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

The others glanced at Liu Gouzi's corpse, pondered for a moment, then took their money bags and stepped over it, following Shen Chen.

Zhuang Man looked down at Liu Gouzi, whose eyes were wide open and whose face was still frozen in shock and anger.

"Damn it, do you really have to play with women at a time like this?" Zhuang Man sighed, closed Liu Gouzi's eyes, covered him with a burlap sack, and then bent down to carry his corpse on his back.

Others might ignore Liu Gouzi, but Zhuang Man couldn't. Although Liu Gouzi wasn't a very good person, he was incredibly obsequious to Zhuang Man and served him diligently.

Zhuang Man believed he was cut out to be a leader. If he couldn't even care about the corpses of his underlings, what kind of leader would he be?

Qingxi Village is a hundred miles away from Quanya Mountain, and it wasn't until the early hours of the morning that the group returned to the mountain village.

Under the lamplight, Shen Chen looked at the knife-shaped coin in his hand. On the surface of the coin was a character that crawled like a snake. He could roughly guess what it meant—"Qin".

"I need to cash out quickly. I'll ask Qin Pi about it later," Shen Chen thought to himself.

He dropped the coins and went back to bed to sleep.

In his dream, Shen Chen seemed to be back in his familiar office, where his boss handed him a thick stack of documents: "Xiao Shen, please verify this audit report."

Shen Chen sat back down at his workstation, opened the report, and saw that it was filled with the same words: "Robbery and murder are illegal."

"Robbery and murder are illegal."

"Robbery and murder are illegal."

"Robbery and murder are illegal."

Shen Chen suddenly opened his eyes and found that his back was completely wet.

Shen Chen took a breath and recalled the scene in his dream, his expression gradually calming down.

"If I had acted according to the standards of my past life, I would have died long ago."

"To this day, my actions are entirely in accordance with my heart; what more is there to say?"

He practiced breathing techniques for a while, and his mind gradually calmed down.

……

In the tavern, Zhuang Man looked around. This gathering was three people less than the last one: Liu Gouzi, Zhang Xiaolong, and Zhang Xiaohu.

Wang Wu and Zhao Qian secretly glanced at Zhuang Man, who was looking fierce. They exchanged a glance, lowered their heads, and didn't dare to make a sound.

"That guy surnamed Shen is too domineering. Liu Gouzi is still one of the brothers in the village, and he actually stabbed him like that," Zhuang Man said viciously. "If we continue to follow him, who knows, one day we might end up like Gouzi. One second he's all smiles to you, and the next he's stabbing you in the stomach!"

"What Boss Zhuang said is right. Why don't you take this opportunity to complain to Boss Zhuang and ask him to remove that guy surnamed Shen?" Wang Wu asked.

Zhuang Man raised an eyebrow: "Tattling? Do you think I'm that kind of despicable person?"

Zhuang Fu initially encouraged Zhuang Man to use any means necessary to fight Shen Chen, but if the means he uses is to complain, Zhuang Fu's opinion of him will probably plummet.

Zhuang Man already had an idea. Since Shen Chen killed Liu Gouzi by relying on Qin Pi's background as the head of the penal department, he could also use Zhuang Fu's background as the head of the finance department to make some trouble.

"Zhao Qian, Wang Wu, there are five thousand coins in this bag." Zhuang Man took out two cloth bags and threw them on the table.

"This money is for you to temper your bodies. I hope you can break through to the Internal Organs Realm as soon as possible," Zhuang Man said.

Zhao Qian's eyes lit up immediately: "Boss Zhuang is so generous!"

Wang Wu's reaction was calmer than Zhao Qian's: "We shouldn't accept rewards without merit. What does Boss Zhuang want us to do?"

Zhuang Man said, "At the next gathering, go ask that guy surnamed Shen for money. Remember, ask him in front of other people. Just say that you feel your bottleneck is loosening and you urgently need a precious medicine to temper your body."

"He definitely can't afford to pay you. Qin Pi's got a lot of trouble lately," Zhuang Man said confidently. "I'll step in and give you another five thousand coins. Do you understand what I mean?"

Zhao Qian and Wang Wu understood that Zhuang Man was spending money to win people's hearts and minds, so that they would cooperate in putting on a good show.

After they break through to the Visceral Realm with Zhuang Man's money, Zhang Xiaolong and Zhang Xiaohu will definitely rush to join Zhuang Man. When everyone recognizes Zhuang Man as their leader, Shen Chen will be nothing more than an empty shell.

"Alright, Boss Zhuang, don't worry. I thought this leadership position was yours from the beginning," Zhao Qian flattered, clutching his money bag tightly. Wang Wu readily agreed.

"Alright, you two go and rest." Zhuang Man waved his hand and saw the two off.

After the two men left, he carried the wine to a mound of earth with a simple sign on it that read: "Tomb of Liu Gouzi".

Zhuang Man poured wine onto the mound of earth: "Dog, stay safe down there. In your next life, you'd better keep an eye on your second son."

He poured half a pot of wine, then suddenly sighed, his voice choked with emotion: "If only I had taken you to brothels a few more times, brother."

…………

Qin Pi examined the knife-shaped coin closely and exclaimed, "Qin Dynasty knife-shaped coin? That's a good one! Where did you get it?"

"I pulled off a smuggling job, robbing a landlord's family." Shen Chen glossed over the origin of the money, then asked, "Brother Qin, can this money be used in the village?"

"Sure, go check out the east market in the village. I remember someone bought a 300-year-old ginseng with a bag of Qin sword money last time." Qin Pi sized up Shen Chen, observing his qi and blood. "You haven't given up on martial arts?"

Shen Chen nodded: "I'm still practicing breathing techniques, after all, it can strengthen the body."

Qin Pi said, "Although innate talent determines a martial artist's upper limit, hard work can maintain a lower limit. If you practice every day, reaching the Bone and Tendon Realm within a year is not a problem."

He added, "If you still want to learn martial arts, I will still help you, but I won't help you with external body tempering. Last time you were unconscious for a whole day and night, it almost scared me to death."

Shen Chen smiled and said, "To be honest, of course I want to practice martial arts..."

"However, you needn't worry about the expenses for martial arts training, brother. After all, you've encountered quite a few troubles yourself, haven't you?" He changed the subject.

Qin Pi's expression suddenly froze: "Who told you that?"

"I guessed," Shen Chen said. "Last time, Fang Xue asked you to accept her brother's banner, but you refused. Were you afraid someone would use this to get back at you?"

"Furthermore, I've often smelled the aroma of medicine coming from your room lately." Shen Chen paused, then asked, "Are you either preparing to break through a cultivation barrier or healing your injuries?"

Qin Pi was silent for a moment, then gave a wry smile: "Haha, I really can't hide anything from you, you guessed everything right."

Without saying much, he rolled up his sleeve, revealing a black sore on his broad shoulder right under Shen Chen's eyes.

"Do you remember how I got arrested and thrown into jail?" Qin Pi asked.

Shen Chen looked at the wound: "It was caused by a crossbow bolt, and the bolt was poisoned."

Qin Pi said, "This poison will erode one's true energy and cause one's cultivation to regress. I have consulted a doctor, and the only way is to break through to the seventh level of the Refining Essence Realm as much as possible."