"Indeed, Shi Jianguo's next sentence instantly dispelled my doubts.
'Take a message to Xiao Diao for me. Tomorrow night at 8 PM, I'll be waiting for him at the Red Sun Bathhouse.'
'Don't be late.'
Hearing this, I showed no emotion on my face and replied coldly, 'Alright.'
Just as I was about to head downstairs, Shi Jianguo suddenly lit another Yuxi cigarette and asked with a deep gaze, 'Kid, what's your name?'
'Da Jianming,' I replied crisply.
'Da Jianming, is it? Three days from now, we'll be in the same spot, playing Golden Flower again.'
'Ten to fifty. How about it?'
Shi Jianguo's words stunned me. I stood there frozen, speechless.
Ten to fifty, with normal wins and losses starting at ten thousand. What on earth did this guy want?
Seeing my silence, Shi Jianguo exhaled a long plume of smoke and said slowly, 'What? You can win, but I can't win back?'
'I, Shi Jianguo, am famous for never letting vengeance wait overnight!'
'If it weren't for Xiao Diao introducing you, and it being your first time here, do you think I would have let you walk away after you won so much money from me today?'
'If you don't come in three days, I'll demand the 8,000 yuan you won from me from Xiao Diao! And he'll have to pay me double!'
'Not only that, but I'll also break one of his legs!'
Hearing this, I immediately understood.
They couldn't win against me in a two-on-one, so they were planning to pin it all on me!
Smiling noncommittally, I looked at Shi Jianguo and retorted, 'Brother Shi, if I don't come, are you really planning to break Xiao Diao's leg?'
Shi Jianguo replied with a cold expression, 'Of course! When I, Shi Jianguo, say something, my word is my bond!'
'If you dare not come in three days, breaking Xiao Diao's leg is secondary. As long as you're still in Anhai County, I guarantee... I'll kill you then!'
Shi Jianguo's seemingly domineering yet utterly unreasonable statement left me stunned for a while before I recovered and said, 'Alright! Then I'll see you in three days.'
Before I stepped downstairs, I suddenly turned back to Shi Jianguo and said, 'Brother Shi, can I ask you one more question?'
'Go ahead,' Shi Jianguo replied with a stern face.
'Regardless of who wins or loses, will the card game in three days be the last one between us?'
As soon as I spoke, I saw Shi Jianguo looking at me with extremely complex eyes.
There was a hint of surprise, but more so indifference, disdain, and contempt.
At that moment, before he could even answer, I understood. This ruffian was likely going to latch onto me like this!
After a long while, Shi Jianguo finally replied coldly, 'That's for sure! I, Shi Jianguo, always keep my word!'
'In three days, if I still can't win back what I lost, then it's fate! You're meant to win from me.'
'Alright! See you in three days then.'
I didn't waste any more words with him. I tossed the cigarette butt at my feet, stomped it out, and walked downstairs without looking back...
I originally thought that if I could walk out of the chess and card room safely, it meant that Shi Jianguo at least had some credibility.
At the very least, he hadn't played any dirty tricks before the second card game arrived.
But what I didn't expect was that Shi Jianguo's understanding of 'vengeance not waiting overnight' was completely different from mine!
Less than five minutes after I walked out, I was cornered in a small alley by five or six young hoodlums who had chased after me.
I had seen the leader of these hoodlums before; he was one of the thugs who had chased that female pickpocket with Shi Jianguo yesterday.
The young hoodlum, who looked to be in his early twenties, swaggered with an arrogant and uninhibited gait, staring at me with a cold smile, "Little brat, I heard you're quite rich! Lend us ten or eight thousand to spend!"
It was called borrowing, but it was actually extortion.
"I don't have money, you've got the wrong person!"
This was my first encounter with such a situation in society, and although I was a little flustered, I refused to back down with my words.
There was no choice! Who told me I was young?
As the saying goes: If a young person isn't spirited, are they still young?!
In any case, I had already made up my mind: no money, but I'd give my life!
I didn't believe that in broad daylight, under the clear sky, Shi Jianguo would actually dare to instigate his subordinates to cause a death on the street!
However, even though I thought that, my legs still visibly weakened when I saw that these guys were all holding sticks.
It was obvious that if I didn't pay, a beating was inevitable.
Hearing my words, one of the hoodlums with a non-mainstream hairstyle said viciously, "Stop the nonsense, let's just pin him down!"
The non-mainstream hoodlum's words made my eyes freeze sharply.
Damn it! It turns out it's not just about extortion! This is outright robbery!
If these bastards really dared to lay hands on me, I really couldn't be sure how ruthless they were.
So, I quickly backed away.
Seeing me preparing to escape, the leading young hoodlum waved his hand fiercely and shouted loudly, "Brothers, get him!!!"
Seeing them all charging at me menacingly, I quickly turned and ran for my life, sprinting with all my might!
Although I was a cheat, my strength lay in my youth and vigor.
In this moment of crisis, I managed to unleash a bit of my potential and ran ahead of them like a bolt of lightning.
Anhai County in 2008 was in a state of rebuilding. Apart from scattered shops, most of the surrounding areas were empty lots overgrown with weeds, offering very little concealment.
It was the late spring and early summer season. After running for about seven or eight minutes, I was already on the verge of exhaustion.
As for the group of young hoodlums behind me, they were all with drooping heads, panting with their tongues hanging out like dogs, still closely following me.
No! I couldn't keep running aimlessly like this! If I continued, I'd be completely worn out!
To completely shake them off, I ran directly towards a small building under construction not far away.
The small building had a geographical advantage, which I could use to shake off those dogs.
It was evening, and the construction workers had gone home. The unfinished building was only enclosed by green safety nets.
Easily breaking through the barriers, I immediately began climbing the stairs with all my might.
After climbing less than three floors, my legs felt so heavy I could barely lift them, and my body felt like it was on fire, with a stinging pain.