Chapter 10

The sudden assignment to go out made Li Mang overjoyed, and he hurriedly packed a few clothes into his backpack and headed for Daoist Zhang's courtyard.

The courtyards of the Ninth Group were all concentrated in this area, and Daoist Zhang was also a member of the Ninth Group. His courtyard was not far away, and Li Mang quickly arrived.

The courtyards were all the same, but Daoist Zhang's courtyard was rather peculiar. The entrance was plastered with yellow talismans, and each fence post was also adorned with one. When the gentle breeze blew, they danced gracefully, making one feel as if they had entered an unclean place, causing a sense of unease. However, living in the Yanhuang compound, one naturally had to have a thick skin.

"Daoist Zhang!" Li Mang knocked on the courtyard gate.

"Coming!" A rough voice came from inside, and then a middle-aged man with thick eyebrows and wearing a mage's robe walked out.

Daoist Zhang was nearly fifty years old, with a square face, thick eyebrows, and large ears. What was even more noticeable was his aura of righteousness. If he changed into formal attire, he would surely be a handsome man. However, Li Mang had never seen Daoist Zhang in casual clothes.

"Li Mang? What brings you here?" Daoist Zhang asked curiously.

"Daoist Zhang, please look. We have an assignment to go out." Li Mang handed him a document signed by Yang Fan.

"What?" Daoist Zhang suspected he had heard wrong. Did he not know Li Mang's status? Still, he took the document with some doubt, read it carefully several times, and then returned it to Li Mang, sighing heavily. "Li Mang, I know you've been wronged these past six months, but Yanhuang has strict discipline. It's best not to have any unrealistic thoughts. Go back, and I'll pretend I didn't see anything."

With that, Daoist Zhang shook his head and turned to leave.

"… Daoist Zhang, this is real!" Li Mang hurriedly stopped him, feeling both amused and exasperated. After a long explanation and a call to Yang Fan for verification, Daoist Zhang finally believed him.

After some preparations, Li Mang and Daoist Zhang arrived at the capital airport, boarded a flight to Nanning Wuwei, and then transferred to another flight to Wuzhou, their final destination. It was already 3 PM when they landed. After a brief discussion, they ate a quick meal and then took a 4x4 from the Yanhuang Wuzhou office to their last stop, Mengshan County.

"Leaders, it's about two hours' drive. Here are the detailed case files; you can take a look first!" The head of the Wuzhou office was a middle-aged man in his fifties, but he was very respectful to Li Mang and Daoist Zhang. His surname was Bao, and his given name was Ren.

Bao Ren was just an ordinary person responsible for reception and task assignments. Despite being a director, he was very respectful to those from 'above,' even to the young Li Mang. Although he didn't know much about Yanhuang, he knew these extraordinary people were not to be trifled with.

"The incident occurred in Huangjia Village, Mengshan County. A few days ago, the village's richest man died mysteriously. The forensic doctor diagnosed it as a heart attack, but the deceased had no history of heart disease, leading to the conclusion that he was scared to death."

"The second victim was a tea farmer in Changping Yao Village, a neighboring village. His family was not wealthy, and the cause of death was the same: a heart attack due to fright."

"Two days ago, the police sent people to investigate. On their way back late at night, their car fell off a cliff, and all three detectives were killed. Subsequent investigations showed that the road conditions were good, and the car had crashed into a hillside about twenty meters away before falling off the cliff. Even a novice driver wouldn't make such a mistake, and the three detectives had expressions of terror on their faces even in death." Li Mang read the information from the document in his hand, suddenly feeling uneasy about the car he was in.

"Indeed, there is another point of suspicion. Huangjia Village and Changping Yao Village are adjacent, with an execution ground in between. The night the wealthy man from Huangjia Village died, he had driven past the execution ground. The tea farmer from Changping Yao Village had been picking tea near the execution ground before his death. The scene of the three detectives' accident was also on the road in front of the execution ground. Now, the villagers are spreading rumors that there is something unclean at the execution ground." Bao Ren, who was driving, added.

"Director Bao, please focus on driving," Li Mang glanced at him.

"… Alright, Secretary Li," Bao Ren replied reluctantly, concentrating on driving. In his heart, he was disdainful. With his experience, how could he not see through Li Mang's thoughts? This Secretary Li was so timid. If he weren't from 'headquarters,' Bao Ren would have given him a dirty look long ago.

"Let's rest in Mengshan County for a few hours and then go to the execution ground at midnight," Daoist Zhang decided after some thought.

After a simple and light dinner, they decided to stay in Mengshan County and set out at 11 PM.

There was a small incident when checking into the hotel. Bao Ren was originally going to book the rooms, but Li Mang said the funds for the mission were already with him and insisted on booking three luxury single rooms.

After a few hours of acquaintance, Bao Ren had learned about Li Mang's position in Yanhuang from the side. Despite his outward respect, he secretly looked down on Li Mang's abilities. After all, he was just an ordinary person, and his position was not even as high as Bao Ren's. If he weren't from the mysterious headquarters, Bao Ren would have given him a disdainful look. Choosing the most luxurious single rooms was very extravagant and corrupt!

"Daoist Zhang, you rest first. I'll go downstairs to send some money home," Li Mang said to Daoist Zhang after putting his luggage down.

"Go ahead!" Daoist Zhang responded with a smile, appreciating Li Mang's filial piety.

Li Mang felt guilty. His main purpose for this trip was not to send money home but to buy the things he needed. To avoid arousing suspicion from Yanhuang about changes in his bank account, he had to resort to this tactic.

Mengshan County was a small city, an ancient town in the mountains, with a small area and less modern atmosphere. Hardware stores were common throughout the city.

However, Li Mang didn't rush to buy what he needed. Instead, he went to a distant postal bank, withdrew 50,000 yuan from an ATM, and then went to another credit union, transferring 40,000 yuan to his family's account, keeping 10,000 yuan for himself.

Seeing that no one was following him, Li Mang entered a hardware store and bought two machetes, four or five bundles of thick rope, and a small pot, all of which he stuffed into a burlap bag.

When Li Mang was about to pay, two young men on a motorcycle arrived at the hardware store. A long object was tied to the back of the motorcycle, but it was wrapped in burlap, so it was unclear what it was.

"Boss, give me two boxes of dog food," one of the young men said to the store owner, his voice slightly lowered.

"Here!" The store owner glanced at Li Mang, took out two small boxes from under the counter without much thought. The packaging was rough and had no markings.

After the young men left, the store owner started to calculate Li Mang's bill.

Li Mang didn't rush, suddenly asking softly, "Boss, where can I buy a 'dog'?"

The so-called 'dog food' was actually a term used by insiders for shotgun shells. Since this item was illegal, calling it 'dog food' made it sound more harmonious. The two boxes of 'dog food' the young men bought were not for feeding dogs but for lead shot to shoot birds. The 'dog' Li Mang wanted was a BB gun (the character '气' is replaced with '汽' for harmony).

"…" The store owner paused, her eyes showing both caution and greed. She then looked at him calmly and asked, "Do you want to buy one?"

"Yes, I need to go into the mountains for a while and want one for self-defense," Li Mang lifted his burlap bag to make his words more convincing.

The store owner didn't doubt him. After all, Li Mang had bought many things beforehand and only asked about the 'dog' after seeing others buy shells. This showed that Li Mang was not a police officer.

These items were usually only sold to regular customers or customers brought by regulars, but the high profit margin made her reluctant to let this opportunity pass. Seeing no one around, she whispered, "I have one at home. If you want it, you can come to the back yard to see it."

"Great!" Li Mang was pleasantly surprised. He had only guessed, and the presence of shells didn't necessarily mean there was a gun. However, considering the special geography of Mengshan County, shotguns would not be scarce. He had only asked to test, and he was surprised to find one.

Behind the hardware store was a courtyard. The store owner dragged a long box out of a room and opened it. Inside were three black guns.

However, Li Mang frowned slightly. These were multi-chamber BB guns, which were charged by pressing the chamber. The more times you pressed, the greater the power. However, they were generally inaccurate and of moderate power, using small lead shot. They were excellent for shooting birds, but if you encountered a large wild animal, it was best to run as far as possible.

However, with the strict ban in recent years, it was not easy to buy a powerful shotgun in the country. Having these guns was better than nothing, so Li Mang began testing them.

Since he had played with them before, Li Mang's movements were very熟练. Loading a shell, pressing the chamber, aiming, and shooting—*bang!*

The sound was loud, and the power was decent. A beer bottle in front of him shattered.

"Boss, how much for this?" Li Mang asked directly.

The plump store owner held out a fleshy hand and said, "These days, the checks are strict, and prices have skyrocketed. Five thousand yuan, and I'll give you five boxes of shells."

"Boss, that's too much. This thing can be bought for a few hundred yuan!" Li Mang glanced at her.

"The market is like this now. I can give you a slight discount at most," the store owner said firmly, without a hint of hesitation.

"Two thousand yuan!" Li Mang gave his psychological price. A few years ago, such shotguns could be bought for a few hundred yuan, but the price had risen sharply in recent years, and two thousand yuan was the market price.

"Brother, two thousand is too little. How about three thousand?" The store owner shook her head vigorously.

Li Mang frowned slightly. Although he viewed money as dirt and was of high moral character... it didn't mean he could be easily swindled. Plus, he couldn't delay for too long, so he said impatiently, "Two thousand, and give me twenty boxes of shells."

"… Alright, I'll give you a discount!" The store owner, reading his expression, knew this was Li Mang's lowest offer and reluctantly agreed, though she was secretly smiling. She could make a thousand yuan from this deal! To show her 'generosity,' she gave Li Mang two extra boxes of lead shot, which left him speechless. Each box of lead shot only cost two yuan.

"Brother, there are wild animals in the mountains. Having a gun doesn't guarantee safety. I have large knives, daggers, and stun guns. Do you want to buy some?" Tasting the sweetness of the deal, the store owner now considered Li Mang a 'reliable' customer and enthusiastically recommended more items.

"Of course, that would be good!" Li Mang didn't refuse and bought two daggers, two machetes, and five stun guns. These items were hard to find in other cities, being prohibited items. Mengshan County, surrounded by mountains and forests, had wild animals, making it easier to buy such items. This was a rare opportunity.

---

End of the page.