Plum Blossom Youth sent Xiao Lou, Ye Qi, and others who weren't participating in the game to the lounge next door.
This VIP room has an inner and an outer room. The outer room is spacious and has a card table that can accommodate up to 10 people. The inner room is a lounge. The two rooms are separated by floor-to-ceiling glass. This way, those who don't play can go to the inner room to watch the games, so they can see the card table clearly without standing next to the players and disturbing them.
After leading his teammates into the inner room, Xiao Lou found that the lounge had thoughtfully prepared snacks and fruits for everyone. However, no one was in the mood to eat, and their expressions were full of worry.
Xiao Lou reassured his teammates, saying, "Poker games always involve a certain amount of luck. Besides, this isn't a do-or-die game. At worst, we can lose everything and then go earn more money."
His jinx made Ye Qi laugh: "That's right, if all else fails, I can always go busking on the street."
Old Mo said, "My renovation company can also be restarted."
Long Sen said, "I wonder if there's a shortage of sports school coaches here? Or, I could become a fitness instructor."
Qu Wanyue said, "Dance teachers should have a pretty good income."
Liu Qiao stroked her chin thoughtfully: "I haven't graduated from university yet. If I were to intern at a pharmacy, would anyone hire me?"
Xiao Lou was left speechless, both amused and exasperated: "It can't be that bad, with everyone having to work odd jobs, can it?"
After chatting for a while, everyone relaxed a bit. Ye Qi said, "In addition to luck, the key to Texas Hold'em is playing skills and mental fortitude. I'm not very good at it, but I've watched Texas Hold'em World Championships online before, and those professional players are all very composed. No matter what, CEO Shao and Captain Yu's mental fortitude is definitely top-notch, no less than these rich guys."
Xiao Lou agreed, saying, "So, there's no need to be too pessimistic. Let's see how they perform."
At this moment, Shao Qingge and Yu Hanjiang were already seated at the card table.
Plum Blossom Youth put on white gloves, clearly indicating that he would be acting as the dealer in this game.
He introduced everyone present in turn— Li Mo, number 1, is the richest real estate developer in Card World; Ms. Zhang, number 2, is a capable woman with short hair and the owner of an internet technology company. Both of them are young and promising.
Number 4 is a slightly overweight middle-aged man whose family runs a clothing business; he's a second-generation rich kid. Number 5 is a shrewd man wearing glasses who owns a film and television company in the entertainment industry. Number 7 is a stylish woman with curly hair who owns a top-tier luxury brand. Number 8 is a leader in the e-commerce industry. All four of them appear to be over 40 years old.
Yu Hanjiang is in seat number 3, and Shao Qingge is in seat number 6.
The game begins, with players taking turns being the dealer.
Plum Blossom Youth said, "In this game, each chip represents 1 million. The small blind is 2 chips and the big blind is 4 chips. The dealer takes turns. In the first round, position 1 is the dealer."
In Texas Hold'em, the dealer doesn't raise in the hole round. The first player to the dealer's left (clockwise) places the small blind, and the second player places the big blind. The "blind" means you bet before you see your cards; it's completely unpredictable and relies entirely on luck. This rule is designed to prevent situations where everyone has bad hands and folds without winning anything.
With the blinds in place, even if everyone has a bad hand and folds, the dealer can still win the purse from the blinds.
After the blinds are set, all players are dealt their hole cards. After seeing their hands, players after the big blind take turns clockwise to indicate their hand: fold, call, or raise. A call must be equal to the previous player's bet, and a raise must be higher than the previous player's bet.
In each round of the game, the big blind is the last person to declare their bet.
In the first round, player number 1 was the dealer, player number 2 was the small blind, and player number 3, Yu Hanjiang, was sitting in the big blind position.
In the hole round, everyone received two face-down cards that only they could see. Xiao Lou and the others in the adjacent lounge couldn't see everyone's cards from a god-like perspective.
Yu Hanjiang's expression was very calm, while Shao Qingge wore a smiling face and looked very relaxed.
Player number 2 pushed two chips to the center of the table, and Yu Hanjiang calmly threw four chips into the prize pool.
On the flop, three community cards were revealed on the table: plum blossom 5, hearts 7, and hearts 9.
With such a community of cards, there are likely many possible hand combinations to stop, such as a straight of 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9, or someone already having two hearts to make a flush of 5 hearts. Alternatively, someone might have a pair of 5, 7, and 9, which can be combined with the cards on the table to make Three of a Kind.
In this kind of situation, those with good hands will definitely call.
Sure enough, the middle-aged man who had gained weight calmly bet 4 million gold coins in seat number 4 next to Yu Hanjiang.
The person in position 5 was also middle-aged, wearing silver-rimmed glasses. He pushed up his glasses, smiled, and said, "Raise." With that, he pushed 8 chips into the prize pool, raising the stake to 8 million coins.
Shao Qingge in position 6 folded, and Curly-haired Woman in position 7 folded.
The person in position 8 was bald; his head was almost reflective under the crystal chandelier in the room. He calmly said, "Follow."
Eight chips again.
When the dealer number 1 made his decision, Li Mo remained calm and said in a low voice, "Add, 1200."
The player in position 2 discards their card.
When it was Yu Hanjiang's turn to play position 3, Xiao Lou nervously calculated in his mind.
The prize pool is as follows: small blind 200, big blind 400, number 4 calls 400, number 5 adds 800, number 8 calls 800, number 1 adds 1200. The current prize pool totals 36 million.
A cold sweat broke out on his back. Although the exchange rate between gold coins and RMB was 100:1, that was still 360,000 RMB.
This is only one game.
The world of the super-rich is terrifying. I wonder what Captain Yu will do? Xiao Lou looked at Yu Hanjiang nervously.
Yu Hanjiang calmly chose to fold.
Folding would mean losing the 400 blinds you just placed, but it's still better than calling and losing even more.
There's a saying that "losing less is the same as winning more." When playing this game, you must avoid being impatient and playing emotionally. In the first round, Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge folded on the flop, leaving the remaining big shots to continue their battle.
On the turn, Plum Blossom Youth revealed his fourth card: Diamond 3.
The betting amount had now reached 1200.
Player 4 frowned and folded; Player 5 folded, leaving Player 8 to call 1200, and Li Mo continued to call.
On the river, Plum Blossom Youth flipped over the last community card: plum blossom 2.
Number 8 smiled helplessly and gave up immediately.
Li Mo won automatically. He calmly turned over his hand, which contained two 7s.
The community cards included: plum blossom 5, hearts 7, hearts 9, diamond 3, and plum blossom 2. Li Mo made up three 7s, forming a Three of a Kind.
The bald guy in number 8 who folded had two hearts in his hand, obviously hoping to gamble on a heart flush, but unfortunately he was one short.
Li Mo won 60 chips in this hand.
Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge exchanged a glance, their understanding unspoken.
Yu Hanjiang actually had two Kings, and Shao Qingge had an Ace and a 9. Their initial hole cards were good, but they still chose to fold.
In the second round, player number 2 was the dealer, and Yu Hanjiang placed a small blind of 200.
When it came time to declare their opinions on the flop, Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge folded again.
In the third round, Yu Hanjiang, number 3, was the dealer and also folded, followed by Shao Qingge.
Fourth game, fifth game...
After a round of dealer rotation, the teammates observing from inside noticed that Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge had folded eight times in a row! Moreover, each time they folded after only three community cards were revealed on the flop – were they just having really bad luck today, with terrible hole cards every time?
The teammates were all somewhat uneasy.
However, Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge at the poker table remained calm. The former was still composed, while the latter had a constant smile on his face, adopting an attitude of "you big shots play, I'll just watch the show."
Ye Qi couldn't help but ask, "Is it because they're under too much pressure and don't dare to raise their bets to compete with the big shots?"
Qu Wanyue sighed softly: "The world of the rich is truly terrifying. After eight rounds, Li Mo has won the most so far. I calculated that he has won over a hundred chips, each worth a million! I can't even imagine."
Long Sen said with a wry smile, "If it were me, I'd be trembling just sitting there. Tens of millions of gold coins in one game—that's like being able to buy a villa just by playing one game!"
Xiao Lou said gently, "Everyone, don't be nervous. Captain Yu and CEO Shao are probably not afraid to raise their bets because of too much pressure. They are definitely observing their opponents."
Ye Qi looked at Xiao Lou: " What does Professor Xiao mean?"
Xiao Lou said, "When playing cards with these people for the first time, we need to figure out their styles. There's no need to go all out in the first few rounds. Based on my understanding of Captain Yu, he might fold even if he gets a good hand. As for CEO Shao … although he usually plays quite aggressively, this time he's facing big shots with far more financial resources than us. If he goes too aggressively and loses all his chips, he'll be in a very passive position."
It's a very simple principle: if someone knows you have a maximum of 20 chips, they can raise by 20, forcing you to go all in. If your hand is even slightly weak, you'll lose everything.
Currently, Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge have only received 100 chips from Plum Blossom A. Even if they exchange all the money in their bank accounts, they would only have a maximum of 500 chips. The game would take four hours, while Texas Hold'em is a very fast-paced game, with each round lasting only 1-3 minutes.
In each round, the big blind and small blind are increased by 2 and 4 respectively. If the big and small blinds are not your own, you can fold immediately after seeing the hole cards and avoid losing money.
So, although they played eight consecutive rounds of the dealer rotation and folded eight times in a row, seemingly cowardly and afraid to compete with the big players, Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge actually only lost one big and one small blind each, which is a total of 12 chips.
They still have plenty of leverage.
There's still plenty of time. We can play from 8 to 12, which is four hours. There's no need to rush.
Seeing that Xiao Lou remained calm, his teammates gradually relaxed. After all, Xiao Lou knew Yu Hanjiang best on the team, and he believed Captain Yu was fine. Everyone trusted his judgment, and Captain Yu's expression was indeed very composed.
In the second lap, it was Li Mo's turn to be in charge again.
Li Mo glanced thoughtfully at Yu Hanjiang. Was the handsome man, who remained seated like a statue, going to fold again? He smiled at Yu Hanjiang and said, "Mr. Yu, is your luck so bad today? You've folded eight times already."
Yu Hanjiang said calmly, "It is indeed quite bad. I always get bad cards like 3 or 4."
Li Mo shrugged noncommittally and said, "I hope you and Mr. Shao have better luck in the second round. We don't want you two to just watch the show."
The bespectacled man, number 5, said jokingly, "I've also folded three times in a row. Mr. Li, why don't you care about how good my hand is?"
Li Mo smiled and said, "Mr. Yu and Mr. Shao, after all..."
"This is our first meeting. You're a seasoned veteran. You beat me by so much last time; today I'll make you pay it all back."
Number 5 chuckled and said, "That depends on whether Mr. Li has good luck today."
The group of people were joking around casually, suggesting they were regular card players and quite familiar with each other.
Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge exchanged a glance.
After observing for eight consecutive rounds, the two players had a good understanding of their opponents at the poker table.
Li Mo, number 1, plays very steadily. He folds even with bad hands, and usually when he calls, his hand is quite good, which often leads to a win. This shrewd man is definitely good at card counting and probability calculation; he is currently the biggest winner.
The young woman with short hair (No. 2) and the middle-aged woman with curly hair (No. 7) were both quite cautious when playing cards. The number of times they folded immediately after receiving their hole cards was second only to Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge. They also decided to raise based on their hand.
Players 4 and 5 have similar styles; they play for two rounds, assess the situation, and only fold if things get tough. They rarely go all the way to the final round; most of the time they fold on the turn—when the fourth community card is revealed.
Number 8, the bald guy, is the most unrestrained when playing cards. He loves to gamble on luck. As long as his hand is slightly better, he will raise or call, and he can keep gambling until the last round. It is common for him to lose dozens of chips in a game. He has a completely "I have too much money and I am not afraid to lose" attitude.
Xiao Lou's guess was correct; Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge were indeed observing the players at the poker table, trying to figure out their backgrounds.
In the second round, Li Mo was the dealer, and Yu Hanjiang was the big blind.
When the three community cards were revealed, Shao Qingge called 400, and the others followed suit, including Yu Hanjiang.
The cards on the table are spade 7, spade 8, and diamond 9.
The community cards themselves form a three-card straight. Anyone who gets 5 and 6, or 10 and J, can immediately make a straight. And if someone gets two spades, they can wait for the fifth spade to make a flush.
The fact that all 8 people called indicates that everyone had a chance to make a strong hand from their hole cards.
Li Mo glanced at Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge; the two spectators had finally joined the game. As the biggest winner so far, Li Mo had three small mountains of chips piled up in front of him, and he wanted to see how the two would play next.
Turning the deck, the dealer reveals the fourth card: Plum Blossom Ace.
The appearance of this card complicates the hand rankings. If someone has a pair of Aces in their hole cards and adds a Plum Blossom Ace to make Three of a Kind, it's considered a strong hand. However, a flush beats a straight, a straight beats Three of a Kind, and so on. Someone with Three of a Kind might not dare to call in this situation.
At this point, you need to play mind games.
Fatty number 4 bet 400, number 5 bet 400; number 6 Shao Qingge folded, number 7 woman folded, and number 8 bald uncle started playing aggressively again—doubling up to 1200!
When it was Li Mo's turn to speak, he deliberately raised the bet: "2400".
The man counted 24 chips with his long, slender fingers and gently pushed them into the prize pool, then glanced thoughtfully at Yu Hanjiang.
Li Mo was deliberately putting pressure on the newcomer today. The player number 2 behind him folded immediately. To his surprise, when the handsome newcomer saw that he had raised by 2400, he didn't even frown, and his expression remained calm and composed: "Call."
Yu Hanjiang also counted 24 chips and threw them into the prize pool.
On the river, the last community card was revealed by Plum Blossom Youth – the spade 9.
The current community cards on the table are: spade 7, spade 8, diamond 9, Plum Blossom Ace, spade 9.
There are many possible hands: Three of a Kind, Straight, Flush, Four of a Kind, and even Straight Flush!
There are still 5 people at the table, and the player to the left of the big blind will start by stating their opinions.
Player #4 thought for a moment and then folded.
Number 5 then folded.
This was also within Yu Hanjiang's expectations, because 4 and 5 are not particularly hard-working styles.
Number 8 was different; his hand should be pretty good, so he simply raised: "Let's go for a round number, 3000."
When it was number 1's turn, Li Mo smiled and said, "Raise the bet, 3600."
He looked at Yu Hanjiang.
Yu Hanjiang was the last to speak.
This position has the advantage of allowing you to observe the overall sentiment before making a decision; however, it also has the disadvantage that if the people in front of you raise their bets higher, you have to raise them even higher if you want to call.
Before the hole cards were dealt, the big blind bet 400.
On the flop, he called 400.
On the turn, he called 2400.
If he calls 3600 on the river, his total bet in this hand will be a whopping 68 million!
Xiao Lou's heart was in his throat, and his fists clenched slightly at his sides.
Yu Hanjiang's expression remained unchanged. He glanced back at Li Mo and calmly said, "Follow, 3600."
He counted 36 chips, and with a "whoosh," he tossed them into the prize pool.
A collective gasp filled the lounge; Captain Yu's teammates were clearly taken aback!
Plum Blossom Youth said, "Please turn over your cards and compare the card rankings."
There are three people left at the table.
The teammates watching from inside couldn't help but stand up, walk to the floor-to-ceiling glass, and carefully examine the cards on the table.
Community cards: spade 7, spade 8, diamond 9, Plum Blossom A, spade 9.
Li Mo's hand was: hearts 9, plum blossom 9. On the flop, he already had three of a kind with 999, and on the river, another 9 appeared, giving him four of a kind with 9999, a very strong hand.
Light No. 8
The leader's hand consists of a heart 5 and a spade 6. With the community cards, he has formed a straight of 5, 6, 7, 8, and 9.
The last one is Yu Hanjiang.
Everyone nervously turned their gaze to him.
The man remained calm as he gently flipped over his hand with his long, slender fingers.
One spade 10, one spade J.
In other words, when only 3 cards are revealed on the flop, he has already made a straight of 7, 8, 9, 10, J. Finally, when the river reveals the spade 9, he can replace the diamond 9 in the original community cards to form a pure spade 7, 8, 9, 10, J – a straight flush!
No wonder he called the 3600 bet in the last round, because at that point, his hand was the strongest possible hand on the table!
Plum Blossom Youth said, "Number 3, Yu Hanjiang wins."
Yu Hanjiang calmly gathered the mountain of round chips piled on the table in front of him.
In this round, he won a total of 200 chips!
Ye Qi almost jumped up excitedly: " Captain Yu was amazing this round, winning so much in one go!"
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they saw the tall stack of round chips in front of Yu Hanjiang.
Xiao Lou released his fist, a slight smile creeping onto his lips— Captain Yu was indeed reliable. He knew that Yu Hanjiang's calm demeanor meant he must have the strongest hand on the table to challenge Li Mo. Otherwise, if the spade 9 was revealed on the final round, there might have been four 9s and 9s on the table, and without a straight flush, calling 3600 would have been extremely risky.
Having folded eight consecutive hands and only calling when he had the best hand, Yu Hanjiang's strategy can be described as "rock solid."
Unfortunately, this round had too many potential big hands on the community cards – number 8 (bald guy) and number 1 ( Li Mo ) became the fattest fish, and were all taken by Yu Hanjiang!