Zheng Yu then withdrew his hand, suppressing the strange, surging excitement in his heart. "The Red Beauty Gambling House is most lively at night. We can sneak in now to gather information, but we must be careful."
The two walked out of the Minister's residence through the back door and got into an inconspicuous green carriage.
The carriage clattered along, heading towards the Red Beauty Gambling House in the west of the city. The carriage was cramped, and the two men's knees occasionally brushed against each other unintentionally, but neither of them spoke.
A subtle atmosphere filled the carriage. Zheng Heyi's heart raced. She didn't look at Zheng Yu, but instead looked at the street scene flashing past the window. At this moment, the city lights were just coming on, and the capital was dazzling and quite beautiful.
At this moment, Zheng Yu was calculating how to deal with the situation in the gambling den. He knew that tonight would definitely be a tough battle.
The carriage stopped not far from the Red Beauty Gambling House. The two alighted side by side and walked down the bustling street. From afar, the gambling house's signboard shone brightly under the lanterns.
Even before getting close, you could hear the noisy shouts and the sound of dice clashing coming from inside the gambling den. The air seemed to be filled with the smells of men's strong liquor and sweat, and women's hair oil and cosmetics.
Zheng Yu turned to look at He Yi behind him, leaned close to her ear and instructed, "When we go in, stay close to me and don't say anything out of line. There are all sorts of people here, so be careful."
Zheng Heyi nodded solemnly, "Don't worry, brother, I know what to do." The two exchanged a glance and pushed open the heavy wooden door of the Red Beauty Gambling House.
As soon as the doors opened, the cacophony of sounds from the gambling den surged in like waves, making one feel as if they had entered another fantastical and terrifying world.
[Here we go! The casino adventure officially begins!]
Where is Sun Sanlang? Come out and greet our guests!
[A legendary scene of chaos and devastation at the casino is expected!]
[That old bastard Sun Sanlang is finally going to show his face.]
As rumored, the Red Beauty Gambling House was indeed as described.
After disguising themselves, He Yi and Zheng Yu entered the room, which was a chaotic and noisy place.
The lanterns hanging from the beams bathed the room in a red glow; the clinking of dice against the wooden bucket, the dealer's drawn-out shouts, the losers' furious muttering curses, and the winners' maniacal laughter...
The air was filled with the pungent smell of cheap liquor, the sour stench of human sweat, and the nauseating odor of cheap cosmetics, all combined into a turbid wave that rushed towards us.
Zheng Heyi pinched her nostrils and subconsciously held her breath. Zheng Yu noticed that her reaction was too intense, so he gently squeezed Heyi's hand to remind her to calm down.
Zheng Heyi was curious. Although Zheng Yu was also a newcomer, he seemed to have been here hundreds of times before. Heyi followed behind her brother, and the two looked around. After a while, their attention was drawn to a short, fat man in the center of the crowd.
The man was dressed in a brocade robe embroidered with gold, looking like a nouveau riche from the capital. He also had a priceless jade belt around his waist. The man was obese, but he was imitating someone, and his belly was bulging out.
He Yi pointed to Sun Sanlang's belt and said to Zheng Yu in a low voice, "Brother, that's Father's. Look." Zheng Yu looked at the jade belt and saw that it was indeed his father's.
How could he possibly be mistaken? He bought this for his father many years ago; who knew it would end up here?
That man was none other than Sun Sanlang! At that moment, he slammed a silver ingot onto the gambling table, his triangular face narrowed into a slit: "Brother Zheng, if I win this round, your shop will be mine!" It was clear that Sun Sanlang was in high spirits.
The slender man opposite him was Zheng Jia, the "brother" Sun Sanlang had mentioned. Looking at Sun Sanlang's harmless smile, Zheng Jia turned pale.
From He Yizhe's perspective, one can see the veins on Zheng Jia's forehead throbbing continuously.
Zheng Jia's voice trembled violently: "Third Brother! We're brothers, why do you have to be so ruthless? I'll be in the capital all the time, and we'll see each other all the time. You might need my help someday."
"brother?"
Sun Sanlang suddenly stopped laughing, his triangular eyes glancing sideways at Zheng Jia opposite him, and said seriously, "In this gambling den, only money matters, not brotherhood! I call you brother because we both have money to gamble with. Are you confused, brother?"
Before he could finish speaking, the dice bowl beside him slammed down hard on the table with a loud "bang".
The servant beside him said, "Open!"
The three dice at the bottom of the bowl came to a stop rolling, revealing three sixes—a triple! Zheng Jia choked, his eyes rolled back, and he nearly had a heart attack on the spot.
Zheng Jia staggered back half a step.
"No! This is impossible... You... This is impossible!" Zheng Jia scratched the back of his head, clearly unable to understand how this could happen even after racking his brains.
“Nothing is impossible.” Sun Sanlang slowly picked up the empty bowl and gave the burly man behind him a fierce look. “Invite this Brother Zheng out! Don’t let him set foot in the Red Beauty Gambling House again!”
The burly men swarmed forward like wolves and tigers, grabbed the still-stunned Zheng Jia, and dragged him out the door. Zheng Jia's curses gradually faded away, but were replaced by laughter from the crowd.
Sun Sanlang laughed uncontrollably, carrying a tray piled high with silver coins, and headed to the back room to count them. "I've had some good luck today, let's go have some tea and rest first."
"Wait!"
A clear but abrupt male voice rang out from behind. Zheng Yu released He Yi's hand, took a step forward, and stood in front of Sun Sanlang.
His grey cloth robe looked rather shabby amidst the glittering gambling den, yet he straightened his back and met Sun San's strange triangular eyes with a calm and stern gaze.
Sun Sanlang looked Zheng Yu up and down, then glanced at He Yi, who was hiding behind him, her heart pounding with panic but her outward appearance as calm as a rock.
Sun Sanlang's lips curled into a contemptuous smile: "Where did this brat come from, trying to play a trick on a guy like me?"
[It's here! Zheng Yu is about to unleash her ultimate move!]
[Sun Sanlang, don't look down on them. These two are masters of feigning weakness to deceive others.]
The gambling saga is about to begin, so grab a seat and watch closely.
"I have long admired Mr. Sun's superb gambling skills, and I have come today to seek his guidance." Zheng Yu bowed politely, his tone so neither humble nor arrogant that it was almost mocking, and muttered slowly, "I'm afraid Mr. Sun won't dare to accept the challenge."
"You dare not?!"
Sun Sanlang laughed as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world, patting his belly and laughing loudly, "You little rascal, hahaha, hahaha, everyone listen to this, this brat actually said I dare not take the challenge."
After saying that, Sun Sanlang angrily pointed at Zheng Yu, "Do you know my rules? Once you enter my gambling den, you either leave with your money or leave some money behind before you leave."
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