After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

three days later

An Luoshi never expected that Baili Ce would not only write a letter to extort Wang Qingyan, but also to extort money from the accompanying officials.

In her words—

Why not take the emperor's money if it's too good to be true?

[Achoo! At this very moment, Lu Jian in the palace has been sneezing for five days straight.]

An Luoshi originally thought that Bai Li Ce's actions must have a conspiracy.

And they took great care to prevent it.

But after he successfully received half of the ransom, he couldn't help but feel a little lost in the joy that money brought.

However, he still retained a certain degree of reserve.

Especially after learning that the amount extorted from Lu Jian was rather large, he expressed his concern, "Is this appropriate?"

"suitable!"

Bai Li Ce was more open-minded than An Luo Shi, believing that "what is taken from the people should be used for the people."

And with righteous indignation, he declared, "Anyway, the emperor's money is all plundered from the people; you're just acting on behalf of Heaven!"

Most importantly, even a penniless man like Lu Jian might not be able to give it, so what does it matter how much he wants?

“That’s right! Here, try it and see how it tastes.” The female bandit Ming Xiang cut off a piece of roasted meat and handed it to Bai Li Ce.

"..." He subconsciously thought it was for Anluo, and awkwardly withdrew his hand.

"Mmm~" Bai Li Ce licked his lips, making a delicious sound.

"It's already very delicious, but if you want it drier, you can grill it a little longer."

Mingxiang changed her posture and said, "Then let's bake it for a little longer."

Completely ignored, An Luo wanted to remind Ming Xiang that he had been starving for a day in order to retrieve the silver from the designated location.

"Sister Xiangxiang, take a rest for a while."

He poured a bowl of wine for the pretty lady who was over 1.7 meters tall, and then took the barbecue grill from her and started turning it.

Watching Baili Ce skillfully turn the rack, sprinkle seasonings, and scrape the dried charcoal skin, Ming Xiang couldn't help but exclaim in surprise, "Wow, that's impressive!"

"Hey, what's so great about it? I'm still far behind everyone else~"

If the food in this bandit's den were even slightly better, she wouldn't have bothered to cook it herself.

"Hey," the seventh leader said, walking over with a wine jar in his arms, "Just how rich is the Wang family?"

“Yes,” Mingxiang said curiously, “They just gave away 50,000 taels of silver like that.”

Bai Li Ce said with a serious face, "To be precise, it's twenty-five thousand taels."

The second-in-command thought, "Even that damned emperor would need to prepare for a few days, right?"

"Hmm..." Baili Ce thought seriously while grilling meat, "I don't know exactly how rich he is."

"Anyway, it makes the dog emperor very wary."

The third leader's voice chimed in, "How does it compare to the He family?"

The bandit leader's ears were sharp.

When Yu Guangli caught sight of An Luo, he stopped drinking. Bai Li Ce casually reached out to Ming Xiang, took the mutton off the fire, placed it on the prepared leaves, and cut it into pieces.

"How can the He family compare to the Wang family?"

Although she still has no intention of becoming the matriarch of the Wang family, and is not sure whether Wang Qingyan is actually her down-on-her-luck sister.

However, "the He family is only 'a little bit of money'."

Hmph, a pittance?

An Luo secretly scoffed.

"How so?" Mingxiang asked.

"Seventh Master, wasn't it said that his daughter was very favored in the palace?"

"If they really spoiled him, would the He family have had most of their assets confiscated?" Bai Li Ce began to exaggerate the facts.

An Luoshi, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but speak up, "Nonsense."

"As far as I know, only a few underground kilns have been shut down."

"Besides, none of those private properties were in He Shoufeng's name; at most, it was just a few slaps."

Oh my, how do you know that only a few underground kilns were sealed off?

Now you've been exposed, haven't you? "How many slaps?"

Bai Li Ce picked up a few pieces of meat, put them in a leaf, and handed it to An Luo.

"Does the chief know how much it would cost to open a kiln large enough to accommodate hundreds of people in a place like Kyoto where land is incredibly expensive?"

Anluo took the roasted meat and listened attentively to what she had to say.

"After the underground kiln was completed, how much water did it generate each day?"

The seventh leader's eyes lit up, "How many?!"

Without even considering the costs, Baili Ce made up a story, saying, "Enough to pay two ransoms for me."

"What?!" The bandits were shocked.

Xiangxiang, "So much in just one day?!"

"This guy is fucking rich!" said the seventh leader.

Even knowing that Baili Ce might be talking nonsense, An Luoshi couldn't help but be tempted.

Moreover, according to previous inquiries, the He family's public businesses were indeed insufficient to support their ever-increasing expenses.

But if the He family can earn so much money just from the underground kilns, then giving him only that little bit each month is practically feeding a beggar!

Anlu felt a surge of anger.

"Wait, that's not right," the seventh leader's clever mind clicked, "If that's the case, how come the He family is inferior to the Wang family?"

"Sigh," Baili Ce sat down and said earnestly, "It's not just about who's richer among powerful families."

"It's not just about background, it's about ability."

"In your words, it's about who has the harder fist."

"Within the Great Wei territory, in terms of the strength of aristocratic families, none is stronger than the Wang family."

An Luo felt a chill in her heart, a sudden bad premonition. "Then... the He family?"

Did he... choose the wrong backer?

"Although the He family sent a daughter to the palace, they actually had no support in the court."

"Otherwise, how could the son of Vice Minister Xie dare to brazenly come to the mansion and bully that young lady?"

“Hmm…” An Luoshi couldn’t help but nod. Unconsciously, the thought that the He family was doomed had been planted in his mind.

Bai Li Ce spoke casually, but she wasn't saying it on purpose for anyone to hear.

"Moreover, as far as I know, that Consort Xuan does not have a good relationship with her maternal family, and she may even join forces with the dog emperor to deal with the He family in the future."

"However, these are all things that are out in the open. Nobody knows what really happens behind the scenes."

Just as Baili Ce finished speaking and was about to observe An Luo's reaction, someone changed the subject.

"Hiss~" Ming Xiang gasped, "Isn't this an ingrate?"

"If I had a daughter like that, I'd rather have a dog," said the second-in-command.

"Ha, you wouldn't think like that if you had a father who was worse than a beast."

Ming Xiang, “…”

The second-in-command, "..."

An Luo's expression grew increasingly solemn.

“Well, if that’s the case, then the Wang family’s marriage is the best in the world, isn’t it? I think you…” Ming Xiang looked at Baili Ce meaningfully.

The latter, her spirits dampened, adopted a pitiful tone, saying with a look of utter dejection, "I'm just a pathetic wretch pushed out by the Baili family to shield the eldest daughter of the main branch from both open and hidden attacks."

"You don't actually think Wang Qingyan cares about me, do you?"

An Luo asked, rather puzzled, "Isn't that right?"

"Does the boss believe it or not, if it were someone else who was engaged to Wang Qingyan today, he would still pay this money?"

[Wang Qingyan, who is preparing the other half of the ransom: How much of it was wasted?]

An Luo was still skeptical, "..."

"Just like the boss said, people like us care most about face."

“Since I was the marriage arranged for him by his elders, it is only natural in the eyes of the world that he saved me and took care of me.”

"It also concerns his reputation."

"So what matters is not me as a person, but my identity."

"Alas..." A sigh of pity echoed from all around.

It turns out that even scions of noble families aren't much better than them.

So helpless.

Mingxiang even looked at her with great sympathy, "Sister, don't say that, I..."

She wanted to tell Baili Ce to stay and not leave, but then realized she couldn't make that decision.

The look in her eyes that said "I'm fine" was exactly the same as when she used to sympathize with someone who earned hundreds of thousands or even millions a day when she was only making three thousand a month.

"Boss, how about it?" But the Seventh Master wanted to do this favor.

An Luoshi, true to his position as the leader, glared at the Seventh Master, but his expression remained unreadable. "So?"

Bai Li Ce chuckled, "So if the boss is dissatisfied with anything, he can always ask for more money!"

Anluo, “…”

......