God's imitator

Chapter 18 Pressure
The voice sounded so calm and matter-of-fact that Jiang He almost thought she had misheard.

She looked up at Lu Xinyi, only to find that Lu Xinyi's expression was normal, as if she didn't think there was anything wrong with what she had said.

"Wait, is there some mistake?"

"Isn't it supposed to be a rotating process of winning?"

"Shouldn't you be folding now?"

Jiang He looked at Lu Xinyi in disbelief, or rather, she had realized some problems, but found it hard to accept them for the time being.

You can know a person's face but not their heart. Jiang He had considered the possibility that the other party would break off the relationship, but she did not expect that the other party would not even bother to pretend for a second.

Lu Xinyi smiled indifferently, offering no explanation, and simply pointed to the timer on the gambling table.

"Everyone had better make a decision quickly."

In addition to the one-hour time limit for the entire game, Blood Poker also limits each player's thinking time to one minute at multiplayer tables.

There is a small timer on the table; if the timer expires, the hand is automatically discarded.

After all, there is a possibility of repeated betting in each game, so it is important to avoid pointless delays.

The bright red numbers on the timer kept jumping.

43
42
"Fine, fine, so you're going to play it this way, huh?"

Jiang He's face darkened. She hadn't expected that Lu Xinyi, who seemed so amiable, could be so ruthless when things came to a head.

He picked up the cards on the table again and glanced at them.

A pair of 9s.

Jiang He already knew the cards, but just in case and to avoid making a mistake, she checked them again.

Unfortunately, this hand isn't small, but it's not very big either; it'll probably be difficult to win the entire game.

The game was still going on. To Lu Xinyi's right was another player from the 3rd community, a thin middle-aged man wearing glasses named Lü Mingxuan.

He threw three more 1000-coin chips into the betting area: "Raise."

When it was Su Xiucen's turn, she was the dealer and also the last person to act.

Prior to this, Jiang He, Lu Xinyi, and Lü Mingxuan had all raised their bets, while everyone else had folded.

Su Xiucen panicked; the current situation completely disrupted her expectations.

Jiang He frowned: "Aunt Su, call."

Su Xiucen appeared even more flustered: "But...but..."

In Jiang He's view, the situation was clear: if Su Xiucen folded, it would be a one-on-two situation, putting her in a very unfavorable position; if Su Xiucen called, it would be two-on-two, and she would have a better chance of winning.

But Su Xiucen's flustered expression completely revealed that she had a very weak hand.

After a brief standoff, Lu Xinyi spoke.

She seemed to have completely shed her previous gentle and friendly facade, her voice now filled with aggression: "Auntie, don't force yourself, just fold."

"From the moment you sat down at the table, you had no chance of winning this game."

"Of course, you can choose to keep betting if you don't believe me. No matter how much you bet, I will continue to bet."

[Thinking time expired, automatically discard.]

As the notification sound rang out, Su Xiucen seemed to collapse all at once, helplessly placing her cards back on the table.

In just one minute, she found it difficult to make a decision.

To call at this point, Su Xiucen would have to put down another 3000 chips, but her hand was very weak. If she lost, she would lose 4000 including the ante, which was completely unbearable for her.

After all, even if you lose all ten rounds and only lose the ante, it's only 10000.

If you lose 4000 in the first round, what will you do next? Even if you manage to get a big hand, it will be very difficult to turn the tide.

A minute passed quickly amidst this dilemma.

It was Jiang He's turn again.

Three people raised in the last round, so the cards cannot be revealed in this round.

The cards will not be revealed until only one person raises and everyone else calls.

The bright red countdown started ticking again from 60, and Jiang He only had two paths before her.

You either call or raise, or you fold. "You can't fold. If you give up completely in the first hand, you'll have no chance against them..."

"At least we need to see what their hand actually is."

"My hand has a pair of 9s, which is at least a pair. If I play against both of them, I'm not completely without a chance of winning."

"Damn it, the person who broke the rules should be attacked by the others, but why are the other three people in the 3rd community not reacting at all?"

"Did they foresee the current situation from the very beginning?"
Why did two people fold and two people raise?

Jiang He's mind was in complete disarray; too much information made it difficult for her to sort out her thoughts.

The countdown has only 20 seconds left.

Jiang He decided to place the bet first.

However, at that moment, Lu Xinyi spoke up.

"Just a friendly reminder, even if you choose to call now, the cards won't be revealed."

"Because the two of us will keep raising the stakes until you've bet all your chips."

"So, if you have a really strong hand, you might as well go all in; it can save you some time."

Jiang He, who had just picked up the chips, froze in mid-air.

According to the game rules, if two players keep raising the stakes, the cards will never be revealed until everyone runs out of chips and goes all in.

All-in, also known as all-in poker, is the most desperate and risky bet.

If you win, your chips double; if you lose, your chips are wiped out.

Jiang He was barely prepared to lose 4000 chips, but she wasn't prepared to lose them all in the first round.

"Tick."

[Thinking time expired, automatically discard.]

Jiang He seemed to have all her strength drained away in an instant, and the hand holding the chips fell limp again.

"Raise."

"Discard."

Lu Mingxuan folded, and with no one's hand being flipped, Lu Xinyi won all the chips on the table.

After deducting her own bets, she netted 9000 chips.

The one who lost the most was Lü Mingxuan, who lost a total of 4000 chips including the initial bet.

But Lü Mingxuan showed no expression, and didn't even consider calling to see the cards, directly handing over all the chips.

This made Jiang He even more certain that the four players in Community 3 must have planned to set up such a scheme from the very beginning.

Jiang He didn't understand that, according to the matching mechanism of the corridor, the third community should have only been established for one day.

Why can they have such unconditional trust in each other?

As analyzed at the beginning, although they are in the same community, the players are not exactly a community of interests, so the visa time that Lu Xinyi earned should not be able to be traded with other people.

Why would the other three cooperate unconditionally?
Jiang He hadn't figured out the problem yet when a new game was about to begin.

This time, Lu Xinyi was in charge, and Lü Mingxuan, who was to her right, was the first to make a move.

Lu Mingxuan looked at his cards and said, "Fold."

This surprised Jiang He somewhat. She had thought that Lü Mingxuan would continue to raise the stakes, repeating the double act he had performed with Lu Xinyi in the previous round.

When it was Su Xiucen's turn, she was even more at a loss: "I, I..."

She even subconsciously wanted to show Jiang He her cards, but she held back because that would be against the rules.

Multiplayer gaming tables allow players to engage in some tricks outside the rules, but actions such as looking at each other's cards are absolutely not permitted.

Jiang He comforted her, "It's okay, Aunt Su. If your hand is good, just call."

However, she was interrupted by Lu Xinyi before she could finish her sentence.

"Still haven't you figured out the situation?"

"You have no chance of winning in this game. Any form of resistance will only lead to greater losses for you."

(End of this chapter)