The Night Watcher of Great Jing - Chapter 75

Everyone in the alley had heard a dead man coughing.

A thick cloud suddenly drifted across the sky and covered the sun, dimming the day.

The group stood in the road, silent for a moment.

The constable who had brought the report continued, “This morning, Old Man Liu’s coffin still couldn’t be lifted. Someone came up with the idea of making a Filial Son Bridge.”

A Filial Son Bridge required the dutiful son to dress in mourning clothes and lie face-down in the road, using his body to pave the way while the coffin passed above his head.

Once the dead person sensed his children’s filial devotion, he would leave peacefully.

Zhao Li shook her head to herself.

If the old man’s dying wish had been for a good coffin and a good burial place, then unless they fulfilled it, ten thousand Filial Son Bridges would do no good.

The constable went on. “Old Man Liu drove carts his whole life and raised three sons, but none of them was filial.”

“They knew exactly what sort of wretches they were. Every one of them was afraid their father’s coffin would fall when it passed over their heads.”

“In the end, Old Man Liu’s youngest daughter volunteered. She put on men’s clothes and lay down to make the Filial Son Bridge.”

At this point, the constable suddenly stopped. With a mysterious expression, he asked his intent listeners, “Guess what happened next?”

Silence reigned for a moment.

The chief raised a foot to kick him. “Guess my ass! Are you going to tell us or not?”

Only then did the man remember he was not a street storyteller spinning out suspense for an audience.

He gave an awkward smile and continued. “Old Man Liu’s daughter was filial. She changed into men’s clothes and lay down for the bridge. The coffin moved perfectly well and was almost across.”

“But then she thought of her dead father and sobbed. The cry revealed that she was a woman.”

“The ropes around the coffin snapped without warning, and it fell straight onto her.”

The constable shook his head, pity on his face.

“That delicate young woman was crushed beneath it, her head split and bleeding. When they dragged her out, her bones were broken and her tendons torn.”

“That finally stirred Old Man Liu’s sons into action. They grabbed the corpse bearers and refused to release them, insisting their ropes had been too weak and demanding compensation!”

The chief folded his arms and thought for a moment, expertly seizing on the essential point.

“So a family was holding a funeral, the coffin fell and injured someone, and now there’s a dispute?”

“Nothing escapes you, Chief. You grasped it at once.” The subordinate immediately began flattering him.

“Then why the hell did you waste so many words?”

The messenger received a slap to the back of his head.

He had, however, successfully stirred everyone’s curiosity.

The chief straightened his clothes and wiped the grease from his face.

“Let’s go take a look.”

He turned to several subordinates. “You take these people back to the office.”

Then he looked at Zhao Li. “Don’t be afraid. These bastards deserved it, though you’ll probably have to pay some compensation.”

He had clearly mastered the timeless art of settling a dispute by punishing both sides equally.

The man did not seem bad, so Zhao Li clasped her hands.

“May I ask how you are addressed?”

“My surname is Xing.”

Head Constable Xing found himself blocked by Zhao Li.

Was she planning to bribe him?

He calculated that if she offered ten taels for the brothers to drink, releasing her would be no great matter.

She had only injured a thug.

While he was thinking, Zhao Li drew a small black-gold badge from her robes.

The inscription read:

*Jingning Guard. Thousand-Household Commander, Night Watch Bureau.*

Head Constable Xing’s knees weakened. He nearly collapsed.

“I was carrying out an assignment when these thugs came to harass me. Please handle them impartially, Head Constable Xing,” Zhao Li improvised smoothly.

“Yes, yes, of course!”

Head Constable Xing was now completely sober.

Three sorts of people in the capital received news fastest.

First came the Jingning Guard, where gossip from the entire realm gathered.

Second came street thugs and beggars.

Third were low-ranking constables like Head Constable Xing, who heard every sort of rumor from people in all walks of life.

The emperor’s creation of a new Jingning Guard bureau had probably left the great men of the court speculating about His Majesty’s intentions.

But ordinary constables stood closer to the truth.

All of Great Jing was changing, and the Night Watch Bureau had most likely been created to face those changes.

Now a living member of that bureau stood before him. She might look young, but she was already a Thousand-Household Commander.

How could Head Constable Xing dare question her account?

He waved for his men to take the thugs away, then offered to buy Zhao Li wine as an apology.

Zhao Li shook her head and refused.

“Let’s go. We’ll visit Fengyi Ward.”

Her instincts told her something had gone wrong there.

Since she had encountered it, it was all experience. There was no reason to let it pass.

When Head Constable Xing heard she wished to go, he was equally eager to see what the Night Watch Bureau could do. He personally led the way.

They had only just entered the ward when they saw layer upon layer of spectators blocking the mouth of the alley.

The most incurably curious had even climbed trees.

This era offered few forms of entertainment. Watching a commotion was the best entertainment of all.

Seeing the road completely blocked, Head Constable Xing hurried forward with his saber and shouted for people to move.

The Five Cities Military Patrol Office carried far less authority than the Jingning Guard.

When its constables tried to clear the way, some shameless troublemakers even rolled their eyes at them.

Head Constable Xing felt his dignity slipping. He drew his scabbard and began swatting people with it.

The hard sheath struck flesh with crisp smacks.

Only when it truly hurt did the crowd reluctantly disperse.

Zhao Li watched the spectacle of humanity with great interest and followed the cleared path into the alley.

Noise, crying, and shouting engulfed her the moment she entered.

A black coffin with peeling paint lay crosswise in the road. Traces of blood could still be seen beneath it.

Spirit money had been scattered over the ground, and several half-burned sticks of incense lay nearby.

Closer in, she saw a blood-covered person stretched across a door panel that had been removed from its hinges.

The figure was small and thin, with no clear indication of sex at a glance. But according to the constable’s story, this had to be Old Man Liu’s youngest daughter.

The pitiful girl lay there with her limbs bent at terrifying angles.

No one watched over her. No one had taken her for treatment.

Several dark, scrawny middle-aged men surrounded a smaller man, clutching and pulling at him.

“Pay for our sister!”

“Our youngest sister is precious. You owe us money!”

Zhao Li thought, *You certainly don’t look as if you treasure her.*

The girl on the door panel was truly pitiful.

Zhao Li silently squeezed her purse.

Aside from the emperor’s reward, which she intended to save for retirement, she carried only a few pieces of loose silver.

More than half a month remained until payday.

Money flew away like an eggshell in the wind, but at least it bought peace.

Zhao Li sighed, shook several bits of silver from her purse, and handed them to the especially talkative constable.

“Please find a physician for this girl.”

Her brothers certainly did not look as though they intended to care for her.

The constable froze, apparently surprised that Zhao Li would spend her own money.

After trying briefly to refuse, he gave her a peculiar look and ran off to find a physician.

Zhao Li remained in the courtyard. The men nearby were so absorbed in their quarrel that they noticed nothing else.

She drew a breath and shouted, “All of you, shut the hell up!”

The courtyard fell silent.