Chapter 64: Wu You Cave Pu Mai Assembly

Zhao Ti looked at the invitation map; the invitation was a Pu Mai ticket issued monthly by the Ghost Ghost Fanlou, while the map depicted the underground layout of the Ghost Ghost Fanlou.

The Ghost Ghost Fanlou holds a Pu Mai Grand Assembly once a month; this invitation serves as the entry token. The Pu Mai Assembly is similar to an auction, yet not entirely the same: precious items go to the highest bidder, while ordinary items are simply marked for sale.

These items were naturally not obtained through legitimate means, but were all seized by various illegal methods; additionally, there were people. Many women from brothels and prostitution houses in Jingcheng were bought from the Ghost Ghost Fanlou. Like the daughter of that Commandery Prince in years past, she was dragged directly to the assembly for Pu Mai and eventually sold off to the highest bidder.

The Pu Mai Assembly is not held underground, for no one dares to go there. The Ghost Ghost Fanlou has a vicious reputation, and no one dares to personally enter their territory.

This Pu Mai Assembly is held above ground, roughly not far from a certain Ba Zi Water Mouth. Should anything go wrong, escape back would be easy. Those who obtained invitations through various channels also felt secure; not being inside the Ghost Ghost Fanlou, they did not worry about being directly swindled by the other party.

The date on this invitation is seven days from now. When the time comes, a guide envoy will lead them to a certain large courtyard or a certain hall to attend the Pu Mai.

As for the map, it is not detailed, yet it is more useful than the blueprints left by the Ministry of Works during construction back then. The underground has long since changed beyond recognition; the two can be cross-referenced and complement each other.

The next day, Zhao Ti went to the Ministry of Works. Accompanied by the Ministry of Works' Assistant Director, he visited various departmental treasuries and transported out buckets upon buckets of items to the army.

These items were all fierce-fire oil, which is the crude petroleum of future generations.

Wanting to annihilate the Ghost Ghost Fanlou, flooding or burning would actually have limited effect, because the underground passages are too vast and interconnected. Unless the soldiers attack by force, or use smoke to suffocate them, it is impossible to completely wipe out the enemy.

The method of smoke suffocation was used during the time of the Taizu and Zutai Sect, but it was ordinary wood-chip smoke; fierce-fire oil was not employed. At the beginning of the founding, fierce-fire oil was scarce, and many people did not know this stuff was poisonous.

The underground is so vast that smoke can hide in the accumulated water, but using fierce-fire oil mixed with the smoke is different. This stuff, if inhaled for just two breaths, causes dizziness and a lack of breath; even if you possess Wu Gong, you cannot withstand it.

Zhao Ti gathered all the fierce-fire oil in the Jingji region. The various army treasuries of the Dianqian Si also stored this item; after all, it was not only a construction material but also military supplies, so it was all transferred to the Infantry Commander's Office.

Meanwhile, Wang En, Zhong Pu, and others trained the soldiers. Even after using fierce-fire oil, they would inevitably encounter charges and attacks. The underground has wide areas that are few and narrow areas that are many; long spears and cavalry sabers in the army are not effective, while short weapons like single-edged swords, bows, and crossbows are more useful.

The purpose of having Shang Qi obtain the invitation was to plan to start the attack from the Ba Zi Water Mouth on the side of the Pu Mai Assembly.

The Ba Zi Water Mouth is a unique creation of our dynasty, convenient for water passage. Almost all channels entering the underground of Dongjing City are of this type of water mouth.

The people of the Ghost Ghost Fanlou all enter the underground through such water mouths, but it is not good to just find one and enter to probe, nor is it good to casually capture a Ghost Ghost Fanlou person for torture and interrogation, after all, it is hard to determine if the other party's identity is important or how much they know about the underground.

But this Pu Mai Assembly is different. The Ba Zi Water Mouth beside the Pu Mai Assembly must be one of the more important passages of the Ghost Ghost Fanlou, and the person who can preside over the Pu Mai affair must surely be a backbone member of the Ghost Ghost Fanlou. When the time comes, we will sweep up this Pu Mai Assembly in one net, and then follow the vine to the melon, attacking from this point.

In the blink of an eye, the date on the invitation arrived. Zhao Ti arranged everything at the Commander's Office and waited for nightfall to act.

At that time, all Ba Zi Water Mouths within Dongjing City would be sealed off, with the water mouth on the side of the Pu Mai Assembly as the focal point. We would try to charge in a wave to probe the reality, and then use the fierce-fire oil smoke and fire.

The sky approached dusk. Zhao Ti, accompanied by Zhou Tong and Shang Qi, arrived at Qu Yuan Street according to the invitation address. This invitation could not be obtained merely by having money; it explicitly stated that two personal attendants could be brought along for entry. This was to give peace of mind to the guests attending the Pu Mai; otherwise, even if it were not underground, no one would dare to go easily.

Qu Yuan Street is the last street in the southwest of the inner city. There are many large courtyards here; many are places where official shops brew wine, and some are cargo yards where grain merchants store and mill rice, flour, and other refined goods.

Few pedestrians pass through here on ordinary days; only laborers and assistants within the yards come and go. At night, there are even fewer people. The night watchmen close the large gates in the yard, and rare sounds are heard on the street.

After walking half a li into Qu Yuan Street, a man in black clothes suddenly flashed out from behind a large tree, looking the three of them up and down.

Zhao Ti shook the folding fan in his hand. Seeing this, Shang Qi went over and exchanged a few coded phrases with the man. The man in black nodded and said to Zhao Ti and the others, "Noble guests, please follow me."

This was a guide envoy dispatched by the Ghost Ghost Fanlou. If they spotted someone suspicious, they would not speak, and might even send a signal to call accomplices over to attack.

Then they proceeded inward. Just as they reached a crossroads, three people crossed over from an alley on the diagonal opposite side.

The one in front was also a guide envoy of the Ghost Ghost Fanlou, followed by an old man and a young girl.

The old man had a sturdy build, white hair and white eyebrows, a face as calm as water, with a hawk-like gaze and a wolf-like turn of the head.

The young girl wore her hair in two buns, dressed in a water-green skirt and top with a white gauze base. Her eyebrows and eyes were like a painting, and a light veil covered her face.

The man in black ahead turned back and said, "Noble guests, will you not conceal your faces?"

The Pu Mai Assembly of the Ghost Ghost Fanlou allows for the concealment of appearance to prevent acquaintances from recognizing each other, and also prevents strangers from remembering them.

"Young Master?" Shang Qi looked at Zhao Ti.

Zhao Ti was indifferent. Not a single one of those coming tonight to attend the Pu Mai Assembly would escape. He was not afraid of them seeing him; killing them all right there on the spot would be a satisfying matter.

Those who can come to such a place, aside from green forest bandits, are mostly wealthy magnates and great merchants, and even more are officials.

In short, every single one of them deserves to die.

However, to avoid unnecessary complications, he still covered his face. Not far away, the young girl with two buns glanced over, her eyes flashing brightly.

Zhao Ti's heart stirred slightly. Although the other party covered her face, he recognized her as the little maid he had seen earlier at the Duan Wang Fu. He just did not know what she was doing here.

If Zhao Ji had a conspiracy with the Ghost Ghost Fanlou, or wanted to buy something, he would not have sent a little maid to appear. Moreover, that white-browed old man carried an aura of the martial world and did not look like a person from Dongjing City.

The three followed the guide envoy to a large courtyard inside. This courtyard looked ordinary on the outside, appearing to be a place for storing and grinding wheat and grain, but after going around the row of houses in front, it revealed a long, wide structure resembling a warehouse.

Then someone else took over as the guide. Stepping into the warehouse, they saw brilliant lights inside, the arrangement resembling a palace, completely different from the roughness outside.

At this moment, many people were already seated inside, numbering about a hundred or two hundred. Almost all of them had their faces covered. Beside them were small tables, and on the tables sat steaming hot tea.

Shang Qi handed over the invitation, and then the three found a table to sit down. After a moment, more people entered, and the main gate slowly closed.

At the very front appeared a man wearing colorful clothes, with painted powder on his face and a flower pinned at his temple. He clasped his hands and bowed to everyone: "Noble guests, I bow to you all. Since you have all come here, you should understand the Pu Mai rules of our Wu You Cave. Let us not waste words with unnecessary talk; first, let us look at this month's first item."

Having said this, he lightly clapped his hands. Behind him came the sound of a wooden wheeled cart, and then a cage was pushed out.