At seven in the evening, the contestants in the four villas were all complaining in the WeChat group.
Contestant A: [We're starving to death, it's instant noodles, instant noodles all day, and they're even on credit from the production team!]
Contestant B: [At least you guys have instant noodles. A grown man like me can't even fill his stomach with two packets of instant noodles per meal. I've already used up the fifty gold coins the production team lent me, and I have no idea what I'll eat tomorrow!]
Contestant C: [Are they trying to kill us by having us participate in a competition?]
Amidst the chatter, someone suddenly said: [I think I'm hallucinating. I smell a very strong hot pot aroma, and it's the spicy kind I like!]
In Villa Four, where Qin He was, she was busy in the open kitchen, wearing an apron.
Di Shishi, who couldn't cook, sat obediently at the counter, her hands propping up her cheeks, looking like a cute, well-behaved baby waiting for food.
Qin He dropped the entire block of mala hot pot base into the pot. The old Chengdu base was a vibrant red, dotted with tiny red chilies.
Seeing Di Shishi looking bored, she decided to prepare the salmon. The salmon was large enough for them to eat today and have some for salads later.
Qin He took a quarter of the fish, sliced it, and arranged it on crushed ice. She then prepared wasabi and soy sauce and brought it to Di Shishi.
"Eat while you wait. I've heard your stomach calling out several times," Qin He said with a smile.
Di Shishi was deeply touched. She picked up a piece with her chopsticks and offered it to Qin He, "Qin He, from now on, you are my goddess!"
Di Shishi already had a youthful face, and when she pouted, she sounded a bit childish and cute, completely different from her usual demeanor of twirling throwing knives like a pen.
Rows of adorably sweet compliments floated across the livestream.
The production team also noticed and began to observe Villa Four more closely.
The strong aroma of hot pot soon attracted many people out of their rooms.
Upon seeing it was Qin He, some people immediately fell silent.
Others, however, were eager to try. After all, the desire for a full stomach could overcome anything.
"Miss Qin, what is this you're making—"
The girl who had lent Qin He instant noodles earlier stepped forward, about to ask a question.
Just then, someone behind them called out.
"Qin He, don't you know the production team's rules? Where did you get so many ingredients, and you're hogging it all yourself?"
Qin He frowned. Di Shishi put down her chopsticks, her fingertips tapping impatiently on the table.
Qin He, calmly slicing beef rolls, said in a cold voice, "We exchanged these with gold coins. If you want to eat, you can earn them yourselves."
"Lies! I overheard the staff talking. Gold coins are incredibly hard to earn. How could you possibly be having a feast like this?"
Qin He's knife was sharp, slicing the beef into evenly thin pieces with no deviation.
Di Shishi stared at the knife in Qin He's hand and let out a cold laugh. She glanced at the two women who were causing trouble.
As expected, it was the same two who had been the most vocal in the crowd earlier.
"Do you have a problem?"
"We're all hungry, and you two are making a feast. Don't you have any sense of unity?" The woman on the left put on a virtuous expression. "Even if you earned gold coins, we should help each other. What's the point of showing off here?"
Qin He: ...Where did this moral crusader come from?
Di Shishi reached out and picked up a small knife from Qin He's side. She twirled it a few times in her hand and turned sideways, looking at the woman askance.
"If we earn gold coins and help each other, what will you do? Sit and wait to die?"
"When we earn them, we will naturally share them with you," the woman said angrily. "You're judging others by your own wicked intentions!"
Qin He watched as the knife in Di Shishi's hand swung faster and faster, knowing that Di Shishi was becoming impatient.
Di Shishi was usually reasonable but disliked people arguing with her using twisted logic.
Qin He put down her chef's knife.
By this time, more than half of the dozen or so people living in the villa had poked their heads out, listening to the commotion.
"Miss, may I ask your name?"
"My name is Fang Ruonan," the woman said haughtily.
Qin He nodded. "Fang Ruonan, what does your family do?"
"My family is the Fang Group from the capital. You must have heard of it?" Fang Ruonan said proudly.
Qin He thought for a moment and smiled, "I know, the Fang family that deals in real estate. Ruofeng Garden was developed by your family."
"Yes," Fang Ruonan replied crisply.
"Miss Fang, look at the world. There are so many beggars, so many people drifting in the capital without homes, and the pressure of paying rent each month is immense. Since your family has developed so many properties, why not help each other out and donate a hundred or so units? What do you think?" Qin He asked with a faint smile.
Fang Ruonan's eyes widened instantly. "Do you think my family is crazy?"
"Exactly, do you think I'm crazy? To try and get some cheap food by morally blackmailing me with your silver tongue? Don't you think it's embarrassing for the Fang family?"
Qin He asked sincerely, tilting her head, "This is being broadcast live to the entire network. Soon, the whole world will know that a young lady from the Fang family is privately lazy, cheap, and takes advantage of others."
"Who are you calling that! It's just a hot pot, who's taking advantage! We're participating in the competition together, isn't it normal to help each other?"
"Then isn't it normal for you to do some charity and give away some houses?" Di Shishi sneered from the side. "We're not even familiar with you, why are you shamelessly trying to freeload?"
Fang Ruonan's face turned from green to purple.
Finally, she gritted her teeth. "The kitchenware is for everyone to use! If you're occupying it, how can others cook?"
Qin He raised an eyebrow. "What do you want to make? Bring the ingredients over and let me see."
Fang Ruonan clenched her fists. The fifty gold coins she had borrowed had already been spent on snacks!
She didn't even have a pack of instant noodles left!
"You've filled the villa with the smell of hot pot," the woman beside Fang Ruonan chimed in.
Qin He let out a cold laugh. The villa's living room was very large, and she had opened the windows for ventilation. There was also a range hood above the hot pot.
The bedrooms were down the corridor, so there was no way the smell could reach them, not to mention it was completely exaggerated.
"What, does the smell make you hungry?" Qin He chuckled. "That's great. Eat your instant noodles while smelling the hot pot. I won't charge you for it."
Fang Ruonan and the other girl stared at Qin He, dumbfounded.
"How could you say that?"
"I'll say it again. If your Fang Group is willing to donate a few hundred units of housing, I wouldn't mind you shamelessly freeloading off my labor," Qin He said, raising her hand. "My assistant has a rather bad temper. It might not be safe for you to stay if you continue to linger."
Di Shishi let out a cold laugh and raised her hand, fixing the small knife she was holding onto a Persian tapestry not far away.
It hit the very center of the round dot in the geometric pattern of the tapestry precisely!
"Violence! You're too violent!" Fang Ruonan grabbed the girl and fled.