Great Concealment Lies in the Marketplace

Li Banfeng and Ma Wu prepared to take over the railway. The prerequisite for the railway to operate smoothly was the Heavenly Woman's cooperation.

Using the Connecting Bridal Chamber, Li Banfeng went to the house in Gourd Village and told A-Yu about the railway.

A-Yu was eating noodles drenched in chili oil. The noodles were as wide as a belt, paired with bright-red chilies. She ate mouthful after mouthful with relish, making Li Banfeng's cheeks tighten in waves just from watching.

A-Yi hurriedly served Li Banfeng a bowl, and the three chatted as they ate.

After eating two bowls of noodles, a leg of lamb, and drinking a jar of Daughter's Red, A-Yu wiped her mouth with restraint and said, "Opening the railway is a good thing. I'm willing to help you, but I need to take the Heavenly Woman along each railway line and have a look. How the trains normally run, how they should be cleared at the boundary lines—we need to understand all that beforehand."

Li Banfeng said, "Sister, back when you and the Heavenly Woman stayed in the Dark Star Bureau, it didn't affect railway operations, did it?"

A-Yu shook her head. "That's different. Outer State understands railway dispatching, and train schedules are all fixed. I only had to clear them according to the rules.

"You people have just arrived and don't understand anything. If I don't handle this properly, people could die. This is no trifling matter."

Li Banfeng said, "Sister, you aren't joking, are you? A train crossing a boundary line needs you personally to clear it?"

"What do you think?" A-Yu's face turned solemn. "If I don't let the Heavenly Woman clear it, who can cross that boundary line? Wouldn't an entire carriage of passengers die on the line?"

A-Yi gnawed on a