Chapter Twenty: Arrival at Stone Horse Street

  Just now's fight let him vent his anger, but in his heart he was anxious. The distance from the Town Hall of the Magic-Quelling Department to Nan Cheng Shi Ma Street was about half an hour away. Gao Feng knew that if he walked as fast as he did at dawn, with so many people around, it would be too shocking and frightening for others. He decided to run instead, running quickly, everyone would just think he had a good pace.

  Running swiftly, just in time to dispel the fire in his heart. However, Gao Feng underestimated his own running speed; when he let loose and ran, he was far faster than a galloping horse. Fortunately, he was careful with his movements and knew to yield on the road. Even so, he still startled many people, and at one point, an official shouted at him:

  "Don't use your divine movement technique and qinggong under broad daylight!"

  After seeing the stone horse statue at the east end of Stone Horse Street, Gao Feng stopped in his tracks. The reason it's called Stone Horse Street is because of a legend that says when Xia Taizu was on a military campaign, his mount was injured and transformed into a stone horse or something, some people also say it was a horse demon causing trouble, but the result was that the true person from the Taoist temple and the heavenly master used magic to kill it and turn it into a stone statue. The legend is from back then, but nowadays Stone Horse Street is a prosperous area in the southern part of the city.

  This place is prosperous because several large commercial shops selling goods and ornaments in the Central Capital are all located here. The streets around Shi Ma Street are all related to this industry, not only for business in the capital, but also many prefectures around the capital come to purchase goods here.

  In such a prosperous and bustling place, Gao Feng had heard that when he was the team leader in the Zhongjing Prefecture government office, the captors were all willing to come here to work because there were many benefits. However, for the people of the Town Demon Division, this place was a troublesome one. The little bit of money collected as tribute was nothing to the school officers, and with so many people and shops, there were many troubles.

  Huang Zhiping reminded Gao Feng, probably thinking that since Gao Feng came from a poor background and arrived here, he would definitely take the opportunity to gain benefits, so he gave him a reminder.

  However, he was wrong. Gao Feng acted uprightly and deeply detested such extortionate behavior, so he never got involved in it during his time as a catcher, which is why the catchers ostracized him. Besides, the salary of the Town Magic Lieutenant was quite generous, and Gao Feng lived a simple life, which was already enough for him.

  On Shimaji Street, apart from merchants, there were also many adults leading children who were walking around with excitement, because all kinds of toys are also one of the important commodities on this street. Children love these things the most.

  Gao Feng, however, did not have such a childhood. From a young age, he had to take care of his seriously ill family members on one hand and practice martial arts on the other, leaving him no idle time at all. Now, watching those children, he couldn't help but feel a little envious.

  Arriving at his own territory, Gao Feng naturally wouldn't run wildly. He simply strolled on the street, his robe damaged in several places from the previous duel. As a military general's robe, it still had an imposing presence, and with a sword hanging from his waist, people on the road hurriedly made way for him while casting strange glances at Gao Feng.

  "Whose official uniform is this?"

  "This... should be a registrar of the Town Demon Division, perhaps serving as an official in our place..."

  "Has it happened before?"

  "Some do, but those who come are just like the Oriole's Spring Bubbles, and those who never come are still recognized by our East House as that Town Demon Constable, who only talks to us. These Town Demon Constables are all children of wealthy families, busy playing every day, who has time to work..."

  "What's wrong with this guy? Why is he still dressed in tatters? Are they higher or lower than the patrol officers of Zhongjing Prefecture?"

  "You're really muddled, these county lieutenants and the judicial commissioner of Zhongjing Prefecture are of the same rank, two ranks higher than a county magistrate."

  "My goodness, it's incredible!"

  Listening to the hushed conversations of the shop assistants by the roadside, Gao Feng was also speechless. The idleness of the Town Demon Lieutenant had reached a certain level, and the people in his jurisdiction were so unfamiliar that they didn't even know there was such an official, it's really laughable and pitiful.

  Waiting, comparing, and wasting so much time, when he arrived at Shi Ma Street, Gao Feng was already in no mood to work. He walked around each street, taking a glance, which was his way of getting familiar with the roads. This was also his first time coming here, and it was necessary for him to get familiar with his own territory.

  Shima Street is actually not a street, but a general term for seven crisscrossing streets. Shops, stores and workshops that manufacture toys, decorations, jewelry and other related items are located on each of the streets. The Yongji Jewelry Store mentioned by Huang Zhiping is located on the main street of Shima Street and is the most magnificent building.

  Such a place, there are not a few wealthy and noble people, and the places for them to relax are also numerous, with wine houses and tea houses, and even two high-end brothels. With Gao Fang's experience as a catcher in the Zhongjing Prefecture government office, such a place gathers all kinds of people from all walks of life, making it very difficult to manage.

  It's no wonder that the former captain of this side didn't do his job properly every day, probably because he was afraid of trouble and would have to spend a lot of effort himself. The Demon-Slaying Department and the Zhongjing Prefecture Yamen are different, the Demon-Slaying Captains are wealthy and influential, they don't want to do too much every day, just thinking about having fun, this kind of troublesome place, no one wants to come, it's a standard hardship post, so it was assigned to Gao Feng. But for those constables in Zhongjing Prefecture, this side is a fat job, with many benefits to be gained...

  Walking further ahead, it's about to leave its own jurisdiction. This is also the most deserted place in Shimaji Street area. The street is very long, but only eight doors are open on the side of the street. The wall is much higher than ordinary people's houses. The sound of clanging and banging comes from inside the courtyard, which is a few manufacturing workshops.

  There were also several stalls on this street, all selling food, and they seemed to be doing business with the laborers in the workshops. When they saw Gao Feng walking here, they all shrank back a bit.

  However, Gao Feng noticed that there was a fruit stall among them, and the fruits on the stall were just ordinary ones. Gao Feng saw that there were cantaloupes, and the man on the mountain had only asked for apples and pears. Buying a cantaloupe back would make that great man even happier.

  Watching Gao Feng walk over, the owners of several stalls were frightened and wanted to pack up their stalls, but it was too late, so they could only put on a flattering expression and wait there. When they saw Gao Feng go to the fruit stall, everyone let out a sigh of relief. The owner of that fruit stall was an old woman with a face full of fear.

  Gao Feng picked two cantaloupes and asked for the price, but the old woman refused to accept money, saying they were a gift for him to taste. After several pushes and pulls, Gao Feng got impatient and threw down the money and left. He walked away without noticing that the gaze of the vendors behind him had changed from before.

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