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Hui Si was a bit dazed. What did that mean? Was the little girl letting him off the hook?
Gold Tooth cast Wang Man an approving look—this girl was clever.
Then he barked at the still-stupefied Hui Si:
“What are you standing there for?
The young lady already said she won’t pursue it. Shouldn’t you be thanking her already?”
Hui Si hurriedly kowtowed to Wang Man several more times.
Wang Man didn’t want to stay any longer. She pulled the sweaty-faced Wang San and headed for the door.
Seeing them about to leave, Gold Tooth quickly called out,
“Wait!”
Wang San trembled, instinctively pulling Wang Man to a stop.
Wang Man wasn’t afraid in the slightest. She turned her head and asked,
“What is it?”
“Hahaha! Interesting. This young lady is quite interesting.
I wonder—do you know how to gamble?”
Gold Tooth laughed as he sat down, looking at Wang Man with an air of superiority.
Wang Man raised an eyebrow.
“What do you want to bet on?”
Gold Tooth was momentarily stunned, then burst into laughter again.
“What do you want to bet on?”
Wang Man replied nonchalantly,
“I don’t want to bet.”
Gold Tooth: …
You don’t want to bet and you’re still asking? Are you playing games with me?
“What if I insist you gamble?”
Wang Man narrowed her eyes slightly.
“You want to fight?”
Gold Tooth: …
When did he say anything about fighting?
“So? Are you betting or not?”
Wang Man thought for a moment.
“What’s the wager?
How do we bet?
What’s the prize?
If there’s no prize, I’m not gambling.”
Wang San wanted to stop her, but Gold Tooth had already agreed,
“Alright, you name the terms.”
Wang Man said casually,
“Up to you.”
Wang San gave her a hard pinch, making Wang Man hiss in pain. She immediately shot him a glare like a dagger.
“Why did you pinch me?”
Wang San cautiously glanced at Gold Tooth and lowered his voice.
“You fool, do you know where we are? You think you can mess around here?
Don’t you know? Boss Jin is undefeated across the entire Ping’an Town.
You’ve never even gambled before—this is suicide!”
Wang Man looked at Gold Tooth.
“Is what he said true?”
Gold Tooth grinned, revealing his signature large gold tooth.
“That’s just what people say. But yes, I haven’t met a worthy opponent in this town yet.
Little girl, what do you plan to use as your stake?”
Wang Man boldly patted herself down.
“My life. How about betting this life of mine?”
“You crazy girl! Are you out of your mind? Do you even know what you’re saying?”
Almost as soon as Wang Man finished speaking, Wang San jumped up in panic.
“Boss Jin, don’t listen to her! She hit her head a few days ago—it’s still not fully healed.
She’s just talking nonsense. It’s all nonsense.”
He was sweating so much his back was soaked, terrified that Boss Jin would actually agree.
Oh dear heavens, he’d spent everything he had to buy this little wife—he couldn’t bear to lose her just a few days in!
He was still hoping she’d grow up and bear him children to carry on the family line.
At that moment, Zhu Yazi, who had been hiding within the crowd, also stepped forward and spoke:
“Boss Jin, what Wang San said is true.
This girl hit her head on a wall a few days ago—look, the wound on her head hasn’t even healed yet.”
If Wang Man weren’t his good brother’s wife, he wouldn’t have bothered to say anything.
Wang Man rolled her eyes at Zhu Yazi, clearly ungrateful for the gesture.
Gold Tooth, too, had been startled by Wang Man’s words.
A young girl with such boldness—daring to gamble her life against his.
And judging from her expression, she didn’t seem to be bluffing. Was she actually serious?
“Little girl, I have no grudge against you. Gambling lives is going too far.
How about this: if you lose, you give me the secret recipe for those candied hawthorns of yours.
If I lose, I’ll give you one hundred taels of silver. What do you say?”
After all, he was the famed Gold Tooth. He didn’t want to be seen bullying a little girl without cause.
If word got out, people would laugh at his lack of character. How could he continue to survive in this line of work?
Wang Man’s eyes lit up at the mention of a hundred taels, and she nodded.
“Alright!
Since we’re gambling, let’s rely on real skill.
No tricks or roundabout nonsense from your side, alright?”
Gold Tooth was stunned for a moment, then burst into hearty laughter.
“Hahaha! Alright, alright—let’s rely on real skill.
Little girl, what shall we bet on?”
“Let’s go with betting on dice size—it’s simple enough.”
Ignoring Wang San’s death glare, Wang Man stepped forward a few paces.
Gold Tooth stood up and gave instructions:
“Skinny Monkey, clean off a table for us. We’ll gamble right here.
Little girl, how about this? With everyone watching, you don’t have to worry about me cheating, right?”
Wang Man didn’t mind in the slightest—she had no intention of losing anyway.
Yes, she was that confident. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have dared to talk about gambling her life.
Skinny Monkey moved quickly and had the table cleaned and ready in the blink of an eye.
“Boss, it’s ready.”
Gold Tooth made a courteous gesture,
“Please, young lady.”
Ever since Wang Man said she was willing to bet her life, Gold Tooth had begun to see her in a new light.
He couldn’t stand timid, spineless types.
Wang Man didn’t sit down but instead stood right beside the edge of the table.
Wang San was right behind her. Though not as tense as before, his palms were still drenched in sweat.
Zhu Yazi stood next to Wang San, also letting out a sigh of relief.
The crowd behind Gold Tooth had grown even larger.
If victory were determined by numbers alone, Wang Man would’ve lost long ago.
Once everything was in place, Wang Man spoke:
“Best two out of three. Skinny Monkey, go ahead.”
Skinny Monkey was still a little dazed and looked to Gold Tooth.
Gold Tooth agreed without hesitation,
“Alright, best two out of three.”
Skinny Monkey steadied himself and began shaking the dice.
He started off slowly, then picked up speed.
Soon, the dice cup in his hand was moving so fast it left afterimages in the air.
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the dice cup, each secretly guessing whether it would be “big” or “small.”
Wang Man closed her eyes slightly, tilting her head as she listened intently.
Gold Tooth was also fully focused, his gaze locked onto the dice cup.
Suddenly, Skinny Monkey came to an abrupt stop and slammed the cup onto the table with a crisp pa!
Everyone held their breath.
Wang Man guessed “small.” Gold Tooth guessed “big.”
When the result was revealed—it was small. Wang Man won the first round.
Gold Tooth smiled and didn’t seem upset. There were still two rounds left—he wasn’t necessarily going to lose.
Soon, the second round began.
Both of them guessed “big.”
Sure enough, the result was big. It was a draw.
Only one round remained. The atmosphere was tense.
Even Skinny Monkey’s hands were trembling slightly as he shook the dice.
If Boss Jin lost, would he take it out on me?
After all, he was the one rolling the dice.
On the surface, Gold Tooth remained composed, but inside, a ripple of unease stirred.
If he lost, would his title as the undefeated king of Ping’an Town be ruined?
Though he didn’t truly care about the title, losing to a little girl would still be a blow to his pride.
Wang Man hadn’t been particularly concerned at first.
But Wang San wouldn’t stop with his little gestures—he kept tracing characters in her palm, making her hand itch.
She couldn’t quite figure out what Wang San was trying to tell her, but it made her overthink things.
Right now, she was just a young farm girl, with no family background or connections.
If she really did beat Gold Tooth, would he become enraged and cause trouble for her?
She wasn’t afraid for herself, but what if someone else had to take the fall for her?
Maybe… it was better to just let him win.
It was only a recipe for making candied hawthorns, after all.
And truthfully, it wasn’t even much of a recipe. If he wanted it, he could have it.
She had never intended to sell candied hawthorns forever—she didn’t care about that bit of money.
She needed to think of other ways to earn silver.
For example, going up to Xianfeng Mountain.
It offered adventure, meat to eat, and goods to sell for silver—a perfect opportunity in every way.