Chapter 32: Husband, do not worry, there will be a way

Su Yunjin's eyes lit up. For some unknown reason, the moment she saw Chen Jiusi, her anxious heart felt much more at ease.

She had never felt this way before, but today the sensation was incredibly strong. Perhaps it was because of Chen Jie's changes over the past two days that she had unconsciously begun to depend on him.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, Chen Jie walked into the courtyard. At that moment, Ma Liu watched him with squinted eyes.

A hypocritical smile hung on his face, but there was a hint of hostility between his brows.

Chen Jie walked over, pulled Su Yunjin behind him, and looked at Ma Liu. "What brings Brother Ma Liu to my place today?"

Ma Liu laughed. "Jiusi is back. Sigh, I've been very busy lately too. If it weren't for your business, I wouldn't have made the trip."

Chen Jie looked at him and asked, "Oh? What business?"

Ma Liu said, "Jiusi, you've been too careless. Have you forgotten that you still owe the Treasure Bureau a sum of money?"

"Money?"

Chen Jie frowned. He didn't remember Chen Jiusi owing any money to the Treasure Bureau. Although Chen Jiusi was a gambler, his addiction was relatively recent; he had squandered the family fortune, but it hadn't reached the point of borrowing money.

"Do you have an IOU?"

Chen Jie looked at Ma Liu, who held up the note and said, "Jiusi, you're just too negligent. If I hadn't gone to the Young Master's place to settle the accounts today, who knows how much this note would have rolled up to? You're truly careless."

If Chen Jie didn't know that Ma Liu was plotting with Yu Sanliu, he might have actually thought Ma Liu was a good man.

Chen Jie scanned the IOU: *Chen Jiusi borrowed one tael of silver from Yu Sanliu, with a daily interest of two li, due on the second day of the third month in the ninth year of Zheng.*

Hmm?

Chen Jie narrowed his eyes as he searched his memory for relevant information. On that day, he hadn't brought any money and had been pulled into the gambling den by Ma Liu.

When he said he had no money and needed to go home to get some, Ma Liu had said, "Why bother with all that trouble? I'll help you get some."

Then, Ma Liu had taken him to see Yu Sanliu.

At the time, Ma Liu told him: borrow one tael of silver, and if it's paid back the same night, there's no interest; if it's paid the next day, just pay a little extra.

Ma Liu had told him that if luck was on his side, he could win it all back in one go.

So, Chen Jie borrowed the one tael, thinking that even if he lost it all, he'd only owe an extra two li the next day—hardly a big deal.

Unexpectedly, he won two taels in a single hand. He wanted to pay it back immediately, but Ma Liu, standing by his side, said: "Jiusi, the God of Wealth is in the southeast today—that's your direction. Don't move, or you'll break your luck. Give me the silver; I'll go pay it back for you."

Chen Jie had thought: *Alright then, Brother Liu,* and had intended to tear the note up.

Ma Liu had replied: *Don't worry, could your big brother ever cheat you?*

...

Recalling the memory, Chen Jie realized he had been set up by Ma Liu.

He looked up and met Ma Liu's eyes.

A playful smirk was on Ma Liu's face; he knew Chen Jie had figured it out, but so what? It was written in black and white—this was evidence. Even if Chen Jie reported him to the officials, he wouldn't win.

And if he didn't report him, what could a fallen young master like him possibly do?

This time, he had Chen Jiusi cornered!

"What's the matter, Brother Jiusi? Don't recognize your own IOU?"

Ma Liu wore a smile, even preparing himself for a counterattack.

However, Chen Jie replied with a calm expression, "Yes, that is my signature."

Huh?

Ma Liu was stunned by Chen Jie's composure. He looked at him and asked, "You're just admitting it like that?"

Chen Jie said, "Brother Ma Liu came all this way in person; how could I not admit it? Tell me, how much has it rolled up to now?"

This time, it was Ma Liu who couldn't read Chen Jie's intentions. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "Twenty taels."

A smile appeared on Chen Jie's face. "That's not much, only a twenty-fold increase. Give me a few days, and I'll raise the money to pay you back."

Ma Liu eyed Chen Jie suspiciously. "You can actually scrape together twenty taels?"

"Yes. I couldn't before, but I should be able to now. Didn't Yunjin tell you? I am now an apprentice to Physician Bai. I'll find a way to borrow some from the Bai family."

"The Bai family!"

Ma Liu looked at Chen Jie in surprise. He hadn't expected Chen Jiusi to have established a connection with the Bai family. The Bai family was not to be trifled with.

This was getting tricky.

Ma Liu rubbed his chin and followed up, "In that case, I'll give you three days. Add five taels to the interest, and you can pay me back twenty-five taels, principal and interest included, by then."

Chen Jie said, "Fine, it's a deal."

Ma Liu said, "Good, it's a deal."

"It's getting late, I can't keep Brother Ma Liu any longer. I'll treat you to drinks when there's an opportunity," Chen Jie said with a smile.

Hearing this, Ma Liu laughed. "Fine, I'll be waiting for that drink from my brother."

With that, he turned and led his men away.

Watching his retreating back, Chen Jie's eyes narrowed, and a flash of killing intent flickered through them!

Ma Liu could not be allowed to live!

***

As Ma Liu walked out of Chen Jiusi's courtyard, one of his subordinates stepped up and asked, "Brother Liu, are we just leaving like this?"

Ma Liu looked back at the dilapidated Chen courtyard and said, "That Chen Jiusi hit the jackpot and became Physician Bai's apprentice. This is going to be difficult. I need to go back and inform the Young Master."

Ma Liu hurried back toward the town.

Meanwhile, the villagers who had gathered to watch the commotion began to disperse, though they all shook their heads as they left.

"Chen Jiusi is finished. Owing such a huge sum of silver... this family will collapse sooner or later."

"Exactly. Twenty-five taels of silver? How could he possibly raise that? And he's going to borrow from the Bai family? The Bai family owes him nothing!"

"Serves him right. I told him long ago he was a gambling addict. Now look at him—he'll be waiting to lose his hands and feet."

The crowd dispersed, leaving only Uncle Erba.

Uncle Erba looked at Chen Jie and said, "Jiusi, this..."

Chen Jie didn't offer much explanation, only saying, "It's okay, Uncle. I can handle it."

"Sigh, you child. I still have two taels of silver here. If you need it, I'll give it to you."

Chen Jie waved him off. "No need, Uncle. Hu-zi is growing up; save that money to get him a wife."

"Brother, I'm not in a hurry. Let's settle your matter first," Hu-zi said.

Hearing this, Chen Jie replied, "You might not be in a hurry, but your father and mother are. Alright, Uncle, Hu-zi, I really can solve this. By the way, here are some peanuts. Take them back, Uncle."

Uncle Erba waved his hand. "I won't eat them. You say you can solve it, and I believe you, but if you need money, you must tell me."

"I know, Uncle."

Chen Erba took Hu-zi and left, leaving the courtyard in silence.

Chen Jie turned to look at the distraught Su Yunjin. At this moment, there was only one number in her mind: twenty-five.

Twenty-five taels of silver... how... how could they ever repay that!

For the Chen family at this time, twenty-five taels was an astronomical sum.

Seeing Su Yunjin in this state, Chen Jie felt a pang of heartache. He had made this woman worry for him again.

Sensing Chen Jie's gaze, Su Yunjin met his eyes with a smile that looked more like a sob. "Husband, don't worry. It's okay. There... there will be a way..."