Hong Cheng laughed heartily. "Captain, we’re the Night Guard, not some lackeys for the Divine Capital Prefecture Magistrate’s Office, nor are we the little thugs of the Military Department. We Night Guards fight our way up. Of course, you’re the captain, so I wouldn’t dare provoke you. But if you want to spar, I’m game. Even if you beat me black and blue, if I, Hong Cheng, beg for mercy even once, I’m a son of a bitch."
After speaking, Hong Cheng grinned, revealing snow-white teeth. He swayed his body slightly, and his bones let out a series of crackles, like popping beans.
At his exposed joints, it was as if earthworms were squirming and coiling. The knuckles on both his hands bulged out, taking on a metallic sheen, as if he were wearing thick brass knuckles.
Li Qingxian stared at Hong Cheng.
Hong Cheng said with a broad smile, "We who practice the Hard Bone Skill aren’t good at much else, but we’re great at fighting."
As he spoke, he gently knocked his two fists together in front of his chest, producing the clang of metal on metal.
"Captain Li, it’s nothing. I’m not bothered," Han Anbo said with a laugh.
Li Qingxian nodded. "True, it is just a small matter. I was planning to invite the new vice-captain out for drinks to build some camaraderie. However, Lord Zhou just assigned Team A9 a task. Since you’re here, you can come along and handle it with us."
Li Qingxian turned and walked out.
Hong Cheng froze for a moment. He watched Han Anbo and Yu Ping brush past him, hesitated briefly, then strode to follow.
Along the way, Li Qingxian remained expressionless and said nothing.
Hong Cheng kept a grin on his face and would occasionally say a few words, but no one responded.
He asked where they were going several times, but Li Qingxian acted as if he hadn’t heard.
As they passed the entrance to Wanping Street, Han Anbo paused, looking at Yu Ping.
Yu Ping also looked puzzled.
This road was very familiar.
It was right here that Pang Mingjing had forced Li Qingxian into a carriage.
The four of them continued forward.
It wasn’t until the Evil God Statue became visible behind the buildings that Han Anbo’s expression changed. He jogged a few steps to catch up with Li Qingxian and said in a low voice, "Don’t be rash."
"I’m the captain. You’ll listen to me," Li Qingxian said.
Han Anbo walked beside him, looking at Li Qingxian’s youthful face as a warm current surged in his heart.
"It’s not worth it... not for me," he whispered.
Li Qingxian remained silent.
Yu Ping glanced up at the statue, remembering what had happened that day.
At first, Hong Cheng was still muttering to himself, but as they got closer to Ministry of Revenue Street and the Evil God Statue loomed larger, he fell silent.
Everyone in the Night Guard knew about the incident with Pang Mingjing.
They all also knew that to save Li Qingxian, Zhou Chunfeng had mobilized his connections in the Ministry of Revenue.
Hong Cheng glanced suspiciously at the statue, then back at Li Qingxian, growing more and more hesitant.
For most people, Ministry of Revenue Street, Ministry of Justice Street, and Night Guard Street were no different from Demon Race territory.
Before long, the four of them arrived at Jingshen Street, which was adjacent to Ministry of Revenue Street.
The street was paved with black stone, and every household had a white lantern with red characters hanging high.
There were no hawkers’ cries, no sounds of bargaining.
People came and went, but the street was eerily silent and cold.
The shelves of the shops on both sides were filled with sacrificial items like incense, candles, wine, fruit, paper, written petitions, yellow flags, tokens, and colorful ropes.
Stopping in front of an incense and candle shop, Li Qingxian said, "Vice Captain Han, buy a set of Nine Incense. Put it on the public account."
Han Anbo sighed softly. "Yes, Captain Li."
Hong Cheng looked at the ice-cold Li Qingxian, and for some reason, goosebumps broke out on his arms.
But then he remembered Wei Yong’s encouraging gaze and Tao Zhi’s harsh words. Gritting his teeth, he forced a smile. "Captain Li, Han Anbo hasn’t been vice-captain for a while now. Calling him that is a breach of Night Guard regulations."
Li Qingxian acted as if he hadn’t heard, standing there quietly, watching as Han Anbo took out some copper coins and counted them out for the shopkeeper.
Hong Cheng looked completely embarrassed.
The shopkeeper took the money, wrapped up nine pale-yellow, foot-long incense sticks, and handed them to Han Anbo, saying, "May the gods protect you."
Han Anbo took the incense and continued to follow Li Qingxian.
Hong Cheng hesitated but followed along at the very back, glancing around nervously.
They turned right, passed through a small alley, and stepped onto the wide Ministry of Revenue Street.
The nearing-noon sun was dazzlingly bright.
Now unobscured, the five Evil God Statues exuded an invisible pressure that weighed on everyone’s hearts.
Not far off, the Ministry of Revenue’s signature double-striped walls of blood and gold were particularly striking.
The empty Ministry of Revenue Street, though there was nothing there, was enough to make one’s heart race with anxiety.
Hong Cheng stopped in his tracks, his legs feeling weak.
Li Qingxian turned to look at Hong Cheng, a mocking smile on his face. "What, scared?"
"What are we doing here?" Hong Cheng asked, forcing himself to speak.
"Collecting a debt. What else would we be doing at the Ministry of Revenue besides chasing down payments?" Li Qingxian replied with a look of surprise.
"Are... are you trying to set me up like you did with Pang Mingjing?"
"Do you practice the Hard Bone Skill, or the Soft Bone Skill?" Li Qingxian asked.
Hong Cheng swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He glanced at the high walls of the Ministry of Revenue, took a deep breath, and said, "I’ll just wait out here."
Li Qingxian chuckled. "Are you sure? You want to stay on Ministry of Revenue Street by yourself?"
"I’ll wait on Jingshen Street," Hong Cheng said.
Li Qingxian stared into Hong Cheng’s eyes and said slowly, "On your first day as vice-captain, you’re going to defy an order from Zhou Chunfeng, Disciplinary Officer of the Divine Capital Bureau. Do you know the consequences?"
Hong Cheng fell silent. He thought about the punishment he faced for crippling the Finance Department soldier, about the smile on Tao Zhi’s face and the threat in his words, and finally, he imagined the consequences of being kicked out of the Night Guard.
He gritted his teeth and said, "I’ll go! If you try to harm me, Disciplinary Officer Wei won’t let you get away with it!"
"Keep up."
With that, Li Qingxian continued forward. The four of them arrived at the side gate of the South Courtyard, where Li Qingxian took out his Night Guard Token and asked a Guard to find Luo Jing.
Before long, Luo Jing hurried over, with Duan Heng following behind him.
"Mr. Xiaoli, it’s only been a few days, and you’ve already attained a rank! Congratulations, congratulations!" Luo Jing said politely, clasping his hands in greeting.
"We’re on the same side. No need for such formalities," Li Qingxian replied coolly.
Luo Jing’s smile faded. He gave Li Qingxian a surprised look, then scanned the three people behind him. His gaze finally landed on Hong Cheng. ’A Senior Tenth Grade official is walking at the very back of the group?’
Hong Cheng stood stiff as a board, his heart pounding. ’This Luo Jing is wearing a Golden Yellow Oriole Embroidery patch, making him a Senior Eighth-Grade Civil Servant. Why is he being so polite to Li Qingxian?’
When he saw Luo Jing look his way, he hastily bowed and said, "Hong Cheng, Vice-Captain of Team A9, Street Patrol Room, Night Guard. Greetings, my lord."
Luo Jing only caught the word "vice-captain." He glanced at Han Anbo thoughtfully, then turned to Li Qingxian and asked, "Did Lord Zhou send you?"
Li Qingxian said, "First, take me to pay respects to the gods. We can’t break protocol this time."
"Very well." Luo Jing led the group across Ministry of Revenue Street and into the North Courtyard of the Ministry of Revenue.
Stepping through the gate, a massive plaza spread out before them.
In the center of the grand plaza, the five deities seemed to be in the clouds, so tall their shoulders touched the sky, their tops impossible to see.
Li Qingxian didn’t look up again, but in his peripheral vision, he could faintly see layers of dark clouds stacked up, and within those clouds, countless eyes twitched and stared.
Li Qingxian surveyed his surroundings. Blood Gold Paint covered the entire plaza, which at first glance looked like the ground was smeared with dried blood.
Along the edges of the plaza, on either side of the statues, were rows of smaller Divine Spirit statues, arranged like guards for the five great deities.
Li Qingxian felt as if he had lost his sense of space. This place was clearly within the Divine Capital and shouldn’t be that large, but for some reason, it felt boundless.
Not far ahead were thirty offering tables made of patterned red cedar. On each table were the Three Sacrificial Animals (pig, ox, and sheep), the Three Fowls (chicken, duck, and goose), and the Three Fruits (pear, orange, and apple).
In the brass incense burners at the center of the offering tables, long incense sticks stood upright, with white smoke curling languidly into the air.