A month ago, a housing estate resident made a report to the local police, saying that there was a foul smell coming frequently from the house downstairs of his. It was Tao Gang who performed the task. He asked the residents around there. And according to the information provided by the neighborhood committee, the house owner had moved to Beijing. The person who lived there now was a tenant and had stayed there for half a year. He was a middle-aged man and a loner. No one had ever seen any visitors of his. At that time, Tao Gang knocked on that door and found there was indeed a foul smell in the house! Something was being cooked on the stove. Tao Gang took a look at it but couldn't figure out what that was. So he questioned the middle-aged man, "What is in the pot?" The man answered, "It's meat!" Tao Gang asked again, "What kind of meat?" The man answered, "It's not human meat!" Seeing that this man was perfunctory, Tao Gang didn't say anything more. After opening the f

My knowledge of outdoor survival skills could only be attributed to my childhood life when I was young. I remembered full well that the National Studies Institute was built only after I began schooling. Before that, my parents and I were nomads who moved around the world. Many a time I had wondered how my father was able to finance our never-ending trips that would have bled most people dry of their wealth. What was more, my parents were frequently deep in the wilderness to help solve paranormal incidents. Living in the wild enabled me to learn survival skills since a very young age and it had become one of my strengths! At present, I could easily survive in the wild for two or three months without a lighter! I related more of my past to everyone, including the Sisters; and everyone was stunned, their arms hanging loosely at their sides with disbelief. Xiao Liu, ever so gentle and docile, gasped, "Incredible! You are indeed your father's son!" We waited u

Officer Zhang woke up from his unconsciousness, throwing his head around in his confusion to find out where he was. With a loud crash, he fell from his chair. I lighted a smoke and offered another one to him. With a casual tone, I said, "It has been days since we last met, Officer Zhang!" His hands trembled and the cigarette shook in his mouth. I reached over with a lighter and set his cigarette alight. "Your woman has confessed," I said, matter-of-factly, "Ah, yes! You'd do well to remember that we are now aligned with the horse bandits. There's a lack of awareness for the rule of law here, so I'd advise that you cooperate to spare yourself from any pain!" Still, my words seemed to have failed to make any impression to the man. Seeing that he was not bound by ropes, Officer Zhang sprang to his feet and bolted for the door! I merely smiled and made no attempt to stop him, still remaining crouched on the ground. Officer Zhang was gleeful at being able to reach the door.

We were alerted by the arrival of a line of oxen-drawn wagons that waited outside the encampment at nine the following morning. Each of the wagons was carrying a large crate, and the convoy was led by the agent who had tried, and failed, to secure an audience with Aunt Ulan. "The goods are all on the ox carts," he said, "Feel free to inspect the goods, Chief Ulan!" Under orders from Aunt Ulan, some of the girls carefully pried open the lids of the crates and inspected the rifles and boxes of ammunition. Still wrapped in oil papers, the guns could be seen glistening with gun oil when the wrappers were peeled off! Satisfied, Aunt Ulan barked some instructions to her girls, ordering them to begin hauling the crates into the camp, but the agent came to her and stopped her immediately. "Wait!" he cried, "You can take the goods, but not the crates!" "What nonsense is this?" Aunt Ulan glared at him indignantly and earned the agent's hesitant answer, "I'm afraid this is my emp

When night fell, we watched Aunt Ulan's cabin from afar, watching through binoculars for any movement. Two pieces of talismans laid in two separate ashtrays on my table. Long have we waited, until one of the talismans broke into fire, disintegrating into cinders swiftly in its ashtray before its counterpart in another tray burst into flames as well? I yanked my binoculars from the table and peered into its barrel, scanning intently on the outside of Aunt Ulan's cabin. But everything was well; nothing outside was disturbed! I waited for another ten minutes, keeping a close watch at the cabin door. Something was wrong! I rushed out of my cabin, calling Lin Feng and Yuan Chongxi to keep up, and tore across the compound towards Aunt Ulan's cottage. We stormed through the door and turned on the lamps. I inspected the lamb skin mannequins and found a tiny blood-red dot on the decoy I had set in Aunt Ulan's bed! The enemy was here, and he had left! But how did he came in? We had been watch