Chapter 37 Rescue

A piece of clean white paper with ten words written on it.

The running script is vigorous and sharp.

The handwriting is very beautiful, not like the style of the skinny scholar in front of me.

Pei Xiucai came to Changning Street early in the morning. After handing the paper to Chen Shiyi, he sat quietly aside with a scroll in his hand.

Near noon, Chen Shiyi walked up to Pei Xiucai and handed him a crispy cake wrapped in a lotus leaf.

The sesame aroma on top was tempting, but Pei Xiucai only glanced at Chen Shiyi and turned his head away with a calm look in his eyes.

"A gentleman does not eat food given out of pity."

Chen Shiyi frowned slightly.

"What?"

Pei Xiucai remained silent, seemingly unwilling to talk to Chen Shiyi.

"Is this the payment for writing for me, or do you want me to owe you another favor?"

Pei Xiucai took a deep breath.

"I don't need it."

"Then eat it quickly, or it will get cold."

Pei Xiucai felt that he should have refused. But when he held the fragrant cake in his hands, he was wondering why he had accepted it.

Take a bite, it’s salty and crispy, with a tempting golden brown inside, and there’s even a poached egg hidden inside.

Sure enough, her business is booming, and there is a reason for that.

The incident of Li Mao's murder has not yet been resolved, and people everywhere in Changning Street are talking about it.

Chen Shiyi was worried about Li Mao's matter.

As long as the case is not closed, it is like a sword hanging over my heart.

Later, I heard someone speaking in a very serious manner.

"I heard that it was because of debt. Li Mao often gambled in the casino and owed a lot of debt. There was a man named Gu in the casino who was responsible for collecting debts. Last time he met Li Mao, he refused to pay back the money, so he killed him in a rage. The murder dagger was in Gu's home. I heard that Gu was not a good person either. It was really satisfying to see them fighting each other."

Pei Xiucai saw Chen Shiyi who had been busy in his house, with a complicated and impatient expression.

"Did you hear that?"

"What?"

"The rumors are not true, but they are the facts now. I used Li Mao's death to make a big fuss and used the loophole of the dagger to put the man surnamed Gu in jail, just because I had a deep hatred with the man surnamed Gu in the past. You have to understand that what I said before was not to defend you at all. I was just using you."

"Oh, then what? Are you going to say that I won't come to your house anymore?"

Pei Xiucai frowned at Chen Shiyi's lack of tact.

Chen Shiyi smiled.

"You want to send Gu's thugs to jail. That's your business, isn't it?"

Pei Xiucai's eyes were filled with confusion.

"Everyone who was taken to the county government as a suspect came out with injuries, or some could not even get out. I don't care about other things. I only know that when I was most helpless, you spoke for me, no matter what your purpose was."

At this point, Pei Xiucai had no way to refute.

He opened his lips slightly, but didn't know what to say. His scarred face was confused and dazed.

No one is like Chen Shiyi.

So stubborn!

"My surname is Pei, my given name is Luo Shu, and my courtesy name is Jianyan."

Chen Shiyi's hand, which was making a fire, paused.

"oh."

Pei Luoshu looked at Chen Shiyi's indifference and said with his eyes lowered.

"I'm telling you my name."

Chen Shiyi replied hurriedly.

"I remember that, Mr. Pei."

Pei's mother, who had been sitting under the eaves to enjoy the cool air, looked at the two people of similar age and smiled.

"Eleven, Luo'er means that you can call him by his name instead of always calling him scholar, otherwise it will seem strange."

Chen Shiyi smiled and nodded, then turned around and thought, his name was Pei something, it sounded difficult to pronounce, why not just call him Xiucai, which is simple and easy to remember.

After this conversation, Pei Luoshu would occasionally speak to Chen Shiyi, just to say hello and ask how he was.

Chen Shiyi found it very strange. Pei Luoshu really didn't have much business. How did he survive?

It has been almost two months since she came to Changning Street. During these two months, no more than ten people have visited her calligraphy stall.

I asked Aunt Zhao next to me, and she said she didn't know either.

Occasionally, when Chen Shiyi met someone he knew, he would say something extra, saying that Pei Xiucai next to him had good handwriting and his calligraphy was cheap.

They all agreed with a smile, and later on several people did visit him.

Every time, as long as Chen Shiyi mentioned it, Pei Luoshun paused, glanced in her direction, and then calmed down again.

Until one day, Dr. Yang from a pharmacy came to see him.

Doctor Yang is a middle-aged man. Although he is a businessman, he does not have a shrewd look on his face. Instead, the years have weighed heavily on him, making him look very sad and compassionate.

Such people all have a bodhisattva's heart.

He stood in front of Pei Luoshu and hesitated for a long time before speaking.

"Scholar, I'm not urging you to pay me back, it's just that you've been waiting too long to pay me back. My pharmacy is a small business, and without the money coming in, it would be hard for me to make ends meet."

Pei Luoshu stood straight like a pine tree with his thin waist. Facing Dr. Yang's debt collection, he bent his back slightly and looked embarrassed.

"Doctor Yang, can you wait a little longer? I will pay you back as soon as I have the money. I hope you can give me some time."

Doctor Yang sighed deeply, feeling helpless.

"Scholar, if my wife hadn't urged me, why would I ask you for the money for the medicine in public? Please have some mercy on an old man like me!"

Seeing more and more people gathering around him, Pei Luoshu's face turned redder and redder with embarrassment, he pursed his lips, not knowing what to do.

"Doctor Yang, don't blame him, this is my fault!"

Chen Shiyi finished his work, listened for a while and then interrupted.

"Mr. Pei had already saved up enough money to pay you back. Later, I was injured and didn't have enough money, so I borrowed the money that Mr. Pei should have used to pay you back. You see, time has passed and Mr. Pei didn't urge me. I have been saving money to pay him back. If you are angry, blame me, not Mr. Pei."

Doctor Yang finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"How much money does he owe you?"

"Two ounces and eight cents."

Chen Shiyi poured out all the copper coins he had earned today, counted them, and then took out some small change from his sleeves and handed them all to Doctor Yang.

"Can you count and see if it's enough?"

Doctor Yang nodded with satisfaction, counted the money, and left with a smile.

Seeing that there was nothing exciting to see, the people around also dispersed one after another.

Pei Luoshu was still in the same posture as before, standing there motionless, his palms clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

Just now, when Chen Shiyi spoke eloquently to help him out, he kept looking at her.

He was thinking that she helped him and took all the responsibilities on herself, so that she would not be stained by any dirt, and she was praised as a good person for nothing.

He is obviously not a good person and has been using her all the time. How could he be worthy of her helping him again and again, and being so considerate and caring to him while helping him and taking care of his face?

He is aloof and difficult to get along with, picky and bad-tempered, ugly in appearance and with a sharp tongue.

He's not worth it.