When Jiang Xiao returned to the living room, the others seemed to have finished their discussion as well. Seeing him approach, Ji Yanli said, “CEO Lu says you two are rooming together?”
“…Yes,” Jiang Xiao nodded hesitantly. Then he heard Ji Yanli say, “In that case, you two will take the King Bed Room. The other rooms have already been fully arranged…”
“What?” Jiang Xiao quickly grasped the key point. “Isn’t there still a Double Room?”
“There was before you and CEO Lu went out.” Ji Yanli’s tone carried a hint of regret. “But afterwards, Si Lin and Si Mingyu decided on the Double Room. So now only the King Bed Room is left. How about it, do you want to talk to them again?”
Jiang Xiao: “…”
Jiang Xiao: “No need. Let’s just go with this.”
“Then this decision stands for now.” Ji Yanli said to He Chen, “Now only a Single Room is left. You have no choice.”
He Chen seemed somewhat surprised. After all, upon entering the house, Lu Moxing had just tossed out a sentence, “Jiang Xiao is rooming with me,” and then left the living room. His tone hadn’t sounded very willing either. He looked at Jiang Xiao. “Is it really okay?”
His voice held a faint trace of worry.
Sensing the caring undertone in He Chen’s words, Jiang Xiao smiled. “CEO Lu is all harsh words but a soft heart. Don’t worry.”
“You seem to really like him.” He Chen pushed up his glasses on his nose bridge again. His frame seemed too large, always sliding down.
“New glasses?” Ji Yanli glanced at him. “You should get a smaller frame.”
He Chen smiled gently. “Just got them recently. Still not used to them.”
Ji Yanli swept his gaze around but didn’t see the Si brothers. Courteously, he said, “Excuse me for a moment. You two continue chatting.”
After Ji Yanli left, only He Chen and Jiang Xiao remained in the room.
Jiang Xiao smiled. “You get the Single Room. Congratulations.”
“I didn’t expect you and Lu Moxing would…” He Chen murmured, still seeming a bit in disbelief. “Do you like him?”
“Mm, a little.” Jiang Xiao thought for a moment, then added, “But now that I think about it, I kind of regret it.” Saying this, he sized He Chen up seriously and joked, “Do you think liking someone means wanting to room with them? Was your reason for choosing me the same?”
He Chen didn’t speak, but his eyes darted away, and his lips pressed together.
Eh, was he shy?
Every single guest present carried a certain degree of aggressiveness. This wasn’t strange, after all, considering the situation would inevitably trespass into private territory.
Even Si Mingyu, the youngest, occasionally revealed a slightly forceful aura in his speech, though he would quickly hide it away.
But He Chen was truly the exception among them.
Jiang Xiao felt absolutely no sense of danger from him. Even getting close felt very safe, because he knew the other wouldn’t do anything to him.
Jiang Xiao rested his chin on one hand, gazing thoughtfully at He Chen. He Chen seemed unable to withstand such intense scrutiny and turned his head to look out the window.
“So did CEO Lu agree to room with you because he likes you?”
“Probably not.” Jiang Xiao said frankly. “CEO Lu said he doesn’t like men. He just couldn’t stand me pestering him and reluctantly accepted.”
Hearing this, He Chen seemed to relax a little. He added, “Can I cook with you next time? Your cooking is delicious.”
“Of course.” Jiang Xiao readily agreed.
Just then, several people entered. Before seeing their silhouettes, one could already hear Si Mingyu’s furious voice:
“I want to change rooms! I want to room with Brother Jiang!”
In the blink of an eye, Si Mingyu had rushed inside, a look of undisguised gloom on his face. He looked like he was about to go on a rampage. “Where’s Lu Moxing? Tell him to come out!”
“Don’t yell.” Si Lin coldly intercepted Si Mingyu, preventing him from going to find trouble with Lu Moxing. “You chose your room first. It has nothing to do with CEO Lu.”
“But that was because I thought Brother Jiang was going to stay in a Single Room, so I…” The flames of anger in Si Mingyu’s eyes died the moment he saw Jiang Xiao, replaced by an even denser grievance. “Brother, why did you agree to room with that old fossil Lu Moxing? Aren’t you afraid he’ll take advantage of you? I’m so much better than him!”
Jiang Xiao felt a headache coming on.
Si Mingyu was like a piece of sticky candy—once he attached himself to someone, it was hard to pull him off. But then again, the tone of his voice was like a puppy’s, which made it hard to speak harshly.
“Who rooms with whom really isn’t that important. Besides sleeping time, we’ll be in other places the rest of the time.” Jiang Xiao coaxed patiently. “Don’t worry. CEO Lu is actually a very upright person. He won’t do anything to me.”
“Hmph.” Si Mingyu let out a cold laugh, clearly disdainful of Lu Moxing’s “uprightness.” He turned to Ji Yanli. “I demand that roommates rotate daily.”
Ji Yanli spread his hands helplessly. “Wouldn’t changing every day be too troublesome?”
Si Mingyu: “Then every two days!”
Si Lin: “This is not a place for you to make a scene.”
Seeing these several people about to argue, He Chen initially wanted to mediate but couldn’t find any opening to interject. Just as he felt helpless, he suddenly noticed a slip of paper had appeared on the table.
He Chen picked it up and looked at it, then suddenly said:
“Regarding the rules for changing rooms, the Production Team has already mandatorily set them.”
[Room Change Rules
1. On the first day, everyone arranges rooms among themselves.
2. Starting the second day, roommates change daily. The specific rules follow the CP Voting Ranking. If there are duplicates, it continues down the list.
3. The CP Voting Ranking is updated every night at 8 PM in the Media Room, sorted by popularity. Please pay attention promptly.
4. The two lowest-ranked individuals gain the exclusive right to a Single Room.]
“What’s a CP Voting Ranking?” He Chen asked doubtfully. Turning his head, he saw Jiang Xiao seemed to be pondering something. He Chen gently nudged him, and Jiang Xiao jerked awake.
“What’s the matter?”
He Chen raised the paper in his hand.
Jiang Xiao: “Oh, sorry. I was spacing out just now.” He took the paper and looked it over carefully.
Yet he was still somewhat distracted.
Just moments ago, a patch of blood red had suddenly flashed before Jiang Xiao’s eyes, making him think the Production Team had come up with some new gimmick. But it wasn’t.
Before him was an empty progress bar. The bloody liquid had crawled all the way to the middle of the bar.
【Death Probability ↑】
Clearly, this represented that Jiang Xiao’s Death Probability had risen to 50%.
Friendly Reminder:
Someone seems to have discovered your little secret. Remember to hide it well, or…
Wait for a fatal accident to arrive.
Jiang Xiao had never seen this thing before. Surprised and suspicious, he asked, “System, what is this?”
The System said, “You can consider it a death forecast. This represents your probability of becoming this instance’s victim. The higher the probability, the easier it is for you to die.”
Jiang Xiao: “.”
Jiang Xiao: “But why is it directly at half? Shouldn’t it start from zero?”
System: “Because you received two votes in the initial voting, so the starting point for Death Probability is 30%.”
Why didn’t you tell me such an important thing beforehand! Jiang Xiao felt the deep malice emanating from the System.
Something wasn’t right.
Even if it started at 30%, how could it have become 50% so quickly? Had someone truly discovered he was a straight man?
Jiang Xiao racked his brains but couldn’t think of anywhere he had slipped up.
System: “Hatred can also be converted into Death Probability. If others’ Hatred Value toward you is completely full, you could even have a Death Probability of 200% or 300%.”
Jiang Xiao: “…What happens then?”
System: “You will be killed n times by different people using different methods.”
Jiang Xiao spoke with difficulty: “Thank you for telling me this cruel fact.”
“Then, will someone die tonight?” Jiang Xiao asked again.
System: “The instance plot generates different possibilities based on player actions. It could be tonight, or it could be tomorrow night. It’s like Schrödinger’s cat. No one knows exactly when.”
Jiang Xiao’s thoughts returned to reality. He read through that thin sheet of paper. The others were clearly also very interested. Si Mingyu reacted quickly: “That means, if there are more people supporting Brother Jiang and me, tomorrow I can room with Brother Jiang!”
“Since there’s a rule, there’s no need to fret anymore,” Ji Yanli said. “Everyone take your luggage back to your rooms first. Change your clothes while you’re at it.”
Everyone took their own suitcases and left. Jiang Xiao also wheeled his luggage to the room assigned to him.
The bedroom wallpaper was light blue. The crystal lamp at the bedside was very beautiful; when turned on, it cast small snowflake projections. It had a small Rooftop, and looking down, one could see the swimming pool below and the distant Cherry Blossom Forest.
The most eye-catching thing in the room was the large bed in the middle. This bed could easily fit three grown men. With two people, one could even roll around on it freely.
The room was beautiful, but Jiang Xiao truly had no heart to admire it. He scanned the room and, sure enough, there was also a Surveillance Camera in the room. He simply found a cloth and covered it before opening his suitcase.
He hadn’t brought many things. A portable computer, a few game discs with bloody cover art, equipment like cameras and microphones needed for streaming, and a few changes of clothes.
It all fit the identity of a Game Streamer perfectly.
…Who exactly had murderous intent toward him? Was it the Production Team?
The very first card was arranged by the Production Team. It stated that if the Mole was discovered, they would die. But finding the Mole required votes, unless he was voted out…
No, there was another possibility.
What if, among the guests present, there was someone from the Production Team?
Or, it was entirely possible that death didn’t require being voted out; being killed by someone was also completely possible.
But that person, why would he have to kill the Mole? What benefit was it to him?
Jiang Xiao had never seen the other people’s cards, so he could only guess. Maybe their task was to catch the Mole, with a reward of several million or something.
In any case, the logic of this world couldn’t be judged by a normal worldview. What he urgently needed to do now was to probe into the voting situation of the others for the first round.
And confirm he wouldn’t be voted out in the next round.
Just as Jiang Xiao was pondering, a knock came at the door.
He tidied away his suitcase first, then stood up to open the door.
The person outside was Si Lin.
“Lawyer Si, wha… what’s the matter?” Jiang Xiao just felt Si Lin was too perceptive; anything he tried to hide was almost impossible. He nearly stuttered.
Si Lin shook his head, calmly saying, “I just wanted to return something to you.”
Jiang Xiao: “Something… what something?”
Si Lin raised his hand, unbuttoning his cufflink. On his wrist was unmistakably the wristwatch Jiang Xiao had been wearing earlier.
“Oh, this.” Jiang Xiao let Si Lin into the room and smiled. “My stuff doesn’t seem to suit you very well. Sorry you had to wear it for so long.”
“It was nothing.” Si Lin’s eyes were slightly lowered as he took off the watch. The gold chain on his glasses swayed slightly with his movement. Jiang Xiao stared at it for a while, until Si Lin said, “Could you help me take this off?”
Si Lin frowned slightly, trying to undo the Collarbone Chain.
Yet, despite enjoying a very high reputation in the legal world, he was defeated by a simple necklace.
Jiang Xiao said blankly, “Sure.”
The necklace had a bit of a non-mainstream feel. Several thin chains formed an irregular shape. To take it off, Si Lin had even unbuttoned the top few buttons of his shirt collar, revealing his collarbone to make removing the chain easier.
It was probably hard for anyone in the world to see Lawyer Si in such a disheveled state.
Jiang Xiao stood up and leaned over to study it. “Mm… the back got tangled up, that’s why it won’t come off. Just give me a moment.”
Si Lin was silent, just quietly watching Jiang Xiao.
Lawyer Si had probably never worn such a troublesome thing in his life. Dozens of thin chains crisscrossing in total chaos with irregular patterns—it was a rhythm that would drive any perfectionist crazy.
Jiang Xiao’s movements were very careful, untangling it bit by bit. This kind of delicate work couldn’t be rushed, or it would only get messier.
Because the distance was so close, Jiang Xiao could even feel the warm sensation of Si Lin’s breath landing on his collarbone.
Just as he was undoing the necklace, the door was suddenly pushed open. Lu Moxing walked in, carrying his luggage with one hand. He saw that Jiang Xiao’s suitcase was already put away. “So quickly eager to…”
His words came to an abrupt halt at the sight of the intimate pose between him and Si Lin.
