Chapter 125: Deceptive Manipulations

The next round commenced. The landlord seated before me was the first to speak. Without glancing at his cards, he boldly wagered five hundred. I, too, chose to forgo peeking at my hand and matched his bet.

Two players folded, and then it was the turn of Mine Owner. He too did not look at his cards but escalated the bet to one thousand.

His opponent, a weary-looking woman in her forties, who bore a look of fatigue and bloodshot eyes, seemed accustomed to long nights. Upon seeing Liu wager one thousand, she immediately produced two thousand dollars and tossed it into the pot, her voice hoarse as she declared, "I’ll match without looking—two thousand!"