How Could I Let You Live?

All of this had happened too quickly and too suddenly.

So quickly that even Zhu San hadn't reacted. He turned around and saw a gaping hole in Zhu Liu's forehead.

Unlike Zhu Liu, who had been careless, Zhu San was much more cautious.

He immediately pieced it together in his mind: Chen Mo had been pretending to be knocked unconscious by Zhu Liu from the very beginning, waiting all this time for the chance to strike.

He was cunning and ruthless.

What surprised Zhu San even more was that Chen Mo shouted out loud, offering a reward of a hundred taels of silver.

Zhu San didn't hesitate. He immediately tried to flee on horseback.

They said that a generous reward would always bring out brave men.

The soldier immediately drew his saber. "Men! Seize this bandit!"

The soldiers guarding the gate drew their weapons and surrounded Zhu San.

But Zhu San was a big man, and he swung his Mountain-Cleaving Saber with tremendous force. Combined with the momentum of his charging horse, he drove several soldiers back with just a few strokes and was on the verge of breaking through the city gate.

Seeing the situation turning against him, Chen Mo shouted again, "Seize him, and I'll reward you with eight hundred taels of silver!"

Eight hundred taels!

To the soldiers guarding the city gate and the merchants and common folk nearby alike, it was an astronomical sum. They could never earn that much in their entire lives.

Many eyes reddened with greed.

But Zhu San was a vicious bandit on horseback, armed with a saber. Though everyone was itching to join in, no one dared charge him.

All it took was one person to take the lead, and the flame of greed in the crowd would catch.

Chen Mo keenly sensed the crowd's mood and shouted again, "Whoever takes the lead in surrounding this bandit will receive a hundred taels of silver, whether or not we manage to capture him!"

That finally ignited the crowd's courage and greed.

A burly man stepped forward first. "Everyone, help me surround him! Let's claim the reward!"

Once someone took the lead, the crowd poured in like a dark tide. They grabbed whatever they could find—clubs and other makeshift weapons—and followed behind the soldiers, hemming Zhu San in until he had no way out.

Though no one dared to attack Zhu San directly, they certainly had loud voices. Roars erupted from every direction, shaking the heavens.

Their shouts emboldened the soldiers and terrified Zhu San, who was already feeling guilty. His saber work fell into disarray, and before long, the soldiers' spears had left several deep wounds in him.

Some merchants and shopkeepers hurled bricks, hoes, baskets, and anything else they had at Zhu San. The objects did little real harm, but they added to the crowd's momentum and blocked Zhu San's view.

Before long, the leading soldier knocked Zhu San off his horse with a spear. They then bound him hand and foot.

Only then did Chen Mo let out a long breath of relief.

When you're short on strength, money can make up the difference.

"Young Master Mo, are you all right?" The soldier who had checked his travel permit earlier came over and asked with genuine concern.

Chen Mo didn't know the man, much less have any ties to him. He knew the man was only so concerned because he had his eye on the reward.

Even false concern was still concern.

Chen Mo asked, "May I ask your name, good sir?"

The soldier replied, "My surname is Zhao. My given name is Bing."

Chen Mo knew the crowd cared most about the reward, so he needed to arrange its distribution first. "Brother Zhao, please keep a record of everyone's contributions and distribute the rewards accordingly. I'll hand the silver over to you later. Sorry for the trouble."

Zhao Bing was delighted. He immediately shouted out orders to several other soldiers, telling them to record everyone's names. Once the crowd had all been entered into the register, they left, satisfied.

Zhao Bing was also a man who understood social niceties. He offered Chen Mo a hand. "Shall I take you back to the mansion now, Young Master Mo?"

Chen Mo asked, "Brother Zhao, could you check whether there's anything on my back?"

Zhao Bing did as asked. He lifted the back of Chen Mo's robe and, sure enough, peeled a tiny Paper Figure off his back.

Whoosh!

The instant the Paper Figure came off, Chen Mo felt his whole body loosen. His immobilized hands and feet immediately regained their freedom, and his other discomforts vanished as well. He breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly got to his feet.

Chen Mo took the Paper Figure and looked at it. His pupils shrank.

His name and detailed Eight Characters of Birth were written on the yellowed paper.

Just as I thought. Granny Li had used my Eight Characters of Birth to make a Paper Figure and stick it to me, then cast the Nightmare Suppression Technique from afar. What a vicious method. If I hadn't already reached the Muscle Refining Realm and reacted quickly today, I'd have been doomed beyond redemption.

Thinking about what had happened that day, Chen Mo felt a chill of lingering dread.

That raised a question...

The Eight Characters of Birth!

Chen Mo had been in this world for some time. And since he had been a Daoist priest at a temple in his previous life, he naturally knew quite a bit about the Eight Characters of Birth.

The Eight Characters of Birth were divided into the Four Pillars Eight Characters.

The Four Pillars were the Year Pillar, Month Pillar, Day Pillar, and Hour Pillar. Each pillar consisted of two characters: one Heavenly Stem and one Earthly Branch. Together, they made up the Four Pillars Eight Characters.

As the legitimate son of the Chen Family, Chen Mo couldn't hide the year, month, and day of his birth. But only those closest to Chen Yin Fu would know his Hour Pillar.

In other words, Granny Li had conspired with someone close to the Chen Family and obtained Chen Mo's Eight Characters of Birth.

There was a mole!

"Young Master Mo, shall I take you back to the mansion?" Seeing that Chen Mo had been silent for some time, Zhao Bing reminded him again.

Only then did Chen Mo come back to himself. He put away the Paper Figure. "No need. Please come to the mansion tomorrow, Brother Zhao. I'll give you the eight hundred taels of silver then."

"Young Master Mo is generous!" Zhao Bing was delighted.

"Have everyone disperse. I want to speak with Zhu San alone."

Chen Mo instructed Zhao Bing to disperse the onlookers, then walked over to Zhu San and kicked him hard twice. "Tell me who the mole in my Chen Mansion is, and I'll spare you."

Zhu San's face was defiant. He snorted. "I fell into your trap, so I accept my fate. Kill me or cut me up—do as you please."

Chen Mo picked up Zhu San's broad saber and sliced open the crotch of his trousers. "My Chen Family has been in business for generations. We don't enjoy fighting and killing. But I know my way around cutting off a man's balls."

Hiss!

Hearing that Chen Mo was going to cut off his balls, Zhu San clamped his legs together, his whole body tingling with fear.

As Chen Mo's blade pressed farther in and pierced the skin between his legs, blood began to seep out.

At last, the tough Zhu San grew afraid, and his resolve wavered. "If I tell you, will you really spare me?"

Chen Mo replied coldly, "You're not the mastermind. Why would I kill you?"

Zhu San didn't really believe him, but the blade between his legs terrified him too much. In the end, fear overpowered reason.

"It was... it was Steward Liu of your mansion."

Chen Mo's hand paused slightly on the saber.

Naturally, he wouldn't take Zhu San's word for it. Steward Liu had worked diligently in the mansion for years, always conscientious and deeply trusted by Chen Yin Fu.

"Tell me every detail."

How could Zhu San dare hide anything now?

"My Brother-in-Law and I went to Steward Liu at first to ask for your Eight Characters of Birth, but he refused. I looked into him and discovered he often sneaked off to Spring Breeze Tower to spend lavishly. I guessed he'd been embezzling the Chen Family's money. After investigating, I found out I was right, so I used that to blackmail him. Steward Liu feared Chen Yin Fu would punish him, so he told us."

Chen Mo held out his hand. "Do you have proof that Steward Liu embezzled money?"

Zhu San's hands and feet were tightly bound, so he couldn't move. He said, "It's inside the lining of my right sleeve."

Chen Mo reached into his sleeve and, sure enough, pulled out a tiny booklet.

He opened it.

It recorded the details of Steward Liu's embezzlement. He had skimmed money from the pharmacy's purchasing funds and pocketed rent paid by the tenant farmers, amounting to several hundred taels in total.

Every entry had been recorded in detail and seemed genuine. Chen Mo had inspected the pharmacy and rice fields earlier, and knew that the accounts broadly matched. The embezzlement likely was real.

It really was Steward Liu.

Chen Mo put away the ledger. "What's your relationship with Granny Li of the Blood Ridge Black Market?"

At that, Zhu San was visibly frightened.

He was clearly more afraid of Granny Li than of being exposed for Steward Liu.

But the reason became clear after a moment's thought. Perhaps Zhu San had thought he already had the upper hand and said things he shouldn't have. That was how Chen Mo had overheard him.

Knowing he couldn't escape, Zhu San said, "Zhu Liu and I were bandits near the Blood Ridge Black Market. We made a living robbing merchants and buyers who got separated from their groups. A few days ago, Granny Li recruited us to work for her. I had no choice."

Zhu San pleaded, "Young Master Mo, I've told you everything. Please show mercy..."

Pfft!

Before Zhu San could finish, Chen Mo raised the broad saber and brought it down hard on his neck. His head flew into the air, and blood gushed from the severed neck, splashing across Chen Mo's face.

"You harbored evil intentions. How could I let you live?!"

Clang.

Chen Mo slid the saber back into its scabbard and slowly rose to his feet.

It was his second time killing someone since coming to this world.

Though he still felt some unease, he had never regretted his decision.

His heart was gradually growing harder and more steely.

"Brother Zhao, please deal with the bodies of these two bandits."

Chen Mo called out to Zhao Bing, then strode away with his saber in hand.