Early morning.
Not yet one o'clock.
Inside the VIP Room, everyone took their seats and got ready.
They rolled dice to determine the dealer. Director Leng was dealer for the first round, and Zhang Longjuan sat to her right. The game began. The automatic Mahjong table finished shuffling, and they drew their tiles.
"Six of Wan."
"East Wind."
"One of Wan."
"Nine of Tiao."
As they played, they chatted as well.
Song Yuhu smiled. "Director Zhang, business has been pretty good lately, right?"
Zhang Longjuan drew a tile. "Not for me. It's getting harder and harder to make money these days."
Director Wei chuckled. "If your business isn't doing well, then no one else can survive. Yours is the biggest business here, isn't it? By the way, Lao Song, what kind of business have you been doing lately?"
Song Yuhu waved a hand. "Small business. Not worth mentioning."
Director Leng looked at him. "Doesn't seem that way. The bigger the business, the more low-key people tend to be. People like Director Wei and me, always talking about business—that's what small business looks like."
"You're being modest," Song Yuhu said.
Zhang Longjuan smiled. "Come on, stop pretending to be poor."
Director Leng smiled. "In front of Sister Zhang, we really aren't rich."
Dong Xuebin had been watching Zhang Longjuan's hand from behind and could tell that her company was absolutely among the largest of the hundred-plus people on the Gambling Ship. Even if her company was having cash-flow problems now, a starving camel was still bigger than a horse. No one could afford to underestimate her.
"Three of Wan."
"Three of Tong."
"I'll call with Three of Tong."
The game continued.
Zhang Longjuan drew a tile without even looking at it. She ran her fingers across its face as though feeling