600】

Because of his fair skin, my grandson looks quite young, looking less than 20 years old.

Height is about 160cm. Slender figure.

Every piece of clothing on his body...including the straw shoes on his feet is clean. He seems to be a person who pays great attention to appearance.

His facial features can be considered delicate, and because he always has a slight smile on his face, his cheeks have a softer feel.

His piercing eyes, against the backdrop of the night, are extremely eye-catching.

It's a bit strange to say... maybe it's because his eyes are so bright and lively. When my grandson looked directly at him, Qingdeng felt like everything about his body... from the skin and flesh to the bones, internal organs and...

It felt like my soul was being seen through by him.

The head is not shaved into a shaved head, and the hair is black and shiny... My grandson's hairstyle makes Qingdeng feel more at ease.

Until now, Qingden still can't accept the Tsukiyo hair, which is almost the same as the "Mediterranean" except for the multiple buns.

After a cursory glance at my grandson's face, Qingdeng's brows slowly furrowed:

——Why are the troops transformed by Huo Fu Thieves...appeared here...?

In Edo, cases were handled in a very clear order.

If any case is discovered on the street, first call the town's police officer, whose functions are similar to the modern "police station + fire department".

If it's a fight between drunkards, or the wife of a certain family gets into trouble with a strong man who comes to kill termites, it's an easy-to-handle administrative case, and it's up to the family to resolve it themselves.

Only complex criminal cases such as home invasions, robbery, and murders will be handed over to the "three rounds" of the execution office for resolution.

If the difficulty of the case and the viciousness of the relevant suspects exceed the scope of what "Three Times" can handle, the case will be handed over to the Huo Fu Thieves.

In other words, ordinary people rarely have direct contact with the officials who were reformed by Huo Fu Thieves.

If a passerby reported the crime because he heard strange fighting noises here, then the first people to arrive here would definitely be the police officers from the local police station nearby, not the armed forces reformed by the thieves.

My grandson can appear here so quickly with his troops... The only reason Qingdeng can think of is that he is dedicated to hunting down these masked men!

Because I just received information from an informant or some channel, I learned that the masked man appeared near here, so I quickly mobilized my troops and rushed here...

Apart from this reason, Qingdeng really couldn't think of any other reason that could explain why my grandson and his troops suddenly appeared here.

——Who are those masked men who could become the targets of the Huofu Thieves...

Although Qingdeng's heart was filled with turmoil, his appearance was calm.

"I am Tachibana Aoden, a member of the Edo Hokuban Division, Sadaimachi Kaitoshin."

Qingdeng reported to the door calmly and neatly.

"I just happened to pass by this place and was attacked by a group of weirdos wearing masks out of confusion, so I don't know much about it."

"It's okay~~"

My grandson smiled and waved his hand.

"As long as you cooperate with me and tell me everything you know~~First of all-Nioh, can you please tell me briefly: why are you here?"

Qingdeng nodded, and after briefly thinking up some words, he briefly and concisely explained the whole process of how he came here and how he fought with those masked men.

My grandson put his hands on his hips and listened quietly.

When Qingdeng finished speaking, he made a "huh" sound and made a long sound that lasted for more than 10 seconds.

"I see... I understand the specific process and reasons."

After saying that, my grandson waved his hand to Qingdeng.

"Thank you for your cooperation~ You can go home now~~"

"Can I leave?" Qingdeng was surprised.

Although he belongs to a different government agency, Qingdeng is still a member of the "police system" of this era, and he is still familiar with the investigation procedures of this era.

Logically speaking, it is only an extremely common thing for an important person like Qingdeng, who has had close contact with the suspect and may be able to help the subsequent investigation, to be temporarily brought to the government office for detailed questioning.

My grandson neither took him away, nor did he cross-examine him too much at the scene of the crime, but only asked him one question from beginning to end... Qingdeng really didn't understand.

"Hahaha~~Yes, you can leave now~~"

My grandson smiled meaningfully while squinting his left eye. He stretched out his finger and gently touched his left eyelid.

"Haven't you already told me everything you know? In that case, there is no need to force you to stay here, right?"

"..." Qingdeng was speechless for a moment.

I thought to myself:

——How do you know that I have told you everything I know? Aren’t you worried that I am hiding anything or lying?

Should I say that he is a famous detective worthy of the reputation of "genius"?

His behavior is really weird...it's hard to keep up with him.

But there is one thing to say - my grandson is really right.

In Qingden Shicai's statement, he indeed told everything he knew truthfully - including the names of these people.

Except for the man wearing the "macaque mask" whose name was unknown throughout the whole process, the last names of the other three people were Ichinose, Ebina, and Akutsu.

Based on the tone of their conversation, Ichinose and Ebina...the two oldest ones were at the level of "leaders."

That Akutsu and the guy wearing the "macaque mask" both followed these two middle-aged people.

"Nioh, if there is nothing urgent to do right now, go home as soon as possible~~"

My grandson walked slowly to the dead body with no mask at all, and looked at the face of the dead body in the meager moonlight.

"I have to concentrate on investigating the case now, and I can't entertain you for the time being~~"

Being able to go home right away is something Qingdeng naturally desires.

However... I can't explain why, but Qingdeng felt inexplicably concerned about the group of masked men who acted strangely and told riddles that no one could understand.

The sudden appearance of my grandson, who was obviously here specifically for those masked men, and his team of Huofu thieves, made Qingden even more eager to know who those masked men were.

After hesitating for a moment, Qingdeng asked:

"...My grandson, do you know...who those masked men are?"

"Um?"

My grandson's hand stopped while checking the body to see if there were any other injuries.

"Why do you ask so suddenly?"

"It's nothing, it's just that... I saw that those masked people behaved and spoke in a strange way, so I was just curious for a moment."

"Well... those masked men are members of a very troublesome society that my team and I have been hunting hard for the past three months~~"

"Members of this association act extremely cautiously and will cover their faces tightly whenever they appear."

"The props used to cover the face are different each time. Sometimes it's a mask, sometimes it's a face towel, sometimes it's a scarf... So until now, they haven't even been able to issue a wanted order."

Let Qingdeng make the right decision...my grandson is indeed hunting down those masked men full-time.

"Association?" Qingdeng pondered for a moment and asked quickly, "Is it the kind of association that makes a living by killing people and selling goods?"

"Well...it's hard for me to answer this question for you~~This question already involves a confidential case, and it's inconvenient to disclose it to unrelated people~~"

"That's right...Sorry, it's me, Meng Lang."

Although my grandson doesn't want to go any further, it is quite rewarding to know that that group of people came from a certain mysterious society.

At a time when my grandson has already clearly said, "You can leave," and "We must concentrate on investigating the case," it would be inappropriate both emotionally and rationally to continue to stay here.

Just when Qingdeng turned around silently, planning to leave as soon as he could and leave——

"...Nioh."

My grandson suddenly stopped Qingdeng.

Qingdeng turned around and looked at my grandson with a slight frown on his face, giving him a "What's wrong?" look.

"I don't know if you know this..."

My grandson looked up at Qingden with a smile whose emotions were unpredictable.

"Because of your achievements in rushing to the aid of the Western settlements and severely damaging the anti-barbarian group two months ago, you were moved to the right here by our fire bandits. On November 1st, you officially took over the vacant captain of the third division and the seventh spearhead of the archery group.

The position of team leader."

"I know." Qingdeng nodded lightly, "One of my elders mentioned this to me a few days ago."

"Oh~~ You know, that's good~~"

"Why did you call me suddenly?"

"It's nothing. I just want to inform you: starting from November 1st, we are colleagues."

Speaking of this, the corners of my grandson's mouth turned up a little higher, and he smiled brightly.

"Although it's still a little early, I'd better say it in advance... Please be sure to give me more advice from now on~~"
To be continued...