by <unknown>
It took humans millions of years to develop reason and gamblers abandoned it in only three minutes.
Before Prince Steele had invited the eleven plutocrats, he had said that he would allow these powerful families to invite their relatives and friends on board as well. This was why there were so many people on the ship.
Most of these were second-class, minor plutocrats or wealthy entrepreneurs, who had used their connections to come on board to expand their network. Chen Chen even noticed a few people from China.
At this point, a handsome young man with long hair, dyed brown, passed by Chen Chen, tirelessly explaining to his companions:
"This is the last time I'm buying the chips. This 4 million is my final streak of stubbornness. You won't see me spending another dollar in this casino. With this 4 million I'll win 400 million!"
Chen Chen shook his head slightly. It was not that easy to win four million in a casino…
Leo, Davis, and the rest led Chen Chen to a gambling table with a notice that said "Blackjack". This must be the Blackjack that they were talking about.
"Blackjack is actually 21-point."
Leo quickly explained to Chen Chen, "First, take two to three decks of cards and remove the two Jokers from each deck. For the remaining cards, the points of 2 to 9 are counted as is while 10, J, Q, K each counts as 10 points. The Ace is counted as 1 or 11 points, depending on the situation. The rules are simple. The player may keep drawing cards, then compare the number of points in their hand. However, the total can only add up to 21 points at most. If it exceeds 21 points, you 'bust', and you lose immediately. If your points are the same, it's a tie."
"So, who am I playing against?" Chen Chen asked.
"The dealer." Davis pointed at the sexy dealer opposite the table. "The game is divided into the dealer and the player. All players only need to compare with the dealer. They don't have to compare with each other."
"That's right. After all players have finished drawing their cards, then it's the dealer's turn to look at the cards. The rule for the dealer is: If it's greater than or equal to 17 points, they won't draw more cards. Otherwise, they'll keep drawing cards until they reach 17 points. If they bust, all players win."
Leo added. "Tonight's banker is Prince Steele. He's sponsored each of us a hundred thousand dollars."
As Leo spoke, a casino staff member came over with some chips and handed them to everyone. Chen Chen took a few and held them in his hands.
"Let's play a round then," Davis said eagerly, "my hands are itching already."
With that, he took a seat and threw down his chips, signaling the dealer across the table to start dealing.
Chen Chen shook his head and sat in the second seat, putting down two chips.
In the first round, Chen Chen received one card that was faced down and one card that was turned over. The former was the 2 of spades, and the latter was the 10 of diamonds.
Chen Chen frowned. 2 plus 10 resulted in a number that was neither here nor there. If he continued to draw, he might bust with just one more card. If he chose not to draw any more cards, his chances of losing were very high.
Right away, Chen Chen looked toward the dealer, whose exposed card was 7 points.
"Seat number 1, do you want to draw?" The dealer started to ask Leo, according to the procedure.
"D*mn it, I don't want any more cards!"
Leo laughed and cursed. His exposed card was the 10 of hearts, the same as Chen Chen.
A game of probability? This gameplay seemed to be solvable by math…
At this point, Chen Chen could not help tilting his head.
[My points are 12 and the dealer's exposed card is 7 points. If I choose not to draw, then according to the rule that "the dealer must reach 17 points or more"' as Leo said, there's only one way I can win, that is if the dealer busts.]
[Suppose that the probability of the dealer busting is P(S). In that case, there are currently 13 possibilities for the dealer's hidden card: let T represent 10, J, Q, K. When F(T+7), the dealer won't draw or bust. Putting this aside…]
[When F(9+7), drawing 6~T equals to bust. F(9+7) = 8/13… and so on. Finally, P(S) =∑F=0.26231.]
[This means that, if I don't draw any cards, my probability of winning is 26.231%.]
Chen Chen glanced at Leo and Davis beside him and continued thinking.
[However, if I continue to draw, I'll win in two cases: 1. I don't bust, and the dealer does; 2. Neither the dealer nor I bust, but I have more points. The probability of this: P(H).]
[The chances of the dealer busting is the same as above. But if it's the second scenario, then there are four further possibilities. P1, I have 21 points, the dealer has 17 to 20 points; P2, I have 20 points, the dealer has 17 to 19 points; P3, I have 19 points, the dealer has 17 to 18 points; P4, I have 18 points, the dealer has 17 points…]
[Let's analyze this first. If I draw the next card and my point increases from 12 to 13, that means I drew an A. Therefore, if W(12) = 1, then W(13) = W(12)×1/13 = 0.07692.]
[From this, W(18) can be calculated. The dealer gets 17 points, and Z(17) can be calculated in the same way. Therefore, the formula for the fourth possibility is P4 = W(18)+Z(17), and the same can be calculated for P1, P2, P3…]
[Therefore, the probabilities of the four scenarios added together is P(H) = P1+P2+P3+P4+P(S)×9/13 = 0.43577.]
[In other words, if I continue to draw, my probability of winning is 43.577%, which is higher than if I don't draw a card...]
All this seemed lengthy, but it flashed through Chen Chen's mind in just a moment. When Chen Chen looked up once again, it was his turn to speak.
"Seat number 2, do you want to draw?" the dealer asked in a soft voice.
"One more, please."
Chapter 143: The Arena |
Half an hour later.
"In this round, the dealer has 18 points. Number 1 has 17 points, Number 2 has 20 points, Number 3 has busted — Number 2 wins, Number 1 and 3 lose."
The dealer spoke calmly as she pushed some of the chips to Chen Chen with a metal ruler.
Currently, the chips before Chen Chen had piled up to the height of a small table. At the same time, a large crowd of spectators had gathered behind him.
"Oh my god…"
After the dealer's announcement, the crowd instantly murmured among themselves.
"Chen, how do you do it?"
Leo and Davis, who had already lost all their money, wore incredulous expressions. There was no doubt that everyone had lost and won some rounds, but the chips in their hands had slowly shifted to the dealer's side. Only Chen Chen's chips did not decrease but grew in volume instead.
"It's just a question of probability."
Chen Chen felt that this was enough, so he threw down the cards in his hand and said to the dealer, "There's a total of 10.62 million USD here. Please transfer 10 million to my account. The rest is yours."
"Thank you, sir!" The dealer was stunned and hastily bowed in gratitude.
With just this tip, she could retire right away.
As Chen Chen left, the spectators behind could not refrain from clapping softly before they slowly dispersed.
Chen Chen took out his phone and looked at the time. It was already ten at night. At the same time, he realized that despite being connected to the cruise ship's Wi-Fi, the internet traffic was zero. At once, he asked, puzzled, "Does the Wi-Fi here have no signal?"
"Let me see…"
Leo took out his phone and said in amazement, "Me too. Although it's connected to Wi-Fi, I can't get online. Seems like there's a problem with the Wi-Fi."
"This kind of thing often happens at sea." Davis sounded unconcerned.
Just then, there was the sudden sound of helicopter rotors from outside the doors of the casino. The minute they heard this, Leo and the rest perked up.
"The contenders we've invited will be here soon!"
With that, they headed out of the casino.
Chen Chen followed the group. Aft
er they walked out, they followed the sound and saw a small helicopter, flickering with a red light, in the dark, heavy sky, hovering above the Symphony of the Seas.
"Once the pathfinder helicopter arrives, the ones we've invited would be here right away," Davis, as if worried that Chen Chen would not understand, quickly explained.
Chen Chen nodded.
Sure enough, a short while after the helicopter landed on the helipad, another cruise ship appeared on the horizon and rapidly drew closer.
This cruise ship was pitch-black all over. Although it was not small, next to the Symphony of the Seas, it looked like a small dirt mound beside a large mountain. There was no way to compare them at all.
The people from the helicopter came forward to exchange a few words. More than ten minutes later, thirty or forty men dressed in various attire boarded the ship intermittently.
From Chen Chen's perspective, everyone in this group radiated a ferocious, formidable aura as if each one was "reeking of blood". Only those who had seen blood before would have such a presence.
Chen Chen stood on the upper deck and looked down. Prince Steele's bodyguards and crew were conducting full-body checks on everyone. They were only brought in one by one after all suspicious items had been confiscated.
At this moment, an icy gust of wind tore past the deck, messing up Chen Chen's hair with a wailing sound.
The wind was getting stronger, to the point where it could no longer be ignored…
Chen Chen slowly looked up and gazed into the distance once more.
The sky was extremely gloomy. It was no longer a clear indigo sky but eerie darkness. It looked like a ceaselessly rolling thick fog that was startlingly black…
Rain clouds had fully condensed and formed above the Symphony of the Seas. A violent storm was inevitable.
"It looks like there'll be a storm soon. D*mn this weather!"
Leo was grumbling. "Chen, let's head back first."
Chen Chen stood with his back to Leo and the rest. Currently, a smirk was tugging at the corner of his lips, then it vanished.
"Alright, let's go back."
They returned to the casino.
As the boxing match was starting soon, Leo and the rest did not continue gambling. Instead, they stood on the sidelines and chatted. From time to time, members from the other families came over and joined in. It was Chen Chen who stood to one side with nothing to do.
Chen Chen glanced at the table where they were playing Fight the Landlord. He happened to notice the brown-haired young man playing together with two forty, fifty-year-old ladies.
Moreover, the 4 million worth of chips on the young man's table had dwindled to less than 200 thousand…
At this point, the young man was gripping four cards in one hand, blustering at one of the ladies, "You can crush me with seventeen cards? Do you think you can crush me? If you crush me today with seventeen cards, I'll eat this mahogany table! Right! Here! Right! Now!"
"…"
Chen Chen turned away with an indifferent expression and checked the time again. Just then, a few crew members in uniforms walked over and started to clear out the tables and guests in the back half of the casino. Their team leader even looked over to Leo and nodded subtly.
When Chen Chen turned back, he just so happened to see Leo nodding back. When Leo noticed Chen Chen looking at him, he shot a grin at Chen Chen.
"What are they doing?"
Chen Chen asked curiously.
"My dear Chen, you'll know soon."
Leo patted Chen Chen's shoulders. Then, something happened, which Chen Chen could never imagine.
The back half of the casino, after being cleared of people and tables, started to descend gradually. It was like a modifiable stage. A deep circular pit appeared.
The deck in the pit lowered continuously, revealing a flight of steps, creating a circle of tiered seats like a basketball court.
At last, as the deep pit formed, a circular fighting arena, eight meters wide and surrounded by metal nets, appeared in the middle.
Meanwhile, dozens of partitions were lowered from the ceiling, dividing the surrounding space into dozens of small, private rooms. These rooms formed a circle around the periphery of the venue, giving an unobstructed view of the entire arena.
Some of the crew members began to move the sofa from the lounge area next to them into the private rooms.
Chen Chen shook his head. He truly did not expect that a hidden mechanism like this would exist on such a standard-looking cruise ship. If the ship was not hired out privately, ordinary passengers would never witness this.
Was this the world of the rich?
Chen Chen raised an eyebrow. Astonished cries erupted behind him as well.
Indeed, everyone who was throwing money around in the casino had seen the sudden drop of the arena and was instantly shocked.
"Let's go, Chen."
Leo and the rest evidently knew about this mechanism long ago. He called out to Chen Chen, then took the lead and occupied a box. Meanwhile, the crowd that was endlessly surging up from behind was stopped by the crew.
As news of this spread, more people hurried over swiftly. Nonetheless, other than the members of the eleven plutocrat families who could watch from the box, everyone else could only sit in the tiered seats below to watch the competition.
Chapter 144: Cards Revealed |
As it was not an actual room, the furnishings inside were not elaborate. Other than a few sofas and a coffee table, there was nothing else.
Even so, compared to the tiered seats outside the court, it was much more comfortable.
At least the private room was not as messy and crowded as the outside. Not only did it have a floor-to-ceiling observation window, but there was also a 40-inch ultra-thin monitor on the wall, which broadcasted the scene in the arena. This allowed them to view the competition from different angles.
As one took in the entire venue from the full-length window and watched the fight from here, one would feel a sense of superiority.
In a short while, there was a knock on the door and a server came in, respectfully handing a few betting machines to the group. According to him, once they entered their numbers into the machine, they could begin placing their bets.
Chen Chen tossed this machine, which looked like a remote control, to one side. He sat on the single sofa at the side and silently watched as a middle-aged man with slicked-back silver hair stepped into the ring.
He seemed to be acting as the host. With a microphone in his hand, he said in a loud rousing, announcer-like voice, "Gentlemen, ladies, homies, b*tches, welcome to the no-holds-barred fight of the Symphony of the Seas!"
He leaped onto the arena and roared. "Anything in this world consists of two opposites. Where there's light, there's darkness. Where there's earth, there's the sky. Similarly, where there are UFC and other world-certified fighting, there are also brutal, bloody underground fighting! And today, you'll be lucky enough to see such a fight!
"They're bloodthirsty, they're ruthless, they're inhuman enough to break your neck — this is the draw of fighting without rules! They are demons from hell, killing machines that have lost their humanity, and they'll ignite every single violent desire in your heart!"
As the host spat out these crude and even insulting words, it enlivened the once-quiet atmosphere. A few young people, spurred on by the host, started screaming peculiarly.
It was not the first time most of them had watched an event like this.
At the same time, at the end of the ring, an iron door suddenly opened and a bony black man walked out.
"Very well, looks like the first contender for today is a black brother!"
The host yelled excitedly, "Please let me introduce him properly. He's the proud warrior of Wakanda, the loyal guard of the Black Panther. He's chewed the Heart-shaped Herb and f*cked Captain America in the ass. He hails from the Rainbow Nation and his mighty, blazing name is:
"Aaaaaarches!"
"
Roar —!"
Galvanized by the host's provocative tone, the audience present howled even louder. The host's vulgar language had stirred up the darkness deep in the hearts of these upper-class people.
The stadium filled with hundreds slowly became rowdier. Many people were staring at the arena with great interest, including most who were already familiar with fights like this.
Currently, the skinny black man had stepped into the ring, but he did not fit the host's description. Under the blinding light which shone from above, he displayed a helpless manner and even his legs were trembling slightly.
"Alright, the next one to come out will be our other killer."
The host turned around and faced the other door of the ring. "He's a Western cowboy from the Middle Ages, a conservative grouch, half-man, half-machine, shotgun, beer, and b*tches…"
With that, a white man with fierce eyes, wearing a cowboy hat, slowly walked out.
"Oh f*ck, this bastard is so primitive! This bastard, he'll even eat the butt of a live cow! He's the cowboy from North America —"
"Saaaaaaarion!"
"Roar!"
There was another raucous cheer from the audience. At this point, the entire arena was fully warmed up.
Within the private room, Chen Chen stared speechlessly at the two men in the ring. The white man in the cowboy hat was not too shabby. Although his build was average, at least he had the right attitude. Still, Chen Chen could see the deep, hidden fear within his eyes.
As for the other black man, Chen Chen was somewhat stumped. With that build and that demeanor, he had just come from a slum, and now he was here to join an underground fight?
However, after thinking about it, Chen Chen understood.
Most people had the impression that this sort of fighting, underground boxing, should be more intense than regular boxing. After all, one would be fighting for one's life on stage all year round, and had to be even stronger than professional boxers — this was what most people thought.
However, this was a misunderstanding.
