Immortality: Starting with a grave, I'm invincible when burying corpses.

In the third month of the ninth year of Ningtai.

Changzhou, Pingluo County, the entrance to "Zuicun" village.

A dozen or so men, ranging in age from their teens to their fifties, gathered together.

In this season when spring plowing should be underway, a group of able-bodied men are not working or doing anything else. They are just sitting on the earthen slope at the entrance of the village, staring blankly at "Wen Village," which is two miles away from their "Sinful Village."

"Shanzi went to the city to look for work again yesterday," a man who looked to be around thirty years old said, breaking the silence at the village entrance.

He had a blade of grass dangling from his mouth, his yellowed teeth grinding together, making unpleasant chewing sounds.

An old man, about fifty years old, sat hunched over next to the man. Hearing what the man said, the old man glanced at him sideways.

"That's right. They say Xiaoshanzi got into a fight and was taken to the government office where he was given twenty lashes."

It was only after Master Zhuang personally went to the county government office that he was brought back; he's still lying half-dead in the village.

Another old man chimed in, "Xiao Shanzi is still too young. It's good that he got a lesson. He won't dare to spout those grand principles all day long anymore... It'll save him from losing his life for nothing one day..."

"That's right, that's right. I've told you so many times, stop going to Master Zhuang's lectures and just stay in the village and wait to get free meals..."

That kid wouldn't listen. He was always thinking about finding a job to support himself, and he even said he wanted to repay Master Zhuang.

After attending classes for a few years, he really thinks he's some big shot, and he starts lecturing people like Zhuangzi. Who does he think he is?

Now look what's happened! After being beaten up by the authorities, I can't get out of bed for ten days or half a month. How comfortable... Ha!

The speaker was a middle-aged man in his forties. His face was weathered, and his squinted eyes showed no sign of life.

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Everyone else in the village called him Scholar Qin, and many people listened attentively when he spoke.

One after another, the crowd spoke without any sympathy for their companion; instead, they all uttered accusatory remarks.

Only the youngest boy was somewhat indignant, poking at the soil on the ground with a twig.

With a "crack," the branch broke in two.

The boy threw the half-finished branch to the ground, turned to look at the murmuring crowd, his dark cheeks flushed red, and his fists clenched.

"What did Brother Shan do wrong? What's wrong with him wanting to support himself? What's wrong with what Master Zhuang taught us?"

"Are you really willing to live like this, doing nothing all day, relying solely on Master Zhuang's charity, and spending your whole lives as insects?"

Fueled by anger, the boy threw out a sentence with fierce momentum.

The village entrance fell silent instantly, as more than a dozen pairs of eyes turned to the boy.

A cold wind blew by, and as the initial excitement faded, the stiff-necked boy unconsciously shrank back.

He just seemed to have cursed a group of people who were criminals with criminal records, some with minor offenses and others with serious ones. Fighting was definitely a regular occurrence for them, and they were all ruthless individuals.

The boy looked around and realized he might get beaten up like his brother Shan.

He lowered his head, gritted his teeth, and braced himself for a beating.

To the boy's surprise, none of the dozen or so people made a move. Seven or eight men cursed and insulted him for a while.

The others just sat there, showing no reaction whatsoever, seemingly unconcerned about being insulted.

After a while, when the boy was at a loss for what to do, Qin Xiucai, who had been squinting, suddenly opened his eyes and stared at the boy from head to toe for a while.

"Xiangzi, you're so capable, and you don't want to be a freeloader. Then go to the county and find a job. See if anyone is willing to hire you."

Oh, right, I remember the tattoos on your body were on your arm, which was a well-hidden spot, unlike ours which are either on our foreheads or faces.

Go and plead with Miss Wan for a long-sleeved garment; you might actually be able to get away with it.

After being mocked, young Xiangzi felt a surge of anger and immediately rolled up his sleeves, ready to fight.

Xiangzi is here because he has been to prison and has the courage to fight.

But when the large character for "crime" on his arm came into his view, Xiangzi hesitated as he stepped forward, and all his words were swallowed back.

Yes, Shan Ge, who wants to go to work and repay Master Zhuang, is lying on the bed, half-dead.

If he goes, will he end up like Brother Shan?

It might get even worse, after all, Brother Shan is much stronger than him.

He's so thin and weak; if he were to receive twenty strokes of the cane, he'd probably lose his life.

After all, the officials hated their village the most, and they would beat people to death when they did.

In the past two years, quite a few villagers have been beaten to death by the government for various reasons.

Under the unsettling gazes of many, Xiangzi lowered her head.

He walked hunched over, looking dejected, into the village.

It was time for his daily meal, so he had to go back to collect his food. After collecting it, he would go home first and then visit his brother Shan.

He doesn't care whether he eats or not, but his sister is twelve years old this year and is at the age when she is growing, so she is very likely to go hungry.

If you go to queue up early, you might get lucky and manage to get some meat to nourish your sister.

As for Master Zhuang's lecture, Xiangzi felt that he was in a messy mood today, so he didn't go to listen.

Qin Xiucai's words were harsh, but Xiangzi knew that Qin Xiucai was not lying to him.

The teachings of Master Zhuang are beautiful and inspiring, but reality is often quite different.

The people of their "sinful village" may never have a way out in their lives.

……

"That silly boy left?"

"That's right, only these kids who haven't been in jail for long still look somewhat human..." A middle-aged man in his thirties sighed.

"What's the use of 'insects' like us looking human? We'd only die faster. Staying here obediently, we can live a few more years, eating and drinking all day long. Isn't that good enough?"

"Indeed... Brother Qin, you see things very clearly. No wonder you were able to pass the imperial examination and become a scholar."

"What use is a scholar? He still ends up in jail and becomes a criminal. The only reason he's still alive is because he happened to be caught in a bet set up by those big shots."

When the word "gambling game" came out of Qin Xiucai's mouth, everyone's expression changed, and the village entrance fell silent once again.

After a long while, an old man finally asked a question.

"Scholar Qin, aren't you going to collect your lunch again today?"

The forty-year-old man patted his sunken belly casually.

"No, no! As long as we don't starve, that's fine. Even insects should be self-aware... One meal a day will save Master Zhuang some money on food. He and Miss Wan are having a hard time too."

Seeing Qin Xiucai's appearance, some people sighed several times in a row.

"Sigh... the people of 'Wen Village' are so lucky. We're all criminals, but their lives are so much better than ours. Many of them have married and even have children."

The moment the complaint left his mouth, Qin Xiucai glanced at the speaker, clicked his tongue, and gave a light scoff.

"How can they be compared? Guan Wencun's people are from the Meng family, high-ranking officials of the imperial court, they have plenty of ways to get things done. With just a word, they can make the city lords fawn over them. They can't compare, they can't compare at all..."