### Chapter 248: The Sorrow of Three
What exactly is "luck"?
Qi Xia couldn't help but ponder this question.
How much "Sorrow" must a person be steeped in to draw three consecutive fans all marked with "Sorrow"?
The situation was extremely tricky now. No matter who Qi Xia partnered with, he could only produce two "Sorrow" fans. In other words, anyone who teamed up with him would be unable to leave.
If the rules dictated that everyone had to present two folding fans, then anyone forming a pair with Qi Xia would never be able to assemble all four—"Joy, Anger, Sorrow, Happiness."
So what was he supposed to do next?
Qi Xia frowned, thinking for a moment. Suppose his luck was at its absolute peak—in half an hour, when the fans were replenished, he might draw another "Sorrow" fan...
"Hey! Buddy!" The square-faced man patted Qi Xia on the shoulder from behind. Qi Xia immediately put away his fan.
"What are you doing over here?" the man asked.
"I..." Qi Xia turned around and stuffed the fan into his pocket. "I was just checking my fan faces."
"Oh? What characters did you get?" the square-faced man pressed.
Qi Xia wondered what was wrong with this guy—why would he so bluntly ask about someone else's hand? If word got out that "this guy has three 'Sorrows,'" who would ever be willing to pair with him?
"Other than 'Joy,' I have the other three," Qi Xia said.
"Oh? Really?" The square-faced man pondered for a moment. "I do have 'Joy'—even two of them! Looks like the two of us could together form a complete set of 'Joy, Anger, Sorrow, Happiness'!"
"So you want to get out of here quickly?" Qi Xia asked.
"Of course..." The square-faced man nodded emphatically. "People die in this place. Who wouldn't want to leave as soon as possible?"
"Oh..." Qi Xia replied nonchalantly, then shifted the topic. "I can agree to 'pair up' with you, but you need to give me one 'Joy.'"
"No problem," the square-faced man nodded. "When the time comes, I'll reveal one 'Joy' and one 'Anger,' and you can show the other two."
"You misunderstood me," Qi Xia shook his head. "I meant I want a single 'Joy' fan—for myself."
"What...?" The square-faced man froze for a moment. "Buddy... did I hear that right?"
"No," Qi Xia shook his head. "If you want to cooperate with me, you need to give me the third fan you have."
"Why should I?" The square-faced man looked displeased. "I said I wanted to work with you, but it's not like I'm forced to, right?"
"Of course," Qi Xia nodded. "You can go find another teammate. But my terms are fixed: if you want to work with me, I want your third fan."
"You're crazy." The square-faced man waved his hand dismissively and turned to leave.
Di Yang glanced around at the crowd, then stepped up to the table in the center and announced, "Ten minutes have passed. The game now officially begins."
As soon as the words fell, the crowd began to stir.
Qi Xia let out a deep sigh, pocketed his fan, and slowly surveyed the venue.
In a game with so many participants, the first round was nothing more than sifting through the chaff. Those who were timid, who had stumbled in here by accident, or who had suddenly changed their minds would escape in droves. Those who remained would be the true "participants" of this game.
People had already started conversing with one another. Some were even openly showing their fan faces to others. Smiles were everywhere, and the whole scene had a relaxed, cheerful atmosphere.
Qi Xia knew his purpose here was different from everyone else's. Besides surviving, he needed to collect as much "Dao" as possible.
But with three "Sorrow" fans, how was he supposed to make the first move?
Contrary to what Qi Xia had expected, after a full ten minutes, only two pairs had escaped.
Those four people, after successful verification, climbed the stairs leading upward.
It seemed Qi Xia had been too optimistic. Human greed was far more terrifying than he had imagined.
Since Di Yang would replenish the fans after half an hour, everyone still in the game would have at least four fans. After pairing up, they would have two left over, and the final reward would increase from five "Dao" to ten "Dao." So escaping early was not the smartest move.
Still, Qi Xia had an ominous feeling. Di Yang was, after all, known to lie.
Had he lied in the rules or not?
Qi Xia was strolling around the room when he suddenly heard a commotion from a corner. He turned to look—human nature was revealing itself.
A big, burly man was snatching a folding fan from a thin, gaunt man.
"What are you doing?!" the thin man cried, looking nervous. "Referee! Someone's stealing!"
Di Yang's gaze slowly drifted toward them, but he made no move.
"You... you're not going to stop him?" The thin man was so frightened his glasses fell to the floor.
Di Yang actually closed his eyes.
Seeing Di Yang's reaction, the burly man grew even bolder.
"Damn it... give it here!"
He reached out and yanked hard, snatching two fans away.
The thin man clung desperately to the last fan in his hand, refusing to let go no matter what. The big man didn't give him a moment to react; he jerked violently.
A sharp "rip" tore through the air. The third fan was ripped apart.
The burly man picked up the damaged fan and inspected it. The torn fan now resembled a pair of scissors: if he lifted one end, the other drooped down. Uncertain whether it could still be used, he thought for a few seconds before tossing it back to the thin man.
"Leave a line of mercy, and you'll always meet again," the burly man said with a grin. "I'll give this one back to you."
The thin man looked furious, but he dared not resist. Dozens of onlookers nearby watched coldly, not one stepping in to stop it.
But the mood of the crowd had clearly shifted in that moment.
"I have a proposal," a fashionable woman suddenly spoke up in a loud voice. "None of us should team up with this bad man. Let him stay here and die."
"What?!" The burly man's temper flared. He stormed over to her in two steps. "Bitch, you looking for death?!"
"Are you going to kill me?" The fashionable woman smiled. "I have a feeling that if you kill me, even fewer people will dare to team up with you."
"What...?" The burly man slowly raised his hand, hesitating whether he should slap her.
Qi Xia figured the big man wouldn't outright kill her, but he would definitely make her suffer.
"Hey, that's enough." A young man, about twenty years old, suddenly stepped in front of the big man, blocking him. "This is a game of cooperation to escape. You're not trying to incite a riot, are you?"
Qi Xia looked up at the clock on the wall.
Only fifteen minutes had passed in the game, and so many people were already losing control of themselves.
He shook his head, ignoring the noisy crowd, and walked over to the thin man.
That man was still sitting on the ground, clutching the torn fan and weeping.
"Hey, stop crying," Qi Xia said.
"Huh?" The man looked up, his eyes swimming with tears, and stared at Qi Xia.
"What character is on that broken fan of yours?"