Chapter 185: Money Game (22)

Cheng Zhao did not believe in coincidences. On the wealth rankings, both he and He Yu had assets of 800 billion. It was already an incredible coincidence that his own fortune came to a perfectly round 800 billion, but He Yu had exactly 800 billion as well?

He had successfully completed his robbery in the early hours of the morning, and his assets had already changed to 800 billion then.

He Yu’s settlement had only been completed at eight this morning. Not one credit more, not one credit less—exactly the same 800 billion as his. Cheng Zhao found it difficult to believe there was nothing strange going on.

—He Yu was deliberately keeping his assets at the same figure as his.

And because it was deliberate, Cheng Zhao understood that He Yu was reminding him of something—and also making him take the initiative to contact him.

The two of them were competitors. They had not contacted each other for twenty days, each fighting on their own track. Whoever contacted the other first would be the one showing weakness.

Damn He Yu!

He was deliberately tempting him into showing weakness!

And yet Cheng Zhao had no choice but to do exactly that.

Feeling extremely stifled, Cheng Zhao glared at He Yu, then crouched on the ground with an aggrieved expression.

He Yu was still in the casino. He sat lazily in a chair, his gaze sweeping over Cheng Zhao as his hoarse voice mercilessly mocked him: “Have you taken a look at yourself? You really look like a beggar.”

His eyes contained no emotion, yet they somehow conveyed the message, “You’re burning my eyes.”

Cheng Zhao: “...”

He carefully examined He Yu and saw that the other man was wearing a black suit with a white shirt underneath, the top two buttons undone. Although the clothes had acquired a few faint wrinkles after an entire night of battling at the gambling table, he still looked aloof and noble, like an elegant young master from a prestigious family.

Then he looked down at himself.

His clothes were in tatters, his body was covered in blood, and his hands were smeared with filthy bloodstains mixed with faint traces of dust. He raised a hand and wiped his cheek with the back of it, only making the back of his hand even blacker...

Cheng Zhao fell silent, beginning to seriously question his life.

—Direct robbery was supposed to be the fastest way to make money, right?

—Then why had he reduced himself to this state, while the gambler had made money even faster than him and was still fucking spotless, without a single injury?

[Bullet Screen: “Hahahahaha, I suddenly think He Yu is completely right. Cheng Zhao really does look like a beggar.”]

[Bullet Screen: “Think back to when He Yu first arrived on Money Planet. He Yu was the beggar, while Cheng Zhao was the wealthy heir. Now that the instance is nearly over and they’ve spent twenty days here, the two of them seem to have completely switched places.”]

[Bullet Screen: “Don’t talk nonsense. Cheng Zhao is still someone with 800 billion in assets. He’s the richest man on Money Planet! (Even if he doesn’t really look like it)!]

Looking exactly like someone who scavenged trash, or perhaps a “hero of the greenwood,” Cheng Zhao said indignantly: “Is this really the time to talk about that?! Tell me, what exactly are you trying to do? What are you trying to say?”

He Yu tapped his fingers against the table. His eyes narrowed slightly, as though he were looking at Cheng Zhao, yet also as though he were not looking at him at all. His voice was faint and distant: “Cheng Zhao, the two of us can no longer determine a winner.”

Both of them had 800 billion, leaving an enormous gap between themselves and the wealthy people of Money Planet. It could be said that more than half of all the wealth on the entire planet was now in their hands.

The other wealthy people could not kill them, either. Under these circumstances, all of them would be extremely afraid of the two.

On Money Planet, money determined status.

The two of them were already tied for first place. It would still be easy for Cheng Zhao to continue robbing people, and He Yu could also continue making money.

But—

How were they supposed to determine the winner?

How could either of them satisfy the rules and completely crush the other in terms of assets?

Neither of them could pull far enough ahead of the other.

The very moment the two of them tied for first place meant that it had become impossible for them to determine a winner.

Cheng Zhao actually understood that as well. That was also why, after seeing that He Yu had 800 billion, he had instead stopped feeling anxious.

Still crouching on the ground, Cheng Zhao looked at He Yu and asked seriously: “So, what do you want to do?”

He Yu smiled, his almond-shaped eyes curving as his voice filled with temptation: “Let’s make one enormous bet. Just the two of us, fair and impartial. The stakes—800 billion.”

That meant whoever won would completely crush the other.

After all, the loser’s assets would fall to zero. Catching up again would be absolutely impossible.

Cheng Zhao instantly narrowed his eyes in disbelief: “You want me to gamble against you? Are you kidding me?”

—With He Yu’s skill, could he possibly win?

—What kind of joke was this?!

He Yu was the casino owner. If Cheng Zhao entered a high-stakes gamble against He Yu, he would be seeking death.

Cheng Zhao was not stupid. He suspected that He Yu thought he was.

“You choose the location. You make the playing cards. You establish the rules of the game. You act as the dealer. You deal the cards.” He Yu’s voice was calm, and his eyes contained no emotion.

Cheng Zhao froze.

The casino had been causing an enormous stir all this time. How could he possibly not have studied gambling methods? They were not especially difficult, and Cheng Zhao already knew how to play. Because of He Yu, he had even specifically researched how to win.

Therefore, he knew that He Yu was showing plenty of sincerity.

Licking his somewhat cracked lips, Cheng Zhao asked him: “Why are you in such a hurry?”

He Yu paused slightly, then lowered his eyes, his voice calm: “Because a certain fellow may have run into trouble. We need to settle this quickly.”

Cheng Zhao’s brows knitted together, but he said nothing.

Only after a long while did he suddenly shout: “Fine! We’ll gamble! I’ll choose the location, bring the cards, and establish the rules. We meet at six this evening. I’ll notify you once I’ve decided on the location.”

He Yu nodded: “All right.”

After that, the two fell silent, but the connection remained open.

He Yu: “Why aren’t you moving?”

Cheng Zhao: “...My injuries are a little serious. I can’t stand up.”

He Yu: “...”

Expressionlessly, he cut off the connection and disappeared from Cheng Zhao’s sight. Cheng Zhao clicked his tongue twice and complained in exasperation: “You’re seriously too heartless. You couldn’t even say a few words to show some concern...”

After speaking, he braced himself and climbed to his feet, put away his long whip, laboriously released his flying equipment, and crawled onto it.

[Bullet Screen: “Tsk, you were expecting He Yu to care about you? Dream on.”]

[Bullet Screen: “That’s the ruthless man from the Four-Kill CP.”]

[Bullet Screen: “I don’t ship Blue Eyes. God He and Zhen Xing are the perfect match.”]

[Bullet Screen: “He Yu is ruthless, and Cheng Zhao has become ruthless too. He even dares to accept a high-stakes gamble like this. They’re gambling with their lives. Everyone who follows He Yu gradually turns into a lunatic willing to stab themselves.”]

The wealth of Money Planet was concentrated in the hands of He Yu and Cheng Zhao. The class gap between wealthy people and ordinary civilians no longer meant anything, because in front of He Yu—

Everyone was poor.

There was still an entire day before the time He Yu had agreed upon with Cheng Zhao, so He Yu did several more things.

He opened multiple casino branches in various cities and lowered the threshold for entering them. Basically, as long as someone had one credit in their pocket, they could enter a casino and gamble once.

It was almost possible to imagine that, from now on, everyone on Money Planet would repeatedly jump back and forth between the identities of “wealthy person” and “poor person.”

In the past, it had been extremely difficult for the poor to become wealthy, while the wealthy exercised absolute dominance over the poor.

Now, a poor person might instantly become wealthy, while a wealthy person might instantly become poor.

Bullying the poor?

You dared to bully poor people while you were wealthy, but once you became poor—or once the poor person you bullied became richer than you...

Oh-ho, then you were finished.

Little Stone understood what He Yu intended. His feelings were extremely complicated as he looked at He Yu. “Then in the future, will Money Planet undergo earth-shattering changes?”

He Yu corrected him: “No. Money Planet has already undergone earth-shattering changes.”

From the moment Cheng Zhao began selling the <Combat Power Improvement Course>, <Equipment Forging Course>, and <Potion Manufacturing Course>, which had previously been monopolized by the wealthy, poor people gained the possibility of leaping into the wealthy class, and the status of the wealthy came under attack.

Under those circumstances, the only solution was to become even richer.

And then He Yu opened the casino. Those who wanted to become richer entered it. They might succeed and become even wealthier, but there was a much greater chance that they would lose everything.

Refuse to enter the casino no matter what?

Not everyone was Patriarch Bray. To the people of Money Planet, who valued wealth as much as their lives, it was absolutely impossible to watch someone who had once been on the same level as them suddenly become far wealthier.

Even among ten people from the same social class, if one person refused to gamble, eight lost everything, and one became rich overnight, the person who had not gambled would only stare at the one who had “become rich overnight.”

That was simply how the people of Money Planet were.

And so, this became a closed loop—a loop that had already formed long ago, beginning from the moment He Yu and Cheng Zhao started making money.

—The people of Money Planet would repeatedly jump back and forth between having money and having none.

Little Stone understood. His voice carried a hint of uncertainty: “In other words, from now on... class oppression on Money Planet may not be as severe as it is now?”

He Yu pushed up his glasses and answered with perfect composure: “Barring any accidents, yes.”

For some inexplicable reason, Little Stone’s eyes grew slightly wet. He inhaled deeply, his voice trembling faintly: “He Yu, you’re a good person.”

He Yu: “?”

He gave Little Stone a strange look, then stood up with a calm expression. “I’ll take that as a compliment. Thank you. Although I am not a good person.”

After speaking, he straightened his clothes and walked out of the room.

The corners of Little Stone’s mouth rose into a smile. For the first time, the ten-year-old boy from Money Planet revealed a somewhat innocent smile, making him look exceptionally different.

 Six in the evening.

He Yu appeared punctually at the location Cheng Zhao had chosen. In fact, Cheng Zhao had not selected somewhere especially far away. He had chosen a plaza near City A, making it very convenient for He Yu to reach.

It was not yet six, but the place was already packed with people. Anyone on Money Planet with even the slightest status had appeared.

—There was no helping it. He Yu and Cheng Zhao were watched at every moment, and the news of their wager had not been concealed. Naturally, it spread across the entire Money Planet immediately.

Who would not be curious?

This was far more thrilling than Kuer challenging the top-ranked person on the wealth rankings. After all, Kuer had not possessed 800 billion.

None of them possessed 800 billion, but they wanted to witness someone win or lose 800 billion in a single game. What kind of concept was that? Eight hundred billion decided in a single game!

After repeatedly failing to assassinate the two of them, the remaining wealthy people of Money Planet surprisingly did not send anyone to attack them again this time. They all obediently waited in the plaza, eager to witness this unprecedented gamble.

—This enormous wager deserved to be recorded in the history of Money Planet.

As long as they did not approach the center of the plaza, Cheng Zhao did not care who watched.

No one knew what he had been doing throughout the day, but he had not even changed his clothes. He was still wearing the same tattered outfit, his body stained with blood and wounds still visible on his face.

He had placed a long table in the center of the plaza, with a deck of playing cards lying in the middle. He sat at one end of the table, waiting for He Yu to arrive.

At the exact moment the clock struck six.

He Yu appeared. Today, he wore a black tailcoat, fitted black trousers, and a black upper garment that outlined his flawless figure. As he walked, the tails of his coat swayed faintly.

His white shirt was buttoned all the way up, with a black bow tie fastened beneath his collarbones.

A pair of white gloves completed the look perfectly, making him appear even more noble.

His hair was combed back, fully revealing his beautiful face. Rimless glasses rested on the bridge of his nose. A smile touched his thin lips, his expression gentle, yet his eyes remained completely still.

His black leather shoes struck the ground with crisp “tap, tap, tap” sounds.

He walked toward them step by step with a smile, neither hurried nor slow, eternally noble and languid.

Behind him, Little Stone followed as usual, carrying his black case. However, once they approached the long table, he stopped. He Yu alone continued forward and sat opposite Cheng Zhao.

The two sat facing each other, their gazes meeting.