Sang Li thought for a moment. "Then let's do this - when we initially bought him, we paid fifty taels of silver because of his good looks. You just give us fifty taels. Now that he looks like this, we won't be making money off you."
Fifty taels was indeed much cheaper for buying back one's freedom.
But they were currently using Shadowless' money, and it was at the crucial moment of opening their shop. Fifty taels was not a small sum either.
"Miaomiao, how much money do you still have from what Xuemo gave you?" Sang Li asked.
"The silver note Xuemo gave was one hundred taels. We've spent quite a bit on setting up the shop and buying things. Sister Li, if you want to buy him back, we might...be a little short on money. And we definitely won't be earning much since we just opened the shop." Xia Miaomiao said.
Sang Li also felt that she shouldn't be so selfish to spend so much money buying Gu Zhi's freedom.
Seeing his miserable and pitiful state, she really could not bear to ignore him.
Sang Li was usually rational and decisive, but now she struggled internally.
Her rational side told her that she should not buy Gu Zhi.
But her heart would not allow herself to watch as he was sold off to become animal bait.
If she had not met Gu Zhi here, perhaps she would not feel so guilty. But she did meet him.
"Miss, are you buying him or not? If not, we'll be leaving!" The big man saw Sang Li hesitate for so long and said impatiently.
"Wait!" Sang Li stopped them. "I'll buy..."
Sang Li looked at Gu Zhi. Gu Zhi also raised his head to look at her.
"Miaomiao, give them the money." Sang Li said lightly.
"Oh, okay." Xia Miaomiao responded and took out a fifty tael silver note from her clothes, handing it to the big man.
The big man took out a deed of self-sale from his clothes and handed it to Sang Li. "Miss, then we'll be going first."
The big man threw the rope he was holding to Sang Li.
Sang Li immediately threw the rope onto the ground and went over to untie the ropes binding Gu Zhi's wrists, helping him stand up from the ground.
"How are you feeling?" Sang Li saw that his hands were scraped and raw, and she couldn't help but frown.
"Sister..." Gu Zhi's eyes seemed to glisten with unfallen tears. "Thank you..."
Sang Li sighed. "Let's go buy some medication first to bandage your hands."
"No need, it doesn't matter." Gu Zhi lowered his eyes.
"How can it not matter? It's scraped so badly!" Sang Li pulled him along and called for Xia Miaomiao. The three of them went to the pharmacy together.
At the pharmacy, Sang Li bought some medicine for abrasions and gauze for bandaging.
She went over to Gu Zhi and said, "You sit first, let me apply some medicine for you and then wrap your hands."
Gu Zhi looked at her and obediently sat down across from Sang Li.
Sang Li lifted his hand and carefully applied some medicinal powder onto his hand.
Gu Zhi's eyes fell upon her slender, fair fingers, and he became somewhat absent-minded.
After Sang Li finished applying the medicine, she wrapped his hands with the gauze. "There, it's done. Don't wet your hands these next few days."
Seeing that Gu Zhi was still silent and not responding, Sang Li looked up at him and found him staring at something in a daze.
Sang Li waved her hand in front of him. "Gu Zhi?"
Gu Zhi came back to his senses all at once, somewhat embarrassed as he lowered his head. "Oh, yes."
"Alright, let's go then."
"Okay."
The three of them left the pharmacy. Sang Li gave Gu Zhi the rest of the medicine and gauze. "These are for you."
Gu Zhi accepted them. "Thank you, Sister."
Sang Li took out that deed of self-sale and said in a clear voice. "Here, take this."
Gu Zhi looked at that deed of self-sale, puzzled. "Sister, this is..."
"From now on, you're free." Sang Li stuffed the deed into his hand. "These red rashes on your face—in a few days, they'll go away by themselves. Even if it's itchy, don't scratch it. Otherwise, it could scar. In the future, be more careful and don't let yourself be sold off somewhere again."
Gu Zhi stared at the deed of self-sale in his hand, rendered speechless for quite a long time.
Sang Li did not say any more to him. She pulled Xia Miaomiao and turned to leave.
In Gu Zhi's eyes, there seemed to be hints of reddening. Why? She bought him back only to abandon him again?
"Sister!" Gu Zhi chased after them.
Sang Li stopped in her tracks and turned back to see Gu Zhi running over.
"Why? Why are you abandoning me?" Gu Zhi asked when he caught up to them.
Sang Li was astonished. "This isn't me abandoning you, rather giving you your freedom. You can go find your family, go do whatever you want."
"But I don't have any family!"
"What about before? Where did you live? What did you do?" Sang Li asked.
"I..." Gu Zhi strove to recall but his mind was just blank. His brows furrowed. "I don't know. I can't remember. I only remember when I woke up, beside me was just my elder brother. But he sold me to the Floating Splendor House; he's not my real elder brother!"
Sang Li asked somewhat uncertainly, "Could it be...you have amnesia?"
Gu Zhi looked somewhat lost. "That I also don't know. I only remember when I woke up, my name was Gu Zhi. Nothing else..."
"Then why do you remember you have an elder brother?"
"I don't remember, but when I woke up, only he was by my side. He said he was my elder brother and that I was being rebellious — I fell and injured my head while fooling around in the mountains." Gu Zhi strove to recall his past; he was only able to remember these things.
"Sister Li, he seems to really have amnesia." Xia Miaomiao said. "Could it be he fell and injured his head, and his so-called elder brother sold him because he saw him as useless?"
Sang Li shook her head, "No, his cognitive and expressive abilities are completely normal."
Because that medicine she gave him would not have spread anything. Why would Light Breeze have gotten infected? It was clearly medicine Gu Zhi gave to Light Breeze, trying to make the people at Floating Splendor House believe that the rashes on his face were contagious.
"Sister, don't abandon me. I want to follow you. I'll do anything you want!" Gu Zhi quickly said.
Sang Li laughed lightly, "Anything? What if I ask you to go back to Floating Splendor House to make money?"
Gu Zhi was astonished, lowering his head as he said softly, "Anything...other than that..."
"Then what can you do?" Sang Li asked.
"I..."
Gu Zhi hesitated, then thought hard but seemed to not think of anything. He felt somewhat vexed, thinking himself utterly useless.
Sang Li saw that what he had going for him was just a pleasant face; other than that, he likely really was useless.
"I also don't know...what I can do. But you can make me wash clothes, cook, sweep the yard!"
Sang Li looked at him uncertainly, "Can you do all those?"
"I don't know...but I can learn." Gu Zhi spoke very sincerely.
"..." Sang Li sighed, "Forget it. Since you have nowhere else to go, come stay with us temporarily. Once you find your family again, you can go back."
"Thank you, Sister!" Gu Zhi only heard the first half of her words.