Screening Mechanism

"Internal conflict?" Li Renshu asked, slightly surprised.

Yang Yuting nodded. "That's right. After we left the chip exchange area, we started discussing strategies.

"But soon, Brother Wang and Uncle Ding started arguing.

"Because Brother Wang disagreed with our plan. He didn't want to gamble with people from other communities and just wanted to go back and continue studying the Chip Exchange Machine.

"Of course, I don't think either of them was entirely wrong. Both of their ideas had merit.

"Uncle Ding's objection was mainly because he felt the automatic exchange machine had no chance of winning and was very dangerous.

"Most importantly, if Brother Wang didn't come, then on the multi-player gambling table, we would be three against four with Community No. 1. This meant the three of us would bear the extra risk.

"It would be fine if the other side didn't back out, but if they did, with one less person, the situation would become extremely passive."

Jiang He's ears felt a little hot as she listened.

She had thought her strategy was genius and perfect, but now it seemed like it was just a strategy anyone could have thought of.

And she had stumbled into every possible pitfall.

Of course, from everyone's descriptions, the skill levels and attitudes of players from different communities varied greatly.

Some community players were very friendly and cooperative, while others showed clear malice.

Jiang He was also quite unlucky to have encountered an opponent like Lu Xinyi right from the start.

Fu Chen looked at Wang Yongxin with some curiosity. "Brother Wang, why were you so determined to gamble with the Chip Exchange Machine?

"Did you discover something beforehand?"

Wang Yongxin shrugged. "Not at all. If I had discovered something early on, wouldn't I have told everyone else already?

"I just had a gut feeling that there had to be some kind of loophole or special shortcut in this game. It couldn't be that everyone would mess around for so long and only earn twenty or thirty thousand chips.

"But it really took a lot of time to find the specific loophole."

After a round of discussion, everyone fully understood the situation of Wang Yongxin's group.

It was clear that Wang Yongxin was able to obtain a staggering 200,000 chips precisely because he hadn't participated in Xu Tong and the others' plan.

He had played at the chip exchange area until the end of the game and hadn't shared this secret with the other three.

"So, how exactly did you win 200,000 chips from the Chip Exchange Machine?" Cai Zhiyuan still couldn't quite figure it out.

Wang Yongxin quietly took a sip of his coffee. "It's very simple. The Chip Exchange Machine never folds."

Cai Zhiyuan froze. "Huh?"

Immediately after, he felt speechless and a little annoyed.

With just that simple sentence, if he, or anyone even slightly smarter, had known it earlier, the outcome of the game would have been vastly different.

Cai Zhiyuan instantly understood why Wang Yongxin had managed to fleece 200,000 chips from the Chip Exchange Machine.

Some people, still slow to catch on, asked, "It never folds... and then what?"

Cai Zhiyuan sighed. "Don't you understand? Folding is actually a self-protection mechanism.

"When you have a weak hand, you can protect yourself by folding, only losing the ante.

"If you can't fold, then the opponent can bet limitlessly and take all your chips.

"Conversely, if we can fold and the Chip Exchange Machine can't, then when we get a strong hand, we can bet aggressively and maximize our profits."

Fu Chen pondered for a moment and looked at Lin Sizhi and Qin Yao. "Lawyer Lin, did you also discover this?"

Lin Sizhi nodded. "Yes, it was discovered by chance."

Qin Yao added, "Our group's situation was much more complicated. We almost ended up with only 8,000 chips.

"It's a good thing Lawyer Lin discovered the secret of the automatic exchange machine early on and told us immediately. Otherwise, the three of us would have been finished."

Su Xiucen also quickly praised, "Little Lin is such a good child! You were a great help."

Fu Chen blinked. "Why could you only bring 8,000 chips?"

Jiang He was silent for a moment and said, "Because we were set up by Community No. 3 in the same game."

Everyone's attention was instantly drawn. Qin Yao briefly explained the cause and effect of the incident.

Of course, she wasn't very clear about the specific details behind her and Lin Sizhi's actions at the gambling table afterward. At the time, she had been completely cooperating based on Lin Sizhi's glances and hints.

Therefore, this part was only briefly touched upon.

Xu Tong's eyes widened in shock. "Lawyer Lin, you're amazing!

"Not only did you find the loophole in the Chip Exchange Machine at the fastest speed, but you also won all of Community No. 3's chips in return, avenging us who were deceived.

"Just hearing about it makes my head hurt. How did you think of it?"

Everyone looked over. This feeling of being the center of attention made Lin Sizhi a little uncomfortable.

He shrugged and said calmly, "It's nothing. Qin Yao's description is too exaggerated.

"Discovering the loophole in the Chip Exchange Machine was actually quite coincidental.

"It's because in the first round, I happened to get a strong flush. Then I tried betting continuously, and to my surprise, the Chip Exchange Machine never folded."

"When I finally, somewhat nervously, chose to open my hand, I realized it was just a trash hand.

"That's why I was able to quickly identify this loophole.

"Or you could say, it was a low-probability event to begin with. If I had gotten a trash hand on the first try and lost, I probably wouldn't have thought much of it.

"As for the gamble with Community No. 3, it had even less technical skill involved. The only reason I dared to gamble with them was one reason: Qin Yao's and my chip stack completely crushed the four of them.

"I remember reading a news article before: a very famous professional poker player, known for his bluffs with small hands, won a lot of money.

"But one time, he lost everything because his opponent was a super-rich tycoon.

"This super-rich tycoon didn't have any special skills; he just had a lot of money. Whenever his hand was even halfway decent, he would always check the professional player's hand.

"As a result, the professional player's spirit was broken. After his pride and joy, bluffing, no longer worked, he became timid and hesitant, losing more and more.

"This news story might not be entirely true, but it reveals a simple truth: no matter how strategic a gamble seems, it's still gambling. When the chip stacks are equal, it's about psychology and skill, but when the chip stacks are deep enough, it all comes down to probability.

"I accidentally discovered the secret of the Chip Exchange Machine and obtained an excessive amount of chips. That's what gave me the confidence to gamble with Community No. 3."

Qin Yao asked curiously, "But what if you didn't get a good hand in the seventh round?"

Lin Sizhi retorted, "Then why don't you ask what would have happened if I had gotten a good hand in the first six rounds?

"Good hands have their way of winning, and bad hands have theirs. As long as the chip stack is deep enough, probability will eventually be on your side.

"In the first six rounds, whether I had a good hand or a bad hand, I would have bet at least 4,000. That's because I wanted to quickly deplete the chips of the other two members of Community No. 3, besides Lu Xinyi and Lu Mingxuan, to create a two-on-two situation.

"Even if it meant losing thirty to forty thousand chips, I would have accepted it.

"You only need to seize one real opportunity.

"Of course, if I were truly unlucky and all ten games were completely unplayable small hands, then I would lose. Things at the gambling table are never 100%. You should have that awareness before you sit down."

Everyone nodded, and some of their doubts were dispelled.

Looking only at the results of the game, it was easy to feel that Lin Sizhi was "too intelligent, almost demonic."

But hearing this explanation now, it felt within a comprehensible scope.

After sighs of admiration and praise, everyone fell into a brief silence.

Clearly, most of them hadn't expected that such a seemingly simple game would result in three completely different game ecosystems for the three groups.

And the final outcomes were vastly different as well.

Fu Chen gently clapped his hands, "Alright, the situations for the three groups are pretty much clear. I think we should set aside the details for now and start by analyzing this game from an overall perspective.

"The outcome of this game was indeed somewhat unexpected in certain aspects."

Cai Zhiyuan had been deep in thought, and now he seemed to have figured something out and said, "I think I understand.

"It's obvious that this game is different from the 'Redemption Roulette' and all the Judgment Games we could find before.

"Many people, including myself, precisely because we subconsciously applied the problem-solving approach of the 'Redemption Roulette' from the start, chose the wrong path."

Xu Tong was still a bit slow to react, "The problem-solving approach is different? How so?"

Cai Zhiyuan looked at Wang Yongxin, "Brother Wang, you earned the most chips this time, so you should explain.

"I think your understanding is probably deeper than mine."

Wang Yongxin looked at everyone and then nodded somewhat proudly, "Alright, then I'll briefly share my thoughts.

"First, we need to figure out what the game 'Blood Poker' is actually about.

"We've analyzed 'Redemption Roulette.' Its purpose is 'judgment.' That is, to see if a guilty person has truly repented and reformed from the bottom of their heart. If they have, they can live; if they remain unrepentant, they die miserably.

"So, when encountering this kind of 'judgment' game, the first thing we should consider is how to protect ourselves, how to overcome human weaknesses, and find the safest way to escape.

"But 'Blood Poker' is completely different.

"Although it looks terrifying at first glance, it's not a 'judgment' game.

"In fact, we were already given a hint about this before entering the game.

"Do you all remember?"

Everyone looked confused. Cao Haichuan said at the opportune moment, "I remember. The big screen at the time said: The goal of the game is to 'complete the first allocation of Visa Time'."