Chapter 439: Blade Burn (1/2)
Song Xingchen smiled, ”Are you a child?”
”Yes, I am. Is there anything wrong with that?” she retorted, arms akimbo. “Pick it for me!”
Song Xingchen picked a bright-colored flower and tucked it behind Song Jie’s ear. However, I soon noticed something odd about the flower and immediately shouted, ”Wait! Let me have a look.”
After observing the flower, I explained, ”This is opium poppy! Why is there opium poppy here?”
”How do you know?!” Song Jie blurted, then covered her mouth to hide her gaffe.
”It's late summer and it should be the time of the year when the villagers are busy farming, but I noticed a few people ploughing in the fields. Is there a secret in the village?”
Song Jie spat her tongue, ”I can’t believe you noticed...”
”Is someone in the village planting something illegal?”
Song Jie tucked the flower behind her ear, ”Alright, I'll show you but don't tell my mother!”
As Song Jie led us over a hill, I scanned the area. A sea of deep red, pale pink and white, with opium poppies on the left, jimsonweed on the right and belladonna in the distance. I frowned, ”Don’t you know that these plants are illegal?”
”So what? We’ve been planting these flowers for many years. How do you think the concoctions that you usually use like Dream Entry, Heart Poison and Bone Erosion Drug are made?”
Some of the components of these drugs were handed down by my grandfather while the others were obtained via Xiaotao because quite a few of these raw materials were considered contraband.
”You mean this is the Song family’s plantation?” I exclaimed.
”Yes,” answered Song Jie. “The Song family has a great demand for these drugs. The water and soil here are perfect for planting so we do it ourselves!”
”Who else uses these drugs besides me?” I asked.
”Aren’t you arrogant!” she laughed. “You’re not the only descendent of the Song family to work with the law. The civil Songs are now in decline, but a large part of the martial Songs are just like you. They cooperate with the state on difficult missions. My mother used to be a bodyguard in Zhongnanhai. In 1997, she rescued a foreign president from terrorists. My father was my mother's colleague.”
I never imagined Song Heting had such an identity! It turned out that the martial Songs were actively involved in secular affairs. Of course, they cooperated with the state as consultants like me.
Opium poppies were a rare variety. Drugs of extremely high purity could be extracted from processed poppies. ”Are you sure these plants are really just used for us and not for profit?”
Song Jie chuckled, ”Geez, you’re so suspicious of everything! How can the Song family do such a thing? Our ancestors are buried in these mountains!”
“Asura methods but the heart of a Bodhi!” recited Song Jie.
Since it was past noon, Song Jie urged us home for lunch. Song Heting cooked me another bowl of snake soup. After drinking it once, I couldn't resist this delicious soup which made me wonder if something extra had been added.
”How’s your investigation?” Song Heting queried.
”Aunt Song, how did you know about the corpse hidden in the old tree? Who is it?”
”We do know a little about the corpse, but I’m not allowed to tell you anything.”
”Why?” I was rather puzzled.
”Because this is a test and you have to prove your ability to solve the case on your own!” explained Song Heting.
I was perfectly confident of my ability to solve the case, but I kept quiet about it for fear of sounding boastful.