Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 862: Worry-Free, Flower on the Other Shore

In the photo, it's clear that this is a man, but due to the white half-mask he’s wearing, it’s difficult to determine his age.

“This is the Gambling God, Tu Shenyi.,” Song Ying said, sliding her finger across the PAD in front of her in the business car. There were only three photos in total.

“Tu Shenyi doesn't mind being photographed because no one knows what he looks like. Of course, some people have used technology to deduce his facial features from the lines of the mask, trying to restore his appearance. But in fact, this has proven to be unfeasible; people still can’t find his true face.”

“If you can’t see a person’s true face…” Luo Qiu looked back and forth at the photos on the PAD, curiously asking, “Then how did you find out he’s here?”

Song Ying crossed her arms, saying, “Besides being extraordinarily skilled in gambling, Tu Shenyi is also a master winemaker. Twenty years ago, he produced a batch of wine called the ‘Worry-Free Series,’ consisting of seven bottles. Three of them were sold at a high price at an auction in London. Of the remaining four, two are with his friends, while he personally has the other two. At this tasting event, the legendary ‘Worry-Free Series’ will be featured, and it won’t be just the five known bottles.”

Luo Qiu realized, “So he actively disclosed his whereabouts instead of being discovered?”

Song Ying shot Luo Qiu an annoyed glance, “If our Song family can’t find him, then others won’t be able to either.”

Luo Qiu smiled and smoothly changed the topic, “What’s the name of the legendary wine at this tasting event?”

Song Ying answered seriously, “Worry-Free: River of Forgetfulness.”

“River of Forgetfulness?” Luo Qiu paused, then curiously asked, “That’s an interesting name. What are the other wines in the Worry-Free Series called?”Song Ying hadn’t expected Luo Qiu to be curious about something so offbeat, but since she was a person who liked to be well-prepared, she drew on the tablet again.

In her smooth, magnetic voice, she slowly said, “In addition to River of Forgetfulness, the five known wines in the ‘Worry-Free’ series are ‘Flower on the Other Shore,’ ‘How,’ ‘Three Lives,’ ‘Yellow Springs,’ and ‘Ninety-Seven.’”

“This…” Gan Hong, sitting beside them, couldn’t help but frown, “Why do the names sound so desolate?”

Song Ying shrugged, “Maybe it’s a personal preference. Legend has it that a rich merchant who bought one of the ‘Worry-Free’ series at an auction didn’t behave like other collectors who would just keep it for themselves. Instead, he chose to taste it as soon as he bought it. After drinking, he wept bitterly and said some strange things, then squandered his entire fortune to establish a charitable organization before disappearing. Some say he was seen alone in a small fishing village by the sea, sailing off into the ocean, never to return. The ‘Worry-Free’ series of wines are rumored to possess incredible powers that allow people to forget their past lives. However, others believe that this merchant was cursed by ‘Worry-Free,’ so the ‘Worry-Free’ series has also been referred to as cursed wine.”

Song Ying paused, thinking for a moment, and added, “It’s like those historic gemstones that, despite the tragedies associated with them, still attract people. Three years ago, a wealthy man from the Middle East offered 150 million for a bottle of the ‘Worry-Free’ series.”

In the past, Luo Qiu would have shared the common sentiment of being bewildered by the world of the wealthy… but now, he found himself deeply intrigued by the ‘Worry-Free’ series.

Forgetting one’s past life… it seemed that the simple chemical components of red wine wouldn’t be able to achieve such an effect.

“Of course, this is just a rumor,” Song Ying retracted her tablet. “Some people say that this merchant was actually wanted for commercial fraud, so he had to set up a charity to transfer his assets and hide away… anyway, opinions vary.”

“I tend to agree with the latter explanation,” Gan Hong said indifferently.

Luo Qiu asked, “Which bottle of the ‘Worry-Free’ series did that merchant drink?”

Song Ying glanced at the information and replied, “Flowers on the Other Side.”

At this moment, Gan Hong looked at a manor that was now faintly visible ahead and quietly said, “Looks like we’re almost there.”

---

“Flowers on the Other Side, the flower that blooms on the road to the Yellow Springs.”

The blue Porsche glided along the shaded highway. A Jie smiled slightly, saying, “There are many legends, but it’s really just a type of plant from the Amaryllidaceae family.”

Zhong Luoyue replied coolly, “Whether the rumors are true or not doesn’t actually matter. What matters is how many people are willing to buy into this rumor. If the whole world believes it's real, but only you know it's false, does it remain false?”

A Jie let out a soft whistle as the sports car suddenly drove off the small road and came to a gate.

At the gate, a burly middle-aged man hurriedly pushed it open. A Jie parked the sports car there, opened his arms, and laughed, “Haha, Uncle Jin! Long time no see!”

Uncle Jin also opened his arms and embraced A Jie, then patted his shoulder, saying, “Good lad, it’s been years. You’ve grown.”

“Not much practice,” A Jie flexed his bicep and asked, “Where’s the master? I haven’t seen him in a long time, and I brought some local specialties back for him.”

“Your master is busy; many people have come today, and he said he wanted to prepare properly. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen him this spirited… By the way, who’s this?”

Uncle Jin had followed Tu Shenyi for many years and had a keen eye; upon seeing Zhong Luoyue, he sensed that this woman was extraordinary.

A Jie straightforwardly said, “She’s Miss Zhong, my boss now. She’s here this time because she’s interested in ‘River of Forgetfulness.’”

Uncle Jin nodded, not very warmly, merely saying, “Oh, one more person won’t make a difference. Come in.”

A Jie glanced at Zhong Luoyue, then quickly draped his arm over Uncle Jin's shoulder as they walked, saying, “Uncle Jin, before we start, I want to see the master.”

Uncle Jin replied, “You’ll see him later; your master said he doesn’t want to see anyone right now. I don’t even know where he is.”

“I can’t see him either?”

Uncle Jin said helplessly, “I can’t see him either!”

A Jie shrugged, looking resigned, “Okay… By the way, Uncle Jin, can I ask something? Why did the master suddenly decide to bring the things over and open them to drink?”

“He said the time has come.”

"Time? What time?" A Jie pressed on.

Uncle Jin casually replied, "How would I know? If I knew, I would be The God of Gambling."

A Jie smiled but didn't say anything. He just glanced over at the position of Uncle Jin's ring finger on his left hand—where a fake finger was attached.

The real one had long been chopped off.

"Okay, I won’t bother you anymore. I need to get busy. You can take your beautiful boss around. The cocktail party starts at three, in the wine cellar. You can go there yourself, okay?"

"Alright, you go ahead." A Jie waved his hand.

As he watched Uncle Jin leave, Zhong Luoyue finally approached A Jie and said calmly, “Is this the gambling demon Jin Wucheng? I heard that he lost to Tu Shenyi back in the day, cut off one of his fingers, and ended up becoming Tu Shenyi's follower. It seems to be true."

"He’s just Uncle Jin now; he won’t gamble anymore in this lifetime. There are plenty of people in the Four Seasons Group, so don’t think too much about it..." A Jie smiled. "Come on, there’s still some time; I’ll show you around."

Although it was called a manor, the interior featured castle-like architecture that wouldn’t be boring at all.

...

As for castle-like buildings, Luo Qiu had already seen them once before and stayed for quite some time—when he and You Ye went to Romania to collect a family debt.

The architectural style here was certainly different from Romania.

When Song Ying's car arrived at the parking area, directed by the manor's servants, many luxury cars were already parked there.

There seemed to be quite a few guests... if you counted the bodyguards accompanying them, the number would be even larger.

Luo Qiu saw several Middle Eastern men in white robes with deep facial features, and also spotted descendants of Spanish nobles dressed in luxurious attire... Song Ying was secretly introducing the guests to him one by one.

Although Luo Qiu didn’t ask… and even though Song Ying was reluctant to introduce so many people to him, almost like a nanny—after all, in such a gathering of high-profile guests, she couldn’t let Luo Qiu embarrass the Song family because he didn’t understand.

Although she was unwilling, she felt compelled to do it—Song Ying had always wondered why her situation was so difficult, as if all the benefits were being taken by Luo Qiu.

Miss Song, well-informed and quick to remember, naturally knew a lot about powerful wealthy individuals.

Likewise, as a decision-maker of the Song Dynasty Group, backed by the Song family, which could contend with regular military forces, this little princess of the Song family naturally knew even more people.

But in fact, it was rare to hear about this little princess getting particularly close to any male. Many people were secretly guessing who this young man accompanying Song Ying was and what his background was, only to see this impressive young man suddenly grab Song Ying's handbag and step back, following her slowly.

What’s this? It turns out he’s just a bag carrier.

People quickly lost interest in this impressive-looking young man, shifting from various speculations to disinterest.

Gradually, it seemed like this young man, who appeared extraordinary, suddenly vanished from their sight… even though he had just walked past them.

“Look at you, Luo Qiu. No wonder you said at the start to help me carry my bag…” Song Ying walked ahead, smiling as she greeted familiar and unfamiliar faces, but secretly grumbled in her heart.

Could this guy have known from the beginning that he might become the center of attention, so he said he’d carry my bag from the start?

Seeing the little look in Song Ying’s eyes, Gan Hong, who had followed closely beside her, certainly understood the little calculations in Song Ying's heart.

Gan Hong quickly whispered to Luo Qiu, "Young Master Qiu, be careful; Miss Ying holds grudges."

Luo Qiu generously replied, "This kind of grudge is actually harmless; it's not a major one, and she won’t remember it for a lifetime. Don’t you think?"

Gan Hong didn’t respond, instinctively avoiding Luo Qiu’s sharp gaze, and just quietly followed him.

From the entrance to the hall where guests were greeted, there were several rounds of checks.

One must say that Song Ying's initial considerations were very thorough; at least, Gan Hong, who was dressed in a gown, was not left outside, while those bodyguards, who looked very powerful, were forcibly barred from entering.

At this moment, a man dressed in the manor's worker uniform walked up to Song Ying and Luo Qiu. The man was holding a tray, on which lay three crystal balls the size of longan fruit.

It was vaguely visible that there were numbers embedded inside these crystal balls, and the numbers inside the three crystal balls were not the same.

"What is this?" Song Ying picked up one of the crystal balls, examined it, and saw the number "63" inside.

The man politely replied, "Well, my master will select a fateful person at the cocktail party later. Only this fateful person can drink 'River of Forgetfullness' wine with my master."

Song Ying nodded, "So this is each person’s mark, right?"

"Yes." The young man smiled slightly and then presented the tray to Luo Qiu and Gan Hong.

Song Ying had no interest in that bottle of 'River of Forgetfullness' wine; after taking the crystal ball, she directly put it in her pocket—what she wanted this time was simply to persuade Tu Shenyi.

"What’s the selection method?" Unexpectedly, Luo Qiu began to chat with the young servant.

"I don’t know about that." The young servant shook his head. "My master just instructed that every guest should get a crystal ball."

"Quickly get it and finish; don’t waste time." Song Ying said beside Luo Qiu.

Luo Qiu had to reach for the crystal ball on the tray, but unexpectedly, before he could, the crystal ball was snatched up quicker by someone else.

A nonchalant voice rang out, "I like this number, number 6; it's lucky. Let me have it? I just happen to want to give it to someone."

Unexpectedly, at that moment, Gan Hong's hand shot out like lightning, aimed at the young man's hand, and directly slapped the crystal ball away.

"Don’t you know about first come, first served? This is for my young master." Gan Hong snorted coldly and reached for the flying crystal ball.

"If you haven’t got it in hand, how can it be considered stealing?" The young man chuckled lightly as his fingers suddenly shot out.

He flicked a coin from his fingers, directly hitting the descending crystal ball, changing its trajectory, and sending the crystal ball back to himself, securely catching it in his palm.

Gan Hong suffered a setback, instantly turning dark-faced.

The young man whistled, "So beautiful; it’s not good to be angry."

"You!"

Just as Gan Hong was about to charge forward, she felt someone grab her arm. She turned around and found it was Young Master Qiu.

Luo Qiu gently shook his head, then looked at the young man and said calmly, "If you want it, take it. I’ll just take this one."

Saying this, Luo Qiu picked up the remaining crystal ball from the tray and smiled slightly, "Actually, you’re quite right; she should smile more. Also… the one you have is number 9, actually."

The young man was stunned for a moment, looked at the crystal ball in his hand, and his face turned slightly ugly, but he quickly revealed a bright smile, "That’s really embarrassing… Haha, hello, Miss Song; long time no see."

It seemed the other party knew Song Ying. Luo Qiu looked over with curiosity and heard Song Ying coldly say, "This person is Ouyang Jie, Tu Shenyi’s close disciple. He was the one who won the big game in Las Vegas last year."

"Thank you, Miss Song, for remembering me." A Jie… Ouyang Jie nodded.

Song Ying then coldly snorted, "Since you’re here, that means a certain annoying woman is here too, right?"