Chapter 91

The closer one gets to the frontier, the more desolate and cold it becomes.

The group had been walking mountain paths for two days, and even Yu Liancheng was exhausted.

By the time they reached a town, it was already late, so the group chose an inn to stay in.

The moon was already hanging high; it was deep into the night.

A small figure, however, slipped out of the inn, a mischievous smile on her lips.

It was Shangguan Xueer.

At her age, she was naturally lively and full of energy.

Even if she were very tired, she could recover quickly, and she simply could not sleep right now.

She wanted to find something to do to pass the time.

She had assumed there would be nothing fun in this border town, but following a small alley, she soon discovered a gambling house.

A tattered white lantern, having turned almost a deathly gray, hung askew on a narrow door at the end of the long alley.

Beneath the lantern hung a gleaming Silver Hook, swaying incessantly in the autumn wind.

The autumn wind seemed to sigh, sighing at why there were so many people in this world willing to be hung upon this Silver Hook.

This gambling house was called the Silver Hook Gambling House.

"Hee hee, I wonder if it's fun inside."

Shangguan Xueer walked into the Silver Hook Gambling House.

The luxuriously decorated hall was filled with warmth and joy; the fragrance of wine mingled with the scent of high-quality face powder, and the clinking of silver coins produced a crisp, pleasant sound. For a gambler, there was almost no sound in the world that could compare to it.

Shangguan Xueer also liked this sound; although she was not a gambler, she was curious about everything and found everything interesting.

And without a doubt, like Yu Liancheng, she was someone who enjoyed luxury and amusement.

And the Silver Hook Gambling House was a very luxurious place, with all sorts of luxurious ways to spend.

The most luxurious way, without a doubt, was gambling—high-stakes gambling.

Eating, drinking, and whoring were also luxurious, but it was hard to squander one's family fortune in a short time, and sometimes eating and drinking too much or whoring too excessively would instead make one feel nauseated and empty.

Only this gambling.

To lose one's entire family fortune overnight was merely a common occurrence.

Shangguan Xueer casually chose a table in the middle; this table was for playing dice, betting on big or small.

Very simple.

But sometimes, the simpler something is, the more thrilling it is.

Her luck was very good on the first round; she won.

She won the second round as well.

She lost the third round.

……

Shangguan Xueer was betting big, and she was betting fast.

Although there were wins and losses, the losses were indeed more frequent.

After about an hour, she had actually lost everything, down to the last penny.

"Place your bets, place your bets."

The dealer was calling out again, his gaze inadvertently fixed on Shangguan Xueer, his eyes gleaming; this little girl looked like a big, fat pig in his eyes.

This big, fat sheep had already lost ten thousand taels of silver, which was definitely not a small sum.

And Shangguan Xueer had even borrowed two thousand taels of silver.

The gamblers nearby were also looking at Shangguan Xueer, their eyes filled with mockery and schadenfreude.

Seeing others lose money was undoubtedly a very pleasant thing, especially for gamblers like them who had also lost money.

Of course, no one dared to laugh out loud.

Of course, it was not because they had high standards, but purely because they did not dare.

A gambling house was never a proper place; earlier, someone had seen that Xue'er was cute and wanted to tease her.

But she had slapped him across the face, almost sending him flying, and he had lost several teeth.

Since then, no one dared to act presumptuously in front of this little girl.

Shangguan Xueer's originally rosy cheeks had turned pale.

Sweat was flowing down her pale face, bloodshot veins appeared in her large eyes, and her small body was trembling slightly.

Right now, she truly looked like a gambler who had lost their mind.

And a gambler like this would not hesitate to bet everything.

Wife, children, family fortune, and even themselves.

Shangguan Xueer looked at the dealer and said in a pleading tone, "Lend me another hundred taels; I will definitely be able to win it back, I will definitely be able to win it back."

The dealer shook his head and said in an icy tone, "Two thousand taels of silver is already the maximum debt limit. If the guest doesn't have enough money, you can go home to get some; the Silver Hook Gambling House is open every day anyway."

But clearly, no gambler could listen to such words.

A red light flickered in her eyes; it seemed she was already planning to bet everything.

Shangguan Xueer bit her red lip with her pearly teeth, as if making a very difficult decision; she fished a token out from her bosom and kept rubbing it: "Go, go call your big boss; I want to do business with him."

The dealer was also a person who knew his goods; he naturally recognized that the jade in Shangguan Xueer's hand was no ordinary item and could be sold for a high price, so he went off with a "thump, thump, thump" to find the big boss.

Everyone knew that the big boss of the Silver Hook Gambling House was Blue Beard.

And when they saw this person, there was no need for anyone to introduce him; everyone knew he was Blue Beard.

Because he not only had a green face and fangs, thick eyebrows and angry eyes, but also a mouth full of a big beard—a beard so black it looked blue.

Following beside Blue Beard was a very handsome man with a frivolous smile on his face; one look and it was clear he was a playboy.

Whether they were men or women, they could not help but glance at this man twice.

This person was called "Silver Kite" Fang Yufei.

He was a very famous playboy, proficient in everything, and his lightness skill was not bad either. For a man like him, women naturally could not help but look twice.

And his elder sister Fang Yuxiang was an even greater beauty, more understanding than a flower, more fragrant than jade. Men could not help but look twice as well, as if they wanted to see what his sister actually looked like by observing this kid.

Blue Beard walked up to Shangguan Xueer, glared with his eyes like a fierce god or evil ghost, and said in a deep voice, "I heard you have a deal to find me for. But do you know that I don't bother to handle deals worth less than fifty thousand taels of silver personally?"

Shangguan Xueer seemed to have calmed down, though her large eyes were still a bit red, and she said crisply, "It's not fifty thousand taels, but five hundred thousand taels!!"

"What!!"

Five hundred thousand taels!!

The entire Silver Hook Gambling House seemed to boil over, just like water that had just been brought to a boil.

Blue Beard's expression sank: "Don't try to deceive me; those who have deceived me have all died without a burial place."

Shangguan Xueer did not speak, only taking that jade tablet out once more.

——Rakshasa Tablet.