Chapter 548: Merging
Hua Zhi fell into deep thought without speaking. Yu Weiwei, perceptive of the situation, quietly sipped her tea without disturbing her.
After a moment, Hua Zhi looked up and asked, "Your mother doesn’t know about this, does she?"
"About my father sending me this contract?" Yu Weiwei nodded. "She doesn’t know. Not just this, she’s unaware of other matters too. Both my father and I have kept it from her. She trusts her family too much, especially Zeng Xianglin."
Hua Zhi wasn’t surprised. "Find an opportunity to ask your father about Zeng Xianglin. Anything he finds unusual will do."
Yu Weiwei agreed, then hesitated before asking, "Hua Ling, do you… have some grudge against my elder cousin?"
"Some things are difficult to explain right now. You’ll understand once everything is resolved. Don’t worry, it’s not about personal feelings. I don’t know him, and there’s no enmity between us."
"That’s a relief. He’s no good—I was worried he might have wronged you!" Yu Weiwei sighed with genuine relief. She could tell Hua Ling was targeting Zeng Xianglin, and aside from personal grievances, she couldn’t think of any other reason.
"Your husband…"
"Qi Qiu. Just call him Qi Qiu. The thought of him being my husband makes me uncomfortable."
Hua Zhi chuckled. "Alright, Qi Qiu. You still need to keep him under control and guard against him. Don’t give him any chance to harm you."
"I know. When he returns this time, I’ll lock him up again and forbid anyone from contacting him." Yu Weiwei lifted her chin defiantly. "So what if I earn a bad reputation? I’ll bear it. What does it matter? Let’s see if Zeng Xianglin has the audacity to show up for him again."
Though her face still showed signs of illness, the vitality bursting from Yu Weiwei made her strikingly vivid. The fearlessness in her eyes reminded Hua Zhi of herself—both had loved ones as their weaknesses, and both were willing to risk everything for them. That was why she had felt differently toward this girl from the start.
After seeing her guest out, Hua Zhi leaned gently against Gu Yanxi, who steadied her without a word.
"Don’t you think she seems somewhat familiar?"
Gu Yanxi wrapped an arm around her as they walked back inside. "Not even close. You lifted the Hua family up step by step on your own. If she hadn’t met you, she’d still be enduring humiliation, waiting who knows how long for a chance to turn things around—if that chance ever came."
Hearing such words from her lover carried a sweet warmth. Hua Zhi glanced at him sidelong but didn’t argue.
"The silver mine contract is in our hands now. What do you plan to do?"
"Wait. We won’t alert Zeng Xianglin until he takes the bait."
Hua Zhi thought it over and understood. Moving on the silver mine was one of the final steps. Before that, they needed Zeng Xianglin to offer Peng Fangming enticing benefits to win him over.
"What role do you think Qi Qiu plays?" Hua Zhi asked, clutching her hand warmer as she settled by the fireplace, continuing her sleuthing. "These days, every suspicious person I see seems like they could be from the Chao Li Tribe."
Gu Yanxi took the tea Bao Xia handed him, skimmed the foam, and placed it beside A Zhi. "Even if he isn’t, he’s definitely involved. Zeng Xianglin trusts him deeply—otherwise, he wouldn’t have placed him in the Yu family."
"Could he be working for Zeng Xianglin rather than the Chao Li Tribe?"
"Possibly. Their identities show no flaws—we can only wait for them to slip up." Gu Yanxi narrowed his eyes. "It won’t be long now.""Master." Wang Hai lifted the curtain and entered, "They've signed the agreement over there. Zeng Xianglin indeed went, accompanied by two men—one is Zhu Ling's trusted subordinate, and the other is Qi Qiu."
"Zhu Ling is involved everywhere, as usual." Disgust was evident in Gu Yanxi's tone, and he didn't bother to hide it.
Hua Zhi turned to Wang Hai, "How did they structure the agreement?"
"The gambling dens from both sides are merging. Zeng Xianglin will add playing cards and mahjong to his establishments. The Peng Family will take three-tenths of the net profits from all the gambling dens, Zhu Ling gets two-tenths, Zeng Xianglin three-tenths, and the remaining two-tenths are divided among the other families."
Hua Zhi quickly calculated in her mind. "Peng Fangming has gained. Although he provided the new games, his total number of gambling dens can't compare to Zeng Xianglin's side. Moreover, Zeng Xianglin's dens won't lose all their business—once the novelty of playing cards and mahjong wears off, their trade will likely recover. As it stands, these few families have essentially taken control of all the gambling dens in Jin Yang. Do you know how Zeng Xianglin and the others previously split the profits?"
Wang Hai, having verified this, promptly replied, "Zhu Ling took two-tenths, Zeng Xianglin three-tenths, and the remaining five-tenths were divided among the other families."
"With the current scale of the gambling dens, three-tenths of the profits are substantial." Thinking of the methods employed by influential families, Hua Zhi frowned. "Zeng Xianglin has chosen the most troublesome approach. If he had allied with the others to drive the Peng Family out of Jin Yang and seize their gambling dens, the Peng Family wouldn't have been able to do much about it."
"So he still has ulterior motives, and they're not small ones." Gu Yanxi looked up and instructed, "Send a message to Peng Fangming. Find a way to force Zeng Xianglin to make a move as soon as possible."
"Yes."
Hua Zhi only rested at home for one day. Starting the next day, she spent more than half her time again at that residence. The more she played, the less she lost, but people still enjoyed interacting with her. Relationships between people don't always rely on money; sometimes, it's about the vibe. Now, they had a good impression of Hua Zhi—she didn't cause trouble, spoke little, and didn't gossip about others. Such a person was truly hard to dislike.
"Miss Hua, you're a bit late today. By the way, Weiwei is here."
Hua Zhi had just stepped down from the carriage when she saw Madam Lü coming out of the house. Smiling, she said, "I went to the manor. Why are you leaving already? It's still early."
"Someone from my family came to say that relatives from my maternal home have arrived, so I have to return." Madam Lü boarded her own carriage, waving her handkerchief at Hua Zhi. "Have fun."
"Take care."
The room was bustling with noise. Hua Zhi scanned the area and saw many familiar faces.
"A Ling, you're here!" Yu Weiwei called out loudly. "Come quickly and draw a tile for me."
Hua Zhi walked over and saw that indeed only one tile remained. She first glanced at Yu Weiwei's hand, then drew the tile, covering it to show only herself before smiling. She placed it at the very end of a row of tiles.
Yu Weiwei slapped the table, laughing heartily, and pushed her tiles over. "A Ling, your hand is truly lucky! This one draw wins back everything I lost and then some."
Wang Yu took a look and scoffed, "With just one tile left, and you managed to draw it? What luck."
"No more chatter—pay up!"
After collecting the money, Yu Weiwei counted her chips like a miser. Good, she had won. She stood up, pulling Shaoyao to sit in her place. "I'm going to chat with A Ling. Ling Niang, play a few rounds for me first."Shaoyao felt bitter inside, yet she had to put on a shy smile and feign enthusiasm as she pushed and arranged the tiles.
The lively room was just right for whispering. The two moved to the resting area nearby and, like two close sisters, leaned their heads together to share secrets.
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