The rain's fury had finally ceased its indulgence, beginning to show signs of stopping, leaving only a few listless drops to soak powerlessly into the mire.
The temple was silent as death.
Jiang Shouzhong did not look at another small carp on the ground, but leisurely took out a leaden round bullet forged by the Mo Men Shen Ji Pavilion, loaded it into his musket, and aimed at the old man who was now rigid with cold sweat on his forehead, saying indifferently,
"That woman was the mastermind behind the killings, and you, you are accessories to the crime, specifically deceiving the kindness of travelers from other places and leading them here. After all, an old man and a little girl are quite trustworthy, aren't they."
"Sir... Sir, spare my life!" The old man's face was filled with terror, his voice trembling, nearly deformed, "It was that woman who forced me, sir, have mercy, it was—"
Bang!
Another ugly black catfish lay on the ground.
Jiang Shouzhong blew the White Smoke drifting from the musket barrel and murmured, "Actually, I really like eating grass carp."
...
He slung his bookcase over his shoulder and walked out of the ancient temple.
Under a withered parasol tree not far away stood a young man in a white robe, imbued with the air of a scholar, his head wrapped in a blue kerchief, his features delicate.
If one looked closely, they would realize that the occasional raindrop passed right through his body.
His form was faintly ethereal.
"I've avenged you. Now scram and don't keep haunting me like a lingering ghost, otherwise you won't even be able to reincarnate," Jiang Shouzhong said irritably as he tossed the bookcase that belonged to the other party.
Jiang was indeed very frustrated.
Ever since acquiring an ability akin to "communicating with spirits," these persistent ghosts always found their way to him.
Even when he went to the privy, they could emerge from the cesspit.
The one in front of him called "Zhang Lang," had been bothering him for the last four days. Otherwise, with his temperament, he would be too lazy to travel so far to catch a demon.
After all, the Liushan Division had strict rules that undercover law enforcement could not take on private jobs.
Especially since he was an undercover enforcer in the Capital, the rules were even stricter.
The so-called undercover enforcers were not the kind of cheaters found in gambling dens but rather a kind of constable in plain clothes, wandering between the halls of power and the Jianghu, and held a higher status than a regular constable.
They could also be likened to Fugitive Recovery Agents.
The undercover enforcers handled cases almost without any regional restrictions and were managed by the Liushan Division.
Of course, the reason why Jiang Shouzhong ultimately decided to help this man seek revenge was that the man promised him a favor.
"Thank you."
Zhang Lang, now reduced to a mere wisp of a soul, looked at the ancient temple with a complex expression, his eyes filled with regret, resentment, and sorrow.
Seeing the old man with the twisted ankle, in a moment of compassion, he had brought the man to this ancient temple.
Only to fall into a deadly trap.
Of course, he was also to blame for losing himself in the face of beauty, casting aside the saintly teachings he had studiously memorized every day, and ultimately causing his own death.
Above the character for lust hangs the blade.
The ancients did not deceive me.
Zhang Lang sighed and said to Jiang Shouzhong, "There's one more thing that I might trouble you with; before I left home, my parents had arranged a marriage for me. It was intended that once I had made a name for myself... but now..."
"Understood, I shall provide for your wife as if she were my own, have no worries," Jiang Shouzhong said impatiently, "Just hurry up and tell me where your hidden treasure is. Reincarnating is what you should be concerned about. Who knows, in the next life, you might even have the chance to marry your fiancée's daughter."
Zhang Lang, reluctantly, pointed at the bookcase, "There is a hidden compartment at the bottom of the bookcase; inside is a book handed down from my ancestors. It seems to be a Taoist text on self-cultivation and nurturing one's temperament. It wasn't much use to me. But to you, it may come in handy."
Just an old book?
Jiang Shouzhong couldn't be bothered to complain further, he hoisted the bookcase on his shoulder and waved his hand, "I'll see you in the next life."
As Jiang Shouzhong walked away, Zhang Lang's gaze once again turned towards the ancient temple that had cost him his life, filled with dejection, "In my youth, my blood was not yet settled, I was warned against the allure of lust... I did not heed the sage's advice, and now no medicine can cure my regret."
The figure of the young scholar gradually disappeared.
As he accepted death, his nature suddenly seemed more open-minded, and in the last moment before disappearing, Zhang Lang's lips curled up, "But to tell you the truth, the taste of Koi is really not bad."
...
Back in the Capital, it was now afternoon, bathed in brilliant sunshine.
The sky had shed its black, heavy cloak of clouds, leaving only a few light gossamer wisps, glistening bodies on display overhead, innocent yet seductive.
The streets were bustling with people, the sound of horse hooves and carriage wheels a cacophony mixed with the cries of market hawkers.
The Capital was as lively as ever during the day.
Even after living here for a year and a half, Jiang Shouzhong, walking on the noisy streets of the Dazhou Dynasty Capital, always felt like an outsider, maintaining a difficult-to-cross barrier with this strange world.
To put it simply, he lacked a sense of belonging.
Even though he already had two wives.
Jiang Shouzhong tugged at the bookcase strap that was a bit too tight on his shoulders, planning to go home and get some sleep first.
"Would the young master like his fortune told?"
A deliberately deepened young girl's voice floated into his ears.
Jiang Shouzhong turned his head and the first thing that caught his eye was not the girl but a lively green cactus basking in the sunlight, surrounded by a layer of translucent gold.
Jiang Shouzhong narrowed his attractive phoenix eyes, staring blankly at that vibrant green, and wistfully thought of the synthetic artificial cactus he saw just before dying, saying with a lost feeling, "There's no such thing as traveling through time, just fantasies before death."
Time traveling?
The fortune-teller was completely befuddled.
Seeing that the handsome man before her seemed to have lost his soul and wasn't paying her any attention, the fortune-teller, who was clearly a woman dressed as a man, couldn't help but look a bit sour. Even though she tried to maintain a polite smile, there was a hint of dissatisfaction on her face.