Huang Fu had no idea he was being watched. After three days, the people he sent out to investigate brought back news that both of the medicine apprentices were bound by death contracts.

The death pact means that they now belong completely to the Wen family, making it unlikely that they would use their family members to threaten them.

As for money...

Huang Fu asked, "Have you had any contact with them in person? What's their character like?"

"I've had brief contact with them personally, and these two are of decent character. If we want to make them turn their backs on us, it won't be so easy."

Not easy?

Just because it's not easy doesn't mean it can't be done!

The thought of his broken leg made Huang Fu unable to wait any longer!

He couldn't wait to bring misfortune upon the Wen family!

"Find a way to lure these two people to the gambling den. Within half a month, I want them to be begging me to do things for them."

If he wanted to scheme against the Wen family medical clinic, one person wouldn't be enough; only the betrayal of two would slightly quell his anger!

Song Yi was one of the medicine boys. The Song family lived at the very end of the alley in West Street, right next to the sewage ditch. All year round, the courtyard was accompanied by an indescribable stench.

After Song Yi's mother became pregnant again last year, the family became even poorer and destitute. When the Wen family announced that they were hiring, Song Yi signed up himself, gave his parents the money he would have earned from selling himself into servitude, and then returned to the Wen family without ever going back.

However, he didn't stay at the Wen family's residence for long before being assigned to the medical clinic as a pharmacy apprentice. His monthly salary was much higher than that of other people, and Song Yi was very satisfied with it.

He was intelligent and learned to recognize medicinal herbs while receiving early education. He practiced handling herbs whenever he had free time. It didn't matter if he didn't recognize the herbs, but he had to know where each herb should be placed.

"Song Yi." Another apprentice, Zhang Sheng, approached mysteriously. "Are you free after the clinic closes tonight?"

Song Yi nodded: "Yes, I still haven't finished writing the big characters."

He genuinely felt that being a medicine boy was much better than being a servant. He had already planned that once he finished his formal education and memorized everything in the medicine cabinet, he would tell Doctor Qin that he wanted to learn how to process medicinal herbs.

Zhang Sheng sighed, "You're tired enough during the day, how about I take you out to relax tonight?"

He leaned forward mysteriously, "My cousin knows a casino that can help us make some money. Didn't your parents come to you for money the other day? Let's go in and have some fun for a couple of days..."

"I'm not going." Song Yi refused without thinking, and said seriously, "Zhang Sheng, I advise you not to go either."

His parents were still short of money, but he brought half of his monthly allowance home, and the family's situation was much better than before. He couldn't possibly waste his time going to those places.

Zhang Sheng continued to persuade him: "Come on. You stay in the clinic every day, how boring! You should go out and relax. I'll tell you how fun it is, you'll see when you get there."

Although Zhang Sheng said this, he felt extremely uneasy inside.

He had been gambling at the casino for ten days. He had indeed won every day for the first two days. From the third day onwards, he had both wins and losses. On the seventh day, his good luck completely disappeared. He lost for three consecutive days. Zhang Sheng not only lost all the money he had won before, but he also owed the casino one hundred taels of silver!

Zhang Sheng couldn't understand why he owed one hundred taels of silver. His hands and feet trembled, and he kept muttering, "One hundred taels? How could I owe one hundred taels?"

Regardless of winning or losing, he always gambled very small amounts, so how could he possibly owe so much money?

His transformation from initial disbelief to hysteria happened in the blink of an eye: "I have no money, even if you sell me, I still won't have any!"

"Your casino is cheating! I'm going to sue you for cheating!"

Zhang Sheng couldn't finish his sentence because the casino's thugs forced his hand down and stamped his fingerprint on the contract.

The casino accountant finally arrived late, waving the contract in front of him: "Zhang Sheng, you need to understand this clearly. You owe more than one hundred taels. From the day this contract is signed today, you will receive one tael of silver in interest every day. After ten days, your initial amount will become one hundred and ten taels."

Interest compounded will grow bigger and bigger, like a snowball.

Zhang Sheng immediately collapsed to the ground, still muttering that he had no money, or that they were cheating.

Upon receiving the accountant's signal, two thugs held him down, while another, wielding a large cleaver, approached with a ferocious grin. Zhang Sheng strained with all his might but couldn't budge the man holding him down, and tears and snot streamed down his face in desperation.

Only then did he finally realize he was afraid!

"Wait!" A man rushed in; it was his cousin. "Mr. Dong, please be merciful and let him go."

My cousin grabbed Mr. Dong's long gown and knelt on the ground, wailing, "Zhang Sheng is only twelve years old. He has a long life ahead of him. If his hands are cut off, his employer will definitely sell him, and he will be even less able to pay back the money."

Accountant Dong seemed to agree with this assessment. He slightly raised his hand, and the thug stepped aside. He slowly squatted down, pinched Zhang Sheng's chin, and examined him closely: "Twelve years old, a little old. But it doesn't matter. Some military officers in Quanzhou like young male prostitutes with delicate skin like you..."

Zhang Sheng was like a stranded fish, gasping for breath, yet still feeling like he couldn't catch his breath.

His future is bleak and his life won't last long!

Seeing his unfocused gaze and the puddle of water beneath him, clearly terrified, Accountant Dong chuckled, "However, I do have a way to let you get this contract back without spending a penny..."

Accountant Dong gave a meaningful smile: "It all depends on whether you're willing to go all out."

Zhang Sheng refocused his eyes and stared intently at Accountant Dong, a renewed hope rekindling in his heart. He asked in a hoarse voice, "Is there anything else you need me to do?"

“I know you work at the Wen family medical clinic. You could easily send another apprentice to our casino to try your luck.” Accountant Dong patted Zhang Sheng on the back. “Cut off your hand; it won’t do you any good. The ultimate goal of us casino owners is to make money, isn’t it?”

Zhang Sheng knew that what Accountant Dong said was true, but he still felt that something was not right.

His cousin helped him up and sat him down against the corner of the wall. As soon as Zhang Sheng looked up, he saw his cousin's guilty look.

In a flash, Zhang Sheng finally realized that he had been dragged into this situation by his cousin to pay off gambling debts!

He shoved his cousin away abruptly: "It was you! You're the one who tricked me!"

My cousin was so guilty he couldn't even lift his head, and he made no attempt to defend himself.

Accountant Dong sneered, "I don't care what happened between you, but if you don't bring anyone with you three days later, it means you agree to this contract. Even if I behead you then, you won't get away with it in court!"

After Accountant Dong left with his men, Zhang Sheng felt as if a thin rope was hanging around his neck. If he didn't obey, this rope could take his life at any moment!