webnovelfull Chapter 156 Mooching and Snooping
Chapter 156 Mooching and Snooping
I knew Hua Xiang was annoyed, so I told him not to be; I knew Hua Xiang was anxious, so I told him not to be.
A pity he listens to no one.
The second-in-command of the cult dragged me out at dawn, marched me past several courtyards like some newly appointed magistrate inspecting his fief, and finally delivered me—thunder-browed—before a grand lacquer-red hall.
“Save your breath.”
He flicked his sleeve, his tone already scraped clean of patience. “The Cult Master assigned you to assist me, so assist you shall. You will handle the cleaning of this hall. Before sunset, the place must be swept, tables set, chairs arranged, talismans hung, silks laid, incense lit—”
I cut him off. “This grand? Don’t tell me this is where little Lian—pardon, the Cult Master—will hold his enthronement ceremony?”
Hua Xiang spun around, his phoenix eyes nearly sparking. “Call him Cult Master! Mind your tongue!”
He snorted. “This is merely the venue for the banquet after the enthronement. Do your job and stop prying. These men will help you clean. Learn something from them, and don't idle.”
He flapped his sleeves with great ceremony. “I must prepare the next site. Handle things yourself.”
Watching him leave, I clicked my tongue inwardly.
Just a banquet hall—yet large enough to race horses in. Three people are needed just to carry the carpet around.
Excessive.
But cleaning duty is the kind of task that reliably triggers bizarre “plot nodes.”
I hefted the broom, pretended to be brimming with devotion, and thought: if sweeping here turns up a treasure chest, a clue, or a secret compartment, my life’s worth would be justified.
Halfway through, I was sweating, covered in dust, and—nothing.
Not a single “plot trigger.”
The cult members were all working in earnest, so I pressed my stomach and sighed dramatically. “Ah—pardon me, my belly troubles me. I must step out.”
They made faces and let me through. I smirked and slipped away.
Outside, I brushed the dust from my robe and strolled about as if supervising.
A few men bowed when I passed. I nodded with righteous dignity. Yes—this was the bearing of a properly ranked helper.
After circling several times and not finding Hua Xiang, I asked around.
People either hemmed and hawed or advised me with polite smiles, “Don’t provoke Guardian Hua Xiang. He is the Cult Master’s most trusted aide.”
I raised a brow. “Is he interesting?”
They exchanged looks.
A small-eyed cultist finally murmured, “Guardian Hua Xiang grew up with the Cult Master. The two are like brothers. But Hua Xiang has a temper, and the Cult Master indulges him. A few days ago, they argued about task assignments—Hua Xiang smashed two lamps in anger—”
Another cut him off quickly. “Enough gossip. Take care what reaches Lord Hua Xiang’s ears.”
I answered with an “oh,” let the topic drift, but muttered under my breath, “Like brothers, hm… rather too close for brothers.”
Even I froze at my own words and cleared my throat fast.
Still no sign of Hua Xiang after several more rounds.
I kicked a floor tile and grumbled: he makes me work while he disappears. Excellent delegation.
Just then, I noticed a half-open door at the end of a corridor. A faint, refined fragrance drifted out.
I leaned in.
A small, elegantly arranged room.
I had just pushed the door when a maid rushed in and blocked me. “Young sir, you must not enter. This is the Cult Master’s chamber.”
I blinked. “The Cult Master? I thought he lived in the hut by the locust tree?”
She bowed. “Formerly, yes. This was the old residence. After the previous Cult Master passed, the young master moved to the hut—but after it was burned several days ago, he returned temporarily.”
Something stirred in my chest.
Lian’s room.
If I wanted clues, this was a treasure trove.
I put on my most earnest expression. “The Cult Master instructed me to observe and learn. He would not avoid my presence. I shall simply take a look—touch nothing.”
The maid hesitated.
I slipped past her.
The room was simple, even austere.
A wooden bed, a desk, a pot of bamboo—nothing more.
Yet here and there lingered a childish softness.
Several small wooden animals hung from the canopy—crooked little creatures, cat-like, rabbit-like, missing tails.
I picked one up and couldn’t help laughing. “This craftsmanship… must’ve been made at a very young age.”
Imagining the cold, sharp-tongued Lian carving these lopsided things was genuinely amusing.
I moved forward.
A few scrolls lay spread on the desk.
After checking the door, I sat down and opened one.
The first page was routine cult affairs, orderly and neat.
The second page read:
“Father bade me attend to the ‘winds’ in the cult. No wind without source, yet some winds arise from flat earth. I do not understand, so I observe. Morning: southeast wind, no rain. Noon: west wind, no rain. Night: northwest wind, mild, no hindrance.”
I snorted.
Little Lian really obeyed orders—told to “watch the winds,” he literally recorded wind directions.
Clearly, he had missed his father’s metaphor about political currents.
I stroked my chin, remembering the soldiers who raided this place.
If a “wind” was truly coming from the court, it was more than weather—it was political upheaval.
If the rumors were true, and the Blood Lotus Cult held secrets tied to the old royal clan…
Then this “wind” was anything but ordinary.
I flipped to the next page.
It read:
“Today I played Hua Xiang at chess and won. Though Hua Xiang feigned calm, his brows held much resentment, as though a breath lodged in his chest. The next day we played again. I secretly yielded one move, and Hua Xiang thus brightened as though he had won a great victory.”
I nearly burst out laughing.
Hua Xiang, who strutted like a peacock daily, bore grudges over a chess match.
And Lian pampered him thoroughly.
For a “second-in-command,” the man was rather high-strung.
I closed the booklet and shook my head.
If he ever served in court as an official, he’d cough blood three times a day.
While I was still laughing, footsteps approached.
Damn.
I shoved the scrolls back, dropped to the floor, and rolled under the desk.
The door opened.
Hua Xiang entered.
I held my breath.
He stood still a moment, scowling, muttering, “Strange. I heard that rascal wandering here. Where’d he go?… Hmph. Probably slacking again.”
He approached the desk, brushed his sleeve over the scrolls, then sighed.
“Cult Master, Cult Master… the hounds of the court are at the gates, and you still want to seclude yourself.”
My heart tightened.
Hua Xiang lowered his voice. “They’re said to be searching for the old dynasty’s ‘Dragonbone Order’… If it truly lies within our cult, we’re in deep trouble.”
Dragonbone Order?
I had never heard Lian mention it, but anything with “dragonbone” was undoubtedly tied to the royal house.
Hua Xiang fell silent, then murmured, “If the Cult Master finds out, he’ll choose to protect the person rather than the Order… In that case, I’ll need my own plan.”
So the loyal second-in-command had thoughts of his own.
If he had never gone missing that day… what would he have done?
Under the desk, I sighed inwardly.
Lian, Lian… if we don’t correct the plot soon, the ‘favorite’ standing beside you might cause a disaster big enough to sink the cult.
Hua Xiang lingered a moment, then pulled a sealed letter from his sleeve.
I saw him unfold the letter, his expression shifting slightly as he muttered under his breath, “Monthly Crimson… that traitor. So he was merely poisoned, not dead.”
Monthly Crimson?
I nearly bit through my own tongue.