Although the former members of the Wei family, who had already been interrogated, had all returned to the inner room, they were no longer sleepy. They whispered about some old stories of the Wei family and worried about how long the Wei family planned to detain them if Wei Chengxiu's case could not be solved.

The three people who were the prime suspects couldn't sleep tonight and sat on the edge of the bed waiting for dawn.

Suddenly, a noise came from outside, a series of rapid and crisp clinking sounds, like someone shaking a dice cup. Then, words such as "Place your bets now" and "The ship will sail before everyone else!" were heard.

It was clear that the few people watching them from outside were playing dice.

"Well, they're having fun outside again. Looks like we're really not going to sleep tonight," someone inside complained.

The sound of dice being rolled in the dead of night was noisy to some, but to others it was the most pleasant sound. Qi Dazhong couldn't help but swallow, and his posture became much more upright than before.

You should know how strict his wife has been these past few years. She'd constantly scold him for squandering the business and forbid him from going to the gambling den. But so what if he'd lost it all? He had his own ways of making money!

Hearing the commotion outside, Qi Dazhong unconsciously rubbed his hands together, feeling an irresistible urge to play. Come to think of it, his wife had kept him from touching dice for almost three months.

"Place your bet, place your bet, there's no going back!"

"I won! I won! All of this is mine now!"

...

Every word coming from outside felt like a soft, alluring feather tickling Qi Dazhong's heart. He finally couldn't resist getting off the bed, walking to the door, and pressing his ear against the door panel, wanting to hear it more clearly.

Then they heard voices saying they wanted to leave, and others trying to persuade them to stay:

"I'm not playing anymore, I'm not playing anymore! I've lost all my monthly allowance to you guys!"

"Hey, hey, hey, we've only just started playing, why are you already so upset about losing? It's not even dawn yet, what a buzzkill! Let's play a couple more rounds!"

"No, no!" the man said firmly, and then went out the door.

Just as the group at the table were feeling disappointed, Qi Dazhong couldn't help but push open the door a crack and ask ingratiatingly, "Gentlemen, how about I play a couple of rounds for him?"

The gatekeepers had been fishing for this very fish tonight, and seeing that it had taken the bait, they enthusiastically waved to Qi Dazhong: "Come on, come on! We've been waiting for you to open it!"

Qi Dazhong was a seasoned veteran in the casinos and had some skills, but tonight was a trap set specifically for him. Several people teamed up to cheat, and in just a few rounds, Qi Dazhong lost everything!

After Qi Dazhong handed over the silver notes he was carrying, he was forced to write an IOU for two hundred taels.

After finishing writing, he wiped away his tears and pleaded, "Gentlemen, please give me back a few taels of silver for travel expenses, otherwise I won't be able to return to Zhengxian County, and I won't be able to repay the silver I owe you."

The man who had led the cheating today chuckled and said, "Travel expenses? How can we let you go back if your family doesn't bring you these two hundred taels of silver? What if you run away and make a quick getaway? Wouldn't our money be wasted?"

“Yes, yes, just write a letter to your family and ask them to send the two hundred taels as soon as possible!” someone chimed in.

Seeing that these people were not reasonable, Qi Dazhong stopped asking to return to Zhengxian County and instead pleaded, "Gentlemen, I actually have a distant relative in Shengjing City. Their family is very wealthy! How about this, you can let me go to Shengjing to find him at dawn, and I can raise the two hundred taels in a day and give it to you. Is that alright?"

"Oh, I didn't know you had such powerful relatives in Shengjing!" The group teased and joked for a while, and then finally nodded, agreeing to let him leave at dawn, but on the condition that one of them would accompany him in case he ran away halfway.

Qi Dazhong readily agreed.

With the moon waning and stars sparse, and the light of dawn barely breaking, Qi Dazhong boarded a dilapidated carriage that had been arranged for him and left Niujia Village, heading towards the capital.

Not far behind this carriage, another elegant and luxurious carriage was following closely behind, with Li Qingchen and Wei Shuwan sitting inside.

"It seems things are just as you predicted. He's desperate and has no choice but to go after that money tree," Li Qingchen praised Wei Shuwan approvingly.

Wei Shuwan's heart was still hanging in suspense. Once Qi Dazhong arrived in Shengjing, he would probably try to contact someone in the Wei family. The thought that such a person who had harmed her brother was now living under her own roof sent chills down Wei Shuwan's spine. She couldn't tell whether she was happy or sad.

However, she did not think Qi Dazhong would be so bold as to go straight to the Wei family. She guessed, "He should find a place to stay first, and then write to that person to arrange to meet outside."

Since Qi Dazhong was keeping someone's secret, he naturally dared not appear in front of the Wei family's door and arouse the Wei family's suspicion.

When the two carriages arrived at the city gate, it was just the time for the gates to open. Wei Shuwan was right again this time; Qi Dazhong's carriage indeed stopped in front of an inn in Shengjing City, and then he got off the carriage and went into the inn.

Wei Shuwan put on a veiled hat and followed Qi Dazhong into the inn. She saw Qi Dazhong ask the waiter for paper and pen, and hurriedly write a letter, asking the waiter to have someone deliver it.

Li Qingchen ordered Yuan Que to follow the messenger, and then, seeing Qi Dazhong ask for a superior room and go up to the second floor, he also stepped into the inn and found a table with Wei Shuwan to wait for news.

Before long, Yuan Que returned and leaned on the table, whispering, "Your Highness, Miss Wei, I asked the messenger, and he specifically said to deliver it to the Wei family at the north end of Gongchen Street."

"As expected." Wei Shuwan gave a wry smile. "Today I'll see who comes to keep their appointment with Qi Dazhong."

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