The three men immediately made strange faces, and Xu Yao looked at her, seriously reminding her, "I hope you don’t draw the winning tile yourself, otherwise it’ll be over."
She thought he meant they would be finished.
Lin Xinlan laughed, "I do want to draw the winning tile myself. If I do, I’ll certainly win a lot of money."
Xu Yao’s expression remained somewhat serious, "It’s not just winning a lot of money, you’d basically take all the money we could possibly lose."
"Ah, I could win that much?!" Lin Xinlan was very surprised, realizing she held a very, very good hand.
"It’s okay, I’ll just win this round; I definitely won’t have this good luck later on."
Her eyes shining, she reached out to draw a tile, but just then Rong Shaoze came over with a plate of cake, glanced at the row of bamboo suit tiles in front of her, and quickly stopped her hand.
"Did you make all these kongs?"
Seeing him arrive, Lin Xinlan happily said, "Yes, I’ve made four kongs in a row. Look at this..."
She showed him the three of bamboo she was holding and smiled mysteriously, "If I draw this one right now, I can win on a self-draw, and also win a whole lot of money."
Rong Shaoze looked towards Xu Yao, who shrugged and said, "If she really draws it, it’ll be ’Eighteen Scholars.’"
"What are ’Eighteen Scholars’?" Lin Xinlan asked curiously.
Rong Shaoze explained, "It means you draw the tiles yourself and make four kongs in a row, and if the last one is also a kong, that’s ’Eighteen Scholars.’
"Oh, so how many points is that?"
Rong Shaoze didn’t answer her. Instead, he smiled, "How about I draw for you? My luck is better than yours; I might just draw it."
"Okay!" Lin Xinlan agreed cheerfully, as his luck was indeed better than hers, hoping he would help her draw the three of bamboo.
Rong Shaoze reached out slowly to draw a tile, knowing what it was as soon as his fingers touched its face and number.
"Quick, see what it is?!" Lin Xinlan looked at him expectantly.
Rong Shaoze’s hand brushed over the table, and he said with regret, "It’s not the one you wanted; can’t make a kong."
Lin Xinlan took a look, and it was actually the one of characters!
She had thought it would be the three of bamboo.
"It doesn’t matter, I don’t have to win on a kong, I’ll probably draw it next time." She was a little disappointed but not very.
Actually, she didn’t really want to win money; she just wanted to have exceptionally good luck for once.
Since Lin Xinlan hadn’t won on a self-draw, they continued to draw tiles. Lin Xinlan was still waiting for her chance to draw the three of bamboo, but who knew Xu Yao would win on a self-draw in just a few turns.
After the round ended, Rong Shaoze didn’t let her play anymore; after four or five hours of continuous play, it was time to take a break.
Lin Xinlan also felt somewhat tired, so she stopped playing and went to her room to eat cake.
As soon as she left, Rong Shaoze immediately spread out a mahjong tile he had in his hand - it was the three of bamboo.
Xu Yao raised an eyebrow, "That’s just a superstition, you don’t have to take it seriously."
People who play mahjong know that if you complete ’Eighteen Scholars,’ it signifies bad luck, that something bad will happen.
Rong Shaoze discarded the mahjong tile, saying nothing.
He wasn’t one to believe in any superstitions.
But since it involved Lin Xinlan, he preferred to err on the side of caution, just in case.
After all, it was better to be safe than sorry.
Lin Xinlan finished a big piece of cake and felt full. When Rong Shaoze asked if she wanted more, she shook her head and said no.
"Are you hungry, have you eaten anything?" Only then did she remember to ask him.
The man stared at the bit of cream on the corner of her mouth and smiled, "I haven’t eaten yet, and I’m indeed a little hungry."