Chapter 334: Chapter 178: One Man Attains the Dao
"Didn’t they just collect the example money a few days ago? Why are they raising it again today?" He Zhiling, who had been silent all this time, asked with a frown.
The Preparatory Constable said, "I just heard about it myself. This time, the Ba Dao Gang is only raising the example money for Locust Tree Lane.
Apparently, their Gang Leader has his eye on a few properties in Locust Tree Lane. He wants to buy them and turn them into the gang’s headquarters.
Ordinary families wouldn’t dare provoke the Ba Dao Gang, so many of them can only grit their teeth and sell their homes to them for a pittance.
A few families who have nowhere else to go are refusing to sell, so the Ba Dao Gang is raising their example money.
Once they can’t pay the example money, I’m afraid those people will have no choice but to sign over their homes to settle the debt."
The first constable to speak piped up, "I heard about that Locust Tree Lane business, too. Apparently, the residents reported it to the City Guard Department, but Mr. Zhao quashed it.
The residents complained that the Ba Dao Gang was charging too much for the example money, but Mr. Zhao claimed that the amount didn’t exceed the limit permitted by the City Guard Department.
So the matter was just dropped.
Brother He, if you ask me... you were just assigned to this district by the Chief Constable, and he holds you in high regard. Why not report this to him? Let the Chief Constable step in and do right by these people."
Another official constable chimed in, "That’s right. The few of us on duty in this district have to watch these people being forced to sell their own children every day. It’s an absolutely miserable sight, and frankly, it’s damn frustrating.
Brother He, you have to help us figure something out."
City Guard Department constables had never been ones to care whether ordinary people lived or died.
But the constables didn’t want to see the people in their jurisdiction become *too* miserable. If that happened, there’d be nothing left for them to skim when they wanted to make a little extra on the side.
This whole situation in the Upper Street area was simply the result of the Ba Dao Gang colluding with Chief Constable Zhao Yongfeng.
Zhao Yongfeng was obviously getting a hefty kickback from the Ba Dao Gang, but it meant a hard life for the constables responsible for this district.
Not to mention they’d get cursed as "useless lapdog constables" behind their backs!
Before, they had been furious but didn’t dare say a word, so they could only suffer in silence.
Now that He Zhiling had been assigned to this district, he would naturally have to face the same predicament.
They were helpless, but He Zhiling was highly regarded by Chief Constable Liu Yunfeng. He had the Chief Constable’s ear and could surely change things.
He Zhiling didn’t answer. Or rather, he had frozen on the spot, his eyes fixed on something down the street, completely lost in thought.
The constables followed his gaze and saw a tall young man dressed in a purple uniform, a Long Saber hanging at his waist.
With him was a tall, slender young woman, her beauty as breathtaking as a celestial maiden’s, as they strolled leisurely down the street.
Passersby hurried to get out of their way.
And the constables were all startled, freezing in unison!
They, of course, recognized the uniform of the Demon Suppression Department’s Purple-clothed Guard. The young man before them was undoubtedly a Purple-clothed Guard!
This was a personage on par with a Branch Chief Constable of the City Guard Department!
Only after the pair had disappeared down the street, heading toward Locust Tree Lane, did the constables snap back to their senses.
"Brother He, do you know that Purple-clothed Guard?"
"Brother He, it looks like that Purple-clothed Guard was headed for Locust Tree Lane."
He Zhiling remained frozen to the spot. It wasn’t until the first official constable to speak tugged on his empty sleeve that he finally snapped out of his trance.
"I... I suppose I do!" He Zhiling was still a bit out of it as he smacked his lips.
Then, he asked in surprise, "You all don’t recognize him?"
The official constable replied, "The three of us were only transferred to the Ruyi Square Sub-Department a short while ago. We didn’t know Ruyi District had such an important figure."
"Oh!" He Zhiling grunted.
He suddenly remembered. The reason these three constables were here was because of that very man. When he had left the Ruyi Square Sub-Department, he had taken three constables—Mu Song, Li Lin, and Li Sheng—with him. These three had been transferred from other Sub-Departments to fill the resulting vacancies.
"Sigh..." He Zhiling let out a long sigh and murmured, "Come to think of it, the reason the three of you were transferred to the Ruyi Square Sub-Department is actually because of him."
"Brother He, are you saying that was... Chen..." The official constable who had spoken first finally realized, his eyes widening in shock.
’In the entire City Guard Department of the Outer City District, that man was a legend—as radiant as the sun and moon, as dazzling as the stars!’
’Especially here, in the Ruyi Square Sub-Department. Even though he’d been gone for a long time, you could still hear the other constables talking about his legend every now and then!’
’Who didn’t know of him? Who hadn’t heard the stories?’
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