Chapter 61: I Am Jealous

Zu'an spread his hands and said to the people around him, "As you just saw, I didn't want to get involved, but he insisted on a one-on-one fight. What could I do? Who knew he was all talk and actually so weak?"

The gamblers around looked at him with complex expressions, thinking, 'When it comes to glib talk, no one here can compare to you, can they?'

They had previously wondered how such a good-for-nothing could possibly win over Miss Chu. They considered themselves no worse than him, thinking they could have done the same.

But now, a glimmer of understanding dawned on them: at least concerning audacity, they truly couldn't compare.

Seeing the indignant expressions of the crowd, Zu'an initially wanted to provoke them further. However, he quickly reconsidered, thinking it better to play the long game. So, he said, "I just saw blood, so my luck must be great today. Come on, let's start."

"Alright, young master, please follow me!" Plum Blossom Seven rejoiced inwardly. That fool Plum Blossom Thirteen had just caused a commotion, making him worry that Zu'an wouldn't gamble anymore. But now that Zu'an was practically inviting ruin, it would be a shame not to win at least 100,000 taels from him. The only concern was whether Miss Chu, standing nearby, would intervene and stop them. He needed to find an opportunity to get her away, otherwise, it would be difficult to get this guy into significant debt.

Zu'an was led to a gambling table. After the recent incident, other gamblers became interested, many even stopping their own games to gather around and watch the spectacle.

Zu'an looked at the gambling table before him. He had only seen games of 'Big or Small' in gambling movies on television; this was his first time witnessing it in person.

Unlike the 'Big or Small' games he remembered, this table had many betting areas. Simply betting on 'Big' or 'Small' was just one small part of the game.

Although he hadn't understood before, the areas on the table were clearly labeled and easy to comprehend at a glance.

There were three dice in total. A sum of 4-10 was 'Small,' and a sum of 11-17 was 'Big.' Betting on 'Big' or 'Small' paid out at one-to-one odds.

Additionally, if you bet on all three dice having the same number, the odds were 1 to 24.

However, if you broke it down further, since there were six possible combinations for all dice to be the same (all 1s, all 2s, and so on), hitting one of these specific "leopard" combinations paid out at 1 to 150!

You could also bet on the sum of the three dice. For instance, a sum of 4 or 17 paid 1 to 50; a sum of 5 or 16 paid 1 to 18. The more common the sum, the lower the odds.

"Young master, are you betting on Big or Small?" Plum Blossom Seven asked, his face wreathed in smiles, while inwardly calculating how to make Zu'an lose as much as possible.

Zu'an glanced at him. "Are you thinking of letting me win a few rounds first so I don't get scared off?"

Plum Blossom Seven was taken aback, wondering how Zu'an knew. But he quickly recovered, smiling, "You jest, young master. At this gambling table, it's all up to your luck; it's certainly not something we can control."

"Really? My wife is a fifth-rank master. If you dare to cheat in front of her and get caught, don't blame us for chopping off your hands." Still uneasy, Zu'an pulled Chu Chuyan close to him and threatened Plum Blossom Seven again.

Chu Chuyan glared at him fiercely, clearly annoyed by his affectionate use of "wife." But in front of so many people, she couldn't very well declare their marriage was fake, could she?

Plum Blossom Seven's smile faltered upon hearing Zu'an's words. "Rest assured, young master. Our Silver Hook Casino is renowned and naturally wouldn't engage in such practices. Do you see the runes on the outside of this dice cup? These are the work of a rune master from the capital, capable of isolating cultivators' vital energy to prevent them from detecting the dice. So, please, have no worries."

The other gamblers secretly curled their lips, thinking, 'Which casino doesn't cheat?' Although the dice cup had runes to block cultivators' interference, there were mechanisms under the table that could temporarily change the dice results. However, everyone was hoping Zu'an would lose everything, eager to watch the show, so no one offered a warning.

Plum Blossom Seven, however, knew his own difficulties. With Miss Chu here, it would be hard to cheat without being detected. But against a little brat like Zu'an, he could make him lose everything even without cheating, so he wasn't too concerned.

"Young master, how much do you intend to bet?" Plum Blossom Seven asked again.

Zu'an secretly took out and consumed a Lucky Pill, then said, "I'm not one for small stakes. Of course, I'm going all in."

"Going all in?" Plum Blossom Seven was puzzled, clearly not understanding the term.

"And you run a casino, yet you don't even know that?" Zu'an shot him a disdainful look. "'Going all in' means putting all your stakes on the table."

Plum Blossom Seven's smile froze. He wondered where Zu'an picked up such bizarre terms. Suppressing his irritation, he said, "Young master certainly has guts." As he spoke, he signaled to his assistant. Since this guy was betting everything on the first round, they couldn't roll a 'leopard' (triple identical dice), as that would be a dealer's win and might scare him off immediately.

The assistant understood. He picked up the dice cup, shook it for a while, and then placed it on the table. "No more bets, no more bets!"

Zu'an directly pulled out a stack of silver notes and flapped them in front of Plum Blossom Seven. "Speaking of which, most of these silver notes were voluntarily given to me by Plum Blossom Thirteen. I wonder how much you'll give me today?"

Plum Blossom Seven's face twitched. 'Voluntarily given,' my foot! He had heard about Plum Blossom Thirteen's situation; it was clearly Zu'an's shameless frame-up, using the academy teachers to seize it through cunning and force!

Anger value from Plum Blossom Seven +155!

However, that Plum Blossom Thirteen was thick-headed, overly arrogant due to his high cultivation. The gang leader had always valued him in previous years. But today, I'll let the leader know that a brute who only knows how to fight can't compare to someone like me, who uses his brain.

So, the smile on his face widened. "Young master, are you betting on Big or Small?"

Zu'an looked at the table. He had roughly guessed the opponent's psychology: they definitely wouldn't open with a 'leopard' (dealer wins all) right away and scare him off. So, whether he bet on Big or Small, he had a fifty percent chance of winning.

But he scoffed at one-to-one odds.

He directly placed the entire stack of a thousand taels of silver notes on the number 17. "If I'm going to play, I'm playing big. That's the only way to match my extraordinary demeanor."

Seeing him bet a thousand taels without a second thought, Chu Chuyan, standing beside him, slightly furrowed her brows. Even though she didn't gamble, she knew that betting directly on a specific sum of dice was much riskier than simply betting on Big or Small. Especially 17 points, which had incredibly high odds of 1 to 50, second only to a 'leopard'.

What did such high odds generally mean? It meant if you put in one tael of silver, you would almost certainly lose that one tael.

Chu Chuyan had initially wanted to advise him against it, but then reconsidered: it might be good if he lost. That way, he would give up entirely, and she could take him out as agreed. She disliked the murky atmosphere of the casino intensely.

"Open, open, open!"

The surrounding gamblers began to cheer, clearly sharing Chu Chuyan's view. They wanted to see what this conceited fellow would look like when he lost those thousand taels.

It would be best for Miss Chu to see clearly that such a good-for-nothing was utterly useless. Perhaps in her disappointment, she might even take a liking to one of them?

Such a beautiful and noble woman – we wouldn't mind that she's already married!

Even Plum Blossom Seven chuckled. "The young master is still too young and hot-headed. You should be more steady. Would you like the casino to lend you some more to get back on your feet? Don't worry, out of respect for the Chu family, we won't charge you interest."

Last time, they had gradually coaxed this guy into losing a full thousand taels in this very manner.

Back then, Zu'an had been cautious, betting one tael at a time. How many days had it been since then? And now he was throwing around thousands without blinking an eye?

Damn it, he's truly gone from a nobody to a big shot! Is living off a woman really that good?

I'm even getting jealous.

As he spoke, he suddenly felt something was amiss. The bustling casino had instantly fallen silent, and the gamblers around him looked at him with extremely complex expressions, even with a hint of pity?

A terrible thought flashed through Plum Blossom Seven's mind. He quickly turned around and saw that the three dice in the cup were a six, a six, and a five, adding up to exactly 17 points.

Plum Blossom Seven's mind went blank with a sudden shock. How could this be?

One to fifty odds! Their casino had just lost fifty thousand taels in one go!

Fifty thousand taels!

Thinking of that number, Plum Blossom Seven felt his vision blur. This was equivalent to half a month's net income for their casino!

He glared fiercely at his apprentice. Had this guy been bribed by Zu'an? But he immediately dismissed the possibility; his disciples were all trustworthy and well-known. So, was it just incredibly good luck for this fellow?

Zu'an smiled, spreading his hands. "Hehe, why are you brothers so generous to me? Plum Blossom Thirteen only gave me eight hundred taels before, but you've directly given me fifty thousand! Hahaha, please hand over the money."

Plum Blossom Seven was so angry he nearly spat blood. 'Gave you money,' my foot!

Anger value from Plum Blossom Seven +543!

He had just been despising Plum Blossom Thirteen for being played like a fiddle, and now he himself had lost even more miserably. Wait, judging by Zu'an's tone...

"Young master, are you leaving?" Plum Blossom Seven asked hastily.

"What else?" Zu'an chuckled. "I've already won fifty thousand taels; what more is there to gamble for?"

He had to admit the Lucky Pill was truly amazing. He hadn't had much confidence initially, but who knew he'd actually won purely by luck.

Plum Blossom Seven immediately panicked. If Zu'an actually walked away with fifty thousand taels, the gang leader would surely skin him alive.

"Young master, wait! Young master, please wait!" Plum Blossom Seven hastily blocked his path, and the casino's henchmen, armed with weapons, also surrounded them.

Zu'an's expression darkened. "What, you don't let people leave after they win? Is this how you run a casino?"

As he spoke, he pushed Chu Chuyan forward. "Wife, these people are going back on their word!"

Chu Chuyan was unaccustomed to so much physical contact with him, yet she couldn't scold him. She could only redirect her anger toward Plum Blossom Seven and his men. "What, planning to fight?"

The other gamblers also began to jeer. Although they were annoyed that Zu'an, a nobody, had managed to snag such a prize (like a toad eating a swan), as gamblers, what they hated most was a casino welching on its debts. If that happened, who would dare to come back in the future?

---

Gambling is harmful to oneself and others. The protagonist has a cheat, so please, don't emulate him.