Chapter 6

Chapter 6

No wonder the game is so generous, allowing participants to bring various tools and items. Whatever they bring seems to be of little use.

In the previous game Wei Dao participated in, the setting was a great famine: people were desperate for food and life-saving antibiotics, willing to do anything for them. Thus, they prepared plenty of dry rations, firearms, and even splurged on a medical pod before entering this game.

And the result?

This game's setting, the Qin Mansion's grand banquet, is overflowing with food and luxurious accommodations. The servants are attentive, treating them like honored guests. Almost everything they brought has been rendered useless.

Nevertheless, the old butler didn’t care about their feelings. Taking out a pen, he urged, "Guests, please make your selections quickly so that we don’t miss the auspicious time for the banquet."

Sharp-tongued Xia Duo Yi couldn't help but interject: "You mean the auspicious time to die?"

The old butler simply smiled. Seeing no one taking the initiative, he handed the pen to Xiao Si Yu who was in front of him.

With no choice, Xiao Si Yu reluctantly perused the menu. Ultimately, he chose "Human Head Rice" from the end of the list.

Lv Shuo, after seeing his choice, exclaimed in disbelief, "You're not Cantonese, are you?"

Xiao Si Yu: "?"

Lv Shuo hesitated before saying, "Handsome bro, I'm from Fujian."

Xiao Si Yu: "??"

Dai Yue, unable to bear Lv Shuo's naivety any longer, reminded him, "When you order at restaurants, many label a single serving as 'for one person'. Haven't you noticed?"

Lv Shuo looked skeptical, "But this place isn't ordinary. We can't apply common sense here."

Xie Yin Xue, who had observed the entire process, gave Xiao Si Yu an extra glance. With fourteen guests and so many dishes, the relationship between the two was uncertain. However, Xiao Si Yu had chosen rice as his ingredient during the day, and among all the dishes on the menu, "Human Head Rice" was the only one with the word "rice."

If Xiao Si Yu hadn't chosen it first, Xie Yin Xue would have.

The butler had mentioned that a dish couldn't be repeated. Now that Xiao Si Yu had chosen the rice dish, Xie Yin Xue had to opt for something else.

Without any clear indication of what each dish might be, everyone chose dishes based on intriguing names.

Once all fourteen guests made their selections, the old butler collected the menus.

Shortly after, servants began presenting dishes on trays covered with red cloths, serving in the order in which the dishes were chosen.

The first dish was Xiao Si Yu's "Human Head Rice". As it was presented, the old butler explained, "The first dish, chosen by Mr. Xiao, is 'Human Head Rice', prepared by Chef Ah Jiu. Please enjoy."

As he finished, Chef Ah Jiu, with his striking vertical pupils, stepped beside the old butler, standing still.

A servant then unveiled fourteen bowls of rice from beneath the red cloth, placing one in front of each guest.

Staring at the perfectly cooked, aromatic rice grains before him, Lv Shuo exclaimed in disbelief, "It's really just rice?"

This game doesn't play by the rules at all.

"Let's eat, let's eat! I'm starving." As soon as the rice arrived, Gao Qiao hastily scooped up a few mouthfuls, then remarked to the butler, "Why did the dinner you brought have only vegetables and no rice? I would've fainted from hunger without any rice!"

"My apologies for the oversight," the old butler bowed slightly to Gao Qiao. Raising his head, he smiled at the group and said, "Eat up, everyone. You know, man's made of iron and food is steel; if one skips a meal... they might just starve to death."

One wouldn't starve to death just by missing one meal. At most, they'd be really hungry.

Yet, no one here would question the words of the old butler, a guiding NPC in this game scenario, as one of the game's rules is that guiding NPCs never lie.

Everyone immediately began eating the rice served before them.

After Liu Bu Hua had cleaned his bowl and chopsticks, Xie Yin Xue tasted the rice — perfectly cooked, warm, and fragrant.

Chef Ah Jiu had indeed prepared the rice just as Xie Yin Xue had specified earlier. Even for Xie Yin Xue, who had sampled myriad gourmet foods, this dish was flawless.

Glancing up, he noticed Chef Ah Jiu was gazing at him with those striking, pale, vertical pupils.

Xie Yin Xue responded with a smile, but there was a detached, emotionless depth in his eyes, mirroring Ah Jiu's.

The old butler scanned the group and once he confirmed everyone had tasted the rice, he asked, "How did you find the 'Human Head Rice' prepared by Ah Jiu? Was there anything amiss with the dish?"

Qiu Yu Xing remarked, "Isn't rice always supposed to taste this way? Can it even taste any different?"

"It's delicious." Gao Qiao, seemingly still hungry, had already consumed half of her bowl and inquired, "Didn't we order other dishes too? Why haven't they been served?"

"Good dishes should be savored one by one," the old butler straightened up, and upon seeing everyone's agreement, continued, "Since you all seemed pleased with 'Human Head Rice', let's proceed with the next dish."

The next dish was Gao Qiao's choice, "Peerless Beauties".

Following the previous template, the old butler introduced, "The second dish is 'Peerless Beauties', chosen by Madam Gao and prepared by Chef Ah Liu. Please enjoy."

The process mirrored the last. As the butler introduced the dish, Chef Ah Liu stepped beside him. Honestly, with all the chefs wearing iron masks, apart from Ah Jiu with his distinctive eyes, everyone looked the same.

The dish "Peerless Beauties" turned out to be green peppers stir-fried with red peppers.

"This must be the red pepper I chose during the day. It's spicy!" Having eaten so many vegetables, Gao Qiao needed something with a kick. She took a bite of the dish and quickly followed it with a spoonful of rice.

Chen Yun, more observant, nudged her, whispering, "Auntie Gao, don't eat too much. We still have twelve dishes coming."

Catching her attentive gesture, Xia Duo Yi cast an approving glance at Chen Yun — she was indeed sharp.

As the old butler mentioned, everyone had to taste every dish. If they were too full from the earlier courses, they might struggle to eat the dishes that followed.

Once everyone had tasted the dish, the butler inquired again, "What did you think of Chef Ah Liu's 'Peerless Beauties'? Was there anything unsatisfactory?"

Being the guiding NPC, every word from the old butler must have had some deeper implications, especially phrases repeated twice. Catching on to this nuance, Wei Dao promptly inquired, "What if I found the dish not to my taste?"

"Then, Mr. Wei, you'd need to point out the dish's flaws," the old butler replied, his broken, dark teeth exposed in a chilling grin. "If our guests aren't satisfied, our master won't be pleased with us."

"However, Chef Ah Liu has a short temper. If he feels your complaints are nitpicking or unjustified, he might just get angry."

What would happen if the chef got angry?

Upon hearing this, everyone instinctively turned to look at Chef A'liu. Unlike the previously empty-handed Chef A'jiu, A'liu held a boning knife with blood and flesh stuck in its grooves. Without the housekeeper's explanation, everyone guessed that this might be a deadly trigger—complaining about the food, angering the chef, and subsequently being murdered.

"Mr. Wei Dao, by asking that, do you find A'liu's 'Unparalleled Twins' dish unsatisfactory?" The old butler inquired, staring intently at Wei Dao. Chef A'liu's cold gaze also fixated on him.

Wei Dao shook his head, replying, "No, there's nothing wrong with it."

"Is that so?" Chef A'liu retorted, his voice raspy and grating.

Xie Yin Xue, who had been silently observing until now, interjected, defending Wei Dao, "What if I'm right? The dish is poorly prepared."

"That would be A'liu's fault. He's incompetent if he can't satisfy our guests," the old butler said, hands clasped in front of him. "As long as your reasoning can convince all the chefs, I will, on behalf of the master, punish these incapable servants. The poorly prepared dish will also be withdrawn."

Remove the dish?

The group stumbled upon another clue, potentially a way to survive. However, providing a reason that convinces all the chefs might be challenging.

Plus, no one was yet aware of the dangers of the evening feast apart from angering the chefs. Thus, they decided to wait for the old butler to serve more dishes and take things step by step.

The next dish was ordered by Xie Yin Xue, named "Green Dragon Resting on Snow." Prepared by Chef Shi Si, the name sounded sophisticated and imposing. But when it was served, it turned out to be a plate of sugar with a cucumber on top — the very same half-ripe cucumber picked by Liu Bu Hua earlier that day.

[Part of previous translation]

[Part of previous translation]

After taking a bite, Lv Shuo's face turned greener than the cucumber's skin. With a contorted expression, he grumbled, "No wonder they added sugar."

How could anyone swallow this without sugar? It was the first time he realized a cucumber could taste so terrible.

To make matters worse, Chef Shi asked him, "Do you like it?"

Not wanting to anger the chef, Lv Shuo reluctantly complimented, "... It's truly delicious."

Chef Shi responded, "Since you all seem to enjoy it, I'll prepare the same dish for you during tomorrow's lunch."

Everyone: "..."

After Xie Yinxue's dish, Wei Dao ordered "Little Black's Wedding," which turned out to be two peeled century eggs. Chen Yun ordered "Bosnian War," a peculiar mix of spinach stir-fried with black fungus. The spinach, chosen by Dai Yue based on Xie Yinxue's advice, was similar to Liu Buhua's selection: all the underdeveloped ones. The taste was oddly unique. By the time everyone tried these dishes, the "Peerless Beauties" seemed to be the most palatable. As for Liu Buhua, he ordered "Mother and Son Reunion," which was just plain water boiled yellow beans with bean sprouts... These dishes, like their names, were bizarre.

Moreover, they were all vegetarian.

After more than half of the feast, there was still no sign of any meat.

Xiao Siyu openly remarked, "I feel like I could spit out a bird from how bland everything tastes."

The old housekeeper continued to introduce the dishes, ignoring his comment. "The ninth dish, ordered by Miss Chu, is 'Snow Mountain Flying Fox,' prepared by Chef Ah Er. Please enjoy."

The name was as eccentric as the others. Nobody was particularly interested until the dish was brought forth. Upon seeing it, everyone's eyes widened in surprise: they had finally seen meat.

The dish titled "Snow Mountain Flying Fox" was a mound of crispy shrimp chips. The shrimp skins were snow-white, piled up like a small mountain. At the peak of this "snow mountain" lay several slices of a red substance, which at first glance appeared to be thinly sliced meat.

However, upon closer examination, the crowd realized it wasn't meat but cooked red shrimp skins.

Xiao Si Yu picked up a slice of red shrimp skin, his expression complex, "Does shrimp skin... count as meat?"

Dai Yue replied, "Of course it does."

"And shrimp chips are typically made with shrimp juice and starch, so they should count as meat, right?" Gao Qiao picked up a shrimp chip, chewing it thoughtfully before commenting, "It has a shrimp flavor; they've really added shrimp juice."

The crisp sound of Gao Qiao munching on the shrimp chip echoed in everyone's ears. They finally saw the much-anticipated meat dish. However, for some reason, when the meat dish finally appeared, it gave everyone an inexplicable chill.

The dish's ingredients were starch and shrimp. Starch can be derived from various sources like potatoes, corn, and green beans, all of which are easily available and present in the garden. Yet when they were selecting ingredients from the garden earlier, no one had chosen any that could be turned into starch, let alone this mysteriously appearing shrimp.

The old butler still smiled, with Chef A-Er standing next to him. These chefs always had sinister, intimidating eyes, laden with a murderous aura. But in this moment, the crowd saw genuine amusement in his eyes.

—He was laughing.

"A perfect banquet has both meat and vegetarian dishes; neither can be omitted," the old butler and Chef A-Er announced, looking down at the guests seated around the round table and urging them to eat.

"This is tonight's meat dish; please, have a taste."

Author's Note:

Xie Lao: [Giving a meaningful look] You interpret it.

NPC: You appreciate me.

Xie Lao: Could that be possible?

NPC: Fool, eyes don’t lie.

Xie Lao: ?