No taboos

Chapter 319 A sudden inspiration (three in one)

Inside the red envelope that Jichengtang gave to Xu Yuan was eighty taels of silver.

This is still a big red envelope.

The average small red envelope only contained forty taels of silver.

On the way back, Xiang Qinghuai told Xu Yuan in detail about the twists and turns of the matter.

The unpredictable changes in printing technology are uncontrollable.

Maybe it was affected by "bad luck" today, which has a subtle effect, and it may take dozens or even hundreds of days for strange changes to occur.

Every year, there are about ten people printing the envelopes at Jichengtang, and the cost of printing large and small red envelopes is about five hundred taels.

A printer's monthly wage was two hundred wen.

The foreman only earned three hundred and fifty coins.

How much does a piece of low-grade craftsmanship cost? Even an ordinary one costs two thousand taels!
Therefore, wasting time on printing workers became the cheapest option.

A copy of Jichengtang's almanac costs ten cents, after which various costs must be deducted.

It is sufficient for one household to buy one copy per year.

The entire Jiaozhi province had only about 1.5 million households.

This is because Jiaozhi is hot and humid with lots of rain, and rice can be harvested three or even four times a year, which is why it can feed so many people.

Judging from the lunar calendar alone, Jichengtang is losing money.

This is the title they want.

From this perspective, the copy of the Analects personally copied by the fifth-rate writer was probably obtained by accident, and was not obtained specifically to solve the printing errors.

Xu Yuan thought about this matter over and over again, and thought about it deeply, but for a moment he still couldn't come up with a clear idea.

For example, I asked my stepmother to make a printing craft - this craft must be able to read the calendar like a human, and can carve, typeset, print, and also bind...

Not only is it extremely complicated, the core of the craft itself is produced from strange materials. Check the almanac in advance - maybe it will become even more terrifying!
Alternatively, more printers could be hired to break the calendar into pages, with each person responsible for only one page.

Reducing the contact between printers and the almanac in this way seems to reduce the probability of being infected by bad luck.

But weirdness has no relation to probability.

Maybe there are more strange printers...

There was also a strange piece of burnt material in the carriage.

It is a piece of dry bone with mysterious curse spots on its surface.

The level should not be high.

Because the evil spirits transformed by the printer are not of high quality.

I'll show it to my stepmother later.

Even if there is a second sudden change, Xiang Qinghuai is fully capable of destroying it.

However, the one today suddenly turned into a group, and there was a flaw in Xiang Qinghuai's "method". Once he trapped them, he could no longer take action.

It was not until the second half of the night that Xu Yuan fell into a drowsy sleep.

……

Champa.

During the day, the lady sent fifty living people to the "Sinking Pond" in the east of the city.

In broad daylight, a rotten catfish rushed out of the pond. Its mouth was more than ten feet long and it swallowed fifty people in just a few bites!

The bloody storm that was stirred up splashed all over several of his men.

The corpse catfish's eyes were pale and it stared at the lady for a long time.

It seemed like he was not full yet and wanted to eat these as well.

But perhaps something behind the scenes stopped it, the corpse catfish suddenly shrank back into the pond, leaving only its huge head exposed.

Then it suddenly opened its mouth and a corpse poured out of it.

The corpse was covered in mucus, and large areas of skin from the face to the hands were corroded by gastric juice and had pits.

The corpse suddenly came to life and said hoarsely, "South City Patrol Office—"

The guards showed expressions of fear on their faces, and the corpse seemed very proud, his face twitching and he revealed a weird smile!

The lady remained calm and turned away.

"That evil spirit likes to play with corpses."

He manipulated the corpse to make sounds and smile - he seemed quite skilled, and it was obviously not the first time he did this.

The lady brought her men to the vicinity of the patrol house in South City and found an inn to stay in.

After watching for a whole day, nothing was found.

The lady became impatient and ordered, "Find a way to catch a tongue tomorrow."

……

Mr. Ma Tianshou was busy with official duties and only showed up yesterday when Xu Yuangang arrived.

Xiang Qinghuai is still with him today.

Today’s prohibitions: listening to music, looking in the mirror, getting drunk, and dancing with swords.

Lang Xiaoba silently took off his sword and placed it in the yamen.

Although the sword was not his main weapon, the officials of the Exorcism Department—or the officials of every government office in the entire Ming Dynasty—had a habitual action:

Draw the sword, glare, and shout!
Everyone is very skilled, and this is the process we follow when something happens.

It can scare more than 90% of people.

So I'd better take off my sword first, to avoid a subconscious action when something happens...

The swordsman was defeated today.

Not long after, Xiang Qinghuai came over. As expected, his waist was empty. He and Lang Xiaoba looked at each other and laughed.

"Let's go to Qianjinfang today."

On the way, Xiang Qinghuai said to Xu Yuan, "I thought about it yesterday. There are two families in Qianjinfang. We must go there. I estimate that there is a 70% chance that I can help you get this done!"

Xu Yuan couldn't help but feel hopeful: "That would be great!"

When they arrived at the place, Xiang Qinghuai took Xu Yuan straight to the first place, called "Mingchengxuan".

There were two seventh-rate cultivators standing at the door. Xu Yuan activated the "Wangming" technique and saw one was an alchemy cultivator and the other was a divine cultivator!
Mingchengxuan is heavily guarded.

The shopkeeper was a tall and thin man with a loyal and honest face that made people feel friendly at first sight.

This is also a seventh-rate alchemy cultivator.

"Your Excellency, I am honored to have you here." The shopkeeper bowed with a smile and invited the two people in. "The auction will start soon. I'm afraid I may be a little cautious here, please forgive me, Your Excellency."

"Hahaha," Xiang Qinghuai laughed. "If it weren't for this time, I wouldn't have come. If there are any good things in the auction this time, take them out and let my brothers see them first."

The shopkeeper looked embarrassed: "Sir, this is against the rules..."

Xiang Qinghuai chuckled and said, "If my face isn't enough for you, Ming Chengxuan, to make an exception, then is it enough for the commander? Do you really want me to invite the commander here?"

"You..." The shopkeeper was speechless. How could he dare to let Ma Tianshou come here in person?
"Forget it, please don't tell anyone else."

"Don't worry, no one else will know."

The shopkeeper led them to the third floor, where a sixth-rate divine cultivator was in charge!
The four ghost soldiers hid silently in the pillars at the four corners of the house.

There was also a sixth-rate craftsman's item in the room, an iron cabinet as tall as a person, in which all the treasures from this auction were kept.

The shopkeeper went through some complicated operations before opening the iron cabinet: "Everyone, please take a look."

Xu Yuan stepped forward to take a look and nodded secretly. There were three pieces of sixth-rate materials, a fifth-rate craftsmanship, a fifth-rate copybook, and six fifth-rate external pills!

Xu Yuan studied it carefully and found that among the five types of external elixirs, there was a "strange elixir".

A six-eyed dark moth is sealed inside.

The so-called six eyes mean that in addition to the original two eyes, there are two patterns on the wings, one large and one small, which look like eyes.

The two eyes on his body can hide twenty imps below the seventh level.

The two small eyes on the wings can hide two big ghosts.

The two big eyes on the wings can hide two fifth-rate ghosts.

Xu Yuan thought to himself that with this thing, he could directly take over Zhang Laoya without having to ask Uncle Mao for help.

After all, Fourth Uncle still has to go back to Hegong Lane.

Moreover, the value of this thing is higher than that of gold nuggets. I added some business methods and was able to buy it.

But Xu Yuan did not act rashly. Instead, he asked the shopkeeper: "Has your shop encountered any difficulties recently?"

The shopkeeper's eyes lit up: "It's really a bit troublesome. I wonder if you gentlemen can help."

"Speak, shopkeeper."

"We have a shipload of cargo that was seized by the canal authorities the other day. I wonder if you gentlemen could help get it back?"

Xiang Qinghuai's expression changed and he secretly winked at Xu Yuan.

Xu Yuan pretended not to see it and continued to ask the shopkeeper: "I wonder what is on the boat and how much is it worth?"

"We've been using this route for a long time, and this isn't the first time. It used to be unimpeded, but recently it was detained. I'm afraid there's something wrong within the Mountain and River Division." The shopkeeper looked around, not saying what was on the boat. "As for its value..."

The shopkeeper knocked on the iron cabinet and said, "It's enough to buy any of the items in here."

Xu Yuan thought for a moment and asked again, "When does the auction start?"

"Two more days."

Xu Yuan thought to himself, this means I still have two days to deal with the issue of this ship.

Otherwise, you will miss this Six-Eyed Dark Moth Pill.

Xu Yuan said, "Boss, please let me think about it."

The shopkeeper smiled and bowed, escorting the three people out: "Okay, take care, my three lords."

After leaving Mingchengxuan, Xu Yuan whispered to Xiang Qinghuai, "Brother Xiang, is there something wrong with this ship?"

"This is a big problem!" Xiang Qinghuai pulled Xu Yuan and turned into a nearby teahouse. After asking for a private room, he first used his own magic to seal the entire room, and then said, "There is a ghost king's body on the boat!"

"Although the people on the ship are very tight-lipped and the Mountain and River Division hasn't figured it out yet, the destination must be Siam."

"There have been constant rebellions in Siam because of a 'Ghost King Society' among the people!"

"In Siam's ancient beliefs, the Ghost King was a guardian deity, in charge of all demons and monsters in the world of the living."

"Back when our Ming Dynasty conquered Siam and was on the verge of a complete victory, eight 'ghost king bodies' suddenly appeared in Siam. As long as a believer's soul entered the ghost king's body, he would gain the strength of a fourth-rate cultivator."

"This caused the Ming Dynasty to spend an extra ten years before completely pacifying Siam."

"However, of the eight Ghost King bodies, only six were found in the end, and they were all destroyed by the Imperial Astronomical Observatory. The whereabouts of the remaining two are unknown."

"Now, a ghost king's body suddenly appeared on Ming Chengxuan's ship, and it was about to be transported to Siam. Who dares to interfere in such a matter?"

Xu Yuan was puzzled: "Mingchengxuan hasn't been closed down yet?"

"Because the authenticity of the Ghost King's body has not yet been finally confirmed. The simplest way to use this thing is to find a person's soul to leave the body and drill into it to try it out - but after using the Ghost King's body, the soul will shatter and death is inevitable.

Ghost soldiers are not acceptable, they must be the souls of living people.

So the Mountain and River Bureau is waiting for someone from the Northern Capital Imperial Astronomical Observatory. They destroyed the six ghost king bodies back then, and only they have a special method to distinguish the real from the fake."

Xiang Qinghuai patted Xu Yuan's shoulder and said, "Don't think about Mingchengxuan anymore. Those who have seen the ghost king's body say it's probably real. I wanted to bring you here to pick up some of the spoils when Mingchengxuan was about to collapse, but it seems they still refuse to accept their fate."

The three of them went to the second store that Xiang Qinghuai had selected.

The name of this store is very direct: Tanjia High-end Goods Store.

The boss was the only one inside.

He is actually a sixth-rate alchemy practitioner!
The left eye was replaced with an external pill.

There seemed to be a small snake coiled inside, its scales emitting a faint golden light.

There was only one shelf in the store, with seven items on it.

They are all sixth-rate or fifth-rate!

"I don't have any cheap stuff here," the shop owner said proudly.

Xu Yuan liked two of the items, but after talking to the shop owner, the owner still said proudly: "I don't have any trouble here, I don't need anyone's help."

Xu Yuan came out, feeling both amused and helpless. He had finished touring the entire Qianjinfang in one morning.

There were also a few suitable items from other companies, but none of them were difficult and happened to be something that Xu Yuan could solve.

In the afternoon, Xiang Qinghuai took Xu Yuan to Wu Tiao Lane again.

Then you will get nothing.

Xu Yuan secretly sighed that it was really difficult to condense a magical object.

No wonder there is such a huge gap between the third-rate and the middle-class!
When they returned to Jiaozhi South Office in the evening, Ma Tianshou sent someone to call Xu Yuan over.

"I heard that you suffered a lot of setbacks in the past two days. I have good news for you. The thing you exchanged for the 'old ghost's yin energy' has returned." Ma Tianshou said with a smile.

Xu Yuan's mood improved a little: "Oh, that's great. What did the adults prepare for me?"

Ma Tianshou threw a box over and said, "Go back and take a look."

Xu Yuan was completely confused, but he still followed the old man's instructions and returned to his residence. He closed the doors and windows before opening the box.

There was only a small booklet in the box, with three bold and powerful characters on the cover:
Dragon Appearance Technique.

Xu Yuan suddenly felt guilty...

This is a martial arts "fighting style".

There is only a fighting method but no training method.

Every move in it imitates the posture of a dragon.

Although it is only a fighting style, the moves are grand and the details are extremely exquisite.

This fighting style can fully bring out the advantages of Xu Yuan's strong body after practicing the "Dragon Transformation Method"!
Although Xu Yuan cannot show his "Dragon Transformation Method" in front of others, he can use this fighting style!
Did the old man know something?
Xu Yuan thought about it and felt that the old man would definitely help him cover up.

So he tried to practice a few moves in the house.

"This martial artist... has a rather impressive background."

Xu Yuan immediately understood: "This set of fighting styles is clearly imitating the various postures of the dragon."

"No one who has ever seen a dragon in person can create this thing."

"That is to say..."

There are many martial arts in Zhengzhou's history that evolved from imitating the postures and powers of various animals.

But in the past, those martial arts named "Dragon and Tiger" were actually performed by snakes.

After Xu Yuan practiced this fighting style once, he felt that it was very suitable and he felt an indescribable sense of relief all over his body.

I used to feel that the strength in my body could never be fully utilized for some reason.

Now this problem no longer exists.

The depression of the past two days was swept away, and Xu Yuan was so happy that he wanted to let out a long roar.

From now on, I can pretend to be a domineering martial artist.

When I get back, I'll beat that bastard Lao Qin up under the pretext of "exchanging ideas"!
This fellow is always slandering my reputation by talking about this "mistress" and that "concubine"!

Xu Yuan was practicing alone in his room and missed dinner without realizing it.

When I came to my senses and looked outside, it was already dark.

Xu Yuan felt guilty again.

It was clearly the old man's special order not to disturb him, so Lang Xiaoba didn't come to call him for dinner...

"Gurgle..." My stomach made a loud noise.

Xu Yuan curled his lips and looked at his body to see what other materials he had. He took a few pieces as bait to deceive his stomach.

……

The lady's subordinates are all very experienced.

The tongue-grabbing incident was not carried out during the day.

After all, this is the territory of the Extermination Bureau.

Any one person missing would be noticed quickly.

So they stayed on guard until dusk, and when the captains were off duty and left the South City patrol room in groups of three or four, they secretly followed them.

That way they would have one night.

Before dark, they returned to the inn with the soul of the double-patterned captain.

Under the soul-searching, no secret can be kept.

The lady then learned that before Zhang Lao Ya disappeared, he had lived in the patrol room in South City for more than a month.

"This is a bit difficult..." Madam muttered to herself, "He's an inspector from the Department of Excretion of Filth, and he's the one Ma Tianshou values the most."

"The inspection is nothing, but Ma Tianshou is not easy to deal with."

Several guards stood aside, not daring to interrupt.

The lady suddenly smiled sweetly, her beauty unparalleled: "That's fine, catch him and interrogate him to find out the whereabouts of the cocoon food, then throw him to Xiaoyu Mountain to feed those evil spirits.

If Ma Tianshou wants to investigate, he should first fight those evil spirits in Xiaoyu Mountain."

The guards didn't think there was anything wrong with this arrangement.

Ma Tianshou was indeed a difficult person, but that only made them a little wary.

They have dealt with officials of the same level before.

Even if the imperial court conducted a thorough investigation, wouldn't it still be an unsolved case in the end?
"You make another trip and rearrange the body so it can be discovered tomorrow morning."

"Yes."

The guard took the order and went out.

The bodies they disposed of would not be discovered for three days.

The guard secretly groaned.

The body of the double-patterned captain was cut into many pieces and thrown into wells, tree holes, and ditches that were obviously filled with extremely strong negative energy.

At this moment... I'm afraid those evil spirits have already eaten it.

All we can do is drive away the evil spirits and piece together the broken body.

……

The body of Duan He, the double-marked captain, was discovered by a neighbor early the next morning.

Everyone in Champa's Anti-Filth Bureau was filled with indignation and shared the same hatred for the enemy!

Several inspectors have arrived.

Even He Youxing and Xie Qingman came to take a look.

He Youxing asked, "They are Xu Yuan's men. Where are the others?"

Jia Yi and others could no longer hide the truth, so they reported it to the Lord Chief Lawyer in a low voice.

"Hmph!" He Youxing snorted angrily.

He suddenly left Champa without even asking for leave from any of his inspectors!
They really don't take him, the chief judge, seriously.

But if Xu Yuan goes to Luocheng, he will definitely meet Ma Tianshou.

If he were to bring an army to bear against him, Ma Tianshou would protect him...

He Youxing felt that being a lawyer was really boring.

"Alright," He Youxing said, "Everyone go to work. Fu Jingyu, you lead the team to investigate this case!"

The captains around did not move.

He Youxing looked around at the crowd, only to find that every one of the hundreds of people present had a look of intense anger on their faces.

This anger was not directed at Xu Yuan who was not present, but at the murderer.

He Youxing frowned: When did the Extermination Bureau become so cohesive?
People often die in the Extermination Bureau, and this job is very dangerous.

But they had never been so angry when a colleague died before.

He Youxing had a vague feeling that the Champa Office was very different from other places, and even from the past.

"Is it also because of that kid named Xu?"

After Xu Yuan arrived, the crime-solving rate increased sharply and the casualty rate dropped significantly.

Moreover, in several "frictions" with the Shanhe Division, he always had the upper hand.

Cohesion is built up bit by bit.

Now, everyone in the Quhui Division was furious when they heard that one of their own had been killed.

Instead of being numb like before.

He Youxing and Xie Qingman left.

They've been getting along pretty well lately.

He Youxing whispered to Xie Qingman, "It's very likely that the evil spirits in the city did it. I've said long ago that the rampant arrests throughout the city that night would definitely bring revenge from the evil spirits..."

Xie Qingman nodded in agreement.

……

Xu Yuan said goodbye to Ma Tianshou early in the morning.

It has been two days since I came out. Since Luo Cheng has no chance to condense magic items for the time being, I have to go back and find another way.

Ma Tianshou never mentioned the matter of "Dragon Appearance Secret", and Xu Yuan naturally would not bring it up on his own initiative.

"Go back and do your job seriously." Ma Tianshou revealed some information: "He Youxing has already done his activities, and he should be leaving after the New Year.

Your contributions and level are sufficient, but you are too young.

I will try my best to get you to take his place."

Xu Yuan was a little bit unbelievable: "Can it be done?"

"At most..." the old man estimated, "Fifty percent certainty. But the deputy chief judge is a 90 percent sure thing. Go back and make preparations early."

"Thank you, sir!"

The bonus of being in charge of law to cultivation is far greater than that of inspection.

"Okay, let's go."

Xu Yuan was about to leave when he suddenly stopped and had an idea: "Sir, is there any trustworthy family with a large family name that would like to offer a life cultivator as a sacrifice?"

Ma Tianshou understood instantly, his eyes gleaming, "This is a good idea! Don't leave yet, I will contact the Fu and Song families right away!
Your Dan Xiu is already sixth-rate. If your business skills can also reach sixth-rate, your chances of succeeding He Youxing will be over 70%."

Ma Tianshou immediately postponed today's official business and personally went to communicate with the two families on behalf of Xu Yuan.

The main branches of the two families are in Zhengzhou, but they have also been operating in Jiaozhi for many years, and there are people in Luocheng who can make the decision.

Neither of the two companies currently has any life cultivators.

At noon, the old man came back with good news: "Both families are willing to cooperate.

They will prepare something suitable for you and let you buy it with gold nuggets.

Then they will use the nugget of gold as a betrothal gift and hire you as the elder of the family.

Of course you don't have to do anything now, and this kind of employment does not impose much constraints on you.

When you become a fifth-rate person in the future, you can repay this favor when they need you."

This deal is fair.

Enough to meet the requirements of condensing magic objects.

Xu Yuan breathed a sigh of relief, it was finally going to work.

At this moment, Xiang Qinghuai rushed in and said, "Brother Xu, someone from Champa has sent an urgent report. One of your lieutenants was killed last night!"

Xu Yuan just breathed a sigh of relief, then immediately glared: "Who did it!"

The one who came to report the news was Zhou Leizi.

He followed Xiang Qinghuai in and said, "Sir, this case is completely clueless right now. Without you, everyone has no backbone!"

Xu Yuan stood up and was about to leave, but Ma Tianshou held him back and said calmly, "Condition the magic weapon first!"

(End of this chapter)