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As soon as they heard they could go out and have fun, Sam Strong, Tony Major, and Eddie Evil exchanged knowing smiles and shouted excitedly, "Awesome! Awesome! Tonight Longhair is treating us, and it's all thanks to Brother Shawn! Hehehe—"
Shawn Young couldn't understand why the three were so excited. This place was pretty much like a county town back home—what could be so fun? Longhair walked up with a grin and said, "Hehe—Shawn, let's go out for a stroll! Think of it as a little fun in Myanmar before we get serious. The nights in Mai Zayan Special Economic Zone are way livelier than the days, hehe—"
"A little fun? Aren't we—aren't we supposed to be working?" Shawn felt pressed for time, yet Longhair still wanted to take him out. Seeing his confusion, Longhair pulled him aside and whispered in his ear, "Mr. Shawn, there are Goldtooth's informants everywhere around this casino. They're especially watchful of new faces. Someone could be secretly observing you. If you don't want to tip them off, you need to act like a staff member or a regular gambler—"
"Oh, got it!" Shawn nodded in understanding.
"Hehe—Alright, guys, let's go! Tonight we're really going to have some fun!" Longhair waved to the other three, grabbed Shawn, and headed down the dormitory stairs toward the street.
It was already evening, the sun slanting westward. The afterglow of the setting sun bathed the buildings of Mai Zayan Special Economic Zone in gold. As the five of them walked onto the main street, they could see the lavishly decorated New Orient Casino in the distance, along with several minibuses bearing casino names, appearing one after another on the streets of the Special Economic Zone.
Thanks to Longhair's introduction, Shawn finally understood—the core area of Mai Zayan Special Economic Zone wasn't that big. The most eye-catching buildings were all casinos. Up ahead was a yellow hotel-style building—the once-famous New Orient Casino, and the newly risen Golden Mountain Casino. Around these two major casinos were six or seven shops, four of which were pawnshops. You could pawn cell phones, jewelry, even cars!
The five walked and chatted as they went. Suddenly, near the entrance of the New Orient Casino, Shawn spotted a man in his thirties squatting by the roadside, bawling his eyes out. The way he pounded his chest and wailed was truly heartbreaking.
"Uh—what's up with that guy? He's crying his heart out!" Shawn asked Longhair, curious. The man's snazzy outfit was a sharp contrast to his miserable sobbing, which made Shawn even more intrigued.
"Oh! That guy's probably a civil servant or government official from back home. Judging by his look, he must've gone nuts gambling at the casino and lost all the public funds. Total parasite of China—guys like that, no one feels sorry for them! Hehehe—" Longhair sneered.
"Uh—gambling with public funds?! These people are gutsy! What happens if they lose it all?" Shawn asked, frowning.
"Oh, it's always a tragedy for them—some commit suicide, some run away, but if they've lost all their money, where can they go? Lots of them, after blowing everything, don't dare go home, so they stay here and look for work. Some even lie to their families, saying they're doing business here. The worst are the ones who borrow 'water'—high-interest loans—to gamble. The lenders are super friendly at first, but once you're tapped out, there's no way out. Either you're forced to kill yourself, or you're sold off to dig in the mines in Myanmar. Each person sells for a few thousand yuan. In northern Myanmar and the Golden Triangle, there's an unwritten rule: you can gamble and whore, but you can't skip out on debts. If you do, or if you try to rob someone, the punishment is death, or at best, they'll cut your Achilles tendon!" Longhair explained.
Just then, Eddie Evil chimed in, "Hehe—the other day, a cashier from the Yunnan government lost all the public funds in the casino. He somehow got hold of a 54 pistol and tried to rob a nearby pawnshop. The Nika guys caught him and shot him dead on the street right then and there!"
Tony Major added, "Besides the casinos in Mai Zayan Special Economic Zone, there are others in places like Laying and Lazan, but those don't have the same reputation. A lot of them are Clip Joints!"
"Clip Joint? What's that? Is it really a place where they clip people?" Shawn asked, baffled.
"Oh! So-called 'Clip Joints' are casinos set up to cheat people—also called 'Fixed Houses.' The gamblers tricked into them are called 'marks,' so they call it a 'Clip Joint.' Those casinos are all about scams and cheating. They won't let you go until they've squeezed you dry!" Longhair explained to Shawn.
Big Jun added, "Actually, here, almost all regular casino employees are forbidden to gamble!"
"Uh—why would they ban employees from gambling in a place full of casinos?" Shawn wondered. This city was built for gambling, yet there were strict rules against staff joining in.
"Oh, it's like this: once casino employees start gambling, win or lose, they stop caring about their actual jobs. Sooner or later, it'll cause big trouble! If any staff member gets caught gambling, they get fired on the spot at best, beaten up at worst. If they win a lot, they might even be silenced for good!" Big Jun said coldly.
At that moment, Longhair leaned in and whispered to Shawn, "Actually, the real reason is—there's no casino here that doesn't cheat. It's just that the casinos in Mai Zayan Special Economic Zone have pros from Macau and Las Vegas running the show, so their tricks are way more sophisticated. The smaller casinos are basically like dens of robbers! Regular casino staff might know the cheating methods, or they worry about staff colluding with dealers to win, so the rules are extra harsh!"
"Oh! So that's how it is—" Shawn finally realized how strange and treacherous this gambling city was. Any gambler who came here hoping to win big could end up getting chewed up and spit out, with nothing left behind!