Chapter 14: Win

The audience at the racetrack let out exclamations of surprise, and the few uncles watching on TV also widened their eyes. Everyone held their breath and watched intently.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion. “Graceful Swallow” nearly leaped into the air, performing a high-difficulty maneuver. Its front hooves barely touched the ground before it continued its sprint forward.

At this moment, “Graceful Swallow” was running neck and neck with “Invincible Warrior,” leaving “Crazy Dude Rara” behind.

Some uncles sighed and lamented in disappointment, while others clenched their fists and shouted, “Invincible Warrior, charge!”

The bald uncle, who had also bet on “Graceful Swallow” and had been dejected earlier due to everyone saying it had no hope, suddenly became excited upon seeing the scene.

His face lit up with excitement as he stared at the TV screen without blinking, shouting hoarsely, “My ‘Graceful Swallow,’ ‘Graceful Swallow,’ keep going!”

Ye Tianhui also held her breath and kept her eyes fixed on the screen.

This wasn’t anything major. In fact, its significance was far less than even a minor skirmish in her previous life.  

But now, it was critically important to her. It was about her money—a few hundred Hong Kong dollars, almost half of her assets.  

She had to win it back. She had to win it back.  

Even a hero struggles without money. Now, for the once awe-inspiring Deputy General Ye Tianhui, the outcome of a horse race decided her livelihood!

The final few seconds felt exceptionally long, as though her heart had stopped beating.  

She watched as “Graceful Swallow” and “Invincible Warrior” ran neck and neck, their sprinting appearing like slow motion to her.  

In the last second, “Graceful Swallow” suddenly extended forward—  

Accompanied by an incredible gasp from the crowd.  

Not only the audience on-site but also the uncles in front of the TV were all dumbfounded.  

Then, everyone reacted, “Graceful Swallow won first place? ‘Graceful Swallow’ came in first?”  

The bald uncle stared blankly at the scene before suddenly leaping three feet high, shouting, “I won! I won! I won! My ‘Graceful Swallow!’”

He shouted so loudly that his temple veins bulged, his voice echoing like thunder.  

The uncles who had earlier criticized and lectured Ye Tianhui were all stunned, “That ‘Graceful Swallow’ actually took first place?”  

One uncle nearly cried, slapping his thigh in regret and frustration, “I was wrong! I chose wrong! I’m so unlucky!”  

Others hung their heads in despair, “I’m so mad!”  

Only the bald uncle was practically dancing with joy, infuriating the others.  

Ye Tianhui, watching this scene, finally breathed a sigh of relief.  

She had placed eight bets. She had won the first race and was down to four bets. Now, with the second race won, only two bets remained.  

If either of the two horses she selected won the final race, she could win the grand prize. Judging by today’s latest odds, it could be dozens of times the payout.  

Even if luck wasn’t on her side and she didn’t win first place, as long as one of those two horses made it into the top two, she could still get a consolation prize.  

As for the upcoming race, she actually felt relatively confident.  

For now, she didn’t bother watching anymore. Knowing she wouldn’t lose money, she went upstairs.  

She wanted to continue studying the next bets.  

This time, she had been careless and rushed. She needed to study the rules carefully and aim for a bigger and more assured win next time.  

Of course, she also considered contacting Gu Shizhang to see about taking a part-time job at a stable. She couldn’t rely solely on horse betting. Otherwise, if luck turned bad one day and she lost everything, she’d end up starving.  

As she got up, the uncles suddenly remembered. They exclaimed, “Little sister won! You also picked ‘Graceful Swallow’!”  

Once it was said, the others all looked over, each with envy and amazement.  

One of the uncles even asked, “Does the little sister have any tips?”  

Ye Tianhui shook her head, “I don’t. I just picked randomly.” 

After saying this, she bid everyone farewell and quickly went upstairs under their envious gazes.  

***********  

The last race seemed to be scheduled for later, a twilight race. Ye Tianhui stayed in her room, flipping through magazines, studying horse racing journals, and researching the jockeys.  

Horse racing was akin to warfare, requiring an analysis of timing, terrain, and human factors, as well as probability calculations, permutations, and combinations. Fortunately, she had attended school in this era and had learned these subjects in high school. While she wasn’t particularly skilled, she had some grasp of the concepts and could handle the basic calculations.  

There would be plenty of opportunities in the upcoming racing season. Since she had already won her first bet and made a small profit, she needed to proceed cautiously, advancing step by step and doubling her winnings bit by bit. Her goal was to earn a sum of money by the end of the season.  

After that, she could settle down, find a job, or perhaps even pursue further studies—provided she could earn enough to support her education.  

Around noon, she rummaged through the box Gu Shizhang had given her and found a piece of barbecued pork. She heated it up with some salted porridge for a meal.  

She couldn’t help but admit that the barbecue from the Jockey Club tasted exceptional. Whether it was the ingredients or the preparation, everything was top-notch, far superior to the offerings of street vendors.  

—Indeed, having money was essential. In this world of pleasures, only the wealthy could enjoy such fine cuisine.  

After eating, she buried herself in research again. Suddenly, she heard cheers coming from downstairs. Tilting her head to listen, she couldn’t make out what was happening due to the noisy chatter. She decided to head downstairs to check it out and quickly learned that the results of the twilight race were in.  

The two horses she had bet on had performed exceptionally: one won first place, and the other came in second.  

This meant her last two remaining bets had paid off—one for the grand prize and the other for the consolation prize.  

Ye Tianhui wasn’t particularly excited about this outcome.  

Her excitement and anticipation had already been exhausted during the morning race she watched by the TV downstairs. Winning that race had already assured her of victory.  

Now, it was merely a matter of waiting for the dust to settle.  

With the money soon in hand, she felt a sense of relaxation. Seeing that it was still early, and with the sound of people playing mahjong and chatting outside, she didn’t feel like sleeping yet. Instead, she pulled out the old magazines she had bought and started flipping through them.  

These old magazines contained various gossip, sensational headlines, and colorful, unbelievable stories. While they weren’t very credible at first glance, Ye Tianhui managed to glean some information about the Ye family from between the lines.  

Her grandfather, Old Master Ye—her biological grandfather—originally had a first wife back in Beijing. However, while studying in London, he fell in love at first sight with a fellow Chinese student. Upon returning to Beijing from London, he brought her back as a second wife. In the early 1940s, he moved from Beijing to Hong Kong, where he married two more wives. Additionally, there were several women he kept outside without formally marrying them.  

In short, her grandfather had lived a life of debauchery, surrounded by wives and concubines and fathering many children.  

Old Master Ye had seven sons and three daughters. The eldest and third sons were born to his first wife in Beijing, known as the legitimate sons in the old days—although such distinctions no longer mattered.  

The eldest son died young, while her father, the third legitimate son, was born to the same wife. By the time Ye Tianhui was born, her father’s mother—the original first wife—had already passed away. Naturally, there had been much scheming and conflict within the household.  

From Ye Tianhui’s perspective, the Ye family’s hasty move to Hong Kong, leaving behind only the third son and his wife, likely had its roots in internal power struggles.  

She continued flipping through the magazines, searching for information about her father, Ye Lixuan, the third son of the Ye family. However, she found only a few mentions, stating that he had studied abroad and later taught physics at the University of Hong Kong. 

This biological father appeared to have made some achievements in scientific research. He had been selected as a member of the Asian Young Scientists Program, was specially appointed as a professor by a well-known university in the United States, and had even won a scientific research award.  

She couldn’t fully understand it, but she could sense that this biological father was a researcher and scholar with considerable accomplishments.  

This was good news for her. Based on her observations across two lifetimes, scholars in her era were always aloof and principled, while modern intellectuals, at the very least, maintained a basic sense of decency as human beings—whether genuine or not, at least it appeared that way.  

Such people valued integrity and refused to accept handouts without merit.  

If she, as his biological daughter, sought to recognize him, he shouldn’t be excessively cold-blooded or unfeeling, right?  

She continued reading. The remaining gossip revolved around the third generation of the Ye family, namely her cousins. Today, the third son had reportedly taken a young celebrity under his wing. Tomorrow, the fourth wife would attend a charity auction. The day before, the second wife had celebrated her birthday with an extravagant party attended by high-society figures, and so on.  

Naturally, the rumored marriage alliance between the Ye family and the Gu family was the focus of these magazines.  

Not only was the Ye family a prominent household in Hong Kong, but the Gu family also held a significant position there.  

The Gu family, originally from Fujian, had immigrated to Malaysia in earlier years. By the early 1930s, they had shifted the focus of their family business to Hong Kong. Over the years, the Gu Group had rapidly expanded in Hong Kong, with their family enterprises spanning real estate, finance, and hotels, and their presence extending to Singapore, Malaysia, and Hong Kong.  

Looking at the unfamiliar traditional characters, Ye Tianhui slowly read aloud: “…A multinational enterprise group integrating real estate, banking, and financial services. Its stocks are listed in multiple countries, including Europe, the U.S., and Singapore.”  

She continued reading: “The family’s current assets have reached an astonishing figure, making them a powerhouse in Southeast Asia.”  

They indeed seemed extraordinary…  

She flipped through other magazines and finally found information about Gu Zhixin.  

The head of the Gu family, Gu Kanyuan, had studied at MIT in his early years and later obtained a Ph.D. in Business Economics from Harvard University. He was now the chairman of the Hong Kong International Chamber of Commerce.  

As for Gu Zhixin, he was the grandson of Gu Kanyuan’s second wife. Gu Zhixin had been sent to prestigious American schools from a young age and had returned to Hong Kong this year after earning his degree. To avoid nepotism, he first interned at a friend’s company, hoping to gain experience before joining the Gu family business.  

According to reports, Gu Zhixin was undoubtedly outstanding, with strikingly good looks. However, his personality was reportedly poor, wasting such a fine appearance.  

Ye Tianhui kept reading, slowly flipping through the gossip. The media exaggeratedly described the Gu Group as “controlling the lifelines of three nations.”  

In comparison, the Ye family was far inferior to the Gu family. If Ye Wenyin could marry into the Gu family, it would undoubtedly benefit her greatly.  

From this, Ye Tianhui roughly deduced the situation of the Ye family.  

A figure like Old Master Ye, who managed to preserve the family business during times of upheaval and made decisive moves to mitigate risks at critical moments, must be a resolute and capable person. Such a person would prioritize the greater interests of the family.  

Whether a granddaughter was genuine or not might merely be a tool in his eyes.  

If this tool could help the family establish ties with the Gu family, it would be valuable and thus regarded as his genuine granddaughter, earning his attention.  

As for a bloodline drifting outside the family, not raised within the household, and possibly already “ruined,” such a granddaughter wouldn’t matter much to him. Even if she did, it wouldn’t be urgent—after all, he had many granddaughters.  

Furthermore, the patriarch of such a large family often favored males over females. She was merely a granddaughter, not a grandson.  

With this reasoning, Ye Tianhui lost much of her interest in recognizing the Ye family.  

The Ye family was a large clan, and such families inevitably had internal factional struggles, conflicts of interest between branches, and various competitions.  

It was clear that if she returned, it would disrupt Ye Wenyin’s position as the Ye family’s daughter.  

If the Ye family intended to marry into the Gu family, her appearance would be a slap in the face to the Gu family and a loss of face for the Ye family in front of them. 

In other words, her appearance would harm the interests of the Ye family and might make them a laughingstock. If that were the case, the Ye family’s indifference towards her would be understandable.

In the eyes of the Ye family, a wealthy family in Hong Kong, she, a mainland girl, would surely be seen as unpresentable. A meticulously groomed granddaughter would naturally be of more use.

She subconsciously disliked Ye Wenyin and found no reason to approach her shamelessly, only to be judged by others.

As for her biological father—

She could try to contact him privately. After all, there was a blood connection. If he had even a bit of affection for her, she could observe his attitude. Whether he acknowledged her or not, it wouldn’t hurt to privately gain some benefits.

—

The next day, Ye Tianhui got up early. She first checked her surroundings to ensure no one was around and was the first to enter the betting station as it opened.

She won a jackpot in one of the triple bets and two consolation prizes in others. After verification, the betting station owner congratulated her profusely, saying, “Congratulations, congratulations!”

After congratulating her, he quickly calculated the odds for her. Since the “Graceful Swallow” was an unexpected winner this time, very few people chose her combination, leading to exceptionally high odds—93 to 1.

Although only one-eighth of her 300 HKD bet won the jackpot, the high odds meant a substantial return. Moreover, the two consolation prizes were bonuses. After some calculations, her total winnings amounted to approximately 12.5 times her original bet. After tallying it up, the owner exchanged nearly 4,000 HKD for her.

The owner, still happy after handing over the prize, continued to congratulate her and asked if she wanted to place more bets.

By this time, other customers were arriving one after another, looking at Ye Tianhui with envy.

Not wanting to attract trouble, Ye Tianhui declined immediately. Naturally, she dared not place more bets there. Pocketing the 4,000 HKD, she left the station.

She planned to continue betting but would avoid this station. With her experience now, she decided to spread her bets across multiple stations in the future. This way, even if she won, she wouldn’t draw too much attention.

However, as soon as she walked out of the betting station, she was stopped by a group of thugs.

Looking closely, she recognized the two leading them—they had been tailing her a few days ago and now formally came to cause trouble.

The group was dressed in colorful Hawaiian shirts, their hair slick with gel, some with tattoos and cigarettes dangling from their mouths. Others wore metal chains, all exuding an air of delinquency—clearly not decent people.

Blocking her way, one of them tilted his head and scrutinized her, then smiled and said, “Miss, you won the jackpot, huh? Made a fortune?”

Ye Tianhui replied calmly, “Yes, made a fortune.”

As she spoke, she pulled out two 100 HKD bills from her pocket. “I won, so here are two red notes. Drinks are on me. Please accept them.”

Knowing when to yield is a virtue. Ye Tianhui could handle Li San or a single lecher, but she didn’t want to confront a group. She had always known how to adapt to circumstances.

Unexpectedly, the man in the floral shirt sneered. “You must’ve made a lot this time. Two red notes to shut us up? Are you trying to dismiss us like beggars?”

As he spoke, the group moved closer, surrounding her in a circle.

Ye Tianhui remained calm, quickly analyzing their positions and planning an escape route in her mind. Judging by their stance, they were likely skilled fighters, possibly armed. If it were her previous life, she could have handled them effortlessly. But in this life, she lacked training, and her physique was weaker.

No need to suffer unnecessary losses. If things escalated, her temporary resident status could cause her trouble.

Since 200 HKD wasn’t enough, she decided to flee.

However, the group, experienced as they were, blocked every direction, leaving her with no escape.

Sighing, Ye Tianhui reached into her pocket and said, “If that’s the case, I’ll give you the money. Can I buy my safety with it?”

The thug smiled at this. “Smart girl!”

Ye Tianhui nodded and pulled out a handful from her pocket, then suddenly threw it behind the thugs.

The group saw colorful banknotes flying through the air and immediately rushed to grab them.

Taking advantage of their distraction, Ye Tianhui leaped forward and darted between two of them.

Caught off guard, the group only realized after grabbing the money that they were holding worthless colored paper scraps. Furious, they quickly gave chase!

Ye Tianhui didn’t dare stop, sprinting forward. She had trained for this, practicing running daily in preparation for her escape to Hong Kong. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have had the stamina to swim across the bay.

However, the thugs were no amateurs. They were clearly used to this sort of operation and were familiar with the area.

Ye Tianhui suffered because of this. Though she had studied the terrain, she hadn’t expected to end up in a cramped alley full of street vendors, junk shops, and hawkers carrying baskets or pushing carts.

Running through the narrow streets, she inevitably collided with people, drawing angry shouts. Meanwhile, the thugs, knowing the layout, quickly caught up.

Ye Tianhui knew she’d lose in a direct confrontation. If they had weapons, she’d be at a disadvantage. Worse, as a woman, if they captured her, she couldn’t bear the humiliation of being kidnapped or bound!

While running, she saw a staircase leading up to a hillside church. The steps were steep and endless, disappearing into the distance.

Seeing the thugs closing in, she dashed up the steps.

Just as she reached the top, a figure suddenly emerged from the side and pulled her aside. “Follow me!”