I Can Devour Spirits

Chapter 168: The Wager

Jiang Qingyu’s personal servant, Jiang Rong, suddenly pushed the door open and came in, looking mournful. He said to Ximen Kankan, "Young Master Ximen, you should go and check on my master. That Luo Zhoucheng is no good, and my master’s about to lose the seven or eight thousand taels of silver notes he brought on him..."

Ximen Kankan’s eyes narrowed upon hearing this, and he jumped off his seat, rushing outside. "That guy really can’t give anyone peace of mind."

Duan Rong’s eyes shifted, and he immediately followed. He had sensed earlier that something was off, and it turned out something indeed went wrong.

Ximen Kankan and Duan Rong walked into the Gui Character Room’s private box, only to see the oval redwood table piled with silver notes and loose cards. Jiang Qingyu sat with his back to the door, and diagonally across from him sat Luo Zhoucheng and a burly middle-aged man.

The burly middle-aged man had a clean-shaven, fair face, and neatly groomed hair, but his eyes flashed with a cold light.

Ximen Kankan felt uneasy when he saw the scene. Instinctively, he felt that Jiang Qingyu had fallen for someone else’s trap. Though sometimes he would win some silver coins from Jiang Qingyu, it was only about one or two thousand taels at most, and he knew Jiang Qingyu was not a big gambler. Jiang Qingyu always believed in small bets for pleasure. How could he possibly let himself lose seven or eight thousand taels of silver notes, and still be gambling here?

Something is amiss!

At this moment, the burly middle-aged man had already folded, leaving only Jiang Qingyu and Luo Zhoucheng still in the game, with a hefty pile of silver notes in the center of the table.

Luo Zhoucheng said coldly, "One thousand taels, not drawing!"

Jiang Qingyu hesitated, gripping the silver notes in his hand, seemingly unable to make a decision. But he had already staked so much and didn’t want to retreat now. Just as he was about to place his bet, Duan Rong suddenly grabbed his hand and said, "Fold!"

Jiang Qingyu’s facial muscles twitched, and he looked somewhat annoyed at Duan Rong.

Ximen Kankan stood behind Jiang Qingyu and said, "Qingyu, listen to Duan Rong."

If it were before today, he would have thought Duan Rong was causing trouble. They had just entered, hadn’t even seen the cards, and others had already staked so much. Telling others to fold outright seemed ludicrous.

But now, he was completely convinced of Duan Rong’s gambling skills.

Ximen Kankan believed that Duan Rong was definitely right.

Jiang Qingyu glanced at Ximen Kankan. He often gambled with Ximen Kankan and rarely won against him. Regarding gambling skills, he trusted Ximen Kankan. Besides, he had actually sensed something was off earlier, but held onto a sliver of hope.

Now, with both of them saying so, he finally calmed down. It was because he had already staked so much, with sunk costs unbearable, that he couldn’t make up his mind.

It seemed the arrival of two friends restored some sanity to Jiang Qingyu. He put down the silver notes in his hand and said, "Fold!"

Luo Zhoucheng was slightly taken aback, then smiled as he stood up and collected the silver notes on the table. He said, "Ah... another win... I don’t even know what this game is about, staking so much without drawing at all... Living and learning, living and learning..."

Luo Zhoucheng was clearly mocking Jiang Qingyu. Though Jiang Qingyu was angry, he also realized that he had indeed lost his wits momentarily.

"Qingyu, you seem a bit worn out. How about I sit beside you and offer some advice?" Duan Rong suddenly said.

Jiang Qingyu’s eyes flickered. He indeed felt drained, but this was a bet between him and Luo Zhoucheng, which required Luo Zhoucheng’s approval.

Jiang Qingyu shot an inquiring look at Luo Zhoucheng.

Luo Zhoucheng glanced at Duan Rong. He was sure he hadn’t seen this person before, someone who likely didn’t frequent the gambling dens and Huaying Building. He smiled and said, "This brother looks unfamiliar to me. Forgive my ignorance, but what is your name?"

"I am Duan Rong, an Escort Master from Yuan Shun Escort Agency," Duan Rong replied.

Luo Zhoucheng chuckled inwardly. So he was an Escort Master. Only then did he recall that Duan Rong’s attire was indeed similar to that commonly worn by Escort Masters traversing the Jianghu.

In this realm, being an Escort Master was considered a respectable job, but that was from the perspective of the general public. To someone like Luo Zhoucheng, a son of a noble family, an Escort Master was merely someone who delivered goods across the Jianghu.

For something like gambling, could an Escort Master even understand it? How much silver coins do you earn in a month?

Seeing Duan Rong as an Escort Master, Luo Zhoucheng’s wariness dissipated. If Ximen Kankan wanted to join, he definitely wouldn’t agree. He knew that this short and stout fellow had been obsessed with gambling from a young age and had honed his skills quite well—ordinary people couldn’t really best him.

"Sure. Since Brother Qingyu is tired, getting a friend to advise is appropriate," Luo Zhoucheng laughed.

"And the previous wager still holds?" Jiang Qingyu asked gravely.

"Absolutely!" Luo Zhoucheng replied, "Whoever loses all their silver notes mustn’t trouble Miss Lan Ying. But, Brother Qingyu, it seems you have only two thousand taels left..."

Luo Zhoucheng laughed heartily as he spoke.

Jiang Qingyu glanced at the silver notes on his table, his expression somewhat grim.

Hearing Luo Zhoucheng’s words, Ximen Kankan had a realization. He understood why Jiang Qingyu was gambling so recklessly—his weak spot had been exploited!

Ximen Kankan looked at Jiang Qingyu’s back and shook his head.

Duan Rong pulled a chair over and sat beside Jiang Qingyu. As he sat down, he placed a hand on Jiang Qingyu’s shoulder and whispered softly, "It’s okay, you won’t lose! Two thousand taels are enough!"

Duan Rong’s "enough" was spoken so gently but carried an undeniable forcefulness. Jiang Qingyu couldn’t help but feel moved; he glanced at Duan Rong, and his face immediately looked slightly better.

The gambling session continued, and after Duan Rong shuffled the cards for Jiang Qingyu, Luo Zhoucheng acted as the dealer and dealt the cards.

Jiang Qingyu glanced at his cards and showed them to Duan Rong.

Duan Rong said coldly, "Fold!"

The second round, Duan Rong still said, "Fold!"

In the third round, Jiang Qingyu thought the cards were good, but Duan Rong still said coldly, "Throw them!"

The cards were clearly good, Jiang Qingyu hesitated a bit, and Duan Rong said, "Trust me. Throw them."

There was a strong sense of certainty and confidence in Duan Rong’s voice, so Jiang Qingyu no longer hesitated and threw them according to his word.

In the fourth round, Duan Rong said, "Throw them!"

"Do you even know how to play? Are you gambling or just wasting time?" Luo Zhoucheng got a bit angry seeing Duan Rong throw four rounds in a row.

"What? Can’t you throw the cards in Pai Gow?" Duan Rong countered.

"You..." Luo Zhoucheng was at a loss for words. Of course, you can throw in Pai Gow, but no one throws like Duan Rong.

In the fifth round, Duan Rong continued to throw.

After throwing six rounds in a row, in the seventh round, Duan Rong suddenly placed a bet of five hundred silver coins.

Luo Zhoucheng saw Duan Rong suddenly bet five hundred silver coins and chuckled, "I throw."

"Do you think I’m stupid?"

In the seventh round, Duan Rong placed another five hundred silver coins directly, and Luo Zhoucheng hesitated for a moment but still threw, though his face didn’t look very good anymore.

In the eighth round, Duan Rong again bet directly five hundred silver coins. Luo Zhoucheng’s facial muscle twitched slightly, and he angrily said, "Each round five hundred silver coins, are the cards that good?"

"Why don’t you open and see?" Duan Rong said.

Luo Zhoucheng’s nostrils flared, but he still threw.

In the ninth round, Duan Rong again bet directly five hundred silver coins.

Luo Zhoucheng saw Duan Rong bet directly five hundred silver coins in four consecutive rounds, and he finally couldn’t hold back, saying, "Five hundred silver coins, I open it!"

The cards were revealed, and Jiang Qingyu won, recouping five hundred silver coins.

In the tenth round, Duan Rong again bet directly five hundred silver coins. Luo Zhoucheng threw.

In the eleventh round, Duan Rong again bet directly five hundred silver coins.

Luo Zhoucheng looked displeased and said, "I match five hundred silver coins!"

Jiang Qingyu looked at Duan Rong, who said, "Match it!"

"Match five hundred silver coins!" Jiang Qingyu slapped the silver notes onto the table in the middle.

"I match!" Luo Zhoucheng growled, his facial muscles seeming somewhat contorted. "I just don’t believe it. Each round five hundred silver coins, pulling tricks like this, what kind of sorcery is this?"

In fact, Luo Zhoucheng’s loss of composure was an act; he finally drew a large card and wanted to give the opponent an illusion of his impulsiveness and anger, of being pushed to the brink, to lure them into a trap.

But unfortunately, no matter how good the acting and strategies, in front of Duan Rong’s Master Level Hundred Transformations Thousand Techniques and Divine Sense Projection, it was all nothing!

"Continue to match!" Duan Rong said coldly.

Jiang Qingyu’s heart trembled a bit. If he lost this round, all his silver notes would be gone. Although his cards were not small this round, it wasn’t a guaranteed win. Judging by Luo Zhoucheng’s stance, his cards weren’t likely small either.

"One thousand silver coins, don’t open!" Luo Zhoucheng suddenly shouted.

At this moment, Jiang Qingyu had only a silver note of one thousand five hundred silver coins left in his hand.

Jiang Qingyu’s breath caught slightly.

Duan Rong sighed, "What a pity!"

Luo Zhoucheng sneered, "Regretting now, too late!"

"Pity the money isn’t enough, only enough to match one round," Duan Rong said. "Forget it, let’s win a little less. One thousand silver coins, open him!"

The cards were revealed, and Jiang Qingyu won!

Ximen Kankan stood by watching the game; at this moment, he was like a chess player engrossed in the art, who had just witnessed a brilliant and exquisite game, a thrill beyond words in his heart.

Duan Rong’s strategy was understood by Ximen Kankan.

First, threw six rounds in a row, completely disrupting the opponent’s rhythm, dragging them into the pace he had set up.

Then it was a kill in every round!

"Truly a master of high skill and bravery!"

"A perfect blend of psychological warfare and superior gambling skills!"