“That’s a soft armor for self-defense, worn over a close-fitting undergarment,” Lin Fei said, gesturing slightly to the name of the person who took the armor. “This person is also a businessman, but the things he’s trading are quite interesting.”

Due to the special nature of the Dali Temple and the nature of its cases, Dali Temple officials had experience in dealing with everyone from high-ranking officials and imperial relatives to ordinary people, even vagrants and beggars. Therefore, the Dali Temple officials had always prided themselves on their wide-ranging connections and knowledge of all walks of life.

However, upon seeing Lin Fei’s special note after the person’s name about his business, even Liu Yua and Bai Zhu were somewhat stunned.

The reason was simple: the only word listed after the name was “gambling on stones.”

Gambling on stones involved merchants displaying a pile of rough stones with clearly marked prices for people to choose from and buy. Among these rough stones were pure stones, and some contained priceless jade.

Judging by appearance alone, it was often difficult to discern their contents; even the most experienced experts can be fooled, let alone ordinary people.

Therefore, the “gambling” aspect was significant in the rough stone business. Even knowing that the vast majority of rough stones were ordinary, the possibility of buying a worthless stone at an exorbitant price—a small investment for a huge return—still captivates many. Even ordinary people, upon seeing rough stone vendors setting up stalls at the market, couldn’t resist stopping to try their luck.

“This man’s name is Liu Sanqing. His family had been in the business of ‘gambling on stones’ for generations, charging a fee for transporting the stones. This business continued until it was passed down to his father,” Lin Fei said. “Liu’s father watched as others bought rough stones from his stall and found beautiful jade inside, becoming rich overnight. He finally couldn’t resist getting involved himself.”

Just like a gambling den owner, the first thing he needed to control was his own hands. Once he got involved, he was not far from becoming a gambler himself.

“After Liu’s father started gambling himself, he cut the rough stones brought from the mines. Most of these stones were waste material; even the jade pieces were mostly low-quality and worthless,” Lin Fei said. “He finally managed to cut one open, revealing a piece with decent quality. Someone wanted to buy it at a high price to gamble on this half-finished piece, but Liu’s father refused and chose to cut it himself. In the end, after cutting it completely open, there was only a thin layer of jade skin. It was a complete failure. This one cut wiped out most of his ancestors’ and his own fortune.”

That was the gambler’s mentality. Liu Yuan and Bai Zhu weren’t surprised to hear this. After hearing Lin Fei say that he had lost most of his fortune, they knew the matter wasn’t over. After all, for someone like Liu’s father, who was blinded by gambling, even if he lost most of his fortune, he still had a small portion left. As long as he had money and a way to get more, he wouldn’t stop.

Sure enough, not long after, Liu’s father, who had repeatedly sworn to his family that he would never gamble again, started gambling again.

This batch of stones was cut open again, revealing a piece of jade. The jade’s texture and quality were quite good, and someone offered to buy this half-opened piece to gamble on. Because of the previous time he lost most of his fortune by cutting open a stone, Mr. Liu was hesitating when his wife, having heard about it, rushed over. Seeing Mr. Liu gambling again, she immediately argued with him, threatening to divorce him and return to her parents’ home.

Already hesitant, Mr. Liu, due to the argument, simply sold the cut jade to someone else. The other person immediately cut it open, revealing that besides the surface layer of stone, the inside was all beautiful jade—a huge win! Seeing this, realizing that what was his just moments before was no longer his, and considering he had lost most of his fortune gambling away, Mr. Liu was consumed by rage. He vented his anger on Madam Liu, with whom he had argued, and in a fit of rage, he struck her.

“…Mr. Liu first beat Madam Liu, who had prevented him from becoming rich, half to death. Then, after being beaten half to death, she still tried to stop him, so he shoved her and went out to drink and vent his anger. After drinking all night, when he returned home, he found Mrs. Liu lying motionless on her back, the blood beneath her head already dried,” Lin Fei said, shaking his head. “Madam Liu was dead.”

“Before they embarked on their gambling journey, Mr. and Madam Liu were a loving couple with a good relationship. Otherwise, Madam Liu wouldn’t have remained devoted to Mr. Liu even after he lost most of his fortune gambling. But their deep affection led to this tragic end,” Lin Fei said. “Madam Liu’s family was naturally furious, especially when they saw her covered in bruises. This caused a rift between the two families, who now deeply resent each other’s relationships and affairs…”

Hearing Lin Fei mention “relationships and affairs,” Liu Yuan and Bai Zhu immediately realized who it was: “So… that’s Liu Sanqing.”

“They must have become enemies of each other.”

Lin Fei nodded and said, “The evidence against Liu’s father for accidentally killing someone was conclusive. He paid for Liu’s mother’s life with his own. Because Liu Sanqing had the blood of the ‘enemy’ in him, he was passed around between the two families and was raised entirely by the villagers. Later, I don’t know how he got in touch with the people in the Liu family’s mines and started gambling on stones again. But probably because of Liu’s father’s experience, I heard that although he was in the gambling stone business, he never gambled himself. Now, he has a small fortune and lives a good life!”

If he was living a good life, why would a merchant like him wear soft armor?

Liu Sanqing, who had just returned to Chang’an a few days ago after purchasing a batch of stones from out of town, had his own explanation.

“My lord, you may not know this, but these days, no business is easy,” Liu Sanqing said as he inspected the stones with his men. “The business of gambling on stones started in the mines. We always have to be discerning when buying rough stones. If we can’t even find a few good pieces in a batch of rough stones, who would come to my stall to gamble on stones? Good rough stones are naturally in high demand. My fellow buyers, the miners, and the local people are all tough guys. Arguments and fights are commonplace. If you don’t believe me, my lord, you can check if there are frequent stabbing incidents at the mine. I’m used to wearing soft armor for self-defense!”

Liu Yuan and Bai Zhu sized up the dark-skinned, thin middle-aged man in front of them. Buying stones required traveling to other places every few months, often on the go, exposed to wind and rain, sun and rain were commonplace for him. Although he was a wealthy merchant, Liu Sanqing was also quite muscular. Judging from how effortlessly he moved the rough stones, he must be quite strong.

Among the rubble in the courtyard were specialized stone-cutting tools. Judging by how easily those tools could slice through stone with a single stroke, one could imagine that cutting a person instead of stone wouldn’t be difficult either.

Liu Yuan and Bai Zhu scrutinized Liu Sanqing, waiting for him to explain how the soft armor he wore underneath had been left on the rental pleasure boat.

(End of Chapter)

---