Chapter 13: The Gang’s Up to No Good

Xiao Fen sat on the chair and took out the only 100 yuan left after the two of them bought food. He rubbed his hands, and a flash of anticipation and innocent naivety crossed his fair face. “I’ve only watched Hu Juan play before, so I know a bit about it. Things have been really tight lately, so I figured I’d try my luck.”

The people around him who knew him immediately started hooting. “Exactly! Watching others play is nowhere near as fun as playing yourself.”

“I’ll play a couple hands with you. They all say newbies have the god of fortune on their side and it’s a sure win. I just don’t buy it.”

“If you don’t know the rules, I can teach you.”

They started playing cards. Ou Yu had never touched this game before and was completely lost with the rules. Seeing Xiao Fen’s equally puzzled look, he took the chance to ask, “You really haven’t played before?”

“Nope.”

“Then how do they know you?”

“Hu Juan, the one I mentioned earlier, was my high school classmate. He’s brought me here a few times before, and I just watched from the side.” He lifted his chin. “I sat in your spot back then.”

Ou Yu glanced at the camera, as if talking to himself or explaining. “So Little Fen hasn’t gambled before. He’s only here this time because the show needs money, and he’s also promoting the dangers of gambling.”

Even without checking the live stream chat, he’d been in the entertainment industry for years and knew those actions could easily lead to misunderstandings. It was much easier to clarify upfront than to fix things later.

“Hu Juan’s been who-knows-where lately. It’s been about a week since we last saw him. I kinda miss the guy,” the Skinny Guy said.

“He’s probably hooked on online gambling,” Xiao Fen replied. “All those novel games.”

“You can’t see the real people online, or touch the actual cards. It’s easy to pull tricks, and they specialize in scamming youngsters like you.”

“Yeah, with all our eyes on it, it’s fair and square,” the dealer added.

The Skinny Guy was named Wu Hao. He called out, “It’s your first time, and you don’t know these guys well. Hu Juan’s my bro. Wanna sit at my table?”

“Thanks, Brother Wu.” Xiao Fen flashed an obedient smile and followed him over.

Wu Hao patted his shoulder and sat down in his own spot.

Xiao Fen stretched his foot out, hooked over two blue plastic stools, and had Ou Yu sit to his right rear, just watching without saying a word.

It took Ou Yu a good while to figure out they were playing Zha Jin Hua. The stakes weren’t high: five yuan ante, twenty-yuan cap per raise, no overall limit.

The live stream chat was filled with amateur experts giving breakdowns.

【It’s about comparing hand ranks and suits. Biggest is three aces of the same suit, smallest is scattered cards with different suits and no sequence.】

【Besides the hand strength, it’s psychological warfare too. Even if you have the best hand, if everyone folds, you only get the antes—thirty yuan from six players at the table. Or if you show strength too early and scare them off, you open and don’t win much.】

【So on the table, a few people often team up—called ‘lifting the sedan’—to keep opponents in the pot longer and win more.】

Yellow-Hair started dealing.

After a couple rounds, everyone began peeking at their cards. They’d slowly fan two cards from one corner, sometimes blowing on them first, as if that would summon the hand they wanted.

“Call.”

“Big star, going so hard? Don’t cry later.”

Xiao Fen flipped his cards for a quick peek, then tossed them on the table, looking every bit the total newbie.

“Such damn good cards, how come I never get ’em.”

“Anyone hanging with Hu Juan can’t be bad. Show a little skill and he’ll wipe you all out.”

“Newbie protection period, huh? Again, again. I refuse to believe your luck’s this good.”

Some trash-talked, some hyped and egged him on, some fumed in frustrated defeat. Vanity, satisfaction, disappointment, despair—all mixed together, fueled by dreams of overnight riches. Once through that green door, no one could resist coming back.

In this smoky, stuffy room, everyone had turned into beasts driven by desire.

In the first game, Xiao Fen turned his 100 yuan into over 500, a fivefold gain.

Second game, third, fourth… In an hour, with small losses and big wins, he stacked over 40,000 in bills in front of him.

Ou Yu went from bored to paying serious attention.

Forty grand wouldn’t move the Film Emperor, who could earn millions from a few minutes on set with zero risk and faster cash.

He was watching Xiao Fen’s profile.

The guy looked utterly harmless, like a lamb in this crowd, wrapped in an unreal glow of excessive purity and beauty.

“That’s enough.” Another hand ended, and he pressed down on Xiao Fen’s hand. “It’s getting late. We should go.”

“It’s still early. Hand’s hot tonight—if I don’t win big, how can I leave?”

“Yeah, come on, come on. I just lost and I’m planning a comeback. Leaving now?” The Skinny Guy laughed.

Xiao Fen patted his shoulder to reassure him, then said to the Skinny Guy, “Five or ten yuan’s too small. Let’s play bigger.”

“I think so too.” The Skinny Guy perked up at that, winking at him. “Let’s head to the second floor, fifty-yuan ante. How’s that?”

With that, the two got up and went upstairs.

Ou Yu rubbed his temples with a headache.

Seeing them already a ways ahead, he had no choice but to follow. He overheard Wu Hao whispering something to Xiao Fen, who laughed and said, “Good, we’ll do it that way later.”

Once they sat down, he leaned in close to Xiao Fen’s ear from behind. “What’d you two talk about?”

“Guess.” Xiao Fen winked at him.

“Keeping secrets from me now?” Ou Yu pretended to knock his head, but he dodged with a laugh.

To Xiao Fen’s left sat a Fat Guy with a thick gold chain around his neck, belly sticking out like a nouveau riche. Next to the Fat Guy was a woman in her forties, graying at the temples, plainly dressed, short in stature. Stacks of cash sat on her table, and her eyes darted around uneasily—she clearly felt out of place.

To Xiao Fen’s right was Wu Hao, and next to him a newly seated Sleazy Man who kept staring at the woman across from him. Directly opposite Xiao Fen sat a Yellow-Hair with short hair slicked up stiff with gel.

Ou Yu’s gaze was first drawn to that woman.

Women were rare in casinos, especially one so plainly dressed. By her look and manner, she seemed like a devoted wife and mother who shouldn’t be at a gambling table.

The Fat Guy and Yellow-Hair played hit-or-miss, and their money vanished quick. After they left, four or five more came and went, losing fast.

【Did you guys notice?】

【Notice what?】

【Everyone tonight, including that woman, basically lost. But the 18th-Tier Celeb and that Wu Hao Skinny Guy? They’re winning.】

【This gambler’s luck is insane.】

【No such thing as luck at the table. From what I see, they’re lifting the sedan.】

As an outsider, Ou Yu quickly spotted the fishiness too. A few times, he saw Wu Hao and the Sleazy Man call with weak hands, baiting the woman to follow and raise round after round. The result was predictable.

Even as a novice, he saw the scam. Linking it to Wu Hao’s earlier whisper to Xiao Fen, his view of the three turned suspicious.

The trio was running a scam, fleecing a simple, honest rural woman.

This realization darkened Ou Yu’s expression.

Win small first, lose big later, then lose big but win small—keeping her hooked as reluctance and greed swelled in her eyes, sinking deeper until lost in the game.

After these hands, a spark lit in the woman’s eyes, her upturned lips hard to suppress, though she tried faking disappointment at a bad hand.

As the Film Emperor, Ou Yu easily read her micro-expressions. But the others at the table stayed calm, as if nothing happened.

Another setup?

His heart pounded, though his face stayed neutral.

The live stream viewers, with close-up cams, saw it clear: Wu Hao had a straight flush, Sleazy Man a spade flush, and the woman three kings.

All three called, and she called too.

The pot had swelled to a terrifying 400,000-plus.

Her hand trembled slightly, eyes flicking to the pile, while faking reluctance as she raised hard, trying to lure the other three.

The more they put in, the more she’d win.

The two live streams’ millions of viewers couldn’t help worrying.

【That Skinny Guy’s cheating! Where’s the honesty between people? I thought it was all luck.】

【Turned a flush into three aces. Done for, big sis is gonna lose.】

As the pot neared 500,000, the woman finally cracked, smiling. “If you lose this, you’re screwed tonight.”

Each had raised to over 100,000—some won from small-timers like Fat Yellow-Hair, some their own stake.

【Stop mocking. Have some self-awareness and fold. You got luck; they got skill. How you gonna compete?】

“Big sis, playing this big? Your man’s gonna beat you when you get home.” Sleazy Man said.

She laughed. “He ain’t got the guts. Few days ago, he dared dip into his workers’ wages, tossed hundreds of thousands here. Lost the job, gotta fill the hole or go to jail. All talk of jumping if he can’t pay, no action to win it back. Without me, who knows when he’d settle it.”

“You’ve lost plenty already. Fold, or you’ll have no food money left.” Sleazy Man cackled.

“That little bit before? Nothing. What if we get lucky this hand and flip it all?” She raised again. “Who’s chicken is a punk.”

With that, the other three had to call. But Wu Hao was out of cash and called over casino staff for an IOU of 100,000.

She chuckled. “Brother Wu, you ain’t scared I got three of a kind? Don’t lose your wife’s savings and yourself too.”

Sleazy Man startled. “No way.” He hesitated.

“All talk. Three of a kind on me this hand—where’s yours?” Wu Hao tapped his cards.

She sneered. “Men just love to brag.”

“Too bad, bro here’s got it for real.” With that, he laid his cards out one by one.

Her face went ashen. Staring, she shook her head, muttering “Impossible.”

Wu Hao laughed heartily, standing with arms wide to scoop the pot.

“Impossible!” Her voice shrilled, distorted.

Wu Hao’s hand was suddenly pinned.

Xiao Fen said, “Brother Wu, aren’t you rushing it a bit?”

“What do you mean?” Skinny Guy asked.

Xiao Fen tossed his cards on the table.

Heart 2, diamond 3, club 5.

【Special hand?!】