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Chapter 78: “Haven’t you pressed enough?”
Shen Ti’s words are hard not to associate with deeper meanings.
Amy stared at the two of them. Just by looking at these two men, it was already hard not to let one’s imagination run wild. After all, whether in terms of appearance, body, or temperament, these two men standing together in a crowd felt like a pair—well-matched indeed. Now Shen Ti was flirting here, saying something with rich implications—who wouldn’t think more about it?
An Wujiu was not angry when he heard this sentence.
He himself was very surprised that he was not angry.
But at this critical moment, there was not much time for him to be surprised. He decided to go all the way and simply followed Shen Ti’s words, putting on an even more stimulating show.
An Wujiu deliberately put on a distressed expression and sneered, “Haven’t you pressed enough?”
When these words came out, Shen Ti almost couldn’t control his expression.
When did I ever press?!
Amy couldn’t control herself; her mouth opened wide.
No, God, what kind of incredible thing did I just hear?
She couldn’t help but draw a cross on her chest and then continue to perk up her ears to listen.
“Stop saying such outrageous things at the card table. You like to talk, but I have to choose the occasion to listen.” An Wujiu’s actions were very much like someone having their bedroom secrets exposed, trying to save face. He looked down at the cards in his hand and said, “I don’t want this hand; pass.”
After saying that, he stretched his neck a bit to look over at Maguire and called out to him.
Maguire looked over.
“Can I borrow a cigarette?” An Wujiu spoke softly, his eyes flickering and his tone ambiguous.
Smoking now??
Shen Ti really couldn’t keep up the act.
Maguire was originally annoyed because of what happened before, but now a beauty was asking him for something. This rare face smiled at him like this, making all the beauties he had seen before pale in comparison; their faces were no longer remembered.
So he still pretended to be magnanimous, took out a cigarette case from the inside pocket of his jacket, pulled out a cigarette, and handed it to him, “You smoke?”
“Of course.” In fact, An Wujiu had never smoked before, but he still stretched out his hand, his fair arm swaying in front of him, captivating. He took the cigarette and smiled at him, “And I need to borrow your lighter too.”
Maguire immediately obeyed and handed over the lighter. An Wujiu used it to light the cigarette in his hand, took a puff, and exhaled a cloud of smoke. Then he placed the lighter on the table and pushed it with his fingers, letting the small item naturally slide in front of Maguire.
“Thanks,” An Wujiu said in English.
Amy was so engrossed in the show that she almost forgot to play her cards. She pulled her thoughts back, looked at her hand, and said, “I don’t want Shen Ti’s four Js either, pass.”
She turned her head to look at Zhou Yijue, whose eyes were fixed on An Wujiu.
Could he also be captivated?
It seems beauty still works like a charm these days.
In fact, Zhou Yijue was observing. He wanted to know what the relationship between these two really was. If An Wujiu’s calm composure was just an act, and this moment revealed his true self, then it was possible that they really did have that kind of relationship.
After all, when they first sat at the table, there was a lot of ambiguity between the two, albeit covert.
In the end, physical relationships are the easiest to betray.
“I don’t want them either,” Zhou Yijue said softly.
He was calculating that if An Wujiu’s intelligence was accurate and Shen Ti did indeed have more than four twos, dismantling his own hand to counter him would definitely be overturned by Shen Ti’s twos, a complete waste of cards.
So he simply decided to pass.
It was Maguire’s turn. Before he could speak, he heard Shen Ti’s cold laugh, as if mocking him for something.
“What are you laughing at?”
Shen Ti shrugged, “Nothing, just suddenly thought of an old saying.”
Maguire naturally didn’t understand his roundabout remark. He first said he would pass, then asked, “What saying?”
“A toad wants to eat swan meat.” Shen Ti’s drawl was lazy, “Four Js, and none of you want them…”
“Say that again!”
“You’re too easily angered,” Shen Ti didn’t pretend to be weak this time, nor did he smile. When he wasn’t smiling, his face looked very cold, “Lost a lot of money in the casino, haven’t you?”
As Shen Ti spoke, he picked up the gun lying beside him and carefully wiped it, his cold green eyes fixed on the barrel. Continuing from where he left off, he said:
“Since An Wujiu gave me this script, I’ll play along.”
“Especially what I’ve tasted… you’re not even worthy of a glance.”
“You!”
Amy felt a thrill in her heart but kept trying to smooth things over, “Everyone, calm down, let’s play cards, let’s play cards.”
Taking advantage of the time the two spent talking, An Wujiu memorized all the cards on the table, but upon hearing Shen Ti’s words, his heart inexplicably skipped a beat.
This guy usually jokes around to a neurotic extent and rarely shows such a fierce side. Now he seemed like a lone wolf guarding its food, unwilling to rest until he tore a piece of flesh from his opponent.
Even though he knew this was just Shen Ti playing along with him to destabilize Maguire’s mindset.
No one wanted the cards for a round, so Shen Ti started a new one.
He guessed that Maguire, under such ridicule, didn’t take his four Js, likely unwilling to break up his high cards.
Zhou Yijue didn’t want them either. As a cautious and suspicious person, he was probably the same.
“Since everyone is giving me face, I’ll play a few more cards.” With that, he drew several cards from his collection of cards and tossed them into the center of the table.
“Five 7s,” he said.
But since the stage was set, it wouldn’t make sense not to continue the act.
An Wujiu took a harsh puff of his cigarette and pulled out a few cards from his hand: “Five Js.”
He turned his face and blew a white smoke ring at Shen Ti, which drifted ambiguously in the air between them, softly enveloping his handsome face.
“Sleeping with me once doesn’t make me your possession. Don’t mark your territory like a dog.”
Such cold words coming from such a beautiful face made him all the more alluring.
“If you really wanted to be with me, why did you take his emperor card just now?” An Wujiu raised an eyebrow.
Shen Ti lowered his head and laughed. On one hand, he felt An Wujiu was acting too well, too genuinely, making it hard for him to keep up. On the other hand, he found himself actually experiencing the emotions An Wujiu described.
He knew he truly intended to stake his claim and trap the person in front of him in his grasp.
“Taking the emperor card is what makes it a gamble,” Shen Ti laughed, a wickedness in his smile.
Amy called out “pass,” staring at the two of them.
These two really are alike sometimes.
“Five Qs.” Zhou Yijue threw his cards out.
In his mind, the credibility of both An Wujiu and Shen Ti was low; at least, he couldn’t trust them easily.
Initially, he had approached Maguire, telling him that if they kidnapped the little girl from the red team, An Wujiu would surely agree to this gamble. He would ostensibly ally with An Wujiu but secretly collude with Maguire. This way, the two of them could at least take down the currently leading red team.
But unexpectedly, it was Shen Ti who agreed and wanted two people to join in.
At that time, Zhou Yijue decided to bribe the dealer again, switching sides to Shen Ti and An Wujiu’s team, secretly abandoning his alliance with Maguire. Both of these men were winners of the preliminary match and were quite capable; it would be easier to win with them.
Whether it was An Wujiu’s or Maguire’s chips that were taken didn’t matter. Zhou Yijue, being a double-dealing traitor, only wanted to reap the benefits.
However, there were too many surprises. Maguire unexpectedly didn’t take the easily obtainable emperor card, causing their camp to split, and it was uncertain if the knight card was still with Amy.
But with Shen Ti playing, four out of five times Amy would pass, making his intent to go easy on her too obvious.
It was Maguire’s turn. After a series of humiliations, he threw out five kings and said, “I’ll take it.”
His anger was hard to quell, but this was a gamble; he had to calm himself and settle accounts later.
“So quick to play?” Shen Ti smiled, his brows full of mockery, “I pass.”
Seeing him pass, Maguire felt much better, thinking it should almost be his turn to lead the next round. After all, no one had taken the four Js Shen Ti played in the previous round.
“I’ve been thinking…” An Wujiu held a cigarette between his left index and middle fingers, his elbow resting on the table, his temple against his wrist, in a thoughtful pose.
“Isn’t there still a hidden knight card among us?” said An Wujiu.
Zhou Yijue remained expressionless but was surprised that An Wujiu was the first to bring up this card.
“Could it be for self-preservation?” An Wujiu looked up. “What I mean is, what if the emperor card and the guard card were dealt together at the beginning? He wouldn’t want to be alone in a camp, so he passed the emperor card to the next player. Only this way could he have an extra teammate. If that’s the case, who would suspect the person who gave up the emperor card when looking for the guard?”
Zhou Yijue frowned.
He had bribed the dealer and knew it was impossible for both cards to be dealt to Maguire.
But he suddenly thought of Amy’s magic tricks.
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Maguire was agitated.
An Wujiu pressed his palm down gently, “Calm down; I’m just proposing a hypothesis, because now I feel your animosity towards each other started too suddenly.”
He glanced at Shen Ti and said, “You even brought out a gun; maybe you’re using me as a diversion.”
These words made Shen Ti feel a bit aggrieved.
I took out the gun for you because I wanted to shoot him for you.
But he knew An Wujiu was performing, so he played along, snatching the cigarette from An Wujiu’s hand and bringing it to his own lips, “Do you think I would betray you for such a small amount of chips?”
“Who knows? People always prefer the new over the old.” An Wujiu shrugged, his smile exceptionally beautiful, “It doesn’t matter, keep playing. Eventually, someone will slip up.”
His voice lowered, “Those who betray others never meet a good end.”
After saying this, An Wujiu played a few cards, “Five As.”
Maguire, who thought he had a winning hand, was almost ready to curse. An Wujiu had effectively blocked his path with his final words.
“Why did you pretend you didn’t have any high cards before?”
“I pass,” said Amy. “I can’t afford to take it.”
Zhou Yijue said unhurriedly, “I pass too.”
“Pass,” Maguire said irritably.
Finally, it was back to Shen Ti. He smiled and elegantly flicked the ash from his cigarette with his index finger. “I pass too.”
“Then I’ll start the next round.”
An Wujiu glanced up; the top of the table displayed the current round number—it had changed from the fourth round to the fifth round.
“Let’s play something small,” An Wujiu said with a smile, drawing a card. “Everyone, play some cards.”
“Three 7s.”
“I’ll take it,” said Amy, playing her cards. “888, three eights.”
Zhou Yijue looked at his hand. He had too many higher cards, making them difficult to play if broken up, so he drew even larger cards.
“Three Ks.”
It was Maguire’s turn. His long-suppressed anger could only be vented through the cards. “Three As.”
As soon as he played his cards, Shen Ti whistled.
“Pass.”
An Wujiu also said “pass” following Shen Ti.
Finally having the initiative in his hands, Maguire was overjoyed. Just as he was about to play, a person wearing a yellow armband like his ran over, gasping for breath. When Maguire turned around, he saw it was the person he had arranged to guard the little girl.
“C-captain,” the man, bruised and battered, leaned in close to Maguire’s ear and whispered in a volume only Maguire could hear, “The little girl from the red team has been taken…”
“What happened?” Maguire demanded immediately.
“A guy came up with champagne, said he’d read our palms. We were just chatting when he suddenly knocked out Xiao Wang with a club. I was scared. There were four of them, and I couldn’t take them on…”
Even though An Wujiu couldn’t hear the conversation, he could guess what it was about.
They really did manage to rescue her. His scheming wasn’t in vain, after all.
Judging by the bruises on the messenger’s face, it seemed his men had indeed gone all out.
Zhou Yijue reminded him, “Mr. Ephron.”
Maguire turned back to the table, his frustration evident. He threw out two cards, “Pair of 8s.”
But immediately after playing, he regretted it.
He should have played more cards.
But once they were played, he couldn’t take them back.
“How small,” Amy said deliberately, “Could it be that you’re feeding cards to someone?”
Shen Ti purposely made a frowning face and tossed out his own cards, “Pair of Ks.”
From a pair of eights to a pair of kings… Zhou Yijue watched them closely.
Maguire played such a small pair, but Shen Ti immediately raised it to kings, clearly trying to block An Wujiu’s cards.
An Wujiu snorted coldly, “What did I say?”
He furrowed his brow and leaned back in his chair, “Turned against me right after the deed.”
“Are you really not planning to eat later?”
Author’s note:
Amy: I feel like I’m not just a card player; I’m a weasel jumping around in a melon patch.
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I like their acting in this arc ( ≧艸≦) scheming and sensual words, aiyo this reader is getting fed too many sugars.