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

The wind blew Sun Xiaoyan's skirt high, and she quickly pressed it down with her hands, her newly permed curls covering her face.

Liu Meiling didn't care. She let the wind blow as she took a drag of her cigarette and looked at the dim yellow light at the village entrance in the distance.

"Shall we go straight to Guo Daqiang's place?" Liu Meiling suddenly said.

Sun Xiaoyan was taken aback: "Now? It's already dark."

"So what if it's dark?" Liu Meiling threw her cigarette butt on the ground and stomped on it. "Just wear this, let Guo Daqiang and those men see what a woman who's come back from the city looks like."

As she spoke, she tucked the shopping bag under her arm and swayed her hips as she walked into the village.

Sun Xiaoyan hesitated for two seconds, then followed.

The two didn't go home, but went straight to Guo Daqiang's chess and card room.

I ran into a few old men on the street who were taking a stroll after finishing their meal, and their eyes widened in amazement.

"Xiaoyan, Meiling, what... what are you wearing?" an old man stammered.

Liu Meiling chuckled: "Grandpa, this is called a dress, it's very popular in the city."

The old man swallowed hard and didn't dare to look again.

The door to the card room was ajar, and the sound of shuffling cards could be heard from inside.

Liu Meiling pushed open the door and went in.

The smoke inside was thicker than usual.

Guo Daqiang was sitting behind the counter counting money when he heard the door open. He looked up and his eyes lit up.

"Hey! Who's this?" Guo Daqiang stood up, walked around the counter, and said, "I almost didn't recognize him!"

Sun Xiaoyan was a little embarrassed and tugged at her skirt. The skirt had a very high slit, and when she stood up straight, her upper thighs were faintly visible.

Liu Meiling spun around: "How's it, Brother Guo? This outfit?"

"Great! Absolutely fantastic!" Guo Daqiang clapped his hands. "Just like those female celebrities on TV! Come on in, come on in, we've been waiting for you two!"

There were two other people playing cards inside, and they all looked over when they heard the commotion. Their eyes were glued to the two women, unable to look away.

"Brother Wang and Brother Li have been waiting for ages." Guo Daqiang led them to the table by the window. "I told them you two would definitely come, but they didn't believe me."

Brother Wang and Brother Li were already sitting there. Upon seeing Sun Xiaoyan and Liu Meiling, the two of them stood up at the same time.

"My God..." Brother Wang pushed up his glasses, his eyes wide behind the lenses. Brother Li didn't say anything, just stared at Sun Xiaoyan's legs.

Sun Xiaoyan felt uncomfortable under his gaze and quickly sat down.

The skirt was too short; as soon as she sat down, her pale thighs were completely exposed.

"Let's begin, let's begin," Guo Daqiang urged. "How much to bet today? Still ten coins?"

Liu Meiling put the shopping bag down at her feet: "Let's play! I won over eight hundred yesterday, my luck will definitely be even better today!"

Sun Xiaoyan did not speak.

She smelled the cheap perfume on herself, mixed with the smell of smoke, which was a bit pungent.

The game begins.

In the first hand, Sun Xiaoyan's luck was frighteningly good. She immediately got a flush.

"Self-draw!" She pushed the tiles away, her voice trembling slightly.

Win 120 in one go.

Brother Wang and Brother Li readily handed over their money.

When Brother Li handed her the money, his fingers lingered on the back of her hand for a couple of seconds.

"Xiaoyan looks really beautiful today," Brother Li said. Sun Xiaoyan blushed and lowered her head to put the money away.

In the second round, Liu Meiling also won.

She was wearing a red dress today with a low neckline. When she bent over, the fabric underneath couldn't contain her at all, and her white flesh was so exposed it made people dizzy.

"Self-touching!" Liu Meiling laughed heartily.

When Brother Wang gave her the money, his eyes never left her chest.

Guo Daqiang moved a chair over at some point and sat down behind Sun Xiaoyan.

"Xiaoyan's luck is pretty good today," he said, casually placing his hand on Sun Xiaoyan's bare shoulder.

Sun Xiaoyan's body stiffened.

Guo Daqiang's hands were warm, and they were pressed against her skin.

She wasn't wearing a coat today, just a thin dress.

"Relax," Guo Daqiang whispered in her ear, his breath reeking of alcohol on her neck. "When playing cards, the most important thing is to have fun."

He didn't move his hand away; instead, he gently squeezed her shoulder.

Sun Xiaoyan bit her lip, not daring to move.

The cards were played a few more times.

The pile of loose change in front of Sun Xiaoyan kept getting higher and higher.

A thick stack of red and green cards. She secretly counted them and realized she had won almost three hundred.

Liu Meiling won even more, and the pile in front of her was like a small mountain.

"It's like the God of Wealth has come knocking today!" Brother Wang said, picking up his wine glass from the table. "Come on, let's have a drink to celebrate."

Guo Daqiang had already prepared the liquor. The liquor was poured into disposable plastic cups.

Sun Xiaoyan waved her hand: "I really can't drink."

"Just a little." Guo Daqiang shoved the cup into her hand. "You've won so much money, it wouldn't be right not to have a drink."

Liu Meiling had already taken the cup and downed it in one gulp, her tongue sticking out from the spiciness.

Sun Xiaoyan looked at the wine in her hand, hesitated for a moment, and took a small sip.

It's spicy, burning from my throat all the way down to my stomach.

But after drinking it, I felt warm all over, and the tension in my mind seemed to dissipate.

Guo Daqiang's hand was still on her shoulder. Slowly, that hand began to slide down, across her back, and stopped at her waist.

Sun Xiaoyan tensed up completely.

"Xiaoyan's waist is so slim," Guo Daqiang said, pinching her waist with his hand.

Sun Xiaoyan remained silent. She felt her face burning, unsure if it was from the alcohol or something else. Across the street, Liu Meiling was making even more noise.

Li Ge's hand was already on her thigh at some point.

Liu Meiling not only didn't dodge, but also moved her leg closer to Brother Li.

"Brother Li, why are your hands so hot?" Liu Meiling said with a smile.

"Your legs are hotter," Brother Li replied, his hand moving up her thigh.

Liu Meiling squeezed her legs together and giggled, "It tickles..."

Brother Li's hand remained on her inner thigh, neither moving upwards nor moving away.

Brother Wang, seeing this with envy, moved closer to Liu Meiling's other side and said, "Meiling, I'd like to toast you too."

"Come on!" Liu Meiling accepted the offer without hesitation, taking the cup and drinking it down in one gulp.

Sun Xiaoyan watched, her mind in turmoil. She took another sip of wine. This time it wasn't as spicy; instead, it was a little sweet.

Guo Daqiang's hand slid down from her waist and landed on her thigh. Sun Xiaoyan's leg trembled.

"Don't be nervous," Guo Daqiang said softly, patting her thigh gently. "You've won so much today, cheer up."

His hand didn't move; it just rested there.

It was so hot that it made her skin tingle through the thin fabric of her dress.

Two more rounds of cards were played. Sun Xiaoyan won another hand, and Liu Meiling also won another hand.

The two of them had so much change piled up in front of them that they couldn't fit it all in one place.

Guo Daqiang looked at it and a smile appeared on his lips.

"Xiaoyan, Meiling," he suddenly said, "you two are having such good luck today, playing such small games is no fun."

Sun Xiaoyan looked up: "What do you mean?"

"Let's go big," Guo Daqiang said. "Twenty yuan as the base, one hundred for a discard that leads to another, two hundred for a self-draw. Are you in?"

Sun Xiaoyan's hand trembled, and she almost dropped the card she had just picked up.

Twenty yuan as the base? That one hand's win or loss might be a few hundred yuan.

She looked at the thick stack of money in front of her, red and green. She'd won so much; maybe…

"Let's play!" Liu Meiling blurted out, her eyes gleaming. "What's there to be afraid of? We're on a winning streak today, it'll be more exciting to go big!"

Sun Xiaoyan looked at Liu Meiling. Liu Meiling nodded at her, her eyes filled with excitement and greed.

His gaze was like fire, burning away any hesitation she might have felt.

"Yeah, let's play."

Guo Daqiang laughed: "Good! You've got guts! Twenty yuan as the base!"

A new round of cards began. Sun Xiaoyan's palms were sweaty as she drew the cards.

One wasn't the one she wanted. The second one wasn't either.

The third one, not yet.

She felt a little flustered. She looked up at Liu Meiling, whose brows were also furrowed.

"Pong!" Brother Wang suddenly said, playing a card. Brother Li then played a card.

Sun Xiaoyan looked at the cards in her hand; they were a mess and couldn't be arranged into a coherent shape at all.

"I won." Brother Li pushed the tiles aside. "A pure suit, a self-draw." Sun Xiaoyan's mind went blank.

She wins by self-draw, 200 yuan per hand. She, Liu Meiling, and Brother Wang each give 200 yuan.

With trembling hands, she counted out two red bills from the pile of money in front of her and handed them over.

The game continues.

In the second round, Liu Meiling discarded the winning tile and gave Brother Wang 100.

In the third round, Sun Xiaoyan scored another point, giving Brother Li a hundred.

In the fourth hand, Liu Meiling won by drawing the winning tile herself, taking back four hundred. But in the fifth, sixth, and seventh hands…

The change in front of Sun Xiaoyan was dwindling at a visible rate. Red bills were handed out one by one, and green bills were handed out one by one as well.

Her hands started to shake, and she could no longer hold the cards steadily.

"Xiaoyan, don't be nervous." Guo Daqiang was still behind her, his hand on her shoulder. "If the cards aren't good, play slowly."

But the cards were just bad. No matter how she played, they didn't go well. In another round, Sun Xiaoyan discarded a card that allowed Li Ge to win 100. She only had two red bills left in front of her.

Liu Meiling's situation wasn't much better; all that was left in front of her was a thin stack of food.

"No... let's not play anymore?" Sun Xiaoyan's voice trembled.

"What time is it?" Guo Daqiang said. "If we play a few more rounds, we might be able to turn the tide."

Liu Meiling gritted her teeth: "I'll play! I refuse to believe it!"

The last two games.

Sun Xiaoyan lost everything. She didn't have a single penny left.

Liu Meiling lost all her money, and her hand trembled violently as she handed over the last green bill.

In the end, the two of them still owed Guo Daqiang a lot.

The card table gradually quieted down.

Brother Wang and Brother Li started counting the money, smiles on their faces.

Guo Daqiang slowly stood up and walked to Sun Xiaoyan's side.

"Out of money?" he asked.

Sun Xiaoyan lowered her head, not daring to look at him.

"The rule is to pay immediately," Guo Daqiang said.

Liu Meiling forced herself to remain calm: "Brother Guo, can we pay you back on credit? We'll pay you back tomorrow... we'll get the money tomorrow."

Guo Daqiang shook his head: "No way. I don't have a rule about owing money here."

His gaze lingered on Sun Xiaoyan and Liu Meiling, from their permed hair to their bare shoulders, to their slit skirts, to their white thighs.

After watching for a while, he finally spoke softly:

"If you don't have money, you can use something else to pay for it."