Heaven Official's Blessing: Tian Guan Ci Fu (Novel) Vol. 2(20)

As he shook, Xie Lian lifted his eyes to sneak a peek at the other person and realized that Hua Cheng wasn’t looking at the gambling cup at all. Instead, he was watching him intently with the corners of his mouth curved up. Xie Lian couldn’t help but return that smile, but he immediately controlled himself when he remembered the crowd of humans and ghosts watching him from above and below. He lowered his head and diligently studied the gesture that Hua Cheng showed him.

“Like this?” he asked.

The smile curving Hua Cheng’s lips deepened. “Hm. That’s right, just like that.”

After Xie Lian shook the cup a few more times, full of hope, he suggested, “Why don’t you take a look?”

Xie Lian lifted the lid and saw two white dice at the base. It was two threes.

Rolling two threes was already an impossible feat for him. It was like a gentle spring breeze had brushed past Xie Lian’s heart, and he thought, Could I have actually learned the trick?

However, as shocking as the outcome was, six was still slightly less than eleven. He cleared his throat and admitted, “I’m sorry, I’ve lost.”

But Hua Cheng replied, “Don’t worry, this round doesn’t count. I’m teaching you right now, try again.”

At those words, Lang Qianqiu and Shi Qingxuan gawked. The crowd of ghosts in the hall also stared with their mouths agape, then they started to grumble.

“What’s with Chengzhu? I thought he was gonna show him who’s boss, but he’s actually teaching him for real?!”

“How can you not count this round?! Can you even gamble like that?”

“If this doesn’t count, when will it count?”

“Looks like Chengzhu really is in a good mood today…”

Hua Cheng quirked his left brow, and the croupier standing to the side immediately shushed the crowd.

“Everyone, please quiet down.”

In the blink of an eye, the hall went silent again. Although no one dared speak, their stares were more intense. Hua Cheng chuckled and softly whispered words of encouragement into Xie Lian’s ear.

“Again?”

It might have been because there were too many humans and ghosts packed into this Gambler’s Den, but Xie Lian felt his face starting to heat up.

“Okay.”

Rattle, rattle, he shook twice more. This time, when he revealed the cup, it was two fours.

“See, isn’t it a little higher this time?” Hua Cheng asked.

Although Xie Lian felt that something was off, he still nodded his head. “Yes…it’s a little higher.”

Hua Cheng encouraged, “You did well. Keep going.”

With those words of encouragement coming one after another, for some reason, giggles could be heard all around the hall. Judging by the voices, it appeared they all came from female ghosts. Xie Lian also couldn’t figure out what exactly constituted the correct posture. At first, he simplemindedly paid close attention to how Hua Cheng positioned his hands, how he managed the pace, and how he grasped the cup. But now, he was letting Hua Cheng’s hands lead him and shook the dice blindly. As he shook, a suspicion in his mind grew stronger and stronger: Could San Lang be teasing me…?

Lang Qianqiu, who had been watching from above, probably felt the same and couldn’t help but speak up. “You! Stop shaking the cup. He’s obviously playing you. There’s no such thing as a correct posture. He must be cheating!”

Hearing that loud, boisterous voice, Shi Qingxuan covered his face again.

The ghosts below shushed heartily, and a rain of dice was hurled at Lang Qianqiu. They jeered at him loudly.

“Ignorant child, stop talking!”

“So noisy! We’re just getting to the exciting part!”

“That Daozhang’s rolls get higher each time he follows our Chengzhu’s teachings, that’s the undeniable truth!”

“That’s right! What do you know?!”

Lang Qianqiu was furious. “You, you unruly, bald-faced liars… Aaah!!”

He suddenly stopped mid-sentence, and his face turned bright red. A couple of female ghosts below him had brutally yanked on his dangling belt and scolded him aloud.

“Xiao-didi,4 stop causing a ruckus. If you keep on spouting nonsense, us jiejie will pull off your pants!”

Lang Qianqiu had never been threatened like this before and was so angry he was rendered speechless. “You…you!!”

Getting beaten to a pulp by a mob of ghosts would’ve been fine, but having his pants pulled off would be a dreadful embarrassment for a dignified martial god like him. Immediately, Lang Qianqiu didn’t dare to say anything more. Xie Lian looked up and saw the other god sending him eye signals with all his might. It was both hilarious and pitiful, so he could only lower his head.

Xie Lian looked at Hua Cheng and pleaded in a small voice, “…San Lang.”

Hearing his tone, Hua Cheng chuckled. “Leave him be. Let us continue.”

“…”

Xie Lian gave up and, once again, held the cup and shook twice. As expected, this time, he got two fives.

The crowd cheered harder at this and their teasing of Lang Qianqiu grew more frenzied.

“Did you see that? Higher than last time!”

But Xie Lian had already realized that Hua Cheng was just fooling around with him. He didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He was sure that there was indeed no such thing as a correct posture, and to someone like him, any posture would be incorrect. From here on, he might as well give up on any hope of transforming his luck.