Li Xi didn't take it seriously. "Those seemingly tempting benefits are actually carefully designed traps, just waiting for greedy people to fall into them."
Du Yifei looked thoughtful. The two of them led their horses out of the gambling house, but they were stopped by someone not long after.
"Young masters, why aren't you continuing to play?" The leader was an ordinary-looking man, followed by five burly men dressed in short-sleeved shirts.
Li Xi smiled slightly. "So you couldn't resist following me so quickly?"
She looked defiant and said, "I'm in a hurry to get home for dinner. Playing around for too long is no fun."
“Young master, this is against the rules of the underworld. You are breaking the rules by doing this,” the man said respectfully.
Li Xi raised an eyebrow. "Rules? I am the rule! What do you want?"
The man lowered his head, clasped his hands in a fist salute, and said, "I apologize for the offense, but please don't hold a grudge, young master." He then gestured to the people behind him.
Li Xi laughed angrily, "Oh, so you can't accept defeat? Have you even bothered to find out who I am? How dare you stop me here?"
The man snorted coldly, "I know all the powerful and influential people in Kyoto. I don't know where you came from."
The burly man behind her attacked Li Xi, but Li Xi dodged the blow by turning to the side, grabbed the man's arm with her backhand, and slammed him hard to the ground with an over-the-shoulder throw.
Seeing this, the others drew their knives and rushed towards Li Xi.
Du Yifei watched in disbelief. Was this a robbery?
Li Xi calmly took out a copper coin from his pocket, flicked his wrist, and the coin shot towards a burly man's forehead with astonishing speed.
"Ah!" The burly man clutched his bleeding wound and collapsed to the ground.
Li Xi took out another copper coin and this time aimed it at the throat of another burly man.
"If you dare to come forward again, you'll be the next ones to die," she said coldly.
The leader, his face ashen, stared at his subordinate on the ground, then looked at Li Xi and asked, "Who are you?"
Li Xi straightened her clothes and smiled, "I'm your grandfather."
The man drew his sword, and suddenly his expression changed, clearly angered by Li Xi.
He clenched his fist, charged at Li Xi, and roared, "What did you say?"
Li Xi remained calm. She smiled gently, lightly stepped back a few paces, and avoided the man's attack.
Enraged by his missed attack, the man charged at Li Xi again.
This time, his sword was faster and more powerful. However, Li Xi still floated away as lightly as a falling leaf, causing the man's attack to miss again.
The man looked confused. He couldn't understand why, even though he was far stronger than his opponent, he couldn't hit him.
He stopped attacking, glaring at Li Xi, "Who exactly are you?"
"Get lost, I'm going home for dinner, don't get in my way. I'm in a good mood today, I won't argue with you."
The man left helplessly; what could he do if he couldn't win?
"Wow, Master, is there anything you can't do? Who did you learn your martial arts from? Can you teach me too?" Du Yifei looked at Li Xi with eyes full of admiration.
Li Xi leaped onto his horse and refused, saying, "Hey, no, I only agreed to teach you gambling skills, I didn't say anything else. Besides, you're a bit too old, it doesn't seem like you're really suited to learning martial arts."
"You're right. I'm already this old, so it's really not suitable for me to practice martial arts anymore." He's still quite agile and knows some simple moves.
Before reaching the villa, Li Xi tossed Du Yifei a few silver ingots, saying, "Take these and use them. Don't dress so shabbily as my disciple. How many days has it been since you changed your clothes?"
Holding the silver in his hand, Du Yifei was dumbfounded. He never expected that he could get paid to be someone's apprentice.
"Don't go straight to the gambling den. This skill takes time to develop." After giving these instructions, Li Xi sped up towards the West Mountain Villa, with Du Yifei chasing after her.
When they returned to the villa, Feng Monian stood at the door, gazing intently at Li Xi and Du Yifei, his thoughts unfathomable.
"Hey, Brother Feng, are you waiting for the carriage? Going out?" Li Xi said with a grin, taking out his purse. "Look at my spoils for today! How many tables of food should I order tomorrow? It's on me!"
Feng Monian didn't reply, but his gaze remained fixed on Du Yifei. His gaze made Du Yifei feel uncomfortable, as if he could see right through him.
After a long pause, he slowly spoke, "Why didn't you look for me when you went to the gambling den?"
Li Xi noticed that he was in a bad mood and assumed he was angry because he hadn't taken him with him.
"Since you're busy, I'll take my apprentice to the gambling den and show him my skills. Pretty impressive, huh? But those people there can't afford to lose, they even tried to rob me. Don't they know who I am?" She was a little smug. Did they think she was easy to bully?
Feng Monian frowned upon hearing this, "Which gambling den?"
Li Xi casually replied, "The one in the east of the city."
Feng Monian's face darkened. "That's an illegal gambling den. Don't go there again."
"An illegal gambling den?" Li Xi was taken aback. No wonder those people couldn't afford to lose and still dared to rob people; it turned out to be an illegal gambling den.
She pouted and said, "I thought it was something else, but it's just a shady gambling den. Brother Feng, you underestimate me." Did he really think she was someone who couldn't even kill a chicken?
Feng Monian didn't speak for a while before saying, "Let's go. The Emperor Emeritus is hosting a banquet. Next time, we'll buy some snacks to tide us over so we don't go hungry."
The three walked toward the banquet hall. Du Yifei followed behind them and, upon hearing Feng Monian's concerned words, began to wonder if the two of them had some kind of unusual fetish.
This tall guy doted on his master like a beloved person.
One moment he was concerned about whether his master was hungry or cold, and the next he was putting his cloak on Li Xi.
Huh? Why does he feel like he's being disliked and an eyesore?
Du Yifei sighed softly, feeling like he was an extra person.
He followed silently behind the two, trying to minimize his presence.
Feng Monian and Li Xi chatted and laughed all the way, seemingly forgetting Du Yifei's presence.
He felt like an observer, watching the two people's tacit understanding and closeness, and couldn't help but feel a little envious.
The three entered the banquet hall and immediately felt the lively atmosphere.
Everyone greeted them. Du Yifei was seated in a corner, while Feng Monian and Li Xi were surrounded by the crowd.
Alone, Du Yifei couldn't help but feel a little bored. He began to observe the people and environment around him, trying to find something to do to pass the time.
He noticed a woman dressed in red, with a beautiful face, chatting and laughing with the person next to her.
Her smile was bright and captivating, drawing the attention of everyone around her.
Du Yifei was captivated by her beauty, his gaze unconsciously following her figure.
A strange feeling suddenly arose in his heart; he wanted to get closer to the woman, but he didn't know how to start the conversation.
Just as he hesitated, the woman seemed to sense his gaze, turned her head, and looked in Du Yifei's direction. Their eyes met in mid-air, and Du Yifei's heart skipped a beat, a smile appearing on his face.
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