Chapter 8: Rule Research

Ding Wenqiang also looked toward Wang Yongxin.

Wang Yongxin seemed somewhat annoyed: "I'm telling you, that's enough. Why are you always targeting me?

"I didn't set the remaining visa time. Does it have anything to do with me whether it's more or less?

"Do you really have to see how much time I have? And if I have a lot of time, what do you plan to do? Are you going to rob the rich?

"Fine, look if you want. I'm just like you—one month."

Wang Yongxin stepped aside, allowing the people next to him to see the vending machine screen, which clearly displayed: [39 days - 12 hours 49 minutes].

Fu Chen hurriedly bowed slightly: "Sorry, Brother Wang."

"Tch." Wang Yongxin grunted and finished his payment.

Being forced to prove himself clearly made him uncomfortable, but he had no choice, as he realized that if he didn't do so, he would soon become the target of everyone's suspicion.

However, this also confirmed to Fu Chen and the others that the base visa time had little to do with the wealth one possessed in their original world; otherwise, Wang Yongxin's time should have been far more than 39 days.

Lin Sizhi returned to the dining table with his rice bowl, and the others also ordered their meals and began to eat.

There were three distinct groups in the hall conversing in low voices.

They were the older pair, Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang; the newspaper editor Jiang He and the civil servant Li Renshu; and finally, Fu Chen and Wang Yongxin.

Needless to say, Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang had already reached a preliminary consensus during their collective denunciation of Wang Yongxin earlier, not to mention their shared background in age and social class.

Fu Chen stayed close to Wang Yongxin, likely realizing the tendency for the group to fracture and wanting to appease him as much as possible.

As for the female duo of Jiang He and Li Renshu, it was quite interesting. Lin Sizhi noticed that it was always Jiang He enthusiastically searching for topics, while Li Renshu merely maintained a polite smile and didn't respond very often.

Aside from these conversations, everyone else ate in silence.

Clearly, most people had not yet established enough mutual trust.

After finishing their meals, everyone placed their tableware in the designated recycling area.

"Huh, there's a kitchen here?" Qin Yao said with some surprise.

She noticed that behind an inconspicuous door on the side of the hall, there was a reasonably spacious kitchen.

It was fully equipped with a sink, gas stove, range hood, and other appliances.

"Oh? Really?" The HR manager Xu Tong and the programmer Cai Zhiyuan were both surprised.

Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang, on the other hand, showed no particular reaction.

"Neither of them chose to buy ingredients; they ordered the cheapest ready-made meal, egg fried rice.

"This means they had already noticed the kitchen but chose not to use it."

Lin Sizhi instantly understood the reason.

People like Su Xiucen and Ding Wenqiang were inevitably far more sensitive to prices than others; it was impossible for them not to have noticed the kitchen.

Yet, they still chose the uneconomical option of egg fried rice.

This was likely because they lacked trust in the others, and a "shared kitchen" could trigger some additional "allocation issues."

On the first day, they wanted to avoid such disputes as much as possible.

However, judging by the price difference between ingredients and ready-made food at the vending machine, it was only a matter of time before everyone started using the kitchen.

For the next half hour or so, everyone was free to do as they pleased.

Some went to the reading area to look at books, while others returned to their rooms to rest.

Afterward, everyone returned to the long table to continue the previous agenda.

Naturally, Fu Chen spoke first.

"We previously summarized the three most urgent issues.

"From the current situation, our discussion should focus on the trial rules of the Promenade, because each of us may be involved in the games, either voluntarily or by force.

"Regardless of whether it's to earn visa time or to survive, figuring out the relevant rules as soon as possible is the most important thing."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Fu Chen looked at the civil servant Li Renshu, the criminal police officer Cao Haichuan, and Lin Sizhi.

"Sister Li, Officer Cao, and Lawyer Lin.

"I believe your professional expertise might provide some constructive suggestions, so during the following discussion, I hope you three can share your opinions more often, okay?"

Cao Haichuan smiled: "No problem."

Fu Chen continued: "The rule introduction on the big screen earlier also stated that all the game rules of the Promenade will be updated on our private computers.

"The private computers are in the study of each of our rooms. I went back to check just now, and the relevant information is indeed there.

"However, items from private rooms are not allowed to be brought out, so I could only transcribe a portion of the game rules to discuss with everyone."

However, before he could finish, the image on the big screen suddenly changed.

[Relevant information being discussed by players detected. Display it?]

Fu Chen was stunned: "Oh? It can do that?

"Display."

As soon as he spoke, a special page appeared on the big screen.

On the left side of the page were entries similar to an encyclopedia, containing the names of many games.

The main part on the right side consisted of long paragraphs of text, detailing the specific rules for each game.

Fu Chen closed his notebook: "It can be queried directly on the big screen... I did all that work for nothing.

"The content everyone sees now is consistent with what I found on my private computer.

"All games, or trials, that have been completed in the Promenade can be viewed in detail with their rules on this website.

"At the same time, we can pay to unlock more information about these games. For example, what the final outcome of the game was.

"If you don't believe me, you can verify it on your own private computers later."

Everyone first looked at the game names on the left side of the page.

『Needle Jumpers』.

『Weapon Residual Chess』.

『Redemption Roulette』.

...

A rough scan showed over twenty entries.

Lin Sizhi saw the game he designed, 『Redemption Roulette』. It was roughly in the middle of all the entries and didn't look particularly conspicuous.

But immediately after, Fu Chen's words made his expression stiffen.

"Among these games, the rules for each one are worth studying.

"However, I think the highest priority is 『Redemption Roulette』.

"Because this is the only game among all of them currently rated as S-rank."

As Fu Chen spoke, the page on the big screen automatically switched to the content for 『Redemption Roulette』.

The relevant game rules were clearly listed.

However, Lin Sizhi noticed that it only contained the basic rules; there was no mention of Wei Xinjian's criminal file, nor the specific process and results of the game's execution.

If one wanted to view the remaining information, they would need to 『Pay to Unlock』.

The price was 24 hours of visa time.

It wasn't an unreachable price, but it would certainly make one's heart ache.

The hall became quiet as everyone carefully read the rules for 『Redemption Roulette』.

Lin Sizhi had no choice but to pretend he was seeing it for the first time, reading while lost in thought.

Once most people had finished reading the rules, Fu Chen said: "What does everyone think of this only S-ranked game?"

The programmer Cai Zhiyuan frowned, clearly puzzled.

"Can I share my thoughts first?"

Fu Chen nodded: "Of course."

Cai Zhiyuan gathered his thoughts and said: "I completely don't understand why this game could get an S-rank.

"This seems to be the highest rating, right?

"But in my opinion, calculating the survival probability of this game from the perspective of reason, logic, and probability, it is incredibly high.

"If I were to play it, the final result would most likely be me coming out unscathed."