298: Chapter 298 Acting Together

"This is what I meant when I talked about playing car racing."

Shen Yan frowned and asked,

"So this place is for gambling on cars?"

The boss blinked and replied, "If by gambling on cars you mean something similar to horse racing, then I can definitively answer yes."

Hearing this, Shen Yan's frown deepened.

He had expected they would play games unavailable elsewhere, but he hadn't anticipated they would gamble on which car would return safely.

On the electronic screen,

Those race cars were driving as if they didn't value their lives,

Roaring through the treacherous mountain roads.

One wrong move, and they could plunge from the mountaintop, facing eternal doom.

"Sir, would you like to play?"

Shen Yan didn't answer the boss's question; instead, he turned and asked the boss a different question.

"Do those drivers know they are being watched and bet upon?"

The boss was momentarily stunned, then let out a few strange laughs.

"Of course they know. They come precisely because they know."

"By the way, they aren't watching a recording; they are watching a live broadcast."

"As soon as a bet is placed, they get into the race cars and speed madly for the money riding on them."

Shen Yan's throat moved slightly, and he asked, "How much money do they get if they win? How much do they get if they lose?"

The boss said, "The person who successfully takes first place gets five million. As for those who don't get first place... no money."

Shen Yan asked, "No money even if they die?"

The boss replied, "No money even if they die."

Shen Yan took a deep breath.

Except for the period after the upheaval at his family home, his life had been smooth sailing, without any major incidents.

This was his first time encountering the underworld rumored about in news reports and hearsay.

This encounter didn't make him feel thrilled, nor did it make him feel scared; it only made him feel desolate.

If he hadn't obtained the tycoon system and learned about the chance to earn five million just by completing one lap and taking first place, he might have actually gone through with it.

However... the probability was relatively small.

After all, dying in a car race meant getting no money.

He didn't want to end up with nothing and lose his life in the process.

His thoughts raced a thousand times.

After an unknown amount of time,

The boss finally asked him in a husky voice, "Sir, are you playing?"

Shen Yan lowered his gaze, looking at the boss standing before him with a practiced, artificial smile, and uttered a single word.

"Play."

The boss was a bit taken aback.

He hadn't missed the flash of sadness in Shen Yan's eyes just now.

Seeing that sadness, he had assumed this person had strong sympathy and likely wouldn't participate in the game. Unexpectedly, he was proven wrong the next second.

After being stunned for two seconds, the boss quickly adjusted his expression.

"Very well. I will go get the information now. You have half an hour to consider. The betting table officially opens after half an hour, and choices cannot be changed during this period."

"As for the stakes, the minimum is ten million, with no upper limit."

...

In the private room downstairs at the bar,

"What cards did you draw just now?"

Hearing Gu Hui's question, Chen Wu replied expressionlessly, "Two Aces."

The bearded man in a T-shirt and shorts chuckled, "Tsk, tsk, tsk! Your luck is as good as ever."

Gu Hui also nodded, "My luck isn't as good as yours. I got two Twos. I actually thought you would fold first, because if Shen Yan folded, neither of us would have a game to play."

Chen Wu remained expressionless.

"He wouldn't fold."

As soon as he finished speaking, the man with feminine features asked curiously, "Why not?"

The woman beside him answered before Chen Wu could.

"Because it's not his money being spent, hahahaha!"

Chen Wu nodded seriously.

Having received the answer, the effeminate man looked quite speechless.

"All that for this?"

"I thought it was because he had guts."

Gu Hui took a glass of wine from the Waitress kneeling beside him, took a sip, and said, "Whether he has guts or not has nothing to do with us. It won't interfere with our plan."

The other four nodded.

What they were looking for was never a partner, but a knife in hand.

On the other side...

Shen Yan was unaware that those four people had already completely figured him out.

He was still frowning while selecting the contestants.

On the tablet,

The resumes and backgrounds of those contestants were written in detail in the documents.

Shen Yan looked through them one by one and discovered that all these people were individuals who lived on the edge of danger.

To put it plainly, they all had some kind of criminal background.

"Do you specifically look for people who have committed crimes to participate?"

Hearing the question, the boss replied from the side, "Not exactly. Our competition has always allowed anyone who wants to participate to do so, without any requirements."

That made sense.

How could someone who hadn't committed a crime possibly come to participate in a competition with a high probability of death and a low probability of winning?

Just as Shen Yan was thinking this, he suddenly flipped to a person.

"Yan Li?"

The boss stood on his tiptoes to take a look.

"He's a new face; he must be signing up for the first time."

Shen Yan didn't speak.

What caught his attention wasn't that this person was participating for the first time, but that this person's record was exceptionally clean.

Not only was he only nineteen years old, but he had just graduated from school.

"This person doesn't look like someone who is desperate for money. Why would he come to participate in this competition?"

The boss couldn't answer this question either.

Shen Yan thought for a moment and tapped the person's photo on the tablet twice with his finger.

"Let's go with this person."

Hearing this, the boss's eyes widened in surprise.

"He's participating for the first time!"

Shen Yan turned and looked at the boss with a puzzled expression.

"Can't I choose someone participating for the first time?"

The boss quickly shook his head.

"Of course you can, but usually, everyone chooses the more experienced veterans. This kid..."

He paused here and used a more tactful phrase: "...is too young."

Shen Yan understood what the boss meant: this young man was too inexperienced, having just left school, and placing his chips on him clearly meant he wouldn't recoup his investment.

However, he didn't care about recouping the investment.

The only reason he stayed here was to satisfy the five people downstairs.

After all, how could he infiltrate their inner circle and counter them if he didn't cater to them first?

Thinking this, he handed the tablet to the boss and said, "Since it's car racing, let's play something exciting."

Hearing this, the boss's expression shifted repeatedly. Finally, he took the tablet and said to Shen Yan,

"Alright, there are fifteen minutes left. You can wait here for the betting to open, or you can go out for another walk."

"If you change your mind before the betting starts, you can find the Waitress outside and ask them to send for me. I will change your chosen bettor for you."