The candlelight flickered as Xin Jiuwei sat upright at her desk.
"Miss, why are you writing a letter so late?" Wang Qing brought over a cup of fresh tea and asked softly.
Xin Jiuwei smiled slightly: "Faith is something you always have to come in handy at crucial moments."
She wrote with lightning speed, the ink flowing in lines across the paper.
Wang Qing glanced at the letter curiously and saw the words "Master Jueming" prominently displayed at the beginning. Her eyes widened in surprise: "Why is Miss writing to Master Jueming?"
Could it be that Miss has recently become a Buddhist?
"Someone like Qi Huaiyu won't easily give up such a lucrative opportunity as the Xin family." Xin Jiuwei continued writing, her voice calm. "I need someone to help me."
With the final stroke, Xin Jiuwei folded the letter, dripped sealing wax on it, and stamped it with her personal seal.
Then her gaze fell on an account book on the desk. It had been delivered by the accountant that morning and clearly recorded the huge debt that the Feng family owed at the Yongxing Gambling House—a full three thousand taels of silver.
"Any movement from Yongxing Casino?" she suddenly asked.
Wang Qing lowered her voice: "This morning, an informant reported that Madam Feng hasn't shown up for three days. The people from the gambling den went to see Qi Huaiyu yesterday, but returned empty-handed."
Xin Jiuwei tapped her fingertips lightly on the table: "That Qi Huaiyu, he's truly heartless."
The next morning, Xin Jiuwei was pruning an orchid in the yard when Wang Qing rushed over.
"Miss!" she gasped, a hint of schadenfreude flashing in her eyes, "The people from Yongxing Gambling House have kidnapped Madam Feng! Right there on the street, lots of people saw it!"
Xin Jiuwei paused slightly in her hand, her scissors still in her hand. "Where is Qi Huaiyu?"
"He wasn't home at the time. I heard that when he returned, he flew into a rage, threatening to take the matter to the authorities. As a result, the people from the gambling den just slapped the IOU in his face..." Wang Qing described vividly, "Now the whole capital is talking about how Young Master Qi's relative owes money and won't pay it back."
Xin Jiuwei gently plucked a withered leaf: "He can't afford it."
"That's right!" Wang Qing nodded vigorously. "Qi Huaiyu's family can't even scrape together three hundred taels, let alone three thousand. The gambling den said that if the money isn't paid back within three days, they'll... they'll sell Feng Shi to a brothel to pay off the debt!"
A cold glint flashed in Xin Jiuwei's eyes: "He will definitely come looking for Father."
No sooner had she finished speaking than a commotion erupted from the front yard. Wang Qing ran to the door to peek out, then quickly returned: "Miss, you were right! Young Master Qi really has arrived, and he's crying and begging Master in the front hall!"
Xin Jiuwei put down the scissors and straightened her sleeves: "Let's go see this 'filial son's' performance."
In the front hall, Qi Huaiyu knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face, pleading, "Uncle Xin, please save my mother! Those gambling den people are heartless. My mother is old and frail; how can she endure such torture..."
Mr. Xin sat in the main seat and said, “It’s not that I’m unwilling to help, but your previous words and actions were not gentlemanly and have disappointed me greatly. As for your mother, she should also be taught a lesson.”
"I know my mother has made mistakes, but she is still my birth mother!" Qi Huaiyu kowtowed deeply. "Uncle Xin, if you can lend a helping hand, I am willing to serve you like a slave to repay your great kindness!"
Xin Jiuwei stood behind the screen, coldly observing this farce. Qi Huaiyu had deliberately worn a plain white robe today, making him look even more haggard, perfectly embodying the image of a filial son.
"Father." She slowly entered the hall, curtsied to Xin's father, and then, as if only then noticing Qi Huaiyu, said, "Young Master Qi is here too."
When Qi Huaiyu saw Xin Jiuwei, a complex emotion flashed in his eyes, followed by even greater sorrow: "Jiuwei! Please help me, save my mother!"
Xin Jiuwei feigned surprise: "What's wrong?"
"My mother was kidnapped by the gambling den. They said... they said if she didn't pay back the money within three days, they would..." Qi Huaiyu choked up, looking like he was in unbearable pain.
Xin Jiuwei let out a soft "Ah," and said, "Is that so? But..." She looked troubled, "Didn't Young Master Qi just say the other day that he had already severed ties with the Feng family? Why is he saying this again today..."
Qi Huaiyu's face stiffened, then became even more sorrowful: "Those were just words spoken in a moment of anger when I was confused! Blood ties cannot be severed so easily? Jiuwei, you have always been kind-hearted, I beg you..."
"Young Master Qi, you are mistaken," Xin Jiuwei interrupted him, her voice gentle yet each word sharp as a knife. "The gambling debts were incurred by your mother, and naturally, they should be repaid by you. My Xin family has no relation to the Qi family, so why should we pay this money?"
"But...but we'll get married someday!" Qi Huaiyu said urgently. "If this matter isn't resolved, it will be a hidden danger for Jiuwei's future life."
Xin Jiuwei sneered: "Marriage? When Young Master Qi and Miss Xue were composing poems, did you ever think about marrying me? I didn't even know that our Yingzhou City had such a custom. Two people with no relationship can get married and act as each other's fiancés."
Qi Huaiyu's face turned ashen as he turned to Xin's father: "Uncle Xin..."
Mr. Xin sighed, "Huaiyu, Jiuwei is right. It's indeed inconvenient for the Xin family to get involved in these gambling debts."
A flash of resentment crossed Qi Huaiyu's eyes, but he quickly replaced it with a pleading look: "Then...then could I possibly ask Uncle Xin to lend me three thousand taels of silver? I promise..."
"Young Master Qi," Xin Jiuwei interrupted him again, "how will you repay this? Three thousand taels—I'm afraid you and your son couldn't earn that much in a lifetime."
Qi Huaiyu's sore spot was hit, and his face turned pale and then red. Suddenly, he stood up abruptly, a resolute glint in his eyes: "Fine! Very well! The Xin family refused to help me in my time of need, I, Qi Huaiyu, will remember this!" With that, he turned and left.
Watching his departing figure, Xin's father shook his head and sighed, "This child, in the end..."
"Father, there's no need to blame yourself," Xin Jiuwei comforted him. "You chose this path yourself; you can't blame anyone else."
Two days later, news suddenly spread throughout the capital that Qi Huaiyu, seeing injustice, pawned all his property to save a woman being threatened by a gambling den, and then announced in a high-profile manner that he would prepare a special birthday gift for Xin Jiuwei.
He, who had left dejectedly that day, suddenly changed his expression again.
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