"Don't worry, Stelle, we'll just take a look and won't sit down to play." After hearing March 7th's assurance, a flicker of hesitation passed through Stelle's eyes as she began to seriously consider the feasibility of March's words.
"Relax, it'll be fine! Besides, Stelle, do you remember what Uncle Yang said? He mentioned that Miss Qingque might very well be an Emanator. An Emanator! Someone on the same level as Yun Fan and Madam Herta. Aren't you even a little curious?"
Seeing Stelle waver, March 7th seized the opportunity to press her case with persuasive enthusiasm.
In the end, under March's devilish whispers, the innocent girl, barely a year old, was swayed by her words. She followed March 7th as they stepped toward the gaming parlor…
…
"No more, no more! Seven losses in a row, my goodness! If I keep playing, I won't even have money for food tomorrow." One of Qingque's card-playing friends slumped over the table, eyes lifeless, like a salted fish that had lost all dreams.
"Ugh, Qingque, your luck is just too good. If we didn't know you so well, we'd suspect you were cheating," another friend, a Foxian woman, sighed pitifully, weighing her nearly empty wallet.
Qingque just giggled in response. Then, to everyone's astonishment, she pushed all the chips she'd won over the seven rounds back to her friends.
"Qingque, what are you…"
Her friends looked surprised, but they held back from reaching for the chips. Though the money they'd lost today wasn't a small sum, they could afford to lose with dignity.
"Hehe, it's no big deal. I'm not exactly short on cash, and we're card-playing buddies, right? It'd be a shame if something as trivial as money ruined our friendship."
Qingque said this, but the truth was far from it. In secret, she had indeed cheated.
The power of the Path of Causality was near-omnipotent. Qingque had subtly imbued the game with the Causality of "inevitable victory," ensuring her continuous wins. Because of this, she felt too guilty to actually keep the chips.
After Qingque's persistent urging, her friends reluctantly accepted the chips, though they felt uneasy about it, as it didn't sit right with their conscience.
Carefully pocketing the chips, the Foxian woman asked curiously, "Qingque, are you really not short on money? I remember last time we played, you owed some handsome guy tens of thousands of strales. Have you paid that back yet?"
"Uh…"
Qingque's face froze at the question, her hand trembling so much that the jade tile she was holding nearly fell to the floor. Her eyes darted nervously.
"Hm?"
The three friends exchanged glances. Having known Qingque for years, they knew her personality well. Her behavior clearly screamed guilt.
They shared another look, and then the Foxian woman propped her face with one hand, a teasing smile spreading across it. "Qingque, could it be… something happened, and that handsome guy didn't make you pay back the strales?"
"N-No way! It's just… I just…" At this, Qingque's head dipped slightly.
"I just rented out a spare room in my house to him. He's new to the Xianzhou, unfamiliar with the place…"
"Whoa—!"
Qingque's words sparked an uproar. The two friends, who had been content to spectate, widened their eyes in disbelief. They'd known Qingque for years and thought she'd be married to her jade tiles for life. Who would've thought this iron tree would bloom, outpacing everyone else?
"You're… you're already living together?!" The Foxian woman stared at the shy Qingque in shock, seeing this side of her for the first time.
"No wonder you're looking so radiant lately. Seems like that guy's been working hard at night… mmph! Don't cover my mouth…!"
The embarrassed Qingque hurriedly stood up, swiftly covering the woman's mouth with her hand. Facing the surprised looks from the other two, Qingque gave an awkward smile. "Uh, let's call it a day here. It's getting late, and I should head home. You guys should go too. Bye-bye!"
With that, Qingque yanked open the curtain of the private room and bolted toward the door.
"Ouch!"
"Hey, watch it!"
"Ow, ow, ow!"
But the moment she dashed out, Qingque collided head-on with March 7th and Stelle, who were walking normally. With a few cries of pain, all three tumbled to the ground.
"That hurts… What was that?" March 7th rubbed her aching chest. The instant they entered the gaming parlor, something had flown at them, knocking her flat.
"Hiss~" Stelle wasn't faring much better. It felt like she'd crashed into a reinforced composite plate. Her arm ached from the impact, with a tingling, numb sensation.
"Sorry, sorry! I was running too fast. Are you two… huh? The General's guests? I'm so sorry."
Hearing the voice, March 7th and Stelle looked up. When they saw who it was, they froze. The very Miss Qingque they'd been talking about was sitting on the ground, rubbing her slightly reddened forehead.
The one who had crashed into March 7th's chest and Stelle's arm was this petite, charming girl.
"Miss Qingque? What a coincidence!" Despite the awkwardness, March 7th politely greeted her. Qingque didn't think much of it, brushing the dust off herself before standing up.
"You two, are you here to play jade tiles too?"