I was forced to cultivate immortality when I just wanted to lie down

Chapter 148 Father's Enemy

Thirty years ago, outside the west gate of the capital, Guangning Temple.

Not far from the front of the temple, there is a street called Xishou Street. There is a family living near the street with the surname Jin.

There are three people in this family. The head of the family, Jin Rengui, is a carpenter. He usually makes tables, chairs, benches, doors, windows, cabinets, couches and other things for others.

Jin Rengui's wife was the daughter of Zhang the Butcher, who lived in the city gate and was a noble native of Beijing. Therefore, Zhang the Butcher always looked down on Jin Rengui, his carpenter son-in-law.

The carpenter's wife was a hot-tempered woman, while Jin Rengui was a simple and honest one. After they got married, they had a child. The child's personality was like his mother's, and he was not afraid of people since he was young.

The old men and women who chatter at the street corners, the hooligans who hang around all day shouting and yelling, the hangers-on who go out of the city to seek new things
No matter who it is, he can always strike up a conversation.

But as the saying goes, "Birds of a feather flock together." How can this carpenter's child learn anything good if he hangs out with these people all day?
On this day, Jin Wanshan, the son of Jin the carpenter, celebrated his fourteenth birthday. Zhang the butcher gave him an oil-paper package containing a pound of chicken hearts.

"My daughter, go fry these chicken hearts and give them to Wanshan."

Jin Rengui was puzzled and said, "My father-in-law usually kills pigs and sheep, but rarely chickens. How did he get so many chicken hearts today?"

Butcher Zhang said coldly, "You are a useless, servile person. You don't even show any temper when someone rides on your face and pees and shits on you. I don't want my grandson to end up like you!"

After saying this, Zhang the Butcher turned to look at Jin Wanshan and warned him, "People say chickens are cunning, cunning chickens, which shows that chickens are quite clever and cunning. Your grandfather has no other aspirations, but he hopes that you will not be as cowardly as your father in the future."

"Eat this chicken heart. From now on, you must be smart and clever. Don't be like those people who carry manure at the door and do hard labor. They can't earn a penny in their whole life and they just suffer!"

"Grandpa, I remember it!"

"Remember what? Tell me."

"I'd rather be a cunning and treacherous person than an honest man like my father!"

After hearing what Jin Wanshan said, Butcher Zhang immediately smiled with relief. He stretched out his greasy big hands and rubbed his grandson's head.

"Xiaoshan has been smart since he was young. He will definitely have a great future!"

At this time, Jin Wanshan was fourteen years old. Zhang the Butcher's words gave him great confidence. When he was hanging out with those ruffians in the past, Jin Rengui had preached to him a lot. Now that his grandfather had spoken, he felt like he had obtained an imperial sword, and he would no longer be restricted by his family.

When he was fifteen or sixteen years old, Jin Wanshan was never at home. He would leave home at dawn every day and would not return home until the city gate was about to close. Sometimes he would not even go back at night and could stay outside for two or three days.

Carpenter Jin asked him where he had been fooling around. Jin Wanshan said that he had found a way to make a fortune. As long as he was lucky, he could earn as much in a day as he would in ten years as a carpenter!
Jin Rengui didn't believe it. How could such a good thing happen in this world? If it really happened, how could it happen to their family?
Every time this happened, Jin Wanshan would retort to him: "You are a carpenter. You spend all day shaving wood chips and hammering nails. What do you know about this?

You, don’t bother with me, Grandpa praised me for being smart, how can I suffer any loss?"

On the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, snowflakes began to fall in Luojing City.

From the west gate of the capital, a few thugs from the gambling house drove out in a carriage. When they arrived outside the city gate, a coarse cloth sack was kicked off the carriage.

"Jin Wanshan, I'll give you three days to pay back the one hundred taels of silver you owe me. If you don't pay me back by then, we brothers will tear down your house to pay off the debt and send you to the palace to be a eunuch!"

Jin Wanshan, with a bruised face and nose, crawled out of the sack groaningly, the words of the gambling thugs still echoing in his ears.

It was not easy to be a eunuch these days. In the past, eunuchs only underwent a "half-castration ceremony" and could retain some power as a wish afterwards. Therefore, in the previous dynasty and even earlier, being a eunuch was still a popular profession, and some common people even scrambled to become one.

But Dayong is different.

In the Yong Dynasty, when the Jingshifang performed the castration ceremony on you, they would not leave any thoughts for you. They would definitely remove everything, including the roots and fruits.

This is called castration, also known as complete castration.

The castration technology at that time was still relatively primitive. Before the Yong Dynasty, the survival rate of semi-castrated men was only about 60 to 70 percent.

But for eunuchs in the Yong Dynasty, if one out of two people survived, it was considered a high survival rate. Sometimes, seven or eight people would form a group to serve as eunuchs, but perhaps only one or two would survive to the end.

Jin Wanshan is only fifteen or sixteen years old. He doesn't want to die, and he doesn't want to be a eunuch.

What should I do?

No wonder Zhang the Butcher said that Jin Wanshan was smart since he was a child. He crawled out of the sack, strolled around the city gate a few times, and had an idea in his mind.

On the bulletin board at the city gate, there was an arrest warrant for a notorious bandit, with a reward of three hundred taels of silver!

"Good, good, good! There is always a way out!" Looking at the portrait, Jin Wanshan clapped his hands together and said "good" three times in a row.

The man on the arrest warrant actually looked somewhat similar to his carpenter father!
Feeling relieved, Jin Wanshan rushed home excitedly, intending to tell his father the good news.

Not far from the West Guard Gate, there is a Guangning Temple, which is very popular. A few days ago, Jin Rengui and other carpenters took over the carpentry work of the temple. Jin Wanshan came to the temple to find his father, and tried his best to ask the supervisor for some silver.

Jin Rengui asked him what he was going to do with the money, and Jin Wanshan said mysteriously, "I have something great to tell you. Dad, come home early today so we can have a nice drink together."

Today is the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, and there happens to be a temple fair being held outside Guangning Temple.

Jin Wanshan wanted to ask Jin Rengui for something, so he bought roast duck and liquor for the first time.

Finally, when he met a food vendor selling chicken offal, he weighed another pound of braised chicken hearts.

Jin Wanshan was about to go back with food and drinks in his hand when the fortune teller Jingmen, who was setting up a roadside stall, suddenly blocked his way.

"Too often people lose their ambition due to indulgence in material things. It's not because of others that they are lost, but because of themselves. This layman, I see that you look light and your spirit is frivolous, like a piece of driftwood in the river or a broken raft in the sea. I'm afraid you will commit a crime that harms the heavens soon!"

Jin Wanshan glanced sideways at the Jingmen fortune teller, who was a female demigod.

"Just explain yourself clearly and don't tell me these nonsense."

The robe worn by the female half-immortal had become white from being starched, and it looked like she was living a very difficult life.

She glanced at Jin Wanshan and said, "It's not easy to be a good fortune teller. If you want me to explain myself clearly, you have to impress me."

Jin Wanshan frowned and said, "I don't have any money on me. If you want to talk, then talk. If not, then I'll be in trouble!"

The female half-immortal was not angry. She swallowed her saliva, staring at the snack in Jin Wanshan's hand, and said, "I don't want money. If you give me the roast duck with chicken heart, I will help you tell your fortune."

Eat and drink for free?

Jin Wanshan has been hanging around in the streets since he was a child and has seen all kinds of deceptive tricks.

"This snack is for my father, how can I give it to you?"

Jin Wanshan glared at the female fortune teller fiercely, turned around and left, but before he had taken a few steps, he turned back.

Sitting on a mat with a big horse and a golden sword, Jin Wanshan threw the snacks on the fortune-telling stall and said, "Can you tell me when I can make a bet and make a lot of money?"

The female half-immortal was stunned for a moment, then confirmed again: "I see that something is wrong with your family. Do you really not count your family, but only your gambling win?"

Win the bet? Jin Wanshan became alert upon hearing this.

"What's the big deal about family matters? Just tell me when I can win the bet. If it works, I'll give you a reward!"

Seeing the other party's persistence, the female half-immortal stopped asking for his advice. She asked Jin Wanshan for his birth date and time, pinching it quickly with her fingers. Jin Wanshan was dazzled and even mistook the man's hand for a fox's paw.

Jin Wanshan raised his hand and rubbed his eyes. When he opened his eyes, the female half-immortal had already calculated his fortune.

"If you want to win the bet, it will take sixteen years!"

Jin Wanshan got furious after hearing this. "I'm only sixteen this year, and you want me to wait another sixteen years?"

"What kind of a fairy bullshit is that? If you want to deceive people, you should at least be able to say nice things and make them happy. If you can't even say nice things, how can you be called a fairy?" Jin Wanshan said as he stretched out his hand to take back the snacks on the fortune-telling stall. But before he could touch the food and drinks, the female half-fairy in front of him suddenly blew a breath at his face.

"Hey! You"

Jin Wanshan's eyes became blurry, and he stood up in a daze, like a walking corpse, drooling and grinning foolishly as he walked away.

About a quarter of an hour later, Jin Wanshan, who had just reached the door of his house, shuddered all over and came to his senses.

Huh? Why am I here?

Jin Wanshan looked at his own door in astonishment. Wasn't he having his fortune told at a fortune-telling stall? How come he was at his doorstep in the blink of an eye?

After searching through his clothes, he found nothing but empty sleeves, and there was no trace of snacks or liquor.

It's really weird!
In the cold winter, Jin Wanshan was sweating profusely. He knew that he had met a real immortal.

"This is probably a warning from the goddess. I should honestly pay off my gambling debts and focus on business from now on. I can't gamble anymore."

Jin Wanshan was muttering something at the door, just to remind himself.

After all, the female fortune teller said that it would take sixteen years to win the bet. If he knew he would lose and still went to gamble, he would be a fool!
After returning home, Jin Wanshan couldn't find anything to do, so he asked his mother to kill a chicken and stew it, saying that he had something to talk to his father about in the evening.

When his mother heard this, she thought, "This is great!"

The child and the head of the family have never gotten along, but now that the child is willing to speak up, that's better than anything else.

"Okay! As long as you're willing to change for the better, I'll stew the chicken for you and your father."

Carpenter Jin was thinking about what the child said, so he finished his work early and rushed back home early.

"Dad, try this chicken heart, it's delicious!"

Jin Wanshan smiled and toasted Carpenter Jin, picked up some food for him, and asked him about his well-being, showing his consideration.

Carpenter Jin knew his own son's temper, so he asked him what was the matter.

Jin Wanshan then told her that he owed one hundred taels of silver from gambling and that if he did not pay it back on time, he would be sent to the palace to become a eunuch.

When Carpenter Jin heard this, his face immediately changed color.

"I lost a hundred taels gambling, and this is what you call a quick-profit business?"

Carpenter Jin was so angry that the delicious chicken lost its flavor.

Zhang next to her was crying.

"You are the only child your father has. If you are sent to the palace, who will carry on the Jin family's lineage?"

Perhaps it was because Carpenter Jin had eaten a chicken heart that he, who was dull and honest, suddenly had an idea.

"I can't afford the money from the 122nd house, but I can spare 20 taels of silver. I think it would be better to use this 20 taels to find him a wife, so that he can have a child while he's still young."

"Whether or not you can get pregnant in two or three days depends entirely on your family's luck."

When Jin Wanshan heard this, he stood up immediately.

"What are you talking about, Dad? It takes a long time to prepare for the wedding and the banquet. Even if I can save on that, I don't have the mood to think about it."

"This won't work, and that won't work either. Aren't you usually quite capable? So what do you think we should do?" Carpenter Jin had no backbone, and the father and son talked and talked but couldn't come up with a plan.

Jin Wanshan suddenly smiled and said, "Dad, I have a way. Not only can I pay off my debt, but I can also get two hundred taels of silver for free."

The next morning, before daybreak, Jin Wanshan secretly brought his father, who had put on makeup, to the governor's office in the capital.

Jin Rengui arrived at the yamen gate, tied up, and couldn't help asking again, "Can I really get away with it if I confess my guilt?"

Jin Wanshan promised, "After I receive the reward and pay off my debt, I'll help Dad retract his confession in two days. I've asked the lawyer, and the worst he could get would be imprisonment. Think about it, Dad. Imprisonment wouldn't last more than one or two years, but as a carpenter, I wouldn't be able to earn three hundred taels of silver in four or five years, let alone two."

Jin Rengui sighed and said, "It doesn't matter how much money you have. As long as you can survive, Dad will be satisfied!"

Before the father and son could exchange a few words, a bailiff came over to the yamen gate and asked them questions.

Jin Wanshan pushed the tightly bound Jin Mujiang to the front according to the words he had prepared in advance.

It is said that they have caught a bandit who has been on the run for many years and is here to collect the reward!

The end of the year is approaching, and a thief is disturbing the people. The government office is worried about this matter. Now that they know that the thief has been arrested, the government office immediately opens a court for interrogation.

But Carpenter Jin has been an honest man all his life. Does he know what a ruthless bandit looks like?

We don’t know whether the government officials are blind, but anyone with a discerning eye would know that there is something wrong with Carpenter Jin as soon as they see his honest appearance.

However, the government office simply asked Carpenter Jin several times whether he pleaded guilty or not, and then made him sign and put him in jail.

At first, Jin Wanshan was nervous when he saw Jin Rengui's dull look during the trial. It was not until the case was successfully concluded that he came to his senses.

The head of the household department took out a hundred taels of silver and handed it to Jin Wanshan.

Looking at the denomination of the banknote in his hand, Jin Wanshan quickly said, "That number is wrong. The arrest warrant clearly states in black and white that there is a reward of three hundred taels of silver."

The official sneered upon hearing this and said, "I'm giving you a hundred taels of silver as a reward, so be content. Do you really think others don't know what's going on here?"

Jin Wanshan was surprised and asked, "What do you mean?"

The chief laughed and said, "It doesn't matter. Since he's signed it, he's a bandit. What's there to tell?"

Jin Wanshan walked out of the yamen with the silver bills in his pocket. At this time, he already knew that his father would definitely not survive.

"Dad, go with peace of mind. When I make a fortune, I'll buy you the best coffin and let you go with honor."

After feeling a little sad for a while, Jin Wanshan turned around and walked towards the gambling house.

When he arrived at the gambling house, Jin Wanshan, who originally wanted to pay off his debts, couldn't take his eyes off the gambling table once he saw it!
"Sixteen years, how could anyone lose sixteen years? This damn goddess, I'm afraid it's just some female demon trying to trick people!"

Once the gambling bug takes over Jin Wanshan's mind, he doesn't care about anything else. As long as he wins money, he is like a god!
On that day, Jin Wanshan not only lost all the 100 taels of silver he earned from selling his father, but also owed 120 taels.

Adding the one hundred taels owed before, the total is two hundred and twenty taels!

Who should I sell this time? There’s no one left in Jin Wanshan to sell, and I can’t sell my own mother!

The gambling house thugs were really going to take ruthless action this time, but at this critical moment, the owner of the gambling house stepped forward and left Jin Wanshan a way to survive.

However, he needs help to kill someone!

Jin Wanshan thought, even my father dared to sell it out, it’s just killing someone, how difficult is that?

Just like that, from the moment he started killing people for the gambling house, Jin Wanshan lived a life on the edge of a knife.

On the fifteenth day of the twelfth lunar month, Jin Rengui was executed in Caishikou. Jin Wanshan did not go to collect the body, but instead painted a mask, took a sharp sword, and prepared to kill the audience in the theater!
On this side, the beholder's head fell to the ground; on the other side, the goldsmith's blood also dyed the execution platform red.

(End of this chapter)