They had rescued the daughter of this family, a family with a solid foundation and a noble status. Even their old steward, who had caused trouble, seemed to look down on his identity as a small shopkeeper in the Blood Food Gang.

So, what was the key issue?

...It lay in a question Miss White Wine and the others had asked him during the previous Reincarnators' meeting: what was he lacking right now!

Well, he was lacking quite a lot.

He lacked blood food; after all, even the blood food for refining a living heart was thanks to Red Lantern Niangniang's dowry.

He lacked the skills of a zouguiren (ghost walker), which he needed to better understand the Zhen Sui Book.

He lacked understanding of this world, to figure out the Ten Families' schemes.

But what did he lack the most?

Precisely, human connections.

Miss White Wine, upon hearing Hu Ma's words, even let out a rare laugh, saying calmly, "That you can think this way saves me the effort of persuading you."

"I wouldn't suggest you miss this opportunity."

"The Li family of Guidongzi (Ghost Cave) are a prestigious clan, with official positions and a heritage. Having them owe you a big favor is more valuable than owing a Reincarnator."

"With your abilities, entering the manor will be somewhat difficult. Even for Reincarnators, it will be hard to help you with some things, but a family like that can help you solve this problem."

"Even if, one day, you get into some trouble in this world that you can't handle, and the Reincarnators can't conveniently step in to help, seeking help from such a family might give you an unexpected surprise."

"..."

"That's what a Reincarnator should be saying..."

Hu Ma took Miss White Wine's words as confirmation of his guess and solidified his principles and goals for handling this matter, saying, "Of course, while I have this idea, I also know that their family's favor might not be easy to obtain..."

After a moment of thought, he said, "Could you help me see, what's her actual condition right now?"

"Her soul is injured."

Miss White Wine said, "I saw the problem when I came down during the day. She's having this problem because her sheng hun (astral soul) has left her body and, for some reason, can't return, causing her to lose her soul and fall into a coma."

"But as I see it, her most critical injury is the nail in her soul."

"This technique is rather crude and doesn't seem to be the work of a master, but daring to do this to the young lady of the Guidongzi Li family makes me admire these people's courage."

"..."

"That dry-aunt Xiang Yatou mentioned..."

Hu Ma thought of this person and quickly asked, "It should be related to the people who abducted her. How can this injury be treated?"

Miss White Wine paused for a moment and said, "You want me to help her get well?"

Hu Ma was also silent for a moment, then smiled and said, "When I say 'get well,' I mean first saving her life."

Miss White Wine smiled upon hearing this and asked, "Why?"

"Because their family's affairs are too complicated."

Hu Ma also hesitated for a moment before saying softly, "For a young lady of the Guidongzi Li family, even if it's not a major branch like the Impermanence Li family, to be powerful and capable, yet still get abducted is already strange."

"Most importantly, I had already sent a letter to her family, but not only did no one come to pick her up, but she suddenly had an accident. It's strange to think about..."

"And as you just mentioned, this group of kidnappers who hammered a nail into her head could do so without it being visible from the outside. That's quite a skill as well..."

"I suspect that her being abducted and ending up in Mingzhou Prefecture is problematic in itself. If I send her back, I might get caught up in some common family feud..."

"I certainly want to monetize this favor, but I also have to prevent myself from drowning in this feud..."

"..."

Miss White Wine was somewhat surprised by his words, and a hint of a smile appeared in her voice, "You've matured a lot, different from that young man in the village."

Hu Ma laughed and said, "You become like this when you suffer too many losses."

"Of course, one can do good deeds, and reputation is very useful, but it's not like you can't be careful when doing good deeds and building a reputation, right?"

"We're not bad people, just good people who are more awake."

"..."

"Precisely."

Miss White Wine said, "So, what is your ideal outcome right now?"

Upon being asked, Hu Ma thought seriously and said, "The most ideal outcome is that the Caoxin Tang (Herb Heart Hall) heals her, and then an adult from her family comes to pick her up. That way, I don't have to do anything else, and I'll have a connection with the Guidongzi clan."

"That will be difficult."

Miss White Wine said, "I can heal the injury in her head and remove the nail for her."

"But I'm not entirely sure if she'll wake up. The matter of losing her soul is too strange. After the nail is removed, she might wake up, or she might not."

"..."

"Then there's no other way..."

Hu Ma sighed softly and said, "If she can't be fully cured, then it's better to listen to that old steward."

"If I'm not mistaken, her current problem is really related to the letter I sent to her family earlier. Maybe the Li family is also fighting for power, a nest of troubles."

"And now there really is someone who deliberately set a trap for her, so if she wakes up forcibly now, it's more likely to attract unnecessary trouble."

"Even their family's feud might be brought to Mingzhou Prefecture."

"As I see it, it's better to just stabilize her condition, so whether we wait for her real family to pick her up or send her directly back to the Guidongzi Li family in Lingshou Prefecture, we can avoid the feud as much as possible, and everyone will have an easier time..."

"..."

"That's what I mean too."

Miss White Wine sighed softly and said to Hu Ma, "In fact, we at Caoxin Tang have always done this when we encounter such things. Do you know why we don't readily treat these strange illnesses?"

"Because people have destiny."

"Of course, the saying of destiny is too ethereal, but the entanglements of gratitude and grudges are real. We are a clinic, helping people see doctors, treat injuries, and detoxify; it's a matter of course."

"But for us to help people extend their lives, that involves great karma."

"You can certainly revive the dying, but what if their impending death was deliberately caused by someone's magic? If my Caoxin Tang saves someone, wouldn't we offend someone with the ability to kill?"

"There are too many dark and malicious methods in this world. How many can my Caoxin Tang afford to offend?"

"So Caoxin Tang has this skill, but doesn't use it. If the origins are unknown, we will definitely decline."

"Like the connection with the Guidongzi clan, we at Caoxin Tang also want to build a relationship, but we must act according to the rules. For us, relationships are sometimes a burden."

"..."

"I can see that."

Hu Ma thought to himself that this was indeed Caoxin Tang's consistent style.

Even when Sweet Potato Burn came to seek medical treatment, they immediately asked for a high price and delayed seeing her.

The reason was simple: at that time, the Blue-Clothed Evil Ghost was still rampant in Mingzhou Prefecture, and Caoxin Tang didn't want to cause trouble.

It's just that although Sweet Potato Burn was smart, she wasn't stable enough. If she had realized this earlier, she shouldn't have sought medical treatment before the Blue-Clothed Evil Ghost left. If she had come to see them after the Blue-Clothed Evil Ghost was eliminated, Caoxin Tang might have readily treated her.

Now, because Caoxin Tang has already asked for a high price, it's hard for her to let go before she saves up this batch of blood food.

Just as he was thinking, Miss White Wine said again, "You have good ideas, but what if you really need to personally send her back to the Guidongzi Li family?"

"Are you willing to do this?"

"..."

"This matter is even more complicated..."

Hu Ma didn't pretend and just smiled bitterly, saying, "If I directly send their lost young lady back, that favor would be huge, but I can't ignore the risk..."

"After all, the journey is long, and I don't have any acquaintances in Anzhou. If something goes wrong..."

"..."

He stopped speaking here. The accidents could be of various kinds, and he had to consider them...

What if the Guidongzi Li family didn't care about reasoning?

What if the Li family's enemies blocked him in advance?

What if their family was too enthusiastic and thought that he had no future in the Blood Food Gang and insisted on keeping him as their son-in-law?

"What you're considering is exactly what I'm thinking."

Miss White Wine smiled and said, "In fact, after I learned about this matter, I was so enthusiastic because I happened to have something to ask you to do."

"Do you remember what I said before about entrusting something to you?"

"..."

"Ah?"

Hu Ma was slightly stunned and said, "Didn't you say that you could only help you after refining the three organs?"

Moreover, the favor she asked him to do seemed to be related to "canonization" or something like that. He had even learned more about it during this time. How has it changed now?

"Let's not mention the canonization for now."

Miss White Wine laughed and said softly, "But after I learned this girl's identity, I had other ideas. For me, it's just that I'm short-handed."

"Since I need to leave for a while, and someone needs to guard here, I originally wanted to ask you to guard, but now I find that you might as well make a trip to Anzhou for me and deliver a letter."

"..."

"Deliver a letter?"

Hu Ma was slightly stunned upon hearing this and asked, "To whom?"

Miss White Wine slowly opened her mouth and said, "To the Reincarnator organization in Anzhou."

"Reincarnator organization?"

Hu Ma was slightly surprised to hear this.

"Isn't that normal?"

Miss White Wine smiled and said, "The few of us in Mingzhou Prefecture often discuss matters, exchange information, and seek opportunities to cooperate. Doesn't that already count as a small organization?"

"And if a remote Mingzhou Prefecture has a small group like ours, isn't it reasonable for some Reincarnator organizations to appear in other larger cities?"

"To be honest, before coming to Mingzhou Prefecture, I was always a member of this organization."

(End of Chapter)