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

Shen Chen stroked his chin: "Brother Wei, how many of those goods were there again?"

Wei Xiong's heart skipped a beat: "It seems... there are about a hundred or two hundred powerful crossbows?"

Shen Chen said "Oh," and then added, "So, this amount of money isn't enough."

Upon hearing the number Wei Xiong reported, Ji Sanxing nearly coughed up blood. Without a second thought, he immediately retorted, "There aren't a hundred or eighty! There are clearly only fifty!"

As soon as he said it, Ji Sanxing regretted it.

Like a shark smelling blood, Shen Chen immediately pressed, "Brother Ji, how did you know there were fifty? Did you open the box and check them one by one?"

Wei Xiong immediately put pressure on Ji Sansheng: "Old ghost Ji, I treated you like a brother, and I always entrusted you with transporting goods. I never expected that you wouldn't treat your brother like a human being, and you always take advantage of me..."

Ji Sansheng's face twitched as he looked at Shen Chen and Wei Xiong in front of him, and he suddenly had the illusion of a mouse seeing two big cats.

Something's not right. When did Wei Xiong become so difficult to deal with?

Ji Sansheng's eyes flashed as he realized the problem. He immediately looked at Shen Chen, who was standing next to Wei Xiong: "I see. The real troublemaker is this pretty boy. No wonder Wei Xiong asked for his opinion just now... He's been setting me up all along! He might have even started the fire that night!"

"That treacherous villain!"

Ji Sansheng felt a surge of annoyance, and his gaze toward Shen Chen immediately turned wary.

Having gone through so much hardship over the years, he knew exactly what kind of person this was. If he really offended someone like this, who knew what dirty tricks they might pull out to deal with him later?

After hesitating for a long time, he gritted his teeth and stamped his foot: "Add another two thousand coins, and this matter will be dropped! I beg you two to be lenient and not make things difficult for me!"

Wei Xiong turned to look at Shen Chen, and only after seeing the latter nod did he regain his composure: "Alright, let's do it that way then."

Observing the interaction between Wei Xiong and Shen Chen, Ji Sanxing became even more certain: "It really was this Shen who orchestrated this!"

He then reluctantly had his underlings bring him a thousand coins, and only after confirming that Wei Xiong would not spread rumors and slander him again did he return to his own territory.

Wei Xiong took some coins out of his money bag and handed them to Xue Sanniang: "Here, Sanniang, this is double the money I owe you these past few days."

Xue Sanniang accepted the money with a smile, her gaze then falling on Shen Chen, her voice soft and sweet: "Master Shen, it's getting late, why don't you stay the night at our humble inn?"

With her many spies, she had already found out most of what the two had been doing these past few days. Shen Chen's image in her mind was gradually becoming clearer, and her desire to sleep with Shen Chen naturally grew stronger.

Shen Chen avoided Xue San Niang's lustful gaze and turned to Wei Xiong: "Brother Wei, it seems that Brother Qin Pi is going back to the stronghold today. Let's go back and meet him as soon as possible."

Under Xue San Niang's resentful gaze, the two stepped out of the inn.

"Brother Shen, you have real self-control," Wei Xiong couldn't help but say. "That Xue San Niang's seductive skills are superb. She's trying to seduce you like this, but you can ignore her completely. You're even more amazing than a living dragon."

Mu Qing, the living dragon, is ranked number one on the "Heroes List" and has already reached the ninth level of the Refinement Realm. He is a true martial saint among mortals.

In the past, the Great Yan government dispatched 500 armored soldiers to hunt down Mu Qing, but he single-handedly defeated all 500 elite soldiers!

The survivor was delirious and claimed that a dragon was churning in the army formation, and anyone who touched it was killed or injured. From then on, the name "Living Dragon" resounded throughout the Great Yan Dynasty.

Shen Chen said, "It's precisely because she has an affair with the Living Dragon that I dare not act rashly."

"What's the big deal? Don't try to apply that Confucian classics to us." Wei Xiong said nonchalantly. "To me, women are like toilets. There's no such thing as one woman being forbidden for others to use. To tell you the truth, Xue San Niang, me, and your Brother Qin are all having affairs. What's the big deal about adding you to the mix?"

Are we all like-minded people?

Shen Chen's lips twitched. Brother Wei, what you're saying is really... crude in words and even crude in reasoning!

He and Wei Xiong returned to Quanya Mountain, and then met Qin Pi. The three of them were overjoyed to see each other and immediately set up a banquet to celebrate together.

"Brother Wei, was your trip to the Northern Barbarians successful?" Qin Pi asked Wei Xiong while drinking.

Wei Xiong smiled bitterly: "Ha, this is absolutely terrible. The barbarians have no credibility whatsoever. They forcibly seized my goods, refused to give me a single penny, and even tried to kill me."

He took a sip of wine: "If it weren't for Brother Shen's earlier warning that barbarians are untrustworthy, and his later help in dealing with Ji Sansheng, I'm afraid I would have really lost everything..."

After he recounted what had happened in the past two days, Qin Pi also shared his recent troubles: "...That guy surnamed Sun has ill intentions. He told me that to get rid of the poison in my body, I need to break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm, and the sooner the better."

"That's utter nonsense. The medicine that bastard prescribed for me is all for invigorating blood and replenishing qi. Liu Guishou told me that the more I try to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, the faster the poison spreads. If it weren't for Brother Shen's reminder, I would still be in the dark."

Qin Pi then raised his glass: "Come on, Brother Shen, let me toast you."

Wei Xiong also raised his glass: "Brother Shen, let's have a toast."

After toasting with the two men, Shen Chen formally began discussing the salt well business: "Brothers, to be honest, I've recently been raising money to buy Zhuang Fu's salt wells and start a salt trading business."

Wei Xiong wasn't surprised; Shen Chen had previously told him about a business deal. Qin Pi, however, seemed quite astonished: "You want to sell salt? That might not be a good idea. I've seen salt prices plummet recently, even cheaper than grain."

Shen Chen said, "Brother Qin, this is just an illusion. Salt prices will definitely rise within three months!"

He looked at Wei Xiong: "Brother Wei, you've been to the Northern Barbarians, what are their prices for salt and iron?"

Wei Xiong paused for a moment, then his eyes lit up as he understood Shen Chen's meaning: "...That's right, the Northern Barbarians are preparing to invade the south. When war breaks out, salt prices will definitely rise...This is an excellent business opportunity. Brother Shen is truly astute!"

Without further ado, he immediately declared, "I'll offer seven thousand Qin sword coins, all of it for Brother Shen!"

Qin Pi also readily agreed, saying, "Then I'll also contribute seven thousand Qin sword coins to invest in Brother Shen's business."

The three hit it off immediately and neatly divided their shares. Shen Chen was in charge, and since Qin Pi and Wei Xiong both owed him favors, he would take two of the four salt wells, while Qin Pi and Wei Xiong would each take one.

The next day, Shen Chen arrived at Zhuang Fu's residence.

"Master Zhuang, as per our previous agreement, I'm fulfilling my promise ahead of schedule. You'll have to give me a discount on those four salt wells," Shen Chen said to Zhuang Fu, who was all smiles.

Zhuang Fu readily agreed, "Sure, no problem! Don't worry, Brother Shen, I'll definitely sell it to you at the best possible price!"

He quickly drafted the contract and presented it to Shen Chen for review: "Brother Shen, if you think there are no problems, then sign and affix your seal."