"Do you guys still play checkers? Why don't we play a game?" Li Yang asked curiously when he saw a checkers set under the table.
"You play this too?" Taoye asked excitedly. When she and her sister came home from get off work or had a break, they would often play checkers for a while, which was quite harmonious and interesting.
"I rarely play, but I know the rules, so I'm pretty good at it!" Li Yang said modestly.
"Good that you know the rules, let's play a game then~" Taoye said cheerfully, taking out a checkers set.
"Peach Blossom, let's play together! Three people can play better than two. This game is more fun with more people!" Li Yang said, looking up and down at a fashion magazine. Damn, a threesome is more exciting than a two-person game!
Peach Leaf glanced at Peach Blossom and said, "Yes, Peach Blossom, let's play together."
Peach Blossom glanced at Peach Leaf and asked, "Sincere or feigned?"
Peach Leaf said with slight annoyance, "You damn Peach Blossom, are you going to play or not?"
"Alright, seeing as you've been so sincere, I'll play one round!" Peach Blossom put down her magazine and sat down. After the three of them finished a game of checkers, Li Yang didn't linger any longer and got up to say goodbye.
Peach Blossom breathed a sigh of relief. She was really afraid that Li Yang would use this as an excuse to delay and not want to leave. He was also a martial arts expert, while she and her sister were so weak and frail. If Li Yang took the opportunity to act recklessly and do bad things, they would be no match for him.
Tao Ye was a little reluctant to part, but she was in a good mood. Li Yang hadn't done anything to disgust or embarrass her. The two of them got up and saw Li Yang off at the apartment door. Li Yang left gracefully without hesitation or lingering.
Back in the car, I saw Tears in My Eyes. The car drove off.
"How is it?" Li Yang asked calmly.
"After you left, our men followed those two. They went into an arcade called Superman, and our men immediately disguised themselves as players and went in too. They met Da Shuan, who was playing arcade games with a few tough henchmen. After getting the news, Da Shuan was furious and almost smashed the machine, yelling that he would definitely cripple you, boss, and teach you a lesson!" Lei Xin replied.
"Shall we go and meet him? Let's go to the Superman Arcade~" Li Yang said nonchalantly.
"Alright~" Lei Xin said excitedly. The car emitted a plume of black smoke and headed straight for the Superman arcade a few blocks away.
It was already past nine or ten o'clock. For the city, this was just the beginning of its awakening; all the entertainment venues were just waking up and hadn't yet reached their peak customer flow. The real bustling time began after eleven o'clock. And at this time, the Superman Arcade was also starting to see an increase in customers. Profits were flowing in like water.
Chapter 844: Big Gambles and Small Gambles
The car came to a stop without a sound. In this era where internet cafes dominate, besides some children, most gamers are young people. After all, arcades have also been reformed and transformed. They are no longer just simple arcade games or single-player games. They also offer racing games, motorcycle games, electronic gun games, dance machines, and even illegal slot machines and mahjong machines. Naturally, they can open up a new world outside of internet cafes and make a lot of money.
Li Yang, alone with tears in his eyes, strode confidently into the Superman Game Center.
The noisy crowd told them that business here was booming and profits were substantial, so it was only natural that Da Shuan was stationed here. Li Yang and Lei Xin's entry went unnoticed; after all, they weren't particularly conspicuous or deliberately causing trouble. Everyone was immersed in their own game world or intently watching, so who would care if anyone came?
They strolled leisurely through the arcade. After a while, Li Yang's eyes lit up, and he settled on a slot machine and a mahjong machine. He remembered that he had earned his first pot of gold on a slot machine, so he had a strong affinity for it. But this time, his target was the mahjong machine. He didn't want to play the slot machine anymore because it lacked challenge. He wanted to challenge himself and see if he could win money on the mahjong machine.
"Lei Xin, go exchange your mahjong card for a hundred yuan first," Li Yang instructed Lei Xin before plopping down in front of an empty mahjong machine.
He didn't remember actually playing mahjong; he understood the rules and sometimes played a few rounds in his spare time. He knew that playing mahjong was a solitary battle—watching the player before you, guarding against the player after you, and preventing others from winning if you couldn't win yourself. Of course, playing with people is much more dynamic, as people are independent and have strong autonomy. But machines are different. Once the template is fixed, the way these mahjong games are played only follows certain patterns and rules, and they won't go off track unless you readjust them.
So, once you fully grasp its methods, it becomes a complete idiot, a stunningly beautiful woman stripped naked, at your mercy. However, achieving this is extremely difficult, requiring an exceptionally powerful mind and computational ability. It's safe to say that virtually no one can do this; even if such a genius existed, they would have already achieved fame and wouldn't be here.
"Here you go, boss." Lei Xin exchanged 100 yuan and gave it to Li Yang.
Li Yang took the mahjong machine and stuffed it all in without hesitation, quite domineeringly. Some idle people nearby saw someone playing mahjong and came over to watch, but after a dozen or so rounds, Li Yang didn't win in one go. The crowd shook their heads, sighed slightly, and thought to themselves that he was just another idiot, a newbie, here to throw money away. It wasn't exciting or satisfying at all.
However, Lei Xin remained calm and composed, standing quietly as Li Yang reached out his hand without saying a word, watching Li Yang operate the device.
"Damn, that's pretty strong. One hundred dollars isn't enough. Go exchange another thousand!" Li Yang's voice wasn't quiet, and he even punched Ji Ji. The onlookers who were about to leave came back. Although it wasn't exciting to see someone win money, watching a fool count money was still exciting. Li Yang was already showing signs of being a fool. Soon, five or six idlers surrounded him, giving him signs and watching him count his money.
After another dozen or so rounds, Li Yang did manage to win a few rounds, but he still lost more than he won, and in the blink of an eye, he had lost more than half of his thousand yuan.
"Brother, stop playing. Playing mahjong machines is all about counting money. We're here to have fun, not to gamble heavily. A little gambling is harmless, but excessive gambling is bad for your health. It's really not good!" Someone advised Li Yang, and it was well-intentioned.
"Brother, you're obviously a greenhorn. Why don't I, your older brother, do it for you? If we win, we'll split the winnings fifty-fifty!"
"Damn it, can you guarantee you'll win? Who's going to pay if you lose?" Someone started arguing, and in no time, a dozen or so idlers had gathered there, making a ruckus.
Tears welled up inside me, and I continued watching.
Li Yang, on the other hand, seemed very agitated, his face flushed red, as if he was desperate to lose.
"Damn it, one thousand isn't enough, ten thousand!" Li Yang suddenly got angry and slammed his fist on the table, yelling.
Lei Xin immediately exchanged 10,000 for chips. At this time, their commotion had already attracted the attention of the arcade manager. Such a big customer could not be ignored. 10,000 chips was not a small amount. Of course, such a large amount of chips was exchanged for a large amount of chips, so it was not too cumbersome or troublesome. It was just that Li Yang placed a much larger bet.
The onlookers were even more excited than Li Yang. They had never played like this before; the stakes were so high, it was incredibly thrilling.
"Brother Shuan, some idiot's gotten desperate from losing, he's locked in a deathmatch over there~" A cocky young man approached a bald, burly man and said obsequiously. The bald, burly man had a thick neck and a huge tiger painted on his body, standing on rocks as if about to descend a mountain, baring his teeth and glaring as if ready to devour someone, exuding an intimidating aura. He was none other than Brother Shuan, a well-known figure in the area.
Shuan Ge squeezed the breasts of the pretty girl next to him, and the girl moaned seductively as she sat on his lap, constantly twisting her body.
"Really? Aren't the more idiots like this the better? We welcome those who give us money~" Da Shuan chuckled smugly.
"Yes, yes, boss is wise." The underling immediately began to flatter him.
"Hmm. How are those two idiots doing?" Da Shuan's face suddenly darkened.
"The injuries are serious. That bastard really went all out. I reckon those two won't be able to get out of bed for at least ten days to two weeks," the underling said worriedly.
"Okay. I'll cover the medical expenses, and give each of them a thousand yuan as a token of appreciation. They can't suffer for nothing following me, Da Shuan. Also, tell them that I'll get revenge for them. I'll beat that bastard to a pulp sooner or later!" Da Shuan said generously.
The younger brother was immediately filled with envy and excitement, thinking to himself, "How come I wasn't injured? Following Brother Da Shuan really has a bright future!"
"Yes, yes, I'll go tell them right away." The underling scurried away, thinking to himself, "Let those two treat us."
But just as Brother Dashuan dismissed the underling and was enjoying the service of the girl in his arms with his eyes half-closed, another underling rushed over in a panic, shouting, "Brother Dashuan, something bad has happened! That guy has exploded! The manager wants to see you!"
"What's the panic? Explain yourself, what happened?" Da Shuan glared at him, and the henchman immediately fell silent.
"That guy's bad luck is over, and now he's really hitting the jackpot. He's winning hundreds of dollars in one go, and he's already won several thousand. We're about to lose a lot of money!" the younger brother said, swallowing hard and feeling sorry for him.