At the crack of dawn the next day, I was still groggy,
when my phone on the bedside began to buzz incessantly.
Upon answering, a familiar voice resonated from the other end.
“Hey, little gambling prodigy, are you still in bed?”
“Hmm!” I replied.
The caller was Old Wu,
and despite our long acquaintance,
this was his first time reaching out to me.
“You call yourself a gambling expert, yet you’re lazy. Without the diligence of rising before dawn or burning the midnight oil, how can one master the art of card flicking?”
Old Wu rambled on,
and I knew he was merely indulging in banter.
Whenever I practised, he often interrupted, demanding tea or water.
He had previously claimed.
That card flicking was more about innate talent than sheer hard work.
Noticing my silence, Old Wu pressed on,
“I’m at the breakfast stall in Huichun Alley; come over, and I’ll teach you a few tricks…”
The mention of a tutorial piqued my interest,
so I quickly agreed and hung up,