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墨書 Inktalez
After I hung up the phone, the group of fat men was still waiting for my answer.
"What did Old Man Sun say on the phone?" the Fat Ma asked.
"Go to Tibet."
As soon as I finished speaking, Fat Ma's expression froze for a few seconds before he finally said, "To be honest, I've never been there."
I replied directly, "You go notify Old Ghost. We're leaving tomorrow for Tibet, Lhasa."
Without hesitation, the Fat Ma left the shop.
Looking at the clay figurine sitting idly beside me, I asked, "Do we need to prepare anything else?"
The clay figurine shook his head and then seemed to remember something: "Buy some medicine; it's low on oxygen there."
I nodded in agreement.
After going out to buy some medicine for altitude sickness, Fat Ma had also finished his preparations. That evening, we gathered together to have dinner and discuss matters. Old Ghost became serious as well since he was involved in this too.
After the meal, we wrapped things up and returned home for a good night's sleep.
When morning came, we gathered and arrived at Changsha Train Station. Since there were relatively few people going to Tibet, we easily bought our tickets.
Because there was only one train from Changsha to Tibet, which departed at seven twenty in the evening and took two days to reach Lhasa, we had arrived early and bought our tickets without knowing this in advance.
The four of us, being big men, sat around idly chatting.
Fat Ma was always the most reckless in conversation, daring to say anything and go anywhere, a quality none of us could match.
However, at that moment, we discovered that Old Ghost could also hold his own in a conversation. Over the years, he had traveled extensively, dealing in antiques, which had given him a wealth of experience. We found his stories quite entertaining.
He spoke of the Chongzhen Emperor and the sword he used to commit suicide, as well as the bronze cup that Qin Shi Huang used for drinking. He claimed he had seen them all and couldn’t even count how many such items he had encountered.
He shared many related anecdotes with us.
Fat Ma chided him to stop rambling. Thus, the four big men spent the entire afternoon chatting away, having a simple meal until it was finally time for the train to depart.
We quickly boarded the train, found our seats, and settled in for the two-day journey ahead.
We decided to buy a deck of cards, perfectly enough for the four of us to play a game together.
With a loud rumble, the train started moving. We set up our game and spilled out the cards from the box, ready for battle. Fat Ma’s eyes rolled like wheels as he suggested, “How about we make it interesting?”
“Sure,” I replied without hesitation.
However, Old Ghost was feeling a bit anxious about it.
However, when the Fat Ma mentioned the prize, Old Ghost realized that it was definitely not a good sign. The Fat Ma took a deep breath and said, "The prize is a Mingqi."
The three of us fell silent upon hearing this.
"Come on, say something. What do you think?"
"When will you stop coming up with these ideas, Fat Ma?"
Fat Ma's expression darkened. "Can't you guys aim a little higher?" His words sparked public outrage, and after a round of criticism, the Fat Ma finally relented. He just wanted to enjoy a simple game of cards.
Long journeys can be exhausting, and if you don't find a way to pass the time, it can be unbearably dull. Just then, someone set up a game in the train.
"Come on, everyone! Flip the cards and guess the size. Bet as much as you want; there’s no limit!"
Three cards were shuffled in hand, and players had to guess which one was the largest. If you guessed correctly, you could win money. The Fat Ma, who had been holding onto his cards, was immediately drawn in by the call.
He flashed us a grin, set his cards down, and left his seat. The two others had been walking down the aisle while shouting.
But no one stepped forward.
Just as the Fat Ma emerged, those two looked at him like he was a sheep ready for slaughter and excitedly laughed, "Hey brother, are you in?"
The Fat Ma was worried about when this unexciting card game would end when he ran into them. Without any hesitation, he led them back to his seat.
When it was our turn, the two of them hesitated for a moment.
"Do you know these brothers?" one of them asked.
Just as we were about to speak, the chubby guy interjected, "I don't know them."
Hearing this, the two relaxed a bit, and we remained silent. One of them then asked, "So, are you brothers here to play?"
We all shook our heads in unison.
The chubby guy got excited and pushed me into a corner, making one of them sit down. I almost cursed out loud but managed to hold it back.
After the chubby guy had them sit down, one of the men pulled out three cards and laid them on the table. He flipped one over for me to see before placing it back down.
"Place your bets. Minimum fifty bucks, no maximum limit. Bet as much as you want to win."
The chubby guy rubbed his palms together, eyeing the three cards on the table. All he needed to do was pick the highest one. He pulled out a thick stack of hundred-dollar bills from his pocket.
The two men looked a bit surprised; that stack must have had at least five thousand bucks in it. If he won, then this job would be worth it after all. With that thought, they smiled broadly, and the chubby guy mirrored their excitement.
Thus, both sides prepared for what was to come.
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