Chapter 657: A Crushing Defeat

"Fang Chan Zheng?" Qiao Ji Jin had never heard of this term. "Is that Lou Qi?"

"Yeah! Lou Qi, Fang Qi, Di Qi—anything like that works. My hand is ridiculously strong," Chen Jun Nan said. "If I pull out a Beijing Fang Chan Zheng right now, I can make Di Hou lose so badly his butt turns red."

"Jun Nan Zi, that fat horse's butt is already pretty red."

"Then I'll make him lose until it's pale white."

Di Hou glanced at Chen Jun Nan, his lips curling into a mocking smirk.

This smirk left Qi Xia feeling puzzled. Chen Jun Nan had been psyching out his opponent from the first round, but now Di Hou seemed unaffected. Was he really that confident?

Seeing that Chen Jun Nan didn't respond, Di Hou spoke softly again: "If you don't have a Fang Chan Zheng, you can bet your life. I'll match it."

Upon hearing Di Hou's declaration, Chen Jun Nan's usually playful expression gradually turned stern. Even with his thick skin, he could sense a shift in Di Hou's aura.

The other man no longer seemed intimidated by his taunts and tricks.

"Betting my life... and you'll match?" Chen Jun Nan asked flatly.

"That's right, as long as you dare to bet, I dare to match."

Chen Jun Nan looked down at his cards. It was Yu Shui.

For that year, Yu Shui was on the twenty-first of the first month, "one two one."

Combined with the Li Chun he already had, "one six," and the Chun Jie in the center of the table, "one one," he had a full five "ones" in his hand.

Such a strong hand, yet Di Hou was encouraging him to bet his life?

Chen Jun Nan racked his brain but couldn't figure out Di Hou's motive. Was this really a gift falling from the sky?

Or if he bet his life here, would Di Hou just go down with him?

Things that seemed too straightforward always felt suspicious. Chen Jun Nan sharply sensed he might be walking into a trap, though he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

He always operated by intuition rather than rules, and this time, Di Hou gave off a dangerous vibe.

But when he looked at Di Hou's face-up card, a baffled expression spread across his face.

Qing Ming!

Di Hou had a "three six," and the center had a "one one." What gave him the right to boast?

Could he even put together five numbers?

Or maybe his hidden card could draw something with "two four five," directly making a straight?

"Are you just messing with me?" Chen Jun Nan slowly furrowed his brow, muttering to himself, "Where the hell is there a card with 'two four five' on it?"

After a brief moment of thought, Chen Jun Nan slowly lifted his head. His expression suggested he hadn't figured it out—in fact, he'd given up thinking.

"This is too complicated..." He reached back to scratch his head. "I really can't handle this kind of game."

"Oh?" Di Hou chuckled. "So you're not daring to bet your life?"

"I'm a 'Liang Jiang,'" Chen Jun Nan smiled. "The reason it's called 'jiang' is because reverse psychology works too well on me. Listen up, Di Hou, my life..."

"Don't!"

Qi Xia suddenly interjected, stopping Chen Jun Nan mid-sentence.

Chen Jun Nan froze and turned to look at him.

"Not yet..." Qi Xia said gravely. "Chen Jun Nan... wait a bit longer..."

"Lao Qi..." Chen Jun Nan's voice softened. "You don't look right at all. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine... just focus on the game," Qi Xia replied. "You can't bet your life now... wait a little longer..."

"Alright," Chen Jun Nan nodded and turned back to Di Hou. "Hou Ge, sorry about that. Even as a 'Liang Jiang,' I have to listen to the 'Zhu Gong.' See you around."

Di Hou knew that Qi Xia and Chen Jun Nan were the two toughest opponents in the game—one played unpredictably, the other was all about deception.

No matter what, he had to be careful and avoid following their lead.

"If you don't bet your life this time, you might miss your chance to take me out," Di Hou said.

"Then I'm really happy for you," Chen Jun Nan shot back without hesitation. "You've picked up an extra life. Have some dumplings tonight."

The atmosphere fell silent for a moment before Di Hou scanned the group again: "No one wants to raise the bet?"

At this point, everyone just shook their heads, eagerly awaiting the reveal.

Since most had a good grasp of the rules, they all had some confidence in their hands—at least, based on Di Hou's face-up card, the chances of losing seemed slim.

First, Tian Tian flipped her hidden card. It was Xiao Man, giving her a "four of a kind one."

Next was Xiao Cheng's Dong Zhi, with a hand of "five of a kind one," plus a pair of twos and a pair of threes.

Chen Jun Nan's was Yu Shui, a "five of a kind one."

Qiao Ji Jin's was Chu Xi, a "three of a kind one."

Then came Qi Xia's Bai Lu and Da Xue, paired with Chun Jie, making a "three of a kind eight" and a "four of a kind one." By traditional gambling rules, it even beat Xiao Cheng's hand.

Excluding Zheng Ying Xiong, who had already folded, Qi Xia now held the strongest hand on the table.

Finally, all eyes turned to Di Hou's hidden card. Based on everyone's understanding of the game, whatever it was, it couldn't beat Qi Xia.

So why had Di Hou's attitude changed so drastically?

Under everyone's gaze, Di Hou revealed his hand.

Chun Fen.

The room fell silent at the sight.

For that year, Chun Fen was on the twenty-first of the second month.

So Di Hou's hand consisted of Qing Ming's "three six," Chun Fen's "two two one," and the center's "one one."

No matter how you combined those numbers, the best he could get was a "three of a kind one" and a pair of twos.

This hand couldn't even beat Chen Jun Nan's "five of a kind one," let alone Qi Xia's.

Had Qi Xia won?

The thought crossed everyone's minds, but the round felt strangely off.

From the start, Di Hou had acted confident and in control, even raising against Qi Xia and goading Chen Jun Nan to bet his life. Now, with such a weak hand, what was he thinking?

"Hou Ge, did you mess up?" Chen Jun Nan asked, tilting his chin up. "Did you think this Chun Fen was worth 'ten thousand nines' or something?"

At that moment, Qi Xia straightened up and leaned back in his chair, stroking his chin.

Yes, Di Hou's behavior was very odd.

Even if the rules changed, they were still comparing with three cards, and no matter the setup, those numbers couldn't form a winning hand.

Di Hou said nothing, just casually glanced around at everyone.

Seeing the puzzled looks on their faces, his lips curved slightly as he spoke softly: "Everyone, I appreciate the game. This round, I win."