The attendant saw that his young master had gone mad with bloodlust, and could only stomp his feet in a panic, then frantically ran back to the mansion to find the steward for help.
The steward, hearing of the situation, was as anxious as an ant on a hot pan, pacing back and forth. Although he hadn't been with the young master for long, he had come to understand him as extremely proud, arrogant, and concerned with saving face. He realized he could only go to the Fifth Prince's mansion to find the concubine for a solution; his own words were useless.
Unfortunately, as soon as he knocked on the grand door, he was stopped. The reason was that the Fifth Prince had specifically instructed that no one from inside the mansion was to go out, nor was anyone from outside to come in for the time being, unless it was an extremely urgent matter.
The steward quickly pleaded, "I truly have something I need to tell the concubine. Otherwise, why would I come calling so late? Please, announce me."
After speaking, he untied the pouch at his waist and pressed it into the doorman's hand. In the past, the doorman would not have minded taking a bribe and doing a favor. But the Fifth Prince had given his orders: anyone who dared to disobey would lose their head. The doorman gambled that his life was worth more than the silver. He quickly returned the money.
"It's not that I won't help, but the Fifth Prince specifically instructed that everyone must keep a low profile for now and not enter or leave the mansion casually. You have to tell me what the matter is, so I can report it to my superiors. If your matter is truly urgent, I believe my master will be lenient."
The steward was momentarily unable to answer. He felt that such a matter could be casually discussed in front of the concubine. If it were to reach the ears of the Fifth Prince and the other imperial consorts, it would have bad repercussions. However, if he didn't say anything and something happened, he would also be in trouble.
He could only tell a lie, "Our young master has encountered trouble, it concerns his life. Please announce me quickly. I don't know the specifics myself; the concubine needs to see him personally."
The gatekeeper, upon hearing this, told him to wait there and quickly went to report. After a while, Zhang Tiehua came out, her face filled with anxiety, and asked, "What's wrong with my brother?"
"The servant cannot say the specifics. We are still waiting for Your Ladyship to save him. Let's go quickly."
Without a second word, Zhang Tiehua quickly got into the carriage, told the steward to sit on the carriage shaft, and lead the way.
When the carriage stopped, Zhang Tiehua quickly opened the door and alighted, only to be stunned. Where was this? She couldn't see her brother anywhere.
The steward quickly walked to her side and whispered, "Your Ladyship, can we speak further inside?"
Zhang Tiehua unconsciously nodded, looking confused as she followed him to the side. The steward quickly and briefly explained to her what had happened to Zhang Tieshan.
Listening, Zhang Tiehua was dumbfounded. She had never imagined her brother would get involved with gambling. Now, she finally understood why the carriage had stopped in the middle of the street; it was probably not far from that gambling house.
She made a decisive move, quickly gave some copper coins to a few people from the prince's mansion, telling them to buy a bowl of tea by the roadside. Then, taking the steward and her trusted confidantes, she hurried towards the gambling house.
At this moment, Zhang Tieshan was still at the gambling table, his eyes red. The banknotes in front of him were almost gone. He decided to bet everything, stating confidently, "This time, I will definitely win back my principal and interest, so you won't look down on me. In the previous few times, I always bet high, but the result was small. This time, I'm going to bet small."
Everyone followed suit, placing all their banknotes in the middle of the gambling table. Looking at the mountain of banknotes, everyone's heart pounded. As the dice rolled, they dared not even breathe, their eyes fixed on the small box. When it landed on the table with a "snap," everyone craned their necks to see the result.
Some even prayed to the gods on the spot. When the dice were revealed, Zhang Tieshan felt as if the world was spinning. Some were disappointed, while others cheered. Victory belonged to others. He angrily slammed the table. He hadn't expected his luck to be so bad; this time the result was high. However, he seemed possessed, not thinking of going home after losing his money, but like the other gamblers at the table, preparing to borrow more money in the gambling house.
The gambling house had already thoroughly investigated his background and knew he was backed by the Fifth Prince, so they could still recover this amount of money. They readily lent him money and asked him to sign on a piece of paper. Zhang Tieshan agreed without thinking and was about to place his hand on it when the paper was suddenly snatched away.
"Who doesn't have eyes..." He was about to curse loudly. As soon as he turned around, he saw an unexpected person and quickly shut his mouth, looking at her somewhat guiltily, "Sister, why are you here?"
"If I hadn't come, you would have been killed without knowing it," Zhang Tiehua said, almost in tears. Their living conditions had just improved, and he was causing trouble again. Looking at how skillfully he borrowed money, she didn't know how many times he had done this.
"It's not as serious as you say, sister. I just wanted to borrow tens of thousands of taels of silver from them. I'll win it back with principal and interest in a while, and you'll look at me with new eyes." Zhang Tieshan had not realized his mistake at all, his mind still on how to recoup his losses.
"Even now, you are still unrepentant. How many people who enter a gambling house have a good end? How can you get involved with them? How can you enter this place? You have disappointed me too much."
"Isn't it just about money? We are now royalty. Can't we come up with this little bit of money?"
Seeing Zhang Tieshan's defiant look, Zhang Tiehua felt as if she didn't recognize him. She couldn't be bothered and directly asked the gambling house how much money he had borrowed. Upon hearing fifty thousand taels, she gasped.
Looking at Zhang Tieshan, who was somewhat enraged and defiant, she wanted to say something but felt powerless. Fifty thousand taels of silver was not only a huge sum for her, a poor concubine with nothing, but also for the daughters of officials in the mansion. Her monthly allowance was only twenty taels. Even if she didn't eat or drink, how long would it take to save up?
She suppressed her anger and negotiated with the gambling house, learning that the money had to be repaid in three days, otherwise, they would come to their door.
The thought of them coming to cause a scene in three days, making it known to everyone, and then those people in the back courtyard having something to say, gave Zhang Tiehua a headache. She absolutely would not allow such a thing to happen.
She ordered people to drag Zhang Tieshan out. While being dragged, Zhang Tieshan was still dissatisfied, reluctant to leave the gambling house. He felt that Zhang Tiehua's appearance had disrupted his money-making and cut off his financial path.
The group avoided people as they quietly returned to the Zhang family. As soon as they entered, they closed the door and ordered their servants to take out whips and begin the beating.
The pain of the whip striking his body was unbearable. Zhang Tieshan wanted to struggle, but he was already bound tightly and could not move. Looking at the haughty Zhang Tiehua, hatred arose within him.