Chapter 164: Chapter 75: The Top Star of the 1960s Song and Dance Troupe (14)

’To have cultivated such mastery in both basketball and pool... how had they never heard of someone like her?’

With three balls sunk, Xia Zhaoyun’s pressure vanished. Not only had she made her money back, but she was also up five yuan.

A faint smile touched her tense face. She tilted her head slightly, searching for her next shot. This time, the man behind her was silent, and the onlookers let out a collective, silent sigh of relief.

Xia Zhaoyun rotated her wrist, selected a ball, aimed, and with a firm stroke—another one went in!

She couldn’t help but smile, turning sideways to shoot Huo Tianhao a smug look. ’See? I can sink balls even without your oh-so-wise instructions.’

Huo Tianhao gave her a cool glance and scoffed.

Xia Zhaoyun huffed in response, turning back to the table. She was determined to sink another one and prove him wrong. She wouldn’t let him look down on her.

She had been competitive since childhood. She always aimed for the top spot in every exam, and in anything she learned, she had to be the best. This wasn’t just due to the pressure from the Song Family couple; it was also her own drive to compete with herself.

Now, that stubborn streak was flaring up again. And after a few shots, she was in the zone. Her form was better than ever!

In one long streak, not a single shot was wasted. When she finally sank the black 8-ball, Xia Zhaoyun herself was stunned by her own brilliant performance.

She was good, but she’d never been *this* good. It was as if... as if she was using a cheat code, as people would say in the future.

’Could this have something to do with my experience as a Ghost?’

Liu Mingkun was ecstatic. "Sis, you’re incredible! Besides Brother Hao, I don’t think anyone here can compete with you. You sank eight balls in one go! What does that come out to?"

One of the younger guys behind him immediately answered, "Brother Kun, that’s one thousand two hundred and eighty yuan. In the middle there, she sank two balls in one shot. I don’t know if that doubles it, but since she sank the 8-ball, the pot isn’t halved."

The usual breezy confidence on Xu Weilin’s face was gone.

He was starting to understand. He must not have checked the almanac before leaving the house today; he was just hemorrhaging money.

Liu Mingkun raised an eyebrow and looked over. "Brother Lin, what do you say? Should we double it? Are we continuing this game?"

"My Brother Hao is a master at pool, too. Otherwise, he couldn’t have trained such a brilliant student."

Xu Weilin ground his teeth. He glanced around at the crowd from the South Courtyard, then his gaze fixed on Xia Zhaoyun, who was putting her sunglasses back on. He was completely stuck, choked up and unsure whether to press on or back down.

Just then, Yu Xinhuan suddenly let out a small cry. "Brother Lin, I forgot my ID at the Cultural Palace! I need it for work tomorrow. Can you come with me to get it? I hope no one’s picked it up during the time it took us to have lunch."

Xu Weilin nodded, his expression grim. "Fine. You all carry on playing. Dongzi, cover the money I owe Ms. Xia for me. You can get it back from me later."

Once he left, the people from the North Courtyard felt awkward sticking around and quickly made their own excuses to leave.

The South Courtyard crew all shrugged their shoulders, suppressing their laughter. All the frustration from being suppressed by the North Courtyard for over a decade was finally released. It was a perfect, triumphant end to their freewheeling youth.

Dongzi, the owner of the private pool hall, stayed neutral. People from both the North and South Courtyards liked coming here, so he made sure not to offend either side.

He smiled as he counted out a thick wad of cash and handed it over without another word.

Xia Zhaoyun felt dizzy holding so much money. She pulled out eight ten-yuan notes, stuffed them into Huo Tianhao’s hand, and said with a smile, "This is what Brother Hao deserves."

She had calculated his share based on the doubled prize for the two-balls-in-one-shot. Now they were even!

Then she straightened the rest of the money and stuffed it into her bag, an impossibly brilliant smile fixed on her lips.

’Does this count as getting rich overnight?’

Turning ten yuan into twelve hundred... For someone whose monthly salary was only fifty yuan, this was something she wouldn’t even dare to dream of.

Huo Tianhao was so amused by her "generous" act that he let out a short, breathy laugh. He glanced down at the money in his hand and stuffed it into his pocket.

’This woman... she just keeps shattering my perception of her. A pack of lies, timid and clinging to life, clueless about the ways of the world...’

With the outsiders gone, the South Courtyard group finished their game of pool and headed over to Liu Mingkun’s siheyuan.

It was a four-courtyard mansion befitting a First-Grade Official, complete with pavilions and waterside gazebos—it had everything. Xia Zhaoyun followed the group, clutching her bag tightly, so mesmerized that she lost her sense of direction. If it weren’t for her sunglasses and sun hat, her country-bumpkin air would have surely earned her a blunt jeer from the man.

The ingredients for the barbecue were all prepared. There were several kinds of meat alone, along with various vegetables, steamed buns, and rice cakes, all delivered pre-skewered.

Xia Zhaoyun couldn’t help but sigh internally. ’The world outside is already in turmoil, yet these children of the courtyards can still gather their friends to fool around. I just wonder which day this peace will be broken.’

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