Chapter 93 The Hidden Place
Chapter 93 Hiding Place
"Brother Zhao!"
In fact, Bai Cen reacted very quickly, with almost only a breath's time to rush forward, lying down at the bottom of the nearest slope, reaching out, and almost grabbing Zhao Tong's clothes.
But they missed each other by just a hand's breadth!
But the moment the hidden compartment opened, Bai Cen saw the empty space beneath it.
There was no light, and judging from the sound of the pebbles rolling down and the wind, it was impossible to know how deep it was below before the hidden compartment closed again.
It won't reopen unless something else falls down!
This scene came so suddenly that almost no one except Bai Cen had time to react!
But with that "click," the hidden compartment closed completely, confirming Bai Cen's earlier guess—this ramp was used to transfer heavy objects.
The heavy object slides down this slope, hits the earthen wall on the opposite side, and falls directly into the hidden compartment at the bottom of the slope. The hidden compartment will then open, and the transported goods will fall down through the space below the hidden compartment!
"Bai Cen!" Old Master Weng was also worried about him.
He also knew that Bai Cen was very clever. He was lying face down on the slope, so he didn't have enough gravity to fall down and thus didn't fall down with her.
"The rope." Wang Sumo had already tacitly thrown one end over.
No one knows if there are other hidden compartments on the slope. Zhao Tong just happened to avoid them and only stepped on the last one.
Bai Cen turned to look at her and reached out to grab the end of the rope.
The rope was just for safety; Wang Sumo didn't need to pull him up.
But after taking only two steps, Bai Cen stopped.
Then he squatted down and reached out to dig through the soil.
He seemed to understand why Brother Zhao had suddenly stopped; Brother Zhao, like him, had also felt that he had stepped on something.
Bai Cen reached out and shoveled the soil aside. When he saw large and small white rice grains mixed in with the dirt, Bai Cen took a deep breath. He finally understood why Brother Zhao had that expression earlier!
How could rice and grain possibly appear out of nowhere in such a desolate place that even birds avoid?
Moreover, it was rice buried in the ground.
But soon, Bai Cen remembered something and turned to look at Wang Sumo.
The slope wasn't long to begin with, and when Bai Cen turned around, Wang Sumo saw the few grains of rice in his hand.
Wang Sumo now understood why Bai Cen had that expression!
The dock, two damaged bags, adulterated grain, disaster relief grain whose whereabouts are unknown... all of these seem to have suddenly converged in one place at this moment.
*
"So you mean, this is very likely a place where disaster relief grain is hidden?" Weng asked in surprise.
Bai Cen nodded: "That's right. Uncle Weng, think about it, what's the best place to hide disaster relief grain? Of course, it's the place where people are least likely to come. There have been rumors of hauntings and evil spirits in the Enchanted Town for many years. Merchants and travelers detour around it, and even the imperial court is unwilling to come to such a place. Isn't this the best place to hide disaster relief grain?"
Jiang Yutang frowned. Although, Bai Xiaotong hated getting involved with the imperial court the most!
This refers to the loss of disaster relief grain.
But it must be said that if the Eight Treasures Pavilion didn't have to pass through the Enchanted Town, no one would have thought of coming here.
Bai Cen continued, "Moreover, the slope is designed with such a large angle so that the grain bags can roll directly down, hit the earthen wall over there, and then fall directly into the hidden compartment. If I'm not mistaken, there should be a mechanism under the hidden compartment that eventually leads to the warehouse where these disaster relief grains are stored."
“Look,” Bai Cen said, his gaze falling on the grains of rice in his palm. “The reason there are leftover grains of rice on the slope is because the relief food was all packed in grain bags. When it rolled down, there was a certain chance that the bags would break and the grains would scatter. Then the next two bags rolled over, and their weight mixed them with the soil and pressed them down.”
So that's how it is. The doubts in the eyes of the old man and Jiang Yutang seem to have been resolved.
"This place is covered with layers of thorns to prevent outsiders from discovering this grain transport route. So half of the thorns are rooted, and the other half are just placed there. If it weren't for that black cat earlier, we probably wouldn't have found it." Bai Cen clapped his hands, knocking the grains of rice off his hands, and then continued.
"On the way here, Uncle Weng and I were talking to the landlord. It seems like the trees on this road are growing taller, but they haven't grown taller yet. This is because we need to keep this transportation route open to bring the grain that has disappeared from outside to this place. So the road must be open, but the entrance must be hidden."
Perhaps because the place was genuinely haunted before, and they had hidden food there, making it more likely a hoax, Wang Sumo was no longer as afraid as before.
The existence of gods and ghosts is considered an uncontrollable force; but it's a different story when it comes to people...
“No wonder they put skulls and dilapidated stone slabs in the other side. It’s to draw people’s attention here and make them ignore the slope over there.” Bai Cen said in a deep voice, “The problem is that Brother Zhao left a secret compartment. That compartment leads to the warehouse. Most of the people who use that compartment are carrying grain bags. We don’t even know how high the secret passage is.”
Grandpa Weng shook his head: "It won't be very high. Even if it is, there won't be any sharp objects below, so the grain bags won't be torn and scattered. Zhao Tong will be safer."
“That makes sense.” Bai Cen thought about it carefully. “When the hidden compartment opened just now, I took a look inside. There was no light, but there was a sound when the pebbles fell.”
Grandpa Weng deduced, "The inside should also be a slope like the outside, making it easier for the grain sacks to fall. To maintain the mystery of Bewitching Town, there can't be too many people; they'll only be deployed when the grain is handed over. But this place has been deserted for so long, some wild boars or rabbits might have fallen here, so unless the grain is handed over, they probably won't leave anyone on guard. They'll only check at fixed times, so Zhao Tong should be safe for now. But as time goes on, someone will definitely come to check."
"What should we do? Brother Zhao is still down in the hidden compartment," Wang Sumo reminded him.
"Master, I'm going there." Bai Cen said calmly, "I can escape quickly, it won't be easy for anyone to catch me. I'll act according to the situation and then find a way to bring Brother Zhao out."
“You don’t even have internal energy.” Wang Sumo looked at him.
Bai Cen laughed: "As long as Brother Zhao has it, it doesn't matter who hides the grain here. There aren't many people in the martial world who can beat Brother Zhao. We'll find a way to get out of the Bewitching Town together."
"Besides," Bai Cen sighed, "Weimeng is still inside! I bought Weimeng from Liu Village, so I can't let the money go to waste like this."
The old man remained silent.
“I’ve thought of something,” Weng He suddenly said.
All eyes were on them.
Weng He said in a deep voice, "Bai Cen said before that the Eagle Gate people chased the Eight Treasures Pavilion at night."
Bai Cen paused for a moment, then nodded decisively.
That's right! He even had to use several traps to get rid of those guys...
Bai Cen suddenly realized, "Uncle Weng, do you mean that the Eagle Gate is involved in this?"
Wang Sumo was slightly surprised: "..."
Then he sighed, "No wonder we were chasing after Bazhenlou for no reason. Actually, we weren't chasing Bazhenlou. It's just that the place where we stopped at Bazhenlou was on our way to Mihun Town, so Eagle Gate thought we were coming to Mihun Town."
Jiang Yutang frowned. Although she didn't know what had happened and was completely confused, she could piece together the gist of what had happened from those few sentences.
"Good heavens! No wonder they chased me so relentlessly. If the stolen relief grain is hidden beneath this Bewitching Town, then it all makes sense!" Bai Cen finally understood. "This is a matter of life and death. The Eagle Gate is involved..."
"And last time at the dock, the ones chasing me were all from some minor sects, who usually don't show their faces. But now it seems like they've all come out in droves," Bai Cen wondered.
Weng He glanced at him but didn't reply.
Ever since Shanhe Town, he had sensed that someone was using these martial arts sects to do their bidding.
Including the town of Bewitching Souls, building a secret granary requires manpower to transport grain back and forth. Other places are too conspicuous, but these little-known martial arts sects have the manpower and the time.
“There’s an unseen hand behind this,” Bai Cen teased.
“I’ll go with you,” the old man suddenly said.
Everyone around was surprised.
"I want to find something in the Enchanted Town before I leave. You all retreat." The old man didn't say much, but his words were firm and resolute.
Wang Sumo and Jiang Yutang both looked at him, their eyes filled with surprise and nervousness.
Grandpa Weng took a deep breath: "It's alright if it's just haunted, but if this place is a storage area for smuggled grain, who knows how many henchmen like Eagle Gate are following us back. Eagle Gate may not know what's in Bewitching Town, but if we turn back, they'll definitely think we've discovered something; we can't go back."
Grandpa Weng continued, "As for passing through the Bewitching Town, if you want to be safe and sound, just say that the pig was lost and you had to go into the town to chase it. You ended up passing through the town while chasing it. Whether you found it or not is another matter."
Everyone: (⊙o⊙)…
"But if we want these relief supplies to go where they should, we should reveal the secret of Bewitching Town. There are so many reputable sects in the martial arts world, there will always be someone willing to step forward, expose the truth about these relief supplies, and deliver them to the disaster victims."
"This is like trying to hide something obvious. The Eight Treasures Pavilion passes through the Bewitching Town. Who wouldn't guess that the Eight Treasures Pavilion told them this?" Old Qu said in a deep voice.
Old Weng laughed: "If anyone makes things difficult for Bazhenlou, wouldn't that confirm who's involved in this matter? At a time like this, people are too busy hiding to even come to us. Who would willingly offer themselves up?"
At this point, Jiang Yutang suddenly spoke up: "No need. Where did the all-knowing Jianghu person get this inside information that there are disaster relief grains hidden under the Misty Soul Town? Nobody will go looking for the all-knowing Jianghu person."
There is no more reasonable explanation than this.
Everyone around Jiang Yutang looked on with awe and respect: "!!!"
For the sake of Bazhenlou, even the most knowledgeable people in the martial arts world were dragged into the mess. This kind of robbing Peter to pay Paul is really cool!
"Anyway, they can't find Bai Xiaotong, and they won't waste their energy looking for him." Jiang Yutang felt a little uncomfortable being stared at by the group of people, but she was telling the truth.
The old man looked at her with a smile; this girl had also grown to like him!
"Let's go through the Bewitching Town first, and then Bai Cen and I will come back to find Zhao Tong." Old Master Qu made the final decision.
"Master?" Bai Cen finally asked Wang Sumo for instructions, waiting for Wang Sumo to make a decision.
Wang Sumo took a deep breath, held Weiwu in his arms, and said in a deep voice, "If Weiwu can be found, then it will also be a member of the Eight Treasures Pavilion! It became a pet through its own abilities."
Suddenly, everyone around burst into laughter.
*
After Old Master Weng and Jiang Yutang went to the carriage, the two of them exchanged for Old Master Weng alone.
Bai Cen rode at the front on horseback, giving those behind time to react in case of any situation.
Wang Sumo and Old Master Qu rode together. It would be safest for Old Master Qu to drive the carriage, since he and Wang Sumo were most familiar with the mechanisms inside.
The town of Bewitching Souls has been abandoned for so many years. Only the slope behind the thorns is frequently used. The main road in the town is overgrown with weeds. It was thanks to Wei Meng that a relatively clear road was carved out from the chaos ahead.
Then Bai Cen rode ahead on horseback, slashing and scraping with his sword, and the carriage behind him could barely move.
The town of Bewitching Souls shouldn't be very big, but the only downside is that it gets dark early today, so Bai Cen has to carry a torch.
Jiang Yutang and Wang Sumo each held a torch. The Eight Treasures Pavilion had put away the torches, as there weren't many places to hang them, and they were also afraid that the lamp oil might burn the carriage, so they had to hold them by hand.
As dusk fell, fog began to descend upon the town.
After all, the area is surrounded by a lake, where the humidity is high, and fog often falls at night. But this Enchanted Town is already somewhat eerie, and with the fog falling at night, even knowing that someone is playing tricks, one can't help but feel a chill down their spine.
Everyone was on high alert, not daring to be careless.
"Owl!" Wang Sumo suddenly saw an owl standing in the tree.
Owls are not commonly seen.
Seeing it here, in particular, feels rather eerie.
The old man also saw it, and then frowned slightly; seeing an owl was always a bad omen...
They heard some rustling noises ahead, and Bai Cen's voice came: "Wait a moment, it sounds like there's something."
Wang Sumo tightened her grip on the torch slightly.
[Author's Note]
There are also afternoons and evenings
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