Chapter 004: Be Prepared for Danger in Times of Peace
"Serve?" Tai Shikun was taken aback and said, "Is it possible that you, Little Lianlian, want to learn culinary skills and cook soup and dishes for me every day? That would indeed be wonderful!"
Several constables encountered Taishi Kun and immediately, with beaming smiles, presented him with an official document and a large silver ingot. Having grown accustomed to the aggressive demeanor of public servants in modern times, Taishi Kun found himself unaccustomed to the amiable and silver-giving constables.
Tai Shikun not only escaped punishment for murder, but also gained wealth, which naturally brought him joy. The three constables took the corpses of the Liao people and the Yu family, received a couple of taels of silver as thanks from Tai Shikun, and left in high spirits.
"You scoundrel! How can you ask me to do such rough work? What I mean by serving is..." Jin Lian, with her charming eyes like silk, extended her fragrant tongue and playfully whispered a few flirtatious words in Tai Shi Kun's ear, making him blush deeply. He embraced Jin Lian and tossed her onto the table, disregarding whether the door was open or closed, and in just a few moments, he began to undress her, revealing her delicate bosom and soft curves.
Tai Shikun's words, if placed in modern times, would merely be a saying that fits the occasion, as modern food is indeed trivial. However, in ancient times, with low production capacity, during years of great disasters and wars, a single morsel of food could lead to life-and-death struggles among people. Therefore, when this statement reached the ears of ancient people, it clearly carried a sense of life and death intertwined, a feeling of unwavering loyalty and commitment.
Although these two farmers are frail, in the slightly chilly weather of early spring, they are surprisingly bare-chested and barefoot, with their hair unkempt, and their bodies covered only by a few leaves. One of them has dark circles under his eyes, while the other has a bluish tint at the corners of his mouth, as they mimic the attire of African natives, embodying an extraordinary trend
Only after her body had turned to a pile of ashes did Pan Jinlian remember that her father had long passed away many years ago, and there was no relative in her hometown with whom she could seek refuge. Having been a maid for ten years, the meager savings she had amounted to only a few coins; how could she support herself and make a living? In that moment, Jinlian stood there with swollen red eyes, staring blankly at Taishi Kun.
Although Zhang Dahu was led around in circles by Taishi Kun, this does not imply that he is a fool. After returning home yesterday, Zhang Dahu immediately sent someone to make arrangements with the officials, and then he went to the government office himself, posing as a victim to concoct a story. As a result, the official document issued by the government was altered to this:
At first, Tai Shikun also contemplated various ways to make money. He recalled some modern dubious methods but always felt they were not suitable to replicate in the present. Even ventures like watered-down meat or paper-wrapped buns were not something he could accomplish alone. Moreover, with a considerable amount of wealth at his disposal, he eventually forgot about the matter of making money
Tai Shikun made up his mind and had the shopkeeper prepare a bowl of noodles in a food container, strolling leisurely towards his home. Unexpectedly, just as he reached the foot of the mountain, he saw Gu Shupi leading several constables, heading towards the villa in the mountains.
Tai Shikun, seeing the situation, laughed heartily and said: "Xiao Lianlian, you can rest assured! I never said I would drive you away! Just stay by my side with peace of mind. In any case, as long as I have something to eat, I will definitely not let you go hungry"
Strongman? Could it be the legendary bandit who rules the mountains? Could it be the infamous mountain king who is rich beyond measure? Taishi Kun swallowed a greedy gulp and hurriedly inquired about the origins of this group of strongmen
Fortunately, Gu Shupi provided an explanation, allowing Taishi Kun to finally understand the matter at hand
"Renting a child? That sounds great!" After hearing Jin Lian's words, Tai Shi Kun felt a sense of relief in his heart
Before long, a steward from the Zhang family delivered the land deed of the mountain villa, along with the pledges of Pan Jinlian and Tushub, into the hands of Taishi Kun, which brought him great joy
First, there is the issue that Taishi Kun is quite particular about his food. He finds the ordinary village wine too bland, preferring instead to drink the Ge Xian brew that costs one hundred wen per pot. He considers the usual coarse dishes too rough, insisting on eating only tender chicken and fresh fatty fish that have been stewed to perfection in a clay pot. With such eating habits, he spent several dozen guan in just over twenty days.
It turns out that the laws of the Great Song have become relatively sound. If someone commits a capital offense, they must be brought before the authorities for trial and cannot be executed by private means. In other words, even if Taishi Kun truly killed the Yu family yesterday in an attempt to rescue Zhang the wealthy, he has, in fact, violated the laws of the Great Song.
Seeing Jin Lian squatting in the corner of the wall, sobbing softly, Tai Shi Kun felt a wave of irritation rise within him, and the good mood he had woken up with that morning instantly dissipated. As the saying goes, out of sight, out of mind; Tai Shi Kun decided to ignore Jin Lian completely and went down the mountain alone to have breakfast.
Jin Lian trembled as she held the body, overwhelmed with joy and tears. She took a brazier and, with a mix of snot and tears, tore the body to pieces and burned it completely.
Upon seeing this, Tai Shikun hurriedly instructed Gu Shupi to prepare a pot of hot soup. Jin Lian provided two sets of clothing to the two Lin households. After the Lin households had the hot soup and put on the clothing, they began to recount an incident, tears and snot flowing freely.
The Liao bandits coveted the wealth of the Zhang family. They first imprisoned Mr. Zhang in a well and then killed Mrs. Yu. Fortunately, the righteous hero Tai Shi Kun bravely slew the Liao bandits and saved Mr. Zhang's life. Three officers were ordered to collect the corpses of the Liao bandits and display them in the market for three days to serve as a warning to future generations. Additionally, a reward of silver was granted to the righteous hero Tai Shi Kun to highlight his noble deed
Tai Shikun practiced diligently in the courtyard day after day. When he was tired, Jin Lian would wipe his sweat; when he was hungry, Jin Lian would present him with food and drink. After practicing this technique for over ten days, when Tai Shikun danced with the Bone Transformation Heart-Pushing Sword again, it was as if a dazzling array of sword light, sparkling silver trees, and falling blossoms filled the air. Each move flowed seamlessly like clouds and water, without any hesitation, demonstrating that he had mastered this sword technique to perfection
What he first studied was the first page of the secret manual "Bone Transformation Heart-Prompting Sword". This style of the Bone Transformation Heart-Prompting Sword is a fast sword technique, consisting of eight moves. The offensive methods of these eight moves are: piercing the eyes, slicing the ears, cutting the nose, poking the mouth, slashing the throat, stabbing the navel, lifting the groin, and exploding the anus. Each move is indeed vicious and every technique is lewd, perfectly aligning with Tai Shi Kun's intentions
Now, only a few strings of copper coins remain in Tai Shikun's possession; how can he not feel anxious? Jin Lian, noticing Tai Shikun's troubled expression, hurriedly leaned in with a charming face and gently comforted him, saying: "My dear husband, do not worry! With more than half of April gone, the forest households in the mountains should be coming to pay their rent soon! Those rental payments should amount to at least several hundred strings, enough for us to indulge for a while!"
Thus, during the prosperous days of the Jingguo era in the Song Dynasty, Taishi Kun's life began in happiness. At home, he had a lovely companion, and in hand, he had money to spend. However, Taishi Kun did not become complacent; he understood that in the ancient times dominated by cold weapons, without formidable skills, how could one navigate the martial world? Therefore, Taishi Kun devoted considerable effort to mastering martial arts.
I am not a heartless person who takes advantage of women; I simply feel that having a woman on top is somewhat... inauspicious
Tai Shikun first sought out a blacksmith shop to forge nine flying daggers
Why did Taishi Kun create the flying knife? It turns out that Taishi Kun grew up in a circus. Due to his tall and robust physique, he was not suited for acrobatics or gymnastics. Therefore, the circus master taught him the skill of throwing flying knives.
After finishing a bowl of steaming wonton noodles, Taishi Kun's mood began to improve somewhat. He pondered to himself: Jin Lian is still quite young, and having endured years in the position of a maid, it is only natural for her to have aspirations for advancement. Moreover, since Jin Lian has already given herself, it is unreasonable to expect her to endure the pain of losing her innocence alone at home in tears. It would be better to give her some sweet rewards! Hmm... as for these sweet rewards... buying her some breakfast would suffice!
It turns out that these two Lin households are named Liu San and He Wu. They came down the mountain specifically to pay their rent. Unexpectedly, while passing through a small path, they were robbed by a group of bandits. This group of bandits was extremely unscrupulous; not only did they steal the three hundred guan of rent, but they also stripped the two of their clothes. Left with no choice, the two had to cover their modesty with leaves and went to the Taishi Kun estate to explain the situation
Originally, Tai Shikun had some wealth, with one hundred and fifty taels of silver converted into copper coins amounting to as much as one hundred and fifty guan. This would be equivalent to around forty to fifty thousand RMB, which would certainly suffice for an ordinary family of four to celebrate the New Year without any issues. However, this wealth in the hands of Tai Shikun only sustained a happy life for less than twenty days.
What level has Taishi Kun reached with his flying knives? He can throw a flying knife at an apple while blindfolded and with his back turned, and he is likely to hit it eight or nine times out of ten. Although his skill is not yet sufficient for performing blindfolded knife throwing at beautiful women on stage, it is more than adequate for dealing with ordinary brawls.
Jin Lian was deeply moved by a few words from Tai Shi Kun, and she cried softly as she nestled into his arms, saying: "My lord, I understand your kindness towards me! From now on, I will never mention the term 'status' again; I will only serve you wholeheartedly!"
Tai Shikun originally came from the current hetushu.com era, so in his eyes, a land deed can be equated with a "property certificate," and naturally, he must keep it carefully. However, the bond of servitude in his view is merely a labor contract, which holds no real value, so he casually tossed the bond back to Pan Jinlian
It is said: A person cannot have a thousand good days, and a flower cannot bloom for a hundred days. If one does not plan ahead, they will end up with nothing. This happy life lasted for a while, but gradually, a small problem arose: the wealth in Tai Shi Kun's hands was dwindling day by day
Pan Jinlian served as a slave in the residence of Zhang Dahus for ten years, enduring relentless exploitation. Her constant desire was to redeem her bond and regain her freedom. Now that this opportunity for redemption has truly come to her, how could Jinlian not feel joy?
However, these two Lin households are quite responsible. They stated that the money was entrusted to them, and naturally, they could not let Tai Shikun bear the burden. They requested Tai Shikun to extend the deadline for paying the rent, promising to find a way to gather the funds upon their return.
Indeed, on the afternoon of the second day, two forest dwellers from the mountains arrived at the villa of Tai Shikun. Upon seeing the attire of these two forest dwellers, Tai Shikun was greatly astonished
Another issue is Jin Lian, who has just gained her freedom. She was originally a maid, and had hardly any decent jewelry or clothing. First, she was dissatisfied with her attire, which was suitable for a servant, and asked Tai Shi Kun for money to go down the mountain to buy the clothing of a wealthy young lady. Then, she asked Tai Shi Kun for more money to purchase jade bracelets and gold hairpins at a jewelry shop. Just for these few items, she spent several dozen guan.
Subsequently, Taishi Kun took out the pine-patterned fine steel sword gifted by Zhang Dahus and the family heirloom manual of Lü Dongbin for study
Just as Taishi Kun thought he had encountered a wild man, the two forest dwellers collapsed on the ground, crying out: "Master! Please reward us with a bowl of hot soup to warm us! We are both cold and hungry, and our bones feel like they are about to fall apart!"