Turmoil Began at the Red Pavilion

Zhou Muyun was somewhat surprised. Hadn't the Dragon Household already been dealt with? Why did they need someone to hold the fort again?

"Of course I'm willing, Junior Sister, but please tell me the reason."

Ever since the Leng Household's sparring match, they had increased their support and even sent silver and medicinal herbs. Naturally, Zhou Muyun would not refuse.

Hearing Zhou Muyun ask for the reason, Leng Ni let out a long sigh, her face carrying a hint of helplessness.

"Junior Brother, you know about the Four Great Families in the city—the Song, Leng, Li, and Liu families, right?"

Zhou Muyun nodded. The Four Great Families were known throughout the city.

"Besides those four, there are quite a few other families in the city. In ordinary times, they either relied on the four families to some extent or bowed beneath them. Families like the Dragon Household are few and far between."

At this point, Leng Ni's expression turned grave.

"But things have changed. Over the past half month, several families have announced that they are breaking away from us four families and will no longer depend on us. There are even faint signs that they are joining forces. The Four Great Families are now short-handed, so this is an unreasonable request!"

Joining forces—this was a move to oppose the Four Great Families!

Zhou Muyun's thoughts instantly raced.

Over the past half month, Liu Yan, Li Buhui, and even Leng Ni had hardly come to the martial arts hall.

Even Bai Yu had been frequently coming and going from the martial arts hall. Normally, he would always be practicing in the back courtyard!

It seemed the Four Great Families had run into serious trouble lately.

Still, it was only a medicinal herb shop. There probably would not be much danger.

"So that's how it is. Does the medicinal herb shop have a place to practice? Also, I have to patrol for two hours every day. That shouldn't interfere with anything, right?"

Zhou Muyun was afraid it would delay his improvement. If he could not even practice, then he would have to give it some thought.

"There is naturally a place for that, and it will not interfere with your patrols, Junior Brother. We only hope that at critical moments, you can intimidate those petty scoundrels!" Leng Ni hurriedly replied.

"Fine, then I agree."

"In that case, Senior Sister thanks you here, Junior Brother. Tomorrow morning, I'll send someone to take you to the medicinal herb shop. Once this matter is over, the Leng Household will certainly have a gift of thanks."

"You're too kind, Senior Sister. The Leng Household has helped me many times. It is only right."

Leng Ni nodded, a little more joy appearing on her face. She did not waste any more words. After bidding farewell, she hurried away.

"It seems Yunlin County is becoming more and more unsettled!"

After sighing inwardly, Zhou Muyun planned to seize the time to practice.

The more chaotic the world, the more important strength became!

That night, Zhou Muyun arrived at the East Market Outpost.

According to the rotation schedule, starting today, their group had to patrol for two hours at night.

After greeting Lu Ming and the others, the four-man squad began its daily street patrol.

Zhou Muyun had not understood before why East Market, where the Drunken Red Pavilion stood, was so peaceful.

Later, Lu Ming told him that the Drunken Red Pavilion was jointly owned by Yunlin County's four great families.

Other than the authorities, no family in Yunlin County dared to provoke all four families at once.

Thus, nighttime street patrols at the East Market Outpost were the easiest assignment.

"Brother Zhou, be careful tonight."

Not far from the outpost, Lu Ming abandoned his usual relaxed demeanor. His expression grew somewhat solemn as he spoke in a low voice.

The other two, Li Xiu and Ma Yuan, were the same.

"Brother Lu, could it be related to the major families in the city?"

Zhou Muyun casually voiced his guess.

After all, he had only received the news from Leng Ni that morning. Coupled with the situation at the Drunken Red Pavilion—

Even a fool could guess the reason if it was enough to give the constables a headache.

Lu Ming showed a trace of surprise, then nodded.

"I didn't expect Brother Zhou's information to be so well-informed too. That is indeed the reason. The Four Great Families have suppressed the other families too harshly over the years, while the other families had always been a scattered heap of sand. Yet for some reason, over the past half month, they have actually begun joining hands, something rarely seen. The whole city has become a smoky miasma, and armed clashes and fights to the death between family martial artists have become commonplace."

The situation had already worsened to this extent. No wonder Leng Ni had seemed so anxious today.

Combining Lu Ming's words, Zhou Muyun gained a deeper understanding of the city's situation.

But what was the attitude of the authorities, the sky over Yunlin County? He very much wanted to know.

"So are we going to interfere or not?" Zhou Muyun asked in return.

"Of course we have to interfere."

After speaking, Lu Ming pointed upward and lowered his voice.

"But the meaning from above is that if we see it, we deal with it. As for what we don't see..."

He did not continue, but everyone present instantly understood.

If they did not see it, then it had never happened.

Had the authorities become weak to this extent? Zhou Muyun asked inwardly.

After all, although security in the Outer City was poor, the Inner City was still relatively peaceful under the authorities' protection.

All manner of dark and filthy dealings were hidden behind the scenes.

But Lu Ming's words revealed one piece of information.

The authorities did not intend to step forward in the disputes between Inner City families, allowing them to develop as they pleased.

Was it because they lacked the strength, or simply because they did not want to interfere?

Thinking of this, Zhou Muyun gained a new idea about helping the Leng Household hold the medicinal herb shop.

That was, so long as no one came to provoke him, he would absolutely not take the initiative to attack.

Seeking victory through stability was best.

The others nodded, indicating that they understood.

Only then did Lu Ming's expression return to normal. He took the lead and began patrolling the streets.

But inwardly, he was thinking, Don't let me be so damned unlucky that trouble breaks out while I'm on night duty.

Night was when things were easiest to do. That had never been empty talk.

East Market was not actually small, but the Drunken Red Pavilion was its center.

It was also the largest building in East Market. Generally speaking, the key patrol area was the surrounding vicinity.

After Zhou Muyun's group finished patrolling the edge of East Market, they arrived at the Drunken Red Pavilion.

There, they also encountered the other three street patrol squads.

Four men to a squad, four squads in total—this was East Market's standard deployment.

That was because East Market was relatively peaceful. In the northwest and western markets, there were often six men to a squad and six squads, though the patrol time was changed to four hours.

The authorities paid little and wasted people's time. That was the core reason martial arts hall disciples were unwilling to take such posts.

For someone like Zhou Muyun now, eight hundred coins were hardly worth mentioning. He was here more to gather information.

The authorities' attitude could reveal many things.

After the squads exchanged greetings, they tacitly moved to the four directions around the Drunken Red Pavilion, standing in place and observing the situation inside.

The Drunken Red Pavilion was as bustling as ever, with people coming and going amid the chatter of swallows and warblers.

Some people got drunk and were thrown out. Some wrapped their arms around courtesans with smiles all over their faces. Others even held one on each side, enjoying themselves to the fullest.

As a transmigrator who had also served as a constable for several months, Zhou Muyun had long grown accustomed to the scene before him.

He watched the passing crowd without a ripple on his face.

Time passed, and soon it was almost time for the shift change.

Lu Ming stared fixedly at the Drunken Red Pavilion and muttered under his breath, "Fifteen more minutes. Once that passes, whatever goes wrong has nothing to do with me."

Zhou Muyun knew that Lu Ming had once been full of passionate zeal in his youth. But after the years and reality had ground down his edges and corners—

He had now become slick. If he could hide behind others, he would never step forward. Every day, all he wanted was a wife, children, and a warm bed.

Of course, Zhou Muyun's thoughts were much the same. So long as he could protect his mother and younger sister, that was enough.

Whether fate was playing tricks or Heaven simply refused to grant their wishes—

The next moment, screams erupted from within the Drunken Red Pavilion. Immediately afterward, countless men and women rushed out in panic, terror written across their faces.

Someone even shouted at the top of his lungs, "Someone's making a move in the Drunken Red Pavilion! Murder!"