Chapter 55: The Excited Young Master Zhao

At the gate of the Wuling County Yamen, Hou Chunwen came running in a rush from the distant street corner, then dashed straight into the inner grounds of the yamen, accompanied by a bailiff.

Along the way, everyone inside the yamen was astonished at how the usually composed Master Hou had become so flustered.

"Ah, Master Hou, why are you in such a panic?" "Has something bad happened?"

"Ah, good news, it's good news!"

Hou Chunwen simply threw back a casual reply, completely lacking the time to elaborate, for they would soon find out anyway. Meanwhile, the bailiff running alongside him could not hold back from answering as they sprinted.

"Chief Constable Lu and the others have killed the demon! They are already carrying the demon's corpse back into the city, and they'll be at the yamen any minute now—"

"What?" "The demon was killed?"

"Is that true?"

"Go take a look, hurry up and go take a look!"

The people inside the yamen were stirred into a commotion at this. Many rushed outside, eager to reach the street first for a look, while the clamor in the surrounding streets grew increasingly loud.

In truth, Lu Jing and the others were not quite parading the demon's corpse through the streets in the literal sense. After all, they had only taken a detour around the edges, primarily heading straight for the county yamen.

In the backyard of the yamen, Pang Boqi, the Magistrate of Wuling County, was just stepping out of his study when he saw Hou Chunwen and a bailiff running in hastily.

"Oh, Master Hou has arrived early today. Why is it so noisy outside?"

Unable to conceal the joy on his face, Hou Chunwen wiped the sweat from his brow with his sleeve, stepped forward quickly, and forced down his panting to report the situation.

"Your Honor, wonderful news! Wonderful news! Chief Constable Lu led some men up north last night and killed the man-eating demon!"

"Yes, yes, yes! Chief Constable Lu and the others even brought the demon's corpse back. They are about to arrive at the yamen!"

Hearing the words of Hou Chunwen and the bailiff, Pang Boqi's eyes widened.

"What? Is this true?"

"How could it be false? My lord, you should make preparations quickly; they are about to reach the yamen. The entire populace of the city has been stirred, and everyone is praising this magnificent feat..."

"Quick, quickly come with me to take a look!"

The demon's depredations had been a severe headache for Pang Boqi. After all, demons were different from ordinary people; they naturally evoked fear, could not be communicated with, and could not be swayed by conventional interests. Everyone felt a sense of unease.

By the time Lu Jing and the others carried the carcass of the great macaque close to the yamen, the normally spacious area was almost packed solid with people, though a clear path had been left for Lu Jing and his group to walk through.

However, as the men carrying the corpse passed by, the crowd would instinctively recoil toward the sides out of fear. The demon simply possessed too much deterrent presence.

Even the bailiffs and some who were seeing it for the first time could not help but gasp in shock.

"So this is the demon!" "It's a ghost-faced ape!"

"How terrifying! No wonder it could eat people!" "That idle vagrant from East Street was killed by this very thing..."

"It's even wrapped in clothes. It has truly attained sentience!" "Could it reach this size without turning into a spirit?"

"Chief Constable Lu has remarkable skills!" "What extraordinary feats by these brave men..."

"Didn't I say Chief Constable Lu is the hero of our Wuling?" "Who could say otherwise?"

"Just two days ago, who was gossiping that Chief Constable Lu brought disaster upon everyone? It was clearly he who drove the demon away last time, too!"

"Hey, hey, I certainly didn't say that..."

Discussions buzzed among the crowd, and praises echoed ceaselessly.

The corners of the mouths of the three men who had come to assist could not be suppressed. Carrying the corpse such a long distance left their legs tireless, their backs unaching, and their shoulders pain-free. Lu Jing, positioned at the front left, also felt a strong sense of pride and vindication.

Before the yamen gates, Pang Boqi had unusually come out to greet them personally, raising his voice in high praise even before he reached them.

"Lu Jing truly lives up to his name as our yamen's chief constable. How utterly magnificent—"

"Fellow villagers, our Wuling County Yamen has now eliminated the demon! From now on, you need not worry—"

Hearing this, Lu Jing merely frowned, while the other three felt a rising sense of resentment. Aside from the fact that Lu Jing was the yamen's chief constable, what did the rest of it have to do with the Wuling County Yamen?

---

Yet the three managed to swallow their words, mainly because Lu Jing spoke first.

"My lord, we dare not claim sole credit for this. This monstrous entity was slain by a passing master of the martial path. The four of us merely assisted from the sidelines!"

"Indeed, the four of us only helped out. The fiend was ferocious; if not for the expert's intervention, it is hard to say whether we would have made it back alive!"

"Quite right. We only regret that our numbers were few. If there had been more of us, humph..."

Hou Chunwen hurried forward to smooth things over.

"Yes, yes, yes. The fiend was vicious indeed. Thanks to you all, thanks to you all, the people of Wuling County can finally rest easy. By the way, where is this expert?"

"Well, the expert has already left ahead of time..."

---

While the yamen was bustling with commotion, Zhuang Lin, the master who had slain the demon, had already entered the city early this morning just as the gates opened.

Naturally, Zhuang Lin was also aware that Lu Jing and the others had returned carrying the demon's corpse. Perhaps in the entire city of Wuling, he was the only one who cared so little about the beast's remains.

Since he had previously promised Yu Jingxuan that he would look him up first upon his next visit, Zhuang Lin tried his best not to break his word and headed to the Yu residence early in the morning.

Unfortunately, Zhuang Lin's trip was in vain.

Upon learning Zhuang Lin's name, the servants of the Yu family gave him no pleasant expression whatsoever. They did not even allow him to enter the gates, slamming the door right in his face.

Yet Zhuang Lin could understand. According to the news he managed to gather, shortly after the start of summer, Yu Jingxuan had defied the objections of his elders and left home accompanied by his study boy, emulating Zhuang Lin and Tao Yuanming to travel and study across the land...

Virtually the moment the Yu family servant stated that the young master had long since departed, Zhuang Lin knew it was the truth.

In this, Zhuang Lin felt his own influence had played a significant role, so he could fully understand the attitude of the Yu family.

When he arrived at Zhao Chenyu's residence, Zhuang Lin still failed to see his host. However, there were servants present who remembered Zhuang Lin, and they welcomed him into the courtyard, inviting him to sit and wait for the young master's return.

Zhuang Lin seated himself behind the desk in the Zhao family's reception hall. A servant brought out a plate of preserved fruits and a plate of rice cakes, followed by a tea brazier containing simmering tea soup.

"Master Zhuang, please help yourself. Someone has already gone to notify our young master, and he will be back shortly!"

"Ah, thank you!"

Zhuang Lin cupped his hands in greeting, and the servant hurriedly returned the bow. This Master Zhuang had quite an impressive background; when he had passed through on his travels previously, he had brought a large retinue.

"You are too kind. I must attend to some chores first. If you need anything, just call out, and I shall come right away!"

"Very well!"

Zhuang Lin acknowledged with a calm demeanor and watched the servant leave. The moment the man departed, he immediately pinched the lid of the jar atop the tea brazier and lifted it to take a peek...

Ah, as expected, it was still that outrageous concoction of tea soup, minus only the face-to-face tea ceremony performance.

---

Over at the Wuling County Yamen, the yamen's coroner was conducting an autopsy in full view of the townspeople, primarily to instill confidence and prove to everyone that the demon had truly been eradicated.

Though somewhat pedantic, Pang Boqi could not be considered utterly idle or incompetent; judged by the average standards of Jin Dynasty officials, he was actually passable.

Not only was the coroner experienced, but he also understood the authorities' intent. Yet he did not even need to act out his part too deliberately; the moment he arrived at the yamen and laid eyes on the demon's carcass, he immediately realized it was no ordinary creature.

Naturally, plenty of people watched from within the yamen, though the crowd was not as densely packed as it had been initially.

The conclusion regarding the demon was crystal clear, and Lu Jing and the others had already given a rough account of the mysterious expert...

Zhao Chenyu was also among the onlookers. Fearing a scolding from his uncle, he kept a low profile on the outer fringes until his household servant finally tracked him down.

However, Zhao Chenyu's attention was entirely fixed on the demon's corpse, and he had not been listening closely to what the servant was saying until the man mentioned Zhuang Lin.

"What? Who is here?"

Amidst the slightly clamorous crowd, Zhao Chenyu turned to look at the servant, who was standing on tiptoe with his neck craned to peer inside. Hearing the question, the servant repeated himself to his young master.

"That Master Zhuang who brought so many retainers last time—this time, he has come all alone!"

"Zhuang Zian?" "Yes, it's him!"

"Is he still at the house?"

"Er, he is currently a guest at our home. We have prepared tea and pastries to host him..."

Zhao Chenyu's face instantly lit up with pleasant surprise.

"Good, good, good. Let's go, accompany me back..."

Before the words had even faded, another wave of gasps erupted from the crowd, and Zhao Chenyu and his servant hurriedly stood on tiptoe and stretched their necks to look once more...

---

Zhuang Lin had waited at the Zhao residence for roughly two quarters of an hour before Zhao Chenyu finally hurried back, trotting alongside his servant. Upon entering the courtyard and seeing Zhuang Lin seated in the hall, joy instantly bloomed across his face.

"So it truly is Master Zian! Forgive me for failing to welcome you from afar. A major event occurred in the city today, causing me to return late. I hope Master Zian will excuse me!"

Zhao Chenyu regarded Tao Yuanming as a close and valued friend, and since Tao held Zhuang Lin in exceptional reverence and addressed him respectfully as "Master" at every turn, Zhao Chenyu naturally dared not show any disrespect.

Yet this time, Zhao Chenyu did not notice any retainers accompanying Zhuang Lin, and his servant had indeed reported that he came alone.

Zhuang Lin rose to return the greeting.

"Young Master Zhao is too modest. It was my fault for making an abrupt intrusion, and especially for departing without a proper farewell last time. I truly feel a sense of shame."

"Hahahaha! Master Zian is too polite. Please, sit, sit!"

Seeing that Zhuang Lin bore no resentment for the long wait, Zhao Chenyu felt a weight lift from his heart. Entering the hall, he repeatedly urged Zhuang Lin to be seated. Refusing the master's seat himself, he instead pulled up a chair to sit directly opposite Zhuang Lin, while a trailing servant quickly placed a cushion at his feet and set a fresh cup of tea upon the table.

"Since Master Zian arrived early, you surely do not know about the great event that transpired in the county!"

Seeing Zhao Chenyu's eager expression, itching to share the news, Zhuang Lin went along with it and asked,

"Oh? What great event?"

"Ah! Demon slaying! Our Wuling County was plagued by a demon recently, throwing everyone into a panic and making it difficult even for me to step outside. That fiend was vicious and claimed many lives!"

"There really was a demon?"

Zhuang Lin offered a cooperative inquiry, and Zhao Chenyu's expression turned solemn.

"Naturally there was! In this vast world, how could demons and ghosts not exist? Fortunately for us, Chief Constable Lu of the yamen is a capable figure. He managed to gather a few helpers and even found a master who together hunted down and slew that demon!"

At this, Zhao Chenyu still wore a lingering look of dread.

"You didn't see the demon's corpse—it was enormous, with a face resembling an evil spirit. Some elders recognized it as a mountain ghoul, and it was immensely formidable..."

Zhao Chenyu grew somewhat excited just recounting it, and the conversation quickly shifted to the mysterious expert.

"According to what Lu Jing and the others said, that expert dispatched the demon with a single sword strike, so fast that people had no time to react... You have no idea, when the coroner examined the corpse, the fiend's hide was so thick and tough that even blades had trouble cutting through it. And those sharp claws and fangs—my goodness, they were longer than my fingers..."

"My uncle... er, His Honor the Magistrate subsequently ordered that the demon's corpse be hung outside the yamen yamen for three days to reassure the public!"

"Alas, it is simply a pity that I had no chance to meet such a demon-slaying master..."

Hearing someone describe himself, Zhuang Lin found it rather amusing.

"Is it unknown who that master was?"

"Ah, experts act mysteriously; how can they be compared to ordinary people? Anyway, judging by the words of the coroner and Lu Jing's group, that person's martial arts must have reached the pinnacle of perfection. By the way, he used a sword, and I heard it embodied the very spirit of our Confucian tradition!"

Mid-sentence, the deeply excited Zhao Chenyu stood up, dashed briskly out of the hall toward his study-cum-bedchamber, and then ran back into the hall carrying a sword.

His voice preceded his return before he even stepped back inside.

"The arts of the gentleman shall not be discarded, and the scholars of our generation likewise bear the sword!"

With a crisp *clang*, Zhao Chenyu drew his sword from its scabbard as he returned.

With passionate, erratic flourishes of his blade, Zhao Chenyu thoroughly startled his attending servants, who crouched and retreated backward. Zhuang Lin, by contrast, remained seated calmly right before the desk, completely unmoving.