It took an entire afternoon. By the time night fell, Qin He had finally cleaned up the Corpse Burning Chamber and repaired the furnace. The oxhide air bag could not be restored, so he could only make a simple pull-rod bellows instead, oiling it with a little grease. It was barely usable.
He was hauling coal into the Corpse Burning Chamber when the courtyard gate opened, and a reek of blood drifted in.
Turning around, he saw three large carts carrying five or six corpses inside.
Qin He immediately set down his work and went over.
The corpses had been escorted by a squad of armored soldiers. Their leader pointed at the bodies and gave Xie Dading some instructions before leaving.
The commotion drew nearly everyone in the Corpse Burning Chamber over.
Only then did Qin He get a look at the personnel here.
Steward Huang was in charge here, though he was absent at the moment. Xie Dading and three others were the Corpse Burners of the Corpse Burning Chamber, all official personnel under the City Patrol Division.
There was no need to ask about that. Everyone from the yamen bore the mark of Sin City. Qin He guessed there were probably others who had not shown up.
There were two temporary workers like himself.
Their expressions varied when they saw him, but neither said anything unnecessary, much less showed any friendliness.
"There are a few more corpses today. One for each person." After Steward Huang gave Xie Dading a few instructions, Xie Dading began assigning the bodies.
All the corpses were packed in Corpse Bags. Each time he assigned one, Xie Dading would briefly explain its condition.
This was preparation before cremation. The information was scant, but important.
Otherwise, if they offended some taboo and the corpse rose,