I Crossed Over with My Enemy, Only to Find Him Running the Empire - Chapter 53

Chapter 53: Won

Inside the Xiongtian Gambling House, smoke swirled and the clamor of voices was deafening. Wu Ya stood by the gambling table, clutching his last ten taels of silver, yet his face bore an expression of complete indifference.

He had previously lost fifty taels in succession, and the surrounding gamblers all treated him as a “fat sheep” delivered right to their door.

The dealer was even more radiant with smiles, casting glances at him from time to time, as if terrified this “big-headed scapegoat” might run away.

Li Qiaoqiao stood on the outer edge of the crowd, fine sweat seeping from her palms.

She watched helplessly as Wu Ya pushed the silver out handful by handful. Her heart felt as if it were being twisted by a knife, yet she dared not step forward to stop him.

Wu Ya had his own plans, but seeing that bright white silver flowing out like water would make anyone’s heart ache.

“Place your bets, hands off!” the dealer shouted loudly, the dice cup in his hand rattling noisily.

Wu Ya gave a yawn and lazily pushed his ten taels of silver onto “Small.”

A burst of snickering instantly erupted around him.

“This kid really is dead-set on giving away his money!”

“Just bet the opposite of him, and you can’t go wrong!”

The gamblers one after another placed their silver on “Big,” their eyes shining as they waited for the dealer to open the cup and collect the money.

Li Qiaoqiao nervously gripped the hem of her clothes. Just as the dealer was about to open the cup, Wu Ya suddenly spoke up slowly, as if he had just woken up: “Wait.”

Everyone was stunned as they saw Wu Ya reach out and move the ten taels of silver from “Small” over to “Big.”

“Changed my mind. My luck is rotten today; I’ll try a different position,” Wu Ya said, giving another yawn.

The dealer’s expression changed slightly, but he quickly recovered his composure and smiled: “The guest changed well; perhaps your luck turns right now!”

Seeing this, the surrounding gamblers scrambled to change their bets to “Small,” convinced that Wu Ya was a jinx and that doing the opposite of him was a guaranteed win.

“Open!” the dealer barked, lifting the dice cup. “Five, six, four fifteen points, Big!”

The gambling table instantly erupted into chaos.

Those who bet “Small” wailed in grief, while those who insisted on betting the opposite of Wu Ya were dumbfounded.

Wu Ya had changed his bet at the last moment, and they hadn’t kept up.

The dealer’s face didn’t look very good, but he forced a smile as he pushed a pile of silver toward Wu Ya. In this single round, Wu Ya had not only won back his ten taels of capital but had earned an extra ten taels.

Li Qiaoqiao breathed a long sigh of relief, finally understanding Wu Ya’s calculation.

He had first intentionally lost repeatedly to make everyone believe he was a scapegoat, creating a psychological set of “betting opposite him equals a sure win,” then acted unexpectedly in the most critical round, instead utilizing that psychology to win it back.

“Continue,” Wu Ya said flatly, casually betting twenty taels on “Small.”

This time, the gamblers had learned their lesson and followed Wu Ya’s lead to place their bets.

Sure enough, after the dice cup was opened: four, two, three nine points, Small. The silver in front of Wu Ya increased again.

In the following rounds, Wu Ya seemed like a different person, his moves precise.

Whatever he bet on came up; he won money in almost every single round.

Seeing this, the gamblers followed his lead to place bets, and the gambling table became so crowded it was impenetrable.

Li Qiaoqiao was squeezed through the crowd to Wu Ya’s side and whispered: “Is that about enough? Didn’t we only come to win back thirty tales?”

Wu Ya glanced at her sideways, a smile curling at the corner of his mouth: “Since we’ve come, why be in a hurry to leave?”

As he spoke, he bet fifty taels on “Triples” (All-of-a-kind).

An immediate uproar broke out. The odds for “Triples” were extremely high, but it was incredibly difficult to hit; anyone who dared to bet like this was either a master or a madman.

Sweat was already appearing on the dealer’s forehead, his hand shaking slightly as he rattled the dice cup.

The moment the cup was opened, the whole room fell silent.

Three fours Triples!

“My god! He actually hit it!”

“This luck is just too good!”

The gamblers boiled over. Those who followed Wu Ya’s bets all made a fortune. The gambling house attendants scrambled to pay out the silver, their faces each looking worse than the last.

The silver in front of Wu Ya had already piled up into a small mountain. By a rough estimate, he had won back over a hundred tales.

But he had no intention of stopping whatsoever; instead, he continued to increase the stakes.

Li Qiaoqiao was anxious as if on fire. She tugged at Wu Ya’s sleeve and whispered: “Enough. If you keep winning, I’m afraid something will happen.”

Wu Ya acted as if he hadn’t heard and pushed out another large stake of silver. This time he bet on “Big” a full hundred taels. The gamblers followed suit one after another, and the silver piled high on the table.

The dealer’s hand shook even more violently, his movements in rattling the cup becoming distorted. Upon opening the cup: five, six, six seventeen points, Big!

A world-shaking cheer erupted inside the gambling house, and the gamblers who followed the bet were all beaming with joy. Only the gambling house staff had ashen faces; someone quietly left, seemingly to report the news.

Li Qiaoqiao knew things were going south. Sure enough, after a short while, the gambling house owner arrived with several burly men. That owner’s face was grim as he scanned the table and said coldly: “Change the dealer!”

The new dealer was a lean middle-aged man with sharp eyes and seasoned techniques, clearly a top expert kept by the gambling house to hold the fort.

The several thugs stood on all sides, staring at the gambling table like tigers watching their prey; the atmosphere instantly became tense.

Seeing this, some of the more timid gamblers had already quietly backed away, no longer placing bets.

But there was still a large group surrounding Wu Ya, hoping to follow him and keep winning.

Wu Ya, however, seemed not to notice the change in atmosphere. He gave a lazy yawn and said: “Last round. Once it’s played, it’s time to go back and sleep.”

He pushed a large portion of the silver onto “Small” , roughly two hundred taels.

The gamblers following him did the same. The silver on the table was more than in any previous round.

The new dealer rattled the dice cup expressionlessly with fancy techniques, the dice clattering inside the cup, before finally “snapping” it down onto the table.

Everyone’s gaze focused on that dice cup. The gambling house was so quiet one could hear breathing.

Li Qiaoqiao’s heart leapt into her throat. She knew that this round concerned not just the silver, but whether they could leave safely.

The dealer slowly lifted the cup: two, two, three seven points, Small!

“Won!” A deafening cheer erupted from the crowd.

The corners of Wu Ya’s mouth turned up slightly, but he quickly returned to that lazy appearance.

He did a rough count. Throughout this single night, after deducting the capital, he had made a net profit of over three hundred taels.

He had not only won back the thirty taels lost by Wu Tiegen, but there was also a large surplus.

Li Qiaoqiao hurried forward and whispered: “Time to go. If we don’t leave now, I’m afraid something will happen.”

Wu Ya nodded and said in a clear voice: “Luck was decent today, but unfortunately I’m sleepy. I’ll come again tomorrow!”

The gambling house owner’s face was so grim it looked like it could drip water, but under the watchful eyes of the crowd, he couldn’t lash out. He could only force a smile: “The guest has great luck; you must come to support us again tomorrow.”

Wu Ya laughed heartily and called for the attendants to pack up the silver.

Under the envious gazes of the crowd, he picked up the heavy money bag and pulled Li Qiaoqiao as he walked quickly out of the gambling house.

As soon as they stepped out the door, Li Qiaoqiao lowered her voice: “Are you crazy? Winning so much, they definitely won’t let it go!”

Wu Ya laughed softly: “The point was to make them feel the pain, yet not dare to turn hostile on the spot. I calculated this amount; the Xiongtian Gambling House’s daily turnover is at least a thousand taels. Although three hundred taels is a lot, it won’t drive them to act on the spot regardless of their reputation.”

“But what about tomorrow? You said you’d come again tomorrow!” Li Qiaoqiao said anxiously.

“That was just a bluff to make them think we are regular offenders, making them afraid to act rashly. In reality, we quit while we’re ahead and won’t be coming back,” Wu Ya explained, his pace quickening a few notches.