"Whoa!"
Not only was Frank Bi stunned, but even Calvin Zheng and another girl froze for a moment.
Grace Liu, still holding Selina Wu’s wrist, let out a 'Whoa,' then smiled at Frank Bi: "Frank, did you see? He won!"
"That doesn't count, that doesn't count! How could you win with cards like that?"
Frank Bi shook his head like a rattle drum: "I don't believe it! Calvin and Wanwan must have gone easy on him."
"A win is a win! Frank just won't admit his card skills are lousy—so shameless!"
Grace Liu called out.
Frank Bi acted like he didn't want to hear it, shaking his head so hard his square-shaped head whipped up gusts of wind.
His antics were so comical that Grace Liu burst into another round of giggles.
Others in the courtyard chimed in with teasing remarks, all in good fun and without a trace of malice.
"Don't bother arguing with Frank—he's the classic type who won't admit defeat, loves gambling, and has been unlucky for twenty-plus years. Whatever he bets on, he loses."
Sun Wanwan, the girl at the card table, smiled at Evan Lin, worried he might feel awkward because of Frank Bi's words: "He once got his hand broken by his grandfather for gambling, but he never stopped loving cards and betting. Now he just never gambles for money."
Sun Wanwan chimed in to help explain.
Evan Lin nodded.
Calvin Zheng laughed and said, "Looks like you've got good financial luck. If we ever do business together, I'll give you an extra 0.5% profit—straight up, everyone can make money together."
They figured it was just for Selina Wu's sake, since Evan Lin was brought by her. Some were curious about the relationship between Evan Lin and Selina Wu.
Were they simply friends, or something more intimate?
But no one asked.
Some people here either didn't pay Evan Lin any mind and couldn't be bothered, while others chatted a bit but never tried to use family power or wealth to dominate him.
"It's probably almost time. Speaking of which, now that Mia Liao is back in the country, Allen is probably over the moon."
After checking the time, Frank Bi didn’t seem genuinely upset about losing the card game just now. He looked over at Evan Lin and grinned, saying, “You probably don’t know this, but Mia Liao is hands-down the most beautiful girl in our whole circle.”
Back in the day, there weren’t many girls who could grab a long stick and leash up a dog, then chase a whole bunch of misbehaving boys for two kilometers straight.
Frank Bi chuckled, then patted Evan Lin’s arm. “You played pretty well just now. Teach me your tricks sometime!”
He quickly added, “Of course, Selina Wu is also really pretty. If she’s actually into you, you must’ve racked up a ton of good karma over lifetimes. Cherish it, man. Really cherish it.”
Just for your card skills alone, if anyone tries to mess with you over Selina and wants to play dirty, come to me—I’ll tip the scales in your favor.”
He said all this with a straight face.
Selina Wu just shook her head, not bothering to explain. Once Allen Ju showed up, everyone would realize Evan Lin was the same Evan Allen kept mentioning—the ‘weirdo’ from Whitewood County they’d been itching to meet.
Grace Liu rolled her eyes at that.
“Ha! Frank, you’re terrible at cards and even worse at fighting, and you want to back someone up? Aren’t you afraid you’ll get beaten up yourself?”
She was a pro at roasting Frank, which drew another round of friendly laughter. Frank scratched his head and grinned, not bothered at all.
Evan Lin just thanked them, not saying much, but he found the group pretty decent overall.
The card game wrapped up.
Afterward, everyone just hung out and chatted. Selina Wu sat next to Evan Lin.
From their conversations, Evan figured out why so many people had gathered tonight.
It was all because Mia Liao was coming back to China.
As a kid, Allen Ju was quiet, but he always had a thing for the courtyard’s legendary ‘female tyrant’ Mia Liao.
Mia Liao was a few years older than Allen Ju and used to drag him everywhere, always protecting him from bullies in the courtyard. If anyone messed with Allen, she’d charge in with a stick and a dog, ready to defend him.
She was fierce—like the big sister next door when she was gentle, but a total hellion when she got angry.
Later, Mia left to study elsewhere, dropped the stick and freed the dog, and moved out. After that, the courtyard’s new generation—Warren Wu’s group—started their own era of ruling the roost.
Still, Mia Liao’s legend lasted for years, becoming a favorite topic among two generations of kids.
Honestly, it was two different generations of kids ruling the courtyard, separated by a whole era—even if that era only lasted a few years.
Over the years, Allen Ju wasn’t short on admirers—in fact, quite a few girls liked him.
But Allen rarely paid much attention to anyone else.
“Last time Allen led a group to Tidewatch Island to confront Mason Duan, it was because Mason used some shady tricks to mess with a girl who’d liked Allen for years.”
Selina Wu only found out about the Tidewatch Island incident afterward. She quietly added, “We could all see that girl was truly sincere toward Allen, but it didn’t matter.”
“Allen’s the type who sticks stubbornly to his beliefs, bull-headed as can be—he’s waited for Mia Liao for years.”
“But Mia Liao probably doesn’t see him that way—it’s just one-sided, really.”
Selina Wu sighed as she finished.
She didn’t mention the girl’s name, probably wanting to protect her a bit.
Evan Lin nodded, listening to the group chat. Their topics ranged from casinos to business, fish farming, even feng shui—from private equity funds down to a school gate shop. Nothing was off limits.
Everyone had their own interests, but sometimes a stray word hinted at just how unusual their backgrounds really were.
Frank Bi, who never has any luck in casinos, was talking about finding someone next year to get a few ‘policies’ and explore opportunities in the south.
Getting policies—that’s not something ordinary people can even talk about.
The conversation got lively. Frank Bi pulled out a cigarette, but before he could light it, Grace Liu slapped it right out of his hand.
“Frank, you’re not allowed to smoke. Smoking’s bad for your health, and here it’s more than that—if you smoke, Warren Wu will beat you to death.”
She was dead serious, and the courtyard burst into laughter. Frank Bi smiled awkwardly, waved it off, and quickly stashed his cigarettes.
As they chatted, footsteps sounded outside the gate—didn’t seem like many people, but several inside immediately looked toward the entrance.
The courtyard held plenty of people, and all eyes turned to the main gate.
The important guests—Allen Ju and probably Mia Liao—were about to arrive, and Evan Lin was about to meet the real core of Beijing’s political elite as an equal, not a supplicant.
His influence, built in the martial and business worlds, was about to extend into the capital’s inner circle.