What is "madiao"

Madiao , also Ma Diao, Ma Tiu or Ma Tiao, is a late imperial Chinese trick-taking gambling card game, also known as the game of Paper Tiger. The deck used was recorded by Lu Rong in the 15th century and the rules later by Pan Zhiheng and Feng Menglong during the early 17th century. Korean poet Jang Hon (1759-1828) wrote that the game dated back to the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368). It continued to be popular during the Qing dynasty until around the mid-19th century. The game was also known in Japan from at least 1791. It is played with 40 cards and four players.

In Chinese, mǎ means "horse" and diao means "hanged" or "lifted." The name of the game comes from the fact that three players team against the banker, like a horse raising one shoe (banker), with the other three remaining hooves on the ground (three players).