The Genius Game - Chapter 6

Jian Tanxi turned toward the sound and saw that Qu Chen had woken up and was crying.

Qu Chen had been knocked unconscious earlier, but it wouldn’t last forever, he was bound to wake up after a few hours.

His mother, Qin Man, had also woken up and was quietly comforting him.

But comfort wasn’t enough; what Qu Chen needed now was food and water.

Zhang Dayong woke up too and asked, “Should we give Xiao Chen some water first?”

Huo Zimu snapped, “No! We haven’t had any yet!”

Li Chuxia exclaimed, “Huo Zimu, what’s wrong with you? You startled me! Xiao Chen is just a child, what’s the harm in giving him a little water?”

Qin Man tried to mediate: “There’s no need to give Xiao Chen water. The more he drinks, the hungrier he’ll feel, and it’ll only make him more uncomfortable. Zhang Dayong, maybe… you should knock him out again?”

Zhang Dayong hesitated. “Knocking him out repeatedly might not be good for him, he’s only six years old. How about this: just let him cry. He’ll cry himself to sleep eventually. It’s not a perfect solution, but it’s the best we have right now.”

Qin Man nodded helplessly, knowing there was no better option at the moment.

Huo Zimu suddenly turned to Qin Man and said, “Aren’t you his mother? From now on, feed him with your own flesh and blood. Then he won’t have to share that half a steamed bun with us. Tomorrow, each of us can have a little more to eat. Cutting off a piece of your flesh won’t kill you.”

Though Huo Zimu’s words were harsh, Qin Man seriously considered the feasibility.

Qin Man replied, “Cutting off flesh isn’t impossible, but we don’t have a knife…”

Huo Zimu retorted, “Can’t you just bite it off? You’re his mother, surely you can endure a little pain?”

Everyone was appalled.

Jian Tanxi countered, “Huo Zimu, how can you say such a thing? Even if Xiao Chen doesn’t share our food tomorrow, each of us will only get a tiny portion, it won’t make much difference. Besides, Xiao Chen has never drunk blood or eaten raw meat. Even if Sister Qin Man were willing to feed him her flesh, he wouldn’t eat it. It would only cause her unnecessary injury.”

By now, after the argument, everyone had either sat up or stood up, no one was lying down anymore.

Huo Zimu paced anxiously back and forth. “No, I’m going to eat my share of tomorrow’s food now! I can’t take it anymore!”

Zhang Dayong stopped him. “No, we must wait until tomorrow to eat!”

Huo Zimu grew increasingly agitated. “I’m eating now! I’m starving to death!”

He rushed toward the hospital bed. The others, afraid he would take all the food, quickly chased after him.

Zhang Dayong was the first to catch up and grabbed him, saying, “Fine, you want to eat your share now? Okay, I’ll break it off for you. But tomorrow, you won’t get anything.”

Huo Zimu snapped, “Deal! Hurry up and give it to me!”

Zhang Dayong broke off a small piece from the remaining half of the steamed bun and handed it to Huo Zimu.

Huo Zimu swallowed it in one bite, his eyes still fixed on the rest of the bun.

Zhang Dayong stuffed the remaining bun back under the pillow, and the others positioned themselves between Huo Zimu and the bed.

Left with no choice, Huo Zimu walked away and sat down by himself.

After a while, he muttered, “There’s no way for all of us to make it through! We’re all going to starve to death! I don’t care, I’m going to eat Professor Pan’s flesh!”

The others said in unison, “No!”

Zhang Dayong said, “If we truly reach a point where there’s no other choice, I’d rather cut my own flesh than Professor Pan’s. He’s elderly and has underlying health issues, he can’t afford any more injuries. Someone like Professor Pan must survive to bring hope to all of humanity. Even though that clown praised my intelligence, I haven’t had much education and can’t contribute much to the group.”

“At least this body of mine hasn’t grown in vain, it can help everyone survive a few more days.”

Li Chuxia looked at Zhang Dayong and said, “Uncle Zhang, we won’t eat your flesh. If we have to eat anyone’s, it’ll be Huo Zimu’s.”

Huo Zimu snapped, “What did you say? Are you looking for death?”

Huo Zimu tried to attack Li Chuxia but was stopped by Jian Tanxi, Zhang Dayong, and Qin Man working together.

Huo Zimu had no choice but to back down, grumbling resentfully, “Fine, ignore me! Then let’s all starve to death together! Qin Man, tell your son to stop crying! It sounds like a funeral dirge!”

Qu Chen had been crying nonstop since earlier.

Qin Man couldn’t calm him down and could only apologize, “I’m sorry. This child can’t speak, and I often don’t know what he’s thinking or how to soothe him. Right now, he’s probably crying because he’s hungry, but there’s nothing I can do about that. Please bear with it, he’ll likely fall asleep once he’s tired from crying.”

Jian Tanxi said, “Sister Qin Man, there’s no need to apologize. We all understand. Not everyone is as heartless as Huo Zimu.”

Huo Zimu retorted, “So you’re all ganging up on me, huh? You low-IQ humans, banding together to ostracize a true genius like me!”

Jian Tanxi looked at him speechlessly. “At a time like this, is arguing about IQ even meaningful? Fine, you have the highest IQ, okay? Then why don’t you come up with a way for all of us to get through this?”

Huo Zimu said, “I’ve already suggested a method, cut a teammate’s flesh to eat, and everyone can survive. But none of you are willing!”

Just then, Qu Chen suddenly started crying even louder, pointing at the clock floating in midair and tugging at Qin Man’s sleeve.

The entire space was a vast expanse of whiteness with no visible walls, making the clock appear as if it were suspended in the air.

Jian Tanxi asked Qin Man, “Sister Qin Man, why does Xiao Chen keep pointing at the clock?”

Qin Man replied, “Perhaps he’s afraid of the sound of the clock… Children with autism are often frightened by loud noises, like the sound of a hairdryer or a drill. Xiao Chen wasn’t originally afraid of clock sounds, but there’s nothing else here, it’s too quiet, and the ticking is very distinct, so it might be scaring him.

He’s tugging at my sleeve, probably hoping I’ll turn the clock off.”

Jian Tanxi said, “I see.”

Then, she patiently explained to Qu Chen, “Xiao Chen, don’t be afraid. That clock won’t hurt you. We can’t turn it off because we need it to tell the time.”

However, Qu Chen likely couldn’t understand such a long explanation. He continued crying and pointing at the clock, even biting Qin Man’s hand and Jian Tanxi’s hand.

Jian Tanxi quickly pulled her hand back, seeing the teeth marks left behind, and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

Qin Man apologized to her, and Jian Tanxi smiled, saying, “It’s fine, it doesn’t hurt much.”

Huo Zimu, sitting to the side, suddenly grew agitated, covering his head with his hands and exclaiming, “Why does this game forbid killing? Why?!”

Li Chuxia said coldly, “To prevent people like you from doing it.”

Although Jian Tanxi was dissatisfied with Huo Zimu, she still explained, “To increase the difficulty of the game. If killing were allowed, the strongest person could easily survive ten days by simply killing their teammates and eating their flesh.”

“If everyone remains alive, resorting to cannibalism becomes highly unlikely because teammates would intervene, just as we are doing now.”

“Requiring everyone to survive to clear the game makes it an almost impossible mission. And precisely because of that, the clown likely finds it more entertaining.”

Li Chuxia murmured, “Entertaining… So, the clown placed all of us in such a desperate situation just for amusement…”

Jian Tanxi replied, “No, that’s just my speculation. Perhaps the clown and those paper cutouts have other motives.”

“Tanxi, what kind of monsters are those paper cutouts?”

“I don’t know either. The only thing certain is that they are no longer ordinary pieces of paper. Maybe we can call them ‘paper people.'”

“Paper people… I wonder if we can burn them to death with fire.”

“Probably not that easy, but we can try next time.”

Just then, the paper clown appeared: “Oh dear, you actually want to burn me? I’m so heartbroken. And here I thought I left you a way out…”

Jian Tanxi suddenly asked, “What way out did you leave? In other words, how can all of us clear the game?”

The clown retorted, “Are you asking directly? That’s cutting corners! The clown doesn’t like lazy people. Figure it out yourselves.”

“You said that the five questions we ask will definitely be answered truthfully. We still have two questions left. The one I just asked was the fourth. Please answer.”

The clown clarified, “What I meant was, if I’m willing to answer, I’ll give a truthful response. But how could I possibly reveal the way to clear the game? This question doesn’t count. You can think of another one.”

Jian Tanxi was about to give up when a sudden idea struck her. She said, “Fine, then our fourth question is…”

Before she could finish, Huo Zimu rushed over and interrupted, addressing the clown, “We won’t ask for now. You can leave!”

Then, frowning at Jian Tanxi, Huo Zimu said, “We only have two questions left. You can’t just ask them directly. It must be discussed and agreed upon by everyone.”

Ignoring him, Jian Tanxi tried to speak, but Huo Zimu covered her mouth.

She pushed his hand away and stepped back, moving out of his reach.

Then, Jian Tanxi turned to Zhang Dayong, the auto mechanic, and asked, “Uncle Zhang, do you trust me?”

Startled by the sudden address, Zhang Dayong replied, “Of course I trust you.”

Jian Tanxi said, “Then, please restrain Huo Zimu. Because I’m going to ask the last two questions.”

Zhang Dayong was even more surprised. “You’re going to use both questions at once?”

“Yes. Do you trust me?”

Zhang Dayong thought for a moment and nodded. “I haven’t had much education and can’t figure out how to clear the game. You’re a college student, young and quick-witted. I trust you.”

Jian Tanxi turned to Qin Man and asked, “Sister Qin Man, I’m going to ask. Do you agree?”

Qin Man nodded. “I have no objections.”

Jian Tanxi then looked at Li Chuxia.

Li Chuxia said straightforwardly, “Tanxi, go ahead and ask. I have no objections either. The chance of all of us surviving is slim anyway, so we might as well try everything we can. Even if the last two questions are wasted, it doesn’t necessarily mean we can’t get out.”

Seeing that everyone agreed, Jian Tanxi gave Zhang Dayong a meaningful look.

Zhang Dayong grabbed Huo Zimu, restraining him so he couldn’t move.

Huo Zimu screamed frantically, “Jian Tanxi! You are not allowed to ask! Do you hear me? I don’t agree with you asking!”

Jian Tanxi glanced at him coldly. “Your opinion doesn’t matter. The minority yields to the majority.”

Then, she turned to the clown and asked, “Is a day here 24 hours?”

The clown replied, “Yes.”

Jian Tanxi continued, “Fifth question: Does passing 24 hours count as a day?”

The clown said, “That’s right, my child. But why are you asking such a foolish question?”