Crazy Game City, Money Here An Unexpected Encounter, Exuding Nobility... A Noblewoman

The high-hanging sun gradually set, revealing the evening glow.

Inside an arcade in Dahai City.

"Clatter!"

"Beep beep beep..."

The crisp sound of a game token dropping and the sound of the claw unhooking, announcing a failed attempt and the end of the game, rang out at the same time. The interval between the two was barely three seconds.

And then... clatter, beep beep beep, clatter, beep beep beep...

Ye Cheng: "..."

Looking at the incredibly familiar scene before him, Ye Cheng fell silent. It seemed that the eldest miss had become obsessed again and was locking horns with the claw machine in front of her. This time, as if to prove herself, she refused to let Ye Cheng intervene throughout the entire process, forcing him to just watch from the sidelines.

He wasn't even allowed to speak. Otherwise, even if she managed to catch a plushie, in Shen Qinghan's eyes, it wouldn't have been achieved entirely by her own skill. Today, she was going to vindicate herself!

She was going to prove that even without a certain someone, she could still catch a plushie!

However... clearly, the eldest miss had overestimated her own skills, or perhaps underestimated the difficulty of the claw machine and the sheer ruthlessness of the arcade owner who rigged the equipment.

Of course, Ye Cheng wasn't sitting idle either. He sat at another machine next to the eldest miss, trying to catch plushies. The two of them were sharing the same bucket of tokens.

A massive bucket, the super-sized version, containing two thousand tokens!!!

The eldest miss was consuming the tokens in the iron bucket at a terrifying pace. The tokens were disappearing at a speed visible to the naked eye. At this rate, once the tokens ran out, it would be time for the eldest miss to blow her top again.

Ye Cheng rubbed his smooth chin. "This won't do. I need to think of a solution."

The prerequisite for the eldest miss having a meltdown was exhausting all two thousand tokens without successfully catching a single plushie to vindicate herself. In other words, there was a margin of error of two thousand attempts, and she only needed to succeed once.

But the problem was... could she really succeed?

Ye Cheng looked at the limp and powerless mechanical claw in front of him, which was comparable to an aging middle-aged man, and fell silent.

If this claw could actually catch a plushie, then it would be a true miracle.

It had been a while since they last visited the arcade, and the plushies inside had been updated again. Moreover, they were all limited editions. It was no exaggeration to say that these rows of claw machines were still the most popular attraction in the arcade.

Dozens of machines operating simultaneously easily brought in a six-figure daily revenue, plain and simple!

There were people lining up behind every machine, except for the two occupied by Ye Cheng and Shen Qinghan... It couldn't be helped; the eldest miss was simply too rich. The people waiting in line behind them fell silent upon seeing the thousands of tokens in her iron bucket and quietly moved to other queues.

Even at a rate of one token every five seconds, the eldest miss could keep going for over a thousand seconds, which was more than ten minutes... Damn rich people!

The success rate of the machines was extremely low, and Ye Cheng was absolutely certain they had been tampered with, because he had already used up two tokens today and failed both times.

It was precisely after seeing Ye Cheng fail twice in a row that the eldest miss was satisfied enough to continue stubbornly battling the machine in front of her. It didn't matter if she failed; as long as Ye Cheng hadn't succeeded, she hadn't lost yet!

Seeing Ye Cheng fail, the eldest miss inexplicably became happy, and her coin-inserting speed increased significantly.

Iron bucket tokens -1, -1, -1...

Ye Cheng: "..."

The eldest miss could frequently accept her own failures and brute-force it with her "money power." As long as she succeeded once, it counted as a victory!

While the eldest miss could do that, Ye Cheng couldn't.

Although they were indeed sharing the tokens, from Ye Cheng's perspective, the bucket didn't contain tokens at all; it was the health bar of the machine in front of him, and quite possibly, his own health bar.

With every token that disappeared from the bucket, the eldest miss's rage meter increased by a point. Ye Cheng didn't even dare to imagine how terrifying she would be once she entered her "furious" state. She might just pick up a stool and smash the arcade machine in front of her.

For the sake of his own safety, Ye Cheng felt it was necessary to study these scam machines in front of him. He wasn't a cybernetic ripperdoc and couldn't turn the mechanical claw from a middle-aged man into a spry young lad.

However, he could study other things...

And so, the current scene unfolded. Ye Cheng sat on a chair to the side, no longer inserting tokens to catch plushies. Instead, he watched how the eldest miss failed, where the cause of failure lay, as well as the swaying frequency of the claw, the arc of its shaking, the sounds...

Because he now not only possessed a photographic memory, allowing him to memorize every single frame and replicate and deduce them over and over in his mind, but he also had enhanced hearing and vision. He could hear the internal workings of the machine, the turning of the gears...

On the surface, Ye Cheng looked like he was just "watching a novelty" with a not-so-bright expression, like a caveman watching modern humans have a discussion. In reality, high-level mathematical deductions were playing out in Ye Cheng's mind... calculating the trajectories and probabilities.

Based on the eldest miss's current failure rate, he estimated that around the 8000th token, there would be a near ninety percent chance of success.

Because to Ye Cheng's ears, this machine in front of him actually had a "pity system." With every confirmation, a tiny gear inside would click and turn slightly. By pinpointing the sounds, Ye Cheng calculated the pity count and the eldest miss's probability of success...

Of course, if all this technical mumbo jumbo sounded too confusing to understand, it didn't matter. It could be simply summarized in one sentence.

He figured it out!

Relying on his supreme brain, Ye Cheng had already figured out the root of the problem. Next up was putting it into practice!

Ye Cheng took a token and inserted it into the machine.

Clatter!

Game start!

His hands began to control the machine, and the mechanical claw started to move slowly...

Ten seconds later, the claw hooked onto the plushie in front of it in an extremely "clutch" manner and successfully dropped it into the chute. Ye Cheng had obtained his very first "research result"!

Ye Cheng reached into the machine and took out the plushie he had just caught. He rubbed his chin. "Just a petty, ruthless owner, nothing more. Tokens, come to me!!!"

With a loud roar of "Tokens, come to me!" from Heavenly Emperor Ye, token after token went into the machine!!!

Clatter!

One plushie...

Clatter, clatter!

Two plushies...

Clatter, clatter, clatter...

Before long, Ye Cheng was surrounded by dozens of limited-edition plushies of all sizes. The guy at the machine next to him was dumbfounded... Seriously bro, are we even playing the same machine? Can we switch? Don't make me get down on my knees and beg you!

Ye Cheng's "machine-sweeping" actions quickly attracted the attention of the people waiting in line at the other machines around him. Finally, someone couldn't hold back anymore and stepped forward to ask.

"Bro, how much are you selling these plushies for? Could you part with one and sell it to me? My girlfriend is dying to have one..."

The man stepping forward to inquire was a corporate elite decked out in a suit and tie—clearly someone who wasn't short on cash. He pointed at a doll, looking a bit hesitant to speak. After a moment's thought, Ye Cheng extended a single finger to indicate the price.

The man frowned slightly, but the thought of his girlfriend made him agree without hesitation.

"Alright. Brother, I don't have cash on me. Is WeChat okay?"

"No problem. Scan here." Ye Cheng agreed readily and opened his payment QR code.

*Ding!*

"WeChat payment received: 1,000 Yuan!"

"It went through, brother. Thanks a lot." The suit-clad man transferred the money briskly, took the doll he had picked out, and left. He left behind a crowd of dumbfounded onlookers and... Ye Cheng, who was sucking in a cold breath of shock.

*Holy crap, these ugly-ass dolls are worth that much?*

This was the brilliance of Ye Cheng's strategy. Extending one finger allowed different people to interpret the price in different ways. Ye Cheng had no idea what the actual value of these dolls was. To him, they looked like they were worth about a buck each—after all, he had caught them with a single game token.

And he was using the Young Miss's tokens, too. It was a business with zero capital and pure profit. Even one yuan would be a gain. Of course, Ye Cheng wasn't a total moron; if the guy had actually offered one yuan, he would have told him to get lost.

Ye Cheng grabbed a doll at random and gave it a squeeze. The quality was actually quite good. No wonder so many people were obsessed with trying to catch them. Surely it was worth at least ten yuan, right?

But the first sale had blown his expectations out of the water. As expected of Dahai City, a place where land was worth its weight in gold—there was no shortage of suckers with deep pockets!

With the first sale made, the second and third soon followed. More and more people began to gather around Ye Cheng. Compared to trying to catch a doll in the machine, spending money to directly buy the one they liked was obviously a better deal.

It was just a pity that the arcade owner was clearly a scumbag who wouldn't sell them directly; you had to catch them. It was the same principle as certain video games that only let you obtain skins through loot boxes.

After all, if they sold them directly, people would complain if the price was too high, but nobody would care if it was too cheap. Thus, the concept of the "lucky draw" emerged. If you couldn't catch one, well... it just meant you were trash and needed to get good!

"Brother, give me one. But... can you make it a bit cheaper?"

"Big brother, I really like this one. Can't you just give it to me? My house is nearby. If it's convenient, you could come over later, and we could have a... deep conversation. Consider it as..."

"Bro, I'm a student. Can I get a discount?"

People were chattering all at once, saying all sorts of things. The arcade was a grand stage—if you had an act, step right up!

As for the one claiming to be a student... forget about being a student, pal, even if you were a newborn beast, it wouldn't fly!

Suckers like the first guy in the suit were the minority, after all. A few more people willing to pay high prices appeared, but most people wanted the dolls without spending a fortune. They were in a "wait and see" mode; if the price was too high, they'd walk away.

Ye Cheng channeled his inner "smirking overlord," curling his lip in a devilish grin... These people were his customer base. Now, it was time for the main event. Ye Cheng produced a pen and notebook from who-knows-where and hung a sign on the game machine next to him.

"50 game tokens or 50 RMB for one, your choice. 100 to specify a target for capture..."

As soon as the sign went up, the vibe in the arcade began to shift, heading in a strange direction. People stopped queuing at other machines and all ran over to line up in front of Ye Cheng.

"Ding, WeChat payment received: 50 Yuan!"

"Ding, WeChat payment received: 100 Yuan!"

"Ding, WeChat payment received: 450 Yuan!"

"Ding..."

Ye Cheng's wallet swelled at a visible rate. The corners of his mouth twitched upward wildly; he felt like he had discovered a path to riches. And then... Ye Cheng's WeChat account got banned.

Due to a large volume of transfers in a single day without a professional merchant account, his account was frozen for a month for "security reasons."

Ye Cheng: "..."

*Motherf—!!!*

"Bro, why does it say transfer failed?" The person next in line asked anxiously. It worked for everyone else, so why couldn't he buy one? It was exasperating.

Ye Cheng: "..."

The most painful thing in the world is knowing the money is in someone else's pocket, but you can't reach in... Oh, wait, no. It was that they had already taken the money out of their pockets, but he couldn't open his own pocket to catch it. It was agonizing!

No!!!

*Qiu Ya... Oh, wait, no. My money!!!*

But soon, Ye Cheng found a solution.

A few minutes later, everyone in line was holding a bag of game tokens to trade with Ye Cheng for dolls. Some even carried buckets, pouring them into the Young Miss's oversized metal bucket.

*Clatter, clatter...* The crisp sound of colliding coins rang out. The Young Miss was still immersed in catching dolls, completely unaware of the gravity of the situation.

Until... the Young Miss reached into her bucket again, only to find... it was full. Her hand was blocked at the top.

Shen Qinghan: "???"

Shen Qinghan froze for a moment. Her fair, slender hand pawed uncertainly at the top of the bucket a couple of times. After grabbing a handful and confirming the sensation was wrong, she finally turned to look at the massive bucket of tokens beside her... It was full.

Shen Qinghan: "..."

*How do I have more tokens than when I started?*

Not only that, but Shen Qinghan also realized that a certain idiot beside her had vanished. Also missing were all the dolls from the large machine in front of Ye Cheng.

It had been emptied!

Shen Qinghan: "???"

"Don't rush, don't push! Pay here. Just a few minutes left, we're clearing this machine too! Grab your chance, folks, time waits for no one..."

Ye Cheng, having acquired a small megaphone from somewhere, was standing on top of the furthest claw machine shouting. In front of him was a long, winding queue that looped around several times—all people waiting to buy dolls from him.

Shen Qinghan: "..."

Soon, the last machine was emptied by Ye Cheng. "That's it for today! Disperse, everyone, show's over."

"Huh? Boss, when are you coming tomorrow? Can you let us know? How about we add you on WeChat..."

Ye Cheng was leaving. The crowd behind him looked full of regret. Some were even cursing—not at Ye Cheng, of course, but at the greedy bastards ahead of them who had bought huge piles of dolls. Some people bought ten or twenty at a time; they were definitely scalpers planning to resell them online!

Damn scalpers!!!

Before long, the crowd dispersed. Ye Cheng returned, eyeing a sack full of game tokens. Realizing Shen Qinghan seemed to be looking his way, he waved enthusiastically.

"Young Miss, I'm back!"

Shen Qinghan: "..."

Shen Qinghan fell into silence as she looked at Ye Cheng, who was carrying a sack, raising his eyebrows, and grinning like a fool at her.

"Does the Young Miss still want to play?" Ye Cheng blinked, putting on a look of "pure innocence" as he looked at the speechless Shen Qinghan.

“These machines... you emptied them all?”

After a long while, the Young Miss finally came back to her senses and asked about the rows of “empty machines” surrounding them. Hmm... that was right. Apart from the machine in front of the Young Miss, Ye Cheng had cleared out every single one.

“Yeah. Is there a problem, Young Miss?” Ye Cheng blinked innocently.

Shen Qinghan: “...”

“I'm done playing. Let's go home...” The Young Miss suddenly felt a sense of release. It felt like... catching dolls wasn't that interesting after all.

Ye Cheng had effectively shattered the Young Miss's spirit. It looked like she wouldn't want to visit an arcade again anytime soon.

“Oh, okay. Wait a moment, Young Miss. I'm going to go exchange these tokens.”

Ye Cheng hoisted a gunnysack full of game tokens—which he had obtained by trading in the dolls—and prepared to exchange them for cash.

“You can't exchange game tokens for money,” the Young Miss said calmly.

“What?!!” The smile on Ye Cheng's face stiffened, and he instantly “exploded.”

A few minutes later.

Shen Qinghan fell into silence as she watched Ye Cheng spewing trash talk at the exchange counter.

“Is there no justice? Is there no law? Is there no order? These are tyrannical terms! This is a big store bullying a customer! How can you operate like this? It's like saying 1+1=2 is fine, but 2=1+1 isn't?”

“I don't accept this! I'm going to sue you!!!” Ye Cheng entered a state of “Great Rage.”

Shen Qinghan: “...”

Shen Qinghan rubbed her temples, feeling a headache coming on. She prepared to pay out of her own pocket to fill the hole in Ye Cheng's finances. It was getting late, and seeing Ye Cheng like this, they wouldn't be leaving anytime soon otherwise.

Clack, clack, clack... From the corridor leading to the hall came the distinct, crisp sound of high heels.

Whoosh!

A noblewoman appeared in the hall, wearing a cheongsam with a fox fur stole wrapped around her shoulders, holding a small fan, and stepping in red, high-end custom high heels. Her aura of nobility was overwhelming, and the moment she appeared, the surroundings fell instantly silent.

The staff member at the exchange counter, who had been dumbfounded by Ye Cheng's trash talk, looked as if they had seen a savior. They were on the verge of tears. There was no helping it... Ye Cheng was too good at running his mouth, and he didn't even repeat himself.

The most important thing was that Ye Cheng didn't use dirty words. He didn't resort to profanity-laden insults involving mothers, yet listening to him was inexplicably painful. His attack power was incredibly high, leaving a whole group of people unable to lift their heads under his verbal barrage.

In a sense, Ye Cheng was enacting a modern version of “Zhuge Liang debating the scholars.”

Screw that! Refund my money!!!

They had a rule here: no matter what happens, the customer is God. No conflicts with customers allowed. All losses would be handled afterwards; they take full responsibility. The customer is God...

This was the largest arcade in Dahai City, originating from the Gambling King's family. It was currently property under the noblewoman's name, though it had already been transferred to Xia Tongxin. Strictly speaking, this belonged to Xia Tongxin... a super wealthy little rich girl.

“Little brother, why don't we... step aside and talk?”

The noblewoman spoke with a smile, looking incredibly charming. Her fox-like eyes seemed to speak as she looked at Ye Cheng with amusement.

“Screw that! Don't give me that crap. Say whatever you have to say right here. You guys just want to scam me out of my money! I won't fall for it!!!”

Ye Cheng acted like a complete rascal. As he spoke, he turned on his phone camera to record, seemingly afraid of getting jumped and knocked out.

The Noblewoman: “???”

Shen Qinghan: “...”

The surrounding bodyguards and staff: “...”