Night Raid on the Mo Estate

Chapter 108: Night Raid on the Mo Estate

The backyard of the Mo Estate was a garden of no small size, filled with many rare plants. Though the darkness of the night made them difficult to see clearly, their rich fragrance still penetrated straight to the heart and lungs, causing Han Li to involuntarily take a deep breath.

“Eh?” Han Li let out a soft exclamation. Though the fragrance was thick and overwhelming, he was still able to pick out the familiar scent of medicinal herbs amidst it.

“Someone is growing medicinal herbs here.” Han Li chuckled lightly. This all-too-familiar scent stirred a great curiosity in him about the gardener. It seemed that someone in the Mo Estate had inherited Doctor Mo’s medical arts.

Not daring to delay any further, Han Li followed the garden path and crept slowly towards the area where lights could still be seen.

Along the way, he discovered several hidden sentry posts, expertly camouflaged. Had his perception not been exceptionally sharp, he truly would have found it difficult to notice them. It seemed the security of the Mo Estate was extremely tight.

But since he had seen through them, bypassing these sentry posts was an easy task for him.

Han Li came to a stop in front of a two-story building.

He had chosen this location only because he had noticed its security was far stricter than elsewhere. At least twenty or thirty people were guarding the immediate vicinity.

Seeing that the lights on the second floor of the small building were still brightly lit, Han Li knew that an important figure of the Mo Estate was still awake inside. This was perfectly suited for him to investigate.

Thus, taking advantage of the night, his form flickered like lightning. In a single blur, he was swiftly at the base of the building. Then, with a push of his feet, he nimbly flipped up to the second floor. The entire process was completed in an instant. None of the visible or hidden sentries surrounding the area were even slightly aware of Han Li’s intrusion.

Han Li pressed himself close to the wall of the second-story room, letting his entire form sink into the shadows. Then, he pricked up his ears and listened carefully to the situation inside.

Relying on his superhuman hearing, Han Li could hear a woman’s voice speaking within. It seemed he was not the only one in this room.

“The secret branch of Changping Town has delivered seven thousand three hundred taels of silver.”

“The secret branch of Luogu Town has delivered five thousand eight hundred taels of silver.”

“The secret branch of Lanyue Town has delivered ten thousand five hundred taels of silver.”

“The secret branch of Wuling Town…”

…

“These are the silver deliveries from the secret branches last month. It’s basically a quarter less than what was delivered this time in previous years.”

A pleasant female voice entered Han Li’s ears. The voice was clear and full of energy, unmistakably that of a young girl. However, her final sentence carried a strong note of dissatisfaction.

“Mother, the leaders of these secret branches are getting bolder and bolder! The amount of silver they deliver decreases every month.” The girl said angrily.

“I understand. I’ll keep it in mind.” Another, lower and more resonant female voice sounded.

“Could it be one of the Mo Family’s Three Beauties?” Han Li’s spirits lifted. He felt his luck was good. The other person in the room seemed to be one of Doctor Mo’s wives.

“You always say you’ll keep it in mind. Can’t you think of some way to straighten them out? If this continues, sooner or later, these secret branches won’t take our headquarters seriously anymore!” The young girl complained.

“I don’t have any good methods right now. You have to understand, the power of the secret branches has always been solely managed by your Fifth Aunt. No one else in the Mo Estate can get a hand in!” The woman replied helplessly.

These words caused the room to fall silent for a good while.

After a long time, the young girl’s unwilling voice sounded again. “Mother, are you really just going to let Fifth Aunt keep control of the secret branches’ power forever? Think about it! In the last few years, since Uncle Ma and the others split off, combined with the pressure from other forces, the secret branches have become our ‘Startled Flood Dragon Society’s’ greatest pillar of support. Since you are the Society’s acting leader, shouldn’t you be in control of this greatest force, Mother?”

“That’s easy enough to say. But back then, when your father left, he entrusted the secret branches specifically to your Fifth Aunt. I truly have no excuse to interfere. Besides, your Fifth Aunt now hands over most of the secret branches’ profits to the headquarters every month. I’m even more embarrassed to ask about it.” The woman said indifferently.

“But our Startled Flood Dragon Society is very weak as it is. If we don’t consolidate our strength, how can we have any hope of making a comeback? Father really is something! Since he handed the Society’s affairs over to you to manage, why did he have to specifically hand the secret branches over to Fifth Aunt?” The young girl’s voice was full of resentment. She was clearly very dissatisfied with the ‘father’ she was speaking of.

“Nonsense! Your father had his own profound reasons for doing this. How is it your place, as a child, to make such wild comments!” The woman sternly scolded the girl.

“Alright, fine. I admit I was wrong, is that good enough? It seems you’re still hopelessly devoted to Father.” The girl seemed accustomed to this, appearing unconcerned, and instead began to tease her mother.

“You child…” The woman doted on the girl immensely. She could only smile bitterly and fall silent.

Han Li was now certain that the woman in the room was Yan Shi, the one he was looking for, and the girl was her daughter with Doctor Mo, Mo Caihuan. It seemed he was truly lucky to have found the right place so quickly.

Han Li touched the letter and token Doctor Mo had personally written, tucked securely against his body, and prepared to reveal himself and meet these two.

“Mother, that impostor really is detestable! He cornered me in the back garden today and was fawning all over me, desperately trying to show off his literary talent. He puts on airs as if he’s a master of both letters and martial arts. It’s simply disgusting!” The girl suddenly blurted out in a spoiled tone, something that shocked Han Li, causing the foot he had just taken to shrink back again.

“Be more polite to that surnamed Wu. He is, after all, nominally your future brother-in-law. Don’t let him see through our act!” Yan Shi became serious upon hearing this, speaking with some severity.

“Phew! Spending every day being pestered by that man and having to pretend to be infatuated with him… that must be pure torture for Eldest Sister! If it were me, I would have just cut him down with a single strike of my sword long ago.” The girl said with a sigh.

“There’s no other way. Even though we know this surnamed Wu is a fake and have already investigated his background, to buy ourselves a bit more time, we have no choice but to sacrifice your elder sister’s reputation and put him off with false pretenses. After all, the enemy’s momentum is too great. If they knew they couldn’t take us by guile, they would probably launch a full-scale assault immediately. We would have no chance of victory at all.” Yan Shi’s voice was full of weariness, her words revealing an air of utter exhaustion and mental strain.