Card Room

Chapter 303 - Best Strategy

These wealthy people often played cards together and winning or losing wasn’t important to them.

They didn’t know Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge and naturally focused on the two newcomers at the table. If Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge clearly cooperated then the six people would soon notice.

It naturally wasn’t good if the six people joined forces to beat the two of them. Therefore, the cooperation must be a secret and they couldn’t be doubted.

Yu Hanjiang would first fight steadily and establish a particularly calm image in everyone’s hearts. Shao Qingge was the opposite. He went all in and his ups and downs were like a roller coaster. He also occasionally bluffed. It was a typical ‘unrestrained’ play.

On the surface, the two men had completely different styles. In this game, Shao Qingge’s all in bluff failed and Yu Hanjiang won over 200 chips. Everyone naturally thought it was just a coincidence.

Shao Qingge took the newly exchanged 50 chips from the dealer and sighed. “I am the one who was rash. It seems that bluffing can’t be used much. You are all on guard against me.” His eyes swept across the other table members and he didn’t stop at Yu Hanjiang.

It was just that the brief meeting of their eyes was enough for Yu Hanjiang to understand the meaning. This method couldn’t be used anymore. All those sitting at the table had sharp eyes. Shao Qingge went all in and happened to send money to Yu Hanjiang. This would work once but not twice. The others weren’t stupid.

Fortunately, Yu Hanjiang now had nearly 400 chips and was the second biggest winner after Li Mo. Shao Qingge didn’t have to worry about losing money at all. He could continue to create waves while Group Leader Yu stayed steady.

The rhythm at the table was still fast.

In terms of probability, the possibility of big cards like straights and flushes were very low. Many times, everyone had small hands such as one pair or three of a kind. When encountering this type of hand, the game could be over in a minute.

Shao Qingge and Yu Hanjiang didn’t cooperate again. Yu Hanjiang was still very stable. He folded or called. He won very small victories and didn’t have many losses. He always kept his chips around 400.

Shao Qingge’s luck seemed very bad. He folded more than 20 games in a row and finally got a good card. He directly went all in to fight once again. Unfortunately, the bald Uncle Chen’s cards were bigger than his. Shao Qingge once again lost it all.

Uncle Chen smiled and took away the chips on the table. “Mr Shao, you are losing miserably today! However, I really appreciate your style of play. At least you look pretty handsome when you go all in.”

Shao Qingge held his temples like he had a headache. “Uncle Chen, don’t joke like that. My luck is really bad. It seems that I can’t make my money back today.” He looked helplessly at the dealer. “Please give me 50.”

The Clubs teenager handed him 50 chips blankly. It was 11:30 p.m. There were 30 minutes left until midnight and the end of the game. Shao Qingge glanced at the table. Yu Hanjiang had 400 chips in his hand while Shao Qingge had 50.

The teammates saw the situation and let go of their worries.

Ye Qi quickly calculated it. “Excluding the chips given by the keeper, Chief Shao has actually only lost 100 chips while Group Leader Yu still has 400. Time is almost up. If they keep folding, Group Leader Yu will win in the end!”

Folding was naturally a strategy but if their hand was good then they could win a few more games.

The clock in the room gradually approached midnight and the end of the game. For the next 20 consecutive games, Yu Hanjiang folded directly at the hole stage. If he drew small hands like a 3 or 7 then he didn’t need to call to see the flop. Shao Qingge’s hole cards also weren’t good. After the flop, the hand wasn’t formed well and he simply folded.

The time soon reached 11:55. The dealer spoke lightly, “In this game, it is number 3’s turn to be the dealer.”

Yu Hanjiang was the dealer, number 4 was the small blind, number 5 was the big blind and the number 6 Shao Qingge was the first to speak. The blinds were placed and the dealer dealt two hole cards to each person.

After receiving the hole cards, people would generally call 4 chips. People with slightly better hands would usually call to see the flop. They would look at the three community cards and then fold or raise.

Shao Qingge glanced at his hand and smiled slightly. “Call.”

Four golden round coins were put into the pot and Chief Wang after all also followed by calling. As a result, it was number 8’s turn and Uncle Chen suddenly smiled. “Raise to 10.”

Everyone looked at him with surprise. He only received the two hole cards and raised. Did he get a super hole card like AA or AK? Li Mo glanced at his hand, counted 10 chips and threw it in. The number 2 Chief Zhang calmly chose to call with 10 chips. Yu Hanjiang also called. Numbers 4 and 5 folded directly. Obviously, their hand was really bad.

There were six players left and the dealer turned over three community cards. J of Clubs, 10 of Clubs, K of Hearts.

J of Clubs, 10 of Clubs, K of Hearts.

These community cards meant there was likely to be a straight of 9, 10, J, Q, K or 10, J, Q, K, A. This was a ‘doubled-headed’ community card. If someone had two Clubs and another Clubs card was turned over, there might also be a flush.

Shao Qingge was the first to speak. He smiled when he saw this and said, “Call.”

He had 26 chips in his hand. 4 were called after the whole cards and this round was 10. It meant only 12 were left.

Uncle Chen jokingly wondered, “Why don’t you go all in?”

“I will take a look at the fourth card or else I might lose it all.”

Chief Wang folded directly after seeing the three community cards. She had a pair of 7s in her hand and there was no need to call.

Uncle Chen smiled and said, “Call.”

The number 1 Li Mo, number 2 Chief Zhang and number 3 Yu Hanjiang all chose to call. There were five people at the table and the dealer revealed the fourth community card, an 8 of Diamonds.

The appearance of this card surprised everyone.

The community cards were: 10 of Clubs, J of Clubs, K of Hearts, 8 of Diamonds.

There were too many possibilities for the four community cards to make a straight. If their hand was 7 and 9 then it became a straight of 7, 8, 9, 10, J. If their hand was a 9 and Q, it would be a straight of 9, 10, J, Q, K. If their hand was an A and Q then it was the biggest straight of 10, J, Q, K, A!

The appearance of this 8 of Diamonds card greatly increased the probability of a straight.

The double headed community card meant it was possible for both ends to have a straight. There was also the probability of forming a flush and a straight flush. Once multiple people called, it was destined to be an extremely fierce fight! At this time, if one’s cards weren’t good then they should fold as soon as possible to stop the loss in time.

However, Shao Qingge pushed all the chips in his hand into the pot with a smile. “All in!”

The others took a breath. What was this all in? Wasn’t this roller coaster ride already exciting enough?

Uncle Chen raised his eyebrow. “Are you bluffing and scaring people again? Or have you made a straight?”

Shao Qingge chuckled. “Guess?”

He had a history of bluffing but also a history of getting the biggest hand. Everyone couldn’t tell if he was bluffing or if he really had a straight. After all, the possibility of a straight in this situation was still very big.

For Shao Qingge, going all in made it easy for him. It didn’t matter to him how much other people raised. The all in person just had to wait until the end. This was equivalent to ‘sitting on the mountain and watching the tigers fight.’ In fact, the raise 10 was already 10 chips. He went all in but it was only 12 chips.

Uncle Chen thought for a moment. “Call.”

Li Mo also smiled and threw 12 chips in. “Call.”

This short-haired female boss in position number 2 currently wasn’t winning or losing. It was equivalent to acting as soy sauce all night.

Her hole cards in this game were a pair of Ks and there was a K in the community cards turned. This meant she currently had KKK, three of a kind. She speculated that since Uncle Chen made a direct raise on the hole card, it was likely he had a relatively large starting hand. Shao Qingge had bluffing experience and she couldn’t believe him at all. Li Mo and Yu Hanjiang called, which meant they might have a mixed suit straight.

Three of a kind was smaller than a straight. However, a four of a kind was bigger than a straight. What if there was another K at the end? Her four of a kind could be better than a normal straight. There were still 32 cards in the deck. The probability of waiting until the only remaining K came out was 1/32... 3%, which was too low.

The time was already 11:58 and this was likely to be the last game. Between a gamble and a fold, Chief Zhang boldly chose the former. “Call.”

Yu Hanjiang stated, “Call.”

There were five players left on the table. They were the number 1 Li Mo, the number 2 Chief Zhang, the number 3 Yu Hanjiang, the number 5 Shao Qingge who had gone all in and the number 8 Uncle Chen.

Both the people at the table and the teammates watching in the lounge were clenching their fists nervously. There were such big cards and five people were calling. What types of hands would they have?

The dealer turned over the last card calmly, the K of Clubs.

River card: K of Clubs.

Chief Zhang was so happy that she clenched her fists under the table! She had been waiting for this K. The pair of Ks in her hand and the one on the table meant that her hand was KKKK, a four of a kind!

Four of a kind was bigger than a straight and a flush. Only the straight flush was bigger than her. Would there be a straight flush?

She quickly calmed down and looked at the table.

10 of Clubs, K of Hearts, J of Clubs, 8 of Diamonds, K of Clubs.

A cold sweat broke out on Chief Zhang’s back. There were three Clubs on the table, a 10, J and K. If someone happened to have a 9 and Q of Clubs or a Q and A of Clubs, they could make a straight flush.

Could there be such a coincidence? She took a deep breath to calm her emotions and looked at the table as calmly as possible.

The number 8 Uncle Chen touched his bald head and smiled bitterly. “Fold.”

The always stubborn Uncle Chen folded, which surprised everyone. He didn’t call to the end. Obviously, he was aware that there would be very scary card hands at the table. He had a pair of Js in his hand, which was a relatively large hand. This caused him to raise after the hole cards. Once the three community cards turned over, he could make up JJJ. He had been waiting for the last J to make four of a kind but unfortunately, it didn’t appear.

There was no need to call with three of a kind when it was smaller than a straight. He wasn’t brainless to become a ‘money-giving person’ if he called. Therefore, Uncle Chen decisively folded.

Li Mo calmly called with 12 chips.

Chief Zhang’s palms were cold and sweaty. Her four of a kind was larger than a straight but she couldn’t beat a straight flush. Should she keep going or fold to stop the loss?

At this time, it was a psychological game. Based on her understanding of Li Mo, if he had a huge hand like a straight flush then he should raise instead of only calling. Since Li Mo was only calling, it was likely to be a mixed suits straight.

Her four of a kind was greater than a mixed straight and there was no need to be afraid of Li Mo. Chief Zhang made a decision in her heart and pretended to be calm. “Call.”

At this time, the call amount was 12 million and the pile on the table was quite terrifying. It was Yu Hanjiang’s turn last. If he also called 12 then everyone could show their cards. Chief Zhang stared at Yu Hanjiang. For this handsome and serious man, his eyes were always calm. He counted 20 chips with slender and powerful fingers and declared in a deep voice, “Raise.”

Everyone, “......”

The person who only folded and called all the time suddenly raised? This practice caused the backs of those still playing at the poker table to be slightly cold. Yu Hanjiang was very stable, surprisingly stable. Even if he had a flush of spades at the start, he didn’t raise. He just called until the end. Yet at this moment, he suddenly raised. Could it be...

The scariest royal straight flush was in his hand?!

Shao Qingge watched the show with folded arms and a smile on his face but the rest of the people had different thoughts.

Li Mo looked thoughtfully at Yu Hanjiang. “Mr Yu, the amount of this raise is quite exquisite.”

The call amount was 12 and Yu Hanjiang increased it by 20. This was a very delicate amount. If he added 100 directly then perhaps Li Mo and Chief Zhang would be forced to fold. However, the amount of 20 made people really unwilling to fold. Didn’t it mean their previous call was for nothing? If they didn’t fold, adding 20 was a bit painful.

Li Mo simply counted 20 and threw it into the pot. Chief Zhang also bit the bullet and called. As long as it wasn’t a straight flush, her four of a kind wasn’t afraid of a straight.

Unexpectedly, once it was Yu Hanjiang’s turn again, he counted another 30 chips. “Raise.”

Everyone, “......”

Was it endless?

Xiao Lou who was watching from the lounge couldn’t help chuckling. “Group Leader Yu is using the psychological tactics of interrogating prisoners.”

It was just like sitting in front of a suspect, peeling off the layers and exerting psychological pressure step by step until the opponent’s psychological line of defense was broken. It slowly disintegrated and then finally collapsed completely.

A call of 12 chips? There was no need to think about it. Add 20? They might be unhappy but they were reluctant to bear losing their previous chips. They continued to follow. Now he was raising it by 30? Yu Hanjiang increased the chips step by step to test the psychological endurance of the remaining opponents at the table.

Li Mo had many chips in his hand. He wasn’t lacking these 30 chips and he followed very easily. He wanted to see what tricks Yu Hanjiang would play.

Chief Zhang had a headache. Her four of a kind was indeed really afraid of a straight flush. What if Yu Hanjiang had exactly two Clubs in his hand and made a straight flush with the community cards? This probability was very low but that didn’t mean it didn’t exist.

Wasn’t it possible with a probability of 3%? If she continued to call, what would she do if Yu Hanjiang raised it again?

Today’s game was a no limits mode. As long as someone raised on the last river, the others either had to fold or call with the same chips to be able to show their cards. If the one raising it was Shao Qingge, she would suspect that Shao Qingge was bluffing and continue to call. However, Yu Hanjiang never bluffed today. This man would only call to the end if he got a particularly good hand.

Now Yu Hanjiang kept raising the chips... he must have a straight flush!

Chief Zhang gritted her teeth. “Fold!”

She finally failed to pass the psychological test. Although the betting amount was already large, if she continued to call then it was inevitable that Yu Hanjiang would increase the chips and she might lose more. She wasn’t willing but there was no other way.

She had a four of a kind. It was larger than a mixed suits straight but she couldn’t beat a straight flush. She had to think of the possibility of someone getting a straight flush. She lost her bets and regretted it a bit, but it was okay. It was wiser to stop the loss in time.

Yu Hanjiang forced number 2 away with momentum. There were three people left at the table: Yu Hanjiang, Shao Qingge and Li Mo. Since Shao Qingge had gone all in early, in fact, now only Yu Hanjiang and Li Mo were having a one on one PK.

Li Mo smiled and asked, “Mr Yu, are you still raising?”

Yu Hanjiang was very straightforward and directly threw 50 chips in. “Raise 50.”

Li Mo shrugged. “Call.”

Yu Hanjiang added, “Raise 60.”

“Call.”

The two men competed and the scene was extremely quiet. In this situation, whoever couldn’t bear the psychological pressure and folded first was the loser.

Yu Hanjiang stared at Li Mo with a calm and sharp gaze. “Chief Li has been following to the end. Aren’t you afraid of losing too much?”

Li Mo wondered, “Does Mr Yu also have a straight flush?”

He used the word ‘also’ very cleverly. Obviously he himself had a straight flush. Of course, deciding if the opponent’s words were true or not was also a psychological game. A smile appeared on Yu Hanjiang’s face as he didn’t directly answer.

He had looked calm and serious all night. This was his first smile. The man who had always been serious was extremely handsome with a smile, his deep eyes as bright as the stars. He lightly said, “Raise 100.”

The pile of chips were pushed into the pot by him and there was a clear and pleasant sound.

Everyone, “......”

Yu Hanjiang answered Li Mo’s question with practical actions. Would Li Mo call?

Uncle Chen laughed. “Fortunately, I folded early.”

Chief Zhang didn’t say anything but she also agreed in her heart... the duel between the two men was a bit scary. It was now raised to 100 chips. These chips were worth millions so it was a really shocking number!

Yu Hanjiang had been stable from start to finish. If he kept raising in this game perhaps he had a straight flush. If Li Mo called, he was likely to lose more. If he didn’t call, it meant he had lost this battle between two tigers. For the wealthy, sometimes face was more important than money.

Yu Hanjiang was pressuring him and Li Mo couldn’t justify folding at this time. He frowned slightly and said, “Call.”

He pushed the chips forward and raised his eyes to look at Yu Hanjiang. “Mr Yu, are you still increasing it? Why don’t you just go all in?”

Yu Hanjiang replied, “I won’t raise anymore. Let’s show our cards.”

He didn’t increase the raise amount and ended the river card round with 100 chips. The Clubs teenager said, “Please show your cards.”

The community cards: 10 of Clubs, K of Hearts, J of Clubs, 8 of Diamonds, K of Clubs.

Li Mo simply revealed his hand. It was an A of Spades and Q of Spades to make a 10, J, Q, K, A straight.

Yu Hanjiang said calmly, “Although Chief Li’s cards are all black, it is a pity that Spades and Clubs can’t make a flush.”

He showed his hand, an 8 of Clubs and 9 of Clubs.

He started calling because he had been waiting for a Q to make a straight or a Clubs to make a flush. The river card was a K of Clubs, giving him a flush of Clubs. Therefore, he kept raising at the river.

The moment Chief Zhang saw this, she wanted to hit the wall with regret. These two fought so fiercely but they didn’t have a straight flush! Li Mo was a mixed suits straight and Yu Hanjiang was a flush, both of which were smaller than four of a kind. If she had known this, she would’ve called to the end. Her four of a kind could’ve beat these two people. She actually abandoned the KKKK because she was deceived by Yu Hanjiang and Li Mo’s auras!

The two men PKed and no one lost when it came to aura. However, Yu Hanjiang’s hand was better. Li Mo smiled helplessly. “Mr Yu won.”

Then Shao Qingge’s playful voice entered his ears. “Chief Li, don’t forget about me. I might’ve just been watching but I went all in. I can also participate in the final match.”

An all in player didn’t need to raise because they had no more chips to raise the amount. It was precisely because of this that they could wait for other people to fight and directly show their cards with everyone for comparison.

Facing Shao Qingge’s smile, Li Mo’s back stiffened slightly. This feeling was very bad, as if he had fallen into a trap.

Shao Qingge slowly turned over his cards. It was a Q of Clubs and an A of Clubs. Combined with the community cards on the table, his final hand was: 10 of Clubs, J of Clubs, Q of Clubs, K of Clubs and A of Clubs. It was the biggest of all hands, a royal straight flush!

There were gasps!

Uncle Chen’s eyes widened. “You already got the best hand. Why didn’t you add... no, you went all in.”

Shao Qingge laughed. “Yes, I already used all in to say I have the biggest hand but you all ignored me.”

Everyone, “......”

Wasn’t it because he had too much black history regarding the all ins? In fact, as early as the turn card, Shao Qingge calculated it based on probability and figured out that he had won the game. Thus, he easily went all in.

The last round of the river card fight was too fierce. Shao Qingge never spoke. Everyone watched the PK between Yu Hanjiang and Li Mo and ignored Shao Qingge, who had long been waiting for the result of the all in.

Yu Hanjiang released a lot of pressure, putting on the posture of ‘my hand is big, don’t call’. He forced away the number 2 Chief Wang with the possibility of a straight flush. However, Li Mo seemed to guess that his opponent was playing psychological warfare and followed to the end... in fact Yu Hanjiang also guessed that Li Mo would follow to the end. For the wealthy Li Mo, losing money in this game wasn’t important. It was more shameful to lose face.

Yu Hanjiang knew that Shao Qingge must have a straight flush in his hand and Li Mo couldn’t make another straight flush when Yu Hanjiang held the 8 of Clubs. Li Mo must have a normal straight or a smaller flush.

Therefore, he raised again and again, forcing Li Mo to follow him for three rounds. The chips were raised to 100 before he stopped. If Yu Hanjiang also went all in then Li Mo would definitely fold. Li Mo was a big fish so he had to put a long line out to fish slowly.

The dealer spoke indifferently, “Shao Qingge has the biggest hand. However, since he didn’t call on the river card, he won the lower pot. Yu Hanjiang won against Li Mo and has received the remaining main pot.”

The algorithm of the main pot and the side pot was based on the all in as the dividing line. Shao Qingge got all the previous betting amount from before he went all in. Then the bets after that belonged to Yu Hanjiang. The teammates couldn’t figure it out but it seemed they both won. After all, the money was going to the same account!

However, the local people at the scene didn’t know this. Their expressions were complicated as they saw Shao Qingge and Yu Hanjiang start to split up the chips on the table. Yu Hanjiang and Shao Qingge actually divided up such a big cake. They felt really reluctant!

Li Mo’s eyes swept over the two men’s faces and looked suspicious.

Yu Hanjiang had a calm expression on his face as he nodded at Shao Qingge and praised, “Mr Shao played well this time with the all in.”

Shao Qingge smiled while counting his chips. “It is just luck, luck. Mr Yu, your luck was also very good in this game.”

The team members, “......”

Poor Li Mo, was he taken as a fool with more money than sense by these two men?

Li Mo only cared about the psychological warfare with Yu Hanjiang and ignored Shao Qingge, who had been watching the show.

Shao Qingge used the ‘achieve much with little effort’ strategy in this game. He played all in with 12 chips and on over 150 chips from the side pot! Meanwhile, Yu Hanjiang used psychological warfare to drive away the cautious Chief Zhang, fished up Li Mo and won nearly 200 chips from the main pot.

The teammates didn’t see how the two people divided up the chips in the end. They only knew... they got a lot of money.

The hour hand pointed to 12 o’clock and the game was over. Shao Qingge took the initiative to stand up and stretched out his hand with a smile. “It is nice to meet all of you.”

Yu Hanjiang also stood up and spoke calmly. “I hope I will have the opportunity to play cards with everyone in the future.”

The subtext was: Thank you for your sending me money. In the next level, we no longer need to worry about running out of money!

Proofreader: Fictional Reality