Chapter 3: Brilliant Nightclub

  Shanghai is an international metropolis, and it did not lose its reputation as the "Oriental Pearl" just because of the Japanese occupation. When the Japanese army was rampaging in China, this place was still a bustling and prosperous area with bright lights and green wine. A rickshaw rushed to the most prosperous street in the concession, "Sir, this is the most prosperous place in the concession, where you can eat, drink, play and live, here's your change." The driver handed over a large handful of coins.

  "Alright, it's all yours." Zhao Zhi waved his hand and walked away, not because he was kind-hearted, but because he couldn't be bothered to count the crumpled up small change.

  Shanghainese, Zhao Zhi couldn't understand it, and just now with the rickshaw driver, they had to make a lot of gestures. Zhao Zhi, who was originally from Beijing's South City, was taken to America by his aunt when he was young, and Mandarin was also learned from his aunt in a Beijing accent. After joining the mercenaries, he fought all over the world, and his accent was a bit strange, but Zhao Zhi could speak many languages fluently.

  Since he couldn't understand Shanghainese, Zhao Zhi set his sights on places where foreigners often came and went. As he stood under the neon sign of a bar counting to 2000, a foreigner with a build similar to his own walked out of the bar.

  "It's you." Zhao Zhi's face revealed a strange smile, and he followed the foreigner from behind. Taking a look around to make sure no one was paying attention, Zhao Zhi took several swift steps forward, first striking the back of the foreigner's neck with his hand, then using both hands to support the foreigner's falling body as he dragged him into a small black alleyway.

  Ten minutes later, when Zhao Zhi walked out of the small alley, he was wearing a suit. He used the black silk clothes in his hand to wipe the leather shoes on his feet under the street lamp, and looked at them with satisfaction for several eyes before throwing away the black silk jacket. "Damn it, I didn't expect it to be quite suitable." Zhao Zhi adjusted the tie on his neck, touched the stack of cash he had just received in his pocket, and walked confidently towards the casino he had been eyeing for a long time.

  The magnificent nightclub, which is as high as four floors, is one of the few places in this area that can be counted as a golden cave. It provides a one-stop service for eating, drinking, playing and staying. The first floor is a restaurant, where you can find dishes from all over China and even Western food, as long as you can name it, the chef will make it for you. The second floor is a dance hall, where beauties from various countries gather together, with black hair and blonde hair. The third floor is the destination of Zhao Zhi's trip - the magnificent casino, where you can find all kinds of games, from Mahjong and dice to poker, as long as you dare to gamble, even your life can be used as a bet. The fourth floor is a hotel, with luxurious decorations in British royal style, customers who are tired of playing on the second and third floors can directly check-in on the fourth floor without leaving the magnificent nightclub.

  He pulled out a bill and handed it to the doorman, then fished a cigar from his pocket and lit up. The doorman hastily lit a lighter and approached him. With the cigar clutched between his fingers, Zhao Zhi puffed out a plume of smoke and walked into the grandeur. He strode up the stairs to the third-floor casino, where he was struck by the sheer number of people. "Wow, it's really crowded!" he exclaimed, feeling like he'd stepped into the Las Vegas of his past life.

  He beckoned a waiter over, and Zhao Zhi tossed a stack of cash into the tray, indicating for the waiter to exchange it for chips. Zhao Zhi secretly smiled to himself as he looked at the few red chips in his hand - these were the smallest denomination chips in the casino. The chips here were exchanged for US dollars, but Zhao Zhi had given them French currency, so when exchanged for dollars, he could only get less than $10 worth of chips. No wonder the waiter had looked at him with such a strange expression earlier - probably because he had never seen a customer who acted like a big shot with less than $10.

  Holding the chips, Zhao Zhi sat down at a Sic Bo table. This was one of his favorite gambling techniques in his past life. In his previous life, he had worked as a bodyguard for a Las Vegas casino tycoon for three years and often interacted with the dealers there. When he was bored, he would also learn some tricks from them. Over time, Zhao Zhi became an expert in gambling techniques. Although he had been exposed to mostly Western-style gambling methods, his specialty was still Sic Bo because he could "listen" to the dice.

  There were not many people in front of the dice table, only two or three little cats. Zhao Zhi needed to accumulate his bets here. He had lost three small bets in a row, each time with one chip. On the fourth bet, Zhao Zhi put all his remaining 5 chips on the triple five leopard, which was a 1:30 payout on this table. When the dice cup was opened, it indeed showed three fives. The people who had just been laughing at Zhao Zhi's random bets couldn't laugh anymore. A black chip worth 100 and 5 yellow chips worth 10 yuan each were pushed to Zhao Zhi by the dealer.

  "Sir, your aura is really good!" Along with the sound of her voice, a fragrance wafted into Zhao Zhi's nose. A beautiful woman wearing a sleeveless cheongsam stood beside him, with a delicate face like a lotus flower, slender eyebrows like willow leaves, and a smooth, fair complexion without a single blemish. The brightly colored silk cheongsam clung tightly to her plump, slender body, the high side slit revealing her shiny, sensual thighs. Her sparkling eyes seemed to hold a hint of unspoken longing, while her luxurious headpiece, earrings, necklace, bracelets, and rings all bespoke her noble status in this era.

  At the moment she met Zhao Zhi, Xie Xiuyun's heart was secretly shocked. This person seemed to exude a temperament that didn't belong to this era. Having seen countless people, she had never seen his kind of temperament before. Although he wasn't blessed with a handsome face like a pretty boy, he had a rough and bold outline, which could be said to be the face of a pure man. Especially those eyes as cold as stars were incredibly deep, making it impossible for anyone to see through what he was thinking. Coupled with his tall, sturdy, and majestic physique, there came an unstoppable masculine aura that rushed forth.

  She took a glance at the two eyes that were staring at her, Xie Xiuyun. "No good deed goes unpunished." Zhao Zhi muttered to himself, handing over a $10 chip to the dealer, "This is for you." He grabbed the remaining chips and changed tables, switching to a Blackjack table.

  A tall man in a black suit walked up to Xie Xiuyun and leaned down, "Miss Xie, what's wrong with that kid?" Xie Xiuyun shook her head, "No, I haven't figured it out yet, but he must be up to something. His betting method is just like an old casino hand, losing first then winning big." The man in the black suit was taken aback, as Xie Xiuyun was a renowned gambling expert brought back from Macau by the boss at great expense, and even she couldn't see through that person's intentions, which made things quite tricky.

  At this thought, Hei Xizhuang made a gesture, "Xie Miss, would you like me to take care of him for you..."

  "No, not yet. This person doesn't seem simple to me. You didn't see the look in his eyes just now. That gaze was like a knife cutting through life's hardships. And both of his hands have calluses on the tiger's mouth and index fingers, looking like someone who can shoot with either hand." Xie Xiuyun gazed at Zhao Zhi's back, her eyes becoming increasingly profound.

  "You're like that..." Xie Xiuyun whispered in the ear of the black suit, then waved her hand to let him leave. Xie Xiuyun had been staring at Zhao Zhi, and Zhao Zhi also felt someone was watching him, so he pretended not to know anything and sat down at the gambling table. "This gentleman, you are our casino's one millionth customer, this is a gift from our casino." A very pleasant-looking waitress handed a tray covered with red cloth in front of Zhao Zhi.