After officially falling out with Shen Mengqing due to Yang Yuanyuan, that top-tier scheming bitch, we became like two people existing in displaced timelines within the establishment.
Except for our private quarters, whenever we were in the public areas, if she appeared, I would inevitably find an excuse to leave, and vice versa.
Because the casino operated on a continuous shift system, no one noticed this situation.
Ruichi's operating hours were from 9:18 AM sharp to open its doors to guests, and then after 3:00 AM the following morning, staff would be dismissed in batches depending on the night's specific circumstances.
Of course, those in the second echelon, like my dark lamp group, were not required to participate in the continuous shifts or the staggered dismissals.
We only needed to report in and show our faces before 3:00 PM each day.
For the rest of the time, we were free to stay or leave as we pleased.
After all, our existence was to deal with sophisticated cheaters and the roving gangs of cheaters who traveled far and wide to make money.
For ordinary small fry, regular dark lamps could handle them.
Moreover, any cheater who could remain in the establishment long-term, no matter how mediocre, would certainly be stronger than the average cheater outside.
And so, after a week of pretending not to know each other...
It was the first day of the National Day holiday.
Before the National Day long break began, Shen Mengqing had held a meeting to inform us that the seven days of National Day were a golden period for customer traffic, and she asked all of us to try our best not to take leave.
Furthermore, she requested that the members of the dark lamp group come in earlier during these days to help with surveillance.
Everything has two sides.
While more people meant booming casino business, it also signified a mixed crowd, where all sorts of unsavory characters could appear.
That's why, just past ten o'clock today, I arrived at the establishment early.
Since there was nothing to do in my rented room, either being dragged by Cheng Minglang to be a human punching bag for sparring, or being driven to the brink of a mental breakdown by Han Jinlun's full-bodied, enthusiastic, and flirtatious calls of "Ge" (brother), it was better to come to work, at least it was very free.
Moreover, I had previously heard Shen Mengqing say that Yun Jin would occasionally visit to show appreciation to the employees during the National Day period.
For me, this was the most important thing.
So, as soon as I arrived, I changed my clothes and prepared to patrol the floor first, thinking, what if Yun Jin happened to visit...
...
Under normal circumstances, during the time before noon, there was only one type of guest in the casino.
Gamblers!
Just like when an arcade opens early in the morning, those who are eager to get in are the ones who lost money playing gambling machines and are desperate to win it back.
Besides them, the entire establishment was basically filled with dealers of popular card games, and male and female service staff.
Dealers were responsible for their assigned gaming table areas, organizing, cleaning, storing, and tidying.
As for the service staff, they were either sweeping and mopping to clean, or maintaining and counting chips.
Any casino, when opening for business the next day, would have meticulously inventoried its chips in advance.
Chips, in the eyes of ordinary people, were just plastic with numbers printed on them.
But in the eyes of the casino and all the guests, they were real money, more valuable than anything!
Just as I was walking to the bar and chatting with a service staff member who was counting chips, a figure... instantly caught my attention.
A woman with a rather pretty profile, without exchanging any chips, walked directly into the side hall area where the gambling machines were located, carrying her bag.
I had seen many men of different age groups become addicted to gambling machines, from young ones of fourteen or fifteen to elderly gentlemen in their sixties or seventies...
Basically, as soon as the establishment opened, they would rush to exchange a hundred or two hundred yuan in coins.
Then, armed with bread, biscuits, and mineral water, they would head straight for their familiar gambling machine.
Once seated, they would either be beaming with joy from winning or crying their eyes out from losing.
Among them, I had never seen any woman, especially a young and pretty one, come to play gambling machines so early in the morning.
Although I had doubts in my heart, I didn't pay too much attention.
After all, the win or loss on the gambling machines in the establishment could be controlled by us at will.
Even if this woman had a problem, it wouldn't matter.
With just the press of a button, she could lose all her hard-earned money from half a day in one go!
Just as I was about to leave, the woman playing the fishing game suddenly looked up towards the bar and pointed at me, saying, "Hey, you! Yes, you, come here for a moment!"
The moment I heard the pretty woman call me, a bad feeling immediately arose in my heart.
Why call me instead of a service staff member?
It was obvious this woman had a problem!
If I guessed correctly, she must have recognized me instantly by my clothes, knowing that I was a dark lamp employed by Ruichi.
Under normal circumstances, casinos would issue uniforms to dark lamps so that service staff and dealers could easily identify them.
The so-called uniforms were merely clothes of a single color.
You must understand that the flow of people in a casino is terrifying, and matters like catching cheaters are a matter of seconds.
Although walkie-talkies could be used, any knowledgeable cheater would carry a miniature signal jammer on their person.
Therefore, when the walkie-talkie signal was jammed, dealers and service staff often directly called out to dark lamps based on the single-colored clothing they wore.
To put it bluntly, anyone who could recognize a dark lamp at a glance without being privy to insider information... was no ordinary person!
However, before the situation fully unfolded, adhering to the principle of "the customer is God," I still walked over as requested. I wanted to see what tricks this woman, who was highly suspected of being a fellow dark lamp, was planning.
As soon as I reached the pretty woman's side, I heard her say directly without looking up, "Do you have a light?"
Hearing this, I looked down.
I saw that between the index and middle fingers of the woman's slender and fair right hand, she held a cigarette, a "520," with red lipstick prints on both the top and bottom.
Excellent! The details were very precise!
Seeing this, I calmly took out a lighter from my pocket and handed it to the pretty woman.
After using my lighter to ignite the "520" cigarette with the red lipstick prints, the pretty woman then casually tucked the lighter into her handbag.
Undoubtedly, this was the behavior of a seasoned smoker!
However, I didn't pay much attention.
Compared to these insignificant small gestures, I was more concerned about what the pretty woman would do or say next...
Just as I was lost in thought, the pretty woman suddenly spoke again.
"Please tell Shen Mengqing for me."
"Tell her that I, Luo Qiwen, have returned!"
"Tomorrow night at nine o'clock, I will officially challenge your Ruichi on behalf of Boss Ding's Red Sun Casino!"
Upon hearing this, I immediately realized that someone was coming to cause trouble!
And the target was very clear, directly aimed at Shen Mengqing!