Chapter 1286: Only One Piece of Meat Away from Victory
The beach fell silent for a few seconds. Senping leaned close to Greene and whispered a few words to her. Then, the pregnant woman spoke, "I need to make a decision now, or can I think about it first?"
From the expressions of the people, it seemed that, except for Ji Shanqing, no one thought this question was a big deal—anyone would need to think about it, right? However, when Lin Sanjiu glanced at the grand prize, she noticed him smiling bitterly and whispered, "Oh dear, this is not good."
"You can think about it first," the chef said as he bent over to pick up a piece of meat. His round bottom wobbled behind the grill, and his voice came from below, "I'll start roasting, but once it's on your plate, you can't throw it away."
With those words, the chef's response practically helped Senping complete his alliance. Everyone realized the significance of Greene's question without Senping having to explain it further. Even Ito couldn't help but curse, "What a cunning guy!"
The chef had stated that a person couldn't consecutively collect two 'chances' of meat. However, he didn't say someone couldn't consecutively collect two 'pieces' of meat. Though it was just a one-word difference, it had a world of difference in meaning.
During the previous test, Li Xing and Ge could continue collecting meat in the next round because two people simultaneously stood on the marker, invalidating the entire round. However, if only one person stood on the marker, the round wouldn't be invalidated since it complied with the rules. But if Greene had decided to throw away the meat just before it arrived, that unfortunate person couldn't continue standing on the marker and had to wait for the next piece of meat.
Thinking about it this way, would Greene throw away her ally's meat?
"I'll join," the previously quiet woman suddenly shouted, walking quickly towards Senping's group. She looked to be in her early thirties, wearing an ordinary short-sleeved shirt and jeans, but she gave the impression that she should be wearing an apron. Amidst the diverse and unique women in the doomsday, it was rare to see someone like her, as if she felt something was missing without holding a child or carrying a ladle. She always looked absent-minded, living one day at a time.
"We still need two more people," Senping shouted, his gaze shifting to Lin Sanjiu's group.
Ito seemed like he had swallowed a pack of roundworms. He paced around anxiously, sweat forming on his forehead. He wanted to join the side with the advantage, but the grand prize's earlier reminder made him feel like a thirsty person looking at the sea, anxious but powerless.
"Count me in, too," Crane immediately shouted.
"Okay, what about you guys?" Senping called out to the small group on the other side.
The young man hesitated for a while and then waved his hand. Ji Shanqing looked around but didn't answer. Suddenly, he noticed another person standing not far away on the beach, silent like a ghost—"Huh? Why aren't you going over?"
The eleventh villa owner, the man with a gray face that looked as if it had been smeared with lead, stood there like a ghost in the night, easy to overlook if one wasn't paying attention.
"I won't go," he said, seeming like he wanted to smile, but the smile didn't reach his face and quickly faded away. "I think you guys shouldn't go either."
Senping didn't expect to be one ally short. However, he appeared calm, nodding and averting his gaze. It was the other six people who kept glancing at Lin Sanjiu and her group.
After Li Xing left, Ge quickly stepped onto the yellow marker without hesitation. At Senping's command, the other five formed a human wall around the yellow marker, effectively preventing the other four villa owners and their items from getting close. Their intention was clear: no one else could approach the yellow marker before they gathered four pieces of meat.
"What should we do now?" The young man started to panic, unable to stand still as he walked a few steps. "How can we get the meat now?"
Ji Shanqing, on the other hand, showed no signs of urgency. He even grabbed Lin Sanjiu's hand and found a spot where they could see everyone clearly as if they were preparing to watch a show. The other three villa owners followed suit. For a moment, the beach seemed to form two opposing factions, one large and one small.
"He knows how to win," Ji Shanqing said nonchalantly. "Let's see how he ensures everyone gets the same roasted meat and learns from it."
"Done roasting!" At this moment, the chef lifted a lamb leg high and exclaimed, "Here you go!"
Although no one could clearly see Ge's expression, they could all see the plate in his hand. In the previous round, he had gotten a lamb leg and a beef rib, and now he had another lamb leg. When he turned around, his excitement almost burst out. He stretched out his hand from mid-air and patted Senping on the shoulder, saying, "Here's yours!"
"He really knows!" Ito straightened his back and exclaimed, "Two consecutive people have collected two pieces of meat each!"
Ji Shanqing glanced at him expressionlessly, and Ito immediately retorted, "Then tell me, how do you explain this?"
"It's a long story," the grand prize mumbled quietly, leaning against his sister.
Based on Lin Sanjiu's previous observation, she felt that even Senping didn't expect Ge to collect two lamb legs. However, that trace of surprise disappeared from Senping's face instantly. He turned to Li Xing and instructed, "Eat your lamb leg."
"Eh? What if the next piece is also a lamb leg...?"
Senping didn't show any impatience as he explained, "If you collect two chicken sausages and two lamb legs, a total of four pieces of meat, you won't be able to collect the fifth. So, no matter what, you have to split them into pairs. Eating the lamb leg now doesn't cause any loss, right?"
Li Xing exclaimed, "Oh," and picked up the lamb leg to eat.
Ji Shanqing stood up slightly and smiled at the other camp, saying, "Tall guy and Li Xing each collected a pair. Now, tell me, why didn't Senping ask the tall guy to eat the remaining beef rib but instead ask Li Xing to eat the remaining lamb leg?"
He didn't conceal his words, and his clear voice reached the other camp's ears, making several people turn to look. The dark-skinned woman thought momentarily before answering, "Then, why do you think he did that?"
At this moment, the chef removed another piece of meat from the bag and placed it on the grill. He seemed completely indifferent to their discussion. Senping glanced over, deep in thought.
"I actually guessed what he's planning," Ji Shanqing whispered in Lin Sanjiu's ear during the explanation. Even the gray-faced man, the young man, and Ito had to crouch down and press their ears to the back of their heads to hear the rough idea.
"At present, we haven't seen three or four consecutive appearances of the same roasted meat, right? In fact, if we include the invalidated round, there have been 26 roasted meat, and only two times did the same meat appear in consecutive rounds. There have also been two instances where different meat appeared in between, like lamb, chicken, lamb... These two situations each account for one-thirteenth of the total occurrences. Apart from these, there's a cycle of four different roasted meats repeating."
Everyone except Lin Sanjiu looked somewhat surprised. The gray-faced man even questioned, "Do you remember what roasted meat has been cooked every time until now?"
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