Shocking! The entire court was drooling with envy because of me.

Random skill?

Shen Qing was stunned. The system's previous rewards were either money or houses, and this was the first time that a reward like a random skill had appeared.

That does pique one's curiosity.

But she's participating in a food competition right now. She can't just suddenly go and sell spicy snacks halfway through the competition, can she?

Just as I was wondering, the system's voice suddenly rang out again:

[Ding—Congratulations, host, you have successfully captured the taste buds of all the judges!]

[Ding—Congratulations, host, you have successfully won the approval of many audience members and become the popular champion of the food competition!]

[Given that the host has a 120% chance of winning first place in the fifth stage, and to save time, this system announces that the host has completed the Food Competition task ahead of schedule and successfully unlocked the Auxiliary Management System!]

!!!

If that's the case, then doesn't that mean she doesn't need to participate in the fifth stage of the competition?!

[Yes, host, you can begin the spicy snack task.]

The system's voice remained completely calm.

Upon hearing this, Shen Qing couldn't help but smile.

Being elected by the people is still being number one; indeed, no award is more valuable than the people's word of mouth!

Oh right, she hasn't checked what the unlocked auxiliary management system is yet.

Thinking of this, a blue screen appeared in front of Shen Qing. In addition to the previously unlocked purchasing and recipe modules, a new auxiliary management module had been added.

Taking advantage of the moment when no one was looking, she raised her hand and tapped the auxiliary management module in mid-air.

Instantly, two more blue modules appeared: one for diners and the other for shop conditions.

I opened the Foodie's Guide, but it was completely empty. I have no idea what it's for.

Clicking on the shop details again, this time there was some information.

Zhiweixuan: Popularity score of 3,589 (No. 1 in Ping'an County)

Profit/Loss: Yesterday's profit was 20 taels of silver (cumulative profit of 573 taels of silver).

Diner rating: 5 stars

Upon closer inspection, Shen Qing understood that this was essentially a back-end system that could monitor the store's operations.

That's actually quite nice.

Just then, a loud voice rang out:

"The 100 audience judges have finished tasting the food. In the end, Shen Qing received 100 votes, and Gao Hongyuan received zero votes!!"

"In the fourth stage, Shen Qing advanced, while Gao Hongyuan was eliminated!!"

The host excitedly announced, and the scene erupted in cheers once again.

"All 100 people who went up chose Madam Shen, that's incredible!!"

"Who said this food competition is unfair? It's as fair as it gets!"

"God, I want to try Shen Niangzi's spicy strips too! When will my dream come true?!"

"..."

Gao Hongyuan's face turned as black as the bottom of a pot.

He had thought he might lose, but he never expected to lose so decisively.

One hundred people, not a single one of them chose him!

In particular, he noticed that some of the audience members who went on stage were people he had paid to shout about the unfairness of the situation.

He's already spent money, and he still won't choose him!

Gao Hongyuan glared angrily at the group of people, his fingers clenched tightly, wishing he could rush forward and beat them up.

If there hadn't been so many people around, he would have rushed up and asked them what was going on.

Why did they take his money but then vote for someone else?

"What are you glaring at me for? I've done everything you asked me to do!!" At this moment, a burly man shouted indignantly.

This shout was full of energy and righteous indignation.

"I..." Gao Hongyuan's brows furrowed tightly.

No, why would he say that in public?

"What? I've already shouted that it's unfair, and I didn't take your money for nothing. I earned the chopsticks through my own efforts, and I voted for the spicy strips because they're worth it!!" The rough man's voice grew even louder.

In an instant, all eyes were on them, as if they had heard something extraordinary.

"That Gao Hongyuan bribed someone!! He's the one who caused what happened earlier!" Situ Liang, being so clever, immediately jumped up and shouted.

His voice was no quieter than that of the rough man.

This single stone stirred up a thousand ripples, and soon everyone was discussing it:

"No wonder! No wonder someone suddenly cried out that it was unfair. It turns out it was Gao Hongyuan who planted them! What a despicable act!"

"I'm so damn stupid. Just now, to join in the fun, I actually shouted a couple of times too."

"Me too! I apologize to Madam Shen, and I apologize to the Culinary Competition!"

"Oh, and those rumors from yesterday, I suspect Gao Hongyuan spread them too!"

"..."

The crowd below the stage pointed and whispered at Gao Hongyuan.

Gao Hongyuan's face turned from dark to red, and he wished he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

Was that rough-looking guy deliberately trying to mess with him?

No? He used money!

What to do now? He's still thinking about moving on to the next stage.

Chef Zhu, sitting on the judges' platform, was equally restless.

What can he do?

Gao Hongyuan gave him a large sum of money, and he was planning to take out the Golden Chopstick Token later.

Given the current situation, would he dare to take it out?

"Gao Hongyuan, did you hire someone to slander the competition for being unfair?" Master Jin asked coldly.

His gaze toward Gao Hongyuan was filled with a strong sense of oppression.

He doesn't really mind if the contestants use underhanded tactics in a competition.

As a businessman, he always believed that methods were also a part of strength.

But resorting to such underhanded tactics, damaging the reputation of the food competition, has truly crossed him.

"I...I..."

"I didn't, he's lying."

Gao Hongyuan ultimately dared not admit it.

You should know that this is a culinary competition. The man on stage, Master Jin, is the owner of Jinquelou, the largest and best restaurant in the entire capital, known throughout the land.

If he offends Master Jin, he probably won't be able to work in this industry anymore, and his family's restaurant will likely be finished.

"Nonsense, I also received money, it was him who gave it to me!!" Another person stepped forward.

"Me too!!"

"Me too! Today I'm going to get justice for spicy strips!"

"..."

In a short time, several people who had accepted the money stood up and began to testify against Gao Hongyuan.

These people are all people who have tried the spicy strips.

Although they received the money, the spicy strips were just too delicious.

They simply couldn't bring themselves to lie.

I don't even dare to think about it. If Gao Hongyuan succeeds and Shen Niangzi is eliminated, wouldn't that be the end of us?

I will never have the chance to taste food as delicious as spicy strips again.

"Master Jin, Gao Hongyuan needs to be punished properly, he's affecting the normal progress of the competition!" Fang Shanren jumped up and hurriedly suggested.

"Yeah, someone like that doesn't deserve to participate in a food competition at all!"

"That's right, they should be severely punished!"

"..."

Several judges expressed their opinions.

Chef Zhu was in agony. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said to Master Jin, "Master Jin, we must punish Gao Hongyuan severely, so that the whole world knows what kind of person he is!!"