Chapter 6: No More Pretense, I'm a Cheating Techniques Expert, I'm Laying My Cards on the Table
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As a child, Lin Chuan watched many Hong Kong "gambling"-themed movies.
Be it God of Gamblers or Sparrow Saint, after experiencing the life of a swindler and acquiring the skills of cheating techniques, he felt secretly delighted and couldn't wait to play a few hands.
After all, a master of the Cheating Sect is super cool!
But when his landlord, Old Zhang, was caught, the tears of his family brought him back to reality from his self-satisfaction.
Using cheating techniques to show off in front of friends is fine, but once you step into a casino, things go beyond control.
Not to mention that there's always someone better, "often walking by the river, one's shoes are bound to get wet".
The moment you get involved in gambling, you've already lost.
Lin Chuan snapped back to reality, sunlight streaming through the window and falling on his correct moral compass and handsome features.
Face the light, fear not the darkness.
Lin Chuan walked from the narrow living room into an even narrower bedroom, sat in front of an old desktop computer, his slender fingers resting on the keyboard, typing a sentence quickly to remind himself always.
[Crime is something I can't commit, in this lifetime I won't commit crime!]
Lin Chuan realized.
This Life Experience Card is quite a tease, now finally having experienced two relatively complete lives.
But what identities were they?
Thief, swindler.
Yep, very criminal, very much a sentence-head!
"I'd better count on novels to make money."
Lin Chuan touched the stubble that he hadn't shaved for two days, lost in thought.
He vaguely remembered that the swindler theme was once very popular.
In those days, an influent author posted on a forum with this theme of swindlers, and in just over half a year, created a brilliant record of 6 million hits and over 60,000 replies.
These numbers, seen today, might not compare to some videos casually posted by female celebrities.
But back then, the internet was not yet widespread, and the number of netizens had just barely passed one hundred million.
Swindlers, there's potential!
Finally.
[Ding!]
[Export of "Swindler's Life" complete, word count: 1,026,000.]
[Work: "Swindler's Life".]
[Status: Unpublished.]
[Popularity Value (Average Subscription): 0/1000.]
Lin Chuan immediately began to flip through "Swindler's Life".
It must be said, the life of a swindler Lin Chuan experienced in Virtual Reality, was perfectly replicated into text by the system.
This writing style was completely identical to Lin Chuan's.
Afterward.
Lin Chuan opened the chat box, typed a message, and contacted his editor Youyou, "Youyou, I have a new book ready for release."
Youyou replied quickly, "A new book? Is it still a thief series? I've seriously read the last thief one, it's quite good, but the identity of a thief, readers find it hard to empathize with."
Lin Chuan nodded.
Little thieves and robbers, indeed, do not easily resonate with readers.
His readers were either curious or learning lock-picking skills.
Lin Chuan, "So I'm thinking of changing the theme."
Youyou, "What theme?"
Lin Chuan typed two characters decisively, "Swindler."
"?"
Editor Youyou immediately typed a question mark.
As everyone knows, when the other party sends a question mark, it isn't that they have a problem, but that they think you have a problem.
Lin Chuan's mouth twitched, "Is this theme not okay?"
He had been writing novels since his college days, and although his results had always been dismal, Youyou still replied impatiently, willing to discuss themes and plots with him.
If it were another editor, they'd probably have already started berating him, telling Lin Chuan to 'find a class to join' or 'to go work in a factory screwing bolts' might be possible!
Cough, just speaking of Lin Chuan's current financial situation, it might be better to work in a factory screwing bolts.
Youyou, "This theme is very good, and it also has a large audience."
Nowadays, there are still many people fond of gambling.
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The "God of Gamblers" series of movies still had a significant impact, and as soon as "Gao Jin" appeared on the scene, many people automatically filled in the God of Gamblers' BGM in their minds.
The market for the special genre of "swindler" novels was broad.
"But swindlers are special, and I'm worried you can't handle it," Youyou said her view tactfully.
Her concerns were reasonable.
Wanting to write well about the profession of a "swindler," there was a threshold, and just that threshold thwarted many people.
The current swindler novels on the market that were popular mostly took the form of "autobiographies."
That is to say, to write well about "swindlers," it's best if you're a swindler yourself, or related to the profession.
At the very least, you should be familiar with swindling.
If you've never even seen a swindler, that's like "playing the lute in your pants"—utter nonsense!
Lin Chuan smiled faintly, now understanding what Youyou meant.
So.
He replied, "I know a bit about swindlers, which is why I wanted to give it a try."
Not long after,
Youyou sent three messages in a row.
"As a full-time writer who graduated from university a year ago, where did you learn about swindlers?"
"Don't go to those underground gambling dens just to write books, it's too dangerous."
"Flopping is temporary; I believe you can definitely write a good book, but don't resort to those crooked paths."
In between the lines, Youyou's worries and anxieties were apparent.
She feared Lin Chuan would do something foolish.
People obsessed with creation, when they face a bottleneck, may do many baffling foolish things for a shred of creative inspiration.
From club models to police station detentions, a 15-day package, all are common occurrences.
For an author like Lin Chuan who had been flopping for years, for the sake of writing about swindlers, it's entirely predictable for him to run off to chess and card rooms or underground gambling dens, Editor Youyou could guess as much.
"Youyou, don't get ahead of yourself, I'm writing books seriously, I've never been to a gambling den," Lin Chuan replied.
Youyou: "If you haven't been to gambling dens, then I don't recommend you write about this theme; it's easy to flop."
Lin Chuan: "I'll tell you the truth, some days ago, my long-lost second uncle returned home. He used to be a gambler, encountered quite a few swindlers, and picked up some tricks, so I thought about artistically processing his experiences into a novel."
Youyou: "/SmilingFace.jpg"
Lin Chuan: "Youyou, believe me, I really do know some tricks."
Youyou: "/CuteNod.jpg"
Lin Chuan: "I'll send you the beginning later, Youyou, help me review it."
Youyou: "/FullOfExpectations.jpg"
Editor Youyou's demeanor obviously showed she did not believe he understood swindling, let alone believed he knew "Cheating Techniques."
But Lin Chuan wanted to write, so he decided to give it a go.
If it wasn't good, he could just reject the draft with a click, and deal with it swiftly.
Lin Chuan chuckled.
He really wanted to recreate Wang Duoyu's famous scene: Stop pretending, I am a master of cheating techniques, I'm laying my cards on the table!
But alas, cheating techniques, they're not for displaying.
During the virtual reality experience of a swindler's life the night before, Lin Chuan realized that most swindlers kept a low profile.
Brazen swindlers either truly had unmatched skills, invincible to all, or they met with a miserable end.
In the gambling dens, who there was the kind sort?
Similar to the tattooed individuals in nightclubs, which one of them was a good... good boy?
"I'll send the beginning to Youyou first," Lin Chuan muttered to himself.
Just when Lin Chuan was about to send it out…
Bang!
Bang! Bang!
The banging noise came from the iron gate outside the house.
"Who's looking for me at this hour?"
Lin Chuan frowned and murmured under his breath.
Stepping out of the room, he opened the iron gate and was visibly taken aback when he saw the person knocking.
It was Zhang.
Lin Chuan's frown deepened in confusion, "Zhang, aren't you watching movies, ah, I mean, shouldn't you be checking on Old Zhang instead of looking for me?"