“We’ll talk about it when you’re able to marry?”
To Bai He and Lu Ju’s ears, this was blatant insubordination. Though Miss’s assignment of these three hundred taels to Mo Zi was quite sudden, and they wanted to plead on her behalf, Mo Zi had sealed off all soft approaches with one sentence and was now going head-to-head with Miss. The two didn’t know how to intervene—persuading one to calm down might add fuel to the other’s fire.
Xiao Yi had a chivalrous nature. She would immediately carry out Sanniang’s orders. When given nothing to do, she remained cheerfully carefree, always wearing an expression of watching a good show, yet with an extremely innocent, childlike face.
Qiu Sanniang’s bright, sparkling almond eyes didn’t widen but instead narrowed to slits. Her bright red lips pressed tight, as if about to lose her temper. Instead, she turned her head to Bai He and said, “Go get my Little Gold.”
After hearing this, Mo Zi had just given a small snort when her arm was fiercely pinched by Lu Ju beside her, turning it into a muffled grunt midway.
“Say less,” Lu Ju lowered her voice, leaning close to Mo Zi’s ear right in front of Qiu Sanniang.
Mo Zi also leaned toward Lu Ju’s ear to say, “I didn’t just say anything.”
Qiu Sanniang pretended not to see the whispering happening right under her nose.
Bai He emerged from the inner room holding a black lacquered wood box with gold designs and a gleaming golden lock on top.
Qiu Sanniang pulled an equally gleaming golden key from her personal pouch, unlocked it, flipped up the lid, and reached inside. With a clatter, her hand emerged holding something even more golden and gleaming than before—a small abacus.
This was Qiu Sanniang’s favorite treasure from when she still did business with Master Qiu. Made of pure gold, sized perfectly for her fingers to manipulate, using it gave both face and substance. She affectionately called it Little Gold.
“Three hundred taels—if I lend it to you, I’ll charge three percent interest on the principal annually. As for your repayment, let’s calculate a bit more… twenty taels per year…” Qiu Sanniang began clicking the beads.
Hearing this, Bai He thought, Miss is truly angry now—she’s even calculating interest. Seeing Mo Zi open her mouth, she thought, that’s right, quickly beg for mercy.
“Miss, don’t bother clicking—Little Gold will fall apart before you finish calculating. At three percent interest and repaying twenty taels per year, by the time I’m eighty-eight years old, I’ll still owe you a total of five thousand two hundred taels.” Three percent interest? Devouring people without spitting out their bones.
Qiu Sanniang had spoken carelessly. She had just clicked to the third year, where Mo Zi would owe her five hundred and ten taels, and was just feeling something was off, when Mo Zi had already reported the account seventy years hence.
“Five… five… thousand…” Lu Ju was so frightened she stuttered.
Qiu Sanniang was actually quite fast at calculating and immediately understood—the repayment amount would have to exceed the interest before the debt could be cleared.
“Moreover, Miss, as I said, let’s discuss these three hundred taels after you’re able to marry into a prince’s mansion.” Mo Zi was genuinely a bit angry today.
Bai He’s eyes sparkled with alarm, thinking, dear miss, why are you saying this again?
“This matter—” Qiu Sanniang wasn’t angry but smiled instead, a smile as seductive as thousands upon thousands of peach blossoms blooming. “Now I have the say. Besides, don’t you hope I marry well?”
“That was my wish from before the three hundred taels.” Mo Zi felt she usually served Qiu Sanniang quite diligently—how did this bolt from the blue suddenly strike?
“Bai He, Lu Ju, you two leave.” With a wave of her sleeve, Qiu Sanniang’s plain white plum blossoms scattered.
After they left, Qiu Sanniang chuckled twice. “It’s not impossible for me to pay the three hundred taels.”
“That’s how it should be anyway—it’s not me getting married.” Mo Zi thought this but didn’t say it aloud. Provocation needed to be kept within limits.
“If I pay it, your contract will need to be re-signed. Would that be acceptable?” Qiu Sanniang’s smile was definitely ill-intentioned. “You said yourself that whatever is my business is your business. I’m not making things too difficult for you. Three hundred taels of silver—though not easy for you, it’s not necessarily absolutely impossible. After all, unlike Bai He and Lu Ju, you have opportunities, don’t you?”
Mo Zi understood. “Since Miss knows it’s not easy, and you’ve mentioned the contract matter, if I truly can hand over three hundred taels of silver, could it be renegotiated? I dare not be greedy—reducing it by one year would be fine.”
“Agreed.” Qiu Sanniang’s brow smoothed. “But if you fail, it increases by five years.”
“It’s a deal.” Trading five for one wasn’t equal, but Mo Zi had to agree.
At this moment, she suddenly recalled Guard Wei’s words when he bet on her victory—fortune favors the bold. She didn’t seek fortune but freedom. Not escape or deception, but freedom truly earned through her own abilities with a clear conscience. Otherwise, even if she escaped the small Qiu Mansion, could she escape this social system where an orphaned girl faced traps everywhere and would die without anyone to mourn her?
Her wings would gradually grow full, and what she needed to do was wait and seize opportunities when they came.
Deep scheming? No—just the instinct of a lonely traveler wandering in the wrong era, forced to protect herself.
“Xiao Yi, you’re the witness.” Qiu Sanniang gave this instruction.
“Yes.” Upon hearing the instruction, Xiao Yi’s expression became serious, appearing impartial and fair.
“Mo Zi, now that we have an agreement, you won’t have thoughts of deliberately sabotaging this marriage, will you?” Qiu Sanniang was still worried. This whole thing originated from her spur-of-the-moment joke. A young lady couldn’t back down to a maid, so the more she spoke, the more serious it became. If she hadn’t had the flash of inspiration to propose this agreement, they would probably have developed a rift between them.
“Miss’s business is Mo Zi’s business.” That catchphrase again, serving the same function as the modern saying “the customer is always right.” “Mo Zi will go inquire immediately. If there are character issues, Mo Zi will still ask Miss to consider other families and not delay your lifelong happiness for a three-hundred-tael agreement.”
Mo Zi withdrew.
“Xiao Yi.” The one who remained was the one who understood her true nature best.
“Miss.” Xiao Yi sat slouched in a chair with her feet propped on the armrest.
“Have we ever seen her beg for mercy?” Her head always lowered very consciously, her hands always hung very obediently, but somehow it was just irritating to look at.
“When she pressed her handprint on that contract with Miss.” Xiao Yi thought quite seriously about it.
“That doesn’t count—she still haggled with me.” Nearly dead, breathing more out than in, yet her backbone remained stubbornly rigid. “I’m the one who lost out.”
Picked up a person and still shared a room at the inn. Casually found a barefoot doctor—five taels for consultation and medicine. After the person struggled successfully to survive on her own, she became the ready-made mistress. No matter how Xiao Yi thought about it, she didn’t think Qiu Sanniang had lost out. But without taking up the thread, she feared Miss would go on endlessly.
“Then she’s never begged for mercy.” After saying this, very satisfied with her answer, she even nodded.
“So you can’t blame me. I tell her to find three hundred taels, and she not only doesn’t say a few nice words but seriously talks back to me.” It wasn’t her fault.
“…Mo Zi speaks honestly.” This time Xiao Yi thought for a long while.
“Speaks honestly?” Qiu Sanniang laughed somewhat cheerfully. “Yes, she speaks honestly to me but tells stories and recites poetry to others. Such a clever person—tell me, can I compare?”
“…” Xiao Yi swallowed hard and struggled to spit out three words. “No comparison.”
“Whether it’s great cleverness or small cleverness, I suppose we’ll know very soon.” After finishing, Qiu Sanniang turned and entered the inner room to rest on the bed.
Xiao Yi detected some other meaning in Qiu Sanniang’s words, but exactly what it was exceeded what her brain could figure out.