Chapter 22: Schemes

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“The quality of hair comes down to two things. First, the thickness, softness, and elasticity; second, how oily it is. Brother, you know I use lard on my hair every day…”

Qian Shengwen was quite confident about his hair, but applying lard? That was truly an eccentric move.

“Shengwen, this is a dueling arena. We ought to play something worthy of the occasion. Dog fighting—do you dare?”

He didn’t care much for betting on hair pulling—it was too childish. He preferred dogs, and the bigger, the better.

He turned to Shen Shi and said, “Let’s each prepare a fighting dog, have a fair bet, and wager on our own dog. Winner takes all. What do you say?”

Speaking of fighting dogs, Qian Shengju’s face brimmed with pride, and Qian Shengwen echoed excitedly, “Shen Shi, do you dare?” His expression was full of disdain and provocation.

Shen Shi immediately saw through their act. These two brothers were just putting on a show. First, they suggested betting on hair pulling; clearly, it was a setup. Isn’t this how gambling works? Let the gambler win first, taste the sweetness, then lose big in one go.

This routine was common knowledge in later generations.

Of course, in his previous life, he’d only heard of such tricks; now, he had the privilege of witnessing them firsthand. It was amusing.

As he pondered this, someone tugged at his sleeve. It was Gongsun Ce.

The Gongsun family were slave catchers. Although they rarely interacted with the loggers, since both worked in the mountains, the Gongsuns kept a close eye on them.

Gongsun Ce whispered, “Brother Shen, I advise you not to accept the Qian brothers’ bet. Their family also goes into the mountains, so their dogs are fierce—they’ve killed wolves before. Ordinary dogs are no match.”

“Dogs that can kill wolves? That’s impressive,” Shen Shi replied. He had fought against wild wolves and knew how formidable they were.

“But Brother Gongsun, since they’ve put so much effort into setting this trap, they won’t let me decline,” Shen Shi added.

Gongsun Ce thought for a moment, then nodded. “That’s true.”

Gongsun Ce was naturally interested in reasoning, so as soon as Shen Shi spoke, he understood it was the Qian brothers’ ploy.

Shen Shi looked at the Qian brothers and announced loudly, “Very well, I accept your bet. When do we begin?”

Upon hearing this, the Qian brothers exchanged delighted glances, thinking to themselves: This fool from the Shen family has fallen for it again. Now to see how much they could win this time.

“Brother Shen, why are you betting with them again? You lose more than you win every time…”

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It was Kong Xueli who reproached Shen Shi for gambling and exposed his history of losing to the Qian brothers.

What a useless teammate. He hadn’t considered that Shen Shi had embarrassed the brothers yesterday; today, there was no way he could refuse to gamble.

Refusing would mean endless trouble.

They were targeting him specifically. If saying ‘no’ could solve it, would the Qian brothers be satisfied? Would they willingly part with the two hundred fifty strings they lost?

But Kong Xueli wasn’t Gongsun Ce; he was someone who had a good relationship with the original Shen Shi and was used to seeing him get duped by the Qian brothers. It was a matter of reputation, not something Shen Shi could explain away. No matter how well he argued, it couldn’t outweigh the fact that he always lost.

Unless he won several times in a row, this reputation wouldn’t change.

“We shouldn’t gamble. If you refuse, they can’t force you,” Kong Xueli insisted.

He was a true scholar, believing what books said: you can’t force a cow to drink water by pushing its head down.

But books are always books; in reality, there are plenty of ways to make a cow bow its head.

At that moment, Qian Shengju spoke up, “Since Brother Shen has accepted, let’s start right now.”

Shen Shi spread his hands, “I don’t have a fighting dog.”

“Just pick any dog in the arena,” Qian Shengwen said with a grin.

Shen Shi had had enough of their shamelessness. How “honest” must the original Shen Shi have been to fall for their tricks? He retorted, “I might as well give you the money directly. Would you take it?”

They were clearly out to swindle him, but did it have to be so crude?

Qian Shengwen’s laughter faltered.

Qian Shengju said, “Then, let’s give Brother Shen half a day. We’ll duel this afternoon, alright?”

To prevent Shen Shi from backing out, Qian Shengju offered a so-called favor: only half a day. Where could Shen Shi find a dog capable of fighting wolves in such a short time?

But Shen Shi didn’t expose him. He simply nodded and said, “Alright, I’ll go prepare a dog. See you this afternoon.” He turned to leave, but Qian Shengju stopped him.

“Wait, Brother Shen, there’s one more thing.”

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“What is it?” Shen Shi looked at the Qian brothers.

“How much are we betting?” Qian Shengwen interjected.

Shen Shi thought they’d bring it up when the match began, but since they mentioned it now, it didn’t matter. He considered for a moment and said, “Let’s make it twenty strings.”

He’d never gambled on dog fighting before. But since he’d just won two hundred fifty strings, he could afford to return twenty. That is, if they were satisfied with such a sum. Otherwise, to pit his dog against theirs… with cultivators involved, well.

“Tch—”

Qian Shengwen immediately scoffed at the mention of twenty strings, full of disdain. They’d gone to all this trouble for more than a mere twenty strings. That wouldn’t even cover the two hundred fifty strings they’d lost baiting him earlier.

Qian Shengju added, “Brother Qin, my fighting dog is a champion; every match draws at least two hundred strings. Twenty strings—is that all you can offer?”

Seeing their contemptuous faces, Shen Shi felt annoyed. He hadn’t wanted them to lose too badly—he’d just won two hundred fifty strings and thought to return some.

“Shen Shi, your family comes from a line of generals. Surely you can afford two hundred strings?” Qian Shengwen chimed in, mocking him further.

A perfect assist.

“Brother Shen, they’re going too far. How can they insult your family!”

It was Kong Xueli again.

He was genuinely agitated and angry, as if his own family had been insulted.

If not for his sincere emotion, Shen Shi would have suspected he was in league with them.

Yet his outrage reminded Shen Shi: this was an era of honor and country. Insulting Shen Shi’s family was second only to desecrating ancestors, equal to or worse than cuckolding a man.

Now, Shen Shi was truly displeased. Though he was a modern man and had little connection to the honor of a military family in the Song dynasty, it was like being cursed in a foreign language—not understanding didn’t mean one wasn’t insulted.