As soon as he finished speaking, Su Jiuguo tried to grab her by the collar, but unfortunately, his daughter was ridiculously strong. He tugged for a while and didn't budge her, almost wrenching his own back in the process.
He fumed with rage
"You eat our food, live in our house, enjoy all our perks, and you want to send him back?? Has your mother taken your brains with her or what? Huh?!"
Watching her dad struggling like this, Su Ye, in order to save Su Jiuguo from further embarrassment, could only cooperate silently and sway along with her dad's movements.
Probably because the previous Su Ye had done way too many dodgy things, Su Jiuguo had built up a thicker skin than most dads.
After a brief pause, he did look a bit less furious.
Maybe he'd let it go. He let go of her and shooed with his hand,
"Those are just small sums, nothing to worry about. But this one cost one hundred thousand taels—you better not send him back again.
After all, the lad nearly bankrupted our family."
For some reason, even though Su Jiuguo was the dignified City Lord, he always sounded like some sort of ruffian or bandit when he spoke.
Once he was mad, he'd start using "your old man" every other word.
Right after that, Su Ye fell silent again.
Su Jiuguo frowned in confusion,
"What's up with you? Every time I bring up that new male prostitute, you clam up. Why are you so protective of him?"
After saying that, Su Jiuguo seemed to think of something. He grinned, then patted Su Ye on the shoulder in what he thought was a comforting way,
"Don't worry, kid. Your dad here isn't into men, not going to steal him from you. But you gotta at least let me take a look—see what a hundred-thousand-tael courtesan actually looks like."
Su Ye quietly took two steps back, avoiding eye contact with her dad.
"Dad, your daughter is useless."
"Huh? What are you talking about? You gotta have confidence! You're my daughter, Su Jiuguo's kid! Still worried about conquering a male prostitute?"
Su Jiuguo assumed his daughter was hung up on not being able to win the little gigolo's heart, so he tried to encourage her.
Under her dad's caring gaze, Su Ye turned her eyes to the pillar beside her, refusing to meet his eyes, and finally spoke up,
"It's not just one hundred thousand taels…it's one hundred thousand taels per night."
Su Jiuguo stood there for a moment, processing that, and muttered,
"Per night?"
The next second, he exploded all over again.
"You fooled around for one night and it cost a hundred thousand taels?? Is he made of gold or something? Ah! Did they drug you or what?!"
Once again, Su Ye got scolded by her dad until her ears were ringing.
This time, though, she dodged quickly; she'd pretty much explained everything, so it was time to make her escape.
Picking up her skirts as she walked, she called back over her shoulder,
"Don't worry, Dad, I'll make sure to look after you in your old age."
She originally meant to comfort him, but the words nearly made Su Jiuguo spit blood from sheer anger.
He was so mad he ignored Su Ye for days afterward.
Su Ye made a quick escape from her courtyard.
She leaned against the backyard wall, finally letting out a sigh of relief.
In the original book, this dad was pure cannon fodder.
The only time he showed up, Su Qing got him killed.
As for this dowry, wedding gift, key and all that, they never appeared in the novel at all.
Su Ye fiddled with the rusty key, looking left and right.
She'd left in such a hurry she forgot to ask what the key actually opened.
Just as she was thinking, Xing's voice came rushing from behind,
"Miss! Miss!"
Xing ran up, saw Su Ye turning the key curiously in her hand.
Wiping the sweat off her forehead, she hurriedly said,
"Miss, you left in a rush earlier. The City Lord asked me to tell you: back when he married the City Lord's wife, it was in the Imperial City, and all the wedding gifts and dowry were left in the Imperial City too."
Su Ye nodded after hearing that.
Then she thought for a moment,
"So, Xuan Yue City is about…how far from the Imperial City?"