Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
The group of men who were assaulting Sun Jian’nan now surrounded Xiao Luo with unkind expressions on their faces. Manager Geng only had to give the word, and they would provide Xiao Luo with a taste of their punches.
Sun Yu wiped the tears from her eyes, glancing at Xiao Luo in a daze. She felt as though a bottle of five flavors had spilled in her heart. Her emotions were a mix of sourness, bitterness, spiciness, and saltiness. Only a trace of sweetness was missing.
She had just met Xiao Luo today, and to have something like this happen before they’d gotten to know each other better made her feel extremely embarrassed. She was at a loss for what to do. The gambling debt of two million that her uncle owed was far too massive a sum, and she did not have the kind of money needed to pay it off. However, she also could not sit by and watch as her uncle was beaten to death, much less drag Xiao Luo into this whole mess!
Sun Jian’nan’s face was bruised and swollen. A trace of blood stained the corner of his mouth. Seeing a young stranger standing up for him, he said, “Young man, I appreciate your help, but this is my problem. Please stay out of it.”
As a regular at the casino, he knew what these men were capable of. They were like devils who devoured people whole, and he did not want Xiao Luo to come to any harm for his sake.
Manager Geng sneered, “You hear that? The man doesn’t want your help. We can do this the easy way or the hard way. So how about you delete that video now and get out of here as far as you can!”
These people were hardened thugs, and threatening to call the police did not faze them.
Realizing that he was getting nowhere, Xiao Luo changed tacks and asked, “How much does he owe you?”
“Two million!” Manager Geng replied, holding up two fingers. His eyes narrowed in a mischievous smirk. “Why? You want to pay up for him?”
“I don’t even know this man, so why would I pay his debts? Even if I wanted to, I don’t have that much money,” Xiao Luo reasoned, before offering his counterpoint: “I do, however, know this man’s niece. Now that I have gotten involved, I can’t just walk away from this.”
Manager Geng and his seven underlings looked at Xiao Luo like he was an idiot, thinking to themselves, Look at this big-shot talk. Who does he think he is? ‘I can’t just walk away’? This is just a poor kid talking out of his a*s.
“Debts must be repaid. We have every right to claim what is owed to us. What do you think you can do about it?” Manager Geng laughed coldly.
“Give me half an hour. I’ll get you two million in chips and settle his debt,” Xiao Luo replied.
He could have used violence to rescue Sun Yu’s uncle. However, the people running the casinos were part of the local underground and would not give up so easily. He might be able to stop them once, but he would not be around all the time. The simplest way to resolve this issue was to clear the debt between the two parties, once and for all.
Manager Geng was a sharp man, and he regained his composure quickly. “You mean you want to come to our casino to play a few hands and win two million in chips?”
“What, am I not qualified to enter?” Xiao Luo retorted.
“Hehe. Of course, you are! As long as you’re not a minor, it’s no problem. However, do you have money to play?” Manager Geng’s smile widened.
At high-end casinos like theirs, every dealer was a specially trained professional gambler. To even consider winning two million from gambling was a nonsensical idea. It was a ridiculous pipe dream.
The other seven men smiled in amusement. This was the funniest joke they had heard since they’d started working at the casino.
Xiao Luo pulled out a card from his pocket and said, “There’s a hundred thousand on this card. Is that enough to play at your casino?”
A hundred thousand?
Manager Geng was slightly taken aback before grinning in glee. “Our minimum bet is ten thousand, so a hundred thousand is more than enough. Please, follow me.”
He made a welcoming gesture. If someone with money appeared on their doorstep, they had no reason to turn him away.
“Brother Xiao Luo, don’t go!”
Sun Yu pulled at the end of Xiao Luo’s jacket, and her delicate face wore a worried and troubled expression. “These men are professional casino operators, so you can’t beat them at gambling. That hundred thousand is something you’ve saved up for yourself. The odds are stacked against you. At a casino, the house always wins, so you’re going to lose it all. I’ll ask my family for help in settling my uncle’s debts. We only just met today and barely know each other, Brother Xiao Luo, so you really don’t have to do this.”
She could not, in good conscience, let a man she had just met put himself on the line for her.
Xiao Luo smiled. He had stepped up to help mostly because of his masculine pride, but now he was fully committed to helping Sun Yu. This girl was sincere, which had helped her find favor in his eyes.
“It’s alright. I don’t commit to things I’m not sure about.”
As he was saying this, the genius system sounded in his head: “Ding! Congratulations! You’ve received the gambling ability and used up five hundred points.”
“Haha. Oh, so young and heroic! This young man has certainly got guts. This way, please!”
Manager Geng was all smiles. Now that Xiao Luo was a customer, his attitude had taken a complete 180-degree turn. He quietly ordered his men, “Keep watch on Sun Jian’nan. Don’t let him get away.”
To turn one hundred thousand into two million was an increase of twentyfold. Was such a thing even possible? Of course, it was absolutely impossible. Otherwise, he might as well just shut down his casino business. In his mind, he had already labeled Xiao Luo a fool. Only a fool would dream of making two million from a hundred thousand at a casino.
For this reason, it was all the more important to keep an eye on Sun Jian’nan!
“Let go of me. I’m going with him,” Sun Jian’nan yelled as he struggled.
Manager Geng waved at his men, signaling them to release Sun Jian’nan.
If all three of them came along, that was just what he wanted—killing two birds with one stone. On the one hand, he could keep an eye on Sun Jian’nan. And on the other, he could watch first-hand as this young man lost a hundred thousand bucks. When he lost all his hard-earned money in the span of a few minutes, the expression on his face would be priceless.
…
The casino’s interior was decorated to look like a palace, and it was no exaggeration to say that it was magnificent. The floor was so utterly spotless that you could see your own reflection in it.
Xiao Luo was actually holding onto slightly over a million. However, he knew not to put all his eggs in one basket, so the rest of the money was not on the card that he took out. Entering his PIN number, he withdrew the sum of a hundred thousand and exchanged it for chips.
“Brother Xiao Luo, I’ll be too ashamed to face you if you do this.”
Sun Yu was full of anxiety. She was very moved, but her sense of unease was overpowering. How could she drag Xiao Luo into the mess her uncle’s debt had created? She was nobody to Xiao Luo, so what right did she have?
“Young man, it’s not too late to turn back. A hundred thousand dollars is a huge sum for normal people like us. Please don’t be hasty. These are my just desserts, and I alone should bear this burden,” Sun Jian’nan said dejectedly.
Xiao Luo simply smiled wordlessly.
Then, he made a beeline for a table where the dice game Big and Small was being played.
As he went over, he saw the dice showing 1, 3, and 5. The dealer covered the dice in a box, and they rattled around inside as the box was shaken. Closing his eyes, Xiao Luo’s ears homed in on the frequency of the shaking sound to get a precise sense of how the dice were tumbling inside.
Having redeemed a gambling ability, with his eyes closed and ears focused, it seemed to him that the box was transparent. He could clearly see every motion of the dice as well as the numbers they were going to land on.