 800 brothers to fully cooperate with the Chief Astronomical Observer in searching the White Lotus Sect's altar.

In exchange, Zhao Zhiling stamped the official seal on the long-pending regularization report and sent it to the capital in front of Wang Wen, and guaranteed that Wang Wen could get his certificate as a sixth-rank Shaoqiu official within three months.

According to Zhao Zhiling and others, the Imperial Observatory was newly established, and the capital gave the Imperial Observatory in each prefecture great autonomy in personnel appointments. As long as Wang Wen had no opponents in the court, his promotion to a regular position was basically a sure thing!
When Wang Wen came out of the yamen, it was already dark.

Xu Ergou led a group of Cao Gang disciples in official uniforms, who were sitting or squatting outside the yamen gate, waiting for him to come out.

"What are you doing squatting outside the gate?"

Wang Wen looked at this group of idiots in confusion, then frowned and looked at the two Si Tianwei guarding the gate: "They won't let you in?"

"It's unfair, Lord Wang."

The two Si Tianwei guarding the gate were frightened by his fierce look and hurriedly waved their hands, saying, "They are our brothers. How can we not let them go home?"

Wang Wen looked at Xu Ergou in confusion. Xu Ergou quickly approached him and whispered in his ear, "Sandao doesn't dare approach the government office..."

Wang Wen was stunned for a moment, and subconsciously turned his head to glance at the "Du Si Tian Jian" plaque above his head, then looked at the two stone lions placed on both sides of the gate that were taller than humans. Suddenly, he came to his senses and patted the Si Tian Wei beside him: "Boy, you can talk now, next time you go to Lichunyuan, blame me!"

The celestial guard immediately beamed and clasped his hands together, saying, "We're all family, you're too polite."

"Yes, I remember you!"

Wang Wen nodded with a smile and waved to Xu Ergou and the others: "Let's go, let's get down to business!"

Xu Ergou and others quickly followed his footsteps.

Without even turning around, Wang Wen asked in a low voice, "Has Qing Ge'er been sent out?"

Xu Ergou also lowered his voice and replied, "Are you still worried about me doing things?"

Wang Wen turned his head and glanced at him.

Xu Ergou calmly pointed to the small wooden building diagonally opposite.

Wang Wen understood and turned his head: "Sandao, Sandao, where have you been again?"

"Not dead, not dead, here, here..."

Chen Sandao floated out from a gutter on the side and followed him as usual. People who didn't know the truth saw their huge, dark group of people and had no idea who was human and who was a ghost.

"You're quite capable! You don't even dare to enter such a shabby government office!" Wang Wen habitually sneered at him, and before he could respond, he continued, "Did you find the thing that scared you last night?"

Chen Sandao shrank his neck and whispered, "Not yet... I haven't found it yet. I only searched for a while last night and it was already dawn..."

Wang Wen was so angry that he blurted out, "You are such a loser among losers...Are you sure that thing isn't in the Sanhe Gang?"

Chen Sandao: "When we went there last night, that thing was definitely not in the Sanhe Gang Hall, but I smelled a fishy smell at the time. I didn't recognize it at the time, but I thought about it for a long time during the day and it must be the smell I smelled at Taiping Bridge."

Wang Wen looked at him in surprise: "Can you still smell it?"

Chen Sandao: "It's not the taste. How should I put it? It's like drinking mint tea. It doesn't have any taste, but it just feels cool..."

Wang Wen looked at him with a dazed look, and he couldn't be sure whether what frightened him last night was the altar that Zhao Zhiling and the others had mentioned.

"Then go look for it. As long as it's in the city, we can dig it out even in such a small area by digging it up inch by inch."

Thinking of this, he felt a lump in his throat and couldn't spit it out... Damn it, he captured dozens of White Lotus Sect monsters yesterday, but he couldn't get any useful information out of them.

He didn't know whether to complain about how useless they were, or how cunning the White Lotus Cult was...

He just sat there with his head down, not saying a word. Chen Sandao, who was standing beside him, became increasingly anxious. He whispered weakly, "Brother, I, I...what should I do next?"

"What else can I do?"

Wang Wen glanced at him unhappily. "I told you to reincarnate, but you can't find the way. I let you drift like this, and I'm afraid you'll be taken away one day. If others become ghosts, you'll become one too. Others have only been dead for seven days and they can hang me and Brother Xian up and beat us, but you've been dead for eight days and you still don't dare to get close to Ergou and me... You're such a loser."

Chen Sandao nodded timidly and said, "Yes, yes, I'm causing trouble for Big Brother again..."

"Bullshit!"

Wang Wen instinctively raised his hand, then forcibly retracted it, sighing and saying, "We'll continue to live the same way as before. It's just that you won't eat meat and wine anymore, but will eat gold ingots, candles and incense instead."

"By the way, don't go back to your family yet. Don't scare my godson. Besides, you have a ghostly aura, which is not good for them, an orphan and a widow."

"Also, you can drift as much as you want, but don't lose your mind. If one day you suddenly find that your brother smells good, remember to tell me and I will give him a ride!"

"Oh, and by the way, from now on, when I'm sleeping, don't come near me. I'm good at killing people in my dreams, so don't let me slap you to death!"

"Of course. From now on, when I sleep, you can stay by my side and keep watch. If you encounter any other floating goods..."

Chen Sandao was overjoyed. Before he could finish, he patted his chest and promised, "Big brother, just wait and see. With us here, no matter how fierce or fierce a ghost is, it won't be able to get within ten feet of you!"

"You're so fierce!"

Wang Wen almost slapped him again: "This is what we eat. If you drive those guys away, you will pay the bill when we go to Lichunyuan from now on."

Chen Sandao shrank his neck timidly: "Then what do you say, big brother?"

Wang Wen looked at him with shining eyes: "What I mean is, if you encounter a floating fish next time, remember to call Big Brother to protect you. Even if I'm not there at the time, you must remember the location of the big fish and bring Big Brother to chop it up. If you have the ability, just bring the big fish to my door. Big Brother is not picky..."

Chen Sandao looked at him with horror in his eyes, his head almost shrinking into his chest.

"Damn, you're scarier than a ghost!"

……

The cross-border joint law enforcement between the Dusi Tianjian and the Cao Gang kicked off in such a grand manner.

That night, the two gangs organized a team of thousands of people and went deep into the various markets in Yangzhou City, searching house by house in a dragnet-style manner.

Driven by the promise of "becoming a regular employee", Wang Wen, like a spinning top wound up, traveled day and night between the Dusi Tianjian Yamen and the Sanhe Gang, smoothing out the major and minor details of the joint law enforcement and summarizing the progress of the joint law enforcement searches.

Even though Huang Xingde reminded him several times to seize the time to practice "Canglan Jiudielang" while Jiang Jin was still in Yangzhou, he didn't care.

But thousands of people searched Yangzhou City over and over again two or three times like headless flies, but found nothing!
This is unreasonable...

For a long time, apart from the collapsed Beggar Gang branch, the Cao Gang was the most well-informed in Yangzhou City.

But this time, even the brothers who were guarding the gates of the two major branches of their Cao Gang were sent out, but they still couldn't catch a single hair of the White Lotus Sect demon.

This makes one wonder whether the White Lotus Sect altar actually exists.

……

“…There are four possibilities.”

"The first possibility is that Master Ji's source of information is wrong. There is no White Lotus Sect altar in this city at all."

September 3rd, after noon.

Because they invested too much manpower and energy and were unable to carry out their work normally, the two major branches, the Dusi Tianjian and the Cao Gang, had to abandon their prejudices against white and gray and gather in the lobby of the Dusi Tianjian yamen to hold a meeting and discuss the next steps.

On the side of the Chief Astronomical Observatory, Taoist Ji Liang, who had returned to the mountain to check information and gather news, has not returned yet. Four high-ranking officials of the Chief Astronomical Observatory, Zhao Zhiling, Abbot Shou'an, Cheng Xian, and Li Heng, are still present.

The Cao Gang's side was naturally represented by the two brothers Jiang Jin and Huang Xingde.

At this moment, Wang Wen, who is the lubricant of this cross-border joint law enforcement, is summarizing the joint law enforcement work of the past half month.

At this point, Zhao Zhiling, who had been listening for a long time, interrupted him softly, "According to recent official documents from the Astronomical Observatory in the surrounding prefectures, large numbers of White Lotus sect members have been active in Changzhou, Hangzhou, Jinling, Taiping Prefecture, Xuanzhou, and other places, committing crimes and spreading false rumors. The Astronomical Observatory in Huzhou has successfully seized a ritual altar... There's no need to consider this!"

Wang Wen readily agreed: "According to what you said, there are only three possibilities left."

"First, the White Lotus's altar isn't even in the city. We were looking in the wrong direction from the start."

The six people in the hall couldn't help but frown. Thousands of people had been searching the city for more than ten days, so of course they had considered this possibility.

But this possibility is very unsolvable. The world outside the city is so vast. Without someone who knows the way, who can find a mere altar?
Jiang Jin said in a deep voice, "Go on."

Wang Wen nodded. "The second possibility is that the altar isn't the massive, immovable object we thought it was, but rather something that can be disassembled and transported at any time... Speaking of which, sir, didn't you mention that an altar was seized in Huzhou? Aren't there any blueprints or anything like that?"

Everyone looked at Zhao Zhiling in the hall.

Zhao Zhiling responded helplessly, "Such evil things should be burned on the spot. Even if they were to be reported, there's no reason for them to go through my hands."

Wang Wen nodded, then suddenly turned his gaze to the silent monk Shou'an, who sat at the top of his left, twirling his prayer beads. "Come to think of it, Master Shou'an is also a layman. Even if you haven't eaten pork, you've probably seen pigs run, right? You really don't have any idea what that altar looks like?"

Everyone's eyes turned to the great monk Shouan on the upper left.

Master Shouan clasped his hands together, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. He then chanted the Buddha's name and said, "Master Wang, monks are monks and do not eat meat or fish."

Wang Wen waved his hand: "It's just a metaphor, a metaphor. Just get the idea, don't take it too seriously!"

Master Shou'an twirled his rosary beads, pondering, "I'm not particularly familiar with Taoist teachings. In my humble opinion, these heretical methods, which often involve sacrificing large numbers of living souls, mostly imitate orthodox Taoist methods, emphasizing the importance of optimal timing, location, and harmony among people. They must correspond to the sun, moon, and stars, connect to the mountain terrain, and coincide with an auspicious day."

"Logically speaking, the rituals of the Three Talents are all meticulous and time-consuming to prepare. If that were the case, the altar should be inconvenient to disassemble and move."

At this point, he softly chanted the Buddha's name and emphasized, "However, the Daoist teachings are vast and profound, encompassing countless things. I, a monk, am only making arbitrary assumptions based on my past experiences. Believers should only use this as a reference and not take it seriously."

When everyone in the hall heard this, they felt both enlightened and helpless.

If Taoist Ji Liang were here, he would definitely be able to give a reliable judgment...

After listening to Master Shou'an's words, Wang Wen felt as if he had suddenly realized something, but at the same time, he felt that something was not right.

But he couldn't figure out what was wrong for a moment, so he could only continue, "Very good, thank you Master Shouan for clearing up my doubts!"

"Now, we have obtained two more very important pieces of information!"

"That is, the altar must exist, and it is highly likely that it cannot be disassembled or moved..."

Cheng Xian asked doubtfully, "Erhu, you just mentioned three possibilities, but you didn't mention one."

Wang Wen puffed out his chest and head as he strolled through the center of the lobby. "That's exactly the third possibility I was about to talk about..."

He spoke confidently and easily drew everyone's attention to himself. Huang Xingde even leaned over in his chair to see if he had any cheat sheets in his hand.

This guy who is so organized, not at all stage-frightened and never utters a single curse word, is really the stupid one in his family who is full of sharp words, curses after two sentences and gets violent after three sentences?
Could he be a monster in disguise?
"Based on the premise that the altar must exist and must be within the city, we also obtained the crucial information that the altar cannot be disassembled or moved."

"Then, there is only one possibility left... The altar exists in a place that none of us Si Tianwei brothers and Cao Gang brothers can find."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone in the hall frowned.

After a brief moment of thought, Zhao Zhiling said in a deep voice, "Erhu, you might as well make your words clearer."

Wang Wen stretched out his right hand, spread out his five fingers, and counted them: "There are actually quite a few places like this, such as military camps, grain warehouses, Qiling Temple, and so on..."

He suddenly raised his head and looked at Zhao Zhiling in the hall: "Your Excellency, your official residence!"

In an instant, the whole room was silent and you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone looked at Wang Wen in the center in shock, shocked at his boldness... Of course they knew that Wang Wen was not talking about Zhao Zhiling's official residence.

After a long while, Jiang Jin turned around and whispered to Huang Xingde beside him: "When a needle is in the bag, its tip will definitely show!"

Wang Wen grinned and laughed silently.

This is exactly the effect he wants to achieve...I am just confused, but not really stupid!

(End of this chapter)