The First National Preceptor of the Tang Dynasty

Chapter 69

"But if you lose, we'll pretend today never happened, and all past grievances will be wiped clean. You can't come looking for trouble again, okay?"

"Hmph, why should I make a bet with you?" Zheng Zhu was also shrewd and said, "Who do you think you are to make a bet with me? It's already an honor for me to even speak to you now."

"So you didn't dare? You still want to be my master? That just proves that my Wudang sect's Taoist arts are stronger than yours. This bet isn't big enough, I'll give you a little more leverage."

"If I lose, I will kowtow and acknowledge you as my master, following you and obeying your commands for life. If you lose, I won't ask you to become my master; you only need to return the Du family's shares to them. Do you dare?"

"Hmph, with your meager mustard-like Taoist skills, you can only create toys like chess and cards. How dare you boast and compare yourself to my family's alchemy?"

"Whether or not to gamble is up to me, and even if we were to gamble, it would be my decision, not yours. Du Dalang, take out the contract and read it to him." Zheng Zhu still wouldn't fall for it.

"In the end, you still don't dare. Let me tell you my betting topic first. There are quite a few plates on the table here. I'll take thirty and lay them out on the ground in order."

You take a bowl of rice from the rice basket using one of the bowls on this table. Put one grain of rice on the first plate, two grains on the second plate, four grains on the third plate, and so on. Each subsequent plate must contain twice as much rice as the previous plate.

"You can only put the next plate in after you've put the previous one in. If even one grain of rice from your bowl can be placed on this last plate, I'll consider it a loss. How about it? This bet is simple enough, isn't it? Do you dare to bet?" Xu Tian said directly.

The betting question was indeed very simple, and everyone understood its meaning immediately. Zheng Zhu naturally understood it as well. He thought for a moment before replying, "Hmph, trying to trick me? I won't bet on thirty plates. But if it's twenty plates, I'll bet with you."

He was shrewd. Although he didn't understand the ins and outs, he cut off ten plates in one go to see Xu Tian's reaction.

Xu Tian grinned, pretended to hesitate for a moment, and then said uncertainly, "Okay, I have to admit, you are indeed very capable, you saw through it in one go."

"Twenty plates, I'll bet with you. But you'd better keep your word; there are so many people watching. Xiao Wu, call everyone outside to the door and explain the betting topic and stakes to everyone, so all the villagers can see."

"Wait, I haven't said I want to bet yet." Zheng Zhu suddenly called out, changing his mind. He saw that Xu Tian's expression didn't seem very tense, so he hesitated, feeling that he wasn't very confident. "I think twenty plates are too many. If you reduce it by three, I'll bet with you."

Upon hearing this, Xu Tian was stunned and immediately retorted loudly, "You're going back on your word and breaking your promise." He couldn't hide the panic on his face. "Fine, I don't want to gamble with you anymore."

"Hehe, you have to gamble whether you want to or not. If you don't gamble, believe me, I'll make sure this shop goes out of business." Seeing his panic, Zheng Zhu felt reassured and threatened him.

Hearing his threat, Xu Tian was stunned. After a long while, he took a deep breath and said listlessly, "Fine, let's bet."

Wang Anping, who had been standing nearby for a long time, rushed over in a panic, grabbed his arm and said, "Xu Tian, ​​we can't gamble like this. Let them have the shop."

Shopkeeper Jiang chimed in, "Yes, second boss, as long as the green hills remain, there's no fear of running out of firewood. Why not give them to them? We can find another place later and open another shop."

Others in the store echoed this sentiment.

"No, this shop has only been open for less than a year. You all know how much effort has been put into it. Besides, even if we open another one, it will be very difficult to make it work again."

"If fate decrees that I shall lose, then I shall admit defeat. But I must see the outcome; I will die with my eyes open in peace." Xu Tian shouted, seemingly having lost his mind.

"Don't worry, I won't let you die. I still need to teach you a lesson. Wang Fa, go and call all the people outside to come and watch. Make sure the reasons are clear, so no one will say I'm abusing my power," Zheng Zhu said with a loud laugh.

"Alright." The servant named Wang Fa responded and left. Before long, a group of people gathered at the shop entrance.