The Wager

Gu Shenwei's progress in learning to counter moves was rapid. Now, out of ten moves He Nu made, he could correctly guess seven or eight.

He himself was not satisfied, as there were still times he made mistakes. Especially when He Nu suddenly used those five moves outside of her usual repertoire, he was basically unable to anticipate them. Since he had only prepared for the fifteen moves created by Xue Niang, he would become flustered and unable to retaliate.

Xue Niang, however, praised him, which was rare. "It's a shame you can't enter East Fortress. With your comprehension, you could become a true assassin in a few years. What a pity, what a pity."

But she grew increasingly worried about Huan Nu's plan. "What are the chances that girl will use those five moves right from the start?"

Gu Shenwei shared the same concern. If the opponent were Shangguan Ru, he would have a sixty to seventy percent chance of guessing her moves correctly. However, he knew very little about Shangguan Yushi's martial arts. He could only assume she learned exactly the same as Ninth Young Master, down to their most signature moves.

"She will use them. I know her. She wants to embarrass me in public and also wants to kill me. She will use the most powerful moves from the very beginning."

Every time Xue Niang asked, Gu Shenwei's answers were very confident. He was like a gambler now, going all in. Not only was he forcing himself to believe he could win this time, but he also had to spread that confidence to the surrounding spectators.

On the thirteenth day of the first lunar month, Gu Shenwei confronted Shangguan Hongye.

Shangguan Hongye seemed to have guessed Huan Nu's intention. Therefore, after calmly accepting a dented silver artifact, he didn't leave immediately. Instead, he crossed his arms and waited for Gu Shenwei to speak.

"Young Master Hong, do you want to make a big bet?"

"What do you mean? You want to win these things back? Let me tell you, they're not in my hands anymore."

"No, I want you to organize a gambling match."

Shangguan Hongye remained silent upon hearing this. Not everyone could be a bookie. In the academy, the bookie was usually Shangguan Yushi.

"I can find someone else. I just think we have a lot in common."

Shangguan Hongye still didn't speak. Suddenly, his expression changed. "Be careful what you say. Qing Nu said you don't understand the rules, and she was right. Remember, I am the master, and you are the servant. What could we possibly have in common?"

"At least we both hate the same person."

Shangguan Hongye knew who he was referring to. Everyone in the academy knew about Shangguan Yushi punishing unruly servants, not to mention Huan Nu's scarred face had only recently recovered.

"You dare to hate your master? What a bold dog servant."

"A servant naturally has no dignity, but she is not my master. My true master is Eighth Young Master..."

Gu Shenwei stopped speaking, letting Shangguan Hongye ponder it himself.

Shangguan Hongye thought for a long time. In the end, his hatred for Young Master Yu outweighed everything else. "Is your gambling match related to her?"

"Yes. I want you to instigate Young Master Yu to have a match with me. You'll be the bookie, and we'll fleece her well."

"Heh heh. First, you might not be able to beat her. Second, getting money from her is harder than climbing to heaven."

"You don't need to worry about that. I have a way to defeat her. You just need to organize the gambling match."

"Just bet on the winner?"

"No. You need to bet that I can defeat Young Master Yu within three moves."

Shangguan Hongye's mouth fell open. He was increasingly unable to figure out this servant. "Did you say that wrong? It would make more sense to bet that she can't defeat you within three moves."

Gu Shenwei smiled and shook his head. "She knows my skill level. She won't bet on that. We'll bet that I can definitely defeat her within three moves."

This time, it was Shangguan Hongye who shook his head vigorously. "Stop joking. Whether you can defeat her or not, I don't know. But I don't want to take risks. I've already used up most of your things. I still want to keep some for myself."

"That's no problem. You organize the gambling match. If you win, all the money is yours. If you lose, you can come to me for the money."

This was a no-lose, all-gain deal. Shangguan Hongye was tempted, but he still couldn't make up his mind. He hated Shangguan Yushi, but he was also terrified of her.

Gu Shenwei didn't want to push too hard. "Think it over carefully. I'm ready anytime."

The next three days were also holidays. Gu Shenwei focused on practicing martial arts, appearing full of confidence in front of Xue Niang. However, when he returned to the stone house, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. Most of his information came from the idle chatter of the young servants. No one could say for sure how much of it was true and how much was exaggeration.

But he had to remove Shangguan Yushi as an obstacle. The humiliation he suffered before the New Year had caught him off guard. Now it was his turn to deploy his troops, and that little demoness had to respond hastily.

On the seventeenth day of the first lunar month, the academy reopened. The twins and Shangguan Yushi finally appeared.

After not seeing each other for nearly a month, Shangguan Ru seemed to have completely forgotten her "disciple." She chatted and laughed with her cousin as they walked. At the entrance of the academy, the young boys rushed forward to greet them, all wanting to share in the good fortune of the two young masters. When the eight accompanying servants paid their respects, she didn't even glance at Huan Nu.

Her New Year had been colorful. Shangguan Yushi had come up with many tricks. They had almost turned the inner quarters upside down. Things like the Penglun Sect, assassins, and disciples had all become old news from a long, long time ago, no longer sparking her interest.

Shangguan Hongye also came forward to greet them and then followed Shangguan Fei into the academy. He also didn't glance at Huan Nu, as if he had forgotten Gu Shenwei's proposal.

Gu Shenwei remained outwardly calm, but his heart was filled with anxiety. Time slowly passed. During the break, a servant was called inside, and Qing Nu did not choose Huan Nu.

As noon approached, the students began to disperse. Gu Shenwei had waited in vain for the entire morning.

Even Shangguan Hongye was avoiding him, leading the Little Book Boy and running away quickly. Gu Shenwei couldn't catch up.

The next day was the same. Xue Niang began to press him for progress. He could only mumble "It's in progress" to brush her off, but his confidence waned daily. If Shangguan Hongye got cold feet at the last minute, everything would fall apart.

This continued for three consecutive days. Just as Gu Shenwei was determined to intercept Shangguan Hongye at all costs, the thing he had been hoping for happened.

It was during the break again. A servant was called into the academy. Qing Nu had just designated a young boy when another message was relayed, "Let Huan Nu come."

Qing Nu was clearly taken aback. Then, very reluctantly, he pointed at Huan Nu. "You go."

Gu Shenwei pretended to be surprised and walked into the academy with his head down. As he passed Qing Nu, he heard him whisper, "Don't court death."

Gu Shenwei said nothing.

The academy courtyard was already crowded with people, seemingly more than ever before. His opponent this time was indeed Shangguan Yushi. Her side clearly had more people, and the leader was Shangguan Ru.

The leader of the other side, however, was not Shangguan Hongye, but Shangguan Fei.

It turned out that Shangguan Hongye was still too timid. He had spent the past few days trying hard to persuade the young master to come forward and organize the gambling match.

"Huh, isn't this my disciple?"

Seeing Huan Nu walk into the crowd and face off against Shangguan Yushi, Shangguan Ru suddenly remembered a small game from a month ago.

"It was just for fun, please forgive my slave's momentary lack of restraint, Ninth Young Master," Gu Shenwei said after bowing. Shangguan Yushi let out a subtle cold laugh.

Almost all the young disciples had heard about her punishing Huan Nu, except for Shangguan Ru.

Shangguan Ru pouted, "Hmph, think you're so great? Young Master Yushi, teach him a good lesson for me."

"Your brother actually thinks he can defeat me within ten moves," Shangguan Yushi said dismissively.

Ten moves.

Gu Shenwei was startled and immediately understood. Shangguan Hongye and Shangguan Fei were still too conservative; they didn't believe he could defeat the opponent in three moves, so they added seven more. This might now ruin his plan. If Shangguan Yushi wasn't provoked to the right degree, he wouldn't immediately use his ultimate move, and his painstakingly learned counter-strategy would be wasted effort.

"Ten moves? I still think it's too many!" Shangguan Fei shouted. Although he was his sister's shadow, he always wanted to show off a bit.

Seeing that the twins were about to bicker again, Gu Shenwei spoke first:

"No need to compete, I concede."

As soon as he said this, the surrounding child disciples were shocked. He was a sparring slave, whose duty was to spar with his masters for fun. How could he dare to concede without fighting?

Shangguan Fei became even more anxious, "How do you know you lost without fighting? I've bet a lot of money on this, how dare you concede?"

Shangguan Hongye, standing behind the young master, could no longer hide his demeanor and shouted with a flushed face, "What kind of joke is this? Do you want to rebel?"

Shangguan Yushi, however, didn't seem to care. She put her hands on her hips and remained silent. Shangguan Ru, on the other hand, looked very disappointed. "Your martial arts are good, you might not necessarily lose." In her haste, she forgot which side she was on.

Gu Shenwei waited for the commotion to subside slightly before saying, "Ten moves is too many. This humble slave is willing to concede. If it were fewer moves, there might be a contest."

As soon as he said this, the surrounding child disciples were even more shocked. The noisy courtyard suddenly fell silent, and then almost simultaneously burst into laughter.

"The dog slave is scared silly." This was the unanimous thought of many.

Shangguan Fei turned his head and looked at Shangguan Hongye in confusion, "What's going on?"

Shangguan Hongye's face turned purple with embarrassment. "Huan Nu, can you fight or not? If you can't fight, get out."

Shangguan Yushi, however, did not laugh. Her eyebrows gradually rose. She stopped Shangguan Ru, who was about to speak, and said herself, "Hey, so you've been hiding your strength. Tell me, how many moves do you want to defeat me in?"

"Young Master Yushi's skills are extraordinary, this humble slave is ashamed to be inferior, but I happened to overhear someone explaining a bit about martial arts..."

"Less nonsense, how many moves?"

"Three moves, no more, no less."

Shangguan Yushi's anger flared, and just as she was about to agree, Shangguan Fei on the other side couldn't stand it. "No, no, no, I'm not betting if it's only three moves. We agreed on ten moves."

Shangguan Fei didn't want to bet, and the other child disciples behind him unanimously demanded to withdraw. Just as the bet was about to vanish, someone stepped forward.

"I'll bet on Huan Nu."

Shangguan Ru announced loudly. Seeing her cousin's expression change, she quickly added, "It's not that I believe him, I just want to see what tricks he's up to."

The Ninth Young Master had more influence among the child disciples than the young master. Immediately, a few people "defected" from Shangguan Yushi's side. Shangguan Fei also changed his mind. After a little fuss, the bet was formed again.

Shangguan Yushi laughed in extreme anger, stretched her legs and feet, and said, "Come on, dog slave, let me see your 'three moves'."

Gu Shenwei's objective had been achieved. He had angered Shangguan Yushi and even piqued Shangguan Ru's interest. This was even better than he had anticipated.

Next, it would depend on whether his and Xue Niang's judgment was accurate.