March 25, 2027, at the Wynn Palace Hotel in Macau, China. Despite the drizzle, the hotel was packed inside and out. All eyes were fixed on the live broadcast table in the center of the hall. No show had ever captured their attention more than games like Blackjack, slot machines, or "Red-Blue Game." This was the final table of the world's highest buy-in poker tournament, the $1 million "Triton Poker" event. It was the moment that would decide the $120 million prize and whether a Chinese player would ascend to the pinnacle of the global poker world.
"ALL IN!", "CALL", "Showdown, please.
"The legendary American poker player Justin Bonomo revealed his pocket jacks (JJ). When he saw his opponent's Ace-Five suited (A5S), he breathed a sigh of relief as his hand was still a significant favorite. This was a crucial race for the $120 million prize. If he lost, the championship would go to his opponent. He was astonished to find that his opponent wasn't paying any attention to this critical hand. Instead, the guy was jumping up and waving, "Isabella, is it raining outside?" His smile was so bright, it seemed to outshine the spotlights.
Among the crowd, a girl in a white dress saw his excitement. She was chewing on an orange and, nearly choking, jumped up and down as she replied, "Yes, it's raining!" Tears sparkled in her eyes, but it was unclear if they were from choking or from seeing the jubilant young man under the spotlight, reminding her of a boy from their past.
Back in the day, ambitions soared to the sky, once promising to be the best in the world...
The moon had silently risen high. Xiaohu and I were in the small room on the second floor, engrossed in watching a movie. To avoid getting caught by our families, we hadn't even turned on the lights.
"Matt, why do you think the bank drafts that the God of Gamblers shows are always from Swiss banks?" Xiaohu asked me.
"Maybe because it sounds more impressive. If he said it was a $30 million draft from the Luochuan Rural Credit Cooperative, it would sound a bit silly," I pondered.Xiaohu burst into laughter, and I scratched my head and chuckled along.
"Matt, it's late, why aren't you home yet? Come down now, or I'll spank you when I get home!" I could hear my mom's voice from the loft.
"No, I have to go. Let's watch 'God of Gamblers 2' on Saturday. Don't forget to hide the DVD," I hastily fled, reminding Xiaohu, since I didn't want my pocket-money-bought DVD to be found by adults.
Lying in my bed, my ear stinging from mom's pinch, my mind was filled with the movie scenes.
"I wonder what happens in 'God of Gamblers 2'," I thought. That night, I dreamed of the man with slicked-back hair, wearing a trench coat and eating chocolate, who turned around and grinned at me. Astonishingly, he looked exactly like me.
My name is Matt Damon. From elementary to middle school, in our town of Cuihe, I was always the top student, never knowing what it felt like to be second, a golden boy. But everything changed that summer after middle school.
"With grades this good, the child should go to Luochuan High School," my uncle had come from the city to talk to my parents about my school applications.
"But I heard the tuition at Luochuan High School is quite expensive," my mom worriedly glanced at my dad.
"Let's send him to Luochuan High School. The child's uncle is right. We can tighten our belts," my dad said, stubbing out his cigarette, as if making a firm decision.