356 It's not yet certain who will win or lose

The second round of the competition tested the embroiderers' skills. There was no theme or pattern; they were free to showcase their creativity within a time limit of two hours.

As the gongs and drums sounded, the embroiderers began their work.

Today, Qiao Muchen and Zhao Yue were occupied at the yamen and didn't come. Only Zhao Zhitong, Wei Shulan, Wei Zijian, and Xiao Ge were present.

The group stood under the shade of a tree, chatting and waiting for the competition to end.

The contest proceeded quickly. Before long, two hours had passed, and all the embroiderers had to stop their work.

First, five experienced master embroiderers evaluated the work of the ten contestants. Then, five madams examined the pieces and assigned scores. After combining the scores from both evaluations, the top five would advance to the next round.

When the contest ended, Fei Yi undoubtedly had the highest score. Zhao Ya's qualification, however, was a close call.

During the first round of scoring, the experienced master embroiderers, as if by prior agreement, all gave Zhao Ya low marks. Consequently, when the first-round scores were announced, Zhao Ya ranked outside the top five, falling to eighth place.

Zhao Zhitong and the others felt their hearts clench with nervousness.

Fortunately, when the madams did their scoring, Zhao Ya's points were pulled back up somewhat. She ultimately managed to scrape into the top five, just one point ahead of the sixth-place contestant.

After leaving the competition grounds, Zhao Ya was stopped by Fei Yi.

Zhao Ya looked at Fei Yi, who was blocking her path, and asked in confusion, "Miss Fei, is there something you need?"

Fei Yi looked Zhao Ya up and down, her eyes filled with scrutiny. "I didn't expect you to make it into the top five."

Zhao Ya smiled faintly and said, "Purely a stroke of luck."

"Heh!" Fei Yi sneered, then whispered disdainfully, "Let me tell you, you can't win against me."

Zhao Ya remained humble, "Yes, Miss Fei's embroidery skills are superb."

These words actually held some truth, as Zhao Ya *had* seen Fei Yi's embroidery. However, to Fei Yi, it sounded like mockery.

Fei Yi felt as if she had punched cotton. Being met with such an indifferent, mocking tone made her face flush with anger.

Recalling how the madams had endlessly praised Zhao Ya's work, a renewed sense of crisis welled up in Fei Yi's heart.

Lady Li had only offered a few lukewarm comments about Fei Yi's piece, yet she had been utterly captivated by Zhao Ya's embroidery, unable to put it down.

Another reason she had angrily rushed over to warn Zhao Ya was that she had seen an embroidered handkerchief Zhao Ya sold when she first arrived in Suzhou. Its unique stitching had astonished her.

This fear unsettled her. She was afraid her top position would be snatched away, so she had rushed over intending to scare Zhao Ya off.

However, she hadn't managed to frighten Zhao Ya, and instead only ended up infuriating herself.

At this point, Zhao Zhitong and the others walked towards them.

Seeing that so many people had suddenly arrived at Zhao Ya's side, and that they didn't look easy to provoke, Fei Yi said no more. She glared at Zhao Ya, then turned and stalked off, hips swaying.

Wei Zijian hurried over and asked with concern, "Yaya, did she hurt you?"

Zhao Ya laughed and shook her head. "No, no, she wouldn't dare lay a hand on me in broad daylight."

Seeing that Zhao Ya was indeed unharmed, the group chatted and laughed as they prepared to head back.

However, as they passed the restaurant where they had eaten yesterday, they noticed a commotion at the entrance.

It was the same betting scene as yesterday, but today there were even more people placing bets.

Even before they reached the entrance, they could hear the lively buzz of discussion.

"There's no question about it, I'm definitely betting on Miss Fei! She's been first in both rounds. Barring any surprises, she'll be first in the third round too. It's a sure win!"

"They say 'seek wealth through danger.' I think I'll take a gamble and bet on the fifth-place contestant."

"You'd be better off betting on the third or fourth-place contestants. This fifth-place one barely scraped into the top five; her chances of becoming first are far too slim."

"Exactly! Only a fool would bet on the fifth place. Didn't you see? Only a few poor beggars have placed a few copper coins on her. So far, the bets on her only amount to one or two silver taels!"

"Eh, is that true? There are already three thousand silver taels bet on Miss Fei? That's so high!"

"Heh, you don't know that Young Master Qian and Miss Fei are engaged. Of course, he'll support his future wife. It's said that he bet a thousand silver taels just to make her smile!"

Wei Zijian listened, practically seething with anger. "This is infuriating!"

Zhao Zhitong said, "Let's go and join the fun."

Amidst the surrounding chatter, they squeezed their way in and saw that Zhao Ya's odds were indeed the highest, already at ten to one.

However, those betting on Zhao Ya were few and far between, the total wagers barely amounting to one or two silver taels.

Zhao Zhitong first collected her money from yesterday's bets.

She had only picked two winners correctly, so she had lost money overall.

After collecting her money, Zhao Zhitong listened to the surrounding discussions, then unceremoniously pulled several silver banknotes from her robes and tossed them onto the table.

"I'm betting 500 taels on Zhao Ya."

At these words, the heated discussions nearby ceased, and everyone turned to look at Zhao Zhitong.

The man in charge of the betting table was also stunned, asking uncertainly again, "Young lady, are you sure you want to bet 500 taels on Zhao Ya?"

Zhao Ya looked at Zhao Zhitong in astonishment. "Sister…" In her mind, Zhao Zhitong had never been an impulsive person. Why was she being so driven by her feelings this time?

Zhao Zhitong nodded firmly. "That's right. I'm betting 500 taels in silver banknotes on Zhao Ya."

Just then, a kind-hearted person from the crowd advised, "Young lady, although they say 'seek wealth through danger,' this embroiderer named Zhao Ya is new to Suzhou. You'll most likely lose your money."

"That's right. If you really want to gamble, you might as well bet on the second-place Cao Xiuniang or the third-place Feng Xiuniang. They have participated in competitions before, have better records, more experience, and thus a higher chance of winning."

Zhao Zhitong nodded with a smile, thanking the two kind-hearted individuals, but she maintained her decision.

"It's alright. I just have a good feeling about this fifth-place contestant. I'm betting on her."

Wei Zijian also placed the several tens of silver taels he had left on Zhao Ya's name, declaring loudly, "Exactly! I'm betting on the fifth place too! When the time comes, it's not yet certain who will win or lose!"

Hmph! Who said only one or two silver taels were bet on Zhao Ya!

Not to be outdone, Zhao Yu and Wei Shulan also, one after another, took out the silver they had on them to support Zhao Ya.

This, however, gave Zhao Ya, who was standing nearby, quite a scare.

The man in charge of the betting table could only sigh inwardly. These young masters and ladies from wealthy families really are daring!

Then, Zhao Zhitong and her companions departed confidently under the bewildered gazes of the crowd.

Once they were gone, people began to discuss Zhao Zhitong and her friends.

Most, however, wore expressions anticipating a good show, eager to see Zhao Zhitong and her friends filled with regret after losing all their money.