Chapter 123 - 123 119 Learn Now Sell Now Part 2

123: Chapter 119: Learn Now, Sell Now (Part 2) 123: Chapter 119: Learn Now, Sell Now (Part 2) Seconds ticked by, and more and more spectators rushed over from elsewhere. They were astounded to see Ye Fan mastering the skills of playing billiards at a superhuman speed, and they eagerly anticipated the formal wager between Ye Fan and Zhou Shijie. With thirty seconds remaining, Ye Fan suddenly ceased shooting and stood with his cue resting, eyes closed. The chattering, buzzing crowd went silent involuntarily, as if by a mutual accord. They tightly closed their mouths, held their breath, terrified that even the slightest sound from them might disturb Ye Fan’s comprehension. Approaching the twenty-second mark, Ye Fan suddenly opened his eyes, radiating a powerful self-confidence, and the spectators facing him could clearly see that at the moment his eyes opened, two beams of light shot out. Then his gaze became incredibly sharp. “Time’s up, the wager begins!” The referee from the Yonghui Club timed it perfectly and called out loudly. The encircling crowd immediately erupted in excited and anticipatory cheers, with nearly everyone shouting, “Ye Fan, you got this! Ye Fan, you got this!” In those ten minutes, the spectators all realized that this man with extraordinary learning ability, clad in plain clothing, was named Ye Fan. Helian Bobo stepped forward a few paces, standing in front of Ye Fan, her pretty face tilted upwards, gazing affectionately at Ye Fan’s chiseled face and eyes as deep as the sea. “Ye Bro, you will definitely win!” She clenched her snow-white fist in front of her chest, expressing her firm belief. Ye Fan laughed heartily, confidently stating, “That’s a given!” Zhou Shijie scoffed jealously, “Stop bragging! You have just started learning for a mere ten minutes; no matter how good you are, it’s not possible you’re better than me. I’ve won the amateur billiards championship of Hua Hai City!” Ye Fan smiled calmly. Helian Bobo immediately turned around and said proudly, “Even if Ye Bro has only studied for ten minutes, he’s better than you’ve been in your entire lifetime!” Zhou Shijie’s face suddenly turned sour, and he huffed heavily. Soon, a billiards table at the center of the hall was tidied up, and Ye Fan and Zhou Shijie each changed into waistcoats in the dressing rooms before approaching the table, with Helian Bobo and the audience watching from two meters away. The referee, dressed in a blue waistcoat, stepped forward solemnly and pulled out a gold coin, indicating that heads represented Ye Fan, and tails represented Zhou Shijie. He then tossed the gold coin high into the air, which landed on the green baize of the billiards table. Tails—Zhou Shijie to break! Zhou Shijie’s face broke into a smile as he bent over with cue in hand. Whether it was his grip or his stance, both were impeccably professional. Thud! The cue stick struck swiftly and powerfully, the cue ball forcefully colliding with the rack of balls that exploded as if a bomb had detonated within, sending them scattering haphazardly in all directions. Thud Thud Thud… A series of rapid collisions between the balls filled the air, captivating everyone’s attention. Witnessing this, the audience tensed up and started to take Zhou Shijie seriously. It’s said that experts are recognized at first stroke, and from this shot alone, they immediately understood that Zhou Shijie was a billiards master. After about a dozen seconds, all the balls came to a halt, and the referee stepped forward to inspect which had been pocketed. Four balls had dropped, three stripes and one solid. Gasps— The crowd couldn’t help but let out a gasp of astonishment. You see, they were wagering on eight-ball pool. There are fifteen balls in total, excluding the black eight-ball. They’re divided into two groups: stripes and solids, each group having seven balls. With his opening shot, Zhou Shijie pocketed three stripes, now only five remained. The audience couldn’t help but worry for Ye Fan. Not only did Zhou Shijie possess formidable strength, but he also seemed to have good luck on his side. Zhou Shijie didn’t hesitate to choose the stripes. Thud! Thud! He continued and sank two more balls in two shots, leaving only three remaining. On the third shot, because the rest of his balls were blocked by either Ye Fan’s balls or the black eight-ball, he couldn’t continue his streak. Thus, for the third shot, he performed a kick shot that bounced off the other side of the table and gently grazed the ball sitting on the baseline. The cue ball then came nearly to rest beside his own ball along the edge of the table. The position in which the cue ball stopped was extremely tricky, almost leaving no room for his opponent to shoot. Hiss— The audience members all collectively inhaled sharply. Zhou Shijie’s strength was beyond the average player’s level, even matching that of a professional pool athlete. They couldn’t help but feel anxious for Ye Fan, all turning their heads to look at him. Ye Fan, unfazed by Zhou Shijie’s aggressive early advantage, remained calm and composed. Zhou Shijie straightened up, put away his cue, and with a lift of his face, shot a challenging glance at Ye Fan. Ye Fan simply ignored him and walked over to the cue ball with the cue stick in hand. Upon reaching the cue ball and taking a closer look, he was relieved to find that it wasn’t actually pressed against Zhou Shijie’s ball, a gap of seven or eight millimeters spared him. If it had been touching Zhou Shijie’s ball, he would have moved Zhou Shijie’s ball first upon striking, and that would have been an immediate foul. Despite Zhou Shijie placing the cue ball in a tricky position, a challenge for the average expert, it couldn’t stump Ye Fan. Ye Fan had seven balls remaining. Even with the cue ball in a tricky position, he still had room to maneuver. Ye Fan observed the table’s layout for a while, then stood in front of the cue ball, held the cue stick vertically at ninety degrees, and struck from above the cue ball, hitting its edge. There was no sound, but the cue ball suddenly spun, rolling out in an arched trajectory, and hit the “3” ball about thirty centimeters away. Gently brushing it, the “3” ball slowly rolled toward a middle pocket not far from it. Bobo and the audience clenched their fists tightly, as the “3” ball seemed weak in its roll, as if it could stop at any moment. There was a sudden silence in the venue, some even holding their breath. Finally, teetering between stopping and continuing, the “3” ball rolled into the pocket. Clap, clap, clap… Bursts of thunderous applause erupted suddenly, and the audience let out a sigh of relief, loudly cheering. After pocketing a ball and successfully leaving the cue ball in a good, open position, the rest of the game seemed easier. Ye Fan leaned over with the cue stick, putting force into his right wrist and forearm, and struck firmly and steadily. Thump! Thump! Thump! One stroke, two balls; two balls went into the pockets. “Good!” the audience exclaimed excitedly, as applause thundered. Including the ball that Zhou Shijie had inadvertently helped him pot, Ye Fan had now pocketed four balls, trailing Zhou Shijie by only one ball. Ye Fan remained calm, walked to where the cue ball had stopped, and continued to shoot. Thump! Thump! A “5” ball was precisely knocked into a corner pocket. Three balls left, and he was now level with Zhou Shijie. Zhou Shijie’s smug expression darkened. Thump! Thump! Two clear and crisp sounds rang out in succession as Ye Fan pocketed another ball. Now only two balls behind, he led Zhou Shijie by one ball. Thump! Thump! Ye Fan pocketed yet another ball, down to just one. However, he was unable to finish the game in one go, as his last ball was nestled right up against Zhou Shijie’s ball, and also against the bottom rail. For even the most skilled pool players, this ball would not be possible to pot in one strike. Yet, he could not let Zhou Shijie take the next shot, because the pool table was now fairly open with many obstacles cleared. With Zhou Shijie’s skill level, he could likely clear the table in one go. For a moment, Bobo and all the audience members began to worry for Ye Fan.