Use of the Flower and Season tiles is optional. Flowers and Seasons are rarely used by the Chinese or expert players because they increase the element of luck and decrease the element of skill.

The Kong Box

During the preparation stage, an additional step occurs after the The last preparatory action is to create the "Kong Box", sometimes known as the "Dead Wall".  Starting from the break in the wall, and this time counting anti-clockwise, the first six piles of tiles, making a total of fourteen tiles including the loose tiles, are separated slightly from the remainder of the wall.   These tiles are the Kong Box and are used exclusively to provide replacements for Flower, Season and Kong declarations.

The Deal

During the deal, 18 tiles are dealt to each person instead of 17 and the wall in front each player should consist of 34 tiles instead of 36.

During the game

Flower Tiles

Season Tiles

If a Flower or a Season tile is dealt to a player, then that player immediately declares this and replaces it from the Kong Box.

Scoring

Each Flower or Season counts 4 points.

The following also double the basic score for any player: