Seeking good fortune and avoiding misfortune: Starting with death row inmates

Shen Chen clasped his hands in greeting to the crowd and said, "Shen Chen greets Chief Hu and all the heroes."

Hu Muzhi nodded slightly. He stroked his chin, looked at Shen Chen, and then turned to Qin Pi: "You brought him here to see me because you want to help him get a position?"

"The chieftain is insightful." Qin Pi chuckled and patted Shen Chen on the shoulder. "My sworn brother may not have any martial arts training, but he's incredibly smart. If it weren't for him, I'd probably still be in jail right now!"

He then recounted in detail how Shen Chen had helped him get out of prison. After listening, the leaders looked at Shen Chen with even more seriousness.

Hu Muzhi turned his gaze to Shen Chen again and chuckled, "Master Shen is truly resourceful and wise. No wonder the Skinner called you 'The Mastermind'."

"You flatter me, Chieftain," Shen Chen said politely.

"Brother Shen, you said you usually review and prepare all the county's accounts, so Zhang Fuguang pinned all the embezzlement on you," Hu Muzhi asked. "You must know the location of the county's treasury and granaries like the back of your hand, right?"

[Hu Muzhi asks if you know the location of the county's treasury and granaries. Your answer is:]

[Good fortune: Answering the question about the location of some hidden money and grain, which you know to some extent; auspicious.]

[Bad Fortune: You are given the location of all the treasuries and granaries in the county, and you quickly gain the attention of the bandit leader. However, during the operation, the bandits find that most of the locations are empty, and the investment and return are completely mismatched. You explain that this is due to the county magistrate's corruption. The bandit leader appeases you on the surface, but in his heart, he is already preparing to expel you from the bandit stronghold. Ominous.]

[Bad Luck: You refuse to answer, and the leaders begin to suspect your identity. After a conversation that night, they unanimously conclude that you are a government spy trying to infiltrate the village under the guise of Qin Pi. They immediately storm into your house and dismember you. Extremely unlucky.]

Shen Chen nodded: "That's right, I do know that."

"Then please draw a map," Hu Muzhi said to the two leaders beside him. "Bring me paper and pen."

Paper and pen were placed in front of Shen Chen. Shen Chen picked up the pen, but did not write anything.

He scratched his head, looking shy: "Chief Hu, I can't draw maps, I can only write."

Hu Muzhi smiled and said, "Then you can write."

He thought to himself, "They can't even draw a map; they're probably not government agents..."

Soon, Shen Chen quickly wrote down several locations on the paper: "Underground of Sihe Dyehouse, second floor of Green Willow Money Exchange..."

After writing it down, Shen Chen handed the paper to Hu Muzhi.

Hu Muzhi took the document and examined it, then frowned: "Master Shen seems to know less than you need, isn't he? Is he hiding something?"

Shen Chen smiled wryly and said, "Chief, that's really all I know. Zhang Fuguang is very cunning. He usually only takes his trusted men to inspect the treasury and granary. I've never gotten along with him, so naturally I know little."

"Oh? If you're not his confidant, then why were you put in charge of the county's accounts?" Hu Muzhi said with a smile.

Shen Chen calmly replied, "Chief Hu is joking. If I were truly his confidant, he wouldn't have thrown me into prison and sent someone to silence me."

"That's true."

Hu Muzhi glanced at the location on the paper, then handed a token to a man wearing a tiger-skin coat next to him: "Skinny Tiger, go and scout out the way in Anxi County."

The man walked away from the house with a brisk pace.

Hu Muzhi then patted Qin Pi on the shoulder: "I've arranged a welcome-back banquet for you. Want some women?"

Qin Pi chuckled: "Hehe, of course I'll take it."

"No, take it yourself."

Hu Muzhi suddenly burst into laughter: "Great news! The jailers didn't castrate you?"

Qin Pi retorted angrily, "No! I'll castrate you when I become the chieftain!"

Hu Muzhi patted Qin Pi and Shen Chen on the back: "The empty room next door is perfect for Brother Shen. Take him for a walk around the village first."

After Qin Pi and Shen Chen left, Hu Muzhi turned to the leaders beside him and asked, "What do you think of that advisor surnamed Shen?"

"They proactively revealed the locations of the treasury and granaries, so they shouldn't be government agents," said a long-haired leader. "Otherwise, the price would be too high."

"Besides, he really doesn't have any martial arts skills at all," another burly leader muttered, his tone somewhat disdainful. "A weakling, at best he could be a clerk. I don't agree with him being a leader."

Hu Muzhi smiled and said, "Zhuang Fu, when I first joined the village, I was just a clerk."

Zhuang Fu awkwardly rubbed his nose: "How can he compare to the chieftain?"

"You can't judge a book by its cover," Hu Muzhi said leisurely. "Since Qin Pi recommended him to be the leader, we can't refuse him that favor..."

Zhuang Fu immediately became anxious: "Chief, what about my cousin?"

His cousin Zhuang Man joined the village half a year ago and made many contributions. He was about to become the leader, but now Shen Chen, who appeared out of nowhere, has taken the credit. Naturally, he was unhappy about it.

"Oh, that kid isn't bad either." Hu Muzhi stroked his beard and narrowed his eyes. "How about this? Let Shen Chen manage your cousin. If he can keep him in check, the leadership position will be his. If he can't, then your cousin can take over."

This is a clever trick that can both save face for Qin Pi and benefit Zhuang Man.

Zhuang Fu was indeed satisfied and repeatedly said, "The chieftain is wise."

Hu Muzhi nodded and said slowly, "Well, let's talk about what happened before..."

He suddenly stopped mid-sentence, asking in confusion, "What were we discussing again?"

The short girl who had been silent until now raised her notebook, and Hu Muzhi finally reacted: "Oh, we must find out as soon as possible about the matter of 'Eagle Hand' Yuan Ying planting spies in our stronghold..."

Behind the stronghold, Qin Dai led Shen Chen to a house: "Here, Brother Shen, you can stay here for now. Hehe, it just so happens to be next door to me. We're quite destined to meet."

The house was very clean, obviously someone had cleaned it beforehand, but the vegetable garden in front of the door was abandoned, with only a few yellowish-brown cabbages struggling to survive in the field.

"This house originally belonged to one of my brothers, surnamed Zhang. A while ago, he saw the police robbing a vegetable farmer's vegetables on the street. He stood up for him and got caught. He was taken to the vegetable market and beheaded. His head was rolling right in front of me, and there were people around dabbing his blood with steamed buns," Qin Pi said. "I was useless. Not only did I not save him, but I also got arrested and thrown in jail myself."

Qin Pi patted Shen Chen on the shoulder: "This house is yours from now on. You're a smart man, don't be like my brother Zhang, who lost his life for strangers. In this world, one should be a little selfish..."

He paused, then unconsciously raised his voice: "No, being a person means being selfish."