CHAPTER 372: CHAPTER 369: EIGHT ALTARS OF BLOOD FOOD

Since the discussion had concluded, those matters would not be considered for the time being.

Hu Ma and the others said no more, first eating and drinking their fill. Then, Hu Ma carried the jar of wine to the village entrance.

A glance revealed the horse, afflicted with countless gu poisons and having been near death for a long time, surprisingly still drew breath. Initially, it had lain there, its posture holding a kind of sacred anticipation.

But now, it was lying down lazily, its belly turned to the sky.

Seeing Hu Ma approach, it weakly opened its eyes, glanced at him, then tiredly closed them again, seeming unwilling to acknowledge anyone in the world...

Hu Ma said, "Brother, can you still move? I brought you some wine. Why don’t you have a sip before you go on your way?"

The horse kept its eyes closed, ignoring him. Hu Ma didn’t insist. He placed a bowl beside it, poured more than half a bowl of wine from the jar, then set the jar aside and turned to leave.

The horse remained lying there for a very long time. The more it smelled the wine, the more fragrant it seemed.

Finally, it couldn’t resist. It rolled over, dipped its mouth into the bowl, and took a small sip. The more it sipped, the more fragrant the wine became, until it couldn’t help but snatch the jar with its mouth, tilt it back, and gulp down more than half of its contents. The entire horse finally began to look dazed.

Hu Ma returned to the main hall. He called over the mine workers who had been waiting eagerly, along with Mine Chief Zhuang and his two disciples.

"Gentlemen, there’s one thing you can rest assured about."

Hu Ma smiled at them and said, "I’ve come on behalf of the Red Lantern Society to inspect the properties under our Red Lantern Lady’s name. If they’re managed well, naturally, there will be rewards. If not..." He paused, then continued, "...there will be no punishment, but it will be necessary for us to take over the management."

As he spoke, he glanced at Mine Chief Zhuang, noting that the man listened quietly, without objection. If this had been said in the past, a statement like this would surely have caused both sides to fall out and likely lead to a fight. But now, it was a matter of who could solve the current problem first.

"But as you’ve seen, only four or five of us have come. This means we don’t intend to hire new Meat Cutting workers. Your livelihoods are secure."

Hu Ma continued, a smile spreading across his face, "To be frank, some of my own elders made their living by cutting meat. I know it’s not easy for any of you. Besides, our Red Lantern Lady is famous throughout the nearby towns and villages for her kindness; she’s even had temples built in her honor... How could she allow us to do something as wicked as cutting off people’s means of survival?"

The men from the mine hadn’t expected Hu Ma to gather them just to say these things. For a moment, they exchanged bewildered glances.

Mine Chief Zhuang, his two disciples, and several of the mine’s managers immediately grew anxious. They quickly looked towards Mine Chief Zhuang, understanding that Hu Ma was clearly trying to win over the men’s loyalty.

Mine Chief Zhuang slowly shook his head, signaling them not to make a fuss. He said softly, "The man has great abilities, and he’s come down from the Society’s upper echelons. What can you possibly do?"

"If you don’t want to fall out completely, then just treat him well."

"Considering we’re all of the Shousui Lineage, he has no reason to be too harsh with us."

"Besides, that one outside... which of you can handle him?"

Hearing this, the two disciples said no more. They sighed softly and gestured to the other managers, signaling them to remain calm and patient.

"We are being straightforward, but you gentlemen also need to be straightforward. If we all get along, everyone will have food to eat."

Hu Ma began with encouraging words, but then his expression hardened slightly. "Now that I’m here, I see that people are on edge. Outside, those demon people are stirring up trouble, and everyone, young and old, is starting to worry."

"But you don’t need to worry. Since we’re here, those demon people won’t be able to harm anyone in our mine. However, before I officially take over, certain things must be done. I’ve brought ledgers from the Society, and I presume your mine has its own ledgers as well."

"The Society’s ledgers, I can burn those. But the Blood Food from this mine, its inventory... I intend to inspect that thoroughly."

"Huh?"

Mine Chief Zhuang, his two disciples, and several managers among the Meat Cutting Craftsmen were all instantly aghast, their faces changing color.

No wonder he didn’t first discuss how to deal with the Witch, but instead gathered everyone for a talk.

He had his sights set on the current batch of Blood Food in the mine...

From Mine Chief Zhuang’s earlier account—regardless of its veracity, the depth of the bloodline from which flesh could be cut, or how those demon people had appeared—both Hu Ma and Calculation had noted one crucial point: before these current troubles began, this mine had excavated a significant amount of Blood Tai Sui. Furthermore, much of it was high-quality material, bearing golden patterns...

According to their story, these few baskets of fine goods hadn’t been shipped out yet. Shouldn’t we get our hands on them quickly?

I’m a manager sent down by the Red Lantern Society; isn’t it perfectly normal for me to audit the accounts?

Refuse to hand it over?

If this mine refuses, then things will get serious. You think just because you dug it up, it’s yours?

This belongs to our Red Lantern Lady!

As Hu Ma uttered the words "audit the accounts," his gaze fixed on Mine Chief Zhuang, who stood amidst the crowd. The Mine Chief’s face was pale and hesitant. His two disciples, flanking him, looked expectantly at their master, seemingly ready to act at a moment’s notice, even without a direct order.

But after a long moment of consideration, Mine Chief Zhuang finally sighed softly. He waved his hand and whispered a few words to his two disciples and the managers before sending them off.

Shortly after, there was a bustle of activity from the mine, and two black-lacquered, sealed jars were brought over.

The Blood Food extracted from the mine had to be sealed in jars quickly to prevent it from attracting unwanted things. The higher the quality, the more critical this step was. The seals on the jars also allowed one to determine the contents.

Hu Ma glanced at the seals on the jars and could generally tell the quality. However, he didn’t rush to open them for inspection. Instead, he looked at them with an unreadable smile and asked, "Is this all?"

The two disciples nodded repeatedly. Mine Chief Zhuang, however, looked embarrassed. After a long pause, he said, "There’s... there’s a little more."

With that, he had someone bring more, and another two jars were carried over.

Hu Ma looked on, his expression cool and silent. But Calculation spoke up, "Earlier, you mentioned digging up several baskets. These jars have a ten-jin capacity, but they’re usually not filled to the brim, probably holding only about seven or eight jin each. If one basket is around fifty jin, then these few jars you’ve brought out... I’m afraid..."

Hearing this, Mine Chief Zhuang’s face turned deathly pale. He hurried to Hu Ma’s side and pleaded softly, "Manager Hu..."

"We are all of the Shousui Lineage, you see..."

He trailed off, then added, "I’m not an unreasonable man..."

Hu Ma smiled at him and also lowered his voice. "Brother Zhuang, when you spoke of our respective heritages earlier, I understood. Our Master, Second Master Zhou, is also a renowned name."

"To be frank, your Green Clothes Gang is finished. This Blood Food mine now belongs to our Red Lantern Society. I understand you might want to keep some benefits for yourself. Even if everyone continues to make a living together at this mine in the future, that’s not a problem."

"However, this is my first visit, and we’ve run into this external trouble that needs to be dealt with, requiring resources!"

"We won’t shy away from the responsibility, but don’t you think you also need to be a bit more... forthcoming?"

"I..." Mine Chief Zhuang was at a loss for words. He finally whispered, "This kind of opportunity... it’s a once-in-a-lifetime stroke of luck. To be honest with you, I still have two more jars. But you have to let me keep some, at least. How about... I secretly give you one of them?"

"No need!" Hu Ma looked him directly in the eyes. "However many you have, bring them all out."

"Then, I will make the decision. You can take two jars back as compensation for your and your brothers’ hard work. How does that sound?"

Mine Chief Zhuang was stunned for a moment. Then, a bitter smile touched his lips, and he nodded.

He actually had his men bring out more. Soon, another three jars were placed before them. Looking at the imposing array of dark jars now in front of them, everyone present drew a sharp breath, finding the sight somewhat unreal.

Eight large jars, each holding close to ten jin of Blood Food. That amounted to seventy or eighty jin of Blood Food, all sitting right here?

Moreover, this wasn’t for tribute; they could keep it for themselves...

"This should be enough..." Hu Ma thought, looking at the jars, his heart also stirring with excitement.

He had come to this mine precisely for Blood Food. With enough Blood Food, he could smoothly secure Entering the Mansion. However, his deficit in Blood Food was substantial, and he had thought it would take considerable effort and planning to obtain what he needed...

Who would have guessed that he’d stumble upon such a small fortune right after arriving? This might actually be enough!

Suppressing his inner excitement, Hu Ma took a deep breath. He pointed to two of the jars and said, "Mine Chief Zhuang, take these two back first. Have a good look at the quality."

"As for the others..." He stood up and turned to Zhou Datong. "Datong, find us a place to stay. Move all of these to our rooms."

"Tonight, I’m going to audit these accounts thoroughly."

Zhou Datong, hearing this, jumped up in excitement, exclaiming, "Great, great!"

Calculation also grew immediately anxious and said, "What about me? What about me? I can help audit the accounts too!"

Hu Ma said, "You can come to my room to audit them; it’s all the same."

As everyone got busy, Mine Chief Zhuang felt a mix of shock and delight. He was delighted that Hu Ma actually dared to make such a decision, assigning two jars to him. Something that previously had to be kept hidden was now, with Hu Ma’s designation, legitimately his?

However, seeing them only move the jars and not address the other pressing issue, he still felt a little uneasy. Noticing the Meat Cutting workers craning their necks to look in from outside, he quickly asked, "Is it just an audit of the accounts?"

"Manager Hu, those demon people are still causing trouble outside! Shouldn’t we discuss a plan to deal with them?"

"A plan?" Hu Ma squinted his eyes. "Simple."

He called out, "Datong, fill the lanterns we brought with oil and hang them on the main gate!"

"They sent a dead crow, telling us to move out. Well, we’ll hang up Red Lanterns to tell them this is the territory of our Red Lantern Lady! If the other party doesn’t know when to back down, then they’re making an enemy of our Red Lantern Lady."

"I’d like to see just how much courage they really have!"