Chapter 1 A Night of Hustle and Bustle, and Utter Serenity

That night was extremely lively, yet extremely quiet.

Hu Ma helped Aunt Zhang pack up the altar items into bundles. Of course, these things were originally his, and he knew what was important. He only picked up the brazier, leaving behind the burned straw figurine and spilled rice.

Then, he politely invited Seventh Aunt and Aunt Zhang to his manor to have something to eat and rest their feet.

It was already late, and he couldn't let Aunt Zhang walk dozens of *li* back through the mountains. After all, the night was unsafe. What if Aunt Zhang encountered some evil spirit and got scared?

Aunt Zhang hesitated slightly before agreeing. However, on the way back to the manor, she kept glancing at Hu Ma. Hu Ma noticed her gaze several times and turned to her with a smile, saying, "Aunt, what's wrong? Is there dirt on my face?"

"No."

Aunt Zhang's face suddenly turned red, as if she was thinking about something. After a while, she whispered, "Thank you, Little Shopkeeper."

Hu Ma didn't know if she was referring to his help in inviting Seventh Aunt or something else, so he just smiled and said, "You're half my teacher, Aunt. We're family, so what's there to thank?"

"Ah?"

Aunt Zhang was suddenly struck by a remarkable thought because of this sentence, and her pupils dilated instantly.

It was obvious that her legs were weak as she walked, and she almost stumbled.

Back at the manor, only the shop assistants remained. Originally, many people who had heard that bandits were coming had taken refuge in the manor. However, after the fighting outside ended, the shop assistants explored the situation and hurried back.

Although it seemed that the bandits hadn't come that close before, they still had to hurry back and see if any chickens, ducks, or pigs were missing.

"Don't be so nervous. The bandits are gone. There was also an evil ghost causing trouble in Huang Gou Village, but Aunt has eliminated it. Remember to go over and take a look tomorrow to see if they need any help."

"After all, we're neighbors, and we have to help our fellow villagers if they're in trouble."

"..."

Hu Ma comforted the panicking shop assistants and then said, "Wa Zi, prepare a feast. Tonight, we're inviting Seventh Aunt and Aunt Zhang to have a good drink!"

The shop assistants didn't know exactly what had happened, but they were relieved to hear Hu Ma say this and quickly went to prepare.

"Dong! Dong! Dong!"

But as soon as they started, someone knocked on the door urgently. They opened it and saw several tall horses standing outside, with several blood-covered figures on them. Zhao Zhu was happy, but he was so frightened that his soul almost flew away and he almost stabbed them with a pitchfork.

"Don't stab, it's me!"

The person on the horse wiped the blood from his face and jumped down. Only then did Zhao Zhu recognize Yang Gong and quickly let him in to see Hu Ma.

"Brother, what were you doing just now..."

As soon as Yang Gong saw Hu Ma, he had countless questions he wanted to ask him. How could Hu Ma have entered the battlefield so coincidentally at that critical moment? How did he save his life and give him a knife, only to disappear immediately?

And when he used this treasured knife, he seemed to be invincible, as if he had more strength to kill bandits. It seemed that something was different in this world.

All these questions made him feel that it was not simple, but when he really wanted to ask, he couldn't.

In the end, it was all just changes in his intuition. When he thought about it carefully, he found that everything seemed reasonable, at most, just a little coincidental at certain times.

"Take care of your business first, we'll chat in detail when we have time."

Hu Ma interrupted him directly and just asked, "Are you eating in the manor, or?"

"I can't."

Yang Gong said, "Hundreds of brothers are waiting outside. After killing these bandits, I have to take them back to the mountains. Although I've only known them for a few days, everyone trusts me. I brought them here, so of course, I have to send them back safely."

"In addition, there are many injured people. Do you have a lot of black ointment and *qing shi* here? Give me two baskets, I need to treat their wounds urgently!"

"..."

"There's plenty, it's already prepared."

Hu Ma had just asked Zhou Datong to bring back all the black ointment in the manor's inventory, and he had also collected dozens of *jin* of blood food, which could all be reimbursed to the Hong Deng Society.

After all, the Red Lantern Society would recognize Red Fragrance disciples, right?

Of course, how many days Yang Gong could remain a Red Fragrance disciple would depend on the Red Lantern Goddess.

"I..."

Yang Gong took these things, holding the knife in his hand, and wanted to hand it back to Hu Ma. Hu Ma shook his head and smiled, "Use it. I have one that I'm used to. Just don't forget when I gave you this knife, no matter what your fate is in the future!"

"...Okay!"

Yang Gong took back the knife and looked at Hu Ma deeply. He suddenly said, "Several big households in the mountains are waiting to reward us. You helped kill the bandits, do you want to go over and have a few drinks?"

"No, thanks."

Hu Ma smiled and shook his head, "This is your credit, what would I be doing there? Come find me when you're done."

"Okay."

Yang Gong agreed and took the black ointment and *qing shi*, mounted his horse and left the manor. But after leaving the manor, he kept looking back, feeling as if something was shrouded in his heart, but he couldn't figure it out.

After a long time, he just sighed, "A true brother..."

But he didn't know that after he left the manor, Hu Ma also watched him go, sighing softly. Zhou Datong approached him curiously and said, "What did Brother Yang Gong just do? He's covered in blood..."

"Killed bandits!"

Hu Ma glanced at Zhou Datong and smiled, "The commotion you heard outside just now was him leading people to kill them. Look at his red eyes, he probably hasn't slept well for days!"

Zhou Datong was stunned when he heard this, and looked at the outside of the manor again, saying, "Was it ordered by our Hong Deng Society?"

Hu Ma shook his head.

Zhou Datong asked again, "Did someone hire him?"

Hu Ma still shook his head.

Zhou Datong was bewildered and said, "Was it to protect the big girls in the village?"

"Didn't see any girls."

Hu Ma smiled and said, "It was all a bunch of old men, the kind from the village. I guess they only take a few baths a year."

"Hiss..."

Zhou Datong gasped and went back, scratching his head and muttering, "Then what's in it for him?"

At this point, Hu Ma naturally wouldn't explain it to Zhou Datong in detail. He saw that Li Wa Zi had already diligently prepared a few dishes, so he invited Aunt Zhang and Seventh Aunt to sit down. At the small square table, of course, Seventh Aunt took the seat of honor.

Smelling the warmed wine and the sweet smell of brown sugar eggs, Seventh Aunt took a deep breath and sighed, "It's still comfortable to eat at home..."

"The banquet over there, the meat is all raw, it's hard to chew..."

"..."

"Let's toast Seventh Aunt, from today on, I guess all the gods and monsters around here will recognize Seventh Aunt..."

Hu Ma smiled and raised his glass, while thinking in his heart, now that Seventh Aunt is so powerful, will Li Wa Zi also rise in status and become a errand boy under the *Xiao Tang Guan* in the future?

Then his status would suddenly catch up with Miss Red Wine?

"Dong dong!"

But before they could drink a few cups, the manor door suddenly rang again. This time, it was almost pushed open directly. A gust of wind blew into the manor, and the shop assistants were about to curse, but they saw the red lanterns outside the manor.

The left and right guardians, wearing capes and masks, rode tall horses and held red lanterns, leading a large group of people, standing outside the manor.

Looking at their majestic appearance, they seemed to be about to order the shopkeeper and shop assistants in the manor to come out and welcome the *fa jia* (carriage) of the Red Lantern Goddess. But they suddenly saw Seventh Aunt, who was sitting facing the manor door.

Their eyes met, and no one spoke for a long time.

Then, the incense burners and left and right guardians of the Hong Deng Society outside the manor suddenly weakened their momentum.

The Hong Deng Society had always been nearby. They knew clearly what happened in Huang Gou Village through those evil spirits who had been forced to attend the banquet, so of course they also knew about Seventh Aunt.

So, not only did the murderous aura on the people outside the manor disappear, but even the red lanterns held by the left guardian quietly went out.

For a moment, the overall atmosphere was a little awkward.

"Ah..."

Hu Ma reacted quickly, got up to bow, but suddenly saw the right guardian with the smiling face mask suddenly reach out a hand: "No need!"

"You continue!"

"..."

As he said that, he reined in his horse and slowly retreated from the manor. After retreating a few steps, he dismounted and closed the manor door, and then the sound of horses' hooves quickly faded away.

In the Hong Deng Society, countless people were puzzled. The Red Lantern Goddess wanted to rest her feet in her own manor, why did she leave without even entering the door?

And the right guardian was deeply shocked by the scene he had just seen: "Brother Old White Dry, you're amazing, he actually really got on the line with this *Xiao Tang Guan*?"

The people in the yard were preparing to eat and drink again, but the manor door was suddenly knocked open again.

Everyone turned their heads in dissatisfaction and confusion, and saw that this time outside the door was actually a blood-covered, listless horse. It glanced at the people at the feast with its big eyes, lowered its head and walked in, went straight into the stable, and lay down silently.

The people in the yard looked at each other in confusion, but Hu Ma sighed helplessly and said to Zhou Datong, "Take a pot of wine over there and add it to its trough, looking at it like that, I'm afraid it will have insomnia tonight..."

"...Tonight, it's probably the only one who's disappointed, right?"

(End of this chapter)