Chapter 429: Qi Xia's Suddenness

“Oh…?” Qi Xia slowly raised the corner of his mouth. “If that’s your answer, then your collar… probably needs to be replaced.”

Di Shu glared at him again with those pure black eyes, his whiskers twitching on his face.

“I saw it,” Qi Xia said. “I saw the ‘path’ to victory in this game.”

Di Shu was left speechless by Qi Xia’s few words.

“What difference does it make if you saw it…?”

“On the contrary, I’d like to ask you—what’s your purpose in all this?” Qi Xia reached out and fiddled with Di Shu’s collar, continuing in a low voice, “Is someone threatening you? Do you have to wear this collar yourself just to get fresh fruit as a bargaining chip?”

“I… I don’t understand.” Di Shu swallowed slightly and stepped back two paces. “Just wait here. The game will start in ten minutes. I’ll begin my actions early and initiate the first night.”

He turned away dejectedly, closed the door on everyone, and cast a strange glance at Qi Xia before leaving.

Once the door was fully shut, Qi Xia walked over to a chair and sat down without a word, already having a plan in mind.

None of the “Sheng Xiao” would directly agree to such a request, but their expressions could reveal a lot of information.

The four people beside him seemed puzzled by his composure.

“Hey, leader,” Luo Shiyi called out. “It’s your turn to step up.”

“Step up?” Qi Xia raised an eyebrow in response. “Does a simple game like this really need that? Just adapt as you go along, everyone.”

“Adapt as we go along…?” Luo Shiyi felt a bit annoyed after hearing that. “If we’re all just adapting on our own, what’s the point of you leading us?”

“Qian Wu said we should get to know each other better, and this is a great opportunity, isn’t it?” Qi Xia looked up and asked. “The game’s about to start, so why not tell me what strategy you all plan to use?”

After hearing that, Qiu Shiliu reached out and pulled Luo Shiyi. “Damn, he’s just trying to freeload off our ideas. Ignore him—we’ll discuss it ourselves!”

“Hehe! Include me, include me!” Wang Ba wriggled his body over to Qiu Shiliu’s side, but Qiu Shiliu impatiently dodged away.

They called it a “discussion,” but the four of them just stood there staring at each other, waiting for someone to speak first.

“How about Liu Jie gives us an idea…” Luo Shiyi said. “You’re the eldest here, so even if you’re wrong… we’ll accept it, damn it.”

“Tsk, what do you mean by that?!” Zhou Liu immediately got fired up. “I haven’t even said a word yet—how do you know it’s wrong?”

“Sigh!” Luo Shiyi shook his head. “That’s not what I meant. It’s just that we haven’t participated in a ‘game’ for many years, let alone a ‘Di Ji’ one. We’ve only heard rumors about what Di Ji is like now, so it’s not surprising if we lose.”

“Tsk!! Why assume we’ll lose?!” Zhou Liu swung the iron rod in her hand and pointed at Wang Ba. “Haven’t we got this dead Wang Ba with us?”

“Huh?!” Wang Ba slowly opened his eyes, but his eyes were so small that even when he tried, they were barely visible. “What does this have to do with me? So what if I’m here?”

“Tsk, you’re the smart one!” Zhou Liu turned and shouted at him. “Aren’t you the educated one? Come on, think of a strategy!”

Luo Shiyi nodded in agreement. “Yeah! Dead Wang Ba, it’s your time to shine!”

Wang Ba looked at Luo Shiyi. “Why are you calling me dead Wang Ba? Shouldn’t you call me ‘Ba Ge’?”

“I just can’t say it.” Luo Shiyi shook his head. “Back in the day, someone like you would’ve gotten beaten to death by me.”

Wang Ba stroked his chin and said, “Sigh, such disrespect. But I’m not opposed to giving ideas… If my plan works out, I want Liu Jie to kiss me.”

He then pointed a chubby finger at his cheek. “Right here will do.”

Zhou Liu smirked coldly. “Tsk, come here then.”

“Now? You’re going to kiss me now?!”

“Tsk, I’ll put a hole in your face so water spills out every time you drink.”

Wang Ba exaggerated his fear. “Liu Jie! I’m so cute—how could you hit me?!”

“I’ve hit you plenty of times before, haven’t I?!” Zhou Liu grabbed her stick and started to move forward. “Tsk, just knowing I’m on a team with you makes me inexplicably angry.”

“Wait, wait, wait!” Wang Ba seemed genuinely backing down. “I have a plan, I really do.”

Qiu Shiliu, with a furrowed brow, said, “Then spit it out! Liu Jie’s getting mad…”

“Hehe, it’s simple. In each round, we only send out one ‘Shu’ to find food, and every time, bring back three pieces. That way, it’s very safe.”

Zhou Liu paused slightly. “That doesn’t sound right… We have five people, and we’re only sending one out each time?”

“Yes, Liu Jie.” Wang Ba nodded. “If all five enter different rooms, the chance of losing a teammate is 100 percent. But if we only send one at a time, the failure rate is one in five, or 20 percent.”

Qi Xia shook his head helplessly but stayed silent.

“But that’s not accurate either,” Zhou Liu said. “There’s also the ‘rat trap’ to consider… So the risk of that person getting caught is at least two in five.”

“Two in five is only 40 percent! And even if they get caught, it’s not a big problem.” Wang Ba shook his head. “This is the most cautious and safe method. If on the second day we see our teammate hasn’t returned, we’ll know they’ve been caught. Then, we still only send out one ‘Shu’ to ‘search,’ and add another to ‘rescue.’ That way, we can always get our teammates back.”

The group thought Wang Ba’s plan seemed feasible, but Zhou Liu still felt there was a slight flaw.

After thinking for a moment without figuring it out, she turned to Qi Xia. “Hey, what’s your take on this?”

Qi Xia nodded. “Before I share my thoughts, I want to confirm something—is this man called Wang Ba the smartest among you?”

“What nonsense are you spouting?” Qiu Shiliu said. “Do we look like a bunch of scholars?”

“Good, that’s good.” Qi Xia nodded and looked at Wang Ba. “I just don’t quite get it—are you planning to lead your colleagues to their deaths with such a clumsy strategy?”

“To their deaths…?” Wang Ba frowned. “What are you talking about? How could I let someone as beautiful as Liu Jie die?”

“What a pity… Liu Jie trusts you so much and keeps insisting on your plan…” Qi Xia sighed helplessly. “But you start off by showing your stupidity. Given your build, you’re not good at fighting, and now I see you’re not smart either… I might be overstepping, but I really want to ask—what’s the point of you staying with the ‘Mao’?”

“You!!” Wang Ba was truly angry this time. He pointed a chubby finger at Qi Xia and shouted, “Are you trying to stir up trouble here?!”