Back in the 1980s, hiking in the mountains was also a way of life

There are many ways to play poker, but if we're talking about the game that uses the most playing cards, then it's definitely Texas Hold'em.

In Texas Hold'em, if you get a three of a kind, you have to switch cards. Even more strictly, if you get a straight flush, you also have to switch cards.

Even if neither a straight flush nor a three of a kind comes out, if the deck of cards is even slightly out of order, you still need to change the deck.

Of course, all of this is on the premise that the stakes at the gambling table are high enough. If it's the kind of gambling where villagers kill time with stakes of 1 cent at the bottom and 5 cents at the top, then you have to wait until the cards are worn out before you can get new ones.

The main problem was that playing cards weren't cheap back then. A basic deck of cards cost 3 cents, while a slightly better one cost 5 cents. That price was equivalent to a day's wages for a temporary worker.

After Ma Ben finished shouting, Su Guangjun took a deck of cards, which is 12 of the most common playing cards, and placed them on the table. He glanced at Wang An a few times with his eyes darting around, and then stood next to the table with his head half-lowered.

To be honest, if Su Guangjun hadn't had to take the poker money off the table, he would have run far away long ago.

There was no way around it; Wang An's ruthlessness and cruelty were deeply ingrained in the hearts of the people in Sujiatun and the surrounding villages. Su Guangjun had even betrayed Wang An's own brother-in-law, so it would be strange if he wasn't afraid of Wang An.

However, Wang An didn't even glance at him. Instead, he personally tore open the parchment, took out a deck of cards, opened it, and then pulled out the two jokers and threw them out.

Because the game of Texas Hold'em doesn't require the Jokers.

Of course, Wang An mainly wanted to take the opportunity of dismantling the playing cards to check them out and see if they were the kind of "marked playing cards".

So-called "marked playing cards," also known as "cheating playing cards," are playing cards that look identical but have subtle differences on the back in some place.

Those familiar with this type of playing card can identify it based on these subtle differences.

Imagine if your opponent knew what cards you had, but you didn't know what cards they had. How could you even play Texas Hold'em?

It's important to know that anyone who knows even a little bit of cheating or tricks is definitely quick-witted, has excellent memory, and is also very skilled.

Usually, when dealing the cards, he can already tell what kind of cards all the players have based on the subtle differences on the back of the cards, making it really hard for him not to win.

Fortunately, after checking, Wang An found that the playing card that Su Guangjun brought was the kind of playing card that was very common in supply and marketing cooperatives, and there was no tampering or markings on it.

After inspecting the deck of cards, Wang An quickly shuffled them twice and then casually handed the entire deck to the next player.

The player to his left took the cards, glanced at them briefly, and was about to hand them to the player to his right. However, the player to his right didn't check them and instead laughed:

"Anyway, I don't understand it either, you guys can just look at it."

When it was Ma Ben's turn, he checked the deck of cards quickly and carefully. After being shuffled several times by several people, the deck was placed in the center of the table, and everyone drew some cards to compare and decide who would be the dealer.

Finally, Wang An's upstream supplier, a middle-aged man named Li Ertie, drew the highest number of points and became the dealer.

It's clear that Li Ertie is a seasoned gambler; his card-dealing technique is quite sophisticated and smooth.

After the cards were dealt, Wang An, as the player to the left of the dealer, naturally spoke first. Wang An was quite decisive; without even looking at his cards, he threw two yuan into the money pile and said:
"Four pieces, served hot."

Starting with a 2-yuan bet is a standard tactic in Texas Hold'em; the goal is to stay in the game as long as possible.

After Wang An bet two yuan, the player to his left also threw two yuan into the pile without hesitation. Then, as if they had planned it, everyone bet two yuan, and it was Wang An's turn to speak again. Su Guangjun also took one yuan from the pile as playing money.

Although his playing cards are wholesale, and a deck might cost less than 3 cents, that's the price of a deck at the card table.

Since he organized the gambling and provided the playing cards, it's perfectly reasonable for him to take a dollar as payment for the cards.

Wang An stopped brooding and picked up the cards to examine them. However, Wang An's posture while examining the cards was very strange. He held all three cards in his palm, quickly glanced at them with his thumb, and then put the cards face down on the table.

Then, Wang An put up 5 pieces.

Actually, Wang An's hand wasn't very strong; it consisted of a pair of Jacks and a 7.

If it's a four-player Texas Hold'em game, a pair of Jacks might be quite strong, but with six players, a pair is basically doomed. Any straight or flush can easily beat a pair.

However, the persona Wang An cultivated was that he wasn't very good at having fun and pretended to know everything.

Wang An saw that he had 5 cards, and the player to his left, no longer bored, picked up his cards and looked at them too.

If the stakes are low, people might have to play blindly for several rounds before someone can even look at their cards. But now, playing blindly costs two yuan per hand, which is equivalent to two days' wages for a regular employee. It's really painful for anyone who spends that money.

Wang An's opponent looked at the cards quickly and threw them away even more quickly, glancing at them before tossing them into the pile.

It's obvious that the best card he has is a pair, or maybe he doesn't even have a pair.

After this guy threw down his cards, the player to his left didn't even look at them and instead played two more cards. It was Ma Ben's turn to speak.

Ma Ben thought for a moment, then picked up his cards, looked at them, and threw them back into the deck.

After Ma Ben discarded his cards, his next player and the dealer also looked at their cards and then folded. It was Wang An's turn to speak again.

Without hesitation, Wang An threw in 5 yuan. This time, the one who had been holding back couldn't hold back any longer and threw in 4 yuan, saying to Wang An:

"I'll just shut you down."

I must say, this kid is pretty smart. He only needs to spend 4 yuan to reveal his cards, but if he wants to see the cards, he has to spend 10 yuan to reveal them.

The two revealed their cards to compare their hands. Unexpectedly, this guy had a rather clever idea, managing to come up with a mixed-suit straight of 4, 5, and 6, which directly beat Wang An's pair of Jacks.

In one round, Wang An bet 2 yuan on one hand, 5 yuan on two other hands, plus 1 yuan on the bottom, for a total loss of 13 yuan, which is equivalent to a month's salary for Wang An as a security guard.

However, Wang An didn't care about losing money, because on the one hand, he had to maintain his image as someone who wasn't very good at playing, and on the other hand, he was still observing his fellow card players and waiting for an opportunity to become the dealer.

That's how this game of Texas Hold'em works. If you want to win big in one hand, you can only use your skills when the dealer is dealing the cards, which is basically "cheating".

It's absolutely impossible to win money without cheating. (End of Chapter)