After a long pause, Xu Yao finally found his voice. “…You’re treating me like a thug?!”
“You won’t be working for free. It’s worth the equivalent of thirty million dollars. So even if you are a thug, you’d be the most expensive one.”
Xu Yao: “…” I almost fell for your trick!
“Jufeng Group is the local powerhouse in City A. It’s just a beating, not murder. You can use a sack, blindfold him—whatever you want. He won’t know a thing afterward. For someone like you, Boss Xu, this shouldn’t be difficult, right?”
Difficult? More like effortless.
As Jiang Fuyue pointed out, Jufeng was a major player in City A, and their three gambling licenses were the first of their kind in both City A and the entire South China region.
And running a casino naturally required enforcers and bodyguards. Xu Yao didn’t even need to get his hands dirty—any random subordinate could handle it.
The appraiser hesitated. “…The outsider still hasn’t answered the other two questions—who is this person, and what’s their identity?”
“Lou Mingxin,” Jiang Fuyue enunciated each syllable clearly. “Boss Xu, you should be quite familiar. No need for me to elaborate on the identity, right?”
After all, Lou Mingxin had been relentless in trying to acquire the Red Jade and Yuan Qinghua, all to gift them to the man before her, in exchange for the development rights to a piece of land under Jufeng’s name.
Jiang Fuyue was here to ruin all of that—to make sure Lou Mingxin turned completely against Jufeng, ensuring no further collaboration between them.
Snatching the Red Jade was just step one. Now it was time for step two.
Xu Yao’s gaze flickered as he chuckled. “Mr. Jiang, you overestimate me. Jufeng Group operates legally—we don’t engage in shady dealings. And I am a legitimate businessman. I would never knowingly break the law.”
Jiang Fuyue’s expression remained calm, as if she had expected this response.
“So, what is Boss Xu’s decision?”
Xu Yao scoffed. “Thirty million—I’ll match the bet.”
In other words, he refused to take Jiang Fuyue’s offer to rough someone up.
Sure, it would be easy to deal with Lou Mingxin in his own territory, but why should he do it for Jiang Fuyue?
He simply wouldn’t.
“I already said, Boss Xu is free to choose. No pressure at all,” Jiang Fuyue replied, unbothered and composed.
Xu Yao felt a slight pang of frustration. “…Continue!”
Jiang Fuyue drew a second card.
She picked it up, glanced at it without a hint of emotion, then placed it face down on the table before raising the stakes. “Fifty million dollars. Boss Xu, your options are the same—match the bet, or beat up Lou Mingxin.”
Still a beating, but now worth fifty million instead of thirty.
Xu Yao still refused to let her have her way. He chose, “Match fifty million.”
Jiang Fuyue clicked her tongue, feigning regret. “If you’re just doing this to annoy me, there’s really no need to be at odds with money.”
“Too bad. The one thing I don’t lack is money.”
Jiang Fuyue smiled faintly and drew the third card.
Then the fourth.
Each time, the stakes were in millions of dollars, increasing with each round. And each time, Xu Yao chose to match the bet with cash rather than agree to deal with Lou Mingxin.
“The final card,” Xu Yao said, frowning. “Mr. Jiang, be careful.”
“Thanks for the reminder. Let’s both be cautious.”
Xu Yao studied Jiang Fuyue. So far, her demeanor had given away nothing. He had no idea what numbers she had, which made her an exceptionally skilled gambler.
Regardless of her technique, her composure alone was impressive.
He glanced at his own four cards—two Kings, two Aces, all spades.
He reached for the final card.
Black Spade King!
With the previous cards, he now had a pair of Aces and three Kings—an incredibly strong hand.
He refused to believe the other party could have anything better!
He refused to believe her hand was better!
And then:
D*mn. My face hurts.
