I'll give my daughter one more second.

Then no one raised their hand. Misaki looked around and nodded slightly: "I see, four to one? Very well, let's begin the Dark Hot Pot Game!"

"Wait! Didn't the four-to-one result fail? Why are we still holding the event?" Wu Shen immediately questioned.

"Hahaha, Wu Shen, you're still too green. Don't you know the saying that truth is always in the hands of the minority?" Misaki laughed heartily.

Wu Shen turned around and immediately gave everyone a look. Then, Nanami, Utaha, and Mashiro all raised their hands. Only Wu Shen remained standing.

"What about now? Isn't the minority the truth? I am the truth now." Wu Shen pointed to himself, intending to turn the tables and thwart the Dark Hotpot's plan.

"Great! Now most people agree! Let's start the Dark Hot Pot game right away!" Misaki clapped her hands and laughed excitedly.

"Wait a minute!" Wu Shen stopped Misaki, who was about to leave immediately. "Didn't you say that the minority represents the truth? Why have you changed your tune?"

"I was just joking at first, but you actually took it seriously. Of course, a vote by show of hands is a majority vote." Misaki blinked, looking like she knew what she was doing.

Huh? I've been tricked like this? Upon hearing this, Wu Shen suddenly realized that he had fallen for a trap.

"Keep talking nonsense." Wu Shen was embarrassed.

What's the difference between this kind of vague, two-sided language and the ambiguous, ridiculous question of "seven monkeys riding in a tree and one monkey on the ground"? Anyway, the right to interpret is in the other party's hands, so they can talk nonsense however they want.

"Please, we're having a rare good time today. Let's all try it out!" Misaki pleaded, clasping her hands together.

In the end, everyone couldn't persuade Misaki otherwise, and since she promised that she wouldn't add anything strange or unusual, they reluctantly agreed to her request so as not to spoil the fun.

Next, everyone took turns going to the kitchen to select one ingredient. They then packed it in an opaque plastic bag and returned to the dimly lit living room with the lights off and only the faint moonlight shining into the room.

Wu Shen deliberately kept his distance, choosing to be the last one to enter the kitchen. He had his own plan.

After discussion, the order in which everyone entered the kitchen was: Misaki, Mashiro, Utaha, Nanami, and finally, Wu Shen. After everyone had finished selecting their items with their plastic bags, Wu Shen entered the kitchen as the last contestant.

Upon entering the kitchen, Wu Shen did not immediately begin selecting ingredients, but instead started observing the interior of the kitchen.

"Hmm... the lamb I put in the refrigerator is gone." Wu Shen recalled the scene before he left the kitchen and compared it with the current situation.

Having a complete grasp of the kitchen's ingredients and seasoning storage conditions is a fundamental skill for any cook. Wu Shen had worked here for a long time before, and he had memorized the locations of many seasonings and food items. Now, Wu Shen was comparing reality with his previous memories to find out what had been touched or taken away.

Wu Shen doesn't consider himself a brilliant detective, but within his own "inherent domain"—the kitchen—his observational skills are absolutely meticulous, perhaps even reaching the level of Sherlock Holmes.

"The leftover boxed tofu on the table is gone." Seeing this, Wu Shen breathed a sigh of relief. The missing ingredients, which were taken by other members, were still within the safe range for hot pot.

"Huh? The strawberry jam on the third shelf of the refrigerator is gone. I knew someone couldn't resist trying their hand at culinary disasters." Wu Shen's lips twitched. He thought he had it all figured out, but this new discovery quickly proved him wrong.

"Putting jam in hot pot, such a 'brilliant' idea, probably only Misaki could come up with it," Wu Shen sighed.

When Misaki suggested the "dark hot pot," Wu Shen probably guessed that she definitely wouldn't be preparing the ingredients properly.

"The others... Strange? Someone didn't choose any ingredients?"

After checking that the strawberry jam was missing, Wu Shen inspected the entire kitchen and found that only three items were missing: tofu, strawberry jam, and lamb. But four people had come in, so how could only three ingredients be missing?

Could it be that I overlooked something? No, that shouldn't be possible. Wu Shen was quite confident in his area of ​​expertise and didn't think he had missed anything.

"If not, then so be it. Maybe someone's trying to snag a bargain." Wu Shen didn't think too much about it and started selecting his ingredients. Now that he had information on the choices of the three people, Wu Shen needed to have corresponding countermeasures.

After deliberating for a while, Wu Shen finally took a cucumber, cut it into about four or five pieces, and put it in a plastic bag.

The reason for choosing this ingredient is that cucumbers, besides being a favorite among women, also have a characteristic in cooking that makes them not particularly easy to absorb flavor using typical short-time cooking and seasoning methods.

Even when making a cold salad, cucumbers need to be lightly pounded, or even crushed, to break down the soft tissue and allow the flavors to penetrate. Furthermore, the refreshing taste of cucumbers can help counteract the unpleasant smells of some other ingredients.

This could be considered a kind of emergency measure by Wu Shen when faced with a dark-colored hot pot.

"Even if I cook cucumbers with strawberry jam, it shouldn't turn into some kind of culinary disaster, right?" Wu Shen thought to himself as he tossed the plastic bag.

Back in the room, Wu Shen took out another hot pot stove, put in the broth, and during this time, he squinted and could barely make out the blurry body outlines that the person standing next to him was Shi Yu. On the inner side, Nanami was holding Mashiro's hand to prevent her from causing any big trouble in the dark.

"Shiyu, what ingredients did you take from the kitchen?" Wu Shen asked quietly, taking the opportunity to ask.

"Isn't the mystery and excitement of a 'dark hot pot' something? I really hope Wu Shen will choose the most delicious food from it," Shi Yu replied, emphasizing the word "most delicious."

After the hot pot broth was prepared, everyone began to put the food they had selected from their plastic bags into it one by one. The space was pitch black; although moonlight shone through, only the blurry outlines of the room could be barely seen.

Wu Shen couldn't see what they put in the water, but he could clearly hear the sound of food falling into the water. Originally, Wu Shen wanted to use this opportunity to find out who was taking advantage of the situation and not selecting the ingredients.

But when it came to Nanami, who was last in line, everyone threw food into the water, making a soft sound as things were thrown into the water.

"Strange? If she didn't take anything from the kitchen, what did she put in? Who is that person?" Although Wu Shen had these questions, he didn't have time to think about it since it was his turn. He stepped forward and put the chopped and washed cucumber into the hot pot.

"Now it's time to taste it!" Misaki clapped her hands, picked up her chopsticks, and took the lead in going to the hot pot.

"To prevent anyone from cheating, we need to stir it first!" Misaki said, stirring the hot pot with her chopsticks to prevent others from cheating by using their memory to pick up the food she threw. Then she quickly picked up a piece of unknown food and put it in her bowl.

Tsk, his cheating method was exposed? It seems Shangjingcao is an expert in this area. Wu Shen couldn't help but click his tongue.

Then others took turns putting food into their bowls. Occasionally, someone would make a faint sound, seemingly surprised by the food they were picking up.

When it was Wu Shen's turn, he took a deep breath. Since his plan had failed, he could only pray that he could draw the safest cucumber, and then he put his chopsticks in.

Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. Based on the feel of the chopsticks, Wu Shen seemed to have picked up a soft, fluffy, and disgusting clump of food.

I always have a feeling that I've drawn the worst possible fortune.

"None of these things, whether it's tofu, strawberry jam, mutton, or cucumber, could have this texture. What the hell is this thing I picked up myself..." Wu Shen wondered, but he had no choice but to put it in his bowl.

It seems that what Wu Shen picked up himself was the last mysterious ingredient that he couldn't find by observing the kitchen. He could have identified it by picking up anything else, but it was this last one.

"This luck is unbelievable," Wu Shen thought to himself.

"I've finished picking the grass from the upper well. Shouldn't we turn on the light and taste it now?" Wu Shen asked.

"Of course, I'm really excited right now. The time to reveal the mystery has finally come!" Misaki's tone was full of eager anticipation.

After Wu Shen finished picking up the ingredients and gestured to Misaki, the lights in the Sakura Dormitory's living room were instantly turned back on. Wu Shen squinted to adjust to the sudden change in light, then looked at the small bowl in his hand.

He was now extremely curious about what the hell he had picked up.

After a few seconds, Wu Shen's eyes adjusted to the light, and he looked into his bowl.

He then discovered that what was lying in the bowl was a pale yellow, fluffy, cotton-like object, with some translucent pinkish mucus clinging to it.

Author's Note:

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Alone in this land of books, a book lover, I yearn for home all the more when tickets are due.

(*/ω＼*)

Chapter 143 Four Lotuses Under One Roof

"This pinkish, sticky liquid must be strawberry jam, right?" Wu Shen guessed. As for the cotton-like substance, Wu Shen picked it up, looked at it, and smelled it, but couldn't figure it out.

What the hell is this thing?

It wasn't any of the ingredients from the kitchen; this must be the mysterious ingredient that the person who didn't take anything from the kitchen put in. To actually run into something with a one-in-five chance—how incredibly unlucky is that?

"Hmm? This is truly an ingredient that matches Wu Shenjun's luck. What kind of indescribable thing did you draw?" Shi Yu looked over and, seeing the fluffy substance that Wu Shenjun was holding with his chopsticks, couldn't help but smile and complain.

"Indescribable... It's not quite time for CEO K to start giving out candy yet, is it?" Wu Shen sighed softly, focusing his attention on Shi Yu. "What about you? What ingredient did you draw? What ingredient did you put in?"

"I'm sorry to disappoint you. It's just ordinary cucumber chunks. I should thank the person who put in such light ingredients." Shi Yu presented the bowl to Wu Shen, which contained a small piece of slightly softened cucumber. "The other ingredient is tofu cut into chunks."

"Then you should thank me. The cucumber was the ingredient I put inside. It was originally for self-defense, but you ended up drawing it." Wu Shen was on the verge of tears.

"Then I thank Wu Shenjun very much." Shi Yu said, lightly rubbing the cucumber strip against her lips.

Hmm...it seems like she's turned into a cucumber stick. How should I put it? If you have a slightly risqué mind, Shiyu's actions can be easily associated with activities like a girl licking an ice pop or eating a banana.

Just as Wu Shen's shameless idea was about to pop into his head, Shi Yu suddenly opened her mouth and ate the cucumber. Because it was already cooked until soft, it didn't make a crisp sound, but the action of carefully chewing it was still noticeable.

Um... never mind. Wish canceled! Wu Shen suddenly felt a chill in his lower body.

After talking with Shiyu, Wu Shen went to confirm the situation of Nanami and Mashiro's pairing.

"What kind of ingredients did you draw? SSR? Or five-star?" Wu Shen asked half-jokingly.

"Wu Shen, are you addicted to mobile games?" Nanami, who knew about this, smiled and teased her, then placed her and Mashiro's bowls in front of her.

"We're both pretty lucky. I'm Tofu. Shiina is Cucumber."

Wu Shen glanced at them and, sure enough, one was tender white tofu, and the other was cucumber chunks, both seemingly only coated with a little strawberry jam. These were the normal ingredients that Shi Yu and he had added.

Wu Shen had to admit once again that he was truly cursed with bad luck, even the results of drawing ingredients from the Dark Hot Pot were so miserable.

"Wu Shen, the ingredients I put in have been selected." At this moment, Mashiro said calmly from the side. Although there was no obvious expression on her cute face and her voice was calm, Wu Shen felt that Mashiro was a little happy for a moment.

"Is this strange, fluffy stuff the food you added, Shiina?" Wu Shen glanced at his bowl and then immediately made a connection.

"This... could it be a bamboo cake?" Wu Shen asked, pointing to the bowl.

"Mmm." Mashiro nodded obediently.

Just as expected. Wu Shen finally understood. No wonder Mashiro didn't choose ingredients from the kitchen; she used the chikuwa cake she brought with her. Wu Shen bought her the chikuwa cake at the supermarket, but in the end, he was the one who got screwed over!

Mashiro has a simple mind. She probably thinks that putting such a delicious chikuwa cake into a delicious hot pot should create something even more delicious.

"Shiina, why did you put chikuwa cake in the hot pot?" Wu Shen asked, following his own guess.

"Cake and hot pot are delicious, but when you combine delicious things, they taste twice as good," Mashiro simply stated her thoughts.

Sure enough... the darkest places are the deepest. Wu Shen sighed inwardly.

"Wu Shen, aren't you going to eat?" Just then, Mashiro looked at Wu Shen with innocent, expectant eyes.

"Don't look at me with such innocent eyes." Wu Shen's gaze shifted slightly.

"Eat, of course we'll eat. How can we not eat what Shiina put in?" Wu Shen was on the verge of tears. Being stared at like that by Mashiro, he was now at his wit's end. Did he have any other choice but to eat?

So he could only pick up the mushy bamboo cake and swallow it in one bite.

The cake and water dipped in strawberry jam tasted like sweet batter. The flavor was passable, not quite a culinary disaster, but it wasn't particularly delicious either.

"Mmm, mmm, it tastes good. As expected of Shiina." Wu Shen could only praise Mashiro insincerely.

"As expected, Wu Shen also likes chikuwa cake. Partner." Mashiro nodded in agreement, feeling a sense of finding a kindred spirit.

"Partner...partner!" Wu Shen managed a few words in response, then immediately returned to the table, picked up a glass of orange juice, and took two gulps to barely get rid of the sticky paste and strawberry flavor in his mouth.

Just then, Misaki skipped over and said, "Why are you at the dining table again? Do you want some weird hot pot again?"

"Of course not. With my unlucky bloodline, one serving is enough." Wu Shen put down the orange juice and looked at Misaki with resentment. "In the end, it's all because you carelessly put strawberry jam into the pot."