Cangmang Asks the Way 1: Guardian of the Lamp

As night fell completely, a cacophony of footsteps and curses echoed from the direction of the village entrance.

The newcomers were none other than "Black Bear," "Mourning Star," and "Lamenting Star," who had been injured by Cang Lifeng at the temple fair years ago and subsequently imprisoned. They had only recently been released, and each of them was seething with anger, carrying wooden sticks and reeking of alcohol.

"Cang Lifeng, get the hell out here!" Black Bear had the loudest voice. He slammed his stick against the gate of the Cang family's old house, making a loud clanging sound. "Damn it, you're the one who caused me to spend all these years in jail. Get out here, let's settle this score!"

Cang Shouzheng, who lived in the side room of the old house, was the first to be disturbed and came out trembling to check. Immediately afterward, Cang Houde also appeared at the door of the main room, leaning on his cane with a sullen face.

The front yard quickly descended into chaos. Cang Shouzhen, both alarmed and frightened, explained that Cang Lifeng was not there. Black Bear and his men didn't believe him, insisting he must be hiding and demanding the Cang family hand him over. Otherwise, they threatened to storm in and smash up the Cang family's old house.

They pushed and shoved each other, shouting insults, attracting a crowd of neighbors. The commotion quickly spread, and Cang Zhenye and Cang Xiangyang rushed over from their own yards. When these men saw Cang Xiangyang, their eyes blazed with anger, and they became even more aggressive.

Wang Zhenkun indeed "rushed over upon hearing the news," squeezing into the crowd to "mediate," speaking loudly and making exaggerated gestures, but with little effect. The scene only became more chaotic.

The front yard was in complete chaos, drawing everyone's attention.

Under the cover of the noise, a dark figure silently climbed over the back wall of the old house, pried open the window of Cang Houde's room, and slipped inside.

The room was pitch black, with only the faint sounds of noise from the front yard and the dim light of the snow filtering through. Wang Zhiqiang quickly adjusted to the darkness and pulled a palm-sized miniature device with an LCD screen and probes from his pocket. He pressed the switch, and the device emitted an almost inaudible low-frequency hum. The screen lit up with a pale blue light, displaying complex waveforms and parameters.

Like a seasoned minesweeper, he started from the doorway, moving the detector slowly and steadily along the wall. The waveform on the screen fluctuated with his movement, displaying signals from common materials such as brick walls, wood, and a few nails. He was patient, his sharp eyes filtering through the background noise, searching for that specific "anomaly."

The bed, wardrobe, old desk, and clutter piled in the corner... the detector's feedback was all ordinary. But when he moved to the wall near the inside of the bed, close to the corner, the waveform on the screen suddenly began to fluctuate violently. A clear, stable signal peak, with spectral characteristics highly matching the data provided by Hiroshi Nakamura, appeared prominently on the screen.

It's inside the wall!

Wang Zhiqiang's heart suddenly raced. He turned off the detector, held his breath, and gently tapped the wall with his knuckles. The sound was slightly different from the hollow sound elsewhere, carrying a soft, solid muffled thud. He leaned closer to examine it carefully, and by the dim light from the window, he finally discovered an extremely subtle seam, almost blending into its surroundings, in the shadow where the plaster had peeled and the brickwork met—a very well-hidden compartment or niche.

He suppressed his elation and took out a more refined pry tool and a thin metal probe from his toolbox. He carefully probed and moved it along the gap. A few minutes later, with an almost inaudible "click," a wall brick about two feet square was unlocked from the internal mechanism and gently removed.

Inside the hidden compartment, there lay a square object wrapped in dark blue homespun cloth.

He reached into the cloth bag, opened it, and a locked iron box appeared before his eyes.

He shook his head and sighed, "That old guy really knows how to guard against things. If it weren't for this high-tech gadget, we really wouldn't be able to find him."

He took a wire-like object out of his pocket, inserted it into the keyhole, and gently flicked it open with a "click".

He saw a thick notebook inside the metal box. Somewhat disappointed, he reluctantly picked up the notebook and continued examining it.

Finally, he saw what he wanted—a dark gold copper coin with a round shape, a square hole, and strange non-Chinese characters engraved on the edge, lying quietly at the bottom of the box.

It's done. He was about to put down the notebook and take the copper coins from the box when he suddenly thought, "This notebook and the copper coins must be valuable items together."

Curious, he opened it and flipped through a few pages. It was filled with neat, dense handwriting, recording the time, place, item names, characteristics, and even some simple diagrams… It was a comprehensive list of cultural relics! Who would have thought that Cangyun Mountain, ostensibly serving the Japanese army, actually had ulterior motives?

Overjoyed overwhelmed him instantly. This operation had not only yielded copper coins but also this unexpected notebook. The reward promised by Mr. Nakamura Hiroshi was now multiplying in his mind.

Lost in the dizziness and fantasy brought on by his enormous gains, he was completely unaware that a ghostly figure had silently approached the door.

The door was ajar, and Cang Tianci saw a man squatting on the ground, looking down at something. A perfect opportunity! Just as he was about to slip inside, he suddenly felt a strong killing intent emanating from the back of his head. Without thinking, he flung the door open and rolled forward to stand in front of Wang Zhiqiang.

Wang Zhiqiang reacted extremely quickly. Almost the instant he heard Tianci slam the door, he swiftly drew a silenced pistol from his back waist with his right hand.

But Tianci was faster than him.

The instant Wang Zhiqiang drew his gun, Tianci slid in like a ghost, pushing the Hidden Dragon Technique to its limit. He brought his right index and middle fingers together like a halberd and precisely stabbed at the "Shenmen" acupoint on Wang Zhiqiang's wrist.

This finger strike was as fast as lightning; before the fingertip even arrived, the sharp wind from the finger had already made Wang Zhiqiang's wrist go numb.

"Ugh!" Wang Zhiqiang groaned, nearly dropping the pistol. He forcefully twisted his wrist, pressed the muzzle down, and aimed at Tianci's knee, ready to pull the trigger.

But Tianci seemed to have anticipated his movements, changing his thrusting finger mid-strike into a palm strike that landed squarely on the inside of Wang Zhiqiang's elbow. At the same time, he spun to the side, his left leg sweeping out like a whip, kicking hard at the back of the opponent's supporting leg's knee.

This series of movements is fluid and graceful, a perfect combination of the "Hidden Dragon Asks the Heart Finger" and Southern-style short-range fighting.

Wang Zhiqiang was not a combat expert after all. In his haste, he only had time to retreat half a step before being kicked in the back of his knee. A sharp pain shot through him, and he staggered. But he was also determined. Using the momentum of his stagger, he did not retreat but advanced, charging towards Tianci and slamming his left elbow hard into Tianci's temple.

Tianci ducked to avoid it, his elbow grazing Wang Zhiqiang's scalp and sending a burning pain through him. He moved closer, his right hand pointing outwards again, this time aiming straight for Wang Zhiqiang's "Lianquan" acupoint below his Adam's apple.

If this blow lands squarely, it could suffocate someone instantly.

A look of horror flashed in Wang Zhiqiang's eyes. He hadn't expected this teenager to possess such ruthless and precise skills. In this life-or-death moment, he could no longer care about anything else. He leaned back with all his might, while his right hand wildly pointed his pistol at Tianci—

"Whoosh—Pfft!"

The silencer made a muffled sound as the bullet grazed Tianci's shoulder and entered the wall.

Almost simultaneously, Ichiro Imai, who had quickly slipped out of the window, fired a second bullet through the window.

However, the bullet wasn't aimed at Tianci, but at Wang Zhiqiang, who was leaning back in a disheveled state. He had already determined that the boy in the room seemed to possess an innate, keen sense of danger, always able to detect it the moment it was aimed at him and take effective evasive action. This ability horrified him, and it also made him make the decisive choice to kill Wang Zhiqiang, who had been cornered.

Just before the gunshot rang out, Tianci, relying on the extreme sense of crisis brought about by the Hidden Dragon Technique, forcibly twisted his body and fell to the side.

"Pfft!"

The dull thud of a bullet entering flesh.

Wang Zhiqiang's body stiffened abruptly, his eyes widening in disbelief as he stared at his chest—a small, gaping hole was opening right in front of his heart, blood gushing out. He opened his mouth as if to say something, but no sound came out; only shock and despair remained in his eyes.

Tianci dodged the second shot, but the third shot followed immediately.

That shot was aimed at him!

The bullet tore through the air and aimed straight for his back!

Tianci had no time to turn around. He could only rely on instinct, channeling all his strength into his legs, and lunged forward and rolled.

"Thud!" The bullet grazed his back and entered the ground, sending brick fragments flying.

He ducked into a blind spot beside the bed, his heart pounding and his back burning with pain—although he hadn't been hit directly, the scorching heat of the bullet and the flying brick fragments had still cut several bloody gashes on his back.

After firing the third shot, Ichiro Imai quickly ran away into the distance, disappearing completely into the night.

What was that sound?

"It's...it's gunshots!"

Having experienced a hail of bullets, Cang Houde reacted instantly and shouted in a trembling voice.

A brief silence fell over the courtyard and its surroundings.

Cang Houde, his face pale, staggered towards the old house.

Cang Zhenye also realized what was happening, but he didn't notice that Cang Tianci was missing. Instead, he rushed forward and supported the swaying Cang Houde.

The black bear and his companions were also taken aback by the sudden scene. They looked at each other in dismay and momentarily forgot about causing trouble.

Cang Tianci heard his father and the others' footsteps rapidly approaching, and then heard the faint sound of something landing outside the window and the sound of footsteps fading away. He knew that the sniper hiding in the shadows had escaped.

When he first saw Wang Zhiqiang lying in a pool of blood, his face turned deathly pale, and his eyes went blank. After all, he was just a fourteen-year-old boy, and he had never seen such a bloody scene before.

He didn't know how much time had passed—perhaps only a few seconds, perhaps much longer—before his gaze shifted from the corpse to the iron box beside it. Inside lay a dark gold copper coin. Next to the box was an open notebook, filled with densely packed writing.

Is this what Grandpa risked his life to protect? Is this what caused this person's death?

Curiosity temporarily made him forget his fear. He crouched down and took out a copper coin from the iron box. The coin was cold to the touch, and the engraved edges dug into his palm. Just as he was about to examine it closely, he heard hurried footsteps outside.

He didn't have time to think, and clenched the copper coin tightly in his palm. He had a vague feeling that this thing must contain a huge secret, and he couldn't afford to lose it.

At this moment, Cang Houde, Cang Zhenye, Cang Xiangyang and others rushed to the door and were stunned by the scene in the room.

"Tianci, what happened? Are you alright?" Cang Zhenye grabbed his son, his voice trembling.

"Someone broke in and stole something...with a gun." Tianci pointed to the corpse on the ground, his voice trembling. "He...he opened...opened this metal box. I...I just happened to be there, just...just about to subdue him. I didn't expect someone outside to fire at me repeatedly. I dodged, but he..."

Thinking back to the close call, Tianci felt a wave of fear, and his body trembled involuntarily.

At this moment, Su Yumei pushed through the crowd and saw this tragic scene. She was so frightened that she trembled all over. She hugged Cang Tianci and burst into tears.

"A gun?" "Breakfast robbery!" "Dead man!"... The villagers who followed in were in an uproar, fear and shock spreading through the crowd. Black Bear and his troublemakers had already slipped away in the chaos.

Eighty-three-year-old Cang Houde remained remarkably calm in the face of this scene. He glanced at Cang Tianci, a flicker of heartache and pride in his eyes. Then, he silently crouched down to examine the iron box on the ground. Seeing the notebook beside it unharmed, his tense expression relaxed slightly. But when he saw the copper coins inside the box were gone, his calm demeanor instantly turned panicked.

He turned the metal box upside down, searching for it; he also swung the notebook in his hand, making a clattering sound, but nothing fell out.

His gaze quickly locked onto the corpse on the ground. He staggered over and began searching the body. His movements were hurried, even somewhat rough, completely ignoring the strange looks from those around him.

At this moment, Cang Yuanzhi, leaning on a cane, arrived at the scene accompanied by Liu Wenxiu. He saw his father searching for something on the corpse, and then he saw the open iron box... He instantly understood everything. He hadn't expected those people to act so quickly.

Seeing his grandfather like this, Cang Tianci knew what his grandfather was looking for. He tightened his grip on the copper coin in his hand, which was now burning hot from being held in his palm. That heat seemed to scald his heart.

He gently walked to his grandfather's side, squatted down, and took his grandfather's trembling hand. His grandfather looked up at him blankly, his cloudy eyes filled with anxiety and despair.

Tianci didn't speak, but gently pulled his grandfather's hand away from the corpse, and then, without leaving a trace, placed the copper coin, still warm from his body, into his grandfather's withered palm.

Cang Houde shuddered and looked at his grandson. Cang Tianci didn't speak, but just looked at him, his eyes filled with unspoken words.

Cang Houde slowly clenched the copper coin, so tightly that it seemed he wanted to hold all the silence of the past forty-eight years into his palm. Then, he smiled.

The smile was light and faint, like the first ray of sunshine after a snowfall.

Cang Tianci also smiled.

"Second brother, quickly call the police using your home phone!" Cang Zhenye suddenly came to his senses and shouted to Cang Yuanzhi.

"Oh right, how could I have forgotten about that?" Cang Yuanzhi said regretfully.

He leaned on his cane and walked out of the old house with Liu Wenxiu.

Cang Tianci helped his grandfather to his feet, then stepped aside. His gaze swept over the cold corpse on the ground, over his panicked parents, his second uncle with a resolute look in his eyes, Xiangyang's pale face, and Xiaohua's limping arrival, before turning towards the direction of Nancheng...

With such a big incident, will my older brother come? Will Sister Liu Qing come?

He suddenly understood the true weight of his elder brother's words before he left home:

"Ask your heart, not your fist; when your heart is clear, your fist will naturally be true."

The question should never be how to defeat an enemy, but rather:

What is it that Grandpa would dedicate his life to protecting?

What is it that's worth those people risking their lives to take?

Outside the window, the snow fell even heavier. Pure white snowflakes covered the bloodstains, the footprints, and all the darkness and clamor of the night.

But some things cannot be covered by snow.