Ben Yao went all-in!
Though he pushed all his chips forward, amounting to tens of millions, the rules for all-ins meant they were only going by the minimum stack at the table, which was Ethan Wu's. With Ethan holding 21 million in chips, that set the all-in amount for this round. Now, it was up to Ethan to either match the bet or fold.
He observed Ben Yao, his hand resting over his hole card, which he hadn't looked at all game. With a slow flip, he peeked at it for the first time, then pushed his entire stack forward.
"All-in!" Ethan declared.
"Mr. Wu, why not up the stakes a bit more?" Ben Yao remarked, studying Ethan's reaction. He'd asked Ethan's last name during a previous round, and now he used it to address him formally. "How about adding another fifty million?"
Without waiting for Ethan's response, Tyler Li gestured to the manager at the door. "Bring in fifty million in chips."
"Hold up!" Ethan interjected, lifting his hand. "Bring a hundred million," he said confidently, turning back to Ben Yao with a smile. "I'll add one hundred million!"
Ben Yao's confident expression faltered. Based on his previous rounds with Ethan, he'd pegged him as someone who relied heavily on luck, cautiously folding when the odds were against him. Only when he held a strong lead in open cards did Ethan seem to avoid looking at his hole card until the end, playing on faith alone.
But this time, Ethan had checked his card and still matched the all-in.
After a slight hesitation, Yao lifted the corner of his own hole card again, confirming what he'd seen before: a King of Diamonds. His pair of Kings should be enough to win unless Ethan had an Ace. The odds of that were slim—Ethan's previous unwillingness to check his hole card had been a deliberate bluff, or so Yao believed. He'd goaded Ethan into matching his all-in, feeling sure he had the winning hand.
But then Ethan had raised the stakes by a hundred million!
The dealer promptly delivered a sleek, compact tray holding twenty chips, each valued at five million. Ethan pushed it forward with a calm, unbothered smile. "One hundred million, let's see what you've got."
A forced grin spread across Yao's face as he stiffened. Something wasn't adding up. Ethan's relaxed demeanor suggested he might actually hold an Ace. After all, his hand had never left his hole card since the start of this round.
"Mr. Wu, it seems you're too eager," Yao said with a mocking smile, turning over his card to reveal the King. "A big hand has made you greedy, costing you fifty million you didn't need to lose." With that, he slid his chips to the side, folding instead of matching the raised hundred million.
A hush fell over the room as Ethan slowly revealed his hole card: a Two of Hearts.
The silence was thick as everyone processed the reality: Ethan had won with nothing but a high Ace, bluffing Yao out of a potential win worth a hundred million more.
"Ha! Looks like your friend could use a bit more nerve, Shen," Tyler laughed, clapping Grant Shen on the shoulder. "What a shame for such a timid player!"
Though it was only a fraction of the night's winnings, the taunt made Shen's expression darken.
Yao's eyes narrowed as he looked at Ethan. "You bluffed me?" he asked, voice laced with disbelief.
"I never forced you to fold," Ethan shrugged, lips curling into an easy grin.
Without another word, Yao smirked, glancing at Shen to indicate he was ready to continue.
Chips worth fifty million were soon back on the table, but after twenty more hands, Yao found himself struggling. He realized that the young man opposite him was no amateur, but an adept player with a natural talent for reading people.
With every move, Yao felt his confidence slipping away, losing more chips than he'd won. By the 38th hand, Ethan's stack had grown to a cool 150 million, while Yao's was down to ninety.
In this round, Ethan picked up his hole card without looking, turning over his second—a Nine of Clubs. Yao's visible card was a Three of Clubs.
"Two million," Ethan announced, throwing his chips in.
"Call," Yao responded, keeping a close watch on Ethan.
After four more cards, they both stared at almost identical hands on the table: each with a nine, seven, six, and three of mixed suits, but still evenly matched in rank.
"All-in!" Yao slammed his stack forward, pushing the stakes as high as possible.
Ethan glanced at his watch, then looked at Yao with a faint smirk. "Getting late, shall we speed things up?"
"What's that supposed to mean?" Yao asked, eyeing him cautiously.
"One hand to settle it," Ethan proposed. "Double the all-in. I'll raise a hundred million on top."
Yao's mouth curled up in amusement. "Trying to bluff me again?"
Ethan hadn't looked at his hole card once during the hand, and Yao held a Nine of Diamonds, giving him a pair. He only needed Ethan to have anything but the Nine of Spades to secure his victory.
Turning to Shen, Yao whispered, "He's never checked his card, Shen. It's a long shot he'd have the other Nine."
After a moment's consideration, Shen nodded. "Fine, cover the raise."
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