Chapter 197: A play within a play

“Boss Luo, actually…”

Xiao Zhu bent down slightly, her red lips almost brushing Luo Shaotian’s ear.
The thick scent of cosmetics followed her voice, carrying a bone-chilling kind of temptation.

“Since your luck is so bad… why not try changing your chips?”

“In this world, there are some things that can’t be spent as money directly—
but here, in Elysium… they’re harder currency than real gold and silver.”

She stuck out her scarlet tongue and lightly licked her lips, her playful gaze sliding toward the trembling Lin Yu beside them.

“For example… this flower-like little secretary by your side?”

“We could use her to—”

Luo Shaotian’s expression changed drastically before she could finish.

“What… what?!”

He shoved Xiao Zhu away and staggered back two steps, his face filled with shock and resistance.

“You want me to use Haizao to… no… no way!
How could I possibly do something like that?!”

“She’s my woman!”

As he spoke, he instinctively stepped in front of Lin Yu, assuming a protective stance.

“I, Luo Jin, may love to play, may have lost my head gambling, but… but I still have principles!
How could I use my own woman to pay off a debt?!”

“Hehe… Boss Luo, don’t get so worked up.”

Xiao Zhu’s smile remained elegant and proper, even carrying a trace of perfectly measured apology.

“It’s just a suggestion, that’s all.
After all, here at Elysium, as long as both sides are willing, anything can be used as a chip.”

She spread her hands, her tone turning casual.

“If you’re unwilling, that’s fine too.
Just gather some more funds and gamble it back, isn’t that enough?”

“Judging by how generously you threw money around when you first came in…
a mere ten million U.S. dollars should be nothing more than pocket change to a big boss of your stature, right?”

“I…”

Luo Shaotian’s face turned the color of pig liver.

He opened his mouth, wanting to keep bluffing,
but it felt as if a stone were lodged in his throat—he couldn’t squeeze out a single word.

Just then—

“Ding-ling-ling—!!!”

A sharp, urgent ringtone suddenly exploded from his pocket without warning.

That ringtone was like a death-knell, instantly shattering the last shred of composure on Luo Shaotian’s face.

His body stiffened violently, cold sweat pouring down his forehead.

Trembling, he pulled out his phone and glanced at the caller ID.
His entire hand began to shake.

“Gulp.”

He swallowed hard. His finger hovered over the answer button for a long time before he finally steeled himself and pressed it.

“H-hello… baby…”

His voice became extremely ingratiating, even tinged with humble flattery.

But before he could finish his sentence, a roar that pierced the eardrums erupted from the other end of the line—

“LUO JIN!!! YOU BASTARD!!!”

The voice carried hysterical rage.

Even from a distance, Lin Yu recognized it instantly.

“That’s definitely Li Qing!”

“This acting… absolute perfection.”

Lin Yu clicked her tongue inwardly.

To make the scene convincing, to give Luo Shaotian a “no way out” reason, they had discussed this “tragic scheme” earlier.
But she never imagined Li Qing would get this immersed in the role!

Damn!

“What’s going on?! I just got a bank alert!
Why is there ten million less in my account?! U.S. DOLLARS!!!”

Li Qing’s tirade continued nonstop, so loud that even Xiao Zhu could hear it clearly.

“You useless leech! Where the hell did you spend the money?!
That was liquidity I was preparing to use to acquire a listed company!
How dare you touch it?!”

“Uh… baby… you… you listen to my explanation…”

Luo Shaotian was completely panicked now.
Clutching the phone, he bowed and scraped while desperately shrinking into a corner.

“I… I just wanted to… to give you a surprise…
I wanted to invest the money… double it… and buy you what you’ve always wanted…”

“Explain my ass! You worthless piece of trash!
Is that money something you’re allowed to touch?!”

“You took ten million and still expect me to thank you?!”

“That’s my money! MY money!!!”

“I—”

“Enough! Where are you right now?! Immediately!
If this money doesn’t come back—”

“I’ll personally have someone kill you! Kill you!!!”

“Beep—beep—beep—”

The call was mercilessly cut off.

Luo Shaotian stood there clutching the scorching-hot phone,
looking as though his soul had been ripped out of his body.

His face was deathly pale, lips trembling, unable to form a complete sentence.

“I… I…”

“Oh my, oh my oh my…”

Xiao Zhu, who had been watching coldly from the side, finally let out a long, disdainful drawl.

She crossed her arms. The respect in her heavily made-up eyes was completely gone, replaced by naked contempt.

“So… turns out you’re just a kept pretty boy.”

She sneered and shook her head.

“No wonder. When you first came in, you were all swagger—
Hong Kong tycoon this, ten million is pocket change that…
You really acted the part.”

“Tsk tsk… so in the end, you were just using a rich woman’s money to play big, huh?”

She turned her head, her sharp gaze like a knife landing on Lin Yu, whose face was just as pale.

“Oh? And this little secretary…”

Xiao Zhu looked Lin Yu up and down, eyeing the expensive cheongsam, a teasing curve appearing at her lips.

“Seems you’re quite sharp-eyed too.
Pretty boy keeping another pretty boy? Heh, the two of you really have guts~”

“Spending someone else’s money so extravagantly, and daring to gamble this big—
you really don’t know how to write the word ‘death.’”

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Lin Yu lowered her head, biting her lower lip hard, her body trembling violently in sync.

She looked as though the sky had collapsed—utterly pitiful.

“Th-that…”

At this moment, Luo Shaotian shakily reached out, trying to grab Xiao Zhu’s sleeve, only for her to dodge away in disgust.

He didn’t mind. Stretching his neck, eyes bloodshot, he asked hoarsely:

“T-the method you mentioned just now… was that real?”

“Of course it’s real.”

Xiao Zhu maintained that spine-chilling smile.

“Here at Elysium, credibility comes first.”

Luo Shaotian fell silent.

His head hung low, as if an intense internal struggle were raging inside him.

His fingers clenched and loosened at his side, his breathing growing rough and rapid.

After a moment—

He suddenly raised his head, madness and resolve flashing in his eyes—
the look of a gambler making one final desperate bet.

“Come here!”

He spun around and grabbed Lin Yu’s wrist.

“Ah!”

Lin Yu cried out, yanked forward before she could react.

“B-Boss Luo… what… what are you doing?”

“What am I doing? Saving my life!”

Luo Shaotian’s face twisted viciously as he shoved her in front of Xiao Zhu.

“Send her! She can do it! Let her gamble!”

“W-what?!”

Lin Yu’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“You want me to… go where? I’m scared… I… I don’t want to go…”

“Shut up! Lin Haizao!”

Luo Shaotian gave her no chance to refuse. His hands clamped onto her shoulders, fingernails digging into her flesh.

“Don’t you desperately need money?!
Your little brother is dying in the hospital, waiting for your money to save his life!
Did you forget?!”

“I…”

Lin Yu froze.

“Little brother?”

“Oh right…”

“That was the script Li Qing gave me…”

“Listen, Haizao!”

Luo Shaotian leaned in close, lowering his voice to a terrifying whisper.

“Tonight, we’re grasshoppers tied to the same rope, understand?!”

“If that money doesn’t come back, I’m finished—and don’t think you’ll be any better off!
By then, you’ll go to prison, and your brother will be kicked out of the hospital to die!”

“Think it through!”

He stared straight into Lin Yu’s eyes, his gaze filled with near-pleading madness.

“Later, just follow me and Xiao Zhu to one place, that’s all.
Relax, it won’t take long—just gamble one round with me… one round is enough!”

“That place… the odds are very high!
Win just once, and we’ll recover everything we lost!
There’ll even be extra left to treat your brother!”

Lin Yu looked at the man in front of her who had completely “gone dark,”
and couldn’t help giving a mental thumbs-up.

Amazing.

This acting, this delivery—
not going for an Oscar is truly a loss for the acting world.

Especially that shameless scumbag vibe of selling out a woman to save himself—
he nailed it perfectly.

“Th-then… will it be dangerous?”

Lin Yu still looked conflicted as she asked timidly.

“No danger! Absolutely none!”

Luo Shaotian swore fervently.

“It’s just an ordinary VIP private room!
Just playing a couple of big rounds!
I’m here—what are you afraid of?!”

Lin Yu looked at Luo Shaotian’s bloodshot eyes, then at Xiao Zhu, who was watching eagerly from the side.

Finally, she seemed to give up, lowering her head dejectedly.

“O… okay…”

Her voice was faint, carrying resignation and despair.

“As long as… as long as I can get the money…”

“Good! Good Haizao! I knew you were sensible!”

He wrapped an arm around Lin Yu’s shoulders and turned back to Xiao Zhu, now completely wearing a gambler’s expression.

“Did you hear that? She agreed!”

“We have two people—two chances! Is that okay?!”

His tone was urgent and greedy, as if he could already see hope of a comeback.

“Hehe…”

Xiao Zhu’s smile grew even brighter.

This kind of ugliness and distortion of human nature was exactly the finest nourishment for Elysium.

“Mm… fine.”

She nodded with interest, her gaze sweeping over the two of them as if assessing merchandise.

“Since this young lady is so righteous, willing to sacrifice herself for love—
oh no, for money—then I can hardly refuse to play matchmaker.”

She turned sideways and extended her hand, pointing toward the tightly shut black door.

“Then, you two.”

“Please follow me.”