Seeing Jie Jingjue walk over, Mrs. Xie reacted with lightning speed. She pulled off Mr. Xie’s jacket from beside him and threw it over the stone table, completely covering the money and books.
"Yan Qiu," Mr. Xie said helplessly. His wife was so fast she hadn’t even said a word before yanking his jacket off. ’She was just defending Jing Wu a mont ago,’ he thought. ’Isn’t this a bit hypocritical?’
Qin i watched Mrs. Xie’s maneuver in shock. ’She isn’t wary of outsiders, but she’s on guard against her own son. This is just ridiculous.’
"What’s with the looks on your faces?" Jie Jingjue had a bad feeling. He felt like he shouldn’t have co ho.
Mr. Xie averted his gaze, as if this foolish son wasn’t his. Jie Jinghun also looked baffled, while Jie Jingshan’s eyes were full of pity for Jie Jingjue. Jie Jingchen wore a aningful expression, and Mrs. Xie looked at him with disappointnt, as if scolding him for failing to live up to her expectations. Only Qin i was giving him a serene, picturesque smile.
"Ta-da! Jing Wu, look at this!" Before Mrs. Xie could notice, Qin i yanked Mr. Xie’s jacket off the table. She didn’t give it back to Mr. Xie, but tossed it directly to Jie Jingchen.
Jie Jingchen caught it and handed it back to his father.
"Xiao i," Mrs. Xie cried out, trying to stop her, but she was a step too late.
"Holy shit! All this money, whose is it?" It wasn’t that Jie Jingjue had never seen money before, but he was still stunned by such a large pile of cash.
His parents never gave him more than a hundred yuan at a ti. The most he’d ever received from his mom was ten of the large, ten-yuan notes, while his maternal grandparents were more generous, giving him a thousand at most.
Jie Jingjue was a character; whatever you gave him, he’d spend. Give a little, he’d spend a little. Give a lot, he’d spend a lot.
"I earned it," Qin i said, a smile as bright as the morning sun gracing her face.
Jie Jingjue froze. ’Fourth Sister-in-law doesn’t have a job, so where would she get money? Unless...’ Jie Jingjue had a sinking feeling. He turned, ready to make a run for it.
Seeing Jie Jingjue about to flee, Qin i called out to Jie Jingchen, "Jie Jingchen, grab him."
Almost before the words were out of Qin i’s mouth, Jie Jingchen had Jie Jingjue in a grip. He had been ready, prepared to act without hesitation the mont Jing Wu made a move.
The contrast left Mrs. Xie and the others dumbfounded. Jing Wu’s reaction was particularly strange. With so much money laid out, not only did he show no greed or desire to claim it, but he was inexplicably panicked—even trying to escape.
"Fourth Brother, Fourth Brother, easy! Be careful of your back injury... Ah... Fourth Brother, that hurts, it hurts..." Jie Jingjue didn’t dare struggle. His fourth brother was recuperating. If his struggling made the injury worse, his own fate would be even more miserable.
"Jing Wu, were you planning to slip away?" Qin i walked up to Jie Jingjue, looking at him with a wide grin.
"Fourth Sister-in-law, you’ve got it all wrong! My stomach hurts, I need to use the toilet," Jie Jingjue said, forcing his mouth into a stiff grin that looked worse than a grimace.
"Is that so?" Qin i made it clear she didn’t believe him.
"It’s true, I’m not lying! I can’t... Fourth Sister-in-law, I can’t hold it anymore! Fourth Sister-in-law, quick, tell Fourth Brother to let go! I’m about to shit my pants!" Jie Jingjue’s handso face contorted as if he was in genuine agony.
"Jing Wu, a bet’s a bet, and you have to accept your loss," Qin i said, raising a hand to casually pick at her nails. Her gaze on Jie Jingjue was calm, yet bloodthirsty. "Jing Wu, the people I hate most are those who are willing to gamble but refuse to lose. With people like that, I show no rcy and I don’t hold back. How about this, I’ll dislo—"
"Fourth Sister-in-law, I’ll accept my loss! I fully and truly accept it!" Jie Jingjue cut Qin i off. She hadn’t finished her sentence, but he knew exactly what she was going to say.
Dislocate his jaw. The thought of Xu Chunwang’s miserable state made Jie Jingjue shudder. He didn’t dare test her.
’A glint flashed in Jie Jingchen’s eyes. Qin i’s words aren’t just for Jing Wu; they’re for , too. A bet’s a bet. I accepted my loss and didn’t try to weasel out of it. I’m just paying her later, it’s not like I won’t give it to her.’ Thinking this, Jie Jingchen no longer felt guilty.
"Very good." Qin i was satisfied. She gave Jie Jingchen a look, and he understood imdiately, releasing Jie Jingjue.
Now free, Jie Jingjue gave up on the idea of running. The monk can run, but the temple can’t. This was his ho; it wasn’t worth ending up on the streets over a bit of money.
Jie Jingjue stretched his limbs and asked doubtfully, "Fourth Sister-in-law, did you really set Xu Chunwang’s jaw back in place?"
"The money arrived, so I did the job," Qin i nodded. The allure of money was too tempting; she was not immune to it.
Before, she never had much feeling about money. She paid for everything by scanning a code and almost never used cash. Money was just a number to her. But ever since she transmigrated to this era, she had co to love it.
With no mories of the original owner of this body, she had no way to seek help from her family. With no relatives to rely on, she could only find her sense of security in money.
"Fourth Sister-in-law, are you sure the money to fix Xu Chunwang’s jaw ca from the Xu family?" Jie Jingjue asked, still trying to put up a last-ditch struggle.
Qin i’s expression instantly turned cold. A sneer escaped her lips as she stared sharply at Jie Jingjue and retorted, "Your second sister-in-law’s surna is Xu. Does she not count as part of the Xu family?"
Jie Jingjue gave a dry, sowhat cynical laugh. "Fourth Sister-in-law, Second Sister-in-law is from the Xu family, yes, but Second Brother has a share in her money."
"Your second brother is the Xu family’s son-in-law. That makes him half a mber of the Xu family." Qin i could tell Jie Jingjue was just trying to get out of paying.
"That may be true, but..."
"Jie Jingjue, either you pay up, or I’ll dislocate your jaw," Qin i cut him off, laying down the threat.
Jie Jingjue shrank back, rubbing his chin and putting on an appeasing smile. "Hehe, Fourth Sister-in-law, don’t be angry. I’m not trying to get out of it. I’m just really curious how soone as stingy as Second Sister-in-law willingly forked over a thousand yuan for you to fix her brother’s jaw."
’Fine,’ he thought, ’Second Sister-in-law is from the Xu family, so if she paid, it counts as the Xu family paying.’
Qin i snorted coldly. "Who said she did it willingly? She was forced into it. And also, who said it was a thousand?"
Bargaining was Second Sister-in-law’s strong suit. A flicker of joy lit up in Jie Jingjue’s heart. ’Could it be...?’
’He looked at the pile of money on the stone table, which was clearly no less than a thousand. If Second Sister-in-law successfully bargained the price down, why is there so much extra money? Unless... Fourth Sister-in-law didn’t just bet with .’ Looking at the people around him—his parents, Third Brother, and Jing Qi—he figured that if they all pitched in, his share wouldn’t be much. Jie Jingjue breathed a sigh of relief.
"Fifth Brother, it’s two thousand," Jie Jingshan said, tugging on Jie Jingjue’s sleeve. "I counted. Not a cent more, not a cent less."
Hearing it was two thousand, Jie Jingjue wasn’t worried at all. He said, "Dad, Mom, Third Brother, and you—the five of us can split it..."
"Who wants to split it with you?" said Jie Jinghun.
"How absurd," said Mr. Xie.
"Jing Wu, have you lost your mind?" said Mrs. Xie.
The three of them spoke in unison, their reactions rather fierce.
"You guys didn’t bet with Fourth Sister-in-law?" Jie Jingjue asked.
The three of them glared at him and said in unison, "We’re not as idle as you."
Jie Jingjue looked lost. Qin i spoke up, "Two thousand. To set the jaw."
"What?" Jie Jingjue was no longer calm. "Wasn’t it one thousand?"
"I jacked up the price on the spot. Doubled it," Qin i replied.
Jie Jingjue was about to lose his mind. Not only did Second Sister-in-law fail to bargain, but Fourth Sister-in-law had jacked up the price instead. "Fourth Sister-in-law, you and Second Sister-in-law are sisters-in-law! You’re family! How could you just jack up the price like that? That’s so shaless!"
"Is there anything wrong with wanting to make more money?" Qin i asked.
Jie Jingjue’s mouth twitched. He swallowed hard and said plaintively, "There’s nothing wrong with making more money, no... but this is way too much!"
"Enough nonsense. Pay up. Two thousand," Qin i said, holding her hand out to Jie Jingjue.
Jie Jingjue stared at Qin i’s open palm and grit his teeth. "Fourth Sister-in-law, I don’t have the money."
"Whether you have the money or not is not my problem. You either don’t make a bet, or you honor it when you lose," Qin i said, her tone harsh and her expression unyielding.
Mrs. Xie and Mr. Xie exchanged a look. No wonder Qin i had insisted on leaving the money out. She had a bet with Jing Wu. She’d earned two thousand from the old couple, and now Jing Wu was losing another two thousand to her. She’d made four thousand in a single day.
’Impressive, truly impressive. I’m in awe, truly in awe.’
"Mom..." Jie Jingjue looked to Mrs. Xie, his eyes pleading for help.
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