The Awakened Red Rose [10]

That night in Mengyuan, a group of wealthy and playful young men were originally laughing and joking, lounging on the sofa, playing cards. However, as time passed, amidst the clinking of glasses and the sound of poker chips hitting the velvet-covered table, they were all silently cursing their luck.

In the center, a young man held a few cards in his hand, knees crossed, and in front of him was a pile of golden chips that accumulated like a mountain. It was quite infuriating, but the young man had an innocent and cute look on his small face. His pair of dark eyes even rolled around, and he spoke in a considerate tone, “Brothers, want to continue?”

The implied meaning: You’ve all lost your pants, and you still want to continue? Listen carefully, the young man’s tone carried a hint of pity.

Upon hearing this, Qu Yan, who was holding the cards, showed bulging veins on his hand. Grinding his molars, he said, “Bring it on!” Damn it, he refused to believe it! He had been playing cards since he was fifteen or sixteen, employing highly sophisticated cheating methods. However, unexpectedly, he had repeatedly lost to the young man. With chips worth a hundred thousand per round, he had already lost nearly three million tonight.

Not to mention the other brothers, one by one, they all ended up exclaiming that they couldn’t afford to play anymore. This kid from Brother Zhou’s family is too mysterious; he’s good at everything. As notorious troublemakers in the capital, they were known for their lack of morals, indulging in all vices. They often used these tactics to force compromises from each other’s lovers.

For the women, they played a strip game—losing a round meant removing an item of clothing. By the end, when the opponent was left with only intimate garments, their emotions generally collapsed. As for the men, they gambled with money, ranging from fifty thousand to a hundred thousand per round, forcing the other party into accumulating high debts, almost having to work as waiters in nightclubs.

They were already adept at these tricks.

Originally, that was their plan. So, at the beginning, they used a tone like, “Your brother Zhou has money; losing is no big deal. Let’s just have some fun,” encouraging the seemingly inexperienced youth who couldn’t even hold cards correctly to agree.

Seeing the hesitant agreement from the young man, everyone quickly gathered around, thinking that the show was about to begin. However, they ended up losing everything, including their underwear.

Damn it! Why did this happen!

However, they had spoken their words early on—losing meant paying up. Being people of integrity, they couldn’t go back on their word. So, one by one, they regretted deeply, feeling blue inside, wondering why they played cards with this kid. Why didn’t they just endure until the next day and use their expertise in swimming to humiliate him?

But Yin Minglu admired it. Zhou Jinheng and his bunch of idle buddies really played all sorts of tricks with the fifty-four poker cards. Originally, it started with a game of Truth or Dare, where the winner became the king, and the losers became slaves. These second-generation rich kids prepared various humiliating questions and actions for the youth. However, they ended up being bitten back. Clothes were taken off, pole dancing was performed, and their faces turned black.

In the subsequent games with money as the stakes, they ended up losing every last penny. Of course, they didn’t know that they were up against someone who had mastered poker to its peak in a past life—a little ancestor who had made a living and earned money by playing poker games and organizing competitions.

Yin Minglu never tired of playing the role of the pig eating the tiger, and he even had a modest expression on his face, saying, “I just got lucky.”

Zhou Jinheng advised him to quit while he was ahead, but Yin Minglu snorted, and with a cold gaze, he made the other party taste the consequences that many men and women had faced in the past.

Throughout the night, the young man amassed a large number of chips, causing this group of people to bleed heavily. Qu Yan, facing defeat for the second time, was advised by his good friend Zhou Jinheng to let it go, but he was unwilling.

“He plays cards better than Qiao An. Are you sure he’s really an orphan with both parents dead? It’s damn weird.” They couldn’t even match up to him in collective cheating. Qu Yan, holding his breath, acknowledged the young man’s skill. Despite losing a large sum, he felt that he had encountered a formidable opponent. When Qiao An first entered their line of sight with his mesmerizing shuffling skills, it was this skill that created the opportunity.

“Are you sure he can’t swim?” Qu Yan’s questioning gaze towards his good friend was now filled with suspicion, evidently thinking that his good friend and the young man were teaming up to scam him.

Zhou Jinheng himself was somewhat uncertain. He awkwardly said, “That’s what he claimed.” Little Rose said he couldn’t do anything, so he used to look down on him. But is it possible that this statement is just a form of modesty? Now, Zhou Jinheng wasn’t sure.

Nevertheless, he added, “Regardless of whether he can or cannot, don’t keep staring at him. He really isn’t here for my money. Otherwise, in the first half of the year, I treated him so poorly, and he didn’t run away.” He willingly supported and took care of him.

Qu Yan laughed heartily, as if he heard something amusing. “You believe that? It’s probably because you’ve been spending money on him lately that he hasn’t run away.” He firmly believed in his judgment, thinking that all the men and women getting close to their brothers were motivated by money and had ulterior motives.

This belief was why he helped Zhou Jinheng escape before the wedding in the past life, under the guise of supporting true love but actually because he had disliked the original host from the beginning, always believing that the other side was just after materialism.

Zhou Jinheng wanted to defend the young man a bit, but his good friend Qu Yan was dismissive and uninterested throughout. After confirming that the young man couldn’t swim, he waved his hand and left.

He had a conflict with the young man and decided to give him a hard time the next day. He knew that Qiao An was going back to his home country, and his good friend Zhou Jinheng used to like Qiao An. Qu Yan thought they were a perfect match and naturally had the idea of playing matchmaker. With the young man now staying by Zhou Jinheng’s side, didn’t he just become a nuisance? Qu Yan naturally wanted to make things difficult and break up this little couple.

Qiao An was different from ordinary people; he wasn’t motivated by money.

However, with Qu Yan’s deeply rooted belief in Qiao An’s good character, he received a text message from the Bank of America that night. Initially, he couldn’t figure out what it was, but after reading it a few times, he was shocked to realize that it was a debt statement under Zhou Jinheng’s name.

In essence, Qiao An owed a sum of money abroad, using a house and a car as collateral. Even after returning to the country, he planned to liquidate these assets. However, those houses and cars were under Zhou Jinheng’s name, and the bank had sent a notice specifically to inform him. Strangely, it was sent to his phone, and even other close brothers had received a copy.

Behind the dazzling fonts was a businesslike and icy attitude towards debt collection.

After Qu Yan read through the message multiple times, he grabbed his good friend’s collar in shock and exclaimed, “Have you been responsible for Qiao An’s expenses abroad all these years? Have you been supporting him?” He felt that his previous impression of Qiao An’s glamorous lifestyle was somewhat overturned.

Zhou Jinheng was well aware of the situation. He was just puzzled about how his text message ended up in a group broadcast. He replied, “You know his family situation is not good, and I’ve been providing him with financial support.”

Qu Yan, in a burst of anger, exclaimed, “Does supporting him require such a large amount of money? Who are you fooling? Why didn’t you tell me that you’ve been spending money on Qiao An?”

Zhou Jinheng, puzzled, responded, “What’s the need to say? I’m just supporting his expenses abroad; after all, he needs money there. Besides, Qiao An has never asked me for anything. I volunteered to help.”

This statement genuinely shocked Qu Yan. He hadn’t expected his good friend to play the fool so naturally. “Are you stupid? Haven’t you seen his huge bill? You’re even buying houses and cars for him?” The amounts in those bills were enormous, resembling those of wealthy heirs. How could this be a mere act of financial support? It looked more like he was maintaining a kept lover! He had wanted to set them up together, but now, thinking about it, both Qiao An and the young man seemed less than honorable. After all, how could they, knowing his brother’s feelings, still spend his brother’s money and live so lavishly abroad?

Upon hearing this, Zhou Jinheng furrowed his brows and defended Qiao An, saying, “It probably wasn’t him spending the money. As you know, he has a white girlfriend abroad who’s very materialistic, loving international luxury brands and frequently talking about trendy labels. Qiao An had no choice but to spend money on her.”

“Holy shit! Are you really under some kind of spell? You believe in such reasons!” The pile of men’s products on the bill—did he think Qu Yan was blind? Qu Yan shook his head in disbelief and suddenly asked, “When you said you bought a car and a house for your partner recently, what did you buy?”

Zhou Jinheng replied, “The house is the one in the city center. Although he didn’t want it, I transferred it to him. As for the car, he used his card to buy a QQ¹, and it’s still in the warehouse, untouched.” Zhou Jinheng had always been the one picking him up from work. The young man treated him like a driver, but he thought the young man just wanted to see him more every day to deepen their relationship.

“QQ?” Qu Yan was once again shocked and overturned. Their family’s driver at least drove a BMW. The young man was driving a QQ, sounding so thrifty. Many women had bags in their closets that cost more than that car. Could it be that everything he thought before was wrong? Was the young man genuinely in love with his brother and not after the money?

Otherwise, if he were the young man and had evidence of his partner’s emotional infidelity, he would make the other person bleed financially by buying a villa, luxury homes, and branded sports cars. How could he justify it to himself? However, the young man didn’t do that. Instead, it seemed like the so-called indifferent-to-materialism Qiao An was the one spending money lavishly abroad, treating his brother and him like fools.

Qu Yan felt that the amount of information tonight was overwhelming, and it was a bit hard to swallow. Especially since he seemed to have ruined someone’s night of “true love.” So, on his way back to his room, when he encountered the young man with the shy and bashful smile, his gaze became somewhat awkward.

The “test” seemed a bit difficult to continue at the moment. However, since the words were already out, retracting them wasn’t his style. He had to continue, albeit with some reluctance.

Because there were consequences for the loser, he thought about going easy on the punishment. However, the young man showed no intention of taking it easy. He demonstrated his swimming skills to the fullest, appearing as if he were a marine creature born to live in the water. The group of men in swim trunks couldn’t even compete, especially when he used elegant butterfly strokes and playful doggy paddles to humiliate them.

Not to mention, the young man was exceptionally skilled at fishing, as if born with an innate understanding of auspicious locations. With a quick flick of his fishing rod, he soon had prey biting the bait, showcasing his versatility. The experts in this field on the sidelines couldn’t help but praise him continuously, even engaging in discussions with the young man about fishing techniques. The words they had used earlier to humiliate the young man, claiming he knew nothing and wasn’t worthy of standing beside them, were thrown back at them. A poor lad was outperforming this group of wealthy individuals, making them feel ashamed and wishing they could go back to their mother’s womb for a fresh start. They felt like they had wasted their twenties.

Especially Qu Yan, who, for some reason, was suddenly pushed into the sea from the deck. When everyone was in a panic, the young man kicked a lifebuoy down, resolving the immediate crisis.

When they returned to the deck, Qu Yan felt an awkward and indescribable gratitude. He was completely won over by the young man. He sincerely said, “I wish you both well.” Among their companions, the young man was the only one who had passed the test, showed excellent character, and possessed numerous special talents. He truly deserved to be the partner of his brother.

Much better than Qiao An.

After saying that, Qu Yan glanced at his brother, Zhou Jinheng, and sincerely advised, “Live a good life together; this kid is worth it.” At least more worth it than Qiao An. He planned to delete the messages Qiao An had sent him. This time, he wouldn’t help Qiao An break up his good friend’s relationship. He also hoped his brother would cherish it and not get hung up on Qiao An again; a change would be good.

Finally gaining the “approval,” the young man lowered his head shyly. However, if Qu Yan went back and thought about it, he would realize that when he was pushed into the sea, the distance to the young man was only two body lengths. Moreover, when he was struggling in the water, thinking he might be done for, the person who casually threw a lifebuoy to him was also the young man.

Having dealt with both good and bad people and receiving thanks while gaining a good reputation, the person in front of him was the key to it all. Having resolved the troublemakers, Yin Minglu felt a slight sense of relief.

With his partner now acknowledged, Zhou Jinheng naturally felt joyful and proud. Moreover, he was also one of the people who had been impressed by the young man’s various talents. He smiled gently and said, “Minglu, you know so much. Why didn’t you tell me? And how are you so good at swimming? You swim better than professionals. I’m really impressed.”

Yin Minglu gave him a disdainful look in secret before “honestly” saying, “I started learning to swim at the age of three and a half, and I continued until I was eighteen. Naturally, I’m good at it.”

Well, that wasn’t entirely untrue.

Zhou Jinheng was surprised, and then an image appeared in his mind: a cute child with snowy skin, wearing little shorts, chubby arms clutching a swimming ring, determined to dominate the swimming pool. However, when the little chubby legs touched the water’s surface, the cold temperature made the small body shiver, and the child quickly fled the pool… Oops, can’t think about that, can’t think about it.

“You must have been extremely adorable when you were a child,” Zhou Jinheng affirmed. Before the young man could modestly respond, he continued in a somewhat emotional tone, “We should also have a child. I hope our child will be as cute as you were when you were little. As you know, our parents still oppose us being together. If we have a child, it might reassure them. Don’t worry, even though the child will have my blood, he will also treat you well. You will be the child’s second father for his entire life.”

“Once the child is born and can walk, we’ll get married.”

Like every man about to step into the wedding hall, Zhou Jinheng began to envision the challenging but fulfilling life of a family of three. However, Yin Minglu’s gaze turned cold, and he offered no response.

Having just spoken those words to the young man, Zhou Jinheng left. At that moment, he was genuinely excited. However, after changing his clothes, he unexpectedly heard from his friends that Qiao An was going back to his home country. His phone slipped from his grasp, and as he silently repeated that name, ripples of emotion stirred within him.

Author’s Note:
Certainly won’t be becoming a father this time.
Tomorrow’s update will still be in the evening because I have something during the day [bald].

Thanks to the little angels who voted for me or provided nutrient solutions~

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