Chapter 250: Sunk Cost

“Ah?!” The middle-aged man was clearly stunned. “Little girl, what are you saying?!”

Qi Xia nodded. He already knew the woman’s tactic.

It was a strategy of self-inflicted damage of eight hundred to harm the enemy by a thousand, similar to Qi Xia’s previous approach. The plan was good, but a bit reckless.

“I said I’m backing out, big uncle,” the woman said, dropping her smile and looking at the middle-aged man with a hint of mockery. “You, a lecherous old ghost, what makes you think I’d pair up with you?”

“Girl! What are you trying to do?!” The big uncle looked flustered. “We both pressed the button already. How can you back out now?!”

“It doesn’t matter.” The woman shrugged. “Anyway, there are three pairing opportunities, and I didn’t even throw in the fan. It’s just losing one chance.”

“You…” The middle-aged man was so angry he was blowing his beard and glaring, but he couldn’t get a word out.

“Big uncle, let’s renegotiate the terms,” the woman said, flashing that meaningful smile again. “If you want me to throw in the fan, you need to give me the one you have left.”

Qi Xia let out a cold laugh. As expected, this was indeed a fraud game.

If the rules were only about “escape,” it would be a genuine cooperative game.

But since each fan was worth five “Dao,” human nature would be fully exposed.

“Give you a fan…?” The middle-aged man paused, glancing at the last fan in his pocket.

“Big uncle, you should understand, right?” The woman tilted her head. “Even if you give up on me now and find someone else to pair with… you only have one fan left.”

“But I’ll get another one soon…” The middle-aged man hesitated. “You’re trying to trick me… I can’t trust you.”

“What if your next fan is a duplicate?” The woman wore a cunning expression. “Big uncle, there’s a one-in-four chance it’s a duplicate. Don’t you want to escape? Give me the fan now, and I’ll let you escape right away. But if you wait half an hour and get tricked again… your outcome won’t be good.”

The middle-aged man slowly lowered his head, his expression complex. He really wanted to escape.

But if he didn’t keep any fan, he’d lose five “Dao.”

Was “Dao” more important, or his life?

“Girl… I really misjudged you.” The middle-aged man stamped his foot and finally pulled out his third fan. “Fine, fine… I don’t want to play with you anymore. Here’s the fan—now let me go!”

“Great!” The woman nodded excitedly. “Big uncle, you’re really smart!”

But only Qi Xia knew that this big uncle had walked straight into the abyss.

The woman took the fan and put it in her pocket, but still didn’t make a move.

“Girl, what are you doing?” The big uncle asked in a trembling voice. “Throw in the fan!”

“Big uncle, I’m sorry.” The woman’s expression turned cold again. “I have another idea.”

“Ah?!” The middle-aged man’s voice cracked completely. “No, girl, you can’t do this! What do you want now?”

“I want all the ‘Dao’ you have.” The woman continued coldly. “Give me the ‘Dao’ this time, and I absolutely will throw in the fan.”

“Girl, don’t be so greedy!” The middle-aged man got angry. “This is bullying!”

“Then forget it, I’m leaving.” The woman shook her head and turned to go without any hesitation.

“Don’t! Don’t go!”

In less than two seconds, the middle-aged man panicked.

He’d already put all his fans on the line—how could he give up now?

“I… I only have three ‘Dao’ left!” The middle-aged man shakily pulled out three small balls. “That’s all I have. I don’t want to die… You have to keep your word…”

“Don’t worry, killing you won’t do me any good.” The woman reached out and snatched the three “Dao.”

Qi Xia shook his head helplessly. This big uncle had fallen completely into the sunk cost fallacy.

Like most failed investors in the world, from his perspective, stopping now would mean even greater losses. From the moment he invested his first two fans, the situation had entered a vicious cycle.

“Girl… I’ve given you all the ‘Dao’ and fans… I have nothing left…” The middle-aged man said in a trembling voice. “Let me out. I really don’t want to play anymore.”

Qi Xia stepped forward slowly. He knew it was his turn.

“I’m sorry, big uncle.” The woman put on a pitiful expression. “I’m backing out again.”

The middle-aged man’s eyes widened, speechless.

The woman stretched lazily and started to walk away.

“G-Girl… please spare me. I really have nothing left…”

“Yes, I know.” The woman nodded, turning back with a touch of sympathy. “Don’t worry, big uncle. This time, I don’t want anything.”

“You don’t want… anything?”

“That’s right, big uncle.” She put on an innocent face and smirked. “Our cooperation is over. I don’t want to leave, so I’m staying here.”

“What… you, you, you…”

“Big uncle, here’s some advice.” The woman patted his shoulder. “Wait here for an hour, get two fans, and then find a way out.”

The middle-aged man’s eyes looked utterly desperate. “Little girl, you’re dooming me… Didn’t you say killing me wouldn’t benefit you?”

“I’m not dooming you, big uncle.” The woman sighed. “You’re still alive and well, aren’t you? Although killing you won’t benefit me, letting you go won’t either.”

With that, she waved and walked away.

The middle-aged man’s heart turned ice-cold. He opened his mouth to say something, but seeing Qi Xia behind the woman made him back down. In the end, he didn’t cause any trouble for her. Like a gambler who’d lost everything, he leaned against the wall and slowly slid down, covering his face in pain.

He blamed no one but himself for being blind.

People like him weren’t uncommon in society. But in the “Zhong Yan Zhi Di,” cowardice and honesty were innate sins. Even if he left here, he’d die in another game.

Qi Xia glanced at the man, shook his head helplessly, and turned to leave.

Clearly, the woman had anticipated this. She knew the middle-aged man wasn’t bold enough to make waves.

“What do you think?” The woman turned back to ask Qi Xia. “Wasn’t I clever?”

“You call that clever…? You only have three chances. How many times can you pull this trick?”

“If the plan goes smoothly, I can do it three times.” The woman smiled and smoothed her hair. “The later it gets, the more I can gain.”

“Oh?” Qi Xia hadn’t expected the woman to be so ambitious. “But the third time decides whether you can escape. You’re still going to trick then?”

“Of course. That’s when you go all-in to get the biggest stakes.” The woman turned her head and handed the three “Dao” to Qi Xia.

“What’s this for?”

“This success was thanks to you.” The woman smiled. “Fans are too valuable, so I can’t give you one. Here are these three ‘Dao’.”

“I didn’t help at all.”

“Take them.” The woman insisted on giving the three “Dao” to Qi Xia, so he accepted.

“What’s your name, little brother?”

“Qi Xia.”

“That’s a nice name.” The woman nodded.

“What about you?”

“My name is pretty awful. I’m afraid you’ll laugh if I say it.”

“I want to know how awful.”

“Well…” The woman shook her head helplessly and whispered, “I’m Qin Ding Dong.”