Chapter 86: Chapter 82: Temple Fair (Part 1)

When the County Magistrate learned that Zhao Lin had captured the criminal, he sent for him to come to the county office for questioning.

Zhao Lin recounted the details of the investigation, then presented the nine wanted posters he had found in the storeroom.

"How brilliant! So the two cases were committed by the same person."

Magistrate Liu held the wanted posters, read them over and over, and couldn’t help but clap his hands and laugh.

In truth, he wasn’t happy that Zhao Lin had solved two cases at once, but rather about these nine wanted posters.

If the cases had only occurred in Qinghe County, solving them would only count as a minor achievement, especially since they had dragged on for over half a year.

But with these nine wanted posters, it was a different story.

This showed that the murderer was cruel by nature, treacherous and cunning. Numerous provincial authorities had been powerless against him, yet he was finally caught in Qinghe County.

He hadn’t just solved one case, but ten. This was definitely a major accomplishment.

"Good. Very good. This is truly excellent!"

Magistrate Liu said "good" three times in a row, then asked in a questioning tone, "I think this case, like the last one, could be tried publicly to boost public morale. What do you think, Head Constable Zhao?"

Zhao Lin thought for a moment before replying, "I believe it’s feasible, but the perpetrator’s methods were extremely cruel, and his violation of the female victims was particularly heinous. It would be best to be discreet during the trial."

"If the graphic details are leaked, not only will it have a significant negative impact, but it will also cause secondary harm to the victims’ families."

"Secondary harm?"

Magistrate Liu stroked his beard and nodded repeatedly. "That makes sense. I didn’t expect you to be so thoughtful. We’ll do as you say!"

...

The Wen Gensheng serial rape and murder case caused a huge sensation in Qinghe County.

The public trial drew such a crowd it felt like the entire county had shown up. The streets surrounding the county office were packed to the brim with spectators.

Seeing the situation, Magistrate Liu didn’t dare to delay. After reading out the charges, he directly sentenced Wen Gensheng to death.

However, although Wen Gensheng’s crimes were heinous, he could not be executed just yet.

Magistrate Liu sent official letters to the provincial authorities of Ying, Wu, Tai, and Yan, along with the relevant case files.

A case like this had to be verified step-by-step, so the final verdict would usually take some time, especially since the bounty from the Xingyun Sect was also involved.

Afterward, Magistrate Liu made personnel changes among the East District constables: The former East District Head Constable, Sun Zhang, was transferred to the Strong Class to serve as its leader, and Zhao Lin took his place.

Although Sun Zhang’s new position was nominally higher than his previous one, everyone could see that the magistrate’s move was a promotion in name but a demotion in reality. The Strong Class had many members, but they were all able-bodied men with no martial arts skills. Their power and responsibilities were incomparable to those of a constable.

For his effective work on the case, the County Magistrate rewarded Zhao Lin with a fifty-tael bonus. The other constables in the East District each received three taels.

Zhao Lin’s promotion was so rapid that a few people grumbled about it, but most were convinced. Solving three cases in ten days was far more impressive than anything Sun Zhang had done.

...

"Here, drink this bowl of Qi Replenishing Soup."

In the inner residence of the Liuhe Sect’s rear courtyard, Zhu Huaishan pointed at the medicinal soup on the table and spoke to Zhao Lin.

Zhao Lin readily picked up the bowl and, GULP, GULP, downed it in two big gulps.

Zhu Huaishan stroked his chin and smiled. "Very good. Logically speaking, the Xingyun Sect will certainly keep its promise and give you a Moisturizing Pill."

"But until you have the pill in hand, we must continue our preparations step-by-step."

Zhao Lin nodded emphatically. "Master, I understand. Thirty years have passed. Times have changed, and if they refuse to acknowledge it, there’s nothing we can do."

Zhu Huaishan smiled with satisfaction. "You have a great mindset! Actually, I had originally planned to take you to the Xingyun Sect once you reached the Third Layer of the Power Realm. With your aptitude, you would have been able to compete for a Moisturizing Pill."

"But I never expected that having you become a constable to avoid disaster would lead to such an unexpected windfall. It seems you’re fated to acquire the Moisturizing Pill. It must be your destiny."

Two days ago, Zhu Huaishan had a long talk with Zhao Lin, explaining his own origins and discussing Zhao Lin’s future martial arts training plans.

Zhao Lin was currently only in the Power Realm, so there wasn’t much difference between training at the Liuhe Sect and the Xingyun Sect. But upon reaching the Qi Realm or even the Blood Realm, the gap between the two would grow wider and wider.

First, in terms of resources.

Zhu Huaishan was qualified to open his own school and teach disciples because he had received "authorization" from the Xingyun Sect—that is, the formulas for the medicinal ingredients required for martial arts training.

However, the formulas he possessed were only the most basic ones. The best recipes were still kept at the Xingyun Sect’s main headquarters.

The same was true for martial cultivation techniques. The techniques Zhu Huaishan was permitted to teach were also limited, and some he had never even learned himself.

For various other reasons, including the environment and competition, Zhu Huaishan naturally hoped that Zhao Lin could one day return to the Xingyun Sect.

Two years ago, Zhu Huaishan had taken his eldest disciple, Gao Yuan, to the Xingyun Sect, but unfortunately, he failed to pass the selection and was not approved to stay.

In truth, Chu Liu’s aptitude was even better, but Zhu Huaishan felt his temperament was too narrow-minded, so he didn’t take him along.

He had already taught one rebellious disciple, Wen Gensheng, and he didn’t dare make the same mistake again. He had to be extremely cautious.

"By the way, why are you here so early today?"

Zhu Huaishan suddenly asked.

Ever since Zhao Lin became a constable, he could only come to the Liuhe Sect after getting off duty during the Hour of Shen, except on his days off. Today, he had arrived just after noon, which was why Zhu Huaishan asked.

"Well..."

Zhao Lin grinned. "You might not know this, Master, but now that I’m a Head Constable, I actually have more free time than before. When things aren’t busy, I can delegate tasks to my subordinates and slack off a bit."

"Slack off?"

After a moment’s thought, Zhu Huaishan understood. He assumed it was some village slang and didn’t press the matter, smiling as he said, "Well then, you can arrange your own schedule. Feel free to slack off when there’s nothing to do."

The days passed leisurely, and in the blink of an eye, half a month went by. Soon, it was the first day of the tenth month, the day of the Autumn Sacrifice.

On this day, the people of Qinghe County would all go to the Earth God Temple, located twenty li south of the city, to pay their respects, burn offerings, and commemorate their deceased relatives.

Merchants, seeing a business opportunity, would set up all sorts of small stalls outside the temple to make money, and people from various other trades would follow suit.

Over time, the Autumn Sacrifice temple fair evolved into a major festival integrating food, drink, and entertainment.

Because the temple fair attracted large crowds, theft and robbery were common. Thus, every year, the county office would dispatch a number of constables to the scene to maintain order, both overtly and covertly.

Neither Zhao Lin nor Liang Song had ever been to the temple fair, so they used their official duties as a pretext for personal enjoyment. They changed into plain clothes and left the city through the south gate early in the morning, heading for the Earth God Temple.

The two of them hadn’t left the city in a while and were both quite excited. However, Liang Song was still a little worried. "You don’t think the bandits will come to the temple fair too, do you?"

"Don’t worry!"

Zhao Lin chuckled. "The bandits only dare to run rampant in the mountains because they have lookouts and are familiar with the terrain. If they dared to cause trouble at the temple fair, the Garrison Army isn’t just for show."

In truth, there was another reason he didn’t mention: ever since absorbing the Essence Soul of the Horseshoe Bat, the possibility of being ambushed was basically eliminated. Combined with his extraordinary speed, the risk of leaving the city wasn’t high.

The two of them were fast walkers, arriving at the Earth God Temple around the Hour of Chen.

It was still early, but the area in front of the Earth God Temple was already packed with people, and various breakfast stalls had been set up.

Rice noodles, oil tea, rice noodle rolls, fried meatballs, tofu pudding, fragrant cakes, sweet dumplings... The air was filled with steam and the lively, savory scents of street food.

Zhao Lin pointed toward the temple. "Come on, let’s go take a look inside."