After dinner, the three of them came to the hall on the first floor. The lights in the whole courtyard were all lit up. There were flowers and bamboos in the hall, colorful glass lanterns, and gurgling water under the huge rockery.
After all, Tang Qing is a girl and she likes to wander around very much. Zheng Yubai and Du Bisheng also want to observe the terrain, so they are happy to accompany her to look around.
"Zheng... Cousin, are you really here to participate in the competition?" Tang Qing always had doubts about Zheng Yubai's ability to get on the ship. She always felt that Zheng Yubai didn't look like someone who could participate in the God of Gamblers competition.
"I'm just his assistant." Zheng Yubai pointed at Du Bisheng and said, he didn't want Tang Qing to chase him and ask why.
"Is that so?" Tang Qing suddenly realized and decided not to ask Zheng Yubai any further questions, which made him secretly relieved.
After taking a tour on the cruise ship, they fully appreciated the luxurious furnishings, and also saw the shopping malls and various consumption places on the cruise ship which were no different from the most prosperous commercial district in Jinghai City. The three of them returned with a full load - of course, what Du Bisheng, Zheng Yubai and Tang Qing gained were completely different.
That night, Zheng Yubai and Du Bisheng shared a bed and slept until dawn.
When I woke up early the next morning, I looked out of the porthole and saw that the pier was full of cars and many people were queuing in front of the gangway, ready to board the ship.
"Friends from all over the world are here." Although they were far away, the people of Qianmen were most proud of their eyesight. Du Bisheng looked at the people who boarded the ship one by one and introduced their identities to Zheng Yubai.
"That's the northern gambling king Hong Shen. He's from Shandong, and he's a generous man. His style at the gambling table is to dare to place bets." Du Bisheng said, pointing at a fat man who was boarding the ship.
"The gray-clothed man behind Hong Shen is the southern gambling king Feng Bazhi. When he was young, he cheated in gambling and had his little fingers on both hands chopped off. Later, he worked hard to learn the art of gambling and even became a master despite his disability. This man has a deep and forbearing personality and is a powerful character."
"That's He Meifeng from Macau. She is the daughter of Macau gambling king He Tiecheng. It is said that she has inherited her father's true skills. In recent years, she has been running the casino business under the gambling king. She is considered a heroine."
Zheng Yubai looked at the legendary daughter of the Macau gambling king with curiosity. She was already in her forties, and was wearing luxurious brand-name clothes and accessories. Unfortunately, although she was good at maintaining her appearance and still had her charm, she could not resist the traces of time.
"Hey, our enemy is here." Du Bisheng suddenly pointed at a middle-aged man and said.
The middle-aged man was short, fat, and bald, looking rather wretched.
"That's the son of Ye Tian, who was He Tiecheng's nemesis back then. His name is Ye Yi. He Tiecheng and Ye Tian turned against each other because of the ownership of the casino. Later, the He family became prosperous and the Ye family fell into poverty, which made the Ye family very resentful of the He family. At every gambling god competition, the feud between the Ye and He families can be regarded as a drama that people in the gambling world love to watch the most."
Every circle has its own grievances and hatreds, and the gambling world is no exception. In the martial arts world, there are also these entangled old stories, and Zheng Yubai has heard some of them. At this moment, while watching those famous figures board the cruise ship, while listening to Du Bisheng telling about the past of the gambling world, he was quite leisurely and happy.
After watching for a while, Zheng Yubai asked Tang Qing to go have breakfast together. After breakfast, when they returned to the room, they saw that in the corridor that was deserted yesterday, many doors were open and enthusiastic waiters were taking care of the luggage for the guests.
"Sir, the opening ceremony of the God of Gamblers competition will be held in the banquet hall on the first floor at six o'clock tonight. Please attend on time." A waiter brought over a schedule.
Zheng Yubai nodded and thanked him. He looked through the schedule and saw that the God of Gamblers Contest would start at six o'clock tonight. It would take four rounds of selection to decide the final two winners. The two winners could not directly obtain the title of God of Gamblers. They would have to play another game with God of Gamblers Gao Fei. Only the final winner could hold the title of God of Gamblers.
Du Bisheng pulled Zheng Yubai into the room and started analyzing the situation with him.
"There are about 200 gambling experts from all over the country participating in this gambling competition. For unknown newcomers like you and those with average performance, we will first hold a preliminary competition. In the end, 128 people will be selected and divided into four groups. In the end, two winners will be selected from each group to enter the eight-person competition."
"The eight-person final will see the top team from each group face off against the runner-up team from another group, with four players set to advance to the final battle. The four players will play a mahjong match to determine the final winner, who will challenge the God of Gamblers."
Zheng Yubai secretly calculated in his mind that if he wanted to challenge the God of Gamblers, he would have to overcome many difficulties.
"The preliminaries will be held tonight. Those who participate are all mediocre players, so you don't have to worry." Du Bisheng encouraged Zheng Yubai, "Don't expose your strength for the time being, as long as you can pass it."
Zheng Yubai nodded. Du Bisheng's arrangement was very much to his liking. Zheng Yubai had been a big star, and this time participating in the God of Gamblers competition was just a cover. Since he found Tang Qing on the boat, Zheng Yubai was only thinking about bringing her home safely to his aunt and uncle, and then investigating Yao Qian.
I can't cause myself more trouble, Zheng Yubai thought. Unfortunately, he didn't see the smugness in Du Bisheng's cunning eyes.
At six o'clock that evening, all the players who signed up for the God of Gamblers Contest and the invited guests had arrived. More than four hundred guests gathered in the luxurious banquet hall on the first floor.
The banquet was still hosted by Yao Qian's assistant named Murong Ping. He was always concise and said a few words of blessing before announcing the start of the banquet. The first qualifying match would be held at 10 pm. There were 140 contestants, of which only 68 could advance to the next round of 128 contestants, with an elimination rate of over 50%.
The buffet dinner started soon, and it was still a very sumptuous meal combining Chinese and Western cuisine.
Because the next round was the preliminaries, many people had no appetite and were instead observing everyone around them who might become their opponents. Du Bisheng deliberately stayed away from Zheng Yubai and went to chat with his old friends in the gambling world. Zheng Yubai and Tang Qing took some dishes and ate casually in a corner.
Tang Qing's eyes were wandering around the crowd, and Zheng Yubai knew she was looking for Fang Hongjin. However, Tang Qing was doing well now, so he couldn't be too strict with her, lest she develop a rebellious mentality. The ship was different from the land, and if something went wrong, even if Zheng Yubai was extremely skilled in martial arts, it would be difficult to deal with it. (To be continued)