The world is like a prison, my body is holy

Chapter 60: Darkness Under the Lamp (First Order Request)
Wang Wen tiptoed into the government compound.

He raised his head and, with the help of the dim starlight, roughly identified the surrounding scenery. Then he tiptoed towards the corridor connecting the front yard and the back yard.

The name of the government compound is scary, but in fact it is no different from the courtyards of ordinary wealthy families. It is also divided into first courtyard, second courtyard, and third courtyard.

The only difference is that the functions of the buildings in the yamen are divided more finely. Every courtyard and every room has a clear function, unlike the ordinary wealthy families where they can do whatever they want.

In the Great Zhou Dynasty, administrative centers at the provincial level, such as the government office hall, usually had four courtyards.

The first courtyard is the prison and the official residence of the three shifts of police officers. The second courtyard is the lobby of the government office and the office space for all officials. The third courtyard is the official residence of subordinate officials. The fourth courtyard is the living quarters for the officials and their families, as well as the reception room, back garden, etc.

This information is not a secret and can be easily found out. Besides, the Dusi Tianjian has a similar configuration, except that the first and second courtyards have been converted into training grounds and military camps.

The purpose of Wang Wen's trip was very clear, which was to investigate the official residences of the government officials in the third courtyard and the living room of the prefect in the fourth courtyard.

He thought that if the altar was really in the government hall, it must be in these two places.

After all, the first and second courtyards were crowded with people and gossip. An altar that could not be moved and was bound to have strange images on it would be too conspicuous in such a place. It was not so easy to hide in the dark under the light...

……

Wang Wenyi was not tall but he was very brave. He walked through the halls and corridors as if he was in an empty place and entered the third courtyard silently.

Just as he was about to jump over the wall into the west wing, he heard a steady sound of footsteps, mixed with the sound of swords colliding with their scabbards in the distance.

He looked around, turned around, jumped out of the corridor quietly, flipped over to the eaves of the corridor, held his breath and crawled quietly on the eaves.

After a while, two constables, one tall and one short, wearing dark blue yamen clothes, with black knives hanging from their waists and lanterns in their hands, came out from the corner of the corridor leading to the fourth courtyard.

The two of them were casually patrolling and chatting in low voices.

The short constable whispered, "...Third brother, is there any more wine in the gourd? Give me two more sips."

The tall constable quickly covered the wine gourd at his waist and said, "We're on duty, don't get drunk. If Captain Zhou catches you, he'll give you a beating!"

"I just want to take a couple of bites to warm myself up. The weather is getting colder and colder."

"Hey, kid, you're not going to be weak, are you?"

"I'm not, I didn't, Third Brother, don't talk nonsense!"

"Then why are you complaining about the cold? It's only September."

"(Gulp gulp) Maybe I caught a cold. I've been feeling unwell all over lately. I even break out in sweats and have trouble breathing when I sleep at night."

"You still say you're not hollow?"

"No, absolutely not. Every time I go to see Madam Liu, she says she can't stand it..."

"She says that to everyone, right?"

The two of them walked away slowly, muttering to each other.

After he could no longer hear the two people's muttering, Wang Wen jumped down and rolled up his sleeves uncertainly, waving: "It's not cold here, it seems that boy is indeed weak..."

He thought about it for a while but couldn't figure it out, so he turned around and put the matter behind him. He stood on tiptoe, ran two steps quickly, and then jumped over the wall of the west wing.

The small courtyard was also quiet and dark, and it was obvious that the people in the room had already gone to bed.

Wang Wen perked up, paying attention to Yin Chaling's movements, and tiptoed to the window of the wing room step by step. He approached the gap of the window and sniffed carefully.

There was no smell of blood, rot, burning incense, or any other strong odor.

There was no response from the Yinchaling either...

Good, not here!
Wang Wen turned around and stood on tiptoe. He flew across the courtyard like a dragonfly skimming the water and jumped onto the top of the wall. He used the momentum of the wall to leap up and then jumped across the corridor into the east wing opposite.

After a while, he saw his dark figure climbing up the wall. Like a big black cat, he used his hands and feet to run along the wall for a distance, and then jumped into the fourth courtyard...

But not long after, his dark figure was seen climbing up the courtyard wall again, and walking quickly along the top of the wall in the direction he came from.

……

"Boom."

Wang Wen jumped off the high vermilion wall. Xu Ergou and Chen Sandao, who were still waiting outside, hurried over to him and asked, "Brother, are you okay?"

Wang Wen frowned and thought hard: "What could possibly happen to me?"

Xu Ergou looked him up and down and asked, "Did you find anything?"

Wang Wen shook his head and muttered to himself, "That doesn't make sense..."

Xu Ergou became bolder now: "If you can't find one, just go find another one. You're not sure the altar is right here anyway!"

Wang Wen shook his head and replied in a muffled voice, "It's not here. I really don't know where it is. It's useless to look for it randomly..."

Xu Ergou scratched his head and asked in confusion, "Then why do you think that thing is here?"

Wang Wen glanced at him and lowered his voice, saying, "Think carefully about how Qing's father became the leader of the Sanhe Gang."

In the early years, rumors circulated within the Cao Gang that Zhang Yuan had ascended to the Sanhe Gang's leadership by clinging to the influence of Zhao Yiming, the Yangzhou prefect... More accurately, the earliest version circulated was that Zhang Yuan was simply Zhao Yiming's tool for amassing wealth. This rumor was rarely circulated outside, and even those who did hear it were generally forgotten over the years.

But most of the core members of the Cao Gang, such as Wang Wen, still remember this rumor.

This is also why Huang Xingde told him to stop as soon as he opened his mouth in the evening.

Lao Deng also thought of this...

Xu Ergou thought about it for a moment and whispered in surprise, "Isn't this just a rumor? I remember that the old man scolded us for this!"

"Whether it's a rumor or not, your uncle might know something about it, but he can't be sure."

Wang Wen shook his head and said, "But the fact is, Zhang Yuan rebelled and died, and he is obviously not the White Lotus's biggest supporter in this city."

In addition, there is another reason... Chen Sandao has searched Yangzhou City many times, but he has not searched two government offices and a military camp.

Let's not talk about the Xiangjun barracks for now. Even if the Yangzhou Xiangjun army is lax in its military preparations, there are still thousands of old, weak, and disabled people stationed there. If they want to play tricks under the noses of so many people, they might as well move the altar directly to the Dusi Tianjian, where there are at least fewer people...

As for the two government offices, one was the Astronomical Observatory and the other was the government office behind them.

"Now I understand what you said..."

Xu Ergou shook his big head: "What should we do now?"

“Nothing to do!”

Wang Wen let out a long breath, and the frustration in his heart had dissipated a lot. "We have done everything we can. It's fate that we can't find it. Go home and get some sleep!"

Anyway, I'm here, and I'm not afraid.

Whether or not you can find it is another matter.

Xu Ergou heaved a sigh of relief after hearing what they said. He happily pushed Wang Wen towards the Qinghe Gang's main hall and said, "I've been waiting for you to say this. I've been so sleepy that my eyelids are drooping."

Chen Sandao, who was floating to the side, sneered at the right moment and said, "You still have the nerve to say that? If I hadn't woken you up just now, your snoring would have been heard by the two constables in the wall..."

"Oh?"

Wang Wen casually said, "Have you two also seen those two old escorts?"

Chen Sandao replied nonchalantly, "Those two short-lived ghosts still dare to go to whores? They are full of Yin energy, and they are not afraid of a stroke..."

"Ok?"

Wang Wen paused and looked back at him blankly: "Aren't you unable to get in?"

Chen Sandao shrank his neck and stammered, "I didn't go in either. They were inside the wall and we were outside. I was floating in the sky and watched them go to the cell."

Wang Wen suddenly had an idea: "Prison cell? Yin energy?"

Xu Ergou said, "I also heard the two constables say they were going to the cell to report for duty. Big brother, you won't doubt it..."

"If that's the case, then they've really made it clear that the light is dark."

Wang Wen turned around and walked back: "Let's go back and take a look!"

Xu Ergou glared at Chen Sandao with a bitter face: "I will definitely burn some Dongshi for you, you son of a bitch!"

The two men and the ghost returned to their original positions. Xu Ergou and Chen Sandao were still waiting outside to support them, while Wang Wen climbed over the wall alone.

The cell was located right at the entrance to the yard, very close and easy to find. After he entered, he climbed over a wall and jumped into the gutter on the side of the cell.

This cell was as high as a two-story building, built entirely with square stone blocks. Even the top was made of thick loess and heavy beams. When you hit it with your fist, there was not even a muffled sound.

Wang Wen walked around the entire cell cautiously, but only found a narrow iron door and seven or eight ventilation windows the size of washbasins sealed with iron bars.

Thinking of the environment in the cell, he had no intention of going up to take a sniff.

But getting into the cell is not only difficult, but also very easy to be exposed.

If you're stuck inside, the only way out is to fight your way out...

Just when Wang Wen was in a dilemma and hesitant, the iron door of the cell suddenly creaked open, and a dim firelight projected from the narrow door, which was extremely obvious in the darkness.

In the firelight, two figures, one tall and one short, walked out from inside, holding lanterns.

Wang Wen hid at the corner and took a closer look... Oh, aren't those two old bodyguards from before?

His eyes lit up, and he thought to himself, "It's decided to be you two!"

He stood up, took a running start and jumped over the low wall outside the cell.

The two old escorts also walked out of the courtyard with lanterns in hand...

After a while, Wang Wen came back wearing a black robe, holding a black knife and holding a lantern. He covered his mouth with one hand, coughed violently, opened the narrow door, lowered his head and stepped in.

(End of this chapter)