Jiang Fuyue: “Since Boss Xu has already extended the invitation, it wouldn’t be right of me to refuse.”
With that, she lowered her head and asked Liu Sisi, “Still sleepy?”
The latter, curled in her arms, shook her head. “Not really anymore.”
“Alright then, let’s play with Boss Xu for a bit. But… how shall we bet?”
Xu Yao: “How do you want to bet?”
“Anything goes?” She smiled playfully.
“The stakes—anything I have. The method—anything I know.”
“Great!” That was exactly what she was waiting to hear!
The man lifted his hand. “After you.”
The two sides moved to the second floor, away from the gaze of the onlookers.
As Jiang Fuyue stepped onto the final stair, she suddenly paused and turned to look down over the entire hall.
In the next second, she raised an eyebrow.
Liu Sisi: “What is it?”
Jiang Fuyue chuckled softly. “This casino… is pretty interesting.”
If she wasn’t mistaken, the entire hall was arranged in the feng shui layout of “Five Ghosts Bringing Wealth.”
Water represents wealth and belongs to the yin element.
The “Five Ghosts” refers to the Lianzhen Star among the Nine Stars.
Ye Qianji had taught her:
In feng shui, the “mountain dragon” is the sitting direction, and the “water dragon” is the facing direction. Each stands for one trigram. By following the rules of pure yin and pure yang, and the Na Jia principle of the three-yin/three-yang trigrams within the 24 mountains, the Lianzhen position of the mountain dragon aligns with the incoming water direction, placing the wealth-attracting Ju Men position in line. In a yang dwelling, placing doors, windows, or air inlets at the Lianzhen point and having water flow at the Ju Men point constitutes “Five Ghosts Bringing Wealth.”
Xu Yao noticed her staring at the hall, a thoughtful look on her face, and frowned slightly. “Is something wrong?”
“I was just thinking… Boss Xu probably doesn’t step in personally very often, does he?”
The man’s tone was low. “Not frequently.”
“Then I must be quite honored?”
“I was being presumptuous.”
“Is Boss Xu this polite with everyone?”
“…It depends on the person.”
“And what category do I fall into?”
“…The kind I need to be polite with.”
“And the ones you don’t need to be polite with?”
“…We’re here.”
They had reached the end of the corridor. A staff member pushed open a brown wooden door, with a gold-plated plaque hanging in the center that read: VIP Room No. 1.
Xu Yao: “Please, you two go in first. I’ll be right there.”
“Already at the door and still need prep time, Boss Xu?” Jiang Fuyue teased.
The man’s eyelid twitched.
Jiang Fuyue looked at him with a smile. “Don’t tell me you’re going to go bathe, burn incense, and say a little prayer to the God of Gambling?”
The tone was light, a joking mockery.
A sharp glint flashed in Xu Yao’s eyes for a moment but was quickly hidden behind a smile. “That’s actually not a bad idea—might try it next time.”
With that, he turned and walked away.
Jiang Fuyue calmly retracted her gaze and began inspecting the gambling room.
Liu Sisi’s eyes held a flicker of doubt, but she didn’t ask anything.
The room was tastefully decorated. The walls bore traditional Chinese-style murals, and off to the side were a minibar and tea room for guests to relax.
But the most eye-catching feature was the large rosewood table in the center of the room.
Suspended above was a long, circular crystal chandelier casting dazzling light, which shimmered on the table like a coiled galaxy. At the center were playing tiles and chips piled together.
Besides Jiang Fuyue and Liu Sisi, the vast room held no other gamblers. Only one shuffler stood by with a polite smile and a posture so rigid, he looked like a statue.
In the distant corner stood a beverage attendant facing the wall, who would only move once the game was over to serve drinks.
About five minutes later, Xu Yao returned.
Now dressed in a black suit—gone was the casual, laid-back look from earlier—this Xu Yao radiated a sharp, unyielding aura from head to toe.
Jiang Fuyue raised an eyebrow, the look in her eyes meaningful.
“Looks like Boss Xu’s really trying my suggestion…”
To bathe and burn incense.
“Otherwise, why the outfit change?”
The man froze slightly, and the way he looked at her now had a tinge of cautious probing.
Jiang Fuyue didn’t take the bait at all.
Instead, she brushed past Xu Yao and walked straight toward the gambling table.
As they passed each other, her shoulder bumped against his arm.
“Apologies,” she said lightly, and casually reached out to pat his suit jacket—brushing off dust that didn’t exist.
Xu Yao was slightly stunned.
It was just a bump, and before he could even react with displeasure, she had already acted as if it were her fault. A bit over-the-top, really.
“Please—” he gestured.
Jiang Fuyue took her seat.
Liu Sisi stood obediently behind her, very much in sync with the aura of “where my man goes, I follow.”
Xu Yao sat as the dealer.
He spread both hands out on the table in a casual, confident manner, unable to hide his charisma: “Since you’re a guest, may I know how I should address you?”
“My surname is Jiang.”
“Mr. Jiang, how would you like to play?”
“How about Bluff?”
Xu Yao’s gaze darkened slightly. “You’re sure?”
Infinite Bluff — a game of endless intimidation and psychological warfare. The rules were simple: seven decks of poker cards shuffled together. Each player draws cards in turns. Starting from the second card, players can choose to raise the bet and continue, or fold and exit.
There are only two ways the game ends.
One: a player believes their hand is weaker than their opponent’s and chooses to fold, forfeiting all previously bet chips.
Two: both players draw five cards and reveal their hands to compare strength.
With seven decks combined—hundreds of cards—the odds are massive. Card-counting and calculations are meaningless. The only things that matter are: luck and mental fortitude.
After drawing, players may look at their own cards but not their opponent’s.
If you want your opponent to fold, you must pretend your hand is strong—through words, demeanor, and actions—to pressure and intimidate the opponent into folding.
That’s the core and thrill of Bluff: the game is about scaring your opponent or being scared by them.
Jiang Fuyue: “Of course.”
Xu Yao: “I should remind you—this is a pure luck-based game. There’s no technique involved.”
Jiang Fuyue: “I think I’m having pretty good luck today.”
The man gave her a deep, meaningful look. “Very well.”
You’re asking for it.
Of all things to bet on, she picked luck.
Liu Sisi, standing beside them, was clearly unhappy with the look in Xu Yao’s eyes—like they’d already lost.
Xu Yao: “Any special requests for the stakes?”
Normally, bets were made with chips bought with money. But there were exceptions—like “Russian Roulette” style side games.
He asked out of habit, part of his professional routine. He didn’t expect the other party to actually name something unusual.
But—
Jiang Fuyue hadn’t planned on it, but his question gave her sudden inspiration: “How about we each name and choose our own stakes?”
At that, Xu Yao looked at her like she was crazy.
“Mr. Jiang, are you joking? I only know your surname and that you have fifty million dollars in chips. I know nothing else about you or your assets. How am I supposed to name a stake?”
Jiang Fuyue waved it off. “You don’t need to know anything about me. When I name my bet, I’ll also offer an equivalent exchange. Whether or not you accept is up to you. Don’t worry, I won’t trade a rock for a gold mine. If you’re still concerned, we can bring in a professional appraiser.”
Xu Yao looked at her with growing intrigue. “…Fine.”
This kind of bet—naming your own stakes—was thrilling. You could name money, items, favors… anything. As long as the other party accepted, it was fair game.
Ten minutes later, a professional asset appraiser entered, and the game officially began.
After shuffling, Jiang Fuyue and Xu Yao sat facing each other. Under the bright light, they could clearly see every subtle expression on each other’s faces.
“Mr. Jiang, please go first,” Xu Yao said with a warm, courteous smile.
Jiang Fuyue didn’t stand on ceremony. She drew a card, glanced at it, then placed it face-down on the table. Her expression revealed nothing.
Xu Yao drew a card as well, equally calm.
“Thirty million dollars,” she said, placing the first bet.
Liu Sisi, without blinking, separated thirty million in chips from the tray and pushed them to the center of the table.
Ahem…
Truth be told, she did want to blink. A lot. But for the sake of their aura, she had to hold it together and show no fear.
Xu Yao looked perfectly relaxed. Thirty million might be an astronomical amount to others, but to him, it was trivial.
“Choosing a stake?” he asked.
“Of course. Thirty million dollars—and you help me teach someone in A City a lesson.”
Xu Yao wasn’t surprised. From the moment she suggested naming her own stakes, he’d had a hunch that she had ulterior motives. And now, it was confirmed—her true goal was revealed with the very first bet.
Ha!
The appraiser, meanwhile, was flabbergasted. He never thought he’d live to see the day where someone asked him to evaluate whether “thirty million dollars” and “beating someone up” were of equivalent value.
“…This…” He was at a complete loss.
Both Jiang Fuyue and Xu Yao looked at him.
The appraiser wiped sweat from his brow and forced himself to speak: “May I… may I ask what exactly ‘teach someone a lesson’ entails? To what extent? And who is the target? What is their identity?”
Jiang Fuyue’s eyes sparkled. “Just rough him up a bit. Make sure his face is black and blue—that’ll do.”
Appraiser: “???” Is she being serious?
Xu Yao: “???” Are my ears playing tricks on me?
