NOVPUB
Chapter 91: Chapter 91: Remember This Look
Chen Cheng’s luck was on the rise; his hole cards were a pair of 8s.
Though not considered strong cards, they were excellent as starting hands.
Wen Shulin and Wang Xinan were the small and big blinds, and after the blinds were posted, Zhou Xiansheng was the first to speak.
He tapped the table, indicating a check.
But Zhang Zhenchao threw out three 1000 chips with casual flair, wearing a slight smile on his face.
"Old Zhang, looks like you’ve got some decent cards!"
Since it was a friendly game, banter was inevitable.
Li Bo took another look at his cards; a club ace and a diamond ten.
With high cards like these, there was no reason not to play, especially since the pot wasn’t particularly large yet.
So he followed suit and made the call.
Chen Cheng was the last to act in this round.
But he passed the decision to Liu Zhiya beside him.
"Xiao Ya, how much do you think we should call?"
Liu Zhiya didn’t know what Chen Cheng’s hole cards were, but upon hearing him ask, she tentatively inquired, "What’s the minimum amount?"
"3000."
"Then..."
Liu Zhiya was nervous; these seemingly trivial chips were worth more than the fee she received for attending an event that day.
"Don’t feel pressured, this is just for fun," reaffirmed Chen Cheng.
Liu Zhiya pursed her lips and carefully counted out three 1000 chips, stacking them neatly in front of her.
The flop came: a diamond 3, a club 8, and a heart ace.
With his pair of 8s in hand, Chen Cheng now had a strong hand to possibly make a full house.
Wen Shulin kept her expression neutral, but she was closely scrutinizing Chen Cheng’s thought process.
She threw out a 10000 chip and quietly took a sip of water.
Wang Xinan also checked his hole cards; given the community cards, the best hand he could muster was high cards starting with A-9.
Rather than committing at least 10000 to possibly complete his hand with the final two community cards, he prudently chose to fold.
"Getting cold feet?" Zhang Zhenchao couldn’t hide his glee; he had two pairs, Aces and 3s.
Not only did he call Wen Shulin’s 10000, but he also raised another 20000.
Li Bo, holding a pair of Aces, had no reason not to play.
But to play it safe, he decided just to call, without raising.
A round of betting took merely seconds.
By the time it was Chen Cheng’s turn, Liu Zhiya realized that the pot, which was just 3000 moments ago, had ballooned to over 60000—a sum she couldn’t earn even after attending numerous business events.
Liu Zhiya nervously looked to Chen Cheng, "Mr. Chen, do we raise?"
Chen Cheng smiled faintly and whispered into Liu Zhiya’s ear:
"Poker is a game of probabilities."
"Same suit cards have a 10% chance of a flush draw, 34% chance of making a flush on the river, and a 0.8% chance of hitting a ’royal flush’ on the turn."
"A small pair has a 12% chance of hitting a set on the turn and an 8% chance on the river."
"High cards have a 33% chance of making a pair on the turn, 24% on the river."
"A suited connector has a 10% chance of an open-ended straight draw on the turn, 32% chance of completing it on the river."
"There’s a special case with pocket Jacks; a 43% chance of not being outsized and 23% on the river."
"Suited connectors have a 2.8% chance of a draw on the turn, and over 50% chance of making a hand on the river."
Hearing Chen Cheng’s low voice, Liu Zhiya felt a wave of dizziness.
As this was her first high-end poker game, she was already somewhat confused by the rules and strategy.
And now, Chen Cheng was spouting a string of what seemed to be complex poker statistics, which utterly baffled her.
However, judging from Chen Cheng’s confident tone, he seemed to be in a favorable position.
"So, we should..." She placed her hands on the table, her eyes firmly fixed on Chen Cheng’s, seeking an affirmative answer.
Chen Cheng nodded and said with ease, "As you please."
The atmosphere grew tense; Liu Zhiya took a deep breath and pushed all her chips forward in one go.
"All in!" she declared, mimicking the tone from the movies.
The room fell silent instantly, everyone shocked by this bold, unexpected move.
There are three types of people present.
One is like Wen Shulin, whose money being played with belongs to CGG, the stock market’s money.
The second type is like the four people, including Li Bo.
They hold high positions in the company and have a lot of power.
But their money comes from salary, gray income, and so on—essentially, it’s their own money from their pockets.
And the last type, Chen Cheng.
His money comes too easily.
Every day it’s like printing paper, he can’t even spend it all.
So, after seeing Liu Zhiya’s bold move, Li Bo and his group couldn’t help but re-evaluate their own hands.
Wen Shulin’s lips, however, curled up in a seemingly private smile.
She just realized that what Chen Cheng called "joy beans" made sense.
500,000 was pushed forward without even blinking an eye.
Liu Zhiya’s heart was pounding.
Her hands were tightly clenched together, holding her breath.
After the recent gentle clinking of chips, everyone except Wen Shulin folded their cards.
Wen Shulin leaned back in her chair and laughed, "Mr. Chen, you can’t go all in every hand! If you do, we can’t play the game."
Chen Cheng leaned forward, speaking as calm as clouds and breezes, "I have only one principle when I play cards."
"What is it?" Wen Shulin asked curiously.
"When others check, I bet; when others bet, I raise; and when others raise, then I go all in~!"
A joking remark, yet full of confidence.
It seemed as if they could see the same oppressive force in Chen Cheng’s eyes as they did in Jin Baogen’s.
Wen Shulin gracefully picked up her cards and tossed them into the pile, laughing, "It seems none of us are a match for Mr. Chen."
Stacks of little chips were pushed back in front of Liu Zhiya.
She asked in disbelief, "Mr. Chen, did we win?"
Chen Cheng nodded, "We won."
His bright eyes shimmered with the joy of victory, his smiling mouth beaming brightly.
Chen Cheng: "Remember this feeling, remember this look. You are the Luck Fairy."
"Okay!"
Liu Zhiya nodded vigorously.
Chen Cheng returned the hole cards, "Gentlemen, shall we continue?"
The others nodded, and another round of the game was about to begin.
But this time, the novice Xiao Ya was also transforming.
Mimicking the actions of Wen Shulin and the others, and with Chen Cheng’s nod of approval, she boldly threw the light chips, completely indulging in the sensation.
...
As expected, and without surprise,
Chen Cheng was the winner of this round of poker.
Wen Shulin sighed softly, "Mr. Chen, you found a rookie to bait President Li and these old foxes!"
Chen Cheng smiled lightly, "We’re just here to have a good time."
Li Bo: "Mr. Chen really is a master from the championship!"
"What... what championship?" Wang Xinan looked at Chen Cheng in surprise.
"The QQ Texas Hold’em Championship," Chen Cheng repeated.
"Hahaha..."
"Mr. Chen can really joke, with your carefree spirit, it can’t be some QQ! It must be from the MGM’s Black Lion!"
Chen Cheng had never been to the MGM.
And his self-deprecating words, in the context of the current situation, were taken as excessive modesty.
"Next time, I’ll definitely go with Mr. Chen."
Wen Shulin stood up, announcing, "Mr. Chen, tonight, you will unlock a champion’s surprise gift package that’s meant only for you."
Chen Cheng gave his thanks, "I am humbled!"
"Alright, everyone," Wen Shulin checked the time, "let’s go out and play some ball, they should be arriving soon."
"Sure, see you at the court later."
