Cui Huan did her best to coax and persuade, and finally managed to stop the young mistress from sobbing. She took out a handkerchief and wiped Wei Dongling's face, smoothing out the trails left by the tears on her cheeks.
"Miss Wei." Someone called her from the side.
Wei Dongling and Cui Huan both turned around involuntarily. They saw the handsome young prince, Murong Xuan, standing there smiling at her. His smile was as gentle as the spring breeze, making people feel happy.
Wei Dongling quickly got up from the ground and straightened her clothes. She curtsied to Murong Xuan and said, "This commoner girl pays respects to the young prince." She glanced at Shangguan Yun beside him and looked a bit annoyed. She thought that her unseemly outburst of crying must have been seen by both of these men. Her face couldn't help but flush.
Murong Xuan smiled and said, "We've seen Miss Wei looking so sad here for quite a while. We came here specially to ask if you've lost something dear. Do you need our help to look for it?"
Wei Dongling felt embarrassed and quickly waved her hand, saying, "I just lost my money bag. There wasn't much money in it anyway. It's not worth looking for. Thank you for your kind offer, young prince."
Cui Huan was speechless. Wei Dongling didn't even take a money bag when she went out!
Shangguan Yun had witnessed Wei Dongling's excitement with his own eyes. How could he not know that she had lost money on the horse race bets? He immediately waved to Pin Hao beside him and asked, "Do you still have any silver on you?"
Pin Hao glanced at Wei Dongling and shook his head vigorously.
Shangguan Yun's face darkened. Speechlessly, he said, "Is that all you brought today?"
Pin Hao explained seriously, "I changed my clothes last night and left my money bag behind."
Shangguan Yun's mouth twitched. Pin Hao was the kind of person who would double - check whether he had his keys or not before going out. How could he possibly forget his money bag?
Seeing this, Murong Xuan took out a few silver notes from his robe and handed them to Wei Dongling. He said with a gentle smile, "Miss, use these first. If it's not enough, just tell this prince."
"This..." Wei Dongling didn't dare to take them. She turned to look at Shangguan Yun.
Shangguan Yun nodded and said, "Take them. I'll have someone return the money to the young prince later."
Only then did Wei Dongling hesitantly take them. When she unfolded them, she saw that it was a total of ten thousand taels.
Looking at the delicate and pitiful beauty in front of him, Murong Xuan said to Shangguan Yun with a smile, "Brother Shangguan, there's no need for that."
Wei Dongling nodded and said, "I'll consider this as a loan from the young prince. I'll surely return it all later."
"Okay."
Wei Dongling saw the people around the horse - race betting area rushing forward to place their bets. Thinking of the eight thousand taels she had lost, her hand holding the silver notes trembled. She couldn't resist the urge to win back her losses. So, she quickly bowed to Murong Xuan and Shangguan Yun, then turned around and ran away.
Murong Xuan had wanted to chat with her for a while longer. He didn't expect her to run away so rudely. His face couldn't help but show a bit of embarrassment. He looked up and saw that Shangguan Yun's expression remained calm. He thought that perhaps this woman had always been like this, not caring about small etiquettes.
Wei Dongling ran as fast as she could while looking around for Luo Xunlong.
It seemed that the red team with that "little hussy" horse was going to lose. She'd better bet on the blue team! Ten thousand taels with a one - to - one payout. She'd bet half and keep half. After repaying three thousand taels to Young Master Yun, she'd still have seven thousand taels left.
That would still be a profit!
There were still fifty thousand taels of silver notes in the box beside her bed. She had originally planned to keep them for emergencies. If it really came to that, she'd use that money to pay back first.
Wei Dongling rushed over in a hurry and asked Cui Huan, who was chasing after her, "Where's Uncle Luo?"
Cui Huan spread her hands and said, "I haven't seen him!"
Wei Dongling's face darkened. Every time it was time to place a bet, she couldn't find Luo Xunlong, who was an amazing gambler. It was really frustrating!
She looked up and saw a familiar servant at the front of the line. He was waving at her and shouting, "Miss, come here! You go first!"
Wei Dongling wasn't polite. She just went ahead and cut in line.
The servant behind her asked, "Miss, which team are you betting on this time?"
Wei Dongling slapped down the ten - thousand - tael silver note and shouted through gritted teeth, "Ten thousand taels! One - to - one payout. I'm betting on the blue team to win!"
The servant in charge of writing was very meticulous. He took the silver note, quickly filled in the amount, and respectfully presented the betting slip with both hands.
Wei Dongling took the slip and looked at it carefully. She silently prayed in her heart: I must win this time! She turned around and was about to leave with Cui Huan when she heard the servant behind her shout, "Fifty thousand taels! I'm betting on the red team to win!" A little later, the servant took his betting slip and walked away happily.
Wei Dongling was stunned.
The gong sounded, and the third polo game began.
Wei Dongling ate the pastries on the table absent - mindedly. It was almost noon. She guessed that they'd take a break after this morning's game. She stared at the field without blinking.
The red and blue teams entered the field. The lame "little hussy" horse was replaced with an ordinary - looking thin horse. Wei Dongling thought to herself: This horse looks so weak. It seems I have a chance to win this time!
As soon as the game started, the thin horse galloped away, chasing after the polo ball. Its speed far exceeded that of all the other horses on the field.
Wei Dongling was so shocked that her jaw almost dropped. Seeing Luo Xunlong and Yu Haiming coming back, she asked anxiously, "Uncle Luo, where have you been?"
Luo Xunlong replied strangely, "I drank too much tea, so I went to the toilet. What's up?"
Wei Dongling asked with a mournful face, "Which team did you bet on in this game?"
Luo Xunlong replied excitedly, "I bet a thousand taels on the red team!"
Wei Dongling was shocked and said, "Why? Isn't that 'little hussy' horse lame?"
Luo Xunlong nodded and said, "Yes! Didn't you see the young prince just now? He brought his own horse to fill in the gap. He even came over to comfort you when he came back!"
Wei Dongling: ...
Luo Xunlong asked again, "Did you just cry and not notice? The young prince's horse is no ordinary horse. It may look thin and weak on the outside, but it's actually a famous steed! With its bloodline suppression, no other horse on the field is its match."
Wei Dongling cried and said, "Why didn't you say so earlier! I bet ten thousand taels on the blue team to win!"
Hearing how much she had bet, Luo Xunlong's face turned a bit pale. Speechlessly, he said, "I thought you saw it."
Sure enough, the thin horse was invincible.
Outside the field, hearing the crowd cheering for the thin horse from time to time, Wei Dongling felt very nervous.
The gong sounded again. The score between the red and blue teams was thirteen to two. The red team completely crushed the blue team!
Seeing this result, Wei Dongling couldn't help but bury her head and cry. She had a "cheat" by her side, but she had lost three games in a row today, a total of eighteen thousand taels! It was really too tragic!
Luo Xunlong comforted Wei Dongling and said, "It doesn't matter. There are still three games this afternoon. Bet with me this afternoon. Nine times out of ten, we won't go wrong!"
Wei Dongling sobbed and said, "I've lost all my silver..." Then she burst into another bout of wailing.
Luo Xunlong was speechless.
Cui Huan gently patted Wei Dongling on the back to help her calm down. She looked up at Ruan Niang and said, "Ruan Niang, why don't we let Brother Long and Haiming go around first? The three of us should go back first. I guess Miss Wei isn't in the mood to watch the horse races this afternoon."