Remarrying Chun Yuan

"???"

Liu Yuechu's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. "Bet? Is it really necessary?" Isn't that a bit absurd!

"Why wouldn't it be? You're a celebrity in the capital now. Who wouldn't want to rise to the top and become the Liu family's golden son-in-law? I'm not a man either, otherwise no one could compete with me." Lin Mengyu thought of Lin Mengjun again, and teased Liu Yuechu with a smile, "Tell me, if I help my brother get the kite, would he dare to marry you?"

"Get lost, and whatever you do, don't you dare lay a hand on me." Liu Yuechu wouldn't dare joke about this.

She already had someone she liked, and besides, she didn't like Lin Mengjun at all. Her relationship with Madam Lin had just improved a little, but this girl ruined it again…

Liu Yuechu thought of Yuancuo again.

I wonder if his name is on the betting odds set by the casino operators.

White peony root.

"The servant is here."

"Find someone you don't recognize and send them to the casino..."

The casino was packed with people, and the noise was so loud that even the barking of dogs was drowned out. Everyone was arguing about the marriage selection gambling game on the second day of the second lunar month.

The casino owner saw that most of the customers' bets were on the young master of the Duke of Jingguo's mansion, followed by Pei Chun, and then two or three sons of officials. Even Li Chengyue and Yang Zhanchun were listed.

"What a pity I'm not a scholar, otherwise I would have placed a bet on myself." Jia Shun's eyes lit up when he saw the amount on the betting slip. If he won this in one go, he would never have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of his life.

"I place my bet, Yuan Cuo." A stranger entered and slammed a hundred taels of silver onto the table.

The silvery light instantly silenced the noise.

"Yuan Cuo? Who is Yuan Cuo?"

People in the casino would find this name unfamiliar.

They pondered carefully, but there seemed to be no officials with the surname Yuan in any of the major mansions. Where did this person come from?

There was much discussion, and many people went from street to street. After discussing it for a while, someone remembered a doctor who set up a free clinic on the street named Yuan Cuo.

My father had served as a clerk in the Ministry of Works, but he died young, leaving the family with nothing but a courtyard. How could anyone place bets on such a man?

"Are you sure you want to bet this person?" Jia Shun was so shocked that he came out to greet him personally. Ordinary people could live comfortably on two taels of silver a month, but this person was betting over a hundred taels, which was no small sum.

"Just tell me how much I can get if I win." The man's tone was indifferent, calm and unperturbed, as if he didn't care about the hundred taels at all.

Jia Shun fiddled with the abacus for a while, then held up three chubby fingers, "Three thousand."

Three thousand taels?!

Even a three-courtyard mansion in the capital wouldn't cost three thousand taels!

Ignoring the astonishment of the crowd, he nodded again, "Then we'll bet on him."

"Have you thought this through? This name isn't listed on the betting odds."

"If I place the bet, won't his name be on the list?"

Jia Shun really wanted to lift his veil to see who it was, "Brother, actually, a hundred taels can be divided among multiple people to bet, there's no need to take such a risk..."

"What kind of gambling is it if you don't gamble until you're bankrupt? A few scattered taels of silver is just scheming." His voice was as clear as a spring nightingale's song, and his upright posture only accentuated his arrogance. He was not one of the gambling addicts, because he was gambling with his entire life.

Jia Shunping composed himself and immediately gave his employees a meaningful look. He accepted one hundred taels of silver, and the employees promptly added Yuan Cuo's name to the register.

Originally, the largest bet was only a few dozen taels, but now some people are betting a hundred taels. Yuan Cuo's name is not as good as that of the young master, but he is now on par with Pei Chun.

The man took the gambling ticket, folded it neatly, put it in his pocket, and left. He noticed that people from the casino were following him, and after circling around a few times, he finally returned home.

The veil covering his face was removed, revealing Yuan Cuo's face, but there was no smile on his face; instead, he looked as desolate as a withered leaf.

Hou Lai greeted him, "What? Regret betting everything you have?"

Yuan Cuo clicked his tongue in dismay, "I bet a hundred taels and still didn't get first place."

"Then why didn't you bet more?"

"No money."

Yuan Cuo took out the casino tickets and looked at them from left to right. "I only managed to scrape together a hundred taels after mortgaging the small courtyard as well."

Hou Lai let out a hiss. He knew Yuan Cuo had gone to the casino, but he didn't know that he had mortgaged his residence.

"...What if Lady Liu doesn't agree? Are we going to have to sleep on the streets?"

"Then let's leave the capital. Anyway, we decided to leave in the first place."

"You're leaving and never coming back?"

Yuan Cuo remained silent. He hadn't planned to come back before, but now he didn't want to leave.

By a twist of fate, his encounter with Liu Yuechu was too sudden.

"Alright, go prepare the food. The leftover bread is enough for seven days, so be careful with it these next few days."

……

At this time, the servants of the Liu family had already informed Liu Yuechu about the situation at the casino.

Even Liu Yuechu, with her strong composure, was dumbfounded. "Someone actually bet on Yuan Cuo, and on a hundred taels of silver?"

"Yes, it's Young Master Yuan, absolutely." Liu Muchi confirmed again, "And the person who placed the bet even said that gambling means going bankrupt..."

"What kind of absurd theory is this? Are they crazy?!" Lin Mengyu stuffed the fruit into her mouth to stop herself from screaming.

Liu Yuechu pursed her lips and smiled knowingly. Only he could utter such arrogant words.

He said he bet a hundred taels, but he must only have a hundred taels.

His inherent arrogance, sharp as a blade, was impossible to ignore. It was also a way of telling her that even after being rejected that day, he hadn't given up, and was even willing to gamble everything on it...

Lin Mengyu noticed her strange expression and after a long pause, tentatively asked, "Don't tell me you want to marry Yuan Cuo?!"

"Why can't it be him?" Liu Yuechu did not deny it.

Lin Mengyu gasped, her eyes darting around for a long time. "So all those conditions you listed before were tailor-made for him?"

Her family background was no higher than the third rank; she held the title of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the lowest level of the imperial examinations); she was skilled in cooking and medicine. Furthermore, Yuan Cuo traveled extensively, publishing numerous miscellaneous books, some of which even saved her mother's life…

Liu Yuechu blushed and decided not to hide it any longer. "Even if you guessed correctly, you mustn't tell anyone. Otherwise, it will spread like wildfire and affect his ability to win money at the casino." Three thousand taels of silver is no small sum, and Yuan Cuo might be betting on this "dowry."

Although he didn't have much money, he had a broad vision.

Lin Mengyu was shocked and looked at Liu Yuechu with pleading eyes, her little hands trembling. "Yue Niang, you've really been wronged..." Her best friend could have married into a wealthy family, but she insisted on choosing a live-in son-in-law.

Although she thought Yuan Cuo was a good person, she still felt he wasn't good enough for Liu Yuechu.

Liu Yuechu shook her head. "I'm not wronged. Even without what happened before, I would still choose him."

"Why?" Lin Mengyu couldn't understand.

“Because he is a good person.” Liu Yuechu was not just giving a perfunctory answer.

Lin Mengyu said awkwardly, "My older brother is also a good person."