Chapter 352: Magic Hand

"Brother Wuming, cheating is not allowed here; if you get caught, you'll have to chop off your hand," Li Jun teased as he said to Luo Wuming.

Luo Wuming laughed and scolded: "I brought you here to see the world, so why so much nonsense? Shut up."

Although Luo Wuming's cheating techniques were learned from Luo Sihai, his gambling skills were not.

They were learned from a gambling master in the Mainland, so if it came down to pure gambling skills, he really had nothing to fear.

Moreover, any gambler would refuse the chance to challenge the God of Gamblers, Gao Jin.

After getting off the boat, Luo Wuming saw a luxury car waiting at the entrance.

The driver smiled and walked over: "Mr. Luo, right? Our Boss sent me to pick you up."

"Uncle Chen?" Luo Wuming said with some surprise.

The driver nodded, then gestured for the three of them to get in.

The car was a vehicle from the Aoyu Group, and being personally invited immediately attracted the attention of many people.

Some even started whispering on the spot: "This kid is so young, is he actually an expert invited by Aomen Entertainment?"

"Doesn't look like it."

"What's the big deal? When the God of Gamblers Gao Jin first debuted, he was only 17."

"True, anyone who can be invited by Aomen Entertainment must be no simple character."

Seeing that the bystanders had all fixed their gazes on him, Luo Wuming appeared somewhat nervous.

He had always been hanging around the streets before; a scene this big was a first for him—like a bride getting on her sedan chair for the first time.

After taking a deep breath, Luo Wuming led his two bewildered lackeys and got into the car.

Watching the scenery along the way in Macau, Luo Wuming clenched his fists tightly, and something called ambition began to sprout in his heart.

On the other side, the person Gao Jin had his eye on also arrived in Macau.

He also got into a car sent by the Aoyu Group.

However, unlike Luo Wuming, who was a nobody, many people recognized him immediately.

Magic Hand, Shi Yijian.

Anyone who could make a name for themselves in the underworld was certainly no ordinary goods.

This guy was originally from Hong Kong, but later followed his parents to Malaysia.

At a young age, he had already carved out a huge reputation in Kuala Lumpur.

Unlike the reputation Gao Jin built through upright psychological warfare, although Shi Yijian's gambling skills were strong,

his greatest strength was his technique for cheating.

It was so fast that people couldn't see it at all, just like performing magic right in front of you.

And it wasn't the kind achieved through visual tricks; it relied entirely on hand speed.

Some even brought out high-speed cameras but still couldn't capture his cheating technique, which the Casino Alliance exclaimed was a divine skill.

That was why he earned the title of Magic Hand.

However, Shi Yijian was unlucky; he ran into the time when Jin Neng was taking the 17-year-old Gao Jin to challenge experts everywhere.

Shi Yijian just happened to be on the list of challenges.

The result was three matches, and three crushing defeats.

His pride and joy, the Magic Hand, had no room to be displayed in the face of Gao Jin's psychological warfare.

Because his state of mind was unstable, he even nearly exposed his cheating.

The rule at the gambling table was that if no one discovered you were cheating, it counted as not cheating, but if you were caught, you had to leave a hand behind.

After this battle, Shi Yijian practiced psychological tactics bitterly, all to one day challenge the God of Gamblers, Gao Jin, again.

Five years passed, and he knew the opportunity had come, so he came to Macau without hesitation.

He even left behind his childhood sweetheart, whom he was about to marry.

Looking at the Portugal Hotel not far away, Shi Yijian took a deep breath, stepped out of the car, and walked toward the hotel with a firm gaze.

But just at this moment, a beautiful girl ran over, blocked Shi Yijian's path, and said with tears in her eyes: "Must you go today?"

"This is a rare opportunity for me, Mo Chou," Shi Yijian said earnestly.

Mo Chou gritted her teeth and said viciously: "Then what about me? Where do you place me?"

Shi Yijian fell silent, and after a moment, said to Mo Chou: "I'm sorry."

After saying this, he walked around Mo Chou and turned to head toward the hotel.

Tears streamed down Mo Chou's face on the spot, and she shouted at Shi Yijian's back: "Shi Yijian, one day I will make you regret this."

Shi Yijian's footsteps faltered for a moment.

Then he took a deep breath and continued forward.

For this God of Gamblers Challenge Tournament, Aomen Entertainment had also poured in a lot of money.

Media from all walks of life scrambled to report on it, truly whipping up the atmosphere.

The tickets for the preliminary rounds alone were hyped up to several thousand dollars each.

Given that movie tickets were on average in that range, a few thousand for a single ticket was already an astronomical price.

Some tabloid reporters even seized on this point to report it extensively.

Because of the fear of disturbing the contestants, there were not many tickets for the preliminary rounds, all distributed for free by the Aoyu Group, so those that flowed into the market were even rarer.

Therefore, on the day of the preliminary rounds, the entrance to the Portugal Hotel was packed solid.

Moreover, outside betting odds had already been opened, and there were quite a few even over in Hong Kong.

For instance, in Luo Sihai's Bar, Luo Sihai boasted about his nephew being invited by Aomen Entertainment, leading many old customers to place their bets.

In the lobby of the Portugal Hotel, over a dozen gambling tables had been set up.

Professional Dealers patrolled the floor, and high-speed cameras were overhead to prevent anyone from cheating.

Very quickly, the contestants who had obtained invitations or purchased their qualifications entered the venue one after another; the competition was about to begin.

The master of ceremonies for the competition first read a list of acknowledgments, then announced that the God of Gamblers Challenge Tournament had officially begun.

Those who could come here were either wealthy or powerful, so as soon as the competition started, the crowd began a fierce struggle.

At Luo Wuming's table, there were not many experts, but there were certainly plenty of wealthy suckers.

Their way of playing cards had no method at all, and they were quickly driven off the table by Luo Wuming, while he himself became the first contestant to qualify.

An unknown kid had unexpectedly been the first to break through, immediately attracting everyone's attention.

People one after another felt that this kid seemed to have the makings of a dark horse.

Then there was Shi Yijian, who had fallen into a bitter struggle; although his strength was formidable, there was not a single simple character at his table.

They were either math geniuses from Las Vegas or an Indian man with a photographic memory.

Only by relying on his own superb, god-like cheating techniques was Shi Yijian able to drive these two people off the table.

However, Shi Yijian became the last contestant to qualify.

"Tsk, this kid's technique is truly Babi (impressive)," Chen Jiajun said, standing in the office and watching the replay with Gao Jin.

Indeed, even the high-speed camera had not caught his cheating technique.

Gao Jin smiled and said, "That is why I said he might be able to take my place. I estimate there isn't a cheating technique in this world that he doesn't know."

Chen Jiajun agreed quite a bit, nodded, and said, "You two are like two extremes; one uses open schemes in a dignified way, while the other plays with conspiracies and takes unconventional paths. But what do you think of my friend's nephew?"

Gao Jin knew Chen Jiajun was referring to Luo Wuming, but he still shook his head and said, "There were no experts at his table; I can't see anything special about him."

"Then you must take a good look for me during the finals," Chen Jiajun said, patting Gao Jin on the shoulder.

Very soon, the preliminary rounds had ended.

Various offshore betting markets also closed their books.

Luo Wuming, this obscure kid, had leaped to become a major dark horse.

Before this, not many people had been optimistic about him.

Li Jun and Jian Nan ran over and showered Luo Wuming with flattery: "Brother Wuming, you are going to be rich this time. Now the whole of Macau knows your great name."

Although he was the first contestant to qualify, Luo Wuming was very calm; he laughed at himself and said, "What does this count for? It was just good luck. There are quite a few experts among the contestants who came today, not to mention the famous God of Gamblers."

"You are too humble," Li Jun said with a smile. "Just now, Brother Sihai called and said he was running an offshore book at the Bar and made a huge profit."

Luo Wuming shook his head helplessly and said, "Tell Fourth Uncle not to go too far; the water here is very deep."

Hearing Luo Wuming's words, the two lackeys seemed somewhat indifferent.

After returning to the hotel, Luo Wuming personally made a phone call to Luo Sihai.

Only after confirming that his Fourth Uncle would not act recklessly did he set his mind at ease.

Although he was the first contestant to qualify today, he had also finished watching all the matches.

Among them, the one who concerned him most was the famous Magic Hand, Shi Yijian.

In terms of gambling skills alone, Luo Wuming might be slightly stronger than Shi Yijian, but only by a limited margin.

But when it came to cheating techniques, Luo Wuming felt he wasn't even fit to carry Shi Yijian's shoes.

That god-like hand speed simply made his scalp tingle.

He didn't even know how to resolve it, or rather, how to expose Shi Yijian.

If the two of them were to face each other head-on, he would definitely be at a great disadvantage.

Unable to sleep after thinking for a long time, Luo Wuming simply closed his door and took out the small booklet his master had given him to flip through.

Anyway, with several days left until the semi-finals, he decided to engage in a bout of self-imposed study.

Regardless of whether it was useful or not, at least it could help him calm down.

Meanwhile, Shi Yijian, who was preparing to leave the casino to return to his hotel, happened to bump into Gao Jin as he walked out of the office.

"Gao Jin, it really has been a long time."

Shi Yijian looked at Gao Jin with a sharp gaze, his tone carrying many inexplicable flavors.

Jealousy, unwillingness, anger—perhaps a little of each.

Gao Jin smiled and greeted Shi Yijian: "It has indeed been a long time. Your performance was very good."

Although there were no aggressive words, this sentence alone made Shi Yijian very unhappy: "Don't get cocky; I will personally strip you of your title as the God of Gamblers. Right here, this time."

Gao Jin smiled and shook his head, saying in a very high-handed tone: "Fine, I'll be waiting for you."

"Hmph." Shi Yijian hit a wall again and, with a cold snort, turned and left directly.

Gao Jin shook his head and left in the opposite direction.

He did not take Shi Yijian seriously; from beginning to end, his only enemy was himself.

That is why he was the God of Gamblers.

A few days later, the semi-finals were held as scheduled.

Compared to the preliminary rounds, the struggle in the semi-finals was even more tragic.

After all, there were more and more experts of the same caliber.

Several foreign experts also cut through the competition all the way.

Only to end up battered and bruised at the hands of Shi Yijian and Luo Wuming.

Fortunately, the two were not placed in the same group, otherwise, they would have had to decide who was better today.

Luo Wuming's brilliant performance finally attracted Shi Yijian's attention.

He had originally thought that his only opponent tonight was Gao Jin, but now it seemed he had to add one more to his target list.

Facing Shi Yijian's provocative gaze, Luo Wuming did not show any weakness either.

Although he had previously been an unknown street urchin, since he had arrived in this competition arena, he still wanted to show his own brilliance.

By the time the competition ended, it was already midnight.

After the list of those who advanced was announced, the peripheral betting markets underwent another wave of odds adjustments.

In the lounge upstairs, He Xin was chatting with Chen Jiajun: "You kid can always stir up such a big commotion every time; no wonder people all say you are a born businessman."

"As far as I know, your Shenzhou Technology Building in Longkou is almost finished, right? Are you planning another big move?"

Chen Jiajun shook his head and said: "Don't mention it. Business in the Mainland is still in its infancy, and the methods of doing things there are quite savage. I am still getting a headache over the issue of knock-offs."

He Xin suddenly brought up Shenzhou Technology, clearly wanting to get involved.

But Chen Jiajun did not want to agree to this request.

Other companies might be fine, but Chen Jiajun held great ambition for Shenzhou Technology and did not want to let anyone participate in his business.

So when He Xin asked, he deliberately played the victim.

He Xin took a puff of his Cigar and nodded. What Chen Jiajun said was about the same as what he understood; although the Walkman was profitable, knock-offs were also a very headache-inducing matter.

Increasing investment now was clearly a thankless task.

If one had that spare money, it would be more cost-effective to go to the Mainland and acquire some plots of land.

So after hearing Chen Jiajun's words, He Xin changed the subject and started chatting about the Lu Guo Group.

"This issue still needs to follow the policies; otherwise, it is very easy to suffer losses," Chen Jiajun shook his head and said: "If things go wrong, we will be the ones in trouble."

"Why do you keep asking about investments today? Is it that you have too much money and can't spend it all? Why don't I help you spend some? I am just looking to buy a yacht."

He Xin laughed and scolded upon hearing this: "You punk, you can't afford a yacht? I do have a sum of money on hand recently and want to invest it. I wanted to ask if you have any good opportunities?"

Last time, because of the Plaza Accord, he took a group of Big Bosses and earned quite a lot of money; now, everyone has a significant amount of capital in their hands.

Once they have money, the first reaction of these Big Bosses is to use money to make more money.

After all, the business of making money is addictive.

After pondering for a while, Chen Jiajun said to He Xin: "If you want to invest, I do have an idea. After some time, I will find a few Big Bosses to study it together."

He Xin immediately laughed: "Good. Based on your reputation, A Jun, I definitely won't be left out."

After finishing the chat about investments, He Xin said to Chen Jiajun: "Among the several candidates this time, who do you favor?"

Chen Jiajun smiled and said: "Need you ask? Of course, it is Shi Yijian."

He Xin clearly held the same view and nodded, saying: "But your friend's nephew seems quite good too, right?"

"Him?" Chen Jiajun said with a smile: "I have other arrangements."

"Other arrangements? Do you want to send that kid to Brunei?" He Xin said somewhat strangely: "Isn't it said that the casino opened in Brunei has already been run into a half-dead state?"

Chen Jiajun shook his head: "It is only those United States Gweilo who are half-dead; I haven't exerted my strength yet."

"Oh? The investment you mentioned earlier is related to this matter?" He Xin immediately became interested.

Although he did not know the relationship between Chen Jiajun and Li Yaohua, He Xin could feel that Chen Jiajun still had a lot of say in Brunei.

It was not just He Xin who saw it; many left-wing businessmen who had a good relationship with Chen Jiajun also saw it.

It was just that Chen Jiajun did not bring it up, so they found it hard to ask.

Chen Jiajun smiled and said to He Xin: "There is indeed a plan. Let me study it, and then I will bring it out to discuss with you and Nan Ge and the others."

Hearing Chen Jiajun say this, He Xin immediately nodded with a smile.

The semi-finals were over, and three days later would be the time for the finals.

During this period, all kinds of monsters and demons in Macau were in action.

Quite a few guys who lost their minds from losing were trying every possible way to stir up trouble, or rather, to influence the contestants.

But it did not have much effect; after all, this was Macau, He Xin's territory.

Anyone who dared to act recklessly would have to die.

Consequently, on the beach the next day, the seawater washed up a few unidentified corpses. Apart from the Macau Judiciary Police coming forward to perfunctorily investigate, it did not cause any ripples.

And those contestants participating in the competition all stayed in the Portugal Hotel.

Outside forces did not yet have the ability to reach into the Portugal Hotel.

To prevent accidents, He Xin even arranged security personnel throughout the hotel.

The contestants' food was prepared by specialized people and delivered to the contestants' rooms under surveillance. (End of chapter)