A Scumbag Always Gets What He Deserves

35: The nightmare returns

Rege strode into the castle. As he brushed past Cassia he said in an icy tone, "Don't flatter yourself. This performance wasn't for you. That smile of yours costs other men countless gold coins to buy, but it's worthless in my eyes!"

Cassia shrugged, completely unfazed by these words.

"Darling, you're so childish," she shot back.

Rege snorted and continued to walk inside.

After returning to the banquet hall, the butler presented a tray containing the cloth bag left by Prince Andrew, as well as the ring with the Grande family crest.

Rege picked up the ring. Waving his hand, he said, "Take this pile of gold coins and reward the dwarfs. I was very pleased with their performance."

The butler bowed and went to obey.

Rege slid the ring onto his finger, then he leaned back on the sofa, leisurely rolling the lion's head ring on his thumb, the one given to him by Jian Qiao. His brain kept recalling the scene when they parted. Dizziness and turbulent emotions washed through his heart like ocean waves.

He ducked his head with a smile that overflowed with happiness, and kissed the blood diamond set in the lion's mouth.

Just then, the dwarf woman named Zoe came up trembling and hunching her shoulders. With a tremor in her voice she said, "Your Lordship, we just received your bounty, so I'm here to thank you on behalf of everyone. Your generosity is beyond compare. Thank you very much!"

Rege looked down and fondled the blood diamond, and gave a cursory reply. His two overly long legs rested casually on the round table in a very indolent posture.

It was obvious that today's performance had pleased him. Now he was like a sated lion, and his entire body was comfortable and relaxed.

Zoe carefully examined his mood and grew a little bolder. She got down on her knees. "Your Lordship, after the performance we received a lot of invitations from other nobles. They want us to perform at their houses as well, and they said they would give us a lot of gold coins. Your Lordship, will you allow it? We can give you all the gold coins we get from each performance. We only ask you to reward us by permitting us to eat white bread every day."

The dwarfs were kept like livestock, so they were naturally fed rice hulls, barley husks, rotten vegetable leaves, and other unpalatable things.

Before being sold to the ducal palace they didn't even know what it was like to sleep in a bed. A crude stable full of weeds was often their only shelter.

Such a huge bag of gold coins was something they'd never seen before. Just a moment ago, several of Zoe's companions actually fainted after receiving the coins.

Ecstasy and happiness lingered in everyone's hearts, and the extremely courageous Zoe realized that she'd found a benevolent master and a good livelihood.

That was why she came. She wanted to see if she could fight for a better life for her companions. Then she could eat normal food and live in a normal house like a normal person.

In the past, there was no question Rege would have kicked this greedy dwarf woman out. Performing plays for family after family in the name of the Duke's household, what kind of nonsense was that? Would the ducal palace be transformed into a circus?

The play he personally wrote could only be performed in his house for the guests he invited. People outside shouldn't even think about it.

That's what all the great nobles did. They appropriated the best things for themselves, or even snatched what others had, and used these things as a symbol of their status and position.