Chapter 1392: Chapter 1393: Normal Restaurant

By this point, the other players had realized what Xu Huo and his group were trying to do. Forcing others to vote might be considered cheating, but if the process was open and voluntary, it wouldn’t count as cheating. After all, food voting was never absolutely confidential.

Since that’s the case, going with the flow isn’t out of the question.

Of course, gourmets were steadily coming into the restaurant, and a “Gourmet’s Recommendation” show can’t just happen once. But if repeated, the value of the earlier speech is reduced.

“Should we continue?” 201 asked Xu Huo, “The number might exceed two hundred today, I’m just worried someone might vote repeatedly.”

“No worries.” Xu Huo signaled him to be patient. Before Li Ya came in, he had already planned to use spiritual power to influence the incoming non-players. With proper hints and operations, he could modify the vote content. Even if only thirty or forty out of two hundred voted, it would be enough. If the number was insufficient, he could extend to other players.

The cooperation between 201 and Li Ya greatly reduced the difficulty. Some players were willing to cooperate, so things were looking up.

Xu Huo asked Li Ya for a business card and inquired about some ingredients.

Li Ya picked up on his interest in the dangerous zones and volunteered some information.

“Dangerous zones don’t mean no one visits. Some zones and big companies organize teams to enter for resources within. Ingredients are just one aspect. Rare ores can also be found, though the mining difficulty is high.”

“After all, it’s a dangerous zone. Not just mutant animals, even those mutant plants can flatten a temporary base anytime, so the ingredients from these places are very pricey. Once they’re made into a dish and served, they become even more expensive.”

“The owner of this restaurant must have strong resources.”

It’s not enough to have money; channels are necessary to buy such quality ingredients.

“Which zone are you from?” Xu Huo casually asked.

Li Ya instinctively looked at the people around, but Xu Huo said, “No one can hear us now, just cover your mouth. But don’t lie.”

“E25 Wormhole Point 002 Zone.” Under his gaze, Li Ya uncontrollably told the truth.

Crossed the wormhole point.

A random instance that could open across zones was already quite remarkable. Usually, random instances mostly have ordinary people. Getting so many players in naturally was not afraid of the instance being disrupted.

“Should I continue?” Li Ya cautiously inquired and pointed to the dishes on the table.

“Wait until five,” Xu Huo said, “Then order some other dishes for the evening.”

Li Ya didn’t understand what he meant. When the time came, she still ordered all dishes he asked for, making sure not to repeat those from last time.

Xu Huo explained, “With this opportunity, you should try more.”

Maris and the others didn’t understand what he meant. For safety, they ordered all the dishes to avoid him changing his mind at the last moment.

The players and regular people watching were puzzled. However, most referred to Xu Huo and Li Ya.

After the meal, Xu Huo asked Li Ya for an evaluation of the dishes. Li Ya went on endlessly, commenting on each dish. Then Xu Huo asked which dish she found the best today.

Li Ya thought for a moment and tentatively asked, “Are you asking for the truth?”

“Of course, you’re the professional,” Xu Huo replied.

Feeling somewhat anxious and uncertain, Xu Huo didn’t provide a hint to the correct answer. She worried about choosing incorrectly; not only could she fail the level, but possibly offend someone…

“Don’t overthink it,” Xu Huo comforted her with a smile, “Your greatest value now is selecting the best dish.”

Holding her two companions’ hands, Li Ya gritted her teeth and after a moment said, “If it were me, I think the roasted round beef is the best.”

Xu Huo nodded and then wrote down the dish on paper.

Beside him, Maris, 201, and others sighed with relief, then laughed in small groups, making the same choice.

Voting started, players and non-players walked to the ballot box one after another.

“Did I choose wrong?” Li Ya was a little jumpy, nervously watching the ballot box area, “What if it’s not the best dish?”

“Don’t worry,” Li Kun said, “It’s not about choosing the best, it’s choosing what the gourmet thinks tastes best. Anyway, we chose the roast yesterday. If not, we’ll talk again.”

Even so, it wasn’t enough to soothe everyone’s emotions, especially when the service staff came up and announced closing time, some could not help but cry, constantly seeking help from those around them but not daring to actually approach a player, shrinking weakly in place, seemingly waiting for impending death.

Time quickly reached 8 PM. As the restaurant lights dimmed, Xu Huo received a game notification:

[Congratulations to Passerby A for successfully clearing “Bauhinia Restaurant.”]

Their vision blurred. He, Dai Song, and Li Kun suddenly appeared on a street. Turning back, the restaurant door once by the street had vanished.

“Is this clearing it?” Dai Song was somewhat incredulous, “Just this simple?”

Li Kun looked at him wordlessly, “Did you think it was easy to get so many people to vote for the same dish? If not for coincidentally meeting a gourmet, things wouldn’t have gone so smoothly. Look at how many people came to the restaurant today. The more people, the less likely they are to unite.”

“I just feel…” Dai Song hesitated, yet Xu Huo interrupted, “Feel this clearing lacked skill?”

Dai Song meant this. Usually, instances go to great lengths to set difficulties so players can’t clear them. This instance’s voting process was unusually normal, which made it seem peculiar.

“It’s originally a restaurant, isn’t it normal for guests to select the best taste?” Xu Huo said, “Besides, Bauhinia Restaurant has opened in so many places; it’s a famous gourmet restaurant.”

Normal restaurant?

Having experienced the nighttime restaurant, Dai Song and Li Kun didn’t associate the Bauhinia Restaurant with “normal,” but clearing it was still a good thing.

“Not every instance can be understood from head to toe, don’t set the bar too high,” Li Kun energetically said to Xu Huo, “I know a place that collects these instruments, and they pay very high prices!”

He said as he handed the tickets to Xu Huo, while Dai Song’s face changed drastically, “Are you leaving Zone 023?”

Li Kun wisely remained silent, but as soon as he glanced over, Xu Huo was watching him. Instinctively, he showed a Smiley Face, “My items are still with you, surely I won’t leave ahead. Besides, selling the machine in bulk prevents bargaining.”

Xu Huo smiled without coldness in his eyes, “You possess the most important core parts. Alone, you’d definitely get more than splitting with me.”