Chapter 138: Never Repay the Debt

Chapter 138: Never Repay the Debt

Preface: Minor revisions have been made to the last few paragraphs of the previous chapter. It was not a loss of 2000, but after losing the existing 300, he went straight to borrow 2000! The aforementioned word count will be compensated in the main text.

Chapter 137: Chen Fu stood dazedly at the entrance of the gambling house, quietly processing the explosive task amidst the bustling crowd.

"What if I can't get out?" Chen Fu was on the verge of tears, "I've heard that gambling dens have enforcers who hit people indiscriminately, and the atmosphere is just chaotic and smoky. I, I'm a bit scared!"

Where would a dandy fear a gambling house!

Indeed, he is a dandy with a rotten core but a golden heart!

Xianjin clapped Chen Fu on the shoulder with an encouraging thump, "Go on! Before you get hit, tell them you're the third master of the Chen family, the paper makers from the eastern part of the city!"

Chen Fu sobbed, "If I say it, will I not be beaten?"

Xianjin said, "If I speak up, maybe the beating will be lighter."

Chen Fu: ...

Chen Fu took a deep breath, clutching three hundred taels' worth of silver bills in his bosom, and strode forward as if heading into battle. Halfway there, as if suddenly remembering something, he turned to Xianjin and asked, "... Aren't you coming with me?"

Xianjin questioned, "Think for yourself, is it reasonable for a father to take his daughter to gamble?"

Chen Fu: Other girls and girls like you are essentially two different breeds!

"I'm afraid I might not be up to the task..." Chen Fu spoke softly, shaking his head, "I'm good for nothing but eating, I've always been first when it comes to food and drink, but I've never done anything else in my life... This matter concerning the fifth grandfather is too significant, I'm afraid I might mess it up and end up causing trouble for our Jing County..."

Xianjin spoke softly, "Who said you can't do anything right? You've written two books, and they've all sold well, haven't they? And where were we a year ago? Where are we now? Think about it, without you, I might still be eating cabbage and green vegetables in Yiyuan!"

Chen Fu looked at Xianjin with trepidation, "Do you really think I can do it?"

Xianjin nodded emphatically, "No problem! Just tone down your performance to half of your usual dandyish demeanor, and you'll be good to go!"

Chen Fu couldn't help but chuckle, still timid, "What if I can't find the moneylender with the surname Huo?"

The moneylender's family is the one that lends money at interest.

Xianjin chuckled, "Once you mention that you are the Third Master of the Chen family, he will naturally come to you."

Chen Fu opened his mouth halfway, glanced at Xianjin again, went through his thoughts once more, and finally made up his mind, walking straight inside.

Like gleaming silver, instantly swallowed by a bloodthirsty maw.

Xianjin stood at the door with his arms folded, observing. Once Chen Fu's figure was out of sight, he turned and hurriedly made his way out.

Five days later.

In the gambling house, Chen Fu had not emerged the entire time, taking care of his meals and drinks within the establishment. After three days, he stood before the table, reeking of sweat and with unkempt stubble, clutching the last dozen or so chip tokens in his hand. Like a gambler gritting his teeth, he slammed them all onto the "small" bet.

"Hey! Third Young Master is buying again!"

Behind the table, the Bookmaker extended his long pole to tidy up the chips, smilingly flattered, "You've been betting on 'small' for three rounds in a row, how about we try a change of luck?"

Chen Fu, his eyes bloodshot, clenched his molars at the Bookmaker, "Then... then I'll bet on big!"

With a smirk, the Bookmaker pushed the chip marker onto the "Big" spot, then raised a shiny bamboo tube with his right hand, shook it vigorously, and revealed the secret upon landing—two, three, one, four.

The Bookmaker, as expected, hooked the chip sign towards himself with a cheeky grin, jesting to Chen Fu, "Tsk! You should have bet on the small! You see, in the gambling house, trust no one but yourself; my stinky mouth has blocked your fortune!"

Chen Fu was so furious that smoke seemed to billow from his head in an instant. He lunged at the table to grab the Bookmaker's rod, "Cheating! You're cheating!"

The bookmaker retracted his pole with a chuckle, "You can eat food indiscriminately, but you can't speak without thinking! Our Fushun Gambling House never cheats! If you want to recover your losses, just keep betting! The fortunes of the east and west rivers change over thirty years, and luck turns like the rotation of the feng shui. It'll eventually come your way, won't it?"

Chen Fu's eyes widened, panting heavily as he stared at the Bookmaker.

The Bookmaker understood, "Has Third Master run out of money?"

Chen Fu, with a stiff neck, said, "I didn't bring that much! Although my Chen family is not the wealthiest in Xuancheng Prefecture, we are not destitutes who come out to play without money!"

The Bookmaker's eyes darted, and a few thin figures hidden in the darkness on either side stirred.

"Indeed, indeed, indeed! The Chen family has always had a good reputation. We also have several merchants in our gambling house who are known for their credibility. They have money. How about borrowing from them?" The bookmaker said with a smile, "With the Chen family as your guarantor and this being your first time to play, let me explain, I'll only charge you five percent interest. How does that sound to you?"

Chen Fu gazed at the Bookmaker with a dazed look, "Five percent interest? I might as well go back and get it!"

The bookmaker chuckled, "Look at what you're saying! Your luck is on a roll right now. What if you lose it by coming and going? And when you go home to get money, won't your family ask questions? Won't they hold you accountable? I've heard that the esteemed matriarch of your household has quite the knack for these things—why not press on and let's earn back both the principal and the interest together!" The bookmaker then rolled his eyes, "If you think five percent interest is too much, I'll take on one percent for you myself, four percent! You can repay it within ten days, how does that sound?"

Chen Fu twitched the corners of his mouth, his face clearly showing that he had been persuaded.

With a lift of the Bookmaker's hand, two emaciated monkeys emerged from the shadows, one on the left and one on the right, lifting Chen Fu and leading him inside.

Chen Fu squinted his eyes, glanced around warily, and demanded, "Who are you all! What are your surnames and given names?"

One of the thin monkeys grinned, revealing his buck teeth, "My surname is Huo, Third Master, I've heard so much about you for a long time! So much!"

Chen Fu furrowed his brows, "Which Huo!"

"Rain Zhai Huo!" The thin monkey with protruding teeth was exceptionally bright, even brighter than the candle beside him. "I am the biggest moneylender in this Fushun gambling house, you trust me, and I trust you too!"

Chen Fu let out a sigh of relief in his heart and nodded, "I've heard Bookmaker mention it—no one else in our gambling house has the surname Huo, right?"

The skinny monkey shook his head hastily, "No, no, no! This is the one and only place! Trust in this tooth of mine!"

Chen Fu: This tooth of yours is indeed quite challenging to replicate.

Chen Fu confirmed the gaze; upon encountering the right person, his legs buckled, making it convenient for the two thin monkeys to carry him into the inner room to retrieve money and sign a contract.

"How many would you like?"

Huoshouhou smiled and unlocked the box with a copper key.

Chen Fu stole a glance upward.

Inside the box were stacks of silver notes and pieces of silver.

"Two thousand taels!" Chen Fu made a gesture.

Huoshouhou's eyes suddenly lit up. "Good! As expected of the Third Master of our Chen family, you show your skill right away! Two thousand taels, four percent interest, to be repaid within ten days! Does that sound good?!"

Huoshouhou swiftly wrote out a note in flowing script.

Chen Fu steadied his trembling hand and excited heart, grabbed the pen to sign and seal the document, then hastily pocketed the forty silver notes, totaling two thousand taels, and shakily left the inner room.

He then found an excuse to go to the latrine and fled through the side door, running as if escaping, and leaped onto the familiar mule cart, pulling back the curtain and rushing inside, still shaken.

"Scared me to death!"

Chen Fu patted his chest as if he had narrowly escaped death. "Gambling is not for humans at all! Who has the energy to play for four or five days straight? Those people don't sleep! They don't eat!"

Xianjin laughed.

Given her cheap old man's lazy and dissolute nature, gambling indeed seemed too exhausting.

"Did you get the silver notes?"

Xianjin asked softly.

Chen Fu nodded vigorously and pulled out a stack of silver notes from his chest, asking expectantly, "What do we do now? When do we repay these two thousand taels? The interest will increase after ten days!"

Xianjin absentmindedly lifted the curtain of the carriage, watching the bustling crowd outside, and uttered a few words, "Repay it? We won't be repaying this money."