「The next day.」
At the crack of dawn, the City Guard Department officials stationed near the Chens' residence had already withdrawn, as if they had never been there the night before.
The autumn morning breeze was cool and crisp. Dressed in a set of green robes, Chen Cheng stood tall and aloof on the highest point of his roof.
He couldn't recall when he had developed the habit of standing in high places, surveying his surroundings while quieting his mind to think.
In a poor district like Locust Tree Lane, people always rose early to prepare for the day's hustle and bustle.
In the past, the lane would have been bustling with activity by now.
But after the incident with the Ba Dao Gang, only five or six of the twenty-odd households in Locust Tree Lane remained. With so many people gone, the area suddenly felt desolate.
Among the remaining families, only three had smoke rising from their chimneys. Even the scent of hearth and home had thinned.
