The Quagmire of Desire: From Gambling Addict and Village Flower to Movie Queen

Sun Xiaoyan's hands trembled slightly as she counted the money.

Red and green banknotes were spread out on the kang (a heated brick bed), a thick stack of them.

Two hundred and thirty yuan, plus what I won yesterday, it's almost three hundred.

Liu Meiling hugged the pile of money to her chest, grinning from ear to ear: "Look at you, so pathetic, why are your hands shaking? The money won't hurt you."

"I...I just feel like I'm dreaming." Sun Xiaoyan looked at the money, her heart pounding.

When I was winning money, I was so happy that I started to panic. Now that I've calmed down, I feel a little uneasy.

"Don't dream, this is real money!" Liu Meiling stuffed the money into the kang (heated brick bed), then leaned in and hugged Sun Xiaoyan's neck. "Xiaoyan, what do you think we could win in one hand if we bet ten yuan tomorrow?"

Sun Xiaoyan remained silent.

Her mind was a jumble of thoughts. One moment she saw Guo Daqiang's warm hand patting her waist; the next she saw Brother Li's hand resting on Liu Meiling's leg; and then she saw Brother Wang and Brother Li across from her readily handing over their winnings when she won the game.

"Hey, I'm talking to you!" Liu Meiling nudged her.

"Huh? What?"

"Hey, how about we go to town tomorrow if we win some money?"

Liu Meiling's eyes lit up. "I heard a new hair salon opened in town. They can perm your hair, it's so fashionable. I'll also buy a couple of new outfits. Look at these clothes we've been wearing for years."

Sun Xiaoyan looked down at her faded shirt. She had worn it for several years.

"Okay," she said.

Liu Meiling was delighted and hugged her as they rolled around on the kang (a heated brick bed).

The two were wearing thin clothes, and when they rolled around, two buttons popped off.

Sun Xiaoyan felt a chill on her chest and quickly covered it.

Liu Meiling pulled her hand away: "Why are you covering your face? There's no one else here."

She also tore open her shirt, revealing a patch of white skin underneath. "It's so hot, I'll take it off to cool down."

He then took off his shirt and threw it aside.

Sun Xiaoyan looked at her swaying breasts, her face flushed, but she also took off her clothes.

The two lay naked on the kang (a heated brick bed), the fan whirring and blowing hot air.

"Xiaoyan," Liu Meiling suddenly called her.

"Um?"

"You mean... Guo Daqiang touched your butt today, why didn't you dodge?"

Sun Xiaoyan's body stiffened.

She thought Liu Meiling hadn't seen it.

"I...I didn't notice," she said softly.

"Come on, I sit across from you, I saw it all clearly." Liu Meiling turned to the side, propping her head up with her hand as she looked at her. "He put his hand on you there, and he must have rubbed it several times, right? You even made a sound."

Sun Xiaoyan's face flushed red.

Yes, she snorted.

Guo Daqiang had a strong grip, and his pinching made her feel a little pained, yet also... indescribable. It felt like a warm current surged up from her stomach.

"I didn't want him to touch me," Sun Xiaoyan said.

"I know you didn't mean to," Liu Meiling laughed, "but you didn't push me away either."

Sun Xiaoyan fell silent.

Liu Meiling leaned closer, her breath hot on her ear: "It's nothing, really. We won so much money from them, what's wrong with letting someone touch us? It's not like it'll hurt us. Look at Brother Li touching my leg, I didn't say anything, and he even increased my bet."

Sun Xiaoyan recalled how Liu Meiling had tightly gripped Brother Li's hand at the card table.

"Aren't you disgusted...?" she asked.

"What's so disgusting?" Liu Meiling curled her lip. "When we use that thing at home, isn't it more exciting than this? Men are just like that. You let him get a little advantage, and he lets you win money. It's a fair trade."

As Sun Xiaoyan listened, the awkwardness in her heart seemed to dissipate a little.

Yes, it's fair trade. Touching it and getting a few hundred dollars in return seems... not a bad deal.

Liu Meiling suddenly reached out and touched her thigh.

"What are you doing!" Sun Xiaoyan exclaimed in surprise.

"Let's see how it feels." Liu Meiling giggled. "I must say, your skin is smoother than mine. No wonder Guo Daqiang loves to touch it."

"Get lost!" Sun Xiaoyan tickled her. The two wrestled on the kang (a heated brick bed), their naked bodies pressed together, rubbing against each other.

After playing around for a while, everyone got tired.

Liu Meiling gasped for breath, "I can't take it anymore, if you keep making a fuss, my lower body will catch fire."

Sun Xiaoyan was also panting, her chest rising and falling.

The two lay side by side, staring at the dark roof beams.

"Xiaoyan," Liu Meiling called her again.

"What's wrong now?"

"Do you think... we can really win that much tomorrow? It's a ten-dollar prize."

"have no idea."

"Definitely!" Liu Meiling's voice was filled with excitement. "Didn't Guo Daqiang say we have good luck? Besides, Brother Wang and Brother Li are such terrible at cards, they just keep giving us easy wins."

Sun Xiaoyan didn't reply. She felt something was off, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

Perhaps winning money was too easy?

But the money was right under my pillow, real and tangible.

She rolled over and faced the wall.

It was late at night. Sun Xiaoyan couldn't sleep. The money under her pillow felt like a hot iron, burning her with anxiety.

One moment she's thinking about winning money tomorrow and going to town to get a perm and buy new clothes; the next moment she's thinking about Guo Daqiang's hand, warm and sticky against her butt.

She reached out and touched there.

It seems... I still have some feeling.

Liu Meiling, who was sleeping beside her, was breathing evenly. Suddenly, she mumbled, "Add more...again..."

Sun Xiaoyan turned her head.

Moonlight streamed in through the cracks in the window, illuminating Liu Meiling's face. A smile played on her lips; she was lost in a dream.

Sun Xiaoyan looked at her for a while, then slowly closed her eyes.

Forget it, I don't want to.

We'll talk about it after we win the money.

At the same time, in Guo Daqiang's chess and card room.

Everyone had left, leaving only Guo Daqiang alone.

He sat behind the counter, with a pile of loose change spread out on the table—red and green coins, and a few steel coins.

He dipped his fingers in saliva and counted the bills one by one.

"Fifty-six, fifty-seven, fifty-eight..."

Today we pumped out 82 cubic meters of water. Not much, but not a small amount either.

The key point is that the fish took the bait.

Guo Daqiang gathered the money, stuffed it into the drawer, and locked it.

He lit a cigarette, leaned back in his chair, and squinted as he blew smoke rings.

Sun Xiaoyan and Liu Meiling. Two young wives, their husbands are never home, they have a little money in their pockets, but feel empty inside. Best for fishing.

When I touched her today, Sun Xiaoyan didn't dodge.

Although his body stiffened, he didn't push her away. That was the signal.

And then there's Liu Meiling, who's even more uninhibited. Even when Brother Li's hand was already touching her inner thigh, she kept pressing herself against him.

Guo Daqiang smiled.

He took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hey, Brother Li? Are you asleep?"

A muffled voice came from the other end of the phone: "No, what's up, Brother Guo?"

"We need to raise the stakes in tomorrow's game," Guo Daqiang said in a low voice. "Not only do we let them win, we also need to make them... comfortable."

Brother Li laughed: "Got it, Brother Guo. How comfortable?"

"Touch her, touch her," Guo Daqiang said, "but don't rush it, take it slow. Especially with Sun Xiaoyan, she's shy, you have to be gentle. As for Liu Meiling, you can be more open."

"Okay, I'll do as Brother Guo says."

"Remember, let them win happily and have fun." Guo Daqiang flicked his cigarette ash. "Once they're hooked and can't leave our place, then we'll close the net."

After hanging up the phone, Guo Daqiang took two more puffs of his cigarette and stubbed it out in the ashtray.

It was pitch black outside the window, and the village was eerily quiet.