Chapter 32: A Favor
The biggest features of the west side of Shangcheng were wealthy people and gold diggers.
There was a full range of luxury fashion brands from all over the world being sold in this district. This was a paradise for women, and here, you could find beautiful ladies from all over the country who had come to try and win some rich man’s heart so that they could live a luxurious life.
Here, you could see all kinds of fashionable girls shopping on the streets covered in brand names. A person could stay here all day and night and not get bored because he could see all kinds of beautiful girls. And just like what Zhang Ruian said, the prettier the girl, the higher the chance that she was already taken; those sugar daddies that could match their beauty usually came from a big background.
However, all of this actually centered around the circle of people who had gotten rich overnight, and that is where the casino comes in.
That’s right, what could be called the biggest and highest tier casino that was operating legally in Asia was in Shangcheng’s western district. Here, you could see the birth of hobos and rich men every night, those that lost or gained all of their wealth in one night. It was a place filled with the dirty smell of money, and all the women and luxury products would accompany the casino and form a high-end circle.
The security level of this place was also very heavy. After all, it was a place of the rich, and there would often be a lot of thieves lurking around. It could be said that the instructors and directors trusted him, so they gave him this opportunity to patrol this area.
It was already ten o’clock in the evening, Xu Cheng could see beautiful women coming in and out of luxury cars everywhere on the street. They would either be going in pairs for shopping or going to a nearby nightclub or hotel. All in all, the night was pretty busy in this neck of the woods.
Another police officer’s voice came through Xu Cheng’s earpiece, “Careful with your motorcycle, we can’t afford the repair cost if we scratch one of these luxury cars.“
He did sound like he was joking, so Xu Cheng smiled and asked, “What else should I pay attention to?”
“You just need to keep an eye on theft, that’s all. If you see men or women arguing or something, whether it’s the guy hitting the woman or the woman crying and screaming, don’t get involved. Here, a woman will do anything for the money in a man’s wallet, so if you see any situation involving women, there’s no need to be shocked or to try to get involved. Oh and also, although what happens inside the casino can technically be categorized as civil liability disputes, it’s best if we don’t get involved.”
“Got it.”
Traveling around the casino district, everything sure felt extravagant and impetuous. The society created a distance between people through wealth, opening the gap between families. If there was no such gap, then Xu Cheng’s mother and father might not have been separated, and perhaps he would have a complete family.
At the door of a casino, a little girl begged to enter the casino. It looked like she was just a high school student with a ponytail and a white and delicate face. But at the moment, she was crying and pulling on the corner of the guard’s clothes, begging him to let her go inside to find her father.
“Please, I beg you, just let me in to find my dad… That’s the money for my mom’s surgery, how can he do this?”
“Sorry, we are not allowed to let in minors.”
“I’m begging you, my dad’s name is Yang Congxia, can you stop him from gambling? That’s the only money we have left to save my mom’s life! Please, I beg you two!” The little girl said as she quickly kneeled before them.
However, the two guards pushed the little girl away. It was mainly because the inconvenience she was causing could lead to their bonus being deducted if their manager saw this. Aside from the bad public influence, the casino also had a rule to not let anyone disturb those that frequented this establishment. They wouldn’t care where the money came from and wanted people to become addicted and gamble until they lose all the money.
Before the little girl could kneel, she was pushed away onto the floor, and she began crying helplessly.
Xu Cheng stopped his motorcycle by the street and jogged over.
The two security guards saw that it was an officer, so they said to Xu Cheng, “You should know that minors aren’t allowed to enter an establishment like this, you should communicate with her.”
Xu Cheng helped the girl up and to a marble table by the side of the entrance, asking her, “What happened?”
“My dad has a gambling addiction, and he took the last 200,000 yuan from the family savings. He hadn’t come out for a day now…” The little girl cried as she said, “That’s the money for my mom’s upcoming surgery, and the doctor said that the surgery should happen tonight as it can’t be postponed anymore. However, they will only start the surgery when the money is paid, but all the money was taken by my dad to gamble…”
Xu Cheng frowned. Such a father actually existed…
He sighed, “Stop crying first.”
The little girl tightly held onto the corner of Xu Cheng’s clothes and said in a begging tone, “Big Brother, can you go in and look for my father? Although my dad likes to gamble, I think he just wanted to win more money for my mom’s treatment. He knew that my mom is going to be undergoing surgery today, so he wouldn’t disappear for the entire day; something must have happened. Big Brother Officer, can you please go inside and look for my father? I don’t know what to do right now; without money, my mom will miss tonight’s surgery, and the doctor said that she will miss the best operation time… My dad’s also not around, and I really don’t know what to do anymore…”
Xu Cheng felt a bit sympathetic. “Do you have a phone?”
The little girl nodded.
“Do you have pictures of your dad?” Xu Cheng asked.
The little girl immediately took out her phone and found a picture of her dad, pa.s.sing it to Xu Cheng. “This is my dad, his name is Yang Congxia. Please Big Brother Officer, please find him for sure! After tonight, my mom might be able to make it… Please tell him that even if he lost all the money, please come out to see my mom for the last time…”
Xu Cheng nodded. “Then hurry up and go back to the hospital to keep your mom company. Also, which hospital is she at? What’s her name?”
“She’s at First People’s Hospital, and her name is Lin Feng.”
“Okay, got it. I will go in and help you find your dad.”
“Thank you so much, Big Brother Officer!” The little girl was very grateful; she wiped away her tears after finally finding a glimpse of hope.
Xu Cheng obviously wouldn’t go into the casino in his uniform, so he especially made a trip back to the station to change into his casual clothes. Then, he took a taxi and went to the casino. When he tried to enter, the two guards felt like they had seen him before.
“You look very familiar.”
After all, they had just met earlier, but luckily the two didn’t recall that he was a police officer.
“I’m a frequent patron, obviously you would find me familiar.” Xu Cheng rolled his eyes and walked straight in. The casino was really big, the hall was at least a few thousands of square meters. There were over 50 gambling tables, and they basically had all the games. Every table could accommodate 3 to 5 people, and there was approximately at least two hundred gamblers in the main hall. In addition, there were also VIP rooms on the second floor, which had better privacy. Usually, it would be public figures or guests that didn’t want others to find out that they were here. However, the VIP rooms had a significantly higher betting limit and a requirement of how much money they need to bring.
Xu Cheng asked around, and he found out that only guests who had more than 5 million could go up to the second floor, so he could probably find Yang Congxia in the main lobby. However, he looked around for a while but couldn’t find him. It was getting late, and thinking back on that little girl’s helpless face, he felt quite sympathetic towards her fear of losing her parents, since his single father died when he was still a child.
Picking up the phone, Xu Cheng called Shen Yao.
Her voice upon hearing Xu Cheng’s voice over the phone was as if she picked up a call from someone that killed her family.
“Do me a favor.” Xu Cheng was quite straightforward.
“No.” Shen Yao was just as straightforward.
Xu Cheng: “To save a life.”
Shen Yao: “Hurry the f*ck up and just say it.”
Xu Cheng: “Do you have 200 thousand yuan?”
Shen Yao gritted her teeth. “Xu Cheng, let me tell you, you are really pushing it now. Did you forget what you just did to me? You still have the face to ask me to lend you money?”
Xu Cheng: “Go to First People’s Hospital and look for a woman named Lin Feng. See how much her surgery costs and do me a favor and pay for it so they can perform the surgery.”
Shen Yao laughed. “You think I will help you? For what reason?”
Xu Cheng sighed. “Shen Yao, to be honest, you are really pretty.”
“Humph.” Shen Yao snorted coldly, “Can you elaborate on that for me?”
“I don’t know how to get into details, but I can only say that when I accidentally tore your skirt today, I got a b.o.n.e.r.”
Shen Yao’s eyes suddenly opened wide, and she shouted, “Perv, you win!”