I remember Uncle Tuo once told me that to become a top professional gambler, besides possessing divine gambling skills, the most important thing was to have a mind that even gods and ghosts could not fathom!
What I lacked most at the moment was the mentality of a top gambler.
To put it bluntly, it was the accumulation of experience.
Where does experience come from? Naturally, it comes from real combat.
This was why, after teaching me gambling skills for six years, Uncle Tuo stopped guiding me.
Through day and night, and even ceaseless, repetitive practice, in six years, I had learned all of Uncle Tuo's skills.
To not exaggerate, if one were to judge a person's gambling skill based solely on the level of their techniques, then I could undoubtedly be considered a master.
But Uncle Tuo said that in duels between top gamblers, their skills were almost on par, and there was no such thing as a guaranteed win.
What truly decided the outcome was the psychology!
Gambling games involving top gamblers were cunning and unpredictable, and the role of gambling skills was extremely limited.
It was like two chess masters playing a game.
What decided the game was never the so-called chess skill or strategy, but the heart that desired to win or lose!
This was because the overt strengths like chess skill and strategy, after many encounters, were generally understood by everyone.
The only unpredictable element was the opponent's unfathomable psychology.
Therefore, whether it was a chess game or a gambling game, what truly sealed the fate of the match was the psychology of the players.
Only an inscrutable mind was the path to victory!
Back then, after I had mastered and integrated all the gambling skills, Uncle Tuo told me something.
"Xiangzi, don't think that once your gambling skills are perfected, you can defeat everyone!"
"Gambling skills are just a stepping stone; a psychology that can defeat a thousand men is the path to victory!"
"With a thousand faces for a thousand people, how to fully display your learned skills before different gambling masters and in different levels of games, while also trying your best not to be discovered by them, is the key to making a name for yourself!"
I didn't understand it then, but after losing to Yu Shuang, I... understood!
Earlier, I lost to Yu Shuang because this woman saw through me, she understood my psychology.
But when I looked at her, it was like looking at flowers in a mirror or the moon in the water, shrouded in mist, I had no idea.
Don't forget, besides her identity as a queen bee, Yu Shuang had another identity – the second daughter of the Fengbei Yu family, a family of gamblers!
Having grown up in a family of gamblers, Yu Shuang was steeped in the art of gambling.
And I heard from Helian Shan that ten years ago, Yu Shuang, having mastered gambling skills, had even represented the Yu family and was invited to Macau to participate in the Gambling King Competition.
Although she was eliminated before the finals, being able to display such skill in Macau, a place teeming with gamblers, was more than enough to handle a nameless newcomer like me.
A newcomer like me, in the gambling world, was like a scholar discussing strategy on paper, preferring to follow the rules when making a move.
Even if it wasn't a guaranteed win, it wouldn't be a complete humiliation.
Little did I know that this very mentality caused me to be seen through by Yu Shuang and ultimately lose miserably!
This included the first time I discovered Yu Shuang's gambling skills, and I couldn't even see through her shuffling technique, all because I knew nothing about her.
Meanwhile, she had already figured out my gambling foundation by observing the game.
I still remember Yu Shuang's answer when I asked about this later, which shocked me for a long time.
The perfect shuffle!
The reason I couldn't see through Yu Shuang's shuffling technique was that, like me, she used her own unique method to execute the perfect shuffle.
This was the principle of everything returning to its origin.
The only difference was that she saw through me, but I didn't see through her.
Yu Shuang didn't crush me with her gambling skills, but rather, she completely dominated me in terms of wit and psychology!
This was especially evident in the subsequent game of drawing cards to compare sizes.
Fortunately, later on, when dealing with Wang Yangming's affairs, I wasn't tricked by Yu Shuang again.
And it was this victory in the confrontation that gave me great confidence and encouragement.
So I believe that at this very moment, if I were to have another duel with Yu Shuang, even if I couldn't know myself and my enemy, I would definitely not be blinded by her again!
And now, I am going to verify this belief!
Not just for myself, but also for Uncle Tuo!
If I succeed, I will make Uncle Tuo's enemies pay a heavy price one by one!
If I fail, at worst, I will leave my life and die with Uncle Tuo!
...
As I left the hospital, I didn't say a word to Cheng Minglang.
And he followed me out of the hospital and into a taxi without a word.
This touched me deeply.
Knowing that this was a path of no return, Cheng Minglang resolutely chose to advance and retreat with me.
But he didn't know that the affairs of the gambling world were to be settled within the gambling world! Regarding the revenge of the gambling world's blue path, only those who sat at the gambling table and participated in the game counted.
No matter how close others were, if they didn't sit at the gambling table and participate in the game, they didn't count.
This was why I didn't try to stop Cheng Minglang earlier...
Sitting in the taxi, thinking of Uncle Tuo's last words, with tears welling up, my eyes coldly stared at a certain point ahead.
Since those hypocritical figures in the gambling world had defeated Uncle Tuo and then cruelly caused his death, I would repay them in kind, an eye for an eye!
About an hour later.
In a place in Shanghai, a private casino called Tianqi Tower.
According to Helian Shan, the owner behind Tianqi Tower, Lin Zhenbei, was invited to participate in the Gambling King Competition ten years ago.
Although this Lin Zhenbei, like Yu Shuang, did not reach the final round, he participated in another side bet.
And the initiator of this side bet was the arch-nemesis Uncle Tuo had mentioned.
It was precisely because of this gamble that Uncle Tuo had three fingers cut off and one leg broken.
Driven by intense curiosity, I had asked Uncle Tuo more than once in the past who his arch-nemesis was.
But to my surprise, not only did Uncle Tuo not say, but Helian Shan also remained tight-lipped about it.
Even when Uncle Tuo was critically ill two days ago and Helian Shan recounted all the past grievances, he still kept the name of that nemesis firmly hidden.
So, I had no choice but to start with Lin Zhenbei.
No matter who Uncle Tuo lost to in a gamble and was then severely injured and died with regret, there were only a few enemies.
Since the incident happened in Shanghai, Lin Zhenbei... couldn't escape!
Revenge begins at Tianqi Tower!
The Lin family of Shanghai, right? I'm here!!!