Ah Shui leaned on the counter as a table of guests chatted in low voices.
From the inner room, the intermittent sounds of the game drifted out.
Three players remained. Yang Yi had about 1,100 in chips, Zhenzhen had about 300, and Golden Tooth had around 1,500. The blinds stayed at 5/10. Since there were exactly three players to cover the Button, Small Blind, and Big Blind, two players had to post blinds every hand, making the game move much faster.
Yang Yi was in the Big Blind with a pocket pair of 4s.
Zhenzhen, on the Button, raised to 50. Golden Tooth called from the Small Blind.
It was Yang Yi's turn to act. With an active raise from Zhenzhen and a call from Golden Tooth, a pair of 4s might not be strong enough.
Yang Yi completed the bet to 50.
"I need to hit a set of 4s," Yang Yi thought, deciding to play it safe.
Seeing all action completed, Little Lin tapped the table with his fist, burned the top card, and dealt three.
The burned card lay face-down; no one knew what it was. Yang Yi had once asked Mazi about this, who explained it was to prevent people from tracking marked cards. Every time community cards are dealt, the dealer discards the top one. The formal term is "burning a card," but most just call it "cutting."
The Flop came: Ace of Clubs, 4 of Hearts, 6 of Clubs.
"A dream start. The set of 4s is here!" Yang Yi shouted inwardly with excitement.
With two clubs on the board, Yang Yi decided to lead out. If he checked and both Zhenzhen and Golden Tooth followed suit, the action would end, and the game would move to the Turn. If another club dropped then, anyone holding two clubs would have a Flush, outranking his three 4s.
Yang Yi tossed a black chip into the pot. "Make it 100."
It was Zhenzhen's turn. In Yang Yi's eyes, she had at least hit a pair of Aces. But there are always "cooler" hands—if Zhenzhen held pocket Aces, Yang Yi was already dead.
Fortunately, it wasn't what Yang Yi feared. Zhenzhen looked at the 100-chip bet as if someone were carving a piece of meat from her heart. She frowned for a long time before eventually calling with ten blue chips.
Golden Tooth called quickly behind her. "Deal it."
"Good grief, is everyone so steady with their trips?" Mazi teased, seeing the action close.
God knows who Mazi was talking to. He tapped the table and burned a card.
The Turn was the King of Diamonds.
Since no one raised the previous round, Yang Yi felt he was still leading. But the game wasn't over; there was still the River. If a club appeared, it could still crush his set.
That's Texas Hold'em: until the final card is dealt, no one can claim their hand is a guaranteed winner.
With 450 in the pot, Yang Yi continued betting, this time 200.
"I'm moving in, this is all I've got." Zhenzhen pushed her remaining chips forward. Mazi counted them: 235.
Golden Tooth called the 235 instantly.
He must be on a flush draw, Yang Yi thought. Calling so quickly twice—if he had hit a monster, he would have raised; if he wasn't chasing a flush, he should have folded long ago.
With Zhenzhen already all-in, Yang Yi's biggest threat was Golden Tooth. Even if he lost to Zhenzhen, winning the chips in front of Golden Tooth would be a good result.
"I can't raise again, can I?" Because of Zhenzhen's extra 35 chips, Yang Yi had to add 35 to complete the Turn action.
"Of course not. If she had bet 400—double your bet or more—you could re-raise. I told you this before," Mazi replied.
Yang Yi knew. The valid raise size in Texas Hold'em must be at least double the previous bet. Zhenzhen's 235 was only 35 more than 200, so it didn't count as a raise. Yang Yi could only "call along" with bitter tears.
But he desperately wanted to push everything in. The threat wasn't gone. In his eyes, Golden Tooth's two clubs were as good as face-up.
"I should have just shoved earlier," Yang Yi muttered to himself as he put in the 35.
The River card: 10 of Clubs.
A disaster...
Could there be a worse River? Not only did the flush complete, but anyone holding K-J would have made a Straight on an A-4-6-K-10 board.
Straights and Flushes both beat Three of a Kind.
Yang Yi intentionally waited a few seconds before tapping the table. "Check."
He didn't want to show weakness. A "snap-check" often signals fear of the board.
He didn't dare look at Golden Tooth, his eyes fixed motionless on that final 10 of Clubs.
It was Golden Tooth's turn. Unlike the others, he didn't usually announce his bets or checks. But now, he broke his silence.
"You hit your flush but you're not betting?" Golden Tooth said, looking at Yang Yi.
Yang Yi remained motionless.
The pot was 1,155. Yang Yi had about 700 left; Golden Tooth had about 1,200.
Whoever took this pot would basically secure the championship for this final game.
Golden Tooth kept staring at Yang Yi. It felt like time had slowed down. Seeing no response, Golden Tooth looked down at his chips.
"All-in." He pushed his chips forward. Two stacks toppled toward the pot, the lead chips rolling far ahead due to momentum.
It was over. Hearing that "all-in" made Yang Yi's head feel like it was exploding. Had it been a bet of a few hundred, he might have called without thinking just to see the hand.
But this wasn't entirely irrational. The pot was over 1,000, and Golden Tooth's line made this shove look very legitimate.
"Xiao Yang, he's all-in." Mazi cut in, signaling Yang Yi to respond. He moved Golden Tooth's chips to a separate area. The previous pot was the Main Pot; since Zhenzhen hadn't participated in the River betting, this was the Side Pot belonging only to Golden Tooth and Yang Yi.
Fold, and Golden Tooth definitely has the flush; Yang Yi would have a few hundred left to play with.
Call, and lose to a guaranteed flush to let Golden Tooth win—after all, this hand was supposed to be a "gift" to him.
Yang Yi found himself caring about something else. "If we both lose to him, who gets second?"
"If you and Zhenzhen both lose, you tie for second and split the prize," Mazi replied.
"Heh." Little Lin, listening nearby, gave a cold chuckle.
"I have more chips, and I still have to split it with her?" Yang Yi countered.
Mazi was stumped. In over a month at Wufang, they had never had two players knocked out simultaneously. As mentioned, everyone played so steadily that three-way all-ins were rare.
Yang Yi insisted on confirming because he knew his three 4s should beat Zhenzhen. She was an honest player; she wouldn't shove without a hand. That 10 of Clubs meant nothing to her.
"Tied for second," Mazi replied firmly.
Disappointed, Yang Yi looked up at Golden Tooth. The man had returned to his silent state. Sitting just across the table, Yang Yi could clearly see Golden Tooth's face was slightly flushed, and the vein in his temple was pulsing faster than usual.
Was Golden Tooth nervous?
"Call, call. I can't fold this." Yang Yi pushed his chips forward.
"Two pair, two pair," Golden Tooth turned over his hand: K-10.
"Ha! I've got you beat!" Zhenzhen flipped her A-10.
There couldn't have been a better result. Yang Yi had been holding his breath, but as soon as the cards were shown, he stood up and slammed his pocket 4s onto the table, exhaling sharply.
"Set!" he shouted. "I thought you had the flush. I almost folded."
"Holy crap, that big?!" Golden Tooth snatched his K-10 back into his hand, staring wide-eyed at his cards and then at Yang Yi's.
"You didn't fold a set of 4s? That board looked so much like a flush. I fell for it," Mazi asked Yang Yi in surprise.
"If it was a flush, I'd accept the loss. I couldn't fold this," Yang Yi said triumphantly, though he had been terrified by that 10 on the River.
"Man, is winning a championship this hard?" Golden Tooth looked at Mazi, who returned a helpless look.
Little Lin, playing with his phone, smiled and added: "Boss Yang is sweeping the board tonight."
Zhenzhen just smiled and began packing her things.
"How many chips do I have left?" Golden Tooth asked.
"Boss, you have 375." Mazi counted out the excess from the all-in, holding the chips up like a little bird before handing them to Golden Tooth. Then, with palms together and heels aligned, he pushed the massive stacks from the pot toward Yang Yi.
The gesture was quick and playful, and combined with Mazi's unique smile, it was quite amusing.
In this hand, Yang Yi won both the Main Pot and the Side Pot.
Because Zhenzhen had fewer chips, she wasn't eligible for the Side Pot. Had Yang Yi's stack been larger than Golden Tooth's, he would have been the champion right then.
In No-Limit Texas Hold'em, players can bet any amount up to their stack, but they can only win an amount from each opponent equal to what they have put at risk.
The more you have, the more you win. More investment, more return. The poor get poorer, the rich get richer. Looking at it through poker, those sayings made sense.
"Last hand, blind shove? Then let's go home," Golden Tooth asked.
"No problem."
A blind shove meant neither looked at their hole cards; it was all down to luck.
Yang Yi: 4 and 7 of Diamonds. Golden Tooth: King of Hearts and 3 of Clubs.
Flop: 3 of Diamonds, 6 of Clubs, 3 of Hearts. Golden Tooth hit a set of 3s.
Turn: 5 of Clubs. Yang Yi hit a Straight to take the lead.
Golden Tooth could still hit a full house if a 6, 5, or King paired the board. Even the "dream card," the 3 of Spades, would give him four-of-a-kind.
River: Ace of Diamonds. Yang Yi took the pot.
With more chips than Golden Tooth, Yang Yi took another championship.
Mazi pulled the prize money from under Little Lin's hand, counting out 300 for Yang Yi. "Not bad, Xiao Yang. You'll be debt-free in no time."
"Almost there, almost there," Yang Yi thought. It seemed Little Lin had told Mazi about his 8,000-yuan loss at Brother Hei's game yesterday.
"Down 700," Golden Tooth said as he rose. "Tomorrow again?"
"See you tomorrow," Mazi replied.
"Yi, I'll give you a lift." Little Lin grabbed his keys, gesturing for Yang Yi and Zhenzhen to head downstairs, leaving Mazi to tidy up the felt and chips. Mazi would likely drive Golden Tooth home later.
Ah Shui glanced at the time: 1:00 AM. As they passed the bar, he gave an exaggerated yawn. Little Lin joked, "Yo, Shui-ge, still awake? Get some rest; we'll lock up for you next time."
Ah Shui gave a fake smile and headed toward the inner room with his tray and cloth.
On the road back through the community, Little Lin stopped at a red light.
"Man, you should have let Golden Tooth win that last hand. Mazi's hint couldn't have been more obvious."
"I didn't think my hand was good enough. I thought he had the flush," Yang Yi replied, feeling a bit guilty. When he called the all-in, his internal scales certainly hadn't tipped toward "gifting" the chips. Any thought of a gift had just been self-consolation at the time.
"Bullsh*t. If you knew for sure he had a flush, would you have called? You're just in a hurry to win back that debt, aren't you? I get it," Little Lin said bluntly.
"Debt isn't something you settle in a day or two. I'll just lose some back tomorrow."
"Lucky at cards, unlucky in love. Looks like you won't be picking up any girls for a few days." Little Lin sounded a bit smug. In his eyes, Yang Yi never lacked for girlfriends.
Players are a superstitious bunch; sayings like "Lucky at cards, unlucky in love" are staples of the community.
Whether it made sense or not, although Yang Yi was attractive to women, he had been single for a year since graduation. He was slow-spoken and a bit of a blockhead—not exactly a smooth talker.
Back in college, there was a saying on the campus forum: "If Yang Yi visits a girl's profile, she's the campus belle." Since he never dated in school, he had an air of being "cool and picky." It wasn't until senior year that he dated a junior for three months before it ended abruptly.
He remembered a time back at school. That year, the Transformers movie was coming out, and a senior girl asked him to the midnight premiere.
They were even wearing matching Transformers-themed T-shirts. After the movie, it was past 10:00 PM. Walking back to the dorms, the girl said:
"I'm so sleepy. If you gave me a place to lie down right now, I'd be out in a second."
Yang Yi gave a reply that he regretted to this day. "You're that tired? Let me call a cab so we can get back to the dorms faster."
Most would think that was a normal conversation. But later, recalling the details, Yang Yi was filled with regret.
Because when the girl said that, they were walking right past a hotel...
Ding. A text message interrupted his memories.
Yang Yi glanced at his phone. The sender was saved as "Quan Quan"—the girl he had brought to the board game cafe before.
"What time do you get off tomorrow? I need to talk to you about something~"
"Off at six, home by seven."
"Then let's meet at the cafe at 7:30. Talk tomorrow, going to sleep now~"
"Okay, goodnight."
Yang Yi wondered why Quan Quan had suddenly messaged him, but her "going to sleep" cut him off before he could ask.
The last time they went to the cafe was a month ago. Since then, they had only texted a few times. Even though they occasionally crossed paths on the first floor of the cafe, it was just Quan Quan busy hosting guests while Yang Yi headed straight up the scars. Aside from their eyes meeting, they barely spoke.
Quan Quan only got one day off a month. Based on that, tomorrow should be her day off.
"Boss Yang, you're home." Little Lin pulled up to the gate of Yang Yi's community. "Call me when you wake up."
Yang Yi waved his phone at Little Lin. "I can't make the game tomorrow."
"Oho, Boss Yang! Not bad. Take care of yourself." Little Lin caught a glimpse of the phone and understood instantly.
Well, it looked like Yang Yi wasn't going to be "unlucky in love" after all.