Chapter 443: New Year

Once they learned this, no one dared act rashly anymore. Everyone knew what kind of colossal monster the Smelling Incense Sect's main headquarters was, and how ruthless their methods could be.

"Granny's legs must not catch wind or cold, but she also must not stop walking. Devout faith is of great use, and following instructions is also a form of devotion."

"Yes, I'll do exactly as the Holy Maiden instructs when I return. My mother's leg trouble is an old ailment. In the past, she ate vegetarian meals and chanted Buddha's name, kneeling there all day with no improvement. After receiving the Holy Maiden's spirit medicine and nursing it according to the Holy Maiden's method, she can now walk for several hours a day. The whole household is overjoyed."

This was the last believer received today. A rather distinguished-looking middle-aged man took his leave with a smile.

Nowadays, the Holy Maiden saw a fixed number of believers each day. Even nobles of status had to send a card days in advance to make an appointment before they could see her.

As soon as this middle-aged man left, a group of eleven- and twelve-year-old children immediately rearranged the room. The chairs were moved to the sides, the prayer mats and incense burners were all taken away, and the bamboo curtain hanging before the Holy Maiden was also drawn up. A few girls of about the same age served tea.

Once all these tasks were done, the young girls withdrew. The children stood with hands at their sides on either side. Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia also came forward, followed by a man in his thirties.

"Second Uncle, Fourth Uncle, please sit," Mu Shulan, seated on the prayer-mat dharma throne, greeted them with a smile.

Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia both nodded and sat to the sides. The man in his thirties stopped where he was, performed a grand bow, and said respectfully, "Your subordinate Huang Tao greets the Holy Maiden."

His initial courtesy was sufficient, but after finishing, he stood up carelessly and swept his gaze around the room with indifference, saying, "New Year is almost here. What does the Holy Maiden summon your subordinate for?"

Mu Wuzhen's brow furrowed slightly, and Mu Wujia's expression was also displeased. This Huang Tao was a local tyrant of Chaocheng County. He previously had no connection to the Smelling Incense Sect, but later, seeing the Mu family thriving, he simply converted his entire household to the Smelling Incense Sect and, relying on his local power, directly became an Incense Master.

Such a person joined the sect for the benefits; piety was out of the question. He often haggled with the Linqing "main altar" over terms. To break into and hold Dongchang Prefecture, they had to use people like him. Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia could only hold their noses and endure it.

"Incense Master Huang, the offerings you sent for this New Year are a bit meager, a full seventy percent short of the quota," Mu Shulan said with a smile.

She wore a long, pale-blue palace-style dress, the proper attire for a Holy Maiden. The pale blue was somewhat matronly, yet on Mu Shulan it appeared charming and lovely. Her light makeup was also very fitting. Though the room was rather dim, looking at Mu Shulan seemed to brighten the surroundings considerably.

Huang Tao stared fixedly at Mu Shulan, his gaze quite unbridled. A beat late, he replied indifferently, "I beg the Holy Maiden's forgiveness. The incense followers below live hard lives. I was also considering the Buddha's compassion and mercy, so I let everyone pay less. Holy Maiden above, if you press too hard and the people below start making trouble..."

His words even carried a threat. Mu Wuzhen's brow furrowed tightly, and Mu Wujia's expression was also very grim. He knew Huang Tao's martial skill was quite good; if it came to blows, it would be troublesome.

Mu Shulan, as the Holy Maiden, was no figurehead. She knew very well what her uncles knew. But the young girl's face still wore a smile as she teased, "If Incense Master Huang is so compassionate, why did you drive three families to their deaths in Chaocheng? Saying that those who couldn't pay the offerings would have their whole family die out? And took one family's daughter into your own room?"

As these three questions were asked lightly, Huang Tao's entire expression changed. He stepped back, his face full of shock, and pointed at Mu Shulan, disregarding all decorum, "You... how do you know this?"

In his panic, he failed to notice that the two Mu family elders sitting to the side wore similarly astonished and questioning expressions.

Once the panic passed, Huang Tao's face hardened. He said gruffly, "If the Holy Maiden inquires into such fine details, how can those of us doing the work below put our hearts into it? The current situation in Dongchang Prefecture was built by everyone's joint effort. With such scheming, then let's just forget it!"

This was an attitude of utter fearlessness. Mu Wuzhen's hand moved to his saber hilt. Mu Wujia's expression grew even uglier. He had thought the Mu family had already established a firm footing, but he never imagined that, just as Xu Hongru had said, everything was a castle in the air.

"Anyway, if you can't stay here, you can always go join Xu Hongru. Didn't he promise you a higher position over there?" Mu Shulan's face still held a smile, as if she were recounting some girlish trifle.

Huang Tao's expression changed. With a flip of his hand, he drew the short blade at his waist and glared viciously at Mu Shulan. The Mu family of Dongchang Prefecture was Smelling Incense Sect, and Xu Hongru in Yuncheng County, Yanzhou Prefecture, was also Smelling Incense Sect, yet everyone knew the two sides were irreconcilable, mortal enemies. Huang Tao knew the consequences of his collusion with Xu Hongru's side, but he had thought his actions were secret, impossible for anyone to know. He never imagined this young "Holy Maiden" would expose him.

The moment he drew his blade, the two Mu brothers also stood. Anyone with martial skill could see Huang Tao was not easy to deal with; his stance was very precise.

"We're all here to get rich. Do you really think you're some 'Holy Maiden'..." Huang Tao snarled viciously, stepping backward step by step.

Before the Mu brothers could react, Mu Shulan, seated at the head, made a gesture with a smile. Huang Tao sensed someone lunging at him from the side and swung his blade on instinct. Just as he moved, he felt a pain in his leg on the other side and couldn't help but cry out miserably. His movement slowed. With that delay, the person on the other side also lunged in, and someone charged from behind!

The youths standing on both sides all pounced, each gripping an iron awl half a foot long, stabbing it into Huang Tao's body.

Facing enemies much shorter than himself, in the rush there was simply no way to react or exert force. Huang Tao hadn't even imagined these seemingly childish and frail youths would attack. He only managed to swat one person away before he was already stabbed by six iron awls, the cotton robe on his body beginning to stain red with blood.

The youths threw themselves forward recklessly, stabbing into Huang Tao's body again and again. Huang Tao struggled at first, then begged for mercy, then lay motionless on the ground.

Even Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia had not anticipated this turn of events. The two instinctively drew their weapons and stood guard. Once they saw it was their own people attacking, they still did not lower their weapons. Watching those youths strike, both men felt a chill creeping up their spines.

The area around Huang Tao's neck was nearly stabbed to pulp. Mu Shulan also rose from her prayer-mat dharma throne. She paid no attention to the corpse, instead running to the youth who had been swatted away. That youth had only been knocked flying and felt pain, but had suffered no real injury. At that moment, Huang Tao's entire body had been under attack, and he had no way to deliver a killing blow.

"Sister Holy Maiden, I'm fine. Don't let the blood dirty your clothes!" To Mu Shulan's concern, the youth was overwhelmed with gratitude. The other youths all wore similar expressions.

"Xiaolan, though Huang Tao deserved to die, with you making this move, who will take charge over in Chaocheng County?" Mu Wuzhen couldn't help but ask.

Mu Shulan ignored her second uncle's question. After arranging for the youths to carry the injured one away, she turned back and said with a smile, "One of the people by Xiaoliang's side is from Chaocheng and does decent work. Let him be the Incense Master."

"You..." Mu Wujia couldn't help but speak, but the moment his gaze met Mu Shulan's, he suddenly recalled the scene of the youths assassinating Huang Tao moments ago, and the words died in his throat.

The atmosphere turned awkward for a moment. Mu Shulan left with a smile. The two Mu brothers exchanged a glance, not knowing what to say.

The Mu family currently only held sway over Dongchang Prefecture, a dozen or so counties in total. The Incense Master position in each location was crucial, all requiring discussion and decision among the Mu family members and trusted aides. Yet now one had died directly, and the position had been taken over by Mu Shulan.

That only son of the Li family was just like these youths — Mu Shulan's follower, doing whatever she said. The people by his side would certainly listen to Mu Shulan.

The more Mu Wujia thought, the angrier he became. Linqing was a world of pleasure, and he used far too much silver. He had already been scheming to trade Incense Master positions for silver, and this Huang Tao had also given him benefits. He never expected it to vanish just like that. He could see the dissatisfaction in his elder brother's expression. The original plan had been to use the Holy Maiden as a figurehead, with the two brothers truly in charge, but now it was growing increasingly uncontrollable.

"Second Brother..." Mu Wujia gritted his teeth, about to speak.

Mu Wuzhen, however, rose from his seat and said only one line: "Xiaolan is also a member of the Mu family."

After speaking, he turned and left the room. The youths came in with tools to clean up the corpse. Mu Wujia sat there in a daze, silent, his expression shifting constantly. It seemed he truly had to consider Xu Hongru's proposal, but recalling the scene of Huang Tao being stabbed to death by steel awls just now, he couldn't help but shudder.

New Year's Eve at He Village was extraordinarily lively. That day, Zhao's Battalion was filled with a festive atmosphere. Every soldier was issued new clothes, and the mess hall slaughtered pigs and sheep, preparing a sumptuous New Year's feast for everyone.

The last wine merchant had left on the twenty-eighth day of the twelfth month. After that, the entire inn became a place for Zhao Jin and his companions' families to stay. With plenty of separate courtyards, it was convenient for everyone.

However, only the families of Zhao Jin and Ji Xiang were here. The others all had siblings and were not only sons. Their families knew the children had proper business to attend to, and since they had also visited home a few days prior, the reunion, though important, was not essential. As for those who were alone, there was nothing more to say.

When Wang Zhaojing had dealt with those two spies, he had specifically sent Ruhui and Zhou Xuezhi away into the city. Zhou Xuezhi's family was all within Xuzhou City, and Ruhui had a residence in the city with no shortage of places for pleasure. Moreover, with the year-end approaching and little business to handle, perhaps the two of them had sensed something as well, for they were in no hurry to return.

Zhao Jin led his companions through every barracks. The family soldiers entertained themselves with various acts — some sang opera, some performed acrobatics, some did magic tricks, and some told stories. The night was not lonely. They had also purchased plenty of firecrackers and fireworks from the city, though they had to set them off far away; otherwise, igniting the stockpiled sorghum and grain would be trouble. Fried fish, braised meat, boiled dumplings — no expense was spared on the food, and every family soldier ate with great delight.