Method

Chen Mo shoveled up a spadeful of horse manure mixed with urine and carefully tipped it into the wheelbarrow.

Ding Bao stood to one side, carefully teaching him how to shovel manure with the least effort, so he would not get splashed with urine and feces.

He had been a groom for two and a half years and had learned quite a bit about shoveling manure.

The cart was soon filled with horse manure. Ma Cai pushed it away, shooting Ding Bao a meaningful glance before he left.

Once the two of them had gone, Chen Mo grabbed an apple used to feed the horses and took two vicious bites.

Seeing its fruit being stolen, the horse let out two furious neighs, though unfortunately it could not speak.

Chen Mo quickly gnawed away most of an apple, tossed the remaining piece to the neighing horse, and resumed shoveling manure.

Ding Bao and Ma Cai did not stay away for long before pushing another empty cart back.

"I told you." Ma Cai glanced at Ding Bao.

Chen Mo said nothing more. He understood that the two of them clearly had something secret to tell him.

"We didn't tell you before because you weren't shoveling manure. Now that you're doing it too, you need to know about this."

Ma Cai did not dare speak loudly, lowering his voice as much as possible.

"We've been secretly selling the horse manure lately. We can make forty or fifty coins a day."

Horse manure was valuable stuff, especially since warhorses ate plenty of fine grain, making their manure even more expensive.

Although all this manure was supposed to be sent to the commandant's estate, no one would notice if they secretly sold a small amount.

The two of them had discussed whether to tell Chen Mo, because if he knew, there would be one more person to split the money with.

But if they did not tell him, they were afraid he might find out someday and report them. So they might as well drag him into it now.

"Does Master He know about this?" Chen Mo asked the two of them.

If Master He also knew, then it would be fine for him to take a share. Not taking one would actually seem inappropriate.

However, the two fell silent at his question.

They of course understood that it would be best to include He Ma Guan in the scheme, but since they had not told him at the beginning, the longer they waited, the less they dared to speak.

"Then aren't you afraid you'll be discovered one day?" Chen Mo asked, looking utterly stunned.

He truly had not expected the two of them to be so bold.

If Master He was taking a share too, then even if the matter came to light, he would protect them to some extent so that he would not be punished too severely himself.

But He Ma Guan knew nothing about it. If the scheme was exposed, being beaten to death under military law would count as a lenient outcome for them.

"We'll be careful. We probably won't get caught, right?" Ma Cai's voice grew quieter and quieter.

If one wanted no one to know, one should do nothing at all. Since they had committed the deed, its exposure was only a matter of time.

"What if you do?" Chen Mo shot back.

Ma Cai lowered his head. His family did have some connections in the army, but they were not particularly strong. Otherwise, he would not still be feeding horses here.

If this truly came to light, even if he managed to keep his life, he would certainly be flogged dozens of times with a military baton and driven out of the camp.

"I didn't hear what you said, and I won't tell He Ma Guan. I'll only shovel the manure. I won't ask about taking it out." Chen Mo took the initiative to draw a clear line between himself and the matter.

With the Mortal Transformation Pearl on him, all he had to do was slowly accumulate qi and blood and wait for the Mortal Transformation.

He did not want to get involved in something that might affect his own peace and stability.

But the two had helped him quite a lot during this period. Though it had only been small things, such as lending him soap pods or a bucket, he would never report them because of that.

"We're comrades, at least. You can't just stand by and watch us die! What do you think we should do? We'll both listen to you!" Ma Cai's tone was anxious, and his heart was in a panic.

His family had pulled many strings to arrange everything for him after he entered the army. If he was driven out because of this, all their efforts would be wasted.

He had shared a room with Chen Mo for half a month and knew that Chen Mo was definitely no ordinary refugee.

He actually knew how to read. Even if he knew only a few characters, that was still extremely rare among a group of soldiers.

So at this moment, Ma Cai hoped Chen Mo could at least offer some advice.

Chen Mo knew how to read for two reasons. First, the written language of this world was fairly similar to that of the world he had inhabited before transmigrating.

Second, when he had sold himself, his looks had been reasonably decent. After doing odd jobs in the kitchen for half a month, he had been transferred to work as a page. By hearing and seeing words every day, he had learned a few characters.

"Either stop doing it for good, or, if you still want to continue, take out all the money you made before and hand it to Master He, then tell the old man everything."

Considering how the two had helped him during the time they had spent together, Chen Mo offered them a suggestion.

Whether they listened was up to them.

After shoveling two carts full to the brim with horse manure, he rinsed his hands and went back to steaming mantou for the horses.

After eating more than two jin of mantou himself, Chen Mo deliberately kept eight aside.

The army camp served only lunch and dinner. There was nothing to eat in the morning, so when steaming mantou in the afternoon, they had to set aside eight. The next morning, each person could eat two to fill their stomachs.

After Chen Mo steamed the mantou and fed the horses, the two men who had gone out to deliver the manure came hurrying back, reeking of stench.

"Mo-ge." Ma Cai's tone was intimate, his face piled with smiles.

Although he was a year older than Chen Mo, he now shamelessly called him "brother," clearly because he had a favor to ask.

"What is it?" Chen Mo's heart grew wary. Anyone who showed kindness without reason was either up to no good or had something to steal.

"Nothing. It's just that we eat nothing but radishes and cabbage every day. I bought a chicken to give you something tasty."

Ma Cai pulled out a marinated chicken wrapped in lotus leaves, its oily fragrance wafting through the air.

On the way back from delivering the manure, the more Ma Cai thought about the matter, the more frightened he became. The income of twenty-some coins a day was simply worlds apart from the price he would pay if he was discovered.

He wanted to quit, but Ding Bao was reluctant to give it up. The two of them were now grasshoppers tied to the same rope, able only to advance and retreat together.

Besides, even if they stopped, there was no guarantee the matter would not come to light later.

After discussing it for a long time and weighing every possibility, the two decided to use Chen Mo's second method.

"What exactly is it? Go ahead and tell me." Though Chen Mo phrased it as a question, he could vaguely guess about thirty percent of the answer.

"We've decided to listen to you and tell Master He everything. But if the two of us go, we'll definitely get beaten, so we wanted to ask you, Mo-ge, to help us."

He rubbed his hands and gave an embarrassed smile.

Even if they handed over all the money, what they had done was still absolutely worth a severe beating.

That was why neither of them dared to tell him.

Chen Mo had not yet participated in the scheme. If he went to speak first and Master He accepted the money, his anger would dissipate by a third. Afterward, he would probably only scold them a few times and would not beat them.

Even if they were beaten, it would certainly be lighter than if they went and threw themselves directly into the line of fire.

If he was injured, it would inevitably affect his strength. Even if his family had paved the way for him, he still had to make something of himself.

"You could go yourselves. What use would it be for me to go?" Chen Mo shook his head and refused. He had never really wanted to get involved in this matter.

"Mo-ge, just help us this once. If you do, we'll each give you one qian of silver afterward." Ma Cai gritted his teeth.

"This..." Chen Mo hesitated slightly. Two qian of silver was no small amount. It could buy plenty of meat and help him accumulate qi and blood more quickly.

"Mo-ge, if you help me, we'll be brothers from now on. And I'll tell you something good you absolutely don't know." Ma Cai wore a solemn expression.

This was not something he should casually tell others, but he could no longer afford to worry about that.

If Chen Mo was willing to help him, he could tell him. If not, then forget it.

Besides, he understood that even if he did not say anything now, everyone would know about it in another two months.

"What is it?" Chen Mo was quite interested.

Ma Cai's family had some connections. The good news he spoke of should not be a lie.