After Rebirth, the Celebrity Daughter is the Medical Expert!-Chapter 481 - 375: I Know Nothing About Mahjong

If there were to be a more universally adored Chinese New Year activity than dumplings, suitable for both North and South and for all ages, it would undoubtedly be mahjong.

The future father-in-law pulled him in to make up the numbers for mahjong, and Shi Wangyue found it hard to refuse, but had to honestly confess, "Uncle Ning, you might not believe it, but I really don’t know how to play mahjong, not even poker."

Director Ning, who was used to people in his circle playing mahjong whenever they had nothing to do, never imagined there were adults who couldn’t play, "You’ve never played mahjong?"

He looked at Shi Wangyue in disbelief.

Shi Wangyue awkwardly smiled, "I’m sorry, I really have no clue about mahjong."

Ming Jinxin chuckled beside him, "No wonder you and Youyou get along so well. When we were back home, my father-in-law, mother-in-law, and sisters-in-law would always drag Youyou to play mahjong during the New Year. Do you know why?"

Shi Wangyue immediately understood and teased, looking at Ning Youguang, "Probably because she’s terrible at it."

Ming Jinxin couldn’t stop laughing, "Exactly, she just watches her own tiles when she’s at the table, and nods off when she’s not."

"As long as you all are happy." When it comes to mahjong, Ning Youguang really isn’t good at it.

And she doesn’t want to be.

"Hey, it doesn’t matter if you can’t play, you’ll just make up the numbers, learn while playing, and after a few rounds, you’ll get the hang of it." Ning Yi felt that not playing mahjong at New Year lacked atmosphere.

With five people at home, Ning Yi insisted on organizing a game, leaving no room for Shi Wangyue to refuse.

He could only smile and say, "Then I’ll just play randomly for now, and when my big brother arrives, I’ll switch, and hope Aunt Ming and Uncle Ning won’t mind."

"It’s just family playing, nothing to mind," Ming Jinxin said with a smile.

Ning Youguang wasn’t pleased, "When big brother comes, if anyone switches, it’s me."

Does Shi Wangyue dare to fight with his wife for a spot?

No, he doesn’t.

"Alright, when big brother comes, let him switch with you, watch me play."

"Sure, sure, let’s start the game then." Ning Yi was satisfied, waved his big hand, and instructed the worker beside him, "Go set up the mahjong table and tiles for us."

"Alright, sir." The worker immediately went to set it up.

Soon, the Ning family’s mahjong game was set up in the living room.

Ning Yi was drawing tiles and talking to Shi Wangyue across the table, "It’s easy to get started with mahjong. I’ll tell you the basic rules, and you’ll understand it, the rest is about how skillful you get."

"Go ahead," Shi Wangyue sat upright, adopting a diligent learning posture.

"There are several ways to play mahjong. We’re playing the four-player version. Now I roll the dice to determine the dealer, the one who deals the cards first..."

Shi Wangyue was mimicking the actions of others on the table, listening to Ning Yi’s guidance, and watching the play styles of Ning Yi and Ming Jinxin, while his mind was quickly calculating.

As such, he progressed rapidly.

"Chow!" as Ming Jinxin threw out a four of bamboo, he calmly called.

"Pong!" When Ning Youguang threw out a red dragon, he placed his tiles down.

"Kong!"

"Five of circles!"

Soon, at the Ning family’s mahjong table.

Ning Youguang continued to happily slack off, while Ming Jinxin and Ning Yi who were playing seriously, were dumbfounded.

How long has it been, and Shi Wangyue is already stringing together winning hands!

The seasoned players were incredulous.

For a beginner who just learned the rules to win once, you could say it was luck. To win several times in a row, it’s not that simple.

As it’s well known, mahjong is a game of probability that’s easy to learn but hard to master. The more familiar you are with the tiles, the greater your chance of winning. There are many tile combinations aimed at maximizing the probability of a win, but the results can be very different in reality.

How long has Shi Wangyue been playing?

Has it even been an hour?!

The probability of playing the wrong tile is approaching zero.

"Shi Wangyue, how did your brain grow, learning so fast?!"

Ming Jinxin prided herself on her decent intelligence and card skills.

But even after years of playing, she’s never seen someone learn and play as proficiently as Shi Wangyue does so quickly.

Shi Wangyue modestly replied, "Aunt Ming, I’m just a little good at arithmetic."

Though Ning Youguang’s card skills are poor, she knows that doing well in mahjong depends on one’s understanding and skill mastery of the game, and applying the rules for the most likely winning strategy.

Her competitiveness wasn’t strong, so she spent more time than Aunt Ming and her father paying attention to Shi Wangyue’s gameplay.

So, she saw clearly that every tile Shi Wangyue played was carefully calculated.

Hence, she proudly said from the side, "He’s a math competition champion."

"Ah, a math whiz," Ning Yi scratched his head and exchanged a glance with Ming Jinxin, "We really can’t compete with that."

Ning Yi considered his greatest strength to be accepting losses graciously.

But accepting losses is one thing.

Yet as Shi Wangyue’s teacher, being thoroughly thrashed by his student after just a few rounds wasn’t much fun either.

Just at that moment, Ming Chao walked in.

"Oh, my neck!" Ning Yi turned to massage his neck, a pained expression on his face.

"What’s wrong, Dad?" Ning Youguang glanced over, immediately stood up from the chair, and went to him, "Let me take a look."

Ning Yi patted his daughter’s hand, "You go ahead and keep playing, I’ll rest on the sofa for a bit."

Ning Youguang kindly insisted, "Dad, let me have a look. If it’s a neck problem, resting alone won’t help."

Then, they both turned to Ming Chao, who was changing his shoes, "Ming Chao, come over and play a few rounds for me. My neck is bothering me, I can’t sit anymore."

Ning Youguang chimed in, "Brother, check if Zhao Ge is downstairs, and if he is, invite him up to play. I’ll help Dad with his neck; he needs a massage and acupuncture."

Ming Jinxin also looked at her wristwatch and, with a smile, nudged the tiles before her, "Ming Chao, check if Tangtang is around. If he is, bring him up too. I have something I need to arrange right now. If the two of them come up, the three of you can keep Shi entertained. He just learned Mahjong this morning; let’s not let the fun die out so quickly in our house."

Ming Chao glanced at Shi Wangyue, "Just learned?"

Shi Wangyue laughed, "Sorry, I’ve never played before, not very good at it."

Ning Yi, who was enjoying his daughter’s massage services, immediately grumbled, "Shi’s just being modest."

Seeing this, the amusement in Ming Chao’s eyes deepened a bit.

He didn’t ask more but instead pulled out his phone from his pocket to call Zhao Sui.

Zhao Sui had been busy from the previous years to now, with constant mealtime gatherings, utterly exhausted.

He got home late last night, took a shower, and fell into bed in a deep sleep.

For once, he had nothing to do today and slept in until after ten.

He had just woken up when Ming Chao called.

His stomach growled, but he didn’t feel like going out; he was lounging on the bed considering where to grab a quick lunch. Ming Chao’s invitation instantly piqued his interest, "Sure, wait for me."

He was always happy to go to the Ning house for Mahjong; it was close by.

Most importantly, the Ning family was simple, with a great family dynamic.

He could eat, drink and play there without being forced to drink or engage in pointless conversations.

Pure joy, pure fun.

When Ming Chao mentioned Zhou Tang, he replied with a bright voice, "Zhou Tang’s at home. I’ll bring him up."

"Hurry up, then." Ming Chao hung up and nodded at Ming Jinxin.

"I’ll go arrange the food for everyone now. Shi, Youyou, is there anything besides what’s on the menu that you’d like to eat?" Ming Jinxin asked with a smile.

"No need, it’s enough." Ning Youguang replied.

Shi Wangyue added, "Thank you, Aunt Ming, it’s already very sumptuous."

But Ning Youyu, who was playing games nearby, perked up at the mention of food, "I want cake."

Ning Yi looked at his young son with exasperation, "With all the food we have for the New Year, you still want cake? Aren’t you afraid of getting fat?"

Ning Youyu put down the interlocking wooden puzzle he was playing with, stood up, and patted his little belly, "Dad, you can’t eat cake. You need to control your desires; otherwise, you’ll get fat. I can eat it. I’m still a kid, I move a lot, digest fast, I won’t get fat."

Ning Yi was almost overwhelmed by the sourness, "Where did you hear that?"

"From sister." Ning Youyu replied confidently.

Ning Yi looked helplessly at his daughter, "He listens to everything you say."

"Isn’t that a good thing?" Ning Youguang increased the pressure with her hands.

"Ouch..." Ning Yi winced in pain, "Take it easy, Dad can’t tolerate pain."

Ning Youguang didn’t lighten her hands at all, "It’s so cold, and you’re still eating seafood and drinking. Even our little fish knows not to eat watermelon during the New Year. If I don’t put more pressure, your neck’s jammed, it won’t loosen."

"Right!" Ning Youyu stood by, solemnly saying, "Sister said I can’t eat watermelon, so I don’t eat it. Even if someone offers it to me, I won’t eat it."

The comparison was just too embarrassing.

Ning Yi’s face turned red with shame, and he pouted at Ning Youguang, "Just give me acupuncture, don’t waste your effort."

...

Downstairs, Zhao Sui threw off the covers and got up while calling Zhou Tang—

"Are you up? Come upstairs for Mahjong, Ming Chao’s there."

Zhou Tang had risen early today, sipping coffee and reading a script at home, "I can’t. I have a shoot tomorrow."

Zhao Sui laughed, "Really not coming? Youyou’s sister is here too, and her significant other."

Zhou Tang paused in flipping the script, "Isn’t there enough people already...?"

His deep voice had a hint of hesitation at the end.

What didn’t Zhao Sui understand?

He continued, "I heard Shi learned Mahjong from Director Ning today and isn’t very good yet. So Ming Chao’s mom asked us to go up and give him some practice. You always say we bully you, knowing you’re bad at it and not giving you a break, right? Today, the most unskilled one is right there; you really don’t want to come up and practice?!"

"When are you heading up?" Zhou Tang closed the script in his hand.

"I’ll wash my face and brush my teeth, five minutes tops, give me ten minutes." Zhao Sui laughed with exuberance.

"Alright, I’ll leave in ten minutes." Zhou Tang finished his cup of black coffee in one gulp and stood up.