Before arriving today, I had made arrangements for Da Kui and the seniors when I assigned them to Da Shi Jie. If Lao Hei brought people to cause trouble, the security captain would deal with it. They were to remain inactive and wait for my signal. I would cause trouble in the casino to attract Lao Hei’s attention. If Lao Hei focused on me, they would seize the opportunity.
When I had Xiao Zhang cash out the chips, it was to send a signal to the seniors and inform them that they could act. They arrived just in time. If they had been a moment later, Lao Hei might have really dared to chop off my hand.
A group of people did show up tonight. They went to the bar and caused trouble, insisting that the foreign liquor was fake. They smashed a counter in the bar and injured a waiter. The duty manager and the security captain came forward to resolve the situation. Not only did they avoid violence, but they also apologized to them. Later, seeing that the commotion was pointless, these people hastily withdrew and returned to Lao Hei to report.
After returning to Da Shi Jie, I asked the seniors to take the Taoist brothers back to rest. Da Kui also said he had something to attend to with Brother Bao and needed to go. I bid them farewell and went upstairs alone, to Lan Ya’s office.
Lan Ya saw me enter and hastily stood up, asking me nervously, "You're back. Did they do anything to you?"
"Am I not fine? If they were going to keep me, would I be standing here? However, it was a bit risky today. I almost lost a hand."
"Don't scare me. Why would you lose a hand?"
"Have you ever heard of cheating in a casino?"
Lan Ya had never been to a casino. Her expression told me she didn't understand.
"I haven't heard of it. What does 'cheating' mean?"
"Simply put, cheating means rigging the game, winning money through dishonest means."
Lan Ya asked in confusion, "Do you know how to do that?"
"How could I? I just understand some techniques for playing Baccarat and calculating its probability of dealing cards. I won quite a bit of money from Lao Hei."
"How much did you win?" I noticed Lan Ya’s pupils had slightly widened.
"Seeing as you look like you've never seen money, 'won quite a bit' is relative to the casino. In reality, it wasn't much, only four or five hundred thousand. However, as far as I know, one of his operations only has about a million in cash. He let me take half of it in one go. Can you blame him for being anxious?"
"I see. You startled me. It’s true, a million is a significant amount for a casino. For us at Da Shi Jie, with so many people working all night, our turnover is only a few hundred thousand. After deducting labor, utilities, and various other expenses, there's not much left."
"Yes, you thought it was like jade, where picking up a stone could be worth millions."
"Um, by the way, come with me to the park tomorrow. Tomorrow is Monday. I’ll take you there to get familiar with it. You’ll be spending more time there from now on."
"Alright. Once Lao Hei is dealt with, there's really nothing else to do right now. Although Nan Cheng’s Kang Gong is making a lot of noise, without Kang Zi Gong, he’s just barking. He can’t cause much of a stir, so we don’t need to bother with him for now."
"What about Brother Hui? Hasn't there been any movement from his side either?"
"When Brother Hui was around, he abused his subordinates quite a bit. Once he went in, his followers probably scattered. I doubt anyone would stand up for him now."
I didn't linger with her. I said, "I'll go downstairs to take a look. If there's nothing much here, I'll head back. Wen Siqiang is here. If you need anything, ask him to pick me up."
Lan Ya stepped forward and hugged me, whispering, "Go ahead."
Lan Ya was unusually gentle. I felt a bit unaccustomed to her in this state.
As I walked out of Lan Ya’s office, I nearly collided with a girl walking past in a hurry. I stopped abruptly, and the girl quickly bent down to apologize, "Sir, I'm sorry!"
I looked closely. It was Xiao Hong. We hadn't seen each other for more than half a year. Had we really become so estranged?
"Xiao Hong!"
Xiao Hong was startled. She looked up at me, and upon realizing it was me, her face instantly flushed red.
"It's you."
"Are you working? You're in such a hurry. Is something wrong?"
"A waiter delivered a fruit platter, and a guest complained. I went to handle it."
I stared at Xiao Hong. After so long, she had become even more radiant. Unlike when we first met, when she was still naive and a bit shy, she now exuded maturity and competence.
"You've grown up."
Xiao Hong's face turned red again. I was the man who helped her become a woman, and my words carried significant weight in her heart.
We didn't linger in the corridor. I accompanied her towards the storage room.
"Is your work going smoothly?"
"It's going well, it's just..."
She suddenly stopped. I looked at her, puzzled.
"Just what? If something is wrong, tell me. It's not like before; we have the capability now."
I thought it might be her family causing trouble for her again. If it could be solved with money, these things were not a big deal.
"I don't know if you'll scold me if I tell you, I..."
"You what?" I had a feeling that this matter might be somewhat related to me.
Gathering a great deal of courage, Xiao Hong stood opposite me, looked me in the eyes, and said, "Hua Zi, there's a boy who likes me. He's been pursuing me for a long time, and I don't dare to agree to him. I don't know what to do."
"Do you like him?"
"A little, but it's hard to say for sure. Perhaps I just have a good impression of him."
"As long as you truly like him, just agree wholeheartedly. You don't need to consult me about this. I won't oppose you dating."
"I understand, Hua Zi. Thank you!"
With that, she turned and ran off, like a kite that had been released from my hand, only to have its string snapped by a sudden gust of wind, flying away.
I didn't know why my heart felt so lost. I knew clearly that Xiao Hong never truly belonged to me. Back then, we were likely just a boy and girl experiencing their first love. Things happened as they did, and being together was only natural. Afterward, we didn't have much interaction. At most, I helped her sort out her work, and there wasn't that feeling of missing each other intensely. Why did hearing her say such a thing affect my mood like this?
Alas, forget it. It was just a fleeting romantic encounter on life's journey. What wasn't yours would eventually fly away. To be honest, I still hoped she would find her own happiness. If she had a good future, it would be as if she had truly struggled out of a sea of suffering, and her childhood hardships would have received a good reward.
However, I still needed to find an opportunity to get to know this boy and help her vet him. If he was sincere, I would help them to the best of my ability.
With these thoughts, my mood suddenly became much lighter. I went to the main hall and stayed for a while. It was already nearing midnight, and the hall was much quieter. Unexpectedly, I saw a familiar figure here.
Da Lai Zi!
How long had it been since I last saw him? Nearly two years? If I hadn't seen him now, I would have forgotten about him entirely.
This kid seemed to have grown taller, and he had put on some weight. He was wearing a floral checkered outfit, which bore some resemblance to the style I had just visited Cloud Top in.
He clearly hadn't noticed me looking at him. He was swaying his blond hair and boasting to someone at the bar, his jowls shaking with every word.
A few followers, who looked like subordinates, were egging him on.
Those followers were actually some of the people I had dealt with when I was still in school. Da Lai Zi was quite something, with followers who remained loyal. It seemed he really had a way with people.
I suddenly felt that I should greet this old acquaintance. After all, it was because of him that I dropped out of school, and it was because of him that I arrived where I am today. Since he was now on my territory, I should at least offer him a polite greeting.