Chapter 336

"That depends on whether they pay attention to you or not."

Ignoring the sarcastic remarks behind him, Wan Heng stopped beside Heloise, who was closest to him. His eyes, which had been strained to see Heloise's privacy-mode Optical Brain, were finally focused on her. Considering they were old friends, despite their frequent interactions during holidays, he decided to give her some face in public and directly inquired, "Heloise, I've been curious for a long time. What's on your Optical Brain that you've been watching? Did you, or someone else, make a plan?"

Wan Heng deliberately didn't muffle his voice; he was practically blasting it over everyone's ears.

Heloise immediately noticed the gazes coming from all directions. She temporarily looked away from her personal Optical Brain screen, rolled her eyes at Wan Heng's overtly obvious little gesture, and said in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, "What are you pretending for?"

Heloise's opening remarks were laced with hostility, showing no respect whatsoever. Under the watchful eyes of those around them, Wan Heng's voice softened slightly. "Do you really need to..."

"Didn't you just activate your Optical Brain 37 times?" Heloise scoffed, interrupting Wan Heng and throwing the question back at him. "Weren't you waiting too? Do you need to ask me?"

After saying that, Heloise turned and left, intending to go somewhere else.

Although, based on Wan Heng's character and status in the council, and considering his occasional suspicious staring at other people's Optical Brain, she guessed that Wan Heng 'Wan Heng reasons for looking at Optical Brain were likely different from most people here, Wan Heng's loud question to her was probably an attempt to trick her into revealing information. Since she was hiding a secret that others hadn't publicly discussed but were likely sharing, it was easy for her to offend people. It was clearly a trap being set for her, so she naturally didn't need to be polite.

"?" Looking at Heloise's retreating figure, Wan Heng was speechless with a head full of question marks.

Wasn't he just imitating out of curiosity and to avoid feeling ostracized and losing face? How could he know what they were waiting for!

Cursing under his breath, Wan Heng forced a stiff smile. He knew nothing, but in front of others, he pretended to know everything to save face. He was just trying to set a trap for Heloise, only to be seen through by her.

Seeing that Wan Heng made a fool of himself, the gazes that had been fixed on him gradually withdrew.

Wan Heng glanced around, the smile on his face gradually fading. Then, seeing a new face in the council not far away, his confidence swelled again, and he decisively strode over.

Xuan Jingxi, who had been keeping a close eye on everything, caught a glimpse of Wan Heng's expression out of the Optical Brain. She looked away from her personal terminal and towards the four people talking not far ahead. They immediately understood what was happening when they met Xuan Jingxi's gaze and stepped towards her.

Wan Heng had only taken two steps when he saw the people suddenly surrounding Xuan Jingxi and their attitude towards Xuan Jingxi. He realized that although the other party's face was new, they were probably not someone he could lose face with. He immediately stopped, his eyes still searching for other targets on the scene.

Wan Heng's interruption seemed to break the silence that had been building up for so long. Some people who were genuinely puzzled by the behavior of the group that frequently checked the Optical Brain couldn't help but gossip, while others probed each other.

"I recognized him in his eyes; after all these years, he's still as foolish yet beautiful."

"What good is a good-looking appearance? Once his parents are gone, he won't even be able to get through the gate here."

"You've all seen it. I don't check the Optical Brain as often as they do, and I don't see it on yours either. So let's be on the same side in this matter. Aren't you curious about what they're doing?"

"Of course I'm curious, but we can't pry them open up. What's the use of curiosity? I suspect they've formed some kind of alliance behind our backs."

"What a joke! Didn't you see that many of those families are constantly fighting and killing each other, with feuds spanning generations and lives involved? Do you believe they can shake hands and make peace, or do you believe I am Qin Su?"

"... If you don't believe me, please don't try to slip in your own agenda, thank you."

"What good are more lives? They mean nothing in the face of profit. I seriously doubt if they've truly formed an alliance of interests. None of them look serious or solemn now; perhaps they're battling it out over who to choose from among the presidential candidates? They number so many, taking up a full four-fifths of our area—clearly they're not including us. When Patrick passed by, he seemed to be in good spirits; could it be that he's managed to win them over? So? Are they torn between Patrick and He Muzhi?"

"Did you eat the others? Can you please not make reservations until the last minute? What if there's an upset?"

"Patrick has experience serving as president for two terms. For Qin Su, He Muzhi is the most special person in Class 6. What can the others compare to? However... Patrick has always had a good relationship with this group of people, but Qin Su hasn't even shown his face yet. No wonder that group of people are so conflicted. I would be in a dilemma too."

"What a pipe dream! Can't you see they don't even have the right to get involved?"

As the nine o'clock meeting time drew closer, many people, though still trying to control their emotions, were noticeably more anxious than before, especially with the voices around them deliberately amplified and the eyes fixed on them, which further affected their mindset.

After her own people surrounded her to block the prying eyes of others, Xuan Jingxi continued to stare silently at the Optical Brain screen.

Even now, though no one else present has mentioned their relationship with Qin Su, judging from their frequent use of the Optical Brain during this special time, she thinks they all implicitly acknowledge that the others are connected to Qin Su to some extent. They also understand that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, they are likely waiting for Qin Su to give them some kind of instruction regarding this election.

"There are still a little over three minutes left. Someone has already come over to let us in. Did he forget... to come?"

Hearing her companion's voice, which was trying hard to restrain but still couldn't hide the excitement, Xuan Jingxi, whose personal terminal had been on the Optical Brain, also saw the content displayed in front of her at the same time. Her pupils contracted briefly, and while she understood her companion's excitement, she stared at the words on the screen in a deafening silence, quickly forming a question mark in her mind, and then looked quickly at the others.

[Ahhh, I knew it! I saw my family members, it really is our dorm!]

[Although I'd occasionally seen them receive messages from Qin Su before, I was shocked when I started counting them. There are so many people in the council connected to Boss Su! I'm so happy, everyone!]

[I'm guessing Qin Su will order them to directly elect me, Mu Bao, and we're about to witness the historic moment when Mu Bao wins by an overwhelming margin and becomes president (fireworks)]

[No way, what are the others in Class 6? Clowns? Be careful not to accidentally send your own idol to his doom by opening champagne in advance.]

[Am I the only one who wants to see King Su parachuted into the presidential candidate pool and order everyone to choose him?]

[Dream on! How could God Su linger in a Comic World? Would you linger in a game world? Would you want to stay in it forever? A game is just a game. A 'god' who plays games only treats them as entertainment. Who ever sees a game as their life?]

At the same time, upon receiving the familiar notification from their Optical Brain, countless people relaxed involuntarily. Their first reaction was not to check what message their Optical Brain had received, but to immediately look at the reactions of others around them, trying to judge from their expressions whether the messages they had received were the same as their own.

Many people who received the notification from the Optical Brain had a sudden realization: they looked at each other, then quickly looked away, their gazes sweeping over those who were looking at them with no apparent change in expression but with a puzzled look.

Many people quickly scanned the area, suppressing their excitement as they checked the still-fresh news.

Seeing Qin Su's familiar Optical Brain ID, they relaxed even more, sighing inwardly that it had been so hard-won, they had finally waited for this moment, and thankfully they hadn't given up, they no longer had to worry...

"?"

Less than a second had passed, and before the sighs in everyone's hearts could even settle, those who had scanned Qin Su's message in the blink of an eye showed puzzled expressions and quickly did something almost identical to Xuan Jingxi's.

The group of people who had met each other's eyes again silently looked away, staring at each other in an eerie silence over the four simple words "do as you please" on the Optical Brain screen.

"..."

Good news! They exchanged glances and realized they had most likely received the same message.

Bad news! Can someone please ask Qin Su to explain what "doing what one pleases" really means?! Seriously? They don't want to take it literally and make choices that don't please Qin Su, only to be punished later!

The group thought that once they received Qin Su's message, they wouldn't have to worry anymore. However, reality slapped them in the face. Before receiving Qin Su's message, they remained silent, simply waiting for Qin Su to tell them what to do and to carry out Qin Su orders. After receiving Qin Su's message, they were completely bewildered and increasingly unsure of Qin Su's intentions.

[Don't even mention them, who wouldn't be confused by this?]

[They're really implying that Qin Su is playing them... no, he's playing us along with them, isn't he!]

[The sky has fallen, shouldn't they be ordered to choose He Muzhi?]

[You're hopeless, haha]

[Am I the only one who really likes this decision? It really respects everyone in Class 6. But it also proves that He Muzhi is on the same level as the others in Class 6. Qin Su doesn't even bother to give him special treatment anymore.]

[But He Muzhi still benefited from the bonuses for a long time.]

Xuan Jingxi: "... Let's go in."

Judging from everyone's status, the messages they received should be no different from hers.

The others were in a daze, but they didn't forget the time and entered the council chamber one after another.

Wan Heng and the others had been keeping a close eye on Heloise and her group, taking in their strange behavior. At this moment, they were just as puzzled as the others.

"Can someone tell them what's going on? What's with that constipated look on their faces? Did they secretly form an alliance behind our backs and just hold an anonymous vote to elect someone who isn't either Patrick or He Muzhi as president?"

"That should be it, otherwise they wouldn't all be acting like they'd eaten shit. It seems there's some disharmony among them."

"I bet when they were voting privately, they were all thinking that everyone else would either choose He Muzhi or Patrick, and that it wouldn't matter if they voted for someone else. I didn't expect they were thinking the same thing~ It's a pity that the official voting will be made public after the brief period of anonymity, otherwise I would have had to choose someone who has nothing to do with me and is an eyesore."

"Aren't you deliberately causing trouble?"

"So what? In this situation, neither He Muzhi nor Patrick are involved, so we might as well go crazy."

"Don't you find the scenario of a group of people receiving messages at the same time familiar? Doesn't it remind you of anyone?"

"I knock, Qin cough cough cough... you mean him?!"

"I'm just guessing. They all received threats from him at the same time, forcing them to choose someone who wasn't He Muzhi, Patrick, or even anyone from Class 6? After all, it wouldn't be surprising if he made them choose He Muzhi, would it?"

"Tsk tsk tsk, if that's really the case, things will get interesting."

"Heh heh, things are getting interesting. An alliance that's already fighting amongst itself before it's even really started doesn't seem like there's any point in joining."

Compared to Heloise and others whose brows were furrowed so deeply they could trap flies, Wan Heng and the others, who had to accept the fact that they were excluded, seemed to walk lightly and look relaxed, not caring about anything. In reality, they cared a lot, but had no choice but to pretend to be indifferent and nonchalant.

Qin Su, who was secretly observing, shamelessly took in the indescribable expressions on everyone's faces. While thinking to himself, "Sorry, but there's nothing I can do, I'm just a fickle man," he skillfully opened a new spreadsheet, preparing to record in detail the performance of each council member during the meeting, so as to compare it with the previous records and verify whether his previous judgment of them was wrong.

The presidential candidates, who had entered the parliamentary hall early, noticed the distinct differences in the expressions on the faces of the entering members of parliament and began to have doubts.

Half an hour ago, when they passed by the members of parliament, their demeanor was clearly the opposite of what it is now.