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Chapter 372: Eight Vessels of Blood Feast
Chapter 372: Eight Vessels of Blood Feast
With the matter decided, they put aside their previous concerns.
Hu Ma and the others didn't say more. They first had a satisfying meal and drink, and then Hu Ma carried a vessel of wine to the camp entrance.
Taking a glance, they saw the horse that had been afflicted by countless poison curses, on the brink of death for a long time. Surprisingly, it still had a breath of life left. Initially, as it waited for death, it lay there with a posture that exuded a sense of sacred anticipation.
But now, it was lying down lazily, its belly facing the sky.
As Hu Ma approached, the horse feebly opened its eyes, glanced at him, and then closed them again, seemingly unwilling to acknowledge anyone in this world...
Hu Ma said, "Old brother, can you still move? I brought you some wine. Why don't you have a sip before you depart?"
The horse kept its eyes closed, ignoring him. Hu Ma didn't force it and placed a bowl beside it. He poured wine from the vessel into the bowl, filling it halfway, and then set the vessel aside before turning to leave.
The horse remained lying down. After a long while, the aroma of the wine became more enticing.
Finally, it couldn't resist. It flipped over, stuck its mouth into the bowl, and took a small sip. The wine was so delicious that it couldn't stop. It grabbed the vessel with its mouth and gulped down most of it. Soon, the entire horse became intoxicated.
Hu Ma returned to the hall and called over the mine artisans who had been anxiously waiting nearby, including the mine master, Zhuang, and his two disciples.
"Everyone, there's something you can rest assured about," Hu Ma said with a smile. "I'm from the Red Lantern Society, and I've come to check on the assets under her management. If things are well-managed, we'll reward you. But if not..."
"...we won't punish you, but it's necessary for us to take over the management."
"... "
As he spoke, he glanced at the mine master, Zhuang. Zhuang listened silently, surprisingly without objection. If this had been in the past, such a statement would have led to a heated argument and a potential fight.
But now, it was a matter of who could solve the problem first.
"We only brought four or five people with us, which means we're not planning to recruit new meat cutters. Your livelihoods are safe, gentlemen."
Hu Ma continued, a smile on his face. "To be frank, some of our elders in the Red Lantern Society make a living by cutting meat, and they understand the hardships you face. Moreover, our Red Lantern Lady is renowned throughout the region for her kindness, and she has even built a temple..."
"...How could she let us do such a cruel thing as cutting off people's livelihood?"
"... "
The miners were surprised that Hu Ma had called them over only to say this. They exchanged glances, unsure of what was happening.
The mine master, Zhuang, and his two disciples, along with several apparent mine managers, became anxious. They turned to Zhuang, realizing that Hu Ma was openly trying to win over their support.
Zhuang slowly shook his head, indicating that they shouldn't overreact. He whispered, "He's powerful, and he's from the Society. What can you do about it?"
"If we don't want to fight, then we should just welcome them."
"Considering we're all Year-End Guardians, he has no reason to treat us too harshly."
"Besides, who among you can deal with the person outside?"
"... "
Upon hearing this, the two disciples fell silent. They sighed softly and signaled the other managers to remain calm.
"We're honest people, and we expect the same from you, gentlemen. Let's ensure everyone has food to eat."
Hu Ma agreed, and then his expression turned slightly stern. "Now that I'm here, I see fear in your eyes, and there's a demon causing trouble outside. Our elders are starting to worry."
"But don't worry. Since we've arrived, this demon won't harm anyone from the mine. However, before I take over, there are things that need to be done. I have an account book from the Society, and I'm sure you have one for the mine as well."
"I can burn the Society's account book, but I'll thoroughly inspect the blood feast, the inventory, here."
"... "
"Ah?"
Including the mine master, his two disciples, and several managers among the meat cutters, their faces paled.
No wonder he didn't start by discussing how to deal with the sorcerer but instead called everyone together.
He had his eyes on the current batch of blood feast...
In the mine master's earlier story, regardless of its truth or the depth of the bloodline, and regardless of how the sorcerer appeared, Hu Ma and the old calculator had identified a key point:
Before this recent incident, the mine had unearthed numerous Blood New Year Beasts, and among them were even some with golden patterns—valuable treasures.
According to their story, these treasures had not yet been transported out. Shouldn't they seize this opportunity?
It was only natural for a manager from the Red Lantern Society to inspect the accounts.
If the mine didn't hand them over, the consequences would be dire. Just because they dug it out didn't mean it was theirs. These treasures belonged to the Red Lantern Lady!
When Hu Ma mentioned checking the accounts, his gaze shifted to the mine master, Zhuang, who stood among the crowd, his face turning pale with hesitation. His disciples also looked at him, seemingly ready to take action without a word.
But after much thought, he let out a soft sigh, waved his hand, and whispered a few words to his two disciples and the manager. He sent them off, dismissing them.
Before long, the mine bustled with activity, and two black-lacquered sealed vessels were brought over.
The blood feast offerings from the mine had to be quickly placed into the vessels, sealed with a strip, to prevent attracting unwanted attention. The higher the quality, the more important this was, and the seal could also indicate the contents of the vessel.
Upon seeing the seal on the vessel, Hu Ma had a general idea of its quality. Without rushing to open and inspect it, he smiled enigmatically, "Is that all?"
The two disciples nodded repeatedly, but Zhuang, the mine master, had an embarrassed look on his face. After a moment, he said, "There's more, just a little more."
As he spoke, he ordered someone to fetch more, and two more vessels were brought over.
Hu Ma observed silently, but the old abacus spoke up, "I just heard you say you dug up several baskets, and these vessels are ten-jin in capacity. Usually, they aren't filled to the brim, maybe seven or eight jin. If we estimate fifty jin per basket, then these few vessels..."
Zhuang's face turned pale as he listened. He hurriedly approached Hu Ma and pleaded in a low voice, "Manager Hu..."
"We're all from the Blood Xiu Guardian lineage, you see..."
"..."
"I'm not being unreasonable..."
Hu Ma smiled at him and lowered his voice, "Brother, as soon as we mentioned our respective legacies, I understood. Our master, Lord Zhou Two, is also a renowned name."
"To be honest, your Green Robe Gang is no more. Now, this blood feast mine belongs to us, the Red Lantern Society. I understand if you want to keep some benefits for yourself. Even in the future, if we all work together in this mine, it's not a big deal."
"But this is my first time here, and there's an issue outside. I really need to exert myself!"
"I'm not refusing, but don't you think you should be more realistic?"
"..."
"I..."
Zhuang, the mine master, suddenly didn't know what to say. He lowered his voice and said, "This opportunity is a once-in-a-lifetime chance. To be frank, I have two more vessels, but please let me keep some. I'll secretly give you one."
"No need!"
Hu Ma looked him in the eye and said, "Bring all that you have, no matter the quantity."
"Then, I'll take charge, and you'll take two vessels back. Consider it hard-earned money for you and your brothers. What do you think?"
"..."
Zhuang was stunned for a moment, then he bitterly smiled and nodded after a pause.
To everyone's surprise, he really went to fetch them, and soon, three more vessels were brought to their table. Now, looking at the dark mass before them, everyone gasped in awe, feeling a bit surreal.
Eight large vessels, each containing nearly ten jin of blood feast, added up to seventy or eighty jin of blood feast right in front of them.
Moreover, these were not for offering, but could be kept for themselves...
"Enough..."
Hu Ma's heart also sank slightly as he observed.
He had come to the mine for the blood feast, and with enough of it, he could smoothly enter the manor. However, the gap in his blood feast supply was significant, and he had thought he would need to put in a lot of effort to obtain it.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he arrived, he stumbled upon this small fortune. It might even be enough to fulfill his needs.
Suppressing his excitement, he took a deep breath and pointed to two of the vessels, "Zhuang, take these back and carefully examine their quality."
"As for the others..."
He stood up and said to Zhou Datong, "Datong, find a place to stay, and move them all to our room."
"Tonight, I'll thoroughly check the ledger."
"..."
Zhou Datong was thrilled, exclaiming, "Good, good!"
The old abacus became anxious, "What about me? Can't I help check the ledger too?"
"You can check it in my room, it's the same."
As everyone busied themselves, Zhuang, the mine master, was both surprised and delighted. He was happy that Hu Ma dared to make this decision, assigning two vessels to him. Previously, this would have been unthinkable, but now with Hu Ma's directive, it became rightfully his.
Seeing that they were only moving the vessels, he still felt uneasy. He watched the meat cutters outside craning their necks to look and said, "Just checking the ledger?"
"Manager Hu, the demon outside is still causing trouble. Shouldn't we discuss a plan?"
"..."
"A plan?"
Hu Ma narrowed his eyes, "Simple."
"Datong, fill the lanterns we brought with oil and hang them on the door!"
"Since they sent a dead crow, demanding we move, we'll hang up red lanterns to show that this is Red Lantern Lady's territory. If they don't back down, they're declaring themselves an enemy of Red Lantern Lady."
"I want to see how bold they are!"
(End of Chapter)
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