What do you mean by saying that the corpses I sew are all ominous creatures?

I didn't wait for her reply and hung up the phone immediately.

It's a big gamble.

The gamble was on whether Lu Yan possessed the personality described by Jin Wanliang, and also on the value of Lei Zhenshan's "consultant" title.

Based on my guess, Lei Zhenshan's position in the Folklore Bureau is definitely not low.

I sent the address; it was a pavilion in an abandoned park not far from here.

The view there is wide open, which is conducive to observation.

At this moment, a light rain began to fall outside the window.

I leaned against the wall to stand up, stuffed the account book into my clothes, and walked into the rain.

……

It rained harder and harder.

I stood in a pavilion halfway up the hill in the abandoned park, and rainwater was pouring down from the broken eaves of the pavilion.

I tightened my oversized black raincoat, put my right hand in my pocket, and gripped the scalpel tightly.

I didn't turn on the light, and just stood quietly in the darkness, looking down at the only stone path leading here.

About ten minutes later, two headlights tore through the rain.

A black SUV roared up the hillside and came to a screeching halt less than twenty meters from the pavilion.

The car door opened, and a woman in a long black trench coat stepped out, holding a black umbrella.

She walked steadily, each step making a crisp, muffled sound as she stepped into the mud.

As she approached, I could feel a calm yet extremely sharp aura emanating from her.

That was authentic Taoist internal energy, completely different from the deathly aura of the gutter that Master Huai possessed.

She stopped at the bottom of the steps outside the pavilion, the black umbrella obscuring the upper half of her face.

All I could see was a chin with cold, hard lines.

"Chen Yang?"

Her voice was even colder than it sounded on the phone, carrying an air of authority born from years of issuing commands.

"It's me, Director Lu."

I spoke calmly, shrinking further into the shadows of the pavilion.

"It's raining heavily, come in and have a seat."

Lu Yan didn't move. She slightly raised the edge of the umbrella, revealing a pair of sharp eyes as she sized me up.

"Eight lives were lost in the locust tree. The old man was killed with a single stab to the throat. The lingering malevolent energy at the scene was terrifying."

Lu Yan said coldly, her hand already in her trench coat pocket, where something bulged, clearly some kind of powerful magical artifact.

"You, a corpse stitcher, have killed so many people and still dare to call yourself an advisor? Chen Yang, you have more guts than I thought."

I smiled and replied, "Director Lu, those people all died at the hands of Master Huai, it has nothing to do with me."

As for Master Huai… he's lived too long; he should have died long ago.

As I spoke, I slowly pulled out a black leather wallet, one corner of which was damp from the rain, from my pocket and gently tossed it onto the stone table in the middle of the pavilion.

"The document is here; you can check it. It was issued personally in Guizhou Province by a man named Lei Zhenshan, and its serial number is 014."

After listening, Lu Yan hesitated for a moment, but still walked into the pavilion.

She folded her umbrella and flicked it, the raindrops on the umbrella surface were dispersed by an invisible force.

Then, she picked up her ID and flipped through it, then took out a silver electronic device from her pocket and scanned the ID.

"drop--"

The instrument lit up with a green light.

Lu Yan's gaze shifted slightly, the almost palpable hostility lessening a bit, but she remained wary.

"Director Lei's judgment has always been sharp, but I didn't expect him to hire a corpse stitcher as an advisor."

She tossed the documents back onto the stone table, staring directly at me. "Where's the account book?"

After hearing Lu Yan's words, I breathed a sigh of relief.

Just as I expected, Lei Zhenshan was definitely not an ordinary squad leader; his position in the Folklore Bureau was certainly not low.

Otherwise, a deputy director from Jiangcheng, which is so far away, would be able to accurately identify this person just by hearing his name.

And he even accurately called out the name "Lei Chu".

After pondering for a while, I didn't stop what I was doing.

I didn't say anything, but I took the ledger out from under my raincoat and placed it next to my documents.

"Director Lu, this thing is more important than my life."

I'm handing this over to you in the hope that the Jiangcheng Folklore Bureau can provide me with a quiet environment so I can continue working as an embalmer at the funeral home, instead of being chased around the streets like a rabbit by your people every day.

The moment Lu Yan saw the ledger, her breath caught in her throat.

She reached out and gently stroked the cover with her fingertips, her expression growing increasingly grim.

She turned to the first page, then a few more, and finally slammed the book shut with a dull thud.

"You...you've seen what's inside?" Her voice was a little hoarse.

"I've seen a little bit."

I calmly replied, "Not much, but enough to keep me awake at night."

Lu Yan stared intently at me, a few moments of struggle flashing in her eyes, but in the end, it turned into a resolute look.

"Chen Yang, do you know that this thing is a bomb?"

Once it explodes, it will cause an earthquake not only in Jiangcheng, but also in the entire folk and political and business circles of the south.

Although I, Lu Yan, am the deputy director, I cannot protect you, and I may not even be able to protect myself.

That's why I contacted you.

I took a step forward, exposing myself to the dim light.

"Director Lu, you are young, have a strong background, and most importantly, you haven't been tainted by the filth on this list."

Whether this thing becomes a meritorious deed or a death warrant for you depends entirely on how you use it.

Lu Yan sneered and gripped the roster tightly in her hand.

"You're using me as a pawn."

It's just a mutually beneficial arrangement.

I felt a strong wave of dizziness wash over me, and my body swayed. I had to hold onto a pillar of the pavilion for support.

"Director Lu, I am very weak right now. Master Huai is not so easy to deal with."

I need a safe place to rest, and I also need you to help me take care of the beginning and end of the locust tree.

As for this ledger... it's yours now.

Lu Yan frowned as she looked at my weak appearance.

After a moment of silence, she suddenly turned around and walked towards the SUV.

"Get in the car."

She left without looking back, uttering just two words.

I paused for a moment, then burst out laughing.

I made the right bet.

I dragged my heavy steps and crawled into the back seat of the SUV.

There was a faint, pleasant scent of perfume in the car, which helped me relax a little.

After getting into the car, Lu Yan sat in the driver's seat, started the car, and coldly gave orders into the walkie-talkie.

"Listen up, everyone, the lockdown level in Huai Shu Li has been raised to the highest level."

All personal belongings found at the scene should be confiscated and sent directly to my office; they must not be handled by anyone else.

Furthermore, the arrest warrant for Chen Yang, the suspected perpetrator, has been lifted. He was a secret advisor sent by General Bureau and was on a special mission. Understand?

A cacophony of responses came through the walkie-talkie.

After doing all this, Lu Yan hung up the walkie-talkie and gave me a cold look in the rearview mirror.

"Chen Yang, don't think that just because you have Director Lei's credentials I won't dare to touch you."

If I find out you've tampered with the register, or if you're hiding anything from me, I'll personally send you to the Bureau of Folklore's dungeon and let you experience the power of the Righteous Path's thunder magic.

I leaned back in my chair, closed my eyes, and whispered, "Don't worry, Director Lu. I'm a timid person; all I want is to live a good life."