Chapter 2: Do You Want to Win?

Just as Chen Miaoyi felt as if her heart were being torn apart, she suddenly heard Xu Mo’s furious shout: “Take the promissory note and get out!”

“You little bastard, are you trying to renege on your debt?”

Steward Xu lost his temper then and there, waving the loan slip and shouting, “Do you believe I won’t cripple you right now? When that happens, the magistrate will still award me your house—and your wife!”

“With the IOU in my hand, you dare try to weasel out of this? You’ve got a death wish!”

Afraid her husband would try to default on the debt, Chen Miaoyi hurriedly intervened, “My husband isn’t denying the debt, I… I’ll find a way to borrow the money and repay you!”

If you refused to pay and ended up before the county magistrate, you’d be beaten first—unless you bribed the yamen runners in advance, the beating would be merciless.

How could her husband’s frail body possibly withstand that? That would be the end of him.

And if her husband was gone, this family would fall apart.

Even though her husband was weak and useless, Chen Miaoyi still wanted to keep the family together, however battered and storm-tossed it might be.

“Heh! Borrow money? A hundred and thirty strings of cash—how do you expect to borrow that? Where would you even get it?” Steward Xu sneered.

Chen Miaoyi was left speechless.

Xu Mo now looked at her, stunned.

He hadn’t expected that even though he’d already pawned her away, she was still willing to help him.

Steward Xu glared at Xu Mo, baring his teeth. “Xu Mo, listen up: if I don’t see a hundred and thirty strings of cash today, I’m not leaving!”

Xu Mo, suppressing his rage, pointed to the promissory note in Steward Xu’s hand and said, “Open your dog eyes and take a good look—has the month’s time passed?”

Steward Xu was immediately at a loss for words. He’d come to collect so early only because he’d heard Xu Mo was gravely ill, but in truth, there were still five days left until the debt was due.

Young Master Ning, who had been standing nearby, now frowned in displeasure. “Xu Tong, what’s the meaning of this? The debt’s not even due and you dragged me here—do you think I have nothing better to do?”

The reason Young Master Ning was here at all was that he’d taken a liking to Xu Mo’s land a few days ago, and wanted to buy up the debt, then tear the house down and rebuild.

Seeing that Young Master Ning was displeased, Steward Xu immediately bowed and scraped, trying to appease him.

Young Master Ning, unwilling to waste another moment, barked, “Enough, enough! I still have business at the Zhenxiu Pavilion, I don’t have time to dally with you lot. Get everything sorted in five days, then come find me!”

With that, he spun on his heel and strode off.

“Young Master Ning, wait for me—please, wait!” Steward Xu, anxious, hurried after him.

Just as he took a step, Steward Xu looked back and spat, “I don’t believe a useless good-for-nothing like you can scrape together a hundred and thirty strings in five days!”

“That’s none of your concern!” Xu Mo shot back, pointing toward the door. “Now get out!”

Steward Xu, now desperate to smooth things over with Young Master Ning, had no time to argue further; he jabbed a finger at Xu Mo in threat and then rushed off.

Inside the main room, the husband and wife stood quietly together.

“Miaoyi…”

Xu Mo called her name softly, searching for words to comfort her.

But Chen Miaoyi, wiping her tears, fled to the inner room.

Xu Mo understood—her heart was broken.

But before he could react, Chen Miaoyi came running out again, a large bundle in her arms.

“Husband, let’s go to the capital and borrow from my parents. I still have this bracelet—if we pawn it, we’ll have enough for the journey for both of us.”

As she spoke, she showed him the bracelet.

Her mother had secretly given her this bracelet before leaving. Her former self had tried many times to take it, but even after being beaten so badly she coughed blood, Chen Miaoyi had never handed it over.

Who would have thought she’d bring it out now?

Xu Mo thought to himself: Don’t be foolish. With such a huge debt to the gambling hall, do you think they’d let us leave the city?

He turned serious. “Miaoyi, you don’t need to worry about the money. I’ll find a way.”

Choking on her tears, Chen Miaoyi replied, “What way could you possibly have? That’s a hundred and thirty strings, not a hundred and thirty coins!”

“Trust me. I will find a way.” Xu Mo’s tone was firm.

Although he had no plan yet, he wasn’t in despair—he had knowledge and perspective far beyond this era, and he believed he could overcome this crisis.

“Husband, I never gave you this bracelet before because my mother left it for me—it’s all I have left of her. But in this situation…” Chen Miaoyi, reluctantly, held out the bracelet to him.

Xu Mo shook his head, refusing to take it, then abruptly changed the subject, “By the way, Miaoyi, that Young Master Ning mentioned the Zhenxiu Pavilion—was that Ning Yongqiang, the second son of the Ning family?”

Chen Miaoyi nodded. “That’s him. Why, husband?”

A glimmer of hope appeared on Xu Mo’s face. Rubbing his hands, he said, “Good, that’s just who I needed!”

Without another word, he rushed toward the door.

“Husband, where are you going?” Chen Miaoyi called after him.

Without stopping, Xu Mo replied, “Miaoyi, I’ve thought of a way to pay off the debt! Wait at home for me, don’t go anywhere—I’ll be back soon!”

Before his words had faded, he was already out the courtyard gate, hurrying toward the Zhenxiu Pavilion.

In Xu Mo’s mind, the only way to pay off a hundred and thirty strings in five days was to rely on Ning Yongqiang.

Halfway there, Xu Mo unexpectedly spotted Ning Yongqiang.

Steward Xu had already disappeared, leaving Ning Yongqiang alone at a roadside tea stall, sipping tea and sighing, looking deeply troubled.

Xu Mo strode over and sat directly across from him. “Young Master Ning, do you want to win?”

Ning Yongqiang paused with the teacup in his hand. Seeing it was Xu Mo, his brows drew together in a deep scowl.

“What are you doing here?” he snapped, impatient. “Get lost—I’m in no mood to deal with you, unless you’re looking for a beating!”

Xu Mo, undeterred, pressed on, “Young Master Ning, let me remind you—there’s less than a month left!”

“When the month is up, you’ll have to stand atop the city tower and proclaim to all the people that you’re a worthless failure!”

The words instantly changed Ning Yongqiang’s expression.

With a crack, he hurled his teacup to the ground.

Porcelain shards flew, tea splashed everywhere.

All eyes at the tea stall turned to them.

“You’re courting death!” Ning Yongqiang roared, seething with rage. If his servants had been present, he would surely have ordered them to thrash Xu Mo without hesitation.

Xu Mo remained perfectly calm, meeting Ning Yongqiang’s glare without the slightest fear. “Young Master Ning, I came to tell you…”

He paused deliberately before continuing, “In all of Xinzhou, only I can help you win this wager!”

Ning Yongqiang was taken aback, and began to scrutinize Xu Mo more closely.

Three months earlier, an incident had shaken the whole city.

Ning Yongqiang and Young Master Wang Shunyang of the Wang family had opened restaurants in Xinzhou at nearly the same time, with comparable size and grandeur.

Wang Shunyang had always disliked Ning Yongqiang, so he proposed a wager.

The terms were simple: in three months, whoever’s restaurant earned more would be the winner.

The loser would not only pay the other five hundred strings of cash, but also stand atop the main city tower and loudly declare three times, before all the citizens, that he was worthless.

Now, with two months gone, Wang Shunyang’s Fenghua Restaurant was still doing brisk business—perhaps not packed every day, but far busier than Ning Yongqiang’s nearly deserted Zhenxiu Pavilion.

That was why Ning Yongqiang now sat sighing at a roadside tea stall.

After a long silence, he finally asked, “And why should I believe you?”