"People still play the claw machines at this place?" a girl coming out of the movie theater laughed.

"These machines are such a rip-off. It’s two yuan a try, and it takes more than ten tries to get one. I could just buy one directly for that price," her friend complained.

They noticed that each person in the group was holding a large handful of game coins.

"I bet they’ll only get three or four," one of the girls said with a chuckle. She had been burned before, spending dozens of yuan just to get one small plushie.

It was true. Once you fell for the sunk cost fallacy, all you could think about was getting that plushie out.

In reality, it was best to cut your losses, but the vendor’s tactics were just that shameless.

Xue Rui sighed, feeding coin after coin into the machine, but he couldn’t get a single one out. Most of the time, the claw came up empty.

"Hey kid, you should stop playing," an onlooker advised.

Xue Rui’s skills were just too terrible. Wasn’t this just throwing money away?

Meanwhile, Chen Tingting was staring intently at the claw inside the machine.

Adjust, aim, drop the claw, the plushie falls...

After repeating this several times, she would finally get one on the pity drop...

It all seemed just as dull and tedious.

But because Chen Tingting had made so many attempts, she had managed to grab a few plushies.

Adding the three plushies Lin Ruoxi had given her earlier, Chen Tingting now had six of them at her feet.

"Wow, this lady is amazing!" someone said in surprise.

They often came to this theater to watch movies but had never seen anyone win so many plushies.

"Hmph, hmph!" The corners of Chen Tingting’s mouth turned up, a small sense of vanity welling up inside her.

She was in a great mood now.

"How come you haven’t gotten a single one?" Chen Tingting asked.

"My skills aren’t as good as yours," Xue Rui said, trying to suppress a smile.

’If I can’t catch any, doesn’t that just make you look better?’

"Hee hee," Chen Tingting giggled. She was better than Xue Rui.

Xue Rui turned to look over at Lin Ruoxi. She had gotten a large piece of cardboard from somewhere, and it was covered with a huge pile of plushies—there had to be sixty or seventy of them...

Xue Rui’s eye twitched. ’Are you trying to stock up for a store or something?’

’Who plays like this?’

The girls nearby only glanced at Lin Ruoxi briefly. They subconsciously assumed she was an employee in charge of the claw machines, probably restocking them.

After all, the row of claw machines looked particularly empty today.

But they soon realized something was wrong. A large crowd was gathered around Lin Ruoxi, watching her.

"Holy shit, that’s insane! You can do that?" a boy shouted.

"I’ve never seen anything like this in my life. Using the claw’s drop and rise to push the plushies?" someone muttered.

Xue Rui also watched for a while. He noticed Lin Ruoxi was constantly winning, and her pile of coins was almost gone.

In an instant, all the people who had been watching Xue Rui and Chen Tingting rushed over to Lin Ruoxi’s side.

Chen Tingting pouted. Lin Ruoxi was just too good; she couldn’t compete...

Just then, a movie let out. Many people were drawn by the small mountain of plushies piled up next to Lin Ruoxi and stopped to watch.

Lin Ruoxi was unfazed, continuing to win plushies in her own way.

She had almost collected every type of plushie here, with just a few left to go.

Xue Rui squeezed through the crowd to get a better look. Lin Ruoxi’s long, slender fingers gently nudged the joystick, and she unhurriedly pressed the button to drop the claw...

The claw was positioned in the middle of two plushies, not grabbing either one.

A newcomer in the crowd couldn’t help but sigh, "What a shame."

"A shame? Just you watch," someone else said with a smile.

Two seconds later, as the claw lifted, the rubber ring at its tip snagged the tag strings of both plushies, pulling them both down into the prize chute.

"Holy crap! You can play like that?" someone else exclaimed.

Everyone knows that the damn claw is usually just for show—it’s so slippery it can’t grab anything. But the vertical force never changes, and Lin Ruoxi used that to her advantage by hooking the plushies’ tag strings...

Even Xue Rui felt his mouth twitch as he watched. ’The little rascal has unlocked a new technique.’

"Miss, what are you going to do with so many plushies?" someone asked.

Before Lin Ruoxi could answer, someone else chimed in, "I’ve been watching for a while. She gets at least two at a time. Her cost basis is less than one yuan each. She could make a profit selling them at a street stall."

"Hahaha."

This comment sent the surrounding crowd into a fit of laughter.

It was true. No matter how you looked at it, Lin Ruoxi’s claw machine playing was clearly generating a positive return.

Among the onlookers was a movie theater employee.

The young woman from the theater slowly backed out of the crowd. Once she was a distance away, she pressed the button on her walkie-talkie. "Manager Jiang, you need to come over to the claw machines. Someone’s clearing them out."

"Isn’t that a good thing? Just get someone to restock them," a calm voice replied from the walkie-talkie.

"She only spent a few dozen yuan. Come or don’t, I don’t care."

"Is the machine broken? I’m on my way," a surprised voice came back through the walkie-talkie.

The girl was speechless. The machine wasn’t the problem; the young woman’s skill was just too incredible.

It wasn’t her problem that the girl was so good at winning. It’s not like she was losing any money. Her only job was to inform the manager.

...

"Miss, I’ll give you five yuan if you help me win one," someone offered.

"I’ll give you a hundred! Miss, will you teach me?" a boy asked, rubbing his hands together eagerly.

Xue Rui’s brow twitched. ’Are you really just trying to learn the technique?’

He walked up to Lin Ruoxi and said with a smile, "Having fun?"

When Lin Ruoxi saw Xue Rui arrive, the corners of her eyes lifted slightly. "Yes, it’s fun."

She scooped up a huge armful of plushies from the cardboard. "These are all for you."

The girl’s eyes were like a pool of autumn water. It was as if she was confessing her love with a bouquet of plushies, her gaze filled with affection.

How could the people around them not understand what was happening?

Someone sighed and took a small step back.

Xue Rui glanced over coolly. It was a common understanding among decent guys: when you see a girl who clearly has a boyfriend, you subconsciously keep your distance.

Chen Tingting pouted. She was also holding a few plushies, but they seemed so few compared to Lin Ruoxi’s haul...

No one was paying any attention to her now.

"Sorry, sorry, excuse me."

A man in a sharp suit pushed through the crowd with an apologetic smile, accompanied by a man in a work uniform.

When the man in the work uniform saw the massive pile of plushies, he immediately understood something was up and began to check if there was a problem with the claw machines’ programming.

Meanwhile, the man in the suit said to Lin Ruoxi, "Excuse me, I’m the manager here. It seems we’re having some issues with our claw machines. How about I refund your money, and you can pick a few more of your favorites to take with you?"

Lin Ruoxi looked at him blankly. ’But I won them myself.’

She hugged the plushies and hid behind Xue Rui, peeking out at the man.

Xue Rui smiled. ’Lin Ruoxi’s ridiculous skills finally attracted the staff’s attention.’

He had actually anticipated this.

He was also quite satisfied with the man’s attitude. After all, anyone who could become a manager in the service industry knew how to talk to people.

However, before Xue Rui could speak, the onlookers grew dissatisfied. "You should have fixed these crappy machines ages ago! You can’t even win one after seven or eight tries."

"This girl won them fair and square with her own skill. Why should she have to give them back?" someone said unhappily.

"Yeah, seriously! Are you trying to shoo away a beggar by giving her a few extras?" someone else jeered.

...

Manager Jiang wore a wry smile. ’What a mess...’

He turned to the technician checking the machine. "Where’s the malfunction?"

The technician looked completely baffled. "There’s no malfunction. The program is running normally."

"Miss, show him another one!" someone in the crowd shouted.

Xue Rui patted Lin Ruoxi’s head and handed her two coins. "Go on."

Before the astonished eyes of Manager Jiang and the technician, Lin Ruoxi once again hooked two plushies.

"HISS..." The technician sucked in a sharp breath. ’You can do that?’

’How am I supposed to fix this?’

Manager Jiang understood at once. He had run into an expert today. This kind of problem had to be solved by dealing with the person, not the machine.

He glanced at Lin Ruoxi and realized that she seemed to only listen to Xue Rui.

He smiled and extended his hand. "My surname is Jiang, and I’m the manager of this movie theater. May I ask for your name, sir?"

Xue Rui shook his hand with a smile. "No need to be so formal. The name’s Xue."

"Shall we go inside for a cup of tea and a chat?" Manager Jiang asked with a smile.

Xue Rui gestured downwards, signaling for Lin Ruoxi to put the plushies down.

The girl was a little reluctant, but after seeing Xue Rui’s signal, she put the items down and followed obediently behind him.

"Ah, well, show’s over. Let’s go, let’s go." The crowd shook their heads and dispersed. They could all guess that some kind of deal was about to be made.

Manager Jiang ordered a drink for each of the three, threw in several large buckets of American-style popcorn, and not only refunded the money Xue Rui had exchanged for coins but also gave them a movie theater membership card, which he said was good for ten free movies...

"Ladies, next time you come for a movie, please don’t play the claw machines," Manager Jiang said as he gave both Lin Ruoxi and Chen Tingting a large plush toy.

"He means don’t come back to these machines," Xue Rui said, gently pinching Lin Ruoxi’s cheek with a smile.

"Mm, then I won’t play anymore," Lin Ruoxi said obediently.

"Take care, you all," Manager Jiang said, waving with a smile.

After they left, he rubbed his face. It was the first time he’d ever encountered something like this.

But it didn’t matter. It was the boss’s money he was spending, anyway.

Chen Tingting hugged the giant teddy bear, its feet almost dragging on the ground. She was still in a bit of a daze.

’How did I get such a huge plushie without spending a single penny?’

Lin Ruoxi also had a dazed look on her face. "Why did he give me things?"

One shouldn’t accept rewards for no reason. She felt she hadn’t done anything, yet she had received so much.

It made her feel strange, as if something was wrong, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

Xue Rui laughed. "It’s protection money."

He hadn’t expected the little rascal to have this kind of talent—she had managed to get a ton of stuff from the movie theater for free.

"Protection money?" Lin Ruoxi’s expression faltered. As far as she knew, only bad guys collected protection money.

The girl’s face was filled with panic. She thought she had done something bad.

"Of course it’s protection money. He’s afraid you’ll keep coming back to fleece them," Xue Rui said.

"Mm, should we give it back?" Lin Ruoxi asked in a small voice.

"No," Xue Rui said.

Why on earth would they return it?

He thought for a moment, then warned her with a serious expression, "Just don’t play claw machines in the future."

This time, because they were in a movie theater inside a large shopping mall—a large-scale establishment run by a professional team—Lin Ruoxi had received such polite treatment.

If it had been a small shop where the owner was present, the girl might have been given a hard time, since the owner’s personal profits would be directly affected.

"Mm, I’m scared to play now," Lin Ruoxi said softly.

Xue Rui frowned. ’Why is she scared to play?’

’Was she scared just now? No, I don’t think so?’

’Could it be that she’s figured out the potential consequences?’

Chen Tingting clutched her teddy bear, her stomach puffed out as she went down the escalator, trying to keep the plushie from getting caught in the gaps, which made her look all the more mischievous and cute.

Xue Rui smiled. "Your dad called me just now. He said he’s waiting at the entrance to pick you up."

In truth, he thought that since Chen Tingting had gotten a free plushie and was in a good mood, she wouldn’t be going home empty-handed. He figured this was a good opportunity to have Chen Shen pick her up, which would make him look like a responsible babysitter, wouldn’t it?

Chen Tingting pouted, feeling like she had been overshadowed by Lin Ruoxi all day...

When she saw the light of the mall entrance, she let out a sudden sigh of relief.

Chen Shen was already waiting at the entrance. Seeing the three of them approaching, laden with a huge pile of things, he stepped forward to lift the heavy, transparent door curtain for them.

When Lin Ruoxi saw the police officer walking toward her, her face instantly went pale. Her small hand gripped Xue Rui’s arm, and the bucket of popcorn in her hand trembled.

Xue Rui was slightly surprised. ’Why is she so jumpy all of a sudden?’

Lin Ruoxi’s voice trembled slightly. "Police..."