31: A demon is imprisoned in a dark room, its blood staining the wine pot; a secret banquet is held at the Lu residence to discuss intrigue and mystery.
In the private residence of the Road Administration Office, within a cage in a secret underground room, a Vampire was bound by chains as thick as an arm. Iron hooks pierced through its collarbones, and it let out terrifying roars: "Awooo~~~"
The Road Administrator, dressed in luxurious purple robes, held a wine pot in his left hand. His fingernails, sharp as blades, easily sliced open the Vampire's wrist, letting blood drip into the pot. "Banner Lieutenant Feng, Banner Lieutenant Yun, do you know what this is?"
Banner Lieutenant Feng and Banner Lieutenant Yun sat around a round table and exchanged a glance. "Looking at its appearance, could it be a zombie?"
"Hehehe... No, it isn't." The Road Administrator carried the wine pot filled with blood out of the cage, casually closed the door, sat down at the round table, and poured a cup of blood for each of the two Banner Lieutenants.
"Rumor has it that in the eight-hundred-mile Tiger Might Ridge, there is a strange Ghost-creature called a Vampire."
"It looks like a human, with red eyes and fangs. It sleeps by day and comes out at night, and it loves to consume human blood."
"Consuming it can prolong one's life."
"This is a Vampire that Young Master Ma captured when he braved Tiger Might Ridge. It is a turbid grade Ghost-creature, specially gifted to this Marshal. You two are getting older as well; you might as well drink some to supplement your dwindling Lifespan."
Banner Lieutenant Feng was filled with wonder. He picked up the bowl of blood and took a sip. "Holy crap, this is good stuff! With just one sip, I feel like my Lifespan has increased by a year. This subordinate thanks the Marshal for the gift of blood."
Hearing this, Banner Lieutenant Yun poured the blood into his wine gourd and shook it. "Old Feng, good stuff should be mixed with fine wine. Drinking it straight like that is a pure waste."
Banner Lieutenant Feng glared at him. "It's my choice! Why do you care?"
The Road Administrator chuckled as he poured himself a bowl of blood, took out some prepared minced garlic, sprinkled it in the bowl, and took a sip with narrowed eyes. "This kind of Ghost-creature is a rare Material. Through processing, it can be refined into a Lifespan-increasing Medicinal Pill."
"However, turning it into a Medicinal Pill loses the original flavor of the ingredient."
"Drinking it fresh like this, straight from the source without processing, preserves the original and fresh taste of the ingredient."
"If you add a little bit of garlic, tsk, it really has a unique flavor."
Banner Lieutenant Feng hurried to flatter him. "Right, right, right! That's it! It's all about the freshness. Old Yun, you mix it with wine; you don't understand gourmet food at all."
Banner Lieutenant Yun's mouth twitched. "Shut up. What 'freshness'? Why don't you just hug the Vampire and gnaw on it!"
Banner Lieutenant Feng pointed at Banner Lieutenant Yun and turned to complain, "Marshal, look at him. He's actually questioning your taste."
The Road Administrator looked at the two of them speechlessly, sometimes really wanting to beat them to death. "Stop arguing. I called you here to try something new and to discuss some serious business with you."
Hearing this, the two Banner Lieutenants immediately restrained themselves, their expressions becoming serious and solemn.
The Road Administrator licked the blood from the corner of his mouth and tapped his fingers on the tabletop. "Speak, Banner Lieutenant Feng. I am waiting for an explanation. How did the Wild Dog Gang get wiped out just like that?"
Banner Lieutenant Feng pursed his lips. He knew the Road Administrator wasn't actually asking about the sequence of events, but was blaming him for failing to move Black Face away first despite having people watching, which led to the Wild Dog Gang being taken down as well.
"Marshal, things have come to this, and I have nothing to say. I can only say that Heaven helped him and not me."
The Road Administrator frowned slightly. "What’s the situation? Is there something I don't know?"
Banner Lieutenant Feng smiled bitterly. "Ye Tingxiu... This guy accidentally ruined our big plans..."
Back when Jin Wei was showing the portraits to his subordinates to find the target, two spies learned the details and immediately began an urgent search for Black Face within the city. Both sides were anxiously searching for him.
At that time, Ye Tingxiu was leading a squad on patrol to maintain order. He was thinking about competing with Zhou Qingfeng to see who could achieve greater merits. He stared at passersby every day, and to him, everyone looked like a criminal.
"Hey! You two are acting suspicious. You don't look like good people at first glance. Stop right there!" Ye Tingxiu saw the two spies walking past him hurriedly with their heads down. He immediately shouldered his blade, turned around, and barked at them to stop.
The two spies looked at each other, feeling extremely anxious but not daring to show any abnormality. They could only turn around and pretend nothing was wrong, saying, "Officers, is there something wrong?"
Ye Tingxiu stepped forward with his men and looked them up and down. "Name, place of origin, residence, how many people in your family, what's your occupation, and what's your relationship? Speak up!"
The two spies were dumbfounded. The questioning was too detailed; they couldn't even make up lies on the spot.
"Not talking? Fine. Refusing to cooperate with this Banner Lieutenant in the execution of official duties. Arrest them all and take them back for proper interrogation."
"Shit!" The two spies turned and ran.
Ye Tingxiu's eyes immediately lit up. He drew his blade and roared, "Great! They really are villains! After them!"
Back to the present.
Banner Lieutenant Feng said with a bitter smile, "Marshal, that's the situation. By the time the spies got away from Ye Tingxiu's harassment, Black Face had already been captured, and the Wild Dog Gang had been dismantled. This time, our Luck was simply poor. It was bad Luck."
The Road Administrator rubbed his brow, finding it hard to believe. "Just a coincidence?"
Banner Lieutenant Feng said helplessly, "Yes, just such a coincidence."
The Road Administrator still didn't quite believe it. He didn't believe in such coincidences. Rather than believing it was a fluke, he would rather believe there was a third-party force besides Zhou Qingfeng and the others working against him in the shadows.
Seeing that the Road Administrator still suspected something else was afoot, Banner Lieutenant Yun spoke up at the right time. "Marshal, sometimes there really are such coincidences. One must know that while man proposes, Heaven disposes. Many times, what's missing is just that bit of Luck."
The Road Administrator remained silent. After a moment, he let out a long sigh. "Sigh, Luck... Never mind. Things have come to this; delving deeper won't change the facts. We might as well think about what to do next."
Hearing this, Banner Lieutenant Feng breathed a sigh of relief. If the Road Administrator had blamed him, he would have likely lost a layer of skin even if he didn't die. He quickly changed the subject. "This time, Zhou Qingfeng acted arrogantly and was eager for merit, even going as far as to publicly forge a Search Warrant."
"This is a serious crime that could lead to dismissal at best, or execution at worst."
"With this evidence in our hands, Zhou Qingfeng is like a grasshopper in autumn; he won't be jumping for much longer."
The Road Administrator glanced at him and didn't take the bait, only saying coldly, "How many people in the Wild Dog Gang know of your existence?"
Banner Lieutenant Feng hurriedly said, "No one knows. However, the leader of the Wild Dog Gang, Xi Laide, knows that someone in the Night Patrol Bureau is protecting him, but he doesn't know it's me and has never seen me."
"These people actually don't know much; they are just a group of low-level 'Fishermen'."
"I have always controlled them indirectly through the owner of the Meat Workshop."
"The problem is that with Xi Laide's arrest, even if he keeps his mouth shut, it will only delay things. Eventually, the owner of the Meat Workshop will be exposed, then the warehouse will follow, and finally, Old Yun and I will be exposed as well."
The Road Administrator gave an "hmmm" of acknowledgment. "Cut ties where necessary, and silence them where necessary."
Hearing this, Banner Lieutenant Feng pursed his lips and lowered his head.
Banner Lieutenant Yun also became unusually silent, without any hint of his usual cynicism.
The Road Administrator looked at them, his gaze gradually turning cold. "You're reluctant?"
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