"What... you don't want to learn?" "This..." Fatty Lin showed a flicker of hesitation. "We'll talk about it later... I really don't have the time right now." "Heh, alright then, I'll teach you some other time." Yang Yi smiled, glancing back at the office across the way, a hint of drunken disdain for the masses lingering on his lips. "Let's go, we'll grab dinner first." "Good!" Fatty Lin immediately responded upon hearing this.
The two departed from the towering building as if their presence there had not betrayed any hint of their true purpose. Even Long Tian and the professional beauty Xiao Yun, standing nearby, seemed entirely unaware that they had been under surveillance for an entire morning, monitored by the Dragon Lord of the Black God Gang and the Black God Gang's top general.
It must be said; in Macau, although its international urbanization pales in comparison to Shanghai, and its independent administration cannot match Hong Kong, Macau possesses its own unique character. For instance, if someone were to ask you, 'What brings you to Macau?' you would undoubtedly tell that dimwit, that utter simpleton, without hesitation, 'I'm here to gamble in the Macau casinos!'
Everyone knows that in the world, there is one colossal casino: Las Vegas. And in Macau, everyone knows that the Macau casinos are merely a carbon copy of Las Vegas. Those who come to Macau for pleasure are invariably either immensely wealthy magnates, playboy heirs, or perhaps tycoons from some nation.
Macau encapsulates a saying among the Chinese people: 'One-stop service, everything is available.' It is truly a paradise for entertainment and leisure, thus classifying it as one of China's economically advanced cities.
The Dragon Gang presides over Macau, managing the Macau Century Grand Casino; not a single casino in all of Macau operates without some connection to the Dragon Gang. Therefore, within Macau, the Dragon Gang is truly a local hegemon, one whose might even forces the independent Macau government to yield.
The lights glowed green, the crowds surged, and the night mist permeated the air everywhere. Along the Macau avenues, people came and went, all merely seeking a breath of fresh air and a stroll after their work hours.
Yet, at this very moment within a major Macau hotel, Yang Yi and his companions seemed disconnected from that atmosphere, instead shrouded in an ever-present haze of speculation.
"Brother Yi, we've been in Macau for a week now. Do we still wait?" Fatty Lin asked Yang Yi with confusion.
Yang Yi smiled, stood up, and announced, "Let's go out and have some fun tonight."
"Fun?" The three standing nearby felt once again that they were being led around in circles by Yang Yi, completely unable to decipher his plans.
"Yeah, let's go have some fun..."
"Where are we going to have fun?" Xuan Yuan Bing inquired.
"Young Master, shall I prepare the car first?" Feng Shi spoke before Yang Yi could answer.
"Mmm, go ahead." Yang Yi murmured, then added, "Tonight, let's try the feeling of gambling, how about it?"
"Gambling?" Fatty Lin acted as if he had discovered a new continent, staring at Yang Yi with utter curiosity. "Brother Yi, you mean we're going to gamble on the Dragon Gang's turf?"
"You'll know when we get there. Let's go." Yang Yi gave a faint smile.
"Oh!" Although Fatty Lin and Xuan Yuan Bing were perplexed, since Yang Yi had spoken, they knew further questioning wouldn't yield any clearer answers.
Macau's premier casino, the Century Grand Casino: a six-story building with an enormous footprint, adhering to the one-stop service rule, thus attracting numerous patrons and gamblers, and of course, not forgetting the hostesses.
Some people preferred to hold beauties, gently squeezing something soft in a private room while gambling.
Some preferred to straddle beauties while playing Monopoly hidden away in a room.
Some liked to gamble in the main hall while enjoying a certain kind of thrill.
It could truly be said that within the Century Grand Casino, like attracts like; all sorts of things happened, catering to every taste. As long as you possessed sufficient capital, it wasn't impossible to spend half a lifetime, even enjoy a comfortable old age, within this Century Grand Casino.
"Young Master, that is Macau's largest casino just ahead. The famous Hong Kong film series 'God of Gamblers' was actually filmed here." Feng Shi stopped the pitch-black car, and from the rearview mirror, one could see Yang Yi's face currently covered in a strange smile.
"Mmm, I know." Yang Yi responded, his voice deepening. "Let's go in and take a look."
The four descended from the car. Feng Shi tossed the keys and three hundred dollars in cash to the parking attendant at the entrance. Indeed, as long as one had money, everything became remarkably easy to manage.
"Welcome to the Century Grand Casino!" As Yang Yi and his group stepped through the entrance, an electronic voice suddenly boomed out.
"Heh heh, this casino truly lives up to its reputation as second only to Las Vegas," Yang Yi muttered to himself before leading the group inside.
The moment they officially stepped through the casino's threshold, they finally saw its true colors. Smoke rings drifted everywhere, the air conditioning was sharply, piercingly cold, the crowd was incredibly dense, the lights shone green, and the sounds of dice, slot machines, and all manner of gambling paraphernalia roared like thunder.
"Damn, am I really a casino first-timer?" Fatty Lin felt a touch of shock looking at the scene. He had been in smaller casinos before, but a grand casino like this Century Grand Casino—Fatty Lin truly was entering one for the first time.
"Me too!" Yang Yi said playfully, showing no shock like Fatty Lin, instead scanning his surroundings. However, his observation lasted only three seconds. "Let's go downstairs."
At the Century Grand Casino, if you wished to gamble, you absolutely had to exchange your currency for chips. Whether it was Renminbi, US Dollars, or even Euros, all currencies had to be converted into the casino's chips before you could officially start gambling.
The professional beauty stationed at the cashier booth saw Yang Yi and his party approach and quickly forced a smile, politely inquiring, "Good evening, sirs and madams, how much in chips would you like to exchange today?"
"Wait a moment!" Yang Yi stopped the professional beauty, intending to ask Feng Shi and Xuan Yuan Bing behind him if they wanted to play, but he saw them shaking their heads in refusal. He then glanced at Fatty Lin beside him. "What about you?"
"Play, of course I'll play! It's rare to come to a casino; wouldn't it be a waste not to try?" Fatty Lin laughed.
"You little rascal!" Yang Yi smiled slightly and then addressed the beauty at the cashier. "Exchange one million in chips."
"One million?"
Hearing the slightly questioning tone of the cashier beauty, Yang Yi asked, "What? Is there a problem?"
"Uh." The cashier beauty paused for a moment, a fleeting, barely perceptible suspicion crossing her lips. She said, "Heh heh, I apologize profusely; that was rude of me. May I ask which currency the gentleman wishes to exchange?"
"Nonsense, US Dollars, of course!" Fatty Lin thought this woman was being too slow. Isn't exchanging one million US Dollars in chips a simple matter? Why ask so many times?
"Mmm, then may I ask if the gentleman will be using a card, or..."
"Now you're just being ridiculous. Do you see us carrying a wallet stuffed with cash?"
"..." Hearing this, the cashier beauty's expression suddenly turned cold. This abrupt shift made Yang Yi and his group begin to feel that this casino was not simple.
"Sir, I apologize. Here, we process the card before issuing the chips. Since you have no cash on hand, why not present your card?" The cashier beauty's tone clearly betrayed a layer of suspicion and a hint of looking down on Yang Yi and his group.
Indeed, based on the current appearance of Yang Yi and Fatty Lin's party—excluding Xuan Yuan Bing—their clothing was very plain. Not a single item of clothing was worth more than a hundred yuan for those generic brands. They did not resemble the already gambling guests, whose attire consisted of either high-end designer wear or nationally limited editions. This likely explained why this young woman suspected if Yang Yi’s group could afford to exchange one million US Dollars.
Fatty Lin found this grating and was about to retort, but Yang Yi spoke first. "My apologies, we are unfamiliar with the rules. We will use a card to exchange for one million US Dollars in chips."
"Please wait a moment!" The cashier beauty impassively took the card from Yang Yi's hand and busied herself.
Registration, signing, data entry, chip counting, and finally, processing the card. But the moment she swiped the card, she froze.
"Damn it, what's wrong this time?" Fatty Lin exclaimed with obvious dissatisfaction.
"What? Is there a problem?" Yang Yi also asked the cashier beauty with confusion.
"Ah! Heh heh, I am terribly sorry!" The cashier beauty quickly finished her work, then handed the card and the chips to Yang Yi, saying very courteously, "Have a pleasant time playing."
"Thank you!" Yang Yi accepted the card and replied.
Only after Yang Yi and his group had walked away did the cashier beauty let out a deep breath. Even now, she couldn't quite believe what she was saying to herself. "I've worked in this casino for so long, and I've never seen a customer's card hold a deposit of six hundred million US Dollars. That's an astronomical figure!"
Just as the cashier beauty was lost in thought, Fatty Lin followed behind Yang Yi, holding the one million US Dollar worth of chips, muttering, "Damn, so one million US Dollars in chips is only this small pile? No wonder that little woman was looking down on us with her dog eyes."
"These are chips worth fifty thousand each. One million is only twenty chips, and they are US Dollar chips, so of course, there aren't many. Did you think they were Renminbi?" Yang Yi shot him a look, annoyed. "Here, take ten of them and go play!"