By around two in the afternoon, Old Ma hadn't returned to the business. Fearing the boss's wife might object, Yang Jian gave him a call. It was his son, Ma Yuan, who answered.
"Little Ma, where's your dad? Why isn't he at work yet?"
"Brother Yang, Dad's getting an IV drip. Could you ask the boss for him to take a leave?"
"Getting an IV drip? Is your dad sick? He was fine at noon, how did he get sick?"
"We were beaten up when we went to collect our winnings."
"Beaten up? Where are you now?"
"At the clinic next to the main station."
"I'll be right there."
Yang Jian hung up, informed the boss's wife, and hailed a motorcycle taxi to head over.
In the clinic's infusion room, the dispirited Old Ma lay on a single bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.
Ma Yuan, with a bruised and swollen face, sat beside him, constantly on his phone. Their fellow villager, Old Xie, sat nearby with a dejected expression.
When Yang Jian entered, Old Ma remained unresponsive, as if in a daze.
"Little Ma, what happened? Who beat you up?"
"The bookie who took my father's bets ran off. We argued with the convenience store owner, but he denied any connection to the bookie and ended up beating my father and me."
"The bookie ran off? So no one will pay your father the forty thousand yuan he won?"
Yang Jian didn't quite understand the mechanics of betting.
"Yes, this is a scam the convenience store owner and others are running together."
Ma Yuan's eyes held a murderous glint as he spoke.
"Uncle Ma, are your injuries serious?"
"Old Ma's injuries aren't severe, but his mental state has somewhat collapsed. He'd never won such a large prize before, and to go from extreme excitement to suddenly hearing he couldn't collect his winnings, his mentality instantly shattered, and he's become completely dazed."
Old Xie, who was in his forties and quite experienced, took it upon himself to explain Old Ma's condition.
Yang Jian nodded at him. "Uncle, could you explain the betting process? How can the bookie just disappear?"
"When we bet, it's essentially private gambling, which is not only unprotected by law but also targeted by police crackdowns. The bookies are usually wealthy individuals or affiliated with organized crime, and some are agents from Hong Kong.
They set up points in densely populated areas, arrange for people to record bets and collect money. The vast majority of bookies are trustworthy and will pay out any winnings, no matter how large.
However, some bookies aren't financially strong. If the winning amount is too large for them to pay, they'll abscond with the money.
There are also runners who take bets on their own. Their financial capacity is even smaller, and if a large prize is won, they also can't pay out and will run away.
In such situations, we can't call the police because both selling and buying bets are illegal."
After listening, Yang Jian sighed deeply. "This kind of betting offers no security at all. Why do you still get so obsessed with buying tickets week after week?"
"Actually, these situations are rare. If you encounter one, it's just bad luck. Old Ma usually lives frugally, and half of his earnings go into buying tickets. He finally won a big prize, only to run into such a bookie. It's truly terrible luck."
"Doesn't the convenience store owner know who the bookie is?"
"He definitely knows, and they're likely in cahoots. This area is under the influence of the Yu Nan gang. The convenience store owner is from Yu Nan, and those runners who take bets also have Yu Nan accents. Who would believe they have no connection?
But their influence is immense. Even if we know they're colluding to rip people off, we can't do anything because we can't fight them. Our Xi Chuan gang is suppressed by them in this area and can't even lift our heads."
Old Xie spoke with a deep sense of powerlessness.
Yang Jian was also helpless in this situation. He was struggling to protect himself and couldn't possibly stand up for Old Ma and his son. Moreover, the situation was too complex, and he wasn't arrogant enough to confront the powerful Yu Nan gang alone.
"Uncle Ma, don't be so upset. It's just forty thousand yuan. As long as you stop gambling and work diligently, you'll earn this money back quickly. Besides, you only lost a thousand yuan this time, not a significant loss. Just pretend you didn't win."
All Yang Jian could do was offer comfort, hoping that after this blow, Old Ma would finally wake up and stop being addicted to betting.
Old Ma merely let out a long sigh, still silent.
At this moment, four young men walked in. Two were about Ma Yuan's age, and the other two were slightly older, around twenty. They were all dressed in eccentric clothing, with tattoos, earrings, and dyed hair, clearly looking like street thugs.
"Damn, Little Ma, how did you get beaten up like this?"
These young men were clearly Ma Yuan's friends. One of them, slightly older and wearing an earring, circled Ma Yuan.
Ma Yuan felt a bit uncomfortable being addressed like that. "They had numbers on their side, and I wasn't prepared for anything. Of course, I couldn't fight them."
"So when are we making a move? Is your body up for it?"
"Let's talk outside."
Ma Yuan stood up to leave. They were clearly planning something.
Yang Jian reached out and stopped him. "Little Ma, what are you doing?"
"Brother Yang, please don't mind me. Could you take care of my dad and take him home after his IV drip is finished?"
"Don't do anything foolish. This isn't a big deal; just let it go. If you escalate things, you won't be able to handle the consequences, and you'll worry your dad and sister."
Yang Jian could tell they were planning to retaliate against the convenience store owner. Ma Yuan was only seventeen, still growing, and skinny. He was hardly cut out for fighting.
Ma Yuan glanced at his father. "Brother Yang, we're not going to fight. We have something else to discuss."
Hearing this, Yang Jian found it harder to object. "Little Ma, no matter what you're going to do, please remember not to act impulsively. Your dad's situation isn't that serious. In essence, you only lost a thousand yuan. Although you were beaten, you weren't injured. Just consider it a fall. Taking a step back opens up a wider world, and enduring for a moment brings peace."
"I understand, Brother Yang. Bye."
Little Ma waved at him and walked out with his four companions.
Yang Jian watched their retreating backs, feeling a vague sense of unease, as if something bad was about to happen.
"Uncle Ma, why aren't you trying to persuade Little Ma? Aren't you worried he'll cause trouble?"
In response to Yang Jian's question, Old Ma remained silent, still staring at the ceiling.
However, Old Xie said, "Young man, you might as well stop trying to persuade them. I think these youngsters should have some spirit. Otherwise, those Yu Nan people will become even more arrogant. If I weren't older, I'd join them for a fight."
"Uncle, what do you do? Have you also been wronged by the Yu Nan people?"
"I collect scrap. I've been bullied by them before. This time, I won over ten thousand yuan, thinking I could send it back to my son for building a house. I never expected it to be all for nothing. I'm not reconciled."
"Uncle, you shouldn't think that way. Obeying the law and working diligently is the right path. Don't think about getting rich overnight. Gambling won't make you money; it will only draw you deeper. Look at Uncle Ma, he's completely dazed now, and I don't know if there will be any lingering effects."
As he said this, Yang Jian felt a touch of irony. What right did he have to admonish others? Compared to these gamblers from the lower strata, he was the true cancer of society.