The Birth of "Lucky Cat"

Beijing's morning was bright and sunny, but the employees of Huo Corporation and KM Group were in complicated moods.

Because at that very moment, whether they opened their computers, tablets, or the company's internal time clock, an incredibly cursed image was plastered across the screen:

Jian Ning sat cross-legged, holding a handful of playing cards, his eyes carrying "thirty percent mockery, thirty percent coldness, and forty percent indifference." The caption read: [As long as the money is right, I'll smash even glass to pieces. — The boss lady's stare]

This was King's "gift" for Jian Ning.

The virus code was extremely troublesome. Huo Corporation's tech department had worked overtime all night, yet they had only barely managed to dim the background image. They could not delete it at all.

Inside the Huo Household villa.

Jian Ning had wrapped himself in a blanket and refused to come out no matter what.

[I'm done for! I really can't go on living!]

[The cool, aloof male idol image I worked so hard to build! It's all become memes now!]

[From now on, whenever I walk down the street, people will ask me, "Teacher Jian, want to play Dou Dizhu?"]

[Gu Hansheng! Just you wait! Once I catch you, I'll send you to Africa to mine coal!]

Huo Si sat beside the bed, holding a cup of warm milk as he watched the "silkworm cocoon" wriggling beneath the blanket, his eyes full of amusement.

He reached out and patted the blanket. "Come out and get some air. It's... not that bad."

Jian Ning poked out a messy head, his eyes red-rimmed. "Not that bad? Sister Su just called me and said three card game companies want me to endorse them! They offered eight-figure endorsement fees!"

Huo Si raised a brow. "Did you accept?"

Jian Ning sniffed and answered righteously, "I did. Who would turn down money?"

[It may be embarrassing, but that's eight figures! Eight figures! If I sacrifice a little of my looks... no, my image, how many golden trash cans could I buy?]

Huo Si shook his head helplessly.

This little money grubber—if the price was right, forget becoming a meme. He would even agree to be worshipped as the God of Wealth.

"Since you accepted, stop feeling miserable." Huo Si dug him out from the blanket and fed him a mouthful of milk. "Besides, because of that meme, Huo Corporation's opening price rose two points today. Investors think the boss lady is 'down-to-earth' and has the look of someone who brings prosperity to her husband."

Jian Ning's eyes lit up. "Really? Then doesn't that make me... Lucky Cat himself?"

His mood instantly shifted from cloudy to sunny.

Just then, a deafening sound of construction came from downstairs.

"Rumble—"

It sounded as if someone was tearing down a wall.

Jian Ning jumped. "What's going on? An earthquake? Or did that old bastard Huo Zhen break out of prison and come to blow up our house?"

Huo Si's face darkened. He walked to the window, took one look outside, and let out a cold laugh.

"Not an earthquake. It's your dear brother."

The two went downstairs to look.

The western wall of the villa garden had been forcibly smashed open into a massive hole.

Jian Xiu, dressed in dusty work clothes and wearing a hard hat, was directing an excavator as it carved an opening into the wall between the two homes.

"Be careful! Don't scare my brother!" Jian Xiu shouted through a loudspeaker. "Build this entrance into a moon gate! Make it classical! Make it elegant! From now on, whenever my brother wants to return to his family home, he can just step through!"

The vein at Huo Si's temple throbbed wildly.

He strode over and stood in front of the excavator, his voice icy.

"Jian Xiu, trespassing and destroying private property. Do you want to go have tea at the police station?"

Jian Xiu took off his hard hat, revealing a punchable grin.

"President Huo, don't make it sound so ugly. This wall belongs to both our families. I'm demolishing my half. What the hell does it have to do with you?"

He stepped past Huo Si and looked at Jian Ning, his expression instantly changing as his voice softened enough to drip water.

"Ning Ning! You're awake? I had the kitchen stew bird's nest soup. It just came out of the pot and it's still hot! Come over here. Ignore that stone-faced guy."

Jian Ning looked at the wall that had already half collapsed, then at the two men bristling at each other.

[Th-this is the legendary "distance of a bowl of soup"?]

[Bro, you're not making a door. You're dancing on Huo Si's minefield!]

To stop bloodshed from breaking out, Jian Ning hurriedly ran over to smooth things over.

"Bro! Isn't this a little too exaggerated? Why are you tearing down a perfectly good wall?"

Jian Xiu looked completely justified. "So it's easier to take care of you! If Huo Si bullies you, or if there's nowhere to sleep because the bed collapses like last night, you can just walk through this door and come home! I prepared a five-hundred-square-meter bed for you. You can roll around all you want and never fall off!"

Huo Si: "..."

Jian Ning: "..."

[Five hundred square meters? Are you asking me to sleep on a football field?]

After some "friendly" negotiations—Huo Si nearly called security, while Jian Ning deployed his coquettish tactics—the wall was ultimately opened up.

Jian Xiu successfully achieved his grand goal of "monitoring his brother-in-law anytime, anywhere."

Lunch was eaten at the Huo Household.

At the dining table, Huo Si and Jian Xiu were still secretly competing with each other. Caught between them, Jian Ning ate while listening to the system report important matters.

[System: Host, stop focusing only on eating. There has been progress regarding the clues about your parents' car accident.]

[The intelligence Jian Xiu brought back indicates that, besides Huo Zhen, there was another key "middleman" behind that car accident.]

[This person possesses a transfer record for hiring murderers back then, as well as a top-secret "auction roster."]

[The lead points to the ultra-luxurious casino ship set to depart Jin Harbor for international waters this Friday—the Golden Shark.]

Jian Ning's chopsticks paused.

[Golden Shark? A casino ship?]

[Another lawless place?]

He put down his chopsticks, looked at the two men glaring at each other, and cleared his throat.

"Bro, honey, stop staring. Let's talk business."

"Do you know about the Golden Shark?"

Both men froze at once.

Jian Xiu frowned. "That ship belongs to the Southeast Asian gambling king. It's called a 'den of extravagance at sea.' How do you know about it?"

Huo Si's eyes shifted slightly. "You want to go?"

Jian Ning nodded, his expression becoming serious, though there was still a grain of rice stuck by his mouth.

"Just now... I had a feeling—the middleman who killed Mom and Dad is on that ship. And he has crucial evidence."

Jian Xiu's expression changed. "No! It's too dangerous! Out on the high seas, even murder isn't illegal. That place is full of every kind of criminal and desperate fugitive."

But Huo Si did not immediately object. Instead, he wiped away the grain of rice from Jian Ning's mouth and said calmly,

"That man is called Old Ghost. I've been looking for him too."

"Since our leads overlap, we'll make a trip there."

Jian Xiu grew anxious. "Huo Si! Are you insane? You're taking Ning Ning to a place like that? What if something happens?"

Huo Si glanced at him, his tone arrogant.

"With me there, even the Golden Shark will have to change its surname to Huo."

"And besides..." He looked at Jian Ning. "With your brother's current reputation, wouldn't it be a waste not to gamble on the popularity of 'the boss lady inviting you to play cards'?"

Jian Ning: "..."

[Can you please forget that meme already?!]

Three days later, at Jin Harbor Pier.

Night had fallen. A gigantic cruise ship as tall as more than a dozen floors, ablaze with lights, was docked on the sea like a dormant golden beast.

This was the Golden Shark.

Luxury cars filled the pier, and every guest was either rich or powerful. To board this ship, money alone was not enough; one also needed a special invitation.

Jian Ning wore a black velvet suit and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, his hair slicked back. He looked both abstinent and like a refined scoundrel.

He held Huo Si's arm, while behind them trailed Jian Xiu, still looking deeply displeased as he came along as the head bodyguard.

"System, are there... a lot of juicy scandals on this ship?" Jian Ning asked in his mind.

System: [Ding! High-energy reactions detected!]

[This isn't merely a melon patch. This is an ocean of melons!]

[There's a wanted financial fraudster on board, a popular young actress who bought her way into a production, and big shots from every corner of the money-laundering world.]

[Of course, the most important target, Old Ghost, is currently in the VIP gambling hall on the top floor.]

[Mission issued: Enter the VIP gambling hall and win the roster in Old Ghost's possession.]

[Entry requirement: You must win ten million in chips in the regular hall before qualifying to enter the VIP hall.]

Jian Ning raised a brow.

[Ten million?]

[Easy.]

The three boarded the deck.

A security officer scanned them with a device. "Please show your invitation."

Huo Si handed over a black-and-gold card.

The security officer took one look, and his expression instantly turned deeply respectful. "So it's Mr. Huo! Please come in! The boss specially reserved the presidential suite for you."

When they entered the hall, the dazzling gold-and-jade decorations nearly blinded Jian Ning.

Slot machines, roulette wheels, and baccarat tables were everywhere. The place roared with voices, while the clatter of chips sounded like a symphony of money.

Jian Xiu cautiously scanned their surroundings and said in a low voice, "Ning Ning, stay close to me. Don't run around."

Huo Si, meanwhile, took out a black card from his pocket, went to exchange it for a pile of chips, and casually stuffed them into Jian Ning's arms.

"Have fun. If you lose, it's on me. If you win, it's yours."

Jian Ning hugged the heavy stack of chips, and his eyes instantly turned into searchlights.

[Have fun?]

[No, no, no. I'm here to stock up!]

[System, is the X-ray vision function ready? Tonight, I'm going to sweep the field!]

Just then, a heavily made-up woman in a tight red dress approached with a wineglass in hand and deliberately "accidentally" crashed toward Huo Si's arms.

"Oh my~ President Huo~ Long time no see~"

Huo Si sidestepped smoothly.

The woman missed him completely and nearly fell flat on her face.

Jian Ning quickly caught her, smiling at her with narrowed eyes.

"Miss, be careful. The floor is slippery."

"And... President Huo doesn't like red. The one at home—me—keeps a tight leash on him, and he gets allergic whenever he sees red."

Once the woman regained her footing and saw Jian Ning's face, her expression changed.

"Y-you're that meme?!"

Jian Ning: "..."

[I hate memes!]

The people around them heard the commotion and looked over one after another.

"Holy crap! Is that Jian Ning? That gambling god boss lady?"

"I heard he's insanely good at Dou Dizhu!"

"Hurry, hurry! Let's see what he plays! If we follow his bets, we'll definitely win!"

In an instant, a crowd gathered around Jian Ning, treating him like a living lucky koi.

Looking at the fanatical gamblers, Jian Ning suddenly came up with an idea.

Since everyone thinks I'm a gambling god... then I won't hold back.

He walked to a Sic Bo table and, with a sharp slap, pushed the entire stack of chips in his hand onto the space marked "Big."

"All in."

Jian Ning pushed up his glasses, a confident—pretentious—smile tugging at his lips.

"Tonight, I only play big."

The dealer looked at the pile of chips worth at least five hundred thousand, and his hands trembled slightly.

"Th-this gentleman, are you sure you want to bet everything?"

Jian Ning nodded. "I'm sure. Open it."

[System, it's definitely big, right?]

System: [One hundred percent. Triple sixes, a triple. Big.]

The dealer lifted the cover.

"Six, six, six! Triple! House takes all!"

"No... This gentleman hit it! Twenty-four-to-one payout!"

The entire hall erupted.

Five hundred thousand instantly became twelve million!

With only one round, Jian Ning had completed the requirement to enter the VIP hall!

"That's incredible! He really is a gambling god!"

"Stick with the boss lady, and there'll be meat to eat!"

Jian Ning calmly gathered the mountain-like pile of chips and winked at Huo Si and Jian Xiu.

"Let's go, my two bodyguards."

"Let's head to the top floor and meet Old Ghost."

However, just as they turned to head upstairs.

At the second-floor railing, a masked man holding a glass of red wine was looking down at Jian Ning from above.

His gaze was cold and sinister, and a bloodthirsty smile curved across his lips.

"Jian Ning? Interesting."

"But... you think you can leave after winning money? The Golden Shark has no such rule."

A system alert suddenly rang out:

[Ding! S-rank threat detected!]

[That masked man... is Old Ghost! And beside him stands... someone tightly bound.]

[That is... Aunt Zhang, the original owner's birth mother's personal maid back then, and the only witness!]

Jian Ning came to an abrupt halt.

[Aunt Zhang is still alive?!]

[It seems tonight's gamble isn't for money, but for lives.]