The dice cup spun between Pink Lotus-jie’s fingers, clattering like pearls raining on jade.

  The hall erupted in cheers as she flipped her wrist, slammed the cup down with a crisp pa, and lifted her gaze with a bewitching smile.

  “Little young master, buying big or small?”

  I swallowed.

  No matter what happened, I had to survive this bet—live or die.

  But my eyes still couldn’t help drifting toward the piece of purple jade at her chest, swaying hypnotically with every breath she drew.

  “B—Big!” I barked, loud and firm.

  Pink Lotus-jie laughed until her shoulders shook. With a delicate flick, she lifted the cup—

  The three dice scattered.

  Two. Three. Two.

  Total: Seven. Small.

  The room burst into jeering laughter.

  “Hahahaha! Little lord, luck’s not in your blood today!”

  “First round and already lost!”

  “Come on, come on—rules are rules! Take something off!”

  Pink Lotus-jie wiped a tear from her eye, beckoning with a wickedly curved finger.

  “Little brother, don’t be shy. Lose a round—remove a layer.”

  My stomach dropped, but I forced calm, grabbed a pink scarf from around my neck, and flung it onto the table.

  Everyone froze.

  “Uh… does that count as clothing?” someone whispered.

  I puffed up righteously.

  “Of course it counts! Whatever I wear is clothing! Who dares say otherwise?”

  Before the words even fell, Hua was already doubled over, laughing himself halfway off the chair.

  “Hahahahaha! So THAT’S why you’re dressed like a festival lantern! Brilliant! Absolutely brilliant! Little Gong, you sly fox!”

  The deputy envoy, beet red, stammered,

  “Y-yes… young master is… truly farsighted…”

  Shangguan Fengliu clicked his tongue.

  “With that outfit, brother, you could lose for half the night.”

  Lian merely shot me one icy, expressionless glance.

  The look said plainly: I refuse to see this.

  I exhaled in relief. Thank heaven for my earlier brilliance—if not, I’d be half-naked already.

  Pink Lotus-jie narrowed her eyes, her smile sharpening.

  “Clever little thing. But we aren’t done yet…”

  She lifted the dice cup again.

  Cheers surged around us.

  “Again! Again! Let’s see how many layers he’s got!”

  Cold sweat dripped down my spine.

  System! Save me!

  The dice rattled again, sharp and relentless.

  I clenched my fists.

  “Big… big this time, BIG! I buy big!”

  The dice cup hit the table.

  Pink Lotus-jie purred, “And what will little brother buy this round?”

  “BIG!” I roared.

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  She lifted the cup—

  Four. Two. One.

  Total: Seven. Small again.

  The hall exploded.

  “Hahahahaha! Lost again!”

  “Clothes off! Off!”

  “Don’t go dishonoring your family now!”

  My soul nearly left my body.

  Hands shaking, I yanked off another bright red embroidered scarf and slapped it on the table.

  The deputy envoy hid behind both hands, peeking through his fingers, ears glowing.

  “This… does this really count…?”

  Hua wheezed,

  “Little Gong, today you are truly the walking embodiment of patched clothing!”

  Shangguan Fengliu nodded solemnly.

  “I revise my earlier guess. He can definitely hold out till dawn.”

  Lian’s frigid stare skimmed over me again—a clear verdict: utterly disgraceful.

  I snapped, “Ahem! Don’t laugh yet! It’s only the second round! It’s not over!”

  The dice clattered once more.

  Pink Lotus-jie’s eyes shimmered as she watched me squirm.

  My heart hammered.

  One more loss and I’m down to three layers!

  “What will little young master buy?” she asked silkily.

  My eyes darted.

  Big—lost.

  Small—lost.

  Opposite—still lost.

  Then—

  A spark of madness hit me.

  Fine! If everything flips… then I’ll flip with it!

  With righteous certainty I declared,

  “SMALL! I bet small!”

  Her foxlike gaze glinted. She lifted the cup—

  Six. Five. Three.

  Fourteen total. Big.

  I froze.

  The back of my skull buzzed like a bow.

  The audience detonated in laughter.

  Hua lost his fan entirely, tears leaking from his eyes.

  “Little Gong, your talent is remarkable. You ONLY choose wrong!”

  The deputy envoy murmured miserably,

  “M-maybe… maybe I should gamble in your place…”

  Shangguan Fengliu sighed,

  “Even I feel embarrassed for him.”

  I cursed inwardly, but could only peel off a green silk ribbon, hands trembling like reeds, and toss it onto the table.

  By now half the scarves were gone.

  One more loss and I’d be plucked clean like a winter chicken.

  “I’ll do the shaking!” I declared, trying to look bold.

  My palm, however, was so sweaty I nearly launched the dice cup across the room.

  Pink Lotus-jie reached out gently to steady it.

  “Careful, little brother. Spill the dice and you’ll owe another layer.”

  “Haha—ha—rest assured! My hands are very steady—”

  CLUNK.

  The dice cup bounced off the edge and nearly hit the floor.

  The hall roared.

  Hua howled,

  “Steady? YES—if ‘steady’ has a negative meaning!”

  The deputy envoy sat rigidly, as if trying to shield me from the world with sheer shame.

  Shangguan Fengliu tapped his fan.

  “I’m curious what chaos this boy can shake out.”

  My heart was already burning.

  To hell with it—I shook the cup wildly, a clattering storm of chaos, and slammed it down.

  “Big or small?” I croaked.

  Pink Lotus-jie’s ears twitched—she was clearly listening to the fall of the dice.

  With her skill, she could probably hear the points.

  Yet she smiled lazily.

  “Small. I buy small.”

  My heart sank.

  “Open!”

  She lifted the cup—

  Six. Six. Five.

  Seventeen total. Big.

  The hall went dead silent. In the next moment—a roar erupted!

  Pink Lotus-jie had actually lost!

  Yet her expression remained calm; she let out a gentle laugh: “Oh my, looks like my skill is no match for yours.”

  With that, her delicate fingers flicked, and she casually slipped off a layer of sheer veil, revealing her smooth shoulder, the white shimmer dazzling everyone’s eyes.

  “Whoa—!” The crowd immediately went into a frenzy, like a pot of boiling congee had spilled over.

  Hua let out a loud whistle, eyes squinting in delight at the spectacle: “Tsk tsk, Little Gong, you’ve got quite the lucky charm, haven’t you?”

  The Deputy Envoy froze solid, hastily slamming his wine cup onto the table, turning his back, his ears burning red as if cooked in boiling water.

  Shangguan Fengliu leaned back in his chair, half-smile, half-sigh, tapping his folding fan: “Heh, this game is getting even more interesting.”

  As for Lian… his face darkened instantly, cold light flashing in his eyes, the murderous aura almost tangible.

  And me? I froze for three seconds, then suddenly let out a strangled, “Waaaahhhh—!” nearly toppling my chair in shock.

  Not out of excitement, but because… embarrassment!

  I flailed my hands wildly, twisted my head desperately to the side, eyes darting to the ceiling, shouting in panic, “Aiyaaa, this, this… I have no interest in this! It doesn’t count! Seriously, it doesn’t count!”

  The crowd paused for a moment, then erupted into even louder laughter.

  Hua clutched his belly, slapping the table: “Hahaha! Little Gong, your words are even more entertaining than the dice roll!”

  The Deputy Envoy’s ears were crimson, practically bleeding, too nervous to look up.

  Shangguan Fengliu shot me a meaningful glance, smiling faintly: “I see now.”

  Lian gave me a cold glare, his killing intent only growing sharper.

  Pink Lotus-jie, on the other hand, laughed coquettishly, her eyes sparkling with mischief: “Little brother, you’re really amusing. Since you’re not interested, then sister wants to see… just what is it that you really want?”

  My heart screamed in despair: What do I want? Of course, that purple jade on her chest!

  But the worst part—no matter what I did, the scene refused to steer anywhere near a proper, serious plot!