Chapter 249 The Start of Deception
The thin man slowly lowered his head and carefully opened the fan in his hands. On it was the character {Anger}, torn down the middle, giving it a particularly ironic look.
"It’s {Anger}..." The thin man cried even harder, "I guess it’s useless now... What should I do... What should I do?!"
Qi Xia thought for a moment and then said, "How about I trade with you?"
"Trade...?" The man paused in confusion.
"I have three fans. I’ll randomly pick one and trade it with you," Qi Xia said. "I guarantee my fans aren’t damaged."
Qi Xia’s reasoning was simple. Based on the demonstration from earlier by Terrestrial Goat, all the fans were folded up and inserted into the machine. This suggested that the machine wasn't recognizing the characters on the fan but rather the fan itself. As long as the torn fan didn’t lack any parts, it should still be usable.
"But... why would you want to trade with me?" The thin man asked hesitantly.
"That’s none of your concern," Qi Xia replied. "Your fan is torn, and keeping it is just a hassle. If you secretly trade it with me, when the next batch of fans is distributed, you’ll have two complete ones again, and you can still {pair up} with someone else."
"N—No wait…" He stopped to think, suspicion creeping into his voice. "Everyone wants nothing to do with this ruined fan—so why are you offering a trade? What exactly are you planning?"
"You must have bad intentions…"
Qi Xia fell silent, feeling that the baseness of human nature was truly laughable.
"I might have given you more face than you deserve," Qi Xia sneered. "You didn’t dare to oppose the man who stole your fan, but now that I offer to trade for your broken one, you start doubting me. Fine, I’ve changed my mind. You can stay here and wait to die."
There were still over forty people present, and it was highly likely that someone had drawn three fans with the same contents as his. If that person was willing to trade, he wouldn’t need to take the risk of exchanging for a broken fan.
"Huh?! Don’t go!" The thin man suddenly rushed over and grabbed Qi Xia’s arm. "I was just asking... Alright, I’ll trade with you, since this fan…"
"I said I changed my mind." Qi Xia said coldly. "The world’s opportunities aren’t reserved for the indecisive."
Although Qi Xia considered exchanging the folding fan in his hand, he knew he had no reason to humble himself before this man. Without hesitation, he shook off his grip and strode away.
Now, everyone knew that this man had a broken fan, and that was even worse than having three {Sorrow}.
Twenty minutes passed. Although no new participants had escaped, many had already formed pairs.
It seemed the remaining people were all planning to wait for the next batch of fans to escape, at least ensuring they would earn ten {Dào}.
While Qi Xia was observing the crowd, the fashionable woman from earlier made her way toward him.
"Hello," she spoke softly. "Have you found a partner?"
Qi Xia shook his head and then looked at her.
"Want to team up?" The woman asked. "You look like a smart one—interested in striking it rich with me?"
"Striking it rich?" Qi Xia appraised the woman from head to toe. Her makeup was meticulously done, a strong fragrance clung to her, and she wore a form-fitting pencil skirt that accentuated her figure.
"Exactly," she nodded. "I have a solid plan, but I need a man to team up with."
Qi Xia found this woman quite intriguing. Her proposal wasn’t about escaping; it was about {striking it rich}.
"So, what do you need me to do?" he asked.
"Just protect me," the woman replied. "Otherwise, I might get beaten to death."
"And… what’s my reward?" Qi Xia pressed.
"You won’t leave empty-handed," she assured him.
A smirk curled at the corner of Qi Xia’s lips. "So, what’s your plan?"
"Hm…" The woman pondered for a moment. "Follow me."
Qi Xia trailed her, sensing that he was nothing more than a pawn in a cunning scheme.
Soon, the woman approached a middle-aged man who had been looking around, seemingly searching for a suitable teammate.
"Hey, mister!" the woman called out. "Shall we team up?"
"Teaming up…?" The man froze for a moment. "For what?"
"You want to get out of here, right? I’ll pair up with you," the woman smiled sweetly. "What fan do you have?"
The middle-aged man’s gaze lingered unashamedly on a few of the woman’s more private areas before he spoke, his eyes narrowing with sly intent. "You—You first tell me what you have to offer."
The woman nodded and immediately took out her three fans, spreading them in her hands for him to see.
"I have {Joy}, {Anger}, and {Sorrow}," she said, looking at the man. "As long as you have {Happiness}, we can pair up successfully."
The middle-aged man thought for a moment, then pulled out two folding fans from his pocket and slowly opened them—they were {Happiness} and {Joy}.
"Very good," the woman nodded with a smile. "I’ll provide {Anger} and {Sorrow}, you supply {Happiness} and {Joy}. Deal?"
The middle-aged man looked at her face and legs with some suspicion before asking, "You’re not trying to scam me, right?"
"Of course not, mister. What would I scam you for?" The woman immediately grabbed the man’s arm. "If you're still worried, we can go to the {Pairing Machine} right this moment."
The middle-aged man gave a wary look at Qi Xia standing behind the woman, then bowed his head to reflect for a brief moment.
Qi Xia was also curious about what the woman was up to, so he simply watched without saying a word.
"Alright," the man nodded, then stared at the woman’s fair thighs. "Girly, I’ll {pair up} with you."
"Great!" The woman beamed with a sweet smile, seemingly oblivious to his lewd gaze, and continued, "Shall we go find a {Pairing Machine}?"
She led the hefty man to a corner, ensuring they were alone, a spot evidently chosen with careful consideration.
Qi Xia followed closely behind. Although he hadn't agreed to become the woman's {pawn}, it seemed like a convenient place for whatever they were about to do.
The woman reached the {Pairing Machine} and immediately pressed the left button. Her photo appeared on the screen, and three smiling faces showed up below her image.
A line of text lit up: "Partner still to be confirmed."
"Mister, your turn," the woman said with a smile, turning to the middle-aged man.
The man nodded and reached out to press the other button. Almost immediately, his photo appeared on the screen, and the text began to change.
"Both participants in place, starting the pairing."