Sweetie was shuffling the cards, mimicking the way the Earth Monkey had done it earlier, splitting the deck into two piles.
She then interleaved the two piles and was about to reshuffle them when, whether from nervousness or inexperience, her hands trembled, and all the cards scattered across the table.
Everyone turned to look at the sound, only to see the cards land face-up, revealing everything at a glance.
Realizing the situation was bad, Sweetie quickly gathered all the cards, turned them face-down, and placed them back on the table before preparing to deal.
“Wait a second,” Qiao Jiajin furrowed his brow and raised a hand.
“What…?” Earth Monkey questioned. “Your own person shuffled the cards, and you still don’t trust her?”
“Whether I trust her or not,” Qiao Jiajin replied, “you saw the cards. I want them reshuffled.”
“Since when is that the rule…?” Earth Monkey said. “We specifically brought in a ‘dealer’ this time to avoid us shuffling, didn’t we?”
“We’ve got six lives on the line here, you fat monkey,” Qiao Jiajin refused to back down. “Six lives hanging in the balance, and we don’t even get to reshuffle the cards?”
“Fine, but after you shuffle, I get to shuffle too,” Earth Monkey said.
“So that’s how you wanna play? Alright, Monkey Bro, after you shuffle, I’ll shuffle too,” Chen Junnan added. “See if I don’t shuffle you to death.”
Earth Monkey shrugged, showing no objection.
Qiao Jiajin took the deck and shuffled it in his hands, sensing Earth Monkey’s gaze fixed on the cards.
“Fat monkey… In the movies back home, there’s always that trope where a gambling expert just needs to watch someone’s shuffling hands to know exactly where the cards they want are.”
“Oh?” Earth Monkey nodded. “But do you think such gambling skills actually exist in real life?”
“Just in case,” Qiao Jiajin said before placing the deck under the table and shuffling loudly. He then picked it up and handed it to Earth Monkey.
Earth Monkey took the deck, examined the edges to ensure no markings had been made, then gave it a perfunctory shuffle before passing it to Chen Junnan.
Chen Junnan, imitating Qiao Jiajin, also shuffled the deck under the table. Just as he was about to hand it to Sweetie, Earth Monkey stopped him again.
He inspected the deck once more, confirming no tricks had been played, then reshuffled it a few more times before finally letting Sweetie begin dealing.
No matter what the other two were trying to pull, this round’s bet was only between him and Qi Xia. Whatever else they did was just smoke and mirrors.
Perhaps due to the pressure Chen Junnan had piled on earlier, Earth Monkey found himself growing increasingly irritated by his nonchalant expression, making it hard to stay calm.
Sweetie took a deep breath, flipped the top card from the deck, and gently placed it in front of herself.
**”Light Snow.”**
**”October 23rd.”**
“One-zero-two-three…” Chen Junnan muttered silently before averting his gaze.
The others nearby knew this wasn’t a good sign—the card’s value was too high.
The sum of its numbers alone was **six**, meaning the combined total of Qi Xia’s and Earth Monkey’s cards couldn’t exceed **ten**.
Sweetie lightly covered her lips. She had just heard Qi Xia and Earth Monkey set a new rule: a **tie** would count as Qi Xia’s loss.
With the first card being this high… didn’t that drastically increase the odds of Qi Xia losing?
Qi Xia swayed in his seat, seemingly on the verge of collapse, completely indifferent to the cards on the table.
Sweetie picked up a card, hesitating over who to give it to.
Chen Junnan, supporting Qi Xia, gave her a meaningful look. “Even though Lao Qi isn’t feeling well, give it to Monkey Bro first. We respect the elderly and cherish the young.”
Sweetie nodded and dealt the card to Earth Monkey.
Earth Monkey slowly turned it over, revealing:
**”Rain Water.”**
**”January 21st.”**
“One-two-one, total of four points…” Chen Junnan shook Qi Xia. “Lao Qi, wake up, we’re dealing.”
Qi Xia forced his eyes open and took a card from Sweetie.
He took a deep breath and flipped it, his expression immediately darkening.
**”New Year’s Eve!”**
“Fuck me…” Chen Junnan nearly jumped up but caught himself.
Though the card looked intimidating, its numbers were just **one-two-three-zero**, totaling **six**.
“L-Lao Qi, snap out of it. We haven’t lost yet,” Chen Junnan shook him again. “If you’re gonna pass out, at least wait until we’re dead first.”
Qi Xia gave a weak nod.
Since the bets had been placed before the round began, no further wagers were needed. Sweetie proceeded to deal the **”hidden cards.”**
Like last time, she gave the first to Earth Monkey, then gently handed the next to Qi Xia.
Qi Xia glanced at the card, frowned slightly, and as he placed it on the table, he suddenly collapsed face-first onto it, completely unconscious.
“Damn it!”
“Lao Qi!”
The two beside him quickly pulled him up, only to see his eyes nearly devoid of awareness.
The wound on his forehead had reopened from the impact, staining the back of the **hidden card** with a ghastly crimson bloom.
Chen Junnan, sensing disaster, snatched the card and furiously wiped the blood off under the table. Unfortunately, the matte finish wasn’t water-resistant—small spots were manageable, but this much blood had already seeped in.
He hastily shoved the card into Qi Xia’s hands beneath the table and shook him again. “Lao Qi! Wake up! Look at this card!”
Qi Xia lowered his gaze, his expression ashen.
Yet he seemed lost in thought, refusing to reveal the card.
“Qi Xia, what’s wrong?” Earth Monkey had already checked his own hidden card and placed it on the table. “Does that card make you the winner?”
Clutching the card, Qi Xia remained silent. The flamboyant calligraphy on it seemed to leer at him like a mocking grin.
“You said you knew my two cards, yet you did nothing,” Earth Monkey taunted. “Is this all you’ve got?”
Qi Xia shook his head slowly at his words.
Earth Monkey, seeing his expression, grew even bolder. “You’re holding a **’Double Ninth’**—how exactly do you plan to beat me?!”
Chen Junnan and Qiao Jiajin, hearing this, both looked down at Qi Xia’s hidden card under the table.
It was indeed **”Double Ninth.”**
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