Da Xuan Martial Saint

"The son-in-law is here."

When Chen Mu arrived at Xu Hongyu's courtyard, a maid spotted him, hurriedly paid her respects towards Chen Mu, then some went inside to report while others bowed to Chen Mu and said, "Son-in-law, the young mistress is not here right now."

"It's all right."

Chen Mu spoke calmly.

If Xu Hongyu was not in the courtyard, then she was certainly deep within the Yu Family's territory, engaging in understanding the Kan Water Diagram, and since the maids had just gone inside to report, it meant Hongyu should be around.

Sure enough, soon a figure dressed in green attire, a maid, came out from inside—it was indeed Hongyu. Chen Mu was quite unaccustomed to seeing Hongyu dressed properly in the common maid's attire; she usually wore inconspicuous gray robes or clothes slightly less elegant than those of Xu Hongyu.

Upon seeing Chen Mu, Hongyu led him to a secluded spot and whispered, "I heard something happened in your courtyard last night?"

The noise from Chen Mu's courtyard the previous night, although suppressed by him, could not escape the abundance of servants and out-going patrol, which led to discussions by day. Hongyu, being well-versed in various affairs at the Yu Family, soon came to know of it.

However, since Chen Mu made no moves, there must have been a reason behind his inaction, so she did not initiate contact until Chen Mu visited, speculating that he might want to discuss the incident.

"It was nothing serious."

Chen Mu shook his head, still he discussed the matter of the Blood Hidden Pavilion with Hongyu. On one hand, Hongyu was to him as close as Chen Yue, no longer strangers; on the other hand, Hongyu might know even more about the Blood Hidden Pavilion and the He Family than he did.

Hongyu was shocked upon hearing it, but quickly suppressed her reaction.

"It seems the missy kept your matters very confidential, not even telling the family head. That was the right thing to do."

Before the news of the Four Great Sects settling in Yu County spread, Hongyu believed that whether to keep the news quiet or to only inform the high-ranking members of the Yu Family was appropriate for Chen Mu. But considering the developments that followed until today, it could only be said that Xu Hongyu chose the most prudent method for Chen Mu.

Chen Mu, now calm, said, "You probably know more about the Blood Hidden Pavilion than I do. What price do you think they'd quote for my public capabilities?"

Hongyu observed Chen Mu, seeing his current calm and relaxed demeanor, showing no sign of the tension one might expect from having been targeted by the Blood Hidden Pavilion just the night before, causing ripples in her beautiful eyes.

With just his composure, no one in his generation in Yu City could compare.

"Perhaps around seven hundred thousand taels?"

Hongyu thought and said, "The Blood Hidden Pavilion values leaving no trace and killing silently. Your strength is one aspect, but the key lies in your status as a Demon-Slaying White-Clothed Guard and your early engagement to the young mistress. Moreover, you have been staying constantly at the Yu Family's residence lately."

Chen Mu stroked his chin.

Hongyu's evaluation was higher than his own estimate, which had been around five to six hundred thousand taels. Indeed, he was somewhat tempted by this amount of silver, especially since his Bone Tempering cultivation was like spending money like water. Had he not saved a lot of silver before, he might have had to stoop to borrowing from Xu Hongyu, which would have been rather unseemly.

Sadly, the silver was not readily accessible to him; if he was short on silver later on, he would just 'borrow' some from the He Family.

"Then what price do you think the He Family would offer if the Blood Hidden Pavilion makes another attempt, giving my strength revealed last night?"

Chen Mu continued to inquire after some thought.

Hongyu still looked at Chen Mu with eyes shimmering with admiration.

In just under three months, he had formally entered the Bone Tempering stage. Although she knew it wouldn't be difficult for Chen Mu to reach Bone Tempering, such progress still filled her with admiration, especially since Chen Mu also mastered two Artistic Conceptions.

"Considering your strength and all your background identities, it's likely to be over ten million taels, perhaps even more,"

Hongyu thought for a moment and said softly.

Key to this was that Chen Mu was not alone; besides being a Demon-Slaying White-Clothed Guard affiliated with the Seven Profound Sect, the more strength and talent he displayed, the exponential increase in the cost to kill him.

Considering Chen Mu's strength alone, ensuring his silent demise would probably require the involvement of someone from the Five Viscera Realm, which itself signified a completely different price range, possibly over a million taels.

Moreover, Chen Mu was also a son-in-law highly valued by the Yu Family. After surviving an assassination attempt, the Blood Hidden Pavilion would likely surmise that he might move deeper into the Yu Family's residence to stay with a Five Viscera Realm ancestor of the Yu family.

This would significantly increase the difficulty of a silent assassination!

Add to that potential interference from the Seven Profound Sect, making the Blood Hidden Pavilion's task of assassinating Chen Mu start at likely over ten million taels.

"Hmm, as I suspected, the He Family probably can't afford this money,"

Chen Mu said lightly.

The four great families of Yu County naturally possess more than ten million taels, but the problem is that in today's chaotic times, silver left untouched is as good as scrap metal. Only by spending it to cultivate talent or enforcers does it truly become effective.

The amount of silver the He Family has in reserve couldn't possibly be much; after all, should an emergency arise, silver is utterly useless, but cultivating a group of elite Blade Masters in the Tendon Changing Realm would be a very effective force.

"Most likely not, I've heard the young mistress mention that the Yu Family typically has a few million taels in circulation... But you'd better go spend some time cultivating at the 'Ancient Courtyard'."

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