novelSusiti Chapter 53 A Scheme Within a Scheme
Chapter 53 A Scheme Within a Scheme
Batu sat in the chair, his head swollen like a pig's head, his hands on his knees, his fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of his clothes.
He remained silent for a long while, as if he was hesitating about where to begin, or perhaps he was hesitating about whether he should speak at all.
Yin'e did not urge him.
He leaned back in his chair, picked up the tea that Fuquan had just brought in, and sipped it slowly, giving Batu plenty of time.
"...The first time I came to the capital was five years ago," Batu finally spoke.
"My father sent me to the capital to pay tribute to the emperor and to buy some things used on the grasslands."
I was only in my early twenties then, and I knew nothing. I thought Beijing was paradise on earth. It was bustling, prosperous, and had everything.
His gaze became somewhat unfocused, as if he were looking into the distance.
"After finishing my business, I strolled around the streets and saw a teahouse on Qianmen Street. It had an impressive facade, so I went in. That was my first time entering Juxianju."
Yin'e's fingers paused slightly, but he did not reply.
"I was just drinking tea and listening to music when I heard people laughing and talking loudly in the private room next door, saying something like, 'I won eight hundred taels, so tonight I'm treating at Zuixianglou.'"
Curious, I asked the waiter what they were doing over there. He said a few gentlemen were playing cards and asked if I wanted to try.
Batu gave a wry smile. "Back then, I was young and impetuous. I thought I was a man of the grasslands, what hadn't I seen? So... I went."
"On the first night, I won three thousand taels." His voice lowered. "I thought I was just lucky, that I was born to gamble."
Looking back now... it was all on their own, just a way to let me taste the sweetness of success.
Yin'e nodded, but still did not speak.
"And then?" Ulan couldn't help but ask.
"Later..." Batu's Adam's apple bobbed up and down, "Later I became addicted. Whenever I had free time, I wanted to go; if I lost, I wanted to win back my losses; if I won, I wanted to win even more."
He used to come to the capital once a year, but now he comes two or three times a year.
I didn't dare tell my father about the money I lost, so I borrowed from Gao Mengyuan, thinking I could pay it back.
He paused, his gaze becoming vacant: "Then one day, Gao Mengyuan took out a pipe and said it was a newly arrived opium to refresh the mind."
Try it, and you're guaranteed to be full of energy and have better luck when you gamble.
I had already lost a lot of money by then, and my mind was a mess, so I just thought... I might as well give it a try.
He lowered his head, his voice becoming as if he were talking to himself: "Later, I couldn't live without it. If I don't smoke, it feels like ants are crawling all over my body, and needles are pricking my bones."
I had no choice but to keep asking Gao Mengyuan for it.
I'll give him whatever he wants. He wants me to inquire about the Tenth Prince's residence, so I will.
If you tell me to ask Ulan for money, I will.
I...I'm like a dog on a leash, the other end of the leash is in his hand, he pulls it and I have to take a step.
As he spoke, his voice grew softer and softer until it was almost inaudible.
The room remained quiet for a while.
"Think about it yourself," Yin'e finally spoke, "from the first time you entered Juxianju, to when someone invited you to play cards."
From winning big, to losing, to borrowing money, and then to taking drugs.
At every step, is there someone beside you 'kindly' reminding you or 'kindly' helping you?
Batu's body stiffened abruptly.
"You've been set up. From the moment you stepped into Juxianju, you became a pawn on someone else's chessboard."
If you lose, they win money; if you win, they get you addicted; if you become addicted, they make you borrow money; if you're in debt, they control you.
They've used you, this pawn, for five years, and used you thoroughly.
Batu's face changed from red to white, and then from white to blue.
His lips trembled for a long time before he finally managed to squeeze out a sentence: "I...I was...was I framed?"
"What do you think?" Yin'e looked at him. "You signed IOUs for hundreds of thousands of dollars without considering the consequences of not being able to pay them back?"
Batu's eyes reddened.
He wasn't a fool; he was just blinded by desire.
Now that someone has pointed it out, all those scattered doubts have exploded in my mind.
Why does he always have someone to play with him when he goes to Juxianju?
Why is it that when he loses money, someone always lends him money? Why does Gao Mengyuan never press for repayment, but instead keep providing him with more things?
Because he's a fish that's been fattened up, it's time to haul in the net.
He suddenly raised his head, looking at Yin'e with bloodshot eyes: "They...they don't just want my money, they also want..."
"I also want your sister, I also want your brother-in-law, I also want your father, and I also want your tribe."
Yin'e finished the second half of his sentence for him.
"In this game of chess, you're just a pawn. The opponent wants to capture the king, not you, a pawn."
Ulan listened from the side. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but found that she couldn't utter a single word.
She simply reached out and grasped Yin'e's hand, holding it tightly.
Yin'e patted the back of her hand, turned his head, and looked at Batu.
"I can help you, I can help you completely."
Batu suddenly raised his head, his gaze fixed on Yin'e.
"But..." Yin'e held up a finger and waved it in front of Batu, "You have to help me."
Batu was taken aback: "Help you? I... how can I help you?"
"Help me be a double agent." Yin'e lowered his voice. "You continue to associate with Gao Mengyuan, continue to go to Juxianju, and continue to pretend to be Batu, the one he has in his grasp."
But if he asks you something, you have to tell me first, and I'll tell you how to answer.
"You need to let me know what he wants you to do first, then I'll tell you what to do."
He paused, his gaze sharpening further: "You're ostensibly helping him, but you're actually helping me."
You must relay to me exactly what you hear from him.
I must pass on to him every single word of the false information I gave you.”
Batu's pupils contracted slightly.
It wasn't that he didn't understand; he just couldn't trust his brother-in-law, who not only wanted to save him but also wanted to use him to turn against the Crown Prince.
"You...you're going to..."
"What I do is none of your concern," Yin'e interrupted him. "All you need to know is that if you follow me, you and your tribe will survive."
"Following the Crown Prince, you'll die at his hands sooner or later. The choice is yours."
Batu didn't hesitate for long. He gritted his teeth, slid off the chair, and knelt before Yin'e.
"Tenth Master, although I, Batu, am not good enough, I can tell who is truly good to me. From today onwards, I will do whatever you ask me to do."
Yin'e reached out and helped him up.
"Get up, no need to kneel." He patted Batu on the shoulder. "You are not my servant, you are my brother-in-law."
Batu stood up, lowered his head, and wiped the corner of his eye with his sleeve.
Ulan watched from the side, turned her face away, blinked hard a few times, and forced back the tears that were about to fall.
Yin'e turned around, walked to the desk, and took out a heavy cloth bag from the drawer.
He walked back and stuffed the cloth bag into Batu's hands.
"Here's fifty thousand taels," he said. "This is the money from selling the timber for the theater. Take it first."
Batu held the cloth bundle, his hands trembling, his eyes wide: "Tenth Master...this...I can't..."
"You can," Yin'e interrupted him. "Take it and tell everyone it was given to you by your sister, and continue to squander it outside."
Go to Juxianju if you're going to go to Juxianju, drink with Gao Mengyuan if you're going to drink with Gao Mengyuan.
You've been missing for several days; if you don't reappear, he'll become suspicious. This 50,000 taels is your camouflage.