What a lucky world!

Chapter 17 People who meet will always meet again

After Zhang Mu finished eating and left the restaurant, Li Er followed him from a distance.

He has already determined that Zhang Mu is the target of the fox demon. As long as he kills him, he can get the antidote.

However, there were so many people around and he, who was at the second level of Tongmai Realm, didn't dare to take action in the street alone, so he could only follow for the time being.

It wasn't until he saw Zhang Mu walk into Wuren Lane that Li Er breathed a sigh of relief.

Just know to go home.

Now is not the time to take action. In two hours, when it is dark and windy, that kid will die.

……

Zhang Mu had no idea that he had been targeted, and he was full of worries along the way.

Young people only care about money!
He calculated that he originally had ten taels of silver, and after checking the account books he got another fifty taels. In addition, he had opened up another acupoint, so he could receive a reward of another ten taels of silver tomorrow, which would be seventy taels.

For ordinary people, seventy taels is already a huge sum of money.

But for Zhang Mu, it was far from enough.

The small Yijing pills weighing twenty taels each from Xuan Ji are the key to ensuring that he can continue to make rapid breakthroughs. At present, basically one pill is needed to open two or three acupoints, so it is indispensable.

Qi and blood diet is also indispensable.

He has now become accustomed to the wild game that costs one or two taels of silver every day at Yunlai Restaurant.

Of course, the reason why Zhang Mu eats so frequently is because of his special circumstances.

The first is to resist the side effects of the demonic energy entering the body and eroding the upgrade; the second is that the breakthrough is too fast and requires blood and qi replenishment; the third is because it is because the stage of strengthening the muscles and bones has been missed, and more blood and qi diet should be consumed to improve the physical condition.

Although the money in hand is enough to support for a while, if one does not plan for the future, he will have immediate worries.

Zhang Mu prefers to prepare for a rainy day.

Of his current silver, the fifty taels of audit fee was like a windfall, and it wasn't stable. Not to mention whether Mr. Wu would invite him the next time Qianyuan Wuzhai audited the accounts, the frequency of the audits was at least once a quarter, so he couldn't rely on it.

The reward given by Madam Zhuang was also clearly stated, and the reward period was only one month.

There are still more than ten days left until the end. If he breaks through the acupoints after that, he will not get the reward.

At that time, if you want a stable income, the only way is to become a regular escort after being promoted and receive a monthly salary of ten taels.

Ten taels of silver a month is enough for a normal person, but it is still not enough for Zhang Mu who wants to make progress.

After all, there was a sixth-grade Qi Condensation fox demon that was like a sword hanging over his heart.

The monthly salary of an escort is thirty taels, but the escort must be at the fourth level of Tongmai realm or above, so he should not consider it in the short term.

I must think of new ways to make money.

Zhang Mu walked while thinking and turned into Wuren Lane.

As soon as he entered Wuren Lane, Zhang Mu heard shrill cries. Many people in the lane were standing there watching the excitement, and some people had expressions of anger on their faces.

Zhang Mu felt the crying sounded familiar, so he quickened his pace. Once he squeezed through the crowd, he knew where the crying came from.

It was the compound where he lived.

Zhang Mu pushed through the crowd at the door and entered the courtyard, only to find it in a state of disarray. Several yamen runners in official uniform were tying up a girl, about fourteen or fifteen, with ropes. Others were surrounding her, trying to stop the runners from taking her away. A middle-aged woman clung to the girl, wailing uncontrollably.

Zhang Mu frowned slightly, he knew all these people.

The tied-up little girl was the daughter of the east house in the compound. The man in this family was called Ma Dali, a porter for a carriage and horse business, and the woman was called Aunt Ma. She usually did laundry for others to supplement the family income. She loved to gossip about other people's affairs. She had a sharp tongue but a kind heart. When the original owner's mother had just passed away, this family helped the original owner a lot and helped him get through that period.

The couple had only one daughter, Guilian. Although their life was hard, they raised her like a treasure.

But what happened today?
After standing in the crowd for a while, Zhang Mu understood the whole story from the chatter of people around him.

It turned out to be related to the previously imposed demon-killing tax.

These officials are not constables, but tax collectors from the government office. They have come today to collect the tax for exorcising demons.

According to the county government, upper-class households were charged five taels of tax, middle-class households were charged two taels of tax, and lower-class households were charged five hundred wen of tax.

The imperial court stipulated that households with a wealth of 500 taels or more were considered upper-class, those with a wealth of 100 taels or more were considered middle-class, and the rest were considered lower-class. By this standard, the people living in Wuren Lane were essentially lower-class households.

But the leader of the tax collectors seemed to have taken a fancy to Guilian and started to make advances on her. Ma Dali saw this and retorted.

The tax collector then claimed that the candlesticks used by Ma Dali were treasures from the previous imperial court, the kind used exclusively by the emperor, and were worth a thousand taels of silver. Therefore, Ma Dali's family was considered a high-class household and had to pay a tax of five taels of silver. If Ma Dali couldn't pay, he would take Guilian away to pay the debt.

"Da Li is so confused! The tax collector leading the team is a relative of Mr. Song, the head of the household department. How can he be so powerful as to be stronger than the leader..."

"How dare you say a candlestick is worth a thousand taels? Don't you have any laws?" "You're right, there are no laws. According to the regulations, whether the candlestick is worth a thousand taels is just a matter of the government's decision. If the government says it's worth it, then it's worth it. But no one will spend money to buy it from you!"

"Alas, that bastard official Zhou Paopi will be leaving his post soon. He definitely won't offend the Song family over this matter. Poor Guilian..."

"This world...ah..."

The people around were talking about it. It wasn't that they were cold-blooded, but they really couldn't afford to get involved in such a matter. What if they got into trouble, what would happen to their wives and children?
"Damn it, I'm going to fight you!" Seeing that the tax collectors didn't care about the crowd and were about to take his daughter away, Ma Dali, who was standing in front of them, suddenly shouted, directly knocked away the tax collector in front, drew his sword from the other's waist, and slashed at the leading tax collector, causing everyone to exclaim in unison.

The tax collector was naturally a warrior. He didn't even draw his sword. He just turned his body slightly to avoid Ma Dali's chop, and then punched Ma Dali hard in the abdomen. Ma Dali immediately spat out a mouthful of blood, hugged his stomach, took a few steps back, and knelt on the ground.

"Ah! Boss!" Aunt Ma wailed when she saw this and opened her hands to grab the tax collector. The tax collector just turned around and waved his hand casually, slapping Aunt Ma in the face. Aunt Ma spat out a few teeth from her mouth and fell directly to the ground, unconscious.

"Dad! Mom!" Seeing this, Guilian struggled desperately, but was held tightly by the tax collector beside her. She could not move and could only cry like a fountain.

"You don't know what's good for you." The tax collector spat and looked at Guilian again. "If you just obey me, I won't pursue the matter of your parents attacking the court officials."

"go!"

At this moment, the seriously injured Ma Dali suddenly rushed out and hugged the tax collector's thigh tightly, preventing him from leaving.

The tax collector frowned, and immediately another tax collector came forward and started punching and kicking Ma Dali.

"Wait!" At this moment, Zhang Mu stood out from the crowd.

Although Zhang Mu kept telling himself not to meddle in other people's business, he still showed up in the end.

It's not that Zhang Mu is too kind-hearted. Firstly, influenced by the original owner's memory, he still has feelings for Ma Dali's family; secondly, Zhang Mu relies on the reputation of Yuanwei Escort Agency and is not afraid of the tax; finally, Zhang Mu thinks that since money can solve the problem, why cause a tragedy.

Zhang Mu walked up to the tax collector, bowed, and said, "I'm Zhang Mu from Yuanwei Escort Agency. Please stop. I'm paying the tax for Ma Dali's family."

"Yuanwei Escort Agency?" The tax collector's face showed a fearful expression. He looked at Zhang Mu for a moment, then held out his hand, "Five taels of silver for a high-class customer."

Zhang Mu nodded, pulled out a silver bag from his sleeve, took out five taels of silver, weighed it, and handed it to the tax collector, saying, "Please keep it."

Although it hurts, it can be considered as repaying the original owner's kindness.

The tax collector didn't take the money. He snorted coldly and said, "Do you really want to take care of this matter?"

Zhang Mu feigned surprise and said, "Taxes are something everyone has to pay. Uncle Ma doesn't have the money to pay, so that's out of the question. I'll pay for him, and the court won't lose anything. Is that not okay?"

"Sure! Sure!" The tax collector took the silver and asked, "What do you do at the escort agency?"

"I'm ashamed of Madam Zhuang's appreciation for me. I'm still just a bodyguard," Zhang Mu said calmly. However, the tax collector's eyes narrowed slightly when he heard Madam Zhuang's name, then he smiled at Zhang Mu and turned back to signal the tax collector to release Guilian. As soon as Guilian was released, she immediately rushed to her mother, then to her father, bursting into tears. It was heartbreaking.

"Let's go to the next house." The tax collector shouted and was about to lead his people away when suddenly the tax collector beside him said, "Boss, there is another house here."

As he spoke, the tax collector pointed to the room where Zhang Mu lived, then took out a yellow book from his pocket, flipped through it, and said, "The registrant is Zhang Mu, an accountant at Yuanwei Escort Agency, a low-class household."

Zhang Mu: (｀ー)
Damn, I forgot I haven’t paid taxes yet!
"Accountant?" The tax collector immediately looked at Zhang Mu with amusement.

Zhang Mu's expression remained unchanged as he said, "That was a thing of the past."

"You don't have the final say." A cold glint flashed in the tax collector's eyes. "How could a mere accountant have so much money? Where did it come from?"

Without waiting for Zhang Mu to explain, the tax collector continued, "I suspect there's something fishy about the origin of your money. Come with us to the government office. Let's surround it!"

As soon as the tax collector finished speaking, the other tax collectors immediately stepped forward and surrounded Zhang Mu.

Zhang Mu clearly felt that although these tax collectors had not yet reached the rank, they had all opened up four or five acupoints. Moreover, there was also the tax collector who had already reached the rank. So, wisely, they chose to give up resistance.

If a real fight were to break out, it's unknown whether he could escape, but the charge of attacking a court official would be confirmed.

A wise man never suffers a loss in front of him. Anyway, he is not afraid of them going to the escort agency to investigate.

"Brother Mu..." Seeing that Zhang Mu was also arrested, Gui Lian became anxious again.

"Sister Guilian, don't worry." Zhang Mu said, "Please go to Yuanwei Escort Agency and find Instructor Wang or Mr. Wu, the accountant, and tell them about my situation."

The tax collector did not stop Zhang Mu from asking for help. After all, he didn't know Zhang Mu's background, so he didn't act too forcefully.

Looking back at the tearful Ma Guilian, the tax collector waved his hand and led the other tax collectors, escorting Zhang Mu out of the compound...

……

Half an hour later, Zhang Mu was taken to the county jail.

There was no way out. It was already nightfall, and both the escort agency and the county government were closed. If he wanted to prove his innocence, the earliest he could do so would be tomorrow.

Zhang Mu had just been locked up in the cell, and before he could adapt to the atmosphere of the cell, a hearty laugh rang in his ears.

"Hahahaha, Brother Mu, we'll meet again somewhere in life..."

(End of this chapter)