Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

In Changhe Square, a clear river flows through.

The gentle waters, shimmering bright, reflect the adjacent, intricately placed pavilions and towers.

Among these structures, the Dong Family's estate from the Yongzhou Thirteen Lines is located here.

The Dong Mansion is grand in scale, with its doors carved from ancient vermilion wood.

Atop the doorframe, a gold-plated plaque glows, inscribed with the words "Dong Residence," exuding a noble air.

Guan Yunjian descended the steps of the Dong family's grand entrance and shook his head at Uncle Shu, "Dong Chasi is not at home."

Uncle Shu asked, "Then where is he now?"

Guan Yunjian glanced at the blazing sun high in the sky and said, "It's midday, the mealtime. Dong Chasi hasn't returned home; he should be at Zuihua Building outside the city, having a drink. Let's go take a look there."

The two immediately hurried towards Baihua Building.

Going back and forth like this delayed them quite a bit.

Arriving at Baihua Building, they entered the restaurant and saw pavilions and towers in harmonious disarray, rock gardens and reflecting pools complementing each other, with all sorts of exotic flowers and plants competing in splendor, ever-vibrant in all seasons.

Meandering corridors led to elegant private rooms; through delicately carved lattice windows, one could glimpse the silhouettes of nobility inside—some playing the zither and reciting poetry, others enjoying tea or chess, or teasing women, toying with their tender hands.

Everywhere was permeated with a lavish and wealthy atmosphere.

Dong Jing was a regular patron at Baihua Building, and with a little inquiry to a waiter, Guan Yunjian and Uncle Shu soon found his private room.

Standing at the door, a servant responsible for the private area gently knocked and said, "Dong Chasi, there are two officers here looking for you."

Dong Jing, who was inside playing drinking games and entertaining beauties, furrowed his brow upon hearing this, puzzled as to why someone from the county office would seek him out at this time.

He gestured for his subordinates to settle down a bit and said, "Let them in."

The door to the private room creaked open.

"We pay our respects to Dong Chasi," Uncle Zheng and Guan Yunjian said in unison as they bowed with clasped fists.

Dong Jing gave the two men a glance.

He recognized them as officers from the Sixth Group, subordinates of Shen Qing.

Why had they come to him?

Dong Jing was momentarily perplexed.

He straightened his posture and asked, "I remember you two accompanied Shen Chasi to Changqiao Town, so why have you returned to the city and to me?"

Guan Yunjian spoke with an extremely pained tone, "Dong Chasi may not know, that Wolf Demon of Changqiao Town has attained spiritual prowess, very difficult to deal with. Our Shen Chasi, unfortunately... unfortunately was harmed by the Wolf Demon..."

Hearing Guan Yunjian mention Shen Qing being harmed by the Wolf Demon, a look of surprise appeared on Dong Jing's face.

Seeing Shen Qing as someone radiant in his eyes, had he really died so easily?

Dong Jing found it hard to believe.

However, he quickly calmed down and narrowed his eyes at Guan Yunjian and Uncle Shu.

Dong Jing noticed neither of the two had any signs of combat or fatigue on them, which he found odd.

He asked in a grave voice, "Then, why have the two of you come to find me?"

Guan Yunjian smiled and said, "We have come to seek assistance from Dong Chasi."

As he spoke, Guan Yunjian and Uncle Zheng exchanged meaningful glances with a group of officers sitting at the table.

Dong Jing understood, realizing that the two had something else to discuss with him privately.

So, he waved his subordinates away, saying, "You've had your meal, go on patrol."

The group of officers glared at Guan Yunjian and Uncle Shu and reluctantly said, "Yes."

They glared at the two standing by the door, each getting up and leaving.

Dong Jing also sent away the serving girls who had accompanied him for drinks.

In the blink of an eye, the spacious private room was left with only Dong Jing, Guan Yunjian, and Uncle Shu.

"Now, can you two tell me what exactly you have come here for?" Dong Jing picked up his cup and drank deeply as he inquired.

His hand rested on his waist, steadying the dispatch office's Dagger.

"The ancients say, 'He who knows the times is a wise man; a good bird chooses the tree it lodges in,'" Guan Yunjian said with a smile plastered on his face, "Officer Dong, Officer Shen has died. We would like to offer our services to you, to toil for you like dogs and horses."

Seeing their demeanor, Dong Jing withdrew his gaze and had a rough guess in his mind.

He said with a half-smile, "Officer Shen didn't die at the hands of a Wolf Demon but at your hands, right?"

Neither Guan Yunjian nor Uncle Shu reacted angrily when this was pointed out; they remained unperturbed and calm.

Having spent many years in the Guardian Martial Department, many officers and lower-level agents who came from humble beginnings ended up with poor outcomes, situations like that of Shen Qing were not unheard of.

As long as the offered benefits were sufficient, even if the Chief Officer were to drown unexpectedly this very night, there would be someone willing to pinch their nose and accept it.

However, it was necessary to have some semblance of a fig leaf.

Feigning misunderstanding, Guan Yunjian shook his head and said, "Officer Dong must be joking. How could we have such gall? We merely wish to seek your protection to advance further."

"Of course, we wouldn't want to make things difficult for you, Lord Dong. Over the years, we have indeed accumulated some wealth. If you are willing, we're prepared to pay one thousand taels of cash annually to show our respect."

They knew Dong Jing was a son born to a concubine; despite his bravado in front of them, within the Dong Residence, he had to tread carefully and was not particularly well-off.

A thousand taels might not be a lot for a legitimate son of a high-ranking family, but for Dong Jing, it was a substantial amount, enough to sway him, and this deal would not be to their disadvantage either.

Shen Qing owned property in Yongzhou worth nearly a thousand taels just by itself.

Amidst surrounding turmoil, Yongzhou alone remained unscathed.

Many people wanted to move to the city to make a living, and the price of houses had been rising year on year; it was solid currency.

Besides the house, Shen Qing had also taverns - if they could take over the recipes, they would be raking in gold daily.

With these thoughts, Guan Yunjian almost couldn't contain the smugness on his face.

However, Dong Jing did not see it the same way.

To Dong Jing, both Guan Yunjian and Uncle Shu were veterans of the Military Department, and his past assessment of them could be summed up in four words: all ambition, no talent.

Otherwise, they would not have spent so many years stuck in the Sixth Group, achieving nothing.

In contrast, Dong Jing did not consider Shen Qing to be a mediocre person; he found him to be quite capable.

It was more fitting to say that Shen Qing had been toying with the two men.

A thousand taels a year was not an excessive amount to him, but it certainly was not insignificant either.

However, he did not plan to decide too early before the situation became clear.

At that moment, outside the Baihua Building.

Shen Qing had been tracking by horseback, and upon seeing the familiar official horses outside the entrance, he knew that Guan Yunjian and the other were inside.

He dismounted and rushed into the Baihua Building.

"Waiter, I'm looking for two officers."

Shen Qing called over a servant and explained his purpose.

After a description, the servant understood, inquired about their whereabouts, and then led Shen Qing to the door of the Dong Jing's private room.

The servant respectfully said, "My lord, shall I knock on the door?"

"No need," Shen Qing stepped forward and kicked the door.

Bang!

The private room's door was kicked open.