Chapter 254 Novice Swindler
Qin Dingdong paused momentarily.
Meanwhile, Qi Xia watched the two with great interest.
A clumsy female swindler and a da ge who had at least participated in this game twice—who would come out on top?
She pondered for a moment before smiling. "Da ge, it’s not that I don’t trust you, but I was tricked exactly last time."
"Oh?" The Sichuan-Chongqing man scrutinized Qin Dingdong. "You got four fans sittin’ pretty in your pocket, yet ya claim ya got swindled last time… Ya think I’m some kinda fool?"
"Da ge, you misunderstand." Qin Dingdong shook her head. "I did lose a fan, and I was left with only two. These two are newly bought."
"I been standin’ near Terrestrial Goat this whole time—ain’t once seen ya buy no fans."
"That’s because I bought them earlier," Qin Dingdong replied smoothly. "Da ge, you wouldn’t happen to be the real swindler here, would you? Are you not planning to put your fans in?"
Qin Dingdong and Qi Xia exchanged a look, realizing that the man in front of them wasn’t so easily fooled.
Which made sense. Anyone who had managed to bring a briefcase into this game couldn’t be too naïve. They naturally understood the kind of situation they were in.
"I’d rather not know him," Qin Dingdong said calmly. "Da ge, this guy is absolute scum."
"What now?"The da ge was taken aback. "Scum?"
"Didn’t I say I was tricked?" Qin Dingdong pouted and pointed at Qi Xia, looking aggrieved. "He’s the one who scammed me."
Qi Xia sighed and shook his head helplessly.
Qin Dingdong certainly had a quick mind, but her methods were no better than those of a low-level con artist.
"Yer sayin’ this man tricked ya?" TheSichuan-Chongqing da ge was clearly struggling to make sense of it. "But he’s the one who brought me here!"
"That’s right." Qin Dingdong nodded. "After he tricked me, he felt guilty and swore he’d help me escape. But no matter what, I refused to pair up with him, so he promised to find me another teammate instead…"
"I—Is that so…?" The da ge continued to eye the two suspiciously.
"I told you not to say anything!" Qi Xia snapped, his voice cold and sharp. "Now that you've spilled it, what do you expect me to do?"
"Why shouldn’t I say it?!" Qin Dingdong shot back. "You did scam me! And now you don’t want people to know? If you had the guts to trick me back then, you should have the guts to face it now!"
"Have I spoiled you too much?" Qi Xia stepped forward, lowering his voice as he spoke with an edge of menace. "I went out of my way to find you a teammate—that was more than generous. And you turn around and f*cking expose me? What the hell am I supposed to do now?! If everyone finds out I’m a scammer, who the hell is going to pair up with me?!"
"That’s your own damn problem!" Qin Dingdong seemed to lose control, her voice sharp with fury. "Even if you die here, you’ll have no one to blame but yourself! Why the hell should I cover for you?!"
The Sichuan-Chongqing da ge was startled by the sudden escalation. "Y—Y’all, calm down now..."
"Step aside," Qi Xia barked coldly. "If I don’t slap this woman three times today, my name isn’t Li Ming."
"Li—Li xiōngdì!" The man rushed forward, grabbing Qi Xia in a firm hold. "Gimme some face, xiōngdì! Let’s not be fightin’ now! The most important thing right now is gettin’ outta here quick!"
"Da ge, I’ve changed my mind!" Qin Dingdong’s expression darkened. "Make him back off! If he stays here, I’m not pairing up!"
"You motherfuc—" Qi Xia jabbed a finger at her, stepping forward.
The da ge immediately blocked his path again. "Xiao Li, Xiao Li! Settle down now!"
Qi Xia looked absolutely livid, but after much coaxing from the da ge, he finally took a few steps back.
"Missy, let’s hurry this up!" The da ge hesitated for a moment before pulling out his fans, carefully verifying Qin Dingdong’s face with the displayed picture on the screen. Once confirmed, he inserted it into the machine. "I ain’t got time to waste. The longer we drag this out, the more dangerous it’s gonna get!"
"Yes, yes!" Qin Dingdong nodded hastily and reached into her pocket to retrieve her fans.
She rummaged around for a long time, then slowly raised her head with a mischievous grin. "Da ge, I’m sorry, but… I’ve changed my mind."
"You’ve got so many fans… If you make it out, you’ll definitely earn a fortune, right?" Qin Dingdong mused aloud. "But me? I’ve got nothing to my name…"
"Heh…" The man fell silent for a moment before speaking again. "Missy, ya got four fans in yer hands right now. If ya just put in two, you’ll still walk outta here with ten {Dào} to yer name."
"Not enough, da ge." Qin Dingdong smiled as she hooked her arm around his. "How about this—why don’t you give me two more fans?"
"Give you… two more?" The man frowned deeply as he stared at her. "Ya lost yer mind? Two fans are worth ten {Dào}—yer appetite’s way too big."
Qin Dingdong casually gestured toward the pairing machine. "You’ve already put in two fans. Even if you back out now and don’t pair with me, you’ll still lose a pair… Think about it carefully—the result is the same either way."
"You son of a gun…" The man let out a furious chuckle. "So it’s you two playin’ me! Y’all planned this together to scam laozi, didn’t ya?"
"How could you say that?" Qin Dingdong maintained her innocent, pitiful expression. "Da ge, I really was tricked. I just want to grab a few more fans before I leave so I can recover some of my losses."
From a short distance away, Qi Xia watched the exchange closely, calculating the possible outcomes.
Would this da ge fall for it?
Judging by Qin Dingdong’s methods, she was unlikely to let this man walk free. Rather, she would wring him dry, seizing every last bit of wealth he possessed.
This man, however, was entirely different from the previous elder. His fortune was simply too vast. Not only was he at risk of losing his fans in this twisted game, but he also stood to forfeit all the {Dào} he had spent acquiring them.
There was a real possibility that he would fight back with everything he had.
And should such a brutal confrontation erupt within the arena, the entire situation would spiral beyond control.
Even if Qin Dingdong emerged alive, she would immediately become the next {rich individual}—the fresh prey that all others would fix their sights upon.
At this moment, the wisest course of action was…
"Da ge, have you made up your mind?" Qin Dingdong pressed, her voice smooth yet insistent. "Just two fans. Hand them over, and you’ll be free to escape with the rest."
"Missy... I’ve got a new idea," the da ge sighed, before speaking slowly, "You take out the two fans ya plan on puttin' in the machine first. We’ll do a trade—fans for {Dào}, hand over hand."