Reborn in the 1970s — Married a Proud Rough Man

’This is my turf. The person upstairs is my own mother. Even if the police show up, they’ll never find this basement as long as she doesn’t sell me out.’

’His mother might betray anyone else, but she’d never betray her own son.’

”You have a hundred thousand?” the boss asked Qin Mei.

”I only brought two thousand,” Qin Mei said, pulling two thick stacks of cash from her bag. She placed them on the table and pushed them toward the boss.

”Two thousand?” The boss sneered, his eyes filled with disdain.

”The remaining one hundred and ninety-eight thousand has to be withdrawn from the bank,” Qin Mei said.

”Mr. Qin, do you really think I’m going to let you go to the bank to withdraw money?” the boss asked coldly. The implication was clear: they weren’t walking out of this basement today.

”A hundred thousand is no small sum,” Qin Mei reminded him.

”Are you an undercover agent sent by the police?” the boss asked.

”No,” Qin Mei denied.

”It doesn’t matter if you admit it or not. I wasn’t going to let you go anyway. But even if I did, and you brought the police, they’d never be able to find this place,” the boss said confidently.

”I’m not with the police,” Qin Mei said.

”Who is he to you? Why would you risk coming here in person to pay off his debt?” the boss asked. He wasn’t fixated on whether Qin Mei was with the police. Once you were in his basement, it didn’t matter who you were.

”I pay his debt, and he marries me. Is that a good enough reason for you?” Qin Mei asked, straining her ears for any sound from outside. She couldn’t tell if the soundproofing was too good or if Jie Jingchen simply hadn’t found the place yet.

’This guy’s attitude made it clear: coming in here was a one-way trip.’

’She found it strange. With so many gamblers outside, what made him so confident they wouldn’t sell out this den, yet he was so suspicious of her?’

What Qin Mei didn’t know was that everyone who came here to gamble was an addict. The boss had them by the throat, so they’d never dare betray him. Zhang Haoyuan, however, was an exception.

’Getting addicted and then wanting to quit... He deserves to die.’

The boss glanced at Qin Mei’s face again, then quickly looked away toward Zhang Haoyuan. ”You’re going to marry her?”

Zhang Haoyuan froze for a moment. After a brief internal struggle, he forced himself to speak, feigning reluctance. ”I will.”

”So unwilling?” the boss mocked.

”I have money. He has to marry me whether he wants to or not,” Qin Mei said, her tone dripping with arrogance.

”Listen, Mr. Qin, even though you’re homely, he’s older than you,” the boss said.

”I just happen to like mature men.” Qin Mei even shot a flirtatious look at Zhang Haoyuan. He kept his head down, unable to look at her, afraid he’d be psychologically scarred.

The four bodyguards thought to themselves, ’She’s probably unmarriageable.’

”How about this? I won’t pay his gambling debt. You marry me instead.” Qin Mei scooted her chair closer to the boss.

”COUGH, COUGH, COUGH.” The boss choked on his own saliva. Marry her? He’d have nightmares. Seeing her get closer, he shot to his feet and backed away from Qin Mei. ”Don’t come near me. You’re disgusting.”

Qin Mei touched her face, which felt like the skin of a toad, and couldn’t help but shiver. ”Boss, I’m an acquired taste. You’ll stop feeling sick once you get used to me. Zhang Haoyuan is a perfect example. At first, he was just as disgusted as you are, but after a few more looks, he got used to it. I have money. Lots of money. If you agree to marry me, I’ll give you a dowry of two hundred thousand. After our wedding night, the rash on my face will spread to you. Then neither of us can look down on the other. We can have a son, and the three of us can have faces full of rashes. Wouldn’t that be great!”

Listening to Qin Mei’s speech, the four bodyguards looked on in horror.

Utterly disgusted, the boss kicked out at Qin Mei. ”Get away! Stay away from me! You’re making me sick.”

Qin Mei didn’t dodge. ’If they see through my act, they’ll just be more on guard.’

”Ouch, that hurts!” Qin Mei fell onto the floor, her face twisted as she accused him, ”I’m a woman! Don’t you know how to treat a lady? No wonder none of you can get a wife.”

”I have a wife!” the boss retorted. Looking at her hideous face, he decided it didn’t matter if she was really rich or not. The first step was to get her hooked on gambling.

”I’m willing to be your mistress!” Qin Mei scrambled to her feet and tried to lunge at the boss again.

The boss waved his hand, and the four bodyguards stepped forward, forming a human wall between him and Qin Mei.

Witnessing this scene, Zhang Haoyuan realized how brilliant it was for Qin Mei to give herself that allergic reaction. ’With her real looks,’ he thought, ’coming here with me would have been like feeding a sheep to a pack of tigers.’

”Fine, I won’t force you. Someone’s willing to marry me anyway.” Qin Mei sat back down in her chair. ”Send someone with me to the bank to get the money. Once the debt is cleared, I can take him home for our wedding night.”

”No rush. Since you’re already here, how about a little wager?” Seeing that Qin Mei wasn’t going to pounce again, the boss waved his hand. The four bodyguards parted, and he sat back down in his chair.