Chapter 5 The Money-Making Hand
Right after breakfast, the three concubines invited Xia Xiaoxiang to play mahjong.
Xia Xiaoxiang doesn't know how to play mahjong; she learned the game on the spot. Her mahjong skills are not as good as the three wives', and her luck isn't very good either.
She hadn't been sitting at the card table for long when she gambled away all her money.
In terms of wealth, she couldn't compare to the three concubines, but leaving the table now would be too humiliating. Especially since the third concubine, sitting opposite her, was watching her with a smile, seemingly waiting for her to make a fool of herself.
While hesitating, a new round of cards had already begun.
Xia Xiaoxiang opened her wallet and glanced at it. She wasn't as wealthy as the other concubines; after losing a few rounds, she only had a few copper coins left.
The second concubine noticed: "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"
Before Xia Xiaoxiang could answer, the third concubine interrupted, "You're out of money? No problem, just write an IOU and pay it back slowly."
The first wife said, "Luck takes turns, and you might not necessarily lose."
Second concubine: "Or should I ask the first wife to come and replace you?"
The mahjong tiles were shuffled with a clattering sound, like the clattering of coins flowing away. Xia Xiaoxiang quickly made up her mind.
"Wait a minute." Xia Xiaoxiang stood up. "I'm going to find someone first, I'll be right back."
Looking for someone?
The three concubines exchanged glances, and she hurriedly went upstairs.
Her footsteps faded at the top of the stairs. The third concubine picked up a card, pursing her lips as she said, "Looking for someone? I doubt she's run away."
The first wife scolded, "You too, it's her first time playing, why are you bullying her? She has a daughter to raise, it's not easy for her."
"Bullying? I didn't. She was just unlucky."
The other two were unable to refute it for the time being.
Playing mahjong also depends on luck, but Xia Xiaoxiang's luck was really bad today, and no matter how much they let her win, they couldn't save her.
Before long, Xia Xiaoxiang came back again.
She sat down at the card table again, but this time she had a soft, white little girl in her arms, whom she had just snatched back from Young Master Lou.
Mao Mao sat on her mother's lap, staring blankly at the mahjong tiles in front of her. She tilted her head back and asked, "Mother?"
Xia Xiaoxiang leaned down and kissed her cheek, then, while drawing cards, said cheerfully, "Good Mao Mao, you sit here and bring some good luck to your mother."
"Oh." Mao Mao sat down obediently, acting as her mother's lucky charm.
The three concubines exchanged glances, and the third concubine was the first to laugh.
It's not like we're worshipping any Bodhisattva or God of Wealth, so what's the point of sitting here?
A new round of cards began, and the third concubine played a card first. After a few rounds, everyone had finished their hands and were just waiting to draw the last key card to win.
When it was Xia Xiaoxiang's turn to draw a card again, she didn't move.
Xia Xiaoxiang lowered her head and coaxed her daughter, "Mao Mao, help your mother draw an eight of bamboo. Take it from this end."
"oh."
Mao Mao obediently stretched out her little hand and helped her grab a mahjong tile.
The three concubines looked on in bewilderment, wondering what she was doing.
Is it possible to draw this card so easily?
As soon as Xia Xiaoxiang received the mahjong tiles, a smile quickly spread across her face. She pushed the tiles aside and exclaimed happily, "I won!"
"What?!"
"Did you really win?"
The three concubines rushed over to take a look, and sure enough, they had won. The last card was the eight of bamboo that Xia Xiaoxiang had specifically requested.
As the three men took out their money, they said, "You're really lucky."
"It seems the feng shui is really good here."
Xia Xiaoxiang said happily, "It's because Mao Mao is lucky."
In the following games, her luck remained incredibly good. Occasionally, she would ask Mao Mao to draw cards for her as if making a wish, and the three concubines would hear her shout "I won!" again and again.
Before long, Xia Xiaoxiang won back all the money she had lost, and her wallet was full again, with some money left over.
They were all stunned.
It's worth noting that not long ago, Xia Xiaoxiang was on a losing streak.
In the blink of an eye, her luck reversed completely, as if the God of Wealth had taken her place, and wealth was pouring into her.
All these changes happened after Mao Mao arrived. Some crucial cards were drawn by Mao Mao for her.
If we hadn't seen it with our own eyes, no one would have believed that she could touch whatever she wanted.
All eyes were on the little girl sitting obediently at the card table.
The second concubine looked at her with surprise: "Ever since Mao Mao came, your luck has improved."
“Our Mao Mao is a lucky charm, she’s incredibly fortunate.” Xia Xiaoxiang grabbed her daughter’s little hand and kissed it, saying proudly, “Back then, when the department store had an anniversary event, you could draw a prize once you spent a dollar. Our Mao Mao won the grand prize on her first try! A watch that would have cost ten dollars in the store.”
Mao Mao's palm tickled from her mother's kiss, and she hid in her mother's arms, giggling.
The concubines stared in amazement at Mao Mao's hands.
These little hands don't look special; they're chubby with a few small dimples on the back, and the short fingers can barely hold a mahjong tile.
A lucky hand?
"Is it really that amazing?" The second concubine couldn't help but ask, "Mao Mao, can you lend me some of your luck?"
"OK."
Xia Xiaoxiang generously lent her daughter to hold.
When the new round of mahjong began, the second concubine's eyes widened in surprise. She had been playing mahjong all morning, and never before had it felt so exceptionally smooth.
Before anyone else could prepare, the second concubine exclaimed incredulously, "I won?"
The crowd gasped in disbelief.
"real?"
"Is it really that effective?"
The eldest concubine couldn't sit still either. She grabbed Mao Mao's chubby little hand and stroked it, wanting to share in her good fortune: "Can this little hand really bring wealth? Has it been blessed by the God of Wealth?"
Xia Xiaoxiang happily hugged her daughter back and kissed her soft, chubby face repeatedly: "Whether she has been blessed or not, I don't know. I only know that Mao Mao is my little lucky star."
Mao Mao happily reached out and hugged her mother back, giving her two kisses on the cheek: "I'll help you get rich, Mom."
The mother and daughter snuggled together, cheek to cheek, much to the envy of the second concubine.
She reached out her hand, her eyes filled with longing: "Let me hug you again."
The mahjong room was bustling with activity. By the time the third concubine had lost all the money in her wallet and the day's mahjong game was over, Mao Mao's reputation as a little money-maker had spread far and wide.
The first wife, who hadn't participated in their mahjong game, was astonished upon hearing the news. She grabbed Mao Mao's chubby little hand and looked it over, exclaiming, "Is it really that effective?"
"you do not say!"
The second concubine chimed in, "Whoever Mao Mao sits on will win; it's incredibly accurate."
"Mao Mao's mother said she has a knack for making money, but I didn't believe it. I've never seen such good luck before. Today has really broadened my horizons."
Mao Mao played mahjong with the concubines for most of the day and was a little sleepy. Her reactions were also slow. She leaned against the first wife like a doll, letting everyone hold her little hands and touch her.
The first wife was about to say something.
"What kind of fortune-making hand? Let me benefit from it too."
A clear, cheerful voice, accompanied by a dashing young figure, drifted over.
However, it was Mao Mao's last older brother, Lou Hongjian, the third young master of the Lou family, who returned home.
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