Chapter 73: Taking a Bold Gamble

The VIP lounge was enormous, easily spanning fifty or sixty square meters. In the center stood a large round table, surrounded by plush sofas and several liquor cabinets displaying a dazzling array of fine spirits. The temperature in the room was perfectly regulated—not too cold, not too warm.

Six burly men and a few coquettishly dressed women were gathered around the table. Upon it, stacks of casino chips gleamed under the lights, covering almost every inch of surface. A delicate-faced dealer was expertly shuffling the cards, her dexterous hands turning an ordinary deck into a thing of art.

“Ha ha ha, everyone! Please, hold on a moment!” Brother Yun laughed heartily. “Dear Mr. Cao, look who’s here!”

Cao Xiaobin turned his head and saw his sister, Cao Xiaomin.

“Big Sis! You’re finally here!” Cao Xiaobin cheered, rushing toward her.

A sharp slap resounded.

Cao Xiaomin’s response was a fierce backhand. “You worthless scoundrel! How long are you going to keep this up?” Fury glinted in her eyes, her chest heaving with ragged breaths. The force of that slap was evident.

Clutching his cheek, Cao Xiaobin didn’t yell or protest. He only looked at her with a pitiful, pleading gaze. “Sis, I just want to win it all back…”

“Win it back? Win it back! I’ll kill you!” Cao Xiaomin’s anger surged. Seeing her brother’s unrepentant face, she felt a nearly uncontrollable urge just to finish him off and spare the family any more chaos.

He Tian stepped in, holding Cao Xiaomin back.

“Don’t stop me!” she struggled, her voice trembling with rage. “I’m going to beat this wastrel to death! Fifty million! How reckless can he be?”

“Sister Cao, it’s only fifty million. Don’t worry about it, please!” He Tian wouldn’t let her break free. He gently pulled her aside and, ignoring Cao Xiaobin’s desperate look, sat down in the seat Xiaobin had just vacated.

“Everyone… sorry for the scene. Let’s continue,” He Tian said with a genial smile, glancing at the other five men at the table.

They were all successful figures—at least, so they appeared to outsiders. But for now, they were nothing more than gamblers.

“You want to play? Look at the chips in front of you…” sneered a fat, middle-aged man, his hand boldly slipping beneath the blouse of a voluptuous, if plain-faced, young woman who couldn’t be more than twenty. He cast a disdainful glance at He Tian’s modest pile of chips.

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry! Brother Yun, would you assist me?” He Tian turned to Brother Yun with a bright, easy smile.

“What can I do for you, Mr. He?” Brother Yun beamed, his face full of charm. No matter what, He Tian was now a man of wealth. It proved that Brother Yun’s earlier investment in Cao Xiaobin had been spot-on—a well-connected sister in Tianhai could indeed bring in a fortune.

After all, only forty million had been lent out, but now fifty million was to be repaid. This kind of deal made Brother Yun euphoric, the thrill as addictive as any drug.

“There’s one hundred million in this card. Pay off what Little Brother Cao owes you, and convert the rest into chips. Seeing you all here has me itching to play a few hands myself. May I?” He Tian said cheerfully, handing over a card.

This was a bank card He Tian had prepared in advance, loaded with a hundred million. None of the card’s details could be traced back to him; at most, any investigation would lead only to He Long.

He Tian was always meticulous, never leaving behind any trace of suspicion under any identity.

“At your service!” Brother Yun took the card with delight, immediately dispatching someone to handle the transaction.

Then, with a jovial smile, Brother Yun began introducing the other five at the table: The fat, middle-aged man was a wealthy local from Qingdao; then there was a major boss from Rizhao, another from Yantai, and two more from Jinan and Weihai, respectively.

It was obvious, even without much thought, that they had joined forces to fleece Cao Xiaobin. Life, it seemed, was full of traps.

But whether anyone could outsmart He Tian remained to be seen.

“Helong,” whispered Cao Xiaomin, gently tugging He Tian’s sleeve. She hadn’t expected her brother to be fifty million in debt. Still, she only wanted to settle the money and leave, but clearly, He Tian intended to gamble. This made her deeply uneasy—the reckless gambler’s streak in Cao Xiaobin had left her with a visceral aversion to gambling itself.

“Don’t worry, I’ve got this. It’s just a game,” He Tian said, patting her hand reassuringly.

Seeing him hand over the card to Brother Yun, Cao Xiaomin knew there was no point in arguing. Instead, her curiosity about He Tian only grew. How could he be so wealthy? And if he was, why did he bother with brand endorsements? What was his secret? What was hidden beneath his calm exterior? The questions multiplied in her mind.

While her anxiety turned to curiosity, Cao Xiaobin stood by, his face glowing with excitement. His eyes fixed on He Tian as though he were gazing upon a gold mine—wealth seemed to be pouring into his hands like a flurry of snowflakes.

Judging by He Tian’s intimacy with his sister, Cao Xiaobin quickly concluded that this was his future brother-in-law—a brother-in-law who dismissed fifty million as pocket change. He wanted to shout with joy, thanking his sister for finding him such a perfect match.

Brother Yun’s staff worked with remarkable efficiency. Fifty million in chips was soon stacked neatly before He Tian.

“Shall we begin?” He Tian said, grinning as he surveyed the chips and the five opponents.

“Let’s start, let’s start! Now it’s getting exciting!” The fat man from Qingdao laughed, squeezing the young woman at his side, as though He Tian’s chips would soon be his.

Brother Yun nodded at the dealer. The cards were shuffled and dealt anew. The game was simple: “Tractor Poker.” A single deck, three cards dealt to each player, no reveal, straight betting.

He Tian didn’t even glance at his cards, watching as the other five furtively eyed their own hands before setting them down.

“I call first, right? Let’s raise the stakes from the start—one million, blind. I haven’t even looked at my cards!” He Tian declared, tossing a million in chips to the center of the table.

Cao Xiaomin trembled—a million, just thrown away like that! That was a third of her annual salary.

But it was too late now; she knew it was best to keep silent and just watch.

To He Tian’s immediate left sat the boss from Jinan, a man in his forties with glasses, scholarly in appearance.

“Ha ha, Mr. He is so confident. I’m in!” the Jinan boss laughed, tossing in two million in chips.

According to the rules, if you bet blind, the next player must match at least double if they’ve looked at their cards—there was no upper limit.

Since He Tian had bet a million, the next had to put in at least two million. If you didn’t want to match, you could simply fold, losing only the one million ante.

“Ha ha, if Mr. He has such nerve, I’ll match it too!” The fat Qingdao boss laughed heartily, immediately throwing in two million in chips.

Next was the Rizhao boss, who surprisingly folded—clearly, his cards were terrible.

The bosses from Yantai and Weihai, however, followed suit, each tossing in two million in chips without hesitation.

So, after the first round, only Rizhao’s boss had folded, while the other four matched the two million bet.

Now, excluding the six-million ante, the pot stood at nine million in chips.

“Such enthusiasm, gentlemen… I’ll make it even more interesting—five million more, blind!” He Tian said with a relaxed smile, still not looking at his cards, and tossed five million more into the pot.

The Jinan boss looked at He Tian, then scrutinized his own cards, hesitating before finally folding. To stay in, he would have had to put in at least ten million, and his hand wasn’t worth that much—a wise retreat.

The fat Qingdao boss picked up his cards, hesitating, his plump hand stroking the young woman at his side. “If Mr. He dares, why shouldn’t I? I’m in—ten million!” he declared, pushing a mountain of chips forward.

The Rizhao boss had already folded; now it was Yantai’s turn. He’d already checked his cards. Though He Tian was playing blind, the fat Qingdao boss had matched with ten million—his hand must be strong. But Yantai’s cards weren’t worth ten million, and who knew how much the pot would grow? Better to bow out now.

The Yantai boss folded, but the Weihai boss, face full of uncertainty—perhaps feigned—finally threw in ten million in chips as well.

Now it was He Tian’s turn again.

At this point, the pot on the table had already swelled to a staggering thirty-four million.