After marrying the fierce god, her handsome young husband was pampered to the extreme.

"Throw these corpses into the Cave of Ten Thousand Poisons."

"Yes."

Yin Cheng casually plucked a few leaves to wipe the knife, cleaned up the traces at the scene, and then left.

Meanwhile, Yuanbao was taken back to the mountain god temple by the guards, and he was furious.

They say that like father, like son, they fight side by side, but his father, that old bastard, simply had him taken away.

Does he even know who will inherit his mantle in the future?

I'm so angry!

The guard released the pressure points on Yuanbao's body, and he walked dejectedly to his companion's side, letting out a heavy sigh.

Xiao Zhai silently handed him a bowl of braised pig's head meat. "Want some?"

"I still want to eat," Yuanbao said. "Just one bite."

The square in front of the mountain god temple was bustling with activity. The four little ones were chatting and eating offerings next to the stone statue in the far corner.

Lin Beizhen asked, "What's going on?"

Yuanbao said, "It's already resolved."

As for whether it was resolving the issue or dealing with the person, Lin Beizhen didn't ask further, simply nodding, "It's good that it's resolved."

Xiao Zhai quietly packed the Eight Treasures Cake into banana leaves, preparing to take it back to her master.

Yuanbao thought to himself that he couldn't be outdone by Xiaozhai, so he walked through the crowd to find Atuna Qianyuan, who was distributing offerings to his clansmen, and shamelessly asked him for more offerings.

The quantity doesn't matter; it's just for good luck.

Seeing this, the other three children followed suit.

Atuna Qianyuan smiled and distributed several different kinds of pastries to the little ones.

After sharing the offerings, the clansmen gradually dispersed.

Zhao Duo then brought Pearl over.

"Pearls," Atuna Qianyuan said, "You've come at the perfect time. Look what I left for you!"

Pearl leaned closer curiously. "What is it?"

"It's the jackpot!" Atuna Qianyuan said mysteriously as she opened the food box.

Pearl looked inside the food box and saw a bowl of mushroom rice. Although it was a little cold, the presentation was extremely beautiful.

The oily glutinous rice is mixed with all kinds of mushrooms, as well as green beans, diced cured meat, ham and other ingredients, making it very savory.

Mushroom rice is the highlight of the year, and the mushrooms used are picked before dawn on the day of the mountain god worship ceremony.

From picking to cooking, it takes no more than two hours. That's the freshness that makes it so delicious, much better than any meat or vegetable dish.

"It smells so good," Pearl said.

"Take it back and eat it with your family," Atuna Qianyuan chuckled. "It'll be a good late-night snack; just steam it for fifteen minutes."

Pearl nodded obediently, "Mmm!"

Atuna Qianyuan looked at the pearl with increasing satisfaction, her eyes filled with loving gaze.

So when Pearl went home, she was carrying a food box of mushroom rice.

When he got home, he found that his younger brother had brought back offerings, Xiao Zhai had also brought back offerings, and his uncle had also brought back offerings.

Yin Cheng arrived empty-handed.

Yuanbao's expression was complicated. "Dad, don't you ever bring anything back when you go out?"

Yin Cheng went to deal with those foreigners that night and didn't go to the Mountain God Temple at all, so he didn't know that the Mountain God Temple had a ritual of distributing offerings.

"What is this?" Yin Cheng asked.

Lin Nian replied, "The offerings from the mountain god's temple will bring you the protection of the mountain god after you eat them."

Yin Cheng gazed at the dazzling array of food on the table, remained silent for a moment, and then asked, "Can the mountain god of Ningzhou protect the people of Mingzhou?"

Yuanbao popped a candied fruit into his mouth. "Who cares? They're all gods anyway, what's the big deal about praying to them? If he gets transferred to Mingzhou later, we'll still be on the same side."

Yin Cheng: "..."

Lin Nian pulled the man along, "Yuanbao is right, isn't praying to gods and Buddhas just for peace of mind?"

Yin Cheng was pulled down to sit by his wife.

Lin Nian asked, "I haven't seen you all afternoon, A-Cheng, where have you been?"

"Oh, so Prince Cheng has suddenly remembered that there's still someone like me in the world?" Yin Cheng said sourly.

Lin Nian laughed and playfully hit him, "What nonsense are you talking about in front of the child?"

When his wife hits him, it's like she's being affectionate; she doesn't have any strength at all, it's as weak as if she's just brushing dust off him.

Lin Nian stuffed a piece of Eight Treasures Cake into his mouth, muttering, "Gods bless, Gods bless."

Yin Cheng swallowed it willingly.

Pearl brought over the warmed mushroom rice, "It smells so good, Yuanbao, get the bowl."

Yuanbao, while setting out the bowls, protested, "Brother, why do you have this food! I didn't get any!"

Pearl grinned and said, "I won't tell you~"

Yin Cheng stood to the side, sulking with his wife in his arms. What else could it be but that blond guy?

He muttered to his wife, "Our Pearl has been pampered since she was little, how could she be fooled by a bowl of mushroom rice!"

Lin Nian was both amused and exasperated. "Eat up, aren't you hungry after running around outside all day?"

"It's kind of you that Prince Cheng still remembers me."

"Are you never going to stop?! If you're not going to eat, go outside and hoe the fields yourself."

Pearl and Yuanbao watched their two fathers bickering and chuckled to themselves.

-----------------

The Atuna clan has a long history, and there was internal strife several hundred years ago.

At that time, a branch of the family, dissatisfied with the growing power of the main family, harbored rebellious intentions. However, their descendants betrayed them and informed the main family.

Because of his meritorious act of reporting the crime, this descendant was given a separate branch, named Atu.

After a century of development, it has grown many times larger.

If there were a ranking of the ethnic minorities in the southwest, then the Atu family would be ranked second.

Therefore, there were unwritten rules, such as if the young master of Atuna married a boy from the Atuna family, it meant that he had the support of the Atuna family.

Over the past few decades, the two families have indeed had many entanglements.

Going back several hundred years, the two families were one family. The difference between their given names and surnames was only one character, and they were completely inseparable.

Now, whether it's kinship or interests, it's hard to untangle the mess in a short time.

However, by the time of Qian Yuan's generation, they already had a rebellious streak.

Qian Yuan married Zhao Lang, a Han Chinese, and became the husband of the commander of the Southwest Army.

When it came to their son Zhao Duo, they naturally didn't follow any unwritten rules either.

Because Zhao Duo was so talented, he became the strongest Gu Master in history at a young age. Even though he rarely appeared in public, there were many rumors about him among the younger generation.

There are many women in his tribe who want to marry him, but no one has dared to openly declare himself as Atuya's fiancé.

This matter hadn't reached Zhao Duo's ears before, so it was left unresolved.

Now that he knows, he naturally wants to go to Atu's house to explain things clearly.

However, before he could find the clan elders to witness the event, Atuyan, the current head of the Atu family, came to his door with the clan elders.

It wasn't just the clan elders who came; there was a huge, throng of people.

There are dozens of ethnic groups of varying sizes in the southwest, all of whom depend on the Atuna family for survival, thus the clan elders hold extremely high status.

Qian Yuan was still wondering if Atuya was trying to force her into marriage, but she didn't expect Atuyan to be there to see someone.

"What did you say? Atuya is missing?" Qian Yuan exclaimed in surprise. "I saw him yesterday during the mountain god worship ceremony, but how could he have disappeared overnight?"

Atuyan said, "My son did not return home last night, and the slaves who were protecting him have also disappeared. I beg the head of the household to help me find my son."