Having won with odds of 35 in the previous round, Shang Yan’s chips had doubled to 700,000. She idly toyed with the chips with her slender fingers, waiting for the dealer’s move.
“Ding—”
A crisp, almost icy sound rang out as the ball, a silver arc, darted into the spinning roulette wheel, covered in red and black numbers.
Before the dealer called “stop,” players could choose to place bets at any time. The later the ball spun, the slower it became, and the more people bet, as they calculated their odds of winning were higher at that point.
The betting players watched the roulette wheel, while the spectators stared at Shang Yan, wondering if Lady Luck would smile upon this young girl again.
The atmosphere was tense, but Shang Yan was relaxed. Holding a cake in her hand, she pulled down her mask, scooped out a small piece, and put it in her mouth. She had asked her older brother, who had just kindly advised her, to get it for her.
The casino has a dedicated food service area. Bright Dairy, known as the most luxurious in Beijing, is particularly meticulous about its food, employing international chefs to prepare a diverse menu that changes daily.
However, Shang Yan took a bite, put down her small golden spoon, and found the taste mediocre, just passable.
Seeing her hands stop moving, her older brother instinctively asked, “Is it not good? I just asked the waiter over there, and they said this cake is quite popular.”
Shang Yan turned to look at him, her disappointment undisguised. “The cream is too rich, and there’s raw coconut on top. I don’t like that.”
Her older brother: (ﾟдﾟ)
How come he didn’t notice that?
After thinking for a while, Shang Yan decided to give Guangming’s desserts another chance. She patted the kind man on the shoulder, “Brother, could you get me another tiramisu, please?”
The roulette wheel was still spinning, and everyone around was either excited or nervous. This person, the center of attention, was still thinking about dessert. The man didn’t know whether to worry about her or admire her composure.
“You haven’t placed your bet yet, aren’t you nervous?”
“Oh.” Hearing this, Shang Yan placed all her chips in a small compartment on the gambling tablecloth. “I’m betting now.”
The man: ???
Nervous? Shang Yan wasn’t nervous at all. Her nervousness had vanished after losing countless times on the way here. She’d been bankrupt and heavily in debt before.
So she wasn’t particularly skilled, just experienced.
Seeing her nonchalant, spoiled brat-like demeanor, the man silently slipped out of the crowd. Fine, he’d stop worrying and just go get the dessert.
When Shang Yan bet on a single number again, a cacophony of voices erupted – questioning, surprise, mockery, and doubt – all intertwined and tightly connected to the ever-spinning ball and roulette wheel.
“You’re getting a good deal and still acting innocent! There’s no way you can win twice after winning once. Kids shouldn’t be so ambitious!”
“Yeah, 700,000 is enough to buy a bag, right? Hahahaha, this time you’re going to lose everything!”
“Still too young, too impatient. A direct bet is a one in
ten thousand chance. If it were me, I’d choose a corner bet, playing it safe to increase my chances of winning.” “What does a kid know? It’s just a game. If you lose 700,000, you’ll get a scolding from your parents, hahahaha!”
Hearing these words, Shang Yan touched her earlobe, her lips under her mask twitching downwards, and she clicked her tongue lightly.
Scold your dad? She just smashed her father’s collection worth hundreds of millions. Unless another billion-dollar item comes along, Shang Yuanlin probably won’t even give her a second glance, let alone this mere 700,000.
In the VIP room on the second floor, three men still stood by the window, watching the gambling game below.
Cui Heyuan noticed the girl in the center holding a cake and felt a pang of envy. He took a small piece from the tray and popped it into his mouth.
“Hey, tell me, she’s already won 700,000, why is she still playing? Isn’t she afraid of losing it all?”
He was genuinely curious. This girl, who seemed completely out of place in the casino, whom they initially thought had wandered in by mistake, had just won a round of betting and wasn’t leaving; she wanted to keep playing.
And she bet directly, only on a single number. At best, it’s just a child’s carefree attitude; at worst, isn’t she just there to be a sucker?
Xie Heng’s eyelashes fluttered slightly, his silver cufflinks folded up to his forearm, his eyes slightly upturned, standing there with a deep and profound aura.
The red wine slid down the smooth glass and into his throat, before being gently placed on the table. He said casually, “Maybe he can win?”
Wei Yansi understood the implication in his words, glanced downstairs, then turned to Xie Heng, raising an eyebrow. “Heng, do you think that kid can play roulette?”
Xie Heng smiled and countered, “Don’t you think so?”
“Not sure.” Wei Yansi didn’t jump to conclusions. Objectively, he didn’t believe it, but intuitively, he felt that kid was no ordinary person. “Let’s see after this round.”
Cui Heyuan checked the time on his phone and nudged Xie Heng with his elbow. “Yanzi hasn’t arrived yet?”
Xie Heng hummed softly. “He said he’s not coming, he’s busy.”
“How can he be busy every day? How can he have so much to do?”
Hearing that Shang Yan wasn’t coming, Cui Heyuan slumped sadly onto the sofa. He really didn’t understand why his brother was always at the company. Who else in the company could be more attractive than him?
After a few words of complaint, he climbed back up from the sofa, his eyes gleaming. “Hey, how about we make a bet? Let’s see if this kid can win.”
Cui Heyuan has been a restless person since childhood. He opened the Guangming Casino, originally intended as a place for him to have fun with his cronies, but it turned out to be so successful that he simply turned it into a public members-only casino.
Now, he has earned the title of the number one casino in the capital, which was completely unexpected. Maybe he is just a lucky guy who succeeds in everything he does!
Wei Yanji waved his hand at him irritably, “Get lost, you have home-field advantage, who’s going to gamble with you? If you want to play, go over there and play with them.”
“Tch, no fun, I was thinking of giving you the development rights to that piece of land in the western suburbs to gamble.”
“Okay, I’ll gamble.”
Wei Yanji’s expression changed in a flash.
Hurt by his snobbish demeanor, Cui Heyuan pounded his chest in anguish and accused him, “Little Si, what’s wrong with you? You’re so greedy! Have I ever skimped on your food or clothes? Haven’t I shared all the good things with you since you were little?”
“Get lost! What have you shared with me? Your girlfriends who need me to help you with your exams?” It would have been
better if he hadn’t said anything, but just thinking about it annoyed Wei Yansi. He was unlucky; he’d been in the same class as that idiot Cui Heyuan since elementary school. The Cui family was strict and demanding of their children, hiring private tutors from a young age.
The Wei family was different; they let their children grow up freely, providing them with all the resources, but how they turned out depended entirely on themselves. Wei Yansi had always been a free spirit, but after meeting Cui Heyuan, he was dragged into private tutoring, even having to share his exam papers.
In high school, Cui Heyuan was a womanizer, and whenever he encountered a difficult or unwanted girlfriend, he’d simply dump her on Wei Yansi to clean up the mess.
If it weren’t for the fact that Cui Heyuan was his brother, he would have killed him with a hoe long ago.
Thinking of this, he rolled his eyes and said irritably, “I bet she loses.”
“I bet she loses too.”
Cui Heyuan grinned, raising his chin at Xie Heng, “Aheng, what are you betting on?”
Xie Heng stared at the girl eating dessert downstairs. Suddenly, the girl glanced upstairs, seemingly noticing someone watching her.
He smiled, “I bet she wins.”