Chapter 733: Outside Linqing City

When they returned, a crude brute like Xu Hongju could already lord it over others — thinking about it truly makes one sigh. However, Xie Mingxuan caught the hidden meaning in Xu Hongru's words. The eldest son of the Mu family died young, the third son died in Xuzhou, and the second son is in Dongchang Prefecture. But the Mu family still has that mediocre and incompetent fourth son, Mu Wujia — why wasn't he mentioned?

He thought of it, but Xie Mingxuan did not expose it. He only smiled and waited. Xu Hongru's tone had already grown leisurely as he spoke: "Little Xie, these people you've brought back are all unfamiliar faces — perfect for a certain task. You haven't been in Shandong for nearly ten years, so take a team and go this time!"

Dongchang Prefecture is the smallest of Shandong's six prefectures, but also the richest. Because it is small, its farmland is less than elsewhere, so the poison of the Liao levies is relatively light. Though Dongchang Prefecture is small, Linqing Subprefecture and the prefectural seat of Liaocheng are both prosperous cities along the canal. Relying on the profits of commerce and trade, the entire Dongchang Prefecture can benefit. So after the first year of Liao levies passed and the second year came again, this place, compared to other parts of Shandong, was not so ruined and destitute.

The locality could still catch its breath, and Linqing Subprefecture remained as bustling as ever. But you couldn't tell by looking, because large numbers of refugees had flooded in. Back during the great Shandong disaster, only local Shandong victims came here, but now there were even people fleeing from Northern Zhili. So many destitute refugees and beggars were everywhere, dimming much of Linqing's prosperity.

Most of the disaster victims and refugees slept on the streets. The weather was gradually turning cold, and corpses from starvation were slowly increasing by the roadside. Every day, the city's able-bodied men would load the bodies they found onto large carts and haul them out to be burned. But even the tightest net lets something slip — there were always places overlooked. If corpses went unprocessed, plague would break out.

Faced with such a situation, the gentry and commoners of Linqing Subprefecture, besides seeking help from the authorities, had grown accustomed to turning to the Holy Maiden of the Smelling Incense Sect for aid. The Holy Maiden, as always, was compassionate and caring, mobilizing the sect members to contribute money and effort — on one hand providing relief to the refugees, and on the other disposing of the corpses.

The Smelling Incense Sect was a religious order after all. Beyond practical matters, they also had to attend to the spiritual. The Holy Maiden Mu Shulan inevitably had to hold several blessing ceremonies inside and outside the city to dispel calamity for the believers and common folk.

On this matter, all of Linqing, high and low, expressed approval. Heretical cults and demonic people exploiting famine to incite rebellion — that was something to guard against. But someone like the Holy Maiden could soothe the people's hearts and lessen the violent hostility among those gathered disaster victims and refugees.

Those with well-informed news also knew that the Holy Maiden did not call the shots alone. The Smelling Incense Sect's vast operation in Dongchang Prefecture was managed by the Holy Maiden's two uncles, Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia. That Mu Wuzhen was steady and meticulous; were it not for a trace of the jianghu about him, he would be no different from an official. Mu Wujia, on the other hand, was a wretched, dissolute wastrel — greedy for money and lustful, running roughshod inside and outside Linqing. Fortunately, with his family keeping him in check, he hadn't caused any truly major incidents.

Once the Liao levies began, more and more disaster victims and refugees came to Linqing Subprefecture, and the human market flourished along with it. In Linqing's human market, Fourth Master Mu held a very large share.

Selling children, even selling oneself — the tales are miserable, but when money and goods truly change hands, both sides benefit. The children and women also get a path to survival. However, as more and more people came, Fourth Master Mu grew too lazy to take a cut from the business. He directly arranged for his underlings to seize people. When they spotted good merchandise, they would act and forcibly snatch them. After all, disaster victims and refugees were bankrupt and adrift, with no roots or backing.

Mu Wujia's cost-free business ran very smoothly, with no trouble from aggrieved parties. Many dared not dispute it, and those who did soon could dispute no longer. So many corpses were carted out every day — no one cared how they died.

But when something is done too often, it cannot be kept hidden. When the Holy Maiden led her procession through the streets to give blessings, refugees whose children had been seized went to block her path, kowtow, and cry out their grievances.

Upon hearing this, Mu Shulan flew into a great rage. She immediately dispatched men to her fourth uncle's large compound. The Holy Maiden's Youth Battalion was utterly loyal and feared no death. The servants in Mu Wujia's residence could not stop them at all. As a result, the twenty-some children penned up in the courtyard were rescued.

Mu Wujia's trusted aides, upon learning the news, hurried to inform their master. Mu Wujia was also furious when he heard. He had suffered humiliation at his niece's hands many times before and knew that even going to confront her would only invite ridicule. Yet these children were all fine merchandise he had carefully selected, meant to be sold to Jining Subprefecture. The buyer had already paid a deposit. Now everything had gone awry, and he would have to pay silver out of his own pocket as compensation. Facing such a plight, how could his heart not ache? How could he not be furious?

Between blood brothers, a few complaints are always inevitable. Mu Wujia practically wept in front of Mu Wuzhen. In the past, Mu Wuzhen had also greatly disapproved of Mu Shulan's disrespect toward her elders. Encountering such a matter, he would not only console his fourth brother but also go and have a word with Mu Shulan. This time, however, he gave Mu Wujia a scolding.

"... Xiao Lan is about to marry the Sect Master. Whatever she says, goes..." Upon hearing these words, Mu Wujia's heart truly went cold. He knew perfectly well what his brother was like. When it came to matters involving the Wang family of Luanzhou, there was nothing else to discuss — only blind, diehard loyalty remained.

"... You must understand the greater picture. Xiao Lan has said she will arrange for you to go to Hejian Prefecture. Don't you harbor any resentment..." Hearing this advance warning, Mu Wujia could endure it no longer.

Ever since the two of them returned from the capital, the various branches of the Smelling Incense Sect in Northern Zhili had increased their contact with Dongchang Prefecture. All the prominent figures within the sect knew that the Sect Master, Wang Haoxian, was going to marry the Mu family's daughter, Mu Shulan.

Although Wang Haoxian was lecherous and mediocre, he still had capable people assisting him. They knew that Mu Shulan might not be a peerless beauty, but the tangible territory of Linqing Subprefecture was far too valuable. The Smelling Incense Sect had done extremely well in Shandong's six prefectures — in many places, they were practically an underground government, far stronger than the branches in Northern Zhili that had to hide from the light.

This was the Wang family faction coming to pluck the ripe fruit. Yet Mu Wuzhen was extremely wary of Xu Hongru but blindly loyal to the Wang faction. And Mu Shulan, so long as her own domain was untouched, did not interfere with their actions at all. Mu Shulan still did not know she had been betrothed to Wang Haoxian — she had no way of learning the news, and Mu Wuzhen deliberately kept it from her. But Mu Wujia's power and influence had been greatly diminished, and he raged about it every day.

Hejian Prefecture was a poor, harsh place with a fierce and unruly populace, and several other sects preached there. The Smelling Incense Sect's situation there had always been very difficult. To leave Linqing Subprefecture, one of the finest places under heaven, and go there — this was banishment.

"... It must be that slut Xiao Lan..." Mu Wujia cursed outright, but his elder brother Mu Wusheng gave him a fierce slap across the face and rebuked him: "Is the Sect Master's wife someone you can curse?"

At a time like this, Mu Wuzhen cared not a whit for brotherly affection. And in a place like Linqing Subprefecture, whatever Mu the Second, Mu Wuzhen, and Mu Shulan forbade, it absolutely could not be done.

Mu Wujia returned to his residence in a towering rage. His trusted aides all expected another uproar. Some even prepared to earnestly and sincerely advise him, saying the current situation was unfavorable and he should endure when endurance was needed, or things would get worse. But to everyone's surprise, Mu Wujia endured it. He actually began to quiet down.

No one paid any attention to Mu Wujia's quietness. Though this Fourth Master Mu ran rampant in Linqing, in the eyes of those whose words truly counted, he really amounted to nothing.

On the twentieth day of the tenth month, Mu Shulan led a large procession out of Linqing Subprefecture. Their destination was a certain estate outside the city.

That estate was five li from the city. The wealthy household that managed it were incense-burning believers. When the refugees and displaced people flooded in this time, the wealthy household of the estate showed compassion, contributing money and grain to shelter quite a few people. To outsiders, it was said to be an act of accumulating virtue and doing good. To the Mu family, it was described as recruiting loyal believers for the sect. Of course, these people would become their laborers and coolies next year — the kind with no wages. This, however, no one would ever speak aloud.

Whatever the purpose, it was ultimately a matter of face. Not only did the Mu family provide subsidies, but even the gentry of Linqing Subprefecture gave money and grain.

Such a great act of charity, with so many refugees — inviting the Holy Maiden to come and perform a ritual of blessing was only reasonable. The wealthy household had proposed it themselves; they had always wanted to secure a position as an Assembly Master for themselves. If they could get the Holy Maiden to visit once, all the dissenters in the area would have to shut their mouths.

A perfectly reasonable request, from a believer handling affairs with diligence — the Mu family had to give them this face. Mu Shulan could not avoid making this trip.

The Holy Maiden Mu Shulan's Youth Battalion numbered one hundred and seventy in total, but when leaving the city, she could bring at most thirty. Meanwhile, the trusted guards of Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia would exceed fifty. The rest were people unaffiliated with either side. This arrangement was ostensibly for the Holy Maiden's safety, but everyone knew the real reason in their hearts: it was to prevent Mu Shulan from running away. Thirty youths, no matter how fearless and death-defying, could not handle fifty seasoned jianghu veterans with decent skills.

After several bloody incidents, both overt and covert, Mu Shulan had lost even the will to send messages outside. The two uncles no longer needed to accompany her every time she went out, and they had even granted Mu Shulan the authority to make her own decisions. This time, neither Mu Wuzhen nor Mu Wujia had come along.

There were not many people on the official road. The Holy Maiden Mu Shulan was not sitting in a palanquin on parade either; she simply nestled inside a horse-drawn carriage, sheltered from the cold and comfortable. A sturdy youth rode alongside the carriage, occasionally leaning close to the curtain to speak.

Those familiar with the Holy Maiden knew this youth's background. He was Li Yuliang, the only son of Inspector Li of the Linqing Canal. Looking at his solid, robust build, no one would imagine that a few years ago he had been a pale, frail, sickly weakling.

It could be said that Mu Shulan had saved Li Yuliang's life, and it was also Mu Shulan who had trained Li Yuliang into this form. Inspector Li was indifferent toward Mu Wuzhen and Mu Wujia, but very close to Mu Shulan. His donations and support for the Smelling Incense Sect were all because of this.

However, Inspector Li knew where his family's wealth and status came from, so he maintained a very proper sense of boundaries with the Smelling Incense Sect. Although his only son followed Mu Shulan around day and night, waiting on her hand and foot, Inspector Li's household strictly forbade incense-burning and sect belief. And aside from Mu Shulan, they had little contact with other members of the Smelling Incense Sect.

"Sister Mu, things in the city feel strange lately. It's like someone is hiding something from us," Li Yuliang said in a lowered voice.

I have never posted duplicate chapters; you can't blame me for that. The Chuangshi website has been functioning normally.

Thank you to the old friends "User Mou, Yuan Heng Li Zhen, Can Xue Yan Yang, Shi Jian Zou Lang, Tian Mi De Gan Zhe, xyzann, Wu Liu Lang, Mu Ming" for your tips.