Chapter 62: Regret to the Core

Plum Blossom Seven felt a chill run through him, as if a single wrong word would freeze him into an ice sculpture. He quickly waved his subordinates away, then, with a fawning smile, said, "Miss Chu, you jest. How could we dare to lay a hand on you? It was those short-sighted individuals."

"Then what's this about blocking our way? And what about the fifty thousand taels of silver?" Seeing the danger had passed, Zu'an piped up again.

Seeing Zu'an's smug expression, Plum Blossom Seven felt a pang of annoyance. He finally understood how Plum Blossom Thirteen felt; this fellow was truly infuriating, always strutting around like a puffed-up dog relying on someone else's power.

"Our Silver Hook Casino has an established reputation; how could we not pay? Someone, bring the young master his bank notes." Plum Blossom Seven was clearly annoyed but still had to force a smile. The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.

Rage points from Plum Blossom Seven: 344!

Fifty thousand taels of silver ingots would be too heavy and inconvenient to carry. Therefore, for such large transactions, bank notes were typically used.

Plum Blossom Seven took the bank notes from his subordinate and handed them over. "Young master, please keep these safe." Although the fifty thousand taels of silver stung a bit, Silver Hook Casino could afford it if they gritted their teeth. Damaging their reputation would ruin everything.

Seeing Zu'an take the bank notes and count them one by one, Plum Blossom Seven felt his face darken. "Young Master Zu, surely you're not implying we shortchanged you?"

"Exactly, you never know. It's better to count them clearly," Zu'an said, dividing half and handing it to Chu Chuyan. "Wifey, help me count."

Chu Chuyan turned slightly away, clearly not wanting to touch money from a casino.

Hearing Zu'an's reply, all the casino staff felt their faces darken, thinking, "This guy's face while counting money just makes you want to punch him."

Zu'an noticed a string of rage points appearing in his backend again. Although no single person contributed much, there were many members of the Plum Blossom Gang, adding over a thousand rage points to his tally.

"Young master, have you finished counting?" Plum Blossom Seven asked, suppressing his anger.

"Oh dear, I was counting perfectly, but you interrupted me and now I've forgotten," Zu'an said dramatically. Then he started counting again from the beginning.

Plum Blossom Seven: "..."

Where's my blade!

Rage points from Plum Blossom Seven: 800!

Zu'an counted them again. Then, still not quite satisfied, he said, "Counting money truly feels amazing."

Plum Blossom Seven's heart was bleeding; that was their damn money. However, he was extremely composed, and his face remained full of smiles. "Young master, are you planning to leave now?"

Zu'an tilted his head, staring at him with a half-smile. "Are you really trying to stop us, wifey..."

"Oh, no, no, no!" Seeing him immediately bring out Miss Chu, Plum Blossom Seven cursed inwardly and quickly waved his hands. "Young master, please don't misunderstand. I just think your luck is so good today, it would be a pity not to play a few more rounds and win more money."

Hearing his words, Chu Chuyan frowned. It was clear the casino was unwilling to let Zu'an leave after winning. They wanted him to stay and gamble more, to spit out everything he had won.

Such a trick was too obvious. She didn't even bother to warn Zu'an, thinking any sensible person would see through it and refuse.

Who knew Zu'an would agree instantly? "I also feel my luck is exceptionally good today. Since you sincerely invite me to win more money, it would be truly rude of me to leave like this. All right, I'll play a few more rounds!"

"This way, master, please!" Plum Blossom Seven was overjoyed. He had truly feared the other party would just leave. Now that he had stayed, "Not only will I make you spit out all the money you won by fluke earlier, but I'll also make you owe us a sum; that's how I show my skill."

Chu Chuyan watched Zu'an swagger back to the gambling table. Her hand in her sleeve clenched. This fellow, knowing it was a trap, foolishly jumped right into it. No wonder everyone in the city used to look down on him so much.

Rage points from Chu Chuyan: 233!

Her expression completely darkened. She had initially started to see him in a different light due to the previous events, but now she realized he was still the same familiar good-for-nothing. "It seems I thought too much of him."

With that thought, she suddenly felt calm. She slowly and calmly followed, without the slightest emotional fluctuation.

Due to the previous lesson, Plum Blossom Seven was unwilling to let his disciples handle it again. Instead, he took charge himself.

"Oh, you're handling it personally now. Are you afraid of losing again?" Zu'an said teasingly.

Plum Blossom Seven's breath hitched, and he forced a smile. "How could that be? This fellow's mindset isn't good; his hands are shaking, he can't shake the dice. Young master, there's no need to worry. Your luck is good, I'm sure you'll win."

He scoffed inwardly, "Luck? Anyone who relies on luck in a casino ends up losing their wives and daughters to brothels."

"I think your mouth must have been blessed. I'll take your good wishes. Let's begin," Zu'an also smiled.

Plum Blossom Seven tentatively asked, "May I ask how much the young master intends to bet this time?"

Zu'an waved his hand. "Of course, I'm betting it all again. How else could I live up to my distinguished demeanor?"

Chu Chuyan's delicate brows furrowed slightly, but she didn't speak to stop him. The surrounding gamblers were already shaking their heads secretly. They had seen many people like this over the years, who would get overly cocky after winning a small amount of money, only to lose it all back to the casino before the money was even warm in their hands.

Most gamblers had a psychology of disliking others' good fortune. They watched the gambling table with a readiness to see a spectacle, just waiting for the opponent to lose all his money in the next round.

Plum Blossom Seven was overjoyed. "The young master is truly generous and forthright." He had been worried the opponent would bet little by little; what if he stopped playing before losing all 50,000 taels? That would be a tragedy.

Now, with an all-in bet, the outcome would be decided in one round. He could finally report back to the gang leader.

Zu'an, however, suddenly said, "You're not planning to cheat, are you?"

Plum Blossom Seven's breath caught, and he hastily explained, "How could I dare to cheat in front of so many gambling masters? What's more, Miss Chu is watching. If I made any small moves, they certainly wouldn't escape her eyes."

As the saying goes, "Nine out of ten gambles end in loss." As the house, he didn't need to cheat to win. Some people thought that if they bet on both 'big' and 'small' simultaneously, they would neither win nor lose no matter how many rounds they played.

In reality, this was impossible, because many outcomes, such as a "Leopard" (three of a kind), resulted in the house winning all bets. Therefore, when gambling against the house, even if one occasionally won a round or two, they were bound to lose after several attempts.

Zu'an nodded. "Alright, then shake them quickly."

Plum Blossom Seven sneered inwardly. His hands quickly shook the dice cup, leaving a trail of afterimages, drawing gasps of astonishment from the onlookers.

He couldn't help but feel a little smug. Among the gang leader's adopted sons, his cultivation wasn't high, yet he was able to sit in this position thanks to his gambling skills and these "ghostly hands" of his.

He could shake out any number he desired.

So he decided to shake out a "Leopard" this time, which would win against both 'big' and 'small' bets. Then, no matter if Zu'an bet on big or small, or even on a specific total, he would lose.

Halfway through shaking, he suddenly hesitated. This guy was betting it all; what if he really got lucky and hit it?

At a payout of one to one hundred fifty, if he lost, that would be seven and a half million taels. The entire Plum Blossom Gang wouldn't have that much money even if they sold everything.

But then he thought, how could he possibly win? Even if it was a Leopard, there were six possibilities. Even if Zu'an truly intended to bet on a Leopard, it was only a one-in-six chance.

"What am I afraid of?"

He gave a self-deprecating laugh, placed the dice cup on the table, and looked at Zu'an with a smile. "Young master, please place your bet."

His eyes seemed to say, "Come, bring your money. Bring your money."

Zu'an was not in a hurry; instead, he first looked at Chu Chuyan.

Chu Chuyan said calmly, "Don't worry, he's not cheating." With her rank five cultivation, and the man opposite only just over rank two, a three-rank level difference was crushing. What small move could escape her eyes?

Zu'an, however, shook his head. "I wasn't asking about that. Do you have any copper coins on you?"

"Copper coins? What for?" Chu Chuyan was a little confused, but took one from her pouch. As she usually managed the Chu family's business affairs, she carried some loose change.

"Let me use it," Zu'an took the copper coin and brought it close to her lips. "Blow on it for me."

Chu Chuyan's expression turned cold. "Don't be ridiculous!"

Zu'an laughed. "Just do me a favor. With your celestial breath, I guarantee I'll win."

"Blow! Blow! Blow!" The spectators, eager for mischief, started chanting.

Seeing everyone watching her, Chu Chuyan found herself in a difficult position. She had no choice but to lightly blow on the copper coin. A faint blush appeared on her jade-like cheeks. She thought, "I'll settle this with him once we get out of here."

Feeling as if a gentle breeze had brushed his fingertips, Zu'an laughed. "All right, with my wifey's celestial breath, I'm sure to win this time. I'll bet wherever the coin lands in a moment."

After saying this, he tossed the copper coin into the air. When the coin landed on the gambling table, it rolled around. Everyone stared intently. Even Chu Chuyan couldn't help but watch with interest.

Originally, she had intended to simply watch the show. But Zu'an had made her blow on the coin and said he'd bet based on where it landed, which unconsciously drew her into the situation.

Her heart, which had been as still as an old well for who knew how many years, was now, for the first time, beating a little faster. She wanted to know the outcome of this bet more than ever before.

The copper coin rolled along until it hit the edge of the gambling table. It then bounced back a little and stopped in the box for 'three ones'.

Zu'an let out a hearty laugh. He immediately placed the fifty thousand taels of bank notes he held onto the bet. "Since it's fate, I'll bet it all on this!"

"Open! Open! Open!" All the surrounding gamblers wanted to know the outcome. Of course, what they most wanted to see was Zu'an losing everything. This guy was so hateful for having the nerve to flirt in the middle of a gamble!

Plum Blossom Seven's face changed dramatically. "How is this possible?!"

In that instant, his vision went blank. The noisy sounds around him seemed to lose all meaning. He could only see everyone's contorted faces, their mouths opening and closing as if speaking, but he couldn't hear a single word.

"Huh?"

Seeing that the casino was slow to open the dice cup, the surrounding gamblers suddenly realized something was wrong. "Could that kid really have gotten incredibly lucky and guessed it right?"

"Plum Blossom Seven, why aren't you opening it?"

"Yeah, open it quickly!"