Gu Ruobai wasn't angry even though his fake leg injury had been so easily exposed.
"I've never been seen through so quickly. Aren't you afraid I'll kill you to keep you quiet?"
Su Mingyu tapped on the stack of blueprints. "I've got plenty more of these in my head. I'm sure you're not stupid enough to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs."
The more Gu Ruobai observed this girl, the more extraordinary he found her.
On the surface, she seemed so fragile that a gentle squeeze might break her.
Yet she always managed to strike back at those who underestimated her in unexpected ways.
Gu Ruobai nodded, his eyes filled with more amusement. "It's a deal."
Although Su Mingyu knew in her heart that Gu Ruobai wouldn't let go of such a walking arsenal like her, she finally heaved a sigh of relief when he gave his consent.
She cleared her throat and held out her hand to Gu Ruobai. "In that case, I'd like three hundred taels of silver."
The smile in Gu Ruobai's eyes froze, and even his slightly curled lips seemed to be frozen.
Just now, what did this girl say?
Three hundred taels of silver?
Seeing that Gu Ruobai didn't say anything, Su Mingyu frowned. "It's just three hundred taels. It's a drop in the bucket for you, isn't it?"
Gu Ruobai was right before.
The people from the Su family really couldn't do much to her.
But as long as she stayed in the Su family for a day, those people wouldn't let her go.
She had been given a second chance at life, and she didn't want to live under someone else's roof.
If she wanted to establish herself in this world, she needed to build her own power, and for that, she needed silver.
And the man in front of her was the perfect source of silver.
Su Mingyu's straightforwardness slightly surprised Gu Ruobai.
He curled his lips and smiled. "I'm just an out - of - favor prince. How could I come up with three hundred taels all at once?"
Looking around, the furnishings in the Prince Rui's Mansion did look like the residence of a down - and - out prince.
However...
Su Mingyu snorted. "Stop pretending."
She had investigated the situation thoroughly before coming. It wasn't that easy to deceive her.
"Prince Rui gets an annual salary of ten thousand taels of silver and ten thousand dan of grain, not to mention your other private income."
"Three hundred taels is just a drop in the ocean for you."
Gu Ruobai rubbed his nose.
He didn't expect this girl to know him so well. It was interesting.
He sized up Su Mingyu and raised his eyebrows. "Miss Mingyu must be overestimating me. That's just a rumor. I'm afraid I'll disappoint you."
Having been the "useless prince" for so many years, he naturally couldn't reveal his cards easily.
He picked up the teacup and took a sip casually.
Then he looked at Su Mingyu standing in the yard with a smile, as if he really didn't care about this batch of muskets.
Su Mingyu smiled calmly. "How could I? Since it's a deal, I naturally won't force Prince Rui."
As she said this, she stared into Gu Ruobai's eyes steadily, with confidence written all over her face.
After all, the musket was the first shotgun to appear on the Huaguo Continent. Its power was astonishing. In the era of cold weapons, one could hold off a hundred with it.
Whoever owned this batch of muskets would be equivalent to having an elite combat force.
It was definitely a divine weapon that all high - ranking people wanted to get.
No matter how well Prince Rui pretended, he couldn't escape Su Mingyu's eyes.
After a moment, seeing that Gu Ruobai didn't react, Su Mingyu pretended to leave. "Since the prince finds it difficult, I'll have to find another buyer."
"Wait."
Just as Su Mingyu turned around, she heard Gu Ruobai call out softly behind her.
She suppressed her smile and slowly turned around.
"Could it be that the prince has changed his mind and can suddenly come up with three hundred taels?"
There was obvious sarcasm in her words. She just wanted to provoke this pretentious old man.
Gu Ruobai naturally understood her meaning, but he wasn't angry. "Miss, you're wrong. I can't conjure it up, but I've saved some money on weekdays."
"There are so many people in this mansion. It's really not easy to save this money."
Gu Ruobai pretended to look pained.
Keep pretending.
Su Mingyu rolled her eyes at him secretly, folded her arms across her chest, and looked away, not wanting to pay any attention to this drama - king prince.
Gu Ruobai turned to Mu Yi. "Go and prepare three hundred taels of silver for Miss Su."
Three hundred taels!
Mu Yi stood there, stunned, his eyes almost popping out.
An amount that an ordinary family couldn't earn in a lifetime, yet his prince was so easily giving it away?
Although he didn't understand the prince's intention, Mu Yi still nodded and replied, "Yes."
Then he turned around and went to prepare it.
After waiting for a long time and still not seeing Mu Yi come back, Su Mingyu felt thirsty. So she unceremoniously plopped down on the chair next to Gu Ruobai.
She picked up the teacup and took a big gulp.
After all, she was from modern times and didn't understand the elegant and cumbersome etiquette of the ancients.
This slightly surprised Gu Ruobai.
All the women he had ever met seemed so frail that a gust of wind might blow them down. He had never seen someone so informal.
After quenching her thirst heartily, Su Mingyu let out a soft sigh and wiped her mouth with her sleeve.
She looked like a valiant warrior drinking from a big bowl.
Gu Ruobai chuckled softly. Unexpectedly, when Su Mingyu turned around, she caught his smiling eyes.
What did this mean? Was he laughing at her for being vulgar?
Su Mingyu was annoyed. Looking down at his legs, she came up with an idea.
Pretending to be concerned, she said, "Prince Rui used to fight on the battlefield and had no time to worry about his marriage. But now that your legs are disabled, it's better to get married earlier and have descendants for the royal family. Only in this way can the emperor feel at ease."
Gu Ruobai raised his eyes to look at her. "Is Miss Mingyu hinting that if I want to win back my father's heart, it's best to settle down first?"
The royal family always attached great importance to heirs. If he could raise a few more princes, it would give people an impression of being steady and reliable, and make the emperor think that he was considerate of the royal family and the overall situation.
This was indeed a way to regain favor.
Unexpectedly, Su Mingyu didn't answer. She just gave him a mysterious smile.