Chapter 519

When the gamblers heard, they were all dumbfounded:

"Good heavens, I've gambled all my life and never seen anything like this!"

Yeah, to get this little brother to leave, the shopkeeper actually pulled out his own silver!

Amazing, too amazing!

Tuan Tuan tugged at Daoba's sleeve: "Uncle Daoba, how much did I win?"

"Little Ancestor," Daoba's voice trembled, "It's, it's almost seventy thousand taels!"

Tuan Tuan blinked: "Is it enough? Wouldn't having more get us robbed?"

Upon hearing this, the gamblers all turned their gaze to the fat shopkeeper.

The fat shopkeeper's face stiffened instantly—robbed? Are you treating my Outside-the-Pass Tower as a black shop?

He hurriedly said, "No, no, young master, please rest assured; the Outside-the-Pass Tower has stood in Xibei for decades, never having done such a thing."

"Oh!" Tuan Tuan nodded, looking at the pile of silver like a small hill on the table, "But this much silver is so heavy, I can't hold it!"

The fat shopkeeper was almost angered to death by her—when you were winning, how come you didn't think of this?

Forget it; as long as this ancestor is willing to go, that's fine.

He curled the corner of his mouth: "Given that, I'll exchange it for banknotes for the young master, okay?"

"Good!" Tuan Tuan raised her hand and pointed at the two thousand taels of silver, "Don't forget this!"

The fat shopkeeper nodded repeatedly: "Not forgotten, definitely not forgotten!"

Soon, the clerk took banknotes from the back office and handed them to the shopkeeper.

The fat shopkeeper handed the banknotes to Daoba: "Brother, please count them."

Daoba looked at the numbers on the banknotes, then glanced at the silver pile: "Little Ancestor, the amount is correct."

"All right!" Tuan Tuan grabbed Daoba and Xiao Er's hands: "Let's go to the next place!"

The fat shopkeeper breathed a sigh of relief, just exhaling, when Tuan Tuan reached the doorway and turned to shout: "Shopkeeper Uncle! I'm leaving first; come play again when you have time!"

The fat shopkeeper's legs went weak—"Don't, you must never come again."

Daoba and Xiao Er tried not to laugh as they led Tuan Tuan out of the Outside-the-Pass Tower.

Having taken just a few steps, Daoba's legs gave way and he plopped onto the ground.

Tuan Tuan hurriedly squatted down, staring at his face: "Uncle Daoba, what's wrong? Do you need to see a doctor?"

Daoba shook his head, murmuring: "Seventy, seventy thousand taels! Little Ancestor, if the Main Camp lacks grain, having you would be enough to eat!"

Xiao Er's lips curled as he bent down and lifted Tuan Tuan: "Miss, next place?"

Tuan Tuan wrapped her arms around his neck, smiling so her eyes curved: "Let's go!"

She lowered her gaze to Daoba, sitting there dazed: "Uncle Daoba, didn't you say there were still seventeen or eighteen places? Hurry up!"

Daoba snapped back to his senses and stood up: "Coming, coming!"

The three gambled until late at night, sweeping through sixteen gambling houses in Xibei, and Daoba's banknotes in his pocket amounted to a full 230,000 taels.

Upon leaving the last gambling house, Daoba was already like a drunk, his speech incoherent.

Tuan Tuan was tired, stretching: "Uncle Daoba, do we have enough for ten thousand taels of gold?"

"Enough?" Daoba shook his head.

Tuan Tuan perked up: "Not enough? Then let's go to the next place!"

"No no no," Daoba waved his hands repeatedly, "Not just enough—we have enough for twenty thousand taels of gold!"

"At current market prices, 100,000 taels of silver would suffice, leaving a surplus of 10,000 taels!"

"Old Heaven Lord, I, Daoba, have never carried this much silver in my lifetime!"

"Oh," Tuan Tuan, hearing it was enough, relaxed her heart into her belly, tightening her grip on Xiao Er's neck: "Uncle Xiao Er, shall we sleep first and head to that valley tomorrow morning?"

"Okay, sleep, I'm here." Xiao Er gently rubbed her little face.

Tuan Tuan closed her eyes, and in the next moment fell into deep sleep.

Xiao Er whispered: "Daoba, we need to leave quickly; we can't stay here."

"Even if those gambling houses let us go, we can't be sure which gambler might secretly target us."

"With over 200,000 taels, it's enough for someone to harbor thoughts of murder and robbery."

Daoba's mind suddenly cleared: "You're right! Little Ancestor, aren't you eager to go to Hidden Cloud Valley? Let's set off now!"

He looked at the sleeping Tuan Tuan: "Just... she's still asleep..."

"No problem," Xiao Er looked fondly at Xiao Tuanzi in his arms, "When Miss is out, she often sleeps on horseback, and I always wrap her in a cloth."

"Just don't ride too fast; stay steady, and she can sleep until dawn."

Daoba sighed: "Little Ancestor is so young, and yet a Princess (Commandery), to have endured so much hardship—well, let's go."

The two took their horses; Xiao Er secured Tuan Tuan to his chest, then took out his outer robe to wrap her snugly, mounted, and rode straight toward Hidden Cloud Valley.

The next day, Tuan Tuan opened her eyes and looked around: "Huh, Uncle Xiao Er, where is this?"

Xiao Er replied: "We're almost at Hidden Cloud Valley, Miss; you slept last night, so we set out directly."

Daoba remained excited: "Yeah, Little Ancestor, just one more day's journey and we'll arrive; keep sleeping."

Tuan Tuan looked at him, then looked up at Xiao Er: "Uncle Xiao Er, you two didn't sleep?"

Xiao Er didn't tell her his worries from last night, merely saying softly: "We're fine; hurrying is urgent, the Princess Consort's illness can't wait."

Tuan Tuan stretched out her little arm from the wrapped robe, hooked her neck around his, leaned to Xiao Er's chin, and gave a light kiss: "Uncle Xiao Er, you're so good!"

Daoba was displeased: "Little Ancestor, I didn't sleep a wink all night either!"

Tuan Tuan turned to look at him: "Uncle Daoba, you're great too! When we stop, I'll give you a kiss too!"

Daoba laughed loudly: "Hahaha! Little Ancestor, do you know how much we won yesterday following you?"

"How much?"

"Twenty thousand taels! With this silver I'll go back to repair my ancestral tomb, buy land and horses, start a business, take a wife again, and have a little baby just like you!"

"Huh? So you're not returning to the Horse Gang?"

"I will! Once I settle things at home neatly, I'll go back! Let them all see that even I Daoba can bring honor to the clan!"

Tuan Tuan sweetly smiles: "How nice! Grandfather Taoist Priest said, a family should be round and harmonious!"

The three laughed and chatted, galloped all the way, and at dusk arrived before a canyon.

"Huh—" Daoba reins his horse to a halt, raises a hand and points: "This place is called Red Earth Gorge; we'll find a spot here to rest for the night."

"Tomorrow morning, once we leave here and go forward, we'll reach Hidden Cloud Valley. Good?"

"Good!"

Xiao Er follows him to a stop, looks toward the canyon ahead; the mountains on both sides are hewn like sharp axes, leaving only a narrow path that winds deep inside.

Tuan Tuan also looks up: "This looks like Wolf Throat Gorge! I wonder how Fan Fan is now, whether they've learned to catch rabbits."

Xiao Er instantly recalls the Wolf King, Jifeng… that was an unforgettable period: "Don't worry, miss, Jifeng is here."

"Little Fan Fan now, not even rabbits— even other wolves can't match it!"

Tuan Tuan nods: "When we get back to Jingcheng, I want to go to the grasslands to see Fan Fan and Uncle Jifeng!"

"Good! Ride!"

The two spur their horses and dash into the gorge, looking around for a place to set up camp.

A stammering voice suddenly boomed overhead, loud:

"This mountain— I— I opened! These— these— trees— I— I planted!"