Wang Meng lived in an alley not far from Luo Yi. Since Wang Meng had led his men into the Mountain to hunt the day before and suffered serious injuries, it would be rude to visit empty-handed.
Luo Yi went to the busiest market in town and wandered around for a few laps. Remembering that Wang Meng had a wife and son, he came up with an idea.
He walked into the best rouge shop in town and bought a box of rouge worth 200 wen.
Then he went to the Drunken Fragrance Pavilion and bought several portions of pastries and food, along with a few jars of rice wine.
Only when both his hands were full did he stop shopping and set off for Wang Meng's home, carrying a huge pile of things.
Dongsheng Town wasn't very big, and it didn't take long for him to reach the alley where Wang Meng lived.
Unlike its usual quiet, the alley was now packed with women, leaving no room to squeeze through.
Unsure what was going on, Luo Yi didn't hurry over. Instead, he walked to one side, ready to ask a "middle-aged auntie" who loved a bit of gossip for the latest.
"Auntie, has something happened at Captain Wang's home? Why are so many people blocking the entrance today?"
Hearing the word "auntie," the woman was quite unhappy. But when she saw the handsome face of the person who had spoken, she swallowed the curse that had been on the tip of her tongue.
In a coquettish voice, she said, "Young man, haven't you heard? Captain Wang led most of the village hunters into the Mountain yesterday, and they were attacked by a Wolf Pack on the way. Only a few made it back alive."
"It's all anyone in town can talk about. People say Wang Meng deliberately got the other hunters killed. The women blocking his home are the families of the hunters who died in the Mountain. They've come to demand an explanation from Captain Wang."
After hearing the auntie's story, Luo Yi looked at the doorway, completely blocked by the crowd. He had no idea how much trouble he'd cause trying to get in through the front. After surveying the area, he came up with a plan.
He went to the alley behind Wang Meng's courtyard. With a short dash, he easily vaulted over the not-too-high wall.
Wang Meng was sitting in the courtyard, frowning with worry. Hearing a noise from behind the house, he gripped his hunting knife and rushed toward the back courtyard.
"Uncle Wang, it's me, Luo Yi. Don't attack!"
"You brat, why did you climb in through the back of my courtyard?"
"Your front entrance is completely blocked. There was no way I could get in from the front."
At that, Wang Meng gave a bitter smile and could only change the subject.
"Honestly, you shouldn't have brought gifts when you came to Uncle Wang's house."
"Uncle Wang, it's just a small token of my regard. Please don't refuse."
With that, Luo Yi handed the gifts to Wang Meng's wife, Aunt Song.
Wang Meng smiled helplessly and led Luo Yi into the living room to sit down. Then he asked:
"Xiao Yi, what brings you here today?"
"Uncle Wang, I mainly wanted to ask you about the county seat and the different realms of martial artists."
Wang Meng thought for a few seconds before speaking.
"The nearest county seat to Dongsheng Town is Yunlu County. It was named after the unbroken stretch of the Yunlu Mountain Range nearby. Yunling Mountain, near our town, is one of its spurs."
"Yunlu County is divided into four districts: east, south, west, and north. The Chen, Huang, Li, and Zhang Four Great Clans each control one district. They live in the Inner City of Yunlu County and monopolize all the businesses that make money openly."
"Besides the Four Great Clans, there are two gangs and three martial arts halls. The two gangs are Caobang and Yanbang."
"Caobang controls all the cargo docks in Yunlu County. Any goods that enter the county by water pass through their hands. They also secretly rob boats traveling through the surrounding waterways."
"Yanbang is made up of a group of illegal salt dealers. All the illicit salt in Yunlu County comes from them."
"Both gangs deal in things that could cost them their heads. Anyone who crosses them usually won't live to see the next day’s Yang."
The three martial arts halls were the three most famous ones in the county seat:
White Ape Martial Hall, Black Bear Martial Hall, and Cloud Hawk Martial Hall. The head instructors and deputy head instructors at all three were in the Bone Forging Realm.
The rest were small-time factions struggling to survive beneath the shadow of these major powers.
Besides the forces inside the city, there were also county soldiers stationed ten li outside the county seat. But they didn't handle affairs within the city, so you'd hardly ever run into them.
As for the realms, I'm only a Skin Refining Realm martial artist myself. All I know are the Four Body Refining Realms—skin, flesh, sinew, and bone—and the Five Viscera and Six Bowels. I don't know what comes after that.
After listening to Wang Meng's explanation, Luo Yi felt he'd learned a great deal. He clasped his hands toward Wang Meng.
"Thank you, Uncle Wang."
Wang Meng waved a hand, indicating that there was no need to stand on ceremony.
Having gotten the information he wanted, Luo Yi listened to the hunters' families arguing outside and looked at Wang Meng's troubled expression.
He felt it wouldn't be appropriate to stay any longer.
"Uncle Wang, I'll be going now. I won't disturb you while you recover."
Wang Meng was about to invite Luo Yi to stay for lunch when he realized the young man had already vanished. He smiled and shook his head. These days, young people really did things as swiftly as the wind.
Luo Yi went to the back courtyard and, with a burst of strength in his legs, leaped straight over the wall.
Just as he was about to head home, he saw several constables in official uniforms making their way toward Wang Meng's home.
The women in the alley saw them and hurried over, dropping to their knees.
"Sir! Sir! You have to give us justice! Wang Meng took so many people up the Mountain yesterday, but only a few came back alive. Something must be wrong! Sir, you must investigate the truth and avenge our husbands!"
Seeing the women kneeling on the ground, the leading constable waved his hand. Several constables behind him stepped forward.
They kicked the women one by one, sending them tumbling to either side of the road.
"You bunch of unruly peasants. County Magistrate will judge the matter as he sees fit. You have no right to make a fuss here."
"If you spout any more nonsense, we'll haul you all back to the county seat for questioning."
Hearing this, the women in the alley hurriedly fell silent and quickly made way for the constables.
The leading constable noticed that several of the women in the crowd had lovely faces, and their pear-shaped figures were simply irresistible.
Feeling heat rise in his lower belly, the leading constable turned to his subordinates.
"I think these women look suspicious. They may be accomplices of the criminals. When we head back to the county seat, make sure to take them with us."
At the order, the subordinates looked at the women's delicate faces and grinned lecherously.
The women singled out by the leading constable were so frightened that they dropped to their knees and kept kowtowing.
"We're innocent, sir! We're innocent! My husband went out hunting and vanished without a trace. How could I be the culprit?"
Watching from the mouth of the alley, Luo Yi felt a question rise in his heart: If he weren't strong enough, would he and his younger sister be at these people's mercy too?
The constables walked up to Wang Meng's front door. The leading man knocked.
"Captain Wang, please open the door. We need your help investigating a case."
Wang Meng's wife, Aunt Song, opened the courtyard gate.
"Wang Meng is seriously injured and can't get out of bed. If you have business with him, please come into the courtyard first."
"You, guard the gate. Without my order, no one gets in." He gave a few instructions to his men.
The leading constable strode into the courtyard first.
Seeing him, Wang Meng muttered inwardly, What rotten luck. But he still had to put on an act, pretending to be badly injured.
"Captain Qin, what brings you here?"
After sizing Wang Meng up, Qin Feng asked, "What happened yesterday? How did so many people die?"
At the question, Wang Meng gave him a rough account of what had happened, leaving out Luo Yi's part in the rescue.
When he had finished, he pointed to the wolf hides drying in the courtyard.
Seeing so many wolf hides, greed flashed in Qin Feng's eyes. They were all Bai, plain and simple.
"Captain Wang, your word alone isn't enough. We need to send people to Yunling Mountain to find out what really happened. Until we find evidence that proves your innocence, you may need to come with us."
"Who paid you to come after me?"
"Captain Wang, you're a clever man. You can guess without me telling you. This time, that person used some kind of treasure to persuade County Deputy Magistrate to step in. He ordered us to 'investigate impartially.'"
"What a grand gesture, making such a fuss to deal with a mere Skin Refining Realm martial artist."
Thinking of his wife and child at home, Wang Meng knew that if he clashed head-on with Qin Feng, they might get hurt.
Suppressing the urge to fight back, Wang Meng gave up resisting.
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