Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Midnight arrived unannounced.

The sky was devoid of stars and moon, as if signaling to everyone that it was a night of grave foreboding.

Xie Yin Xue was the first to take a seat at the banquet table. Following closely behind was Liu Buhua. Only after they settled did the others gradually join.

Given the circumstances, nearly everyone present harbored a psychological aversion to the table—except for Xie Yin Xue and Liu Buhua. The traumatic death of Qiu Yuxing the night before still haunted them. They could almost visualize fragments of his shattered brain scattered on the table and chairs.

Just the thought made many feel queasy, even before the banquet began.

Yet, Xie Yin Xue, resting his chin on his hand, appeared completely composed. Seeing that everyone had arrived, he impatiently inquired of the elderly butler, "Where's tonight's menu?"

"Please wait a moment. I will present it shortly," the old butler replied with a courteous smile, taking a blood-red menu from a young attendant and distributing it to the guests.

Ji Tao, upon touching the menu, felt as if he were grasping a damp, cold tissue, remarking subconsciously, "Why is the menu sticky?"

"…Is it blood?" Wei Qiuyu, observing her fingers stained red after pinching the menu, asked shakily.

Chen Yun brought the menu close to her nose and sniffed, saying with a shiver, "It does seem like blood."

With that comment, nearly everyone's attention shifted to the peculiar nature of the menu itself, with the exception of Xie Yin Xue.

He was holding the menu, reading intently with an emotionless expression:

[Today's Dishes—

"A Dish Ah Jiu Made Especially for His Favorite, Xie Yin Xue"

"This is the Genuine Dish Ah Jiu Made for Xie Yin Xue"

"Ah Jiu and Mr. Xie's Late-Night Delight"

"All the Others Are Wrong; This is the True Dish Ah Jiu Made for Xie Yin Xue"]

……】

Xie Yin Xue: "..."

Is this some sort of joke?

He had only criticized a few chefs; does the game really need to play him like this?

Meanwhile, the other participants also noticed the unusual emphasis on tonight's menu: "Why are there so many mentions of Xie Yin Xue's name?"

As Ji Tao finished speaking, everyone's gaze shifted from the menu to Xie Yin Xue's face. After all, out of more than thirty dishes, nearly half bore Xie Yin Xue's name.

Everyone looked at him in silence.

Xie Yinxue smiled gently, "Do I have a menu written on my face?"

"No," Lu Shuo replied honestly, "but your name is on the menu."

“……”

"You've got guts," Xiao Siyu quickly tugged at Lu Shuo's sleeve, wanting to ask if he genuinely didn't understand or was pretending. Xie Yinxue's words clearly indicated they should focus on the menu and avoid distractions.

"Stop yelling, I'll order now," Lu Shuo pleaded, hands on his head. He then quickly marked the dishes he wanted on the menu.

"'Azure Dragon Crossing the River'?" Gao Qiao leaned in to glance, then wondered, "Isn't the dragon an animal? Didn't we agree not to order any meat dishes?"

"This dish is fine. The 'dragon' here is symbolic, and no animal has green meat," Lu Shuo openly explained to Gao Qiao. "If they do serve green meat... that would be unappetizing, and we could definitely send it back."

Green meat is an abomination; Lu Shuo recalled a viral internet post.

Hilarious.

The post was about a blogger who tried cooking chicken wings with Sprite, ending up with green wings. Everyone who saw it exclaimed it was a culinary disaster.

Therefore, if "Azure Dragon Crossing the River" is vegetarian, everyone is safe. If it contains meat, Lu Shuo has an out.

Having heard the explanation, Gao Qiao had an aha moment. She mentally noted this trick, though lamented that no other dish names were as clever. She could only pick dishes that seemed less likely to have meat.

Liu Buhua, holding the menu, suddenly lit up, "This dish name is interesting, I'll have this."

Xiao Siyu and Lu Shuo leaned in immediately, curious about Liu Buhua's choice. However, upon seeing it, both appeared disappointed. Lu Shuo remarked, "This name isn't as captivating as yesterday's."

Liu Buhua chose "Fiery Kiss," a far cry from the intriguing "Naked Beauty" from the night before.

Yet, the always unyielding Liu Buhua never heeded others' advice, "It doesn't matter, I'm just picking anything."

"Aren't you afraid of ending up with a meat dish?" Wei Dao finally couldn't hold back his question.

"Why should I be?" Liu Buhua said nonchalantly, handing the menu to the attendant, "My godfather is here. He'll take care of it."

Ji Tao also asked, "Did you two enter the game together?"

Liu Buhua nodded truthfully, "Yes, we did."

His candid admission left Wei Dao and Ji Tao momentarily at a loss for words.

They had encountered the Ferryman NPC in previous game instances, but the Ferryman's identity was always elusive, making it challenging to identify.

While there were NPCs as audacious as Xie Yin Xue, they typically weren't Ferrymen but rather malevolent bosses masquerading as one. Players deceived into trading with these NPCs didn't have to wait for the next level to face escalating challenges; they would perish right in the current one.

Most importantly, beside Xie Yin Xue was Liu Bu Hua. They appeared to be in cahoots, but there was only one ferryman NPC. This ambiguity was a major reason they hesitated to confirm Xie Yin Xue's identity.

Xie Yin Xue, now at the center of public opinion, is quite distressed.

For the first time, he felt his name to be bothersome. But to ask him to choose dishes with his name was out of the question.

Xie Yin Xue picked up a pen and selected a dish that seemed to resonate with his mood, titled "The Feeling of Heartache."

Granted, the current situation wasn’t heart-wrenching for Xie Yin Xue, but he was genuinely irked, to the point of developing a stifled cough.

His sporadic, short breaths sounded like suppressed coughs to others, making everyone anxious. They worried whether the dishes they had chosen were safe.

Yan Zhi was the most concerned.

She was terrified of the bloodstained menu. From the moment she held it, she felt as if unseen ghostly hands gripped her, leaving her panicky and restless. Only when most had chosen did she realize her options were limited.

The menu tonight was indeed strange—

There were 34 dishes in total. Apart from 15 that related to Xie Yin Xue's name, some looked ordinary: "Braised Crucian Carp," "Chili Fried Meat," "Braised Beef"...

In the real world, these names are quite mundane, but here they were taboo. Choosing these meat dishes was akin to committing suicide.

Dishes with Xie Yin Xue's name weren’t safe either. Earlier in the day, he had offended three chefs. Presumably, Ah Er, Ah Qi, and Ah Jiu harbored grudges. How were these dishes different from bait meant to trap fish?

With so many considerations, Yan Zhi couldn't identify a safe dish.

Amidst her concerns, the conversation between Chen Yun and Wei Qiu Yu further distracted her.

"Chen Yun, which dish do you recommend I choose?"

"This one." Chen Yun pointed to a dish for Wei Qiu Yu. "Of course, this is just my suggestion. It's up to you."

Author's note:

NPC: Are you satisfied with what you see? This is the menu I prepared for you.

Xie Lao: Smile.jpg

NPC: I knew you’d like it from your smile.

Xie Lao: ?