while he chanted in a singsong: “Here, here, bet high, bet low.”
The final wagers were placed onto the table as the dice rattled around inside the tumbler. With a flourish, the dealer set the dish down, paused dramatically, then lifted the lid to reveal the numbers. The result was met with a few cheers, more groans, some curses.
Huang swiped a hand over his forehead and stared at the candle flickering on the table behind the dealer. It was an oven in here tonight and he was having a tough time of it. A runner came by offering a cup filled with what would have been called water if not for the few flecks of tea floating in it. He waved the boy away in irritation.
“It must be a lucky night for you, Lord Bai.”
Wu Kaifeng came up alongside him just as the dealer shoved a pile of coins in front of him. Huang stared at the cash warily before pushing it all back onto the table beside the character for “Low”.
He pasted on a smile before turning to the constable. “So it seems. Let’s see if it continues.”
Occasionally someone he knew from the Pingkang li would come into the gambling den, but he had no desire to hold up appearances tonight. He glanced once again at the candle. There was only a stub left.
Sometimes he lost quickly and would simply get up and leave. Those were the rules. But sometimes he won, and those were the hardest nights of all.
“Do you play, Constable?”
Though Wu stood at the table, he had yet to take out any money. He looked over the painted characters on the table, each representing a wager, and then over to the three dice inside the clay bowl. The dealer shrank back as Wu’s gaze raked over him.
“No,” he replied after an uncomfortably long delay.
It was rare to meet someone with such a disconnected sense of social politeness. Though his words and gestures were not incorrect, they always came a touch too late or off-rhythm, as if he had to think of things others took as natural.
“It’s quite easy,” Huang said. “You put your coins down on the table and they take them away.”
“All bets in!”
The dealer set the bowl down and lifted the tumbler to a general outcry. The total was high this time and Huang’s wager disappeared. Another round started promptly after.
“I could never see the appeal of gambling,” Wu said. “Too much uncertainty.”
The problem was Huang liked the unpredictability. He liked the guessing and wagering and not knowing. No, it was incorrect to say he liked any of it. That implied there was some enjoyment or pleasure involved. He supposed there had been, at one time. Now he knew that he didn’t just like the risk, he needed it. It was never about the money.
Tonight, the battle had been especially hard. With a new Emperor on the throne and Huilan’s recent death, there was too much cluttering his mind. A night of diversion at the tables was very tempting. Unfortunately, Huang knew it was impossible to play only a few rounds to take his mind off things. He always followed a strict, unbending regimen he’d set for himself.
Wu looked around the dimly lit room. “So this is where you go on nights you don’t spend drinking.”
Obviously, the constable had come here to investigate him and couldn’t be bothered with subtlety.
Huang affected a grin. “I’ll drink tonight as well.”
Wu was not amused. “You play the third night of every week.”
His smile faltered a little. “A good night for it.”
“And always from the eleventh hour to the twelfth,” Wu continued. “Always this table. Exactly a thousand copper coins.”
The dealer cast a glance toward Wu before he began hawking out the next round.
Huang shrugged, though the room seemed to have gotten hotter. A trickle of sweat ran down his neck. “Gamblers and their superstitions, you know.”
Wu nodded, but there was very little in the way of camaraderie in it. “It must be working tonight. You look to have nearly three times that in front of you.”
“More wagers? Bet
The final wagers were placed onto the table as the dice rattled around inside the tumbler. With a flourish, the dealer set the dish down, paused dramatically, then lifted the lid to reveal the numbers. The result was met with a few cheers, more groans, some curses.
Huang swiped a hand over his forehead and stared at the candle flickering on the table behind the dealer. It was an oven in here tonight and he was having a tough time of it. A runner came by offering a cup filled with what would have been called water if not for the few flecks of tea floating in it. He waved the boy away in irritation.
“It must be a lucky night for you, Lord Bai.”
Wu Kaifeng came up alongside him just as the dealer shoved a pile of coins in front of him. Huang stared at the cash warily before pushing it all back onto the table beside the character for “Low”.
He pasted on a smile before turning to the constable. “So it seems. Let’s see if it continues.”
Occasionally someone he knew from the Pingkang li would come into the gambling den, but he had no desire to hold up appearances tonight. He glanced once again at the candle. There was only a stub left.
Sometimes he lost quickly and would simply get up and leave. Those were the rules. But sometimes he won, and those were the hardest nights of all.
“Do you play, Constable?”
Though Wu stood at the table, he had yet to take out any money. He looked over the painted characters on the table, each representing a wager, and then over to the three dice inside the clay bowl. The dealer shrank back as Wu’s gaze raked over him.
“No,” he replied after an uncomfortably long delay.
It was rare to meet someone with such a disconnected sense of social politeness. Though his words and gestures were not incorrect, they always came a touch too late or off-rhythm, as if he had to think of things others took as natural.
“It’s quite easy,” Huang said. “You put your coins down on the table and they take them away.”
“All bets in!”
The dealer set the bowl down and lifted the tumbler to a general outcry. The total was high this time and Huang’s wager disappeared. Another round started promptly after.
“I could never see the appeal of gambling,” Wu said. “Too much uncertainty.”
The problem was Huang liked the unpredictability. He liked the guessing and wagering and not knowing. No, it was incorrect to say he liked any of it. That implied there was some enjoyment or pleasure involved. He supposed there had been, at one time. Now he knew that he didn’t just like the risk, he needed it. It was never about the money.
Tonight, the battle had been especially hard. With a new Emperor on the throne and Huilan’s recent death, there was too much cluttering his mind. A night of diversion at the tables was very tempting. Unfortunately, Huang knew it was impossible to play only a few rounds to take his mind off things. He always followed a strict, unbending regimen he’d set for himself.
Wu looked around the dimly lit room. “So this is where you go on nights you don’t spend drinking.”
Obviously, the constable had come here to investigate him and couldn’t be bothered with subtlety.
Huang affected a grin. “I’ll drink tonight as well.”
Wu was not amused. “You play the third night of every week.”
His smile faltered a little. “A good night for it.”
“And always from the eleventh hour to the twelfth,” Wu continued. “Always this table. Exactly a thousand copper coins.”
The dealer cast a glance toward Wu before he began hawking out the next round.
Huang shrugged, though the room seemed to have gotten hotter. A trickle of sweat ran down his neck. “Gamblers and their superstitions, you know.”
Wu nodded, but there was very little in the way of camaraderie in it. “It must be working tonight. You look to have nearly three times that in front of you.”
“More wagers? Bet
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