When I arrived, the card players Jiang Jinshan had invited were already in place, leisurely drinking tea, smoking, chatting, and boasting.
From their conversation, I could tell that these were all genuine bosses with substantial backgrounds and experience, not mere impostors pretending to be gamblers.
"Ahem, everyone here is a friend invited by me, Jiang Jinshan, so allow me to introduce you all."
As the host, Jiang Jinshan proactively and warmly began the introductions: "This is Boss Zheng, this is Boss He, and this is Boss Mao."
"As for this gentleman beside me, he is the young and promising Young Master Hu from Jiangsu Province."
As expected of an old fox seasoned in business, Jiang Jinshan played a little trick when introducing me.
He only told the card players who I was and where I was from, glossing over the most important information regarding my identity without even mentioning it.
It was clear that Jiang Jinshan had completely fallen into the trap, believing implicitly in the information he had inadvertently seen.
By not revealing my identity, he was keeping it to himself, not wanting others to develop flattering intentions towards me once they knew.
Merchants pursue profit, and if there's a chance for gain, they will try their best to hinder those who come after them, provided they are the first to approach.
Jiang Jinshan introduced all of us one by one, and I appropriately shook hands and greeted his card-playing friends.
For a moment, the atmosphere in the private room was cordial and harmonious.
The reason I didn't appear nervous was that when I was learning from Uncle Tuo in my youth, I had already witnessed what true "momentum," or aura, was.
The so-called "momentum" is essentially one's presence.
People born with natural charisma are not nonexistent, but they are extremely rare, perhaps one in a million.
The aura of most successful individuals is formed through years of accumulated training and refinement.
If you spend enough time with such people, through constant exposure and subtle influence, even if you can't replicate their aura, you will at least not be intimidated when you venture out into the world.
After we exchanged some business pleasantries, Jiang Jinshan promptly invited everyone to sit down and brought out the pre-prepared chips.
Indeed, it was a boss's game, exactly as Uncle Tuo had described!
While boss games involve cash gambling, the cash itself doesn't circulate on the gambling table. Instead, it's used for settlement and accounting after the game, off the table.
To avoid any misunderstandings, let me explain briefly.
A true boss game uses chips for on-table play and cash for off-table settlement.
This means equivalent chips represent cash on the table, and equivalent cash is taken away off the table, representing the chips.
Throughout the gambling session, the cash is kept in a secure location by the host and never brought to the table.
It is then brought out for exchange once the game concludes.
The purpose of this method is twofold: first, it's inconvenient to use large amounts of cash for gambling; second, it reduces complications and prevents many unexpected situations from arising.
When large sums of cash are involved in a game, if someone loses their temper or an outsider becomes envious and makes a report, the informant can receive a reward upon a successful bust.
This reward isn't just a banner and five hundred yuan, but thirty percent of the total gambling funds for that session.
Among the lower eight divisions of the Thousand Doors, there are those who specifically make a living this way, posing as bosses to participate in gambling games and then reporting them for a commission.
Sometimes, the informant's commission can be as high as fifty percent.
As for the reasons behind this, those who understand, understand.
Getting back to the matter at hand.
After briefly explaining the rules, Jiang Jinshan, acting as the host, proceeded to have the cash brought by each of us opened and verified.
Then, he placed the boxes containing the collected cash into a hidden compartment beneath the specially modified bed in the private room.
From this, it was evident that Jiang Jinshan had a close relationship with the owner of the Four Seasons Hotel.
The fact that they could transform a private room in a KTV into a hotel-style suite and add a bed with a hidden compartment underneath spoke volumes.
With such meticulous security measures, if anyone were still able to successfully report them, it could only be an insider.
...
After hiding all the money boxes, Jiang Jinshan immediately said, "Alright, we can begin!"
"Young Master Hu, you play mahjong with my friends for a while, and I'll keep watch for you!"
According to the rules of boss games that Uncle Tuo had taught me, the host cannot directly participate in the game. They must first act as a lookout.
This is done to minimize risk.
In reality, Jiang Jinshan didn't need to be so cautious; it was a bit excessive.
As long as the three card players he invited were reliable, there was no need to worry about any problems on my end.
Because I am a cheat. Cheats don't care about the meager benefits of reporting gambling games.
Hearing Jiang Jinshan say this, I chuckled and replied, "I'm not very good at mahjong. How about I keep watch for you first?"
This was another hook I cast. Jiang Jinshan was making his final test of me, and I was doing the same to him.
The purpose of my earlier statement was to let them know that mahjong was my weakest suit.
If Jiang Jinshan truly wanted to curry favor with me, he wouldn't remain indifferent.
Conversely, if he had no intention of flattering me and instead planned to collude with others to cheat me out of my money, he would allow the situation to unfold as it was.
Upon hearing my words, Jiang Jinshan smiled and smoothed things over, saying, "Young Master Hu, we guys usually love to play mahjong! I never expected that you wouldn't know our national pastime!"
"How about this... you play a couple of rounds with them, learning as you go, and once I'm out of the lookout position, we can discuss playing other games?"
As soon as Jiang Jinshan said this, I immediately confirmed in my heart: he's fine!
This was the thinking of a normal person.
No matter how much Jiang Jinshan wanted to flatter me, every circle has its order of precedence.
He could secretly harbor some intentions when introducing me earlier.
But he absolutely wouldn't offend those card players by trying to please me, especially before seeing any benefit.
Having confirmed that Jiang Jinshan was not problematic, all I needed to do now was to focus my energy entirely on the card game.
...
The card game began.
Even though I was skilled at mahjong, I still acted like a clueless novice from the very first dice-rolling segment, making several mistakes.
Later, even when playing cards, I had no discernible strategy.
Any tile, be it East, South, West, North, Center, Fortune, or White, was immediately played the moment it came into my hand.
Not only that, but my play style would shift from playing tile suits like "Wan" (characters) one moment to "Tiao" (bamboo) or "Tong" (circles) the next.
In short, the defining characteristic was: chaos!