Chapter 32: The Side Courtyard

 **Chapter 32: The Side Courtyard**

"Don't worry, I've had the sword boy secretly follow him," said Chang Sui'an . "You can trust him with this." Especially since yesterday he had casually mentioned, "We need to find out what color those pants of Zhou's are," and the sword boy actually did it!

When the sword boy told him, "He's wearing camel-colored pants today," he felt a mix of shock, relief, and a hint of indescribable guilt.

Chang Suining was unaware of the bitter truth behind the polished words of "You can trust me" and simply nodded, gazing through the half-drawn curtain at the Han City Lake gradually disappearing behind their carriage.

Her meeting with Zhou Ting today was partly for Zhou, but mainly to show the unseen observers that she was still alive and still associating with him.

She expected this news would soon reach their ears.

Whether it was to settle scores with Zhou or for other reasons, there would certainly be some movement.

---

As dusk approached.

In a gambling den at the end of the street, a man in a blue shirt was thrown out.

"If you've lost your money, you can't just deny it! Do you know where you are?!" 

With a purple bruise on his lip, the man refused to accept it. "How could I keep losing? You must be cheating!"

"Don't talk nonsense! You look like a decent scholar, but don't force us to lose our patience!" 

"If you don’t want to die, get out of here! Don’t delay our business!"

Watching the long stick being raised, Zhou Ting's face turned pale as he stepped back a few paces, reluctantly leaving.

"I’ve lost... everything..." His expression was vacant, like a walking corpse, muttering, "I can’t pay, and the Chang family... they won’t let me off easy. What should I do?"

"Is it really you?!"

A boy's voice suddenly came from behind: "At first, I thought I was mistaken, so I waited for you to come out of the gambling den... You actually gamble behind our backs!"

Zhou Ting quickly turned around to see an eight or nine-year-old boy glaring at him in anger.

"My father always said that gamblers can't be trusted!" The boy huffed. "I'm going back to tell my sister! I'll have her break off the engagement with you!"

With that, the boy turned to leave.

"Wait!" Zhou Ting hurriedly chased after him, grabbing the boy's arm. "I was just... just looking for a friend; please don’t say anything to A Tien!"

"You’re lying! I heard what the gambling den worker said!" The boy’s face flushed with anger. "You really are a liar! My sister and I have both been deceived by you!"

Zhou Ting's expression changed drastically.

"Let me go!" The boy struggled, trying to free his arm, but Zhou tightened his grip.

"You can’t tell A Tien!" Zhou Ting stared at him, a sinister coldness flickering in his eyes.

After spending half a day in the smoky, noisy gambling den and watching his money disappear bit by bit, cold sweat poured from him. His eyes, ears, and mind were in turmoil, and this could easily destroy a person’s sanity.

At this moment, one thought consumed him—his fiancée’s dowry was his last lifeline; he absolutely could not lose this engagement!

Unbeknownst to him, his other hand had already tightened around the boy's throat.

As the boy struggled, Zhou's grip grew tighter, his expression increasingly terrifying.

Watching this scene from the shadows, the sword boy furrowed his brow, quickly thinking. He pulled out a stone and threw it at a black dog lying at the alley's entrance.

The black dog was sleeping when it was suddenly hit on the butt by the stone, waking up in confusion and anger. It leaped up and barked furiously, charging toward Zhou Ting.

Caught in a guilty act, Zhou Ting was startled by the dog and immediately released the boy.

But the dog was determined and bit down on his leg.

"Get away!" Zhou Ting panicked and kicked the dog away before running off.

The boy held his throat and bent over, coughing for a moment. Once he caught his breath, he quickly ran in the opposite direction from Zhou.

The sword boy let out a slight sigh of relief.

Having finally shaken off the dog after escaping the alley, Zhou Ting intended to turn back and chase the boy, but was suddenly blocked by a tall figure.

He looked up and felt cold sweat break out on his back at the sight of the man.

"Come with me," the man said gruffly, not politely at all.

Zhou Ting looked at the horse-drawn carriage behind the man, feeling a cold sweat drip down his forehead, and nodded.

When the carriage stopped, it was already dark.

Zhou Ting got out and walked toward the figure standing by the riverside under the willow trees.

"My master wants to ask how things are going. The task was supposed to be completed, the remaining money is in hand, but how come that dead person is now well and good at the lake? Isn’t he also enjoying the spring outing with Zhou Ting?" The middle-aged man spoke, his tone oddly devoid of much blame or anger.

Zhou Ting's heart sank.

Had they been watching him in secret all along?

"I... I only learned today that she was so lucky to survive after being rescued that night!" 

The man sighed. "So that’s why the Chang family hasn’t held the funeral yet; I thought they hadn’t found the body. Turns out she’s been living in the house recovering from her illness."

It sounded casual, but Zhou Ting laughed awkwardly, "It’s a good thing I didn’t act directly; she hasn’t suspected me... There’s still a chance for a remedy."

The man asked, "What do you plan to do?"

"Three days... give me three days. This time, there won’t be any mistakes; I will confirm her death with my own eyes!" Zhou Ting lowered his voice. "But... I need some money. General Chang has returned to the capital and is quite displeased about my dealings with her... I need money to manage the people around her so that I can lure her out and take action!"

"How much do you need?"

"One hundred taels..." As he spoke, Zhou furtively gauged the man's expression. Seeing the man's eyebrows raise, he quickly changed his tune. "No, fifty taels. Fifty taels is enough!"

Enough for him to recoup his losses!

"No one will always be down on their luck!"

"Fifty taels... that’s not too much," the man replied, glancing at the tall man who had brought Zhou Ting. "Give it to him."

Zhou Ting hurriedly thanked him and assured, "I will definitely handle this well this time!"

As the big man approached him, Zhou turned to receive the silver.

But the big man stepped forward, his hand landing on Zhou’s neck.

Zhou Ting had no time to react before he heard a "crack" sound, like bones breaking in his head—

His head hung at an unnatural angle, and he fell to the ground, his eyes wide open.

"Fool, go down and collect paper money."

The man turned and got into the carriage.

With a splash, a heavy object fell into the river, sending ripples across the surface before the night regained its calm.

The carriage traveled down a small road, finally stopping at the back door of a side courtyard.

The man got out and entered the courtyard, his expression tense.

A woman in a dark cloak sat in the hall, angrily sweeping a teacup off the table.

"Useless! All of you are useless..."

"You can't even get rid of a defenseless little brat!"

Zhou Ting's brief journey—rising, watching his dreams of grandeur shatter, and then fading away. 

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