The Third Squad of the Demon Suppression Bureau had four members.
Its leader was Song Ji, a Hundred-household Captain in his forties. He was tall and broad, with a square face, small eyes, and a voice that boomed like a war drum. The moment he saw Lu Chang'an, he frowned.
"Is this the new guy?"
The young official held out his identity tablet.
"Lu Chang'an, a new Bronze Gong personally transferred here by Sir Wei."
Song Ji looked at the tablet, then at Lu Chang'an's baggy black uniform.
"Personally transferred here?"
Lu Chang'an cupped his hands.
"That's right. Sir Wei also gave me quite a few instructions."
Song Ji asked:
"Such as?"
"He told me to work hard, not cause trouble, not borrow money in the Demon Suppression Bureau's name, and not investigate silver cases without authorization."
Song Ji fell silent.
"What kind of trouble have you caused already?"
"None."
"Then why did Sir Wei have to warn you?"
"He has the foresight to plan for every possibility."
Song Ji turned to the young official.
"Is he the kind who solves cases, or the kind who specializes in giving his superiors headaches?"
The young official thought for a moment.
"Probably both."
Lu Chang'an immediately nodded.
"An extremely objective assessment. I'll take it under advisement."
Song Ji didn't want to say another word to him. He turned and led the squad out of the Demon Suppression Bureau.
The road to Drunken Spring House wasn't far, but Lu Chang'an kept observing Song Ji as they walked side by side.
Song Ji's steps were steady, and the soles of his boots were worn evenly. His left palm had the calluses of a man who had held a saber for years. He was used to walking in front, but he wasn't reckless. Whenever they passed an intersection, he glanced at the rooftops first.
He had experience dealing with monsters.
The young official walking behind them was named Feng Yu. He talked a lot, got nervous easily, and checked the identity tablet at his waist every few steps. The other two wore bronze masks. One was thin as a stick; the other was short, but had extremely broad shoulders.
Lu Chang'an didn't know their names.
"Big Brother."
The broad-shouldered man turned around.
"You calling me?"
"What kind of cases does our squad usually take?"
"Monsters sneaking into the capital, 邪 cultivators causing trouble, unusual deaths."
"Sounds like the general investigations division."
"What division?"
"Nothing. It just sounds like you take on everything."
Song Ji said:
"The Demon Suppression Bureau doesn't assign cases according to preference. It only assigns them according to who's still alive when the job is done."
Lu Chang'an considered that, then nodded thoughtfully.
"That's a very motivating management style."
Song Ji shot him a look.
"You can still laugh?"
"It's not time to cry yet."
"This case may involve a monster."
"Then I'll cry after we confirm it."
Drunken Spring House stood south of the capital, on the banks of the Qinghe River. Even during the day, red lanterns still hung along the street, alongside pink silk curtains and signs covered in invitations to passing customers. The melting snow had turned the road into mud, and rouge smeared across the snow in red streaks like diluted blood.
Lu Chang'an looked up at the Drunken Spring House sign.
"The name really gets straight to the point."
Feng Yu asked:
"What point?"
"Drunk and spring. Customers probably don't come here to memorize books."
Song Ji coughed.
"Watch your mouth."
"Yes, sir. I'll investigate with my eyes instead."
Two constables guarded the entrance. The proprietor of Drunken Spring House stood beside them in a thick coat, her face deathly pale. The moment she saw Song Ji, she rushed over.
"Sir, this truly has nothing to do with our house. That girl was still receiving customers last night, and this morning they found her in the river. We run an honest business. We absolutely have nothing to do with any evil entities."
Lu Chang'an looked at her.
"You talk awfully fast, ma'am."
The proprietor froze.
"I... I was only explaining."
"Innocent people usually explain more slowly. People afraid of being questioned prepare their answers in advance."
Song Ji frowned.
"Don't make baseless accusations."
"I'm not accusing her. I'm just taking notes."
The proprietor looked at Lu Chang'an, her expression growing even worse.
Song Ji said:
"Where's the body?"
"In the ice room out back."
"Lead the way."
The proprietor turned, her legs trembling slightly. Lu Chang'an walked at the very back. The moment he entered, he smelled heavy perfume mixed with the damp scent of old wood. There were many footprints in the corridor. The yamen officials had gone in and out, but a long trail of water remained near one corner by the stairs.
Lu Chang'an crouched down to examine it.
The river water was pale brown, mixed with fine sand. The trail led in from the back door, but it wasn't continuous. In some places it had pooled into droplets; in others it had dried quickly. Something wet had been dragged through here, but it wasn't a body.
He touched a fingertip to the trail and raised it to his nose.
Mud, algae, and the faint scent of jasmine.
It didn't belong to the river.
"What is it?" Song Ji asked.
"Nothing. This house just wastes a little too much perfume."
Song Ji stared at him.
Lu Chang'an stood up.
"I need to see the original crime scene."
"The scene is in the river."
"Even better. Water doesn't know how to lie."
"Can you swim?"
"Yes."
"Can you dive?"
"I know how to stay alive."
"That's not an answer."
"Then no."
Song Ji rubbed his forehead.
The squad went out behind Drunken Spring House. The riverbank was slippery, with snow-covered reeds all around. A cargo boat was anchored not far away. Several onlookers stood on the dock, held back by constables.
The proprietor pointed toward a stretch of river.
"The body was pulled out there. A boatman found her this morning."
"When did the girl fall in?" Song Ji asked.
"No one knows."
"Did anyone leave the house last night?"
"Customers did. But no one saw her leave."
Lu Chang'an asked:
"What was her name?"
"Liu Yan."
"How old was she?"
"Nineteen."
"Did she have any regular customers?"
The proprietor looked away.
"She'd only been here half a year. A lot of customers liked her."
"Being well-liked answers whether she was popular, not why she died."
The proprietor clenched her handkerchief.
Song Ji threw Lu Chang'an a warning look.
Lu Chang'an immediately bowed.
"I only mean that you should remember carefully, ma'am. The dead can't speak for themselves. We have to ask the questions for her and get to the bottom of this."
Song Ji paused.
That wasn't wrong.
He didn't scold him again.
A small boat rowed in from the middle of the river. Two constables were aboard, along with something completely covered by a white cloth. The oars churned the water, making a heavy sound in the gray morning.
Feng Yu swallowed.
"Has the body been brought up yet?"
"Yes. We put it in the ice room to preserve it."
Song Ji nodded.
"Bring it in."
The proprietor stepped aside, not daring to look.
Lu Chang'an stared at the white cloth. One corner had been soaked black by water and was tangled with a few strands of algae. But the exposed feet were strangely clean.
If the dead woman had drifted here from upstream, her feet couldn't have been that clean.
Unless the body had been put into the water near Drunken Spring House.
Or... had been dragged ashore at some point beforehand.
Before he could say anything, the boat reached the dock.
The two constables carried the body down. The cloth slipped from the woman's shoulder, revealing a deathly pale hand.
A red thread bracelet circled the dead woman's wrist.
The thread was soaked through, but the knot remained perfectly intact.
Lu Chang'an stared at it, his gaze slowly sharpening.
A drowning victim swept away by the current would have algae wrapped around them, disheveled clothes, and tangled, matted hair. But this body had been preserved too well. So well that it looked as though someone had deliberately made everything appear natural.
Song Ji pulled the cloth higher.
"Take her inside."
The whole squad returned to the ice room.
The room was so cold that their breath turned to mist. Large blocks of ice sat in all four corners, and iron hooks hung from the walls. The scent of jasmine grew even more distinct in the cold air.
They placed the body on a stone table.
Song Ji reached out to untie the cloth.
Lu Chang'an stood beside him, his eyes fixed on the body.
Liu Yan had been very beautiful. Her skin was deathly pale, her lips purple, and her long black hair, still wet, draped over one cheek. Her dress was soaked through, but there wasn't much mud on it. There were no obvious marks around her neck. Both hands rested clasped over her stomach, her fingernails clean.
A courtesan who had drowned.
At first glance, that's exactly what she appeared to be.
But the longer Lu Chang'an looked, the more he felt that something was wrong.
The water pooled in the corners of the dead woman's eyes didn't look like river water. It was clearer, with a faint blue glimmer beneath the lamplight.
He leaned closer.
At that moment, Liu Yan's eyes suddenly opened.
Her pupils had lost their focus, but deep within them, a streak of red light still flashed past.
Feng Yu screamed.
Song Ji immediately drew his saber.
Lu Chang'an didn't retreat. He looked down at the corpse's hand.
The right pinky twitched.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Then a stream of black water gushed from Liu Yan's mouth, carrying a heavy stench like mud from the bottom of the river.
The red thread around her deathly pale wrist suddenly tightened.
The knot untied itself.
Beneath the thread was a line of tiny black writing, as though it had been written in blood:
"The third person."
Lu Chang'an stared at the words, the smile vanishing from his lips.
Song Ji shouted:
"Fall back! There's demonic aura!"
Outside the door, a cold wind suddenly blew in. Every talisman on the walls began to tremble at once.
Liu Yan opened her mouth again.
This time, the voice that came out wasn't the dead woman's.
It was the voice of a woman laughing beneath the water.
"At last... someone has come to ask."