Cards and mahjong seem to come alive in Ma Honggang`s hands. It is as though he can pull out whatever card he wants, at will. His performance often leaves people open-mouthed and comparisons with famous magician Liu Qian are common.

However, Ma shakes his head at this comparison.

"Magic brings happiness and laughter to people, but my tricks can only make people cry," says Ma, a one time gambling addict.

Born in 1977, Ma was raised in a small village in Liaoning province. One indelible childhood memory is that of people huddling in street corners for a game of cards.

"This scene always seemed mysterious and greatly fascinated me. One day, curiosity got the netter of me and I joined in without my parents` knowledge.

"I was only 13," says Ma.

He soon discovered that he was a natural at cards. Just a year later, Ma was already offering advice to the adult players.

The movie God of Gamblers featuring Chow Yun-Fat in 1989 became a favorite and even served as a kind of gambling textbook.

Ma says he bought a videotape of the film and began to imitate the tricks. He reckons he must have seen the film at least a 100 times.

He also learnt from other experienced gamblers and even came up with some tricks of his own.

"I lost all interest in school when I was 15. I spent almost all my time gambling in the underground casino or practicing tricks. My parents were very upset and my father often beat me," he says.

Ma gradually became well known in the gambling circles of his hometown and began to frequent underground dens.

In 1999, he followed an experienced gambler to Shanghai. Thanks to his skills, he soon became popular and many rich people hired him to play with others. He was allowed to keep half the takings if he won.

"I was once hired with Ma Honggang by an underground casino in Xi`an, and he easily won 800,000 yuan ($117,000) for the hirer within an hour," says an experienced gambler surnamed Yang.

While he made a lot of money, Ma also offended people.

"Gambling is a high-risk profession. No one can have luck on his side all the time," Ma says.

His trick was once seen through by his opponent in Taizhou, Jiangsu province, and Ma found himself locked up in a black room for four days.

"That experience really frightened me and I swore that I would quit gambling if I ever escaped alive," he says.

His captors eventually freed him after his friends managed to cough up 80,000 yuan in ransom.

"I still remember clearly that he looked pale, his body was covered with mud and his hands trembled when he stepped out of the room," Ma`s friend named Old A says.

However, Ma only stuck to his oath for three months before he was back at the cards tables - until 2004, when the 32-year-old ran into a beggar in Shandong province.

Ma had known the man, a cash-rich, big-time gambler. But what he saw now was a divorcee who had lost everything to gambling.

"My future stared me in the face," says Ma. He decided to quit and turned to the construction business, soon after.

Having witnessed the lives of so many gamblers and their families end in tragedy, Ma became determined to use his experience to help more gamblers kick the habit.

To this end, he established an anti-gambling center in Shenyang, capital city of Liaoning, on April 10. Gambling addicts can either call the help hotline or visit the center where Ma and his friends offer advice for free.

Instead of trying to preach to people not to gamble, Ma chooses to let his gambling tricks do the persuading.

Just last month, a couple from Tianjin came to see Ma. The man had lost almost all his hard-earned money to gambling.

Even as he sat in front of me, he was blaming his gambling losses on sheer bad luck. I took out a set of brand new poker cards and mahjong, and pulled out whatever cards he asked for. And when I explained how the cheating worked, he kept nodding his head and murmuring: `I was wrong before, I was cheated`" Ma says.

Eventually he said he would never again gamble. It took Ma just 10 minutes to effect this change.

Besides exposing gambling tricks, Ma also reveals the use of such devices as a sweater with invisible pocket and nifty sunglasses that can catch the reflection of the cards.

"I just want people to know they are actually cheating one another in gambling," he says.

To date, his center has helped more than 200 quit gambling. "I hope more people will make use of our anti-gambling hotline at 13030777999 or visit our website www.pwmahongang.com," says Ma.

He hopes to open another such center in Beijing and is seeking support from anyone who can provide a free office.

While Ma gets a number of thank-you short messages for his efforts, he also receives threats from other gamblers, for disclosing closely-guarded tricks.

But, says Ma, "I won`t give up, for I know I am doing the right thing.

"My son is about 4 years old. I am sure he would be ashamed if he knows his father was once a gambler. But I know he will be proud of me if I help others quit this addiction."