Jiang Si folded her hands in front of her, sitting casually yet elegantly, and spoke in a gentle tone: “Money is only useful if you’re alive to spend it.”
A Fei shuddered, immediately recalling the midnight agony that made him wish for death. Although the pain had now disappeared, his back was instantly drenched in cold sweat, and his heart filled with endless fear. He never wanted to experience that kind of suffering again.
“You’ll ruin the purse if you keep squeezing it like that!” A Man reminded him worriedly.
This money had been borrowed from Immortal Lady Liu at the cost of their Young Miss’s face. It wasn’t easy for her.
“There are countless gambling houses in the capital, big and small. This amount isn’t significant in any of them. Choose three or four reputable gambling houses and place separate bets. If successful, I’ll give you 100 taels of silver as a reward,” Jiang Si said.
“No need for a reward, no need,” A Fei said repeatedly.
Jiang Si smiled, “Getting paid for a job is only right. Although you come from the streets, you’re an honest citizen. We don’t have a master-servant relationship; this is a collaboration. Since it’s a collaboration, of course, you should get your share when the job is done.”
“Then… thank you, Young Miss.”
“You may go now.”
A Fei carefully tucked the purse into his clothes, then thought better of it and took it out again. He retreated to a corner, took off his shoe, and stuffed the purse into the shoe’s upper.
A Man rolled his eyes in disgust, “Taking off your shoes in front of Young Miss, have you no shame?”
“This is safer,” A Fei grinned.
After years on the streets, he knew all too well that there were many things more important than face in this world, and this money was certainly one of them.
As A Fei reached the door, Jiang Si called out from behind, “A Fei—”
That call was soft and clear, like a cool spring brewing tea in this early summer tea room, calming the restlessness in one’s heart.
A Fei couldn’t help but stop, lowering his head as he turned, “Does Young Miss have any other instructions?”
“I just wanted to tell you, if you don’t want to be a worthless piece of mud thrown against the street corner for the rest of your life, do this job well.”
A Fei’s whole body trembled, and he couldn’t help but look up at Jiang Si.
The young lady was still sitting elegantly by the window table, her jet-black eyes clear to the bottom, inexplicably conveying the sincerity in her words.
A Fei’s heart warmed, and he nodded hurriedly before rushing out.
Jiang Si picked up her teacup and took a sip.
“Young Miss, are you that confident in A Fei? What if he runs off with the money?” A Man asked.
“He won’t.”
It wasn’t so much that he wouldn’t, but that he wouldn’t dare.
Jiang Si didn’t believe that anyone who had tasted the Soul-Breaking Powder would have the courage to try it again.
As she had just told A Fei, money is only good if you’re alive to spend it.
The Soul-Breaking Powder was too potent. She had only managed to refine a small amount these days, and it had all been used on A Fei.
Reborn into this life, she had many things to do and needed many hands, but she wouldn’t use her knowledge to control innocent people.
This was her bottom line when taking revenge on those who had wronged her in her previous life, because no matter what, she never wanted to become like them.
Since A Fei had actively accosted A Man that day, he certainly wasn’t innocent, and it was appropriate to temporarily use him for errands.
Jiang Si stayed in the tea room drinking a few more sips of tea. A Fei had already hurriedly left the teahouse.
Having never possessed even a fraction of the money now in the purse under his foot, A Fei felt as if his walk had become uneven, not knowing which foot to step with first.
Don’t be nervous, don’t be nervous…
A Fei was tense, muttering to himself. He had barely walked a few steps out of the teahouse when a large dog suddenly appeared.
“Woof—” The big dog barked at A Fei, its tone warning.
A Fei nearly jumped, staring at the dog in front of him as if facing a great enemy, “I’m warning you, I eat dog meat. If you dare come any closer, I won’t be polite—”
The big dog pounced, biting A Fei’s bottom.
“Ouch—” A Fei let out a miserable cry.
A Man, who saw this scene from the tea room window, covered her mouth and laughed, “Young Miss, A Fei got bitten by a dog.”
Jiang Si glanced outside, her expression changing.
That big dog looked like Er Niu…
“Oh, Young Miss, doesn’t this big dog look like the one that brought you money that day?” A Man had a deep impression of the dog that had brought money to her Young Miss.
“Young Miss, quick, look at what it’s doing!”
The big dog, after releasing A Fei’s bottom, sniffed its way down and finally latched onto A Fei’s shoe, refusing to let go.
A Fei immediately panicked, kicking and hitting desperately to struggle free, “Let go, you little beast!”
“Young Miss, surely that dog isn’t going to find the purse we gave A Fei and bring it back to you?” A Man suddenly realized after watching the commotion for a while.
Back then, this big dog had brought the purse of the person who wanted to hit the Second Young Master to the Young Miss, and the purse even contained gold leaves and pearls.
However, thinking about the dog potentially doing the same thing now, A Man’s mood was far from pleasant.
“Young Miss, what should we do?”
By now, quite a crowd had gathered in front of the teahouse to watch the spectacle. If the dog were to retrieve the purse from A Fei’s shoe and bring it to the Young Miss in front of everyone, it would cause quite a scene.
Jiang Si was at a loss now too.
She had many ways to deal with people, but when it came to Er Niu, even if she had methods, she couldn’t bring herself to use them.
In desperation, Jiang Si called out softly, “Er Niu—”
After calling out, Jiang Si shook her head.
Perhaps Er Niu’s special treatment of her last time had subconsciously made her think that Er Niu was still that obedient dog, but of course, that wasn’t the case.
She and Er Niu, and even Er Niu’s owner, were now separated by past and present lives.
To Er Niu, she was just a stranger who had piqued its interest for some reason.
Er Niu, who had been biting A Fei downstairs, suddenly stopped and looked up at the window suspiciously.
Taking advantage of this moment, A Fei clutched his bottom and ran as fast as he could, looking back fearfully after running some distance.
Had that damned dog chased after him?
Seeing the big dog sitting in place, supported by its front legs, A Fei breathed a sigh of relief and quickly disappeared.
“Woof—” The big dog barked plaintively in the direction A Fei had gone, then looked up towards the teahouse.
Jiang Si’s figure was no longer visible at the teahouse window.
A Man looked outside worriedly, “Young Miss, will that dog come up to find you?”
Jiang Si shook her head.
She didn’t know what was going on now. Had Er Niu stopped because it heard her call?
“Woof—” The big dog raised its head and barked pitifully again.
Jiang Si’s heart softened a bit.
Should she go down to check?
But if she had frequent contact with Er Niu, she couldn’t avoid that bastard.
Jiang Si still harbored resentment when she thought about her interactions with Yu Qi.
He had entered her life in an unassuming manner but had kept his identity as the Seventh Prince hidden, only telling her that he was a citizen of Great Zhou living on the border, and had met the Wumiao tribe elders because of his family’s trade with them.
It wasn’t until after she had agreed to marry him that he revealed his identity, and wouldn’t let her back out!
If she had known earlier that he was the Seventh Prince, she would have definitely guarded her heart and stayed far away from him, and she wouldn’t have died so tragically later.
“This is the beast that bit me that day, quick, beat it to death!” A sudden angry shout came from outside the window.