Chapter 4.1 - Inhuman People

Part 1

It was very late at night.

Liu Changjie sat in the simple living room. A very long time had passed already, and not a sound could be heard in the night.

He had taken the body of the woman and put it on the bed. Then he had taken all the quilts in the house and placed them on top of her, as if she was afraid of catching cold.

After that, he went around and lit all the lamps in the house, even the lamps in the kitchen.

He wasn’t afraid of death, and he wasn’t afraid of the dark. But in his heart he carried an indescribable hatred for both of them, and always wished to push them as far away as possible.

Now he sat thinking, trying to wrap his mind around the whole matter, from head to tail.

He was a quiet person, not very well known, to the point that even he was unsure of the extent of his own strength and ability.

He had never tested himself, had never even thought to.

But “Power of Hu” Patriarch Hu had discovered him, the same way one might discover a pearl inside of a clam.

Patriarch Hu not only had sharp eyes, he had a mind with no equal.

He never misjudged people, never misjudged anything—in fact he had never made a single error in judgement.

Even though he had never worn the official headdress of a government official, had never eaten a meal provided by the government, he was without a doubt the most famous investigator alive. The chief constables of every administrative district and every prefecture virtually worshipped him.

There was not a case in the world that he couldn’t crack; as long as he was alive, there was not a single underworld criminal who could evade justice.

But sadly, even the fastest sword will eventually become dull; no matter how powerful the person, they will eventually become sick and old.

He had finally grown old and contracted rheumatism, could barely walk without the support of others.

In the two or three years after becoming ill, he had stayed in Beijing. In that time, several hundred serious crimes had been committed—three hundred thirty-two to be exact.

Among those over three hundred serious cases, not one had been solved.

But leaving these cases unsolved was unacceptable. Among the victims were members of the nobility and high government officials, famous figures of the martial world, well-known and aristocratic families, and even the royal family itself.

Patriarch Hu’s legs were crippled, but he was not blind.

He knew that all of these crimes were committed by one person, and he also knew that only one person could solve them.

The criminal was none other than Dragon Fifth, and the hero could be none other than Liu Changjie.

Everyone trusted his judgement in this matter.

And it was in this way that the quiet and unassuming Liu Changjie suddenly became a legend.

**

Currently, Liu Changjie wasn’t sure if he had gotten lucky, or extremely unlucky.

Even now, he still didn’t completely understand what Patriarch Hu really thought of him.

It seemed that he would never be able to understand that crafty old fox, and he would never understand his daughter, either.

He thought back to a year or so before, when he’d become friends with a man named Wang Nan. One day, Wang Nan had suddenly suggested that they go visit Patriarch Hu. Three months later, Patriarch Hu gave him this task, this burden. It wasn’t until this very night that he realized how heavy the burden really was.

So what now?

Was it really possible for him, in only one hour, to kill Tang Qing, Shan Yifei, Soul Enticing Lao Zhao, Iron Monk, Li the Mastiff and the woman? Could he really reach the mysterious wooden box? Could he really get his hands on Dragon Fifth?

Only if he knew the answers to these questions, could he be truly confident.

But lately, what really caused him anxiety was Hu Yue’er.

What kind of woman was she? How did she actually treat him?

Only he knew the answer to that question. After all, he was just a person, made of flesh and blood like everyone else. The carriage sped along urgently, having long disappeared into the deep night.

It was a dark night.

Liu Changjie wasn’t afraid of the dark, but in his heart he carried an indescribable hatred and disgust for it…

Part 2

New. From socks to inner garment to outer robe, everything was brand new.

Even the bathtub was brand new.

The carriage had just stopped inside the courtyard of a house, and Liu Changjie had followed the young woman inside. Waiting inside a room was a bathtub.

The water was neither cold nor hot.

The young woman pointed at the basin; Liu Changjie stripped off his clothes and climbed in.

She didn’t say a single word.

Neither did he ask a single question.

After he was finished washing, scrubbed dry, and ready to don fresh clothes, the young woman suddenly returned. She was followed by two people carrying another brand new wooden wash basin. It was full of water, the temperature of which was neither hot nor cold.

The young woman pointed at it, and Liu Changjie looked into her eyes. After a moment, he climbed in, and began washing himself thoroughly, as if he hadn’t bathed in the past three months.

He was not the type of man who believed that water would sap his vitality. In actuality, he really enjoyed bathing.

He also wasn’t the type of man who spoke out of turn. If others weren’t willing to talk, he usually didn’t ask questions.

But after the woman for a fourth time called in attendants with new water to bathe in, he couldn’t suppress his frustration any longer.

His body had been scrubbed until it was as bright as a freshly peeled carrot.

The young woman once again pointed at the water, indicating for him to wash again.

He looked at her and then suddenly laughed.

She laughed with him for a while.

“Is there dog shit on my body?” asked Liu Changjie.

She laughed loudly. “No.”

“Is there cat shit?

“Not that either.”

“Then what is there?”

She rolled her eyes, her round face reddening.

There was absolutely nothing on his body.

“I’ve already bathed three times,” said Liu Changjie. “Even if there was dog shit on my body, it’s long gone.”

The young woman nodded, her face red. She was old enough to be embarrassed by a ***** man.

“Why do I have to bathe again?”

“I don’t know.”

Shocked, he replied, “You don’t know?”

“All I know,” she responded, “Is that whoever meets the lady of this house, they must thoroughly wash from head to toe. Five times.”

**

So, Liu Changjie bathed five times.

He donned a fresh set of clothes, and as he followed the young woman to meet “the lady,” he suddenly realized that bathing five times in a row wasn’t that bad after all.

His whole body felt relaxed, and walking down the long, glass-like corridor, it felt like he was gliding through the clouds.

At the end of the corridor was a doorway, over which hung a curtain fashioned from pearls.

The narrow door itself was unlocked, and on the other side was a spacious room with white walls and glossy wooden floors. The only decorations were a table, a chair, and a bronze mirror.

Standing in front of the mirror admiring herself was a tall, slender woman wearing apricot-colored robes.

Liu Changjie could see the reflection of her face in the mirror.

It was impossible to deny that her face was beautiful, so beautiful that it could only be described as perfect.

This level of beauty was otherworldly, like that of a celestial being in a painting.

It was a level of beauty that most people would not be willing to approach, only admire from afar.

So Liu Changjie stood as far away as possible.

She looked at him in the mirror, but she didn’t turn her head. She just coldy asked, “You are Liu Changjie?”

“I am.”

“I am Kong. Kong Lanjun.” [1]

Her voice was beautiful, but carried a feeling of indescribable indifference and conceit. It was as if she had long decided that whoever heard her voice would be unable to hold back their shock upon hearing her name.

Liu Changjie did not appear to be the least bit shocked.

Kong Lanjun laughed coldly. “I’ve never laid eyes on you before, but I already know what kind of person you are.”

“Oh?”

“Dragon Fifth said that you are very interesting, as are your money-spending methods.”

“He spoke correctly.”

“Lan Tianmeng said your bones are strong, that you can take a beating.”

“He also spoke correctly.”

“But all the women who’ve met you used the same word to describe you.”

“Oh? What word?”

“Inhuman.”

“They also spoke correctly.”

“An inhuman man who lays eyes on me should die!”

“I didn’t ask to come see you,” replied Liu Changjie. “You sent for me!”

Kong Lanjun’s face whitened. “I sent for you only because I made a promise to Dragon Fifth. Otherwise you would already be dead.”

“What was your promise to Dragon Fifth?”

“I promised him to take you to see someone. Other than that, you and I have absolutely no relationship. So, you had better behave yourself. I know your reputation with women. If you treat me the way you treat other women, you’ll meet a quick end.”

“I understand.”

She laughed coldly. “You’d better understand.”

“But there are two things I hope you understand.”

“What?”

“First, I have no desire at all to have any sort of relationship with you.”

Kong Lanjun’s face was as white as death.

“Second,” he continued, “even though I’ve never laid eyes on you before, I already know what kind of person you are.”

“What kind of person am I?” she asked, unable to hold back her words.

“You think you are a beautiful peacock, and that everyone in the world should admire you; but the only person you admire is yourself.”

Kong Lanjun’s face couldn’t become any whiter. She spun around and stared at him, her eyes flaming.

Liu Changjie calmly went on, “You sent for me because of Dragon Fifth. I was willing to come because of Dragon Fifth. There is absolutely no other relationship between us. Except …”

“Except what?”

“You really shouldn’t have started that fire!”

“I shouldn’t have?”

“If the fire had killed me, how could you take me to meet who I’m supposed to meet?”

She laughed. “If the fire had killed you, then you clearly wouldn’t have deserved to meet her.”

“Who is this person?”

“Qiu Hengbo.”

“Madam Autumn?”

She nodded. “Autumn Lovesickness.”

“You’re going to take me to see her?”

“I’m her friend. And only I can enter the Autumn Mansion.” [2]

“You’re her friend, and she is yours, but you’re helping Dragon Fifth?”

“Among women,” she said coldly, “there is no such thing as true friendship.”

“Actually, considering the type of person you are, you only have one real friend; yourself.”

This time Kong Lanjun didn’t appear to be angry. “In any case, I’m better than her,” she said calmly.

“Oh?”

“She even views herself as an enemy.”

“And yet, she allows you to visit the Autumn Mansion?”

A venomous look suddenly sprang into her eyes. “She lets me visit because she enjoys watching me suffer. She loves to torment me.”

Words like hatred or enmity could not begin to describe the look on her face.

Between these two mysterious, beautiful and callous women, there appeared to be some unimaginable relationship.

Liu Changjie looked at her, and suddenly laughed. “Ok, you go, then.”

“You…”

“I don’t feel like accompanying you, and I don’t really need to see her, anyway.”

“Unfortunately, you must.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t know the location of her secret cave. I can only get you into the Autumn Mansion. The cave, you’ll have to find yourself.”

Liu Changjie’s heart sank.

Hearing this news, he suddenly realized that the whole matter was going to be even more difficult and complicated than he thought.

Kong Lanjun’s eyes lit up.

Only when seeing people suffer would her eyes light up. She loved seeing people suffer.

Liu Changjie finally let out a long breath. “Madam Autumn allows you to visit, but only because she likes to torment you. How do you know that she’ll allow me to be there?”

“Because she understands me, and she knows what I like. She knows that I especially like to be waited upon by men. So every time I go, I bring a manservant with me.”

“I’m not your servant.”

“Yes, you are.”

She stared at him, a strange expression filling her eyes.

Liu Changjie stared back at her.

The stared at each other for a long time, until finally Liu Changjie let out a long breath and said, “Yes, I am.”

“You are my servant?”

“Yes.”

“From today on, you will follow me like a dog. If I call you, you will come.”

“Yes.”

“If I want you to do something, you will do it.”

“Yes.”

“Whatever you do for me, you must be very careful. Don’t let your dirty hands touch me. If your right hand touches me, I’ll cut it off. If your arm brushes against me, I’ll cut the whole arm off.”

“Yes.” His face was expressionless, devoid of anger or pain.

Kong Lanjun stared at him for a long time. Then she sighed lightly. “It seems you really aren’t human.”

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