11: Chapter 11 The Pleasure Pavilion: Wealth Becomes Wealth

Chu Sheng watched the simulation screen, complex emotions welling up in his heart.

Under the cliff, his disheveled self and the beautiful Liu Qingmei relied on each other for survival.

"Fortunately, it's just a simulation."

[The second simulation continues.]

[After a period of time, life under the cliff gradually settled into a rhythm.]

["Big Brother Chu, your strength is truly immense."]

[A flash of envy crossed Liu Qingmei's eyes, "This martial art is so powerful, is it a family heirloom?"]

["It was obtained by chance."]

Chu Sheng smiled.

"I can't exactly say I brought it out from the simulator, can I? If I said that, she'd probably think my head got smashed by a rock."

[Liu Qingmei didn't press further, merely cupping her chin, "If only I were as powerful as you, I wouldn't always be dragging you down..."]

["Don't talk nonsense." Chu Sheng interrupted her, "Without your help handling these things, it would be tough for me alone in these mountains."]

[Even so, both of them knew this was not a long-term solution.]

[A joint decision was quickly made: they had to leave the forest and find a new place to settle.]

[After another period of time, following careful planning, they decided to take the risk.]

[The primary goal was to retrieve the Mid-Grade Spirit Stone and the incomplete manual of the Turtle Breath Retention Art that Chu Sheng had buried under the old locust tree behind the mountain.]

"Retrieving these two items is wise. Although the spirit stone is damaged, it still has some use; the incomplete manual can be sold for starting capital."

[The process was unexpectedly smooth. Strong Luck seemed to favor this operation.]

[Where to go?]

[Returning to Qingshi Town or Linjia Gully would be walking right into a trap, and heading towards Jin Xiao City would be courting death, so Chu Sheng and Liu Qingmei ultimately settled on one place—Luofeng Town.]

Luofeng Town.

It was located about two hundred li northwest of Qingshi Town, close to the border of another small country, the Yan Kingdom, and was quite remote.

Most importantly, it seemed to have no powerful clans entrenched there, making it suitable for living under an assumed identity.

Chu Sheng nodded.

"Luofeng Town... the name sounds desolate. But this kind of place is indeed suitable for hiding. It's far from the capital, so who cares where you came from?"

[The journey was long and full of unknowns. Using their remaining supplies, they traded for a broken cart and an old mule at a tiny mountain village market, disguising themselves as siblings fleeing famine to seek relatives, and set off on their journey.]

[After nearly two months of bumpy travel, they finally arrived at Luofeng Town. The town was a size smaller than Qingshi Town, with old buildings and quiet streets, but it possessed a desolate sort of tranquility.]

[Chu Sheng was a seventh-rank martial artist, and with a physical body comparable to a ninth-rank martial artist, he was considered a rare expert in this place.]

[But becoming a bodyguard or a caravan guard directly would easily attract attention.]

[A bold idea popped into Chu Sheng's mind.]

Seeing this, Chu Sheng's eyes lit up.

"Here it comes! The classic trope—selling a martial arts manual for the first pot of gold!"

[The Turtle Breath Retention Art was useless to him, but it was, after all, an incomplete manual of an orthodox Qi Induction method.]

[It should have some appeal to the mortal martial artists of Luofeng Town, or to wealthy young masters yearning to enter the path of cultivation.]

["Sell it!" Chu Sheng made his decision.]

[After a period of time, Chu Sheng changed his appearance, used his remaining money to buy a decent set of clothes, carefully shaved and tied his hair, and found "Liu's Grocery Store," which also operated as a pawnshop in town.]

[The shopkeeper was a thin, shrewd old man, "This item... is interesting. It looks like something from an ancient cultivator, but it's too damaged, and I can't even make out all the words."]

[He raised his eyelids, "Don't even think about cultivation; as an antique for collection or reference... thirty taels of silver."]

[Chu Sheng knew the other party was lowballing him, but he was in urgent need of money, and this book was indeed useless to him now.]

[After some bargaining, the deal was finally closed for fifty taels of silver.]

Chu Sheng did the math, "Fifty taels... in a place like Luofeng Town, this is enough for an average family of three to live for two or three years. I have the starting capital, what's next?"

[Chu Sheng didn't use this money to buy land or start a small business. His gaze turned towards a gambling den in a corner of Luofeng Town—the "House of Joy".]

Chu Sheng almost laughed out loud.

"A gambling den? Good heavens, he's going to use Strong Luck to fleece them!"

"The me in the simulation is indeed smart enough."

[Ordinary gamblers lose nine times out of ten, but Chu Sheng was different—he had Strong Luck.]

["Place your bets!" The dealer shook the dice.]

[Chu Sheng closed his eyes, not bothering to listen to the dice, and casually placed his chips on "Big".]

[The cover was lifted—four, five, six; Big.]

[Chu Sheng won.]

[He wasn't greedy; after winning a few rounds, he immediately changed tables, started with two taels of silver, and when he left the House of Joy, he had twenty taels of silver in his pocket.]

[Chu Sheng went once every three to five days, using only one tael of silver as capital each time, winning more than losing.]

[Relying on the money earned from the gambling den, their lives improved rapidly. Liu Qingmei's complexion improved significantly, and smiles gradually returned to her face. The two rented a small courtyard.]

[A man and a woman living alone together, feelings naturally grew over time.]

"This progress... is much faster than the previous simulation. It's true that sharing hardships makes it easy to foster feelings."

Chu Sheng watched the screen, unable to resist teasing.

[After another period of time.]

[The manager of the House of Joy, known as Master Scar, stopped Chu Sheng when he won money one time.]

["Brother, you look unfamiliar." Master Scar sized Chu Sheng up with a forced smile, "Your luck has been good lately?"]

[Chu Sheng's heart tightened, "Master Scar, you're joking. I'm just playing around, small stakes, trying to scrape by."]

["Small stakes?" Master Scar took a puff of his dry tobacco, "I don't think so. Every time you come, you don't win much, but you rarely lose. This ability to control the game is quite unusual."]

[He leaned in closer, "Are you interested in doing something for the House of Joy? Or... shall we have a private chat?"]

[Behind Master Scar, two burly thugs quietly surrounded him.]

Chu Sheng frowned.

It seems he had been targeted.

How could a place like a gambling den allow an outsider to keep winning money easily?

Either join them or get cleared out.

[Simulation paused.]

[Please select a strategy for your simulated self to deal with the threat from the House of Joy:]

[1. Feign compliance, temporarily agree to join or cooperate, probe for information, and plan for the future.]

[2. Display some strength to intimidate them, claiming he just had good luck and had no intention of offending them.]

[3. Decisively refuse, and prepare to immediately take Liu Qingmei and relocate again, leaving Luofeng Town.]

[4. Use a counter-strategy, feign cooperation, and utilize Strong Luck and information to counter or swallow the interests of the House of Joy.]

Option 1 is too restrictive; once you join, it's hard to get out.

Option 2... A seventh-rank martial artist is considered strong in this small town, but the gambling den might have backing.

Option 3 is the safest, but having to run away again is too much of a hassle.

Option 4 has the highest risk, but the potential returns are also the highest...

He looked at Chu Sheng's calm face in the simulation screen and suddenly smiled.

"Given my personality in the simulation, I'd probably choose D. With Strong Luck on my side, it would be a shame not to take a gamble."

"And," he added.

"Liu Qingmei has just settled down, and making her run away again would be unfair to her."

"Choose D. Use a counter-strategy and see if I can turn the House of Joy into my own personal ATM."