After a moment of hesitation, I chose to call.
At the same time, I made up my mind that if I could still get a flush in spades, I would go all in with this hand.
This was because I subconsciously assumed the big guy's hand was three sevens.
According to the rules of Stud, a flush can beat three of a kind.
If he were to get a full house later, the cards on the table would either be two pairs or three of a kind.
After a period of thinking, the others also chose to call.
It seemed everyone shared the same mentality, wanting to waste some chips and test the strength of others.
Once everyone had called, the dealer started dealing from the big guy.
An insignificant diamond three.
With the immediate threat of three sevens gone, I shifted my gaze to the others at the table.
Except for one person with a straight, the others' hands posed no significant threat to me at the moment.
Next, after everyone had placed their bets, the dealer began dealing the fifth card.
The fifth card was crucial.
It was dealt face down, and by linking it with the first face-down card, it could form a hand that would make opponents take notice and feel nervous.
If I could successfully get a flush, my chances of winning would greatly increase.
Unfortunately, this time, the dealer did not grant my wish.
The face-down card he dealt me, I saw it just by glancing at a corner... it was a heart.
However, it was a Queen of Hearts.
Having lost the hope of a flush on the face-up cards, getting a pair was a consolation prize.
Glancing at the other players' hands, I found that everyone's hands were pretty much similar, all dependent on this last face-down card.
Honestly, sometimes Stud and Baccarat have an inexplicable similarity.
Either no one has a special hand, or everyone has one.
Based on the face-up cards, the player with the straight started the betting.
Then it was my turn.
Without looking at the first face-down card, I didn't make a blind bet.
Instead, I matched the bet of the plain-looking youth who had the straight, adding a stack of chips.
Not much, just 50,000.
If the big guy with the pair of sevens had been beaming with joy earlier, he was now looking grim.
This was because his face-up cards only showed a pair of sevens, with two other cards being random.
As the players ahead of him bet, the big guy fiddled with the chips in his hand, clearly contemplating whether to call.
While the big guy was deep in thought, I suddenly noticed a subtle detail.
He wasn't lost in thought; he was looking at everyone's chip stacks, contemplating.
And during this process, the big guy's eyes would occasionally dart towards the deck of cards in front of the dealer.
What was he doing?
Just as I was starting to suspect the big guy's unintentional actions...
I noticed that the young man whose chip stack the big guy had been looking at the most had a small, visible black dot on the corner pattern of the card he was hiding under the table.
Beneath the other four cards, it was not obvious at first glance.
It was similar to a small speck of dirt, and if you weren't paying close attention, it wouldn't attract any notice.
Frankly, if this abnormal situation had occurred in a local chess and card room, I might have subconsciously thought it was a deck of cards that had been played for a long time and picked up some dirt from the table.
But this was a legitimate cheating competition, and all the gambling tables were not only spotless, but micro-particles like small black dots were definitely not present for any reason.
Therefore, I concluded that the big guy was up to something!
And if I wasn't mistaken, he was using the same tactic I had used in the preliminary rounds.
Sanding!
And he was a master sander!
During the half-hour break for changing cards, it was a small move made secretly while the dealer was shuffling and cutting the new deck!
Considering the time, this new deck had been in play for about ten minutes.
If I hadn't been focused on the big guy's every move, observing him closely, it would have been very difficult to discover.
Just as I was secretly convinced that the big guy was up to something, I heard him suddenly say, "100,000!"
As soon as he spoke, he threw the chips he had been holding onto the table.
This was the largest single-round bet on our table since the start of the competition.
100,000 chips, or 10,000 points.
If he lost, his personal points would instantly drop by 10,000.
After the big guy raised, it was my turn to speak.
Since I had already discovered his secret, I naturally wouldn't be foolish enough to jump into the trap.
So, after looking at my hole card and pondering for a moment, I chose to fold.
The big guy wasn't worried about me having three Queens because I hadn't sounded very confident when I was betting earlier.
Therefore, after the cards were dealt, he turned his attention to the plain-looking youth holding the straight.
According to the common practice of cheaters sanding cards, when marking cards, they prioritize high cards like J, Q, K, and A.
As for 10s, some people mark them as well.
Clearly, the big guy was one of those people.
He probably believed, through the mark on the face-down card, that the youth's face-up 10-high straight was a bluff.
The youth's hole card was also a 10, making his five-card hand a pair of 10s.
I have to admit, the big guy had good luck!
He had just applied some sanding to the new deck, and it was already paying off.
Now, regardless of whether his hole card was a 7 or not, the pressure was on the young man.
The plain-looking youth immediately frowned and started thinking.
For a full two minutes, he didn't move at all.
His reaction made it clear to everyone else.
A fake straight with no threat!
Seeing the youth deep in thought, the big guy no longer seemed as impatient as before. He looked like he was sitting back and enjoying himself, leisurely smoking a cigarette.
This calm and composed demeanor made it impossible to figure out if he really had three sevens.
After a while longer.
The youth still hadn't made a decision.
At this point, the dealer finally couldn't help but speak.
"Sir, if you don't decide whether to call or not soon, I will have to rule it as a fold according to the tournament rules."
Upon hearing this, the plain-looking youth reluctantly folded his cards.
Honestly, the moment I saw the youth fold, I felt that his Stud skill... seemed a bit too weak!
If he really wanted to win, he should have bet or gone all-in without hesitation.
After all, there was no full house hand outside, which would be the most intuitive psychology for someone holding a straight.