Consort Wei ordered the palace attendants to bring three dice. The rules were simple: four to ten were considered small, and eleven to eighteen were considered large.
The one shaking the dice was Consort Wei herself.
"I've never played this before," Consort Wei said, her round face beaming with excitement. Her plump, fair fingers held the dice cup, shaking it up and down a few times. She added, "So rest assured, I won't cheat, because I simply don't know how."
With that, she let out a charming laugh, and the surrounding nobles joined in with polite laughter.
Princess Yin Yue curled her lips coldly. She had indeed been wondering if Consort Wei would cheat, but she wasn't worried at all. Having lived among commoners for years, she could spot such tricks.
Moreover, it would be even better if she cheated. Once exposed by her, what face would these so-called consorts and princesses of Da Sheng have left?
The competition quickly began. The crowd bustled forward, surrounding Wang Qingyao and Princess Yin Yue in the center. Consort Wei enjoyed the lively atmosphere and did not try to stop them.
To everyone's surprise, Princess Yin Yue and Wang Qingyao drew several rounds in a row.
In other words, they both guessed correctly.
Wang Qingyao relied on her clairvoyant eyes, while Princess Yin Yue used her own skills.
She glanced up at Princess Yin Yue, who was also looking up at her. Their eyes met, sparks flying.
Wang Qingyao proposed guessing large or small. Princess Yin Yue had already anticipated her prowess in this area, but she hadn't expected her to be so skilled, matching her equally.
After several more rounds, Princess Yin Yue and Wang Qingyao were still tied.
Some of the onlookers started yawning.
Consort Wei also grew increasingly bored. She slammed the dice cup onto the table and said impatiently, "Last round. No more guessing large or small. Guess the number on each die. The one who guesses more correct numbers wins."
Princess Yin Yue let out a cold laugh, her eyes fixed triumphantly on Wang Qingyao's: "No problem."
Wang Qingyao also had no problem. However, she knew in her heart that this round would likely end in a draw as well. Judging from the previous rounds, Princess Yin Yue seemed to be able to hear the numbers, much like in those gambling movies from the past.
Consort Wei rolled a three, five, and six. Wang Qingyao and Princess Yin Yue wrote their guesses on paper.
Just then, Wang Qingyao saw Feng Jiangduo wink at her and then gently tap the table.
She used her clairvoyant eyes to look at the dice cup again and saw that the "three" had become a "four."
She winked back at Feng Jiangduo, indicating that she had received the message.
When Wang Qingyao and Princess Yin Yue revealed their papers, everyone saw that Princess Yin Yue had written "three, five, six." Wang Qingyao had originally written "three, five, six" as well, but had later changed it to "four, five, six." The smudged marks were obvious and not concealed.
This was the first time the two had different answers, and the difference was small. The crowd began to whisper, unsure who was more reliable.
Princess Yin Yue smirked contemptuously. "Heh, this Princess of Ding'an has some skill, but not much."
"Princess," she said with a smile, "it would have been better if you hadn't changed it. Changing and smudging... are you uncertain? What a shame!"
Hearing her words, the expressions of the crowd became less cheerful than before. They all turned their heads to look at Consort Wei.
Consort Wei looked surprised and glanced at Wang Qingyao.
Princess Yin Yue curled her lips into a cold smile: "My apologies, Consort. My sister will likely be entering the palace soon. When you become sisters, I hope you will take good care of her."
Consort Wei rolled her eyes without any politeness.
"Nonsense. They were betting on Princess Yin Yue losing, so that Princess Jinyang couldn't force the Emperor to marry her. It wasn't a bet on Princess Yin Yue winning so that Princess Jinyang could marry into the palace."
"Wang Qingyao wouldn't lose anything even if she lost."
"Two fools."
Just as Consort Wei was about to lift the dice cup, she heard Princess Yin Yue call out, "Wait."
Consort Wei looked at her impatiently.
Princess Yin Yue ignored Consort Wei and addressed Wang Qingyao's eyes: "What happens if the Princess loses?"
Wang Qingyao smiled and looked at her: "What do you say?"
"Kneel down and kowtow to me," Princess Yin Yue said venomously.
Everyone cast dissatisfied glances at her, and the murmurs grew louder.
"Really, who does she think she is? For our Da Sheng's Princess to kowtow to her?"
"Exactly! Isn't she afraid of shortening her own lifespan?"
Consort Wei also said, "Princess Yin Yue, don't go too far!"
Princess Yin Yue paid no attention to the others, her eyes fixed on Wang Qingyao, and asked almost fiercely, "Does the Princess of Ding'an dare to bet?"
Wang Qingyao hesitated for a moment. She wondered if she should also say to Princess Yin Yue, "If you lose, you kowtow to this Princess."
Clearly, this would damage diplomatic relations between the two countries.
She decided against it.
But Princess Yin Yue didn't think that way. She assumed Wang Qingyao's hesitation was due to uncertainty, which further solidified her belief that she would win. She continued to provoke Wang Qingyao.
"Does the Princess perhaps not have that much courage?"
"I thought the Princess, despite her humble background, at least had courage. Now it seems the Princess lacks even courage?"
"Or perhaps the Princess lacks confidence in herself, thinking she will lose?"